 For the Birds - Look, Listen, Report
Hawk watching on Bradbury Mountain continues through May 15.
Birds are our constant companions, whether they stay year-round or migrate and return. Every season provides opportunity to listen or look for birds. My observations just this week include:
- The return of hummingbirds - as they do on or about May 1 each year - but always so exciting!
- Turkeys making daily rounds through the woods to scratch for bugs and seeds, the males fanning their magnificent tail feathers and strutting for females, or puffing up to warn other males off.
- Phoebes paired up and build nests.
- Robins displaying their characteristic short sprint, quick stop, and a tilt of the head to listen before a quick grab of a worm.
- Turkey vultures soaring overhead.
- Hawks cruising the woods and wood margins in search of prey.
- Ducks on the pond... but I'm still awaiting the first loon call of the season.
- The dawn chorus is more diverse and vibrant with each new day!
Celebrate the season and our feathered friends. Here are some bird watching opportunities, and a research project that could benefit from your bird observations:
Visit the Hawk Watch atop Bradbury Mountain. It continues daily through March 15, 9:00 a.m. to 5:00 p.m. at Bradbury Mountain State Park, 528 Hallowell Road, Pownal, ME. The daily count records are available online.
View the nesting osprey at Wolfe's Neck Woods State Park, 426 Wolf Neck Road, Freeport, ME. Take the White Pines trail to the lookout stop across from Googins Island. (Photo by Jim Knox.)
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The Maine Bird Atlas is in its final year and is calling on everyone with an interest in birds - you do not need to be an expert - to help by recording their bird sightings. Begin today with the Quick Start Guide.
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