Category Archives: Cape Cod

Halibut Point Feathered Friends

American Black Duck, birds, Cape Cod, Ducks, Eider ducks, Great Scaup, Halibut Point, Harlequin Duck, Long Tail Duck, Loon, massachusetts, New England, Rockport, scoter, Seal, , , , , , , , , , , ,
Two Fridays back, Yang and I happened to be on the North Shore, so we stayed overnight in order to make an early visit to Halibut Point State Park.  We’d been meaning to get there since November, after hearing about all the cool water fowl hanging out there.  Unfortunately, the opportunity hadn’t come up before this.  So, after our breakfast of bagels and cream cheese (yum!), we headed out to the state park.  We were not disappointed.  In the quarry, we spotted a Scaup, Black Ducks, and Mallards.  When we headed for the ocean, we got an even bigger treat.  Here you see me peering out at the ocean’s wonderland – or wonderwater- of ducks. Isn’t that point beautiful?

At first, we  saw only a couple of pairs of Harlequin Ducks, looking absolutely adorable.  All the FB bird groups to which I belonged extolled the plenitude of Harlequins out here.  So, we were happy to spot this couple chilling along.

 

 

 

 

Mrs. Harley seems to be finding a snack while her husband looks on.

Neat as this sighting was, things got MUCH better.  Looking all around and out to sea, we saw flocks of Harlequins diving, chilling, and looking good.  There were so many that we couldn’t always get them all in one picture.  I would say we saw several flocks ranging from 9-15 Harlequins.  And that’s not counting the friendly-neighbor Long-tail Ducks who joined the party.  Counting the ducks was never easy, because, all of a sudden, the whole kit and kaboodle would take a dive on a hunt for food.  So, Yang had to time his shots carefully to catch them.  I guess it’s true that these ducks love rough waters, because that’s exactly what they got here and in the other place we saw them, Sachuest Point, RI.  This was the biggest contingent of Harleys that I had seen. Though the ducks are hard to pick out in these pictures, if you just click on them you will get a better look.

Then we saw this Loon way off above the group of Harlequins.  It’s the white figure in the upper left corner.

Wouldn’t you know, we also saw plenty of flocks of Scoters. 

 

 

 

Here’s a closeup of a female Scoter.  I believe these are all Black Scoters.

 

 

When we moved onto the harbor at Rockport, Yang also got a shot of a male Eider Duck.  Usually we see big flocks of these guys, especially at Cape Cod (check out this older blog).  Today, we saw this guy all by his lonesome.

 

 

 

 

Then, finally, what should we espy on the other side of the point in the harbor in Rockport?  We thought we it was a brown female eider – except, Yang said that once the critter dived  he could see her  walking under water.  Huh?  Then “she” came up.

 

Yup, a seal!  So I hope this critter can be a “seal” of approval for today’s blog.

 

 

Return of the Eiders, or You Get Down from a Duck

Cape Cod, Ducks, Eider ducks, hooded merganser, massachusetts, mergansers, Nature, New England, winter, , , , ,
Every year, Yang and I make a pilgrimage to the Cape to check out the migrating ducks.  Usually we make the trip in mid-January or early February, not far from my birthday.  This year, we went on January 15th, and we weren’t disappointed.  We saw ruddy ducks, hooded and rust-breasted mergansers, a red-throated loon, swans, etc.  However, at first I was a little let down because I didn’t see the annual flock of eiders bobbing on ocean waves.  That  disappointment disappeared as we moved further along the beach trail.
Yang and I saw some dark specks floating on rough seas not far from a jetty.  The sun was in our eyes at first, so even with binoculars, we weren’t sure what we were seeing.  Then, we got out to a place with better lighting, and there they were:  my pals the eider ducks!  I’m not sure if we are going to that jetty to see them  every year or if they’re returning to get a peek at us!  Anyway, it was a delight to watch them  carried up and down by the waves, even swimming into a little cove of the jetty.  As you can see, we were able to get pretty close.
A couple of duck were giving us the once over in these shots!  Right in the center of the picture.

Especially interesting, I had never noticed that the males have a white stripe down the back of the black feathers on their heads.  I’d also never noticed  the greenish/yellowish/grey patch at the bottom of that black cap, either.  Click on the photos here to get a closer look.  Every year it’s something new.  Do you think they noticed something different about Yang and I this year?
Significance of the subtitle:  Remember the old joke?  “How do you get down from and elephant?  You don’t.  You get down from a duck.”  Eider down, right?

 

Enjoy the ducks in motion:

Duck, Duck, Horned Grebe – and a Loon!

Cape Cod, Eider ducks, golden eye duck, hooded merganser, horned grebe, Loon, massachusetts, mergansers, Nature, New England, Rocky Neck State Park, winter, , , , , , , ,
January and February have become a tradition for us to go bird watching for ducks, geese, and other aquatic birds.  This year has been an exceptionally good one for such adventures.  We always head to the Cape and the Shining Sea Trail around my birthday for one of our biggest forays.  This year we were not disappointed.  Once more, we saw a large flock of Eider Ducks rafting on the rough January seas.  The weather was so cold one of my knees started to seize up!  Nevertheless, we saw a large flock that included the brown females, mature males startling in their contrast of black and white feathers, and the juvenile males that tended to a gradual graying into white in a less striking contrast.  Did you ever notice that Eiders have a beak reminiscent of Bob Hope’s ski-slope schnozz – no disrespect to Eiders.
Swimming separately in the same bay were other interesting aquatic birds.  Here are a pair of Common Golden Eyes.  I thought they were Ring-Necked Ducks at first; but, no, they are Golden Eyes.    Anyway, they were fun to watch surfing the waves, diving for lunch, and popping up goodness knows where.  We also had the good fortune to catch sight of a Horned Grebe.  I can’t remember the last time I saw one.  He also was a little charmer with his unexpected dives and equally surprising reappearances.  I hope these guys caught some snacks – pace to the Atlantic fish.
We scooted over to a pond in Falmouth and got a gander (sorry, couldn’t resist) at some Canada Geese, Hooded Mergansers, and a Swan.  Here’s a group shot.
Here’s a flotilla of Hooded Mergansers. Just click on the photo to get a clearer view.

Our next adventure was at the Charles River in Needham Heights, where we saw not only Mallards but the Common Merganser.  This guy was so beautiful, with his green/black head and contrasting pure white chest and underside.  Also on display were more Hooded Mergansers.  I love to watch these guys.  Where the other ducks and geese serenely loiter across the waters, these guys surge along like mini speed boats, white crests proclaiming their presence!

 

Third stop:  Rocky Neck, Ct.  Here we saw quite a few interesting water birds.  Once again, the proud and speedy little Hooded Mergansers powered their way across the marsh water.  We also saw several other types of birds as well.  There were Gadwall Ducks, Blue Herons,  gulls and even a Common Loon.  The Loon was not in this same marsh, but in the ocean, in a cove by the jetty.  Many of these critters were pointed out to us by two lovely people who were also birding fans.  Thanks to their kind advice!  Check out some of the images below.
A closeup of the Hooded Merganser.

The Gadwall Ducks.
                                 The  Loon

 

Who you lookin’ at?

A different type of Loon. The Sharon Bird on her migratory peregrinations in search of feathered friends at the beach.  Note the winter plumage.

Spring Birds Are Back!

Baltimore Oriole, birds, Cape Cod, catbirds, caterpillars, Nature, New England, redwinged blackbird, robins, rosebreasted grosbeak, summer, Wild turkey, wood peckers, Yellow Warbler, , , , , , , , , , , ,

I’ve had the pleasure of many wonderful bird sightings since spring began.  Some are old friends, and at least one is a new addition.  Because I don’t have a fancy camera and the birds are too shy to let me get close enough or they don’t stay still long enough for me to get a good shot, some of these pictures aren’t the best and some I had to find online – but I hope you enjoy hearing about what I’ve been seeing lately.

 

One of the first signs of spring was the return of my friends, the Red-winged Blackbirds.  They’re usually the first to arrive, so I’ve been seeing them  March 6th.  They even stuck it out through our April torture by snow.  I’ve seen several males and also several females.  I guess these folks must find my feeders quite the congenial place.

 

In April, I was further delighted by the return of the Rose-breasted Grosbeaks.  Interestingly enough, my first sighting this year was almost exactly the same date as my sighting last year.  This year, we have at least one male and one female – it’s hard to tell if I’m seeing the same or different ones every time.  Happily, even as we move through June, I still see these beauties every day.  Please forgive the fuzziness in some of the pictures.  It’s rather hard to compensate for the pattern-effect of my window screens.

 

 

 

 

 

Also back once more is our buddy from last year, turkey Raymond Burrd – though I have since figured out that “he” is a “she.”  Still, if there can be gals called Micheal, Jamie, and Ashley, having one named Raymond shouldn’t be any problem.  It’s the twenty-first century, folks.  Get over it!  She has shown up every day, sometimes more than once a day for over a week now – starting 6/4.  She’s pretty friendly – not that she’s asking me to tea or anything, but she doesn’t startle and run away or threaten me when I have to walk past her for one reason or another.  If I’m enraptured in reading, she’ll wander by quite close without turning a feather.  My neighbor said he thought she was going to hop into my lap the other day!  Although Natasha was howling out the window at Raymond in the beginning, she and Rosalind have settled down to a minor glance in the turkey’s direction while looking daggers and claws at chipmunks and morning doves.

 

We were not able to use the front porch for a while because the Robins would shout up a storm at us – they had built a nest in a rhododendron surprisingly close to one of the porch columns.  It was so surprisingly close that I happened to glance down and was shocked to see two young, speckled robins checking me out from a nest.  Needless to say, the flowers on the front steps went thirsty for awhile.  After some time, no Robins could be heard squawking in the rhododendron, so I checked and noted there were no kids in the nest or parents around.  Fledging must have occurred, and the parents probably figure they’d move to a neighborhood with less traffic for their next clutch.  That’s why I was able to take these pictures.

 

We also had a Baltimore Oriole visiting our yard.  I had heard him for some time, then found him sitting in the juniper bush outside my bedroom window.  I ran to get my camera, but he’d taken off when I got back.  I have seen him in the high trees in my backyard and hear him as well.  In fact, I’ve had lots of Oriole and Yellow Warbler sightings.  We saw both types of birds at the Blackstone River Trail and I later had about six sightings of as many as two Orioles at a time by the Quinnebaug River in Putman, Ct.  There were also plenty of Yellow Warblers, too.  I wonder if the plentitude  of Orioles has anything to do with the large number of Gypsy Moth Caterpillars invading New England now.  I could hear the caterpillars in the trees by the Q. River – I’m too delicate to tell you what I’ve been informed that I was hearing the caterpillars doing.  Let’s just say I was glad I had a hat on!

 

On a trip to the rail trail that runs from Falmouth to Woods Hole, my husband and I were lucky to see Ospreys hunting and feeding their kids. Here’s an older picture from the same area.  We also saw out first Blue-grey Gnatcatcher.  It’s quite the lively bird, and you can’t miss the white vertical bars on the sides of its tail. This link  shows the little guy in action and captures his blue-gray colors.

 

Unfortunately, I haven’t seen as many goldfinches, chickadees, Titmice, and nuthatches of late – though I have seen s few.  I know they sometimes disappear around this time to brood their young, then return with the kids, when they can fly, for family smorgasbord.  I hope they haven’t been driven out by the greedy Grackles, Mourning Doves, and Sparrows.  Though Sparrows can be pesky, I have to admit these guys are cute.

 

At least I saw the Catbird again yesterday while I was reading!  This picture is from last year.

Downy and Hairy Woodpeckers have come by, as well as a Flicker. Here are two neat, albeit window-screen-fuzzed, photos of a Hairy Woodpecker. Like most Woodpeckers, this guy just loves that suet!

 

Oriole image from Pexels.
Yellow Warbler image from:  Pixnio.

 

A Breath of Autumn

Autumn, birds, black cat, Cape Cod, caterpillars, cats, Fall, Nature, New England, quail, Rail Trails, , , , , ,

 

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Here’s a melange of interesting autumn images that I’ve come across this past September. One Friday afternoon, while riding the bicycle trail from Coventry, Yang and I came across these funky caterpillars. We’d seen them last fall on the same trail, so apparently these are their main stomping, er crawling, grounds. Does any one know into what they ultimately metamorph? Notice how they have prongs on their derrieres, no doubt to confuse predators as to which end they are biting. We wonder what these guys are.

The following weekend, we did 22 miles on the Nickerson Park Trail on the Cape. What should we see on the trail but this adorable quail! I suspect s/he is domesticated because the little critter did not seem at all unnerved by passing cyclists or walkers. I’ve seen pictures of domesticated quails on line, and this little guy seems to match up. Nevertheless, I’m counting him/her as one of my bird sightings for the year. I hope you can see the little guy in the center of the picture to left on the trail, almost in the leaves. Click on the image for a bigger picture.

 

Though not nearly as cute, here are some pictures of me in Brattleboro, VT. Every year this house creates a tunnel of enormous sunflowers. We went up last weekend and took these shots. The house used to also have a hutch for chickens and bunnies, but alas, those adorable creatures are no longer kept there. I’m not quite so adorable as a bunny, but I like to think I have some charm. Yang staged the photos nicely, don’t you think? Is there anything he can’t do?

 

 

 

Finally, Natasha desires to send you the best of autumn holiday greetings!

 

Rosie wants to photo bomb Natasha’s greeting – and Natasha is NOT amused.

 

 

Remembering the Birds of Winter

birds, Cape Cod, Eider ducks, mergansers, mergnasers, Nature, New England, Swans, turkeys, winter, , , , , ,

I had originally wanted to post these pictures much earlier – like back in Winter when Yang and I took them. However, the semester has been brutal, and I just didn’t have time to do all the editing necessary. So, here they are!

 

The weekend after my birthday, there was a slight warming spell, so Yang and I made an expedition to Falmouth. After a hearty tea luncheon at the Dunbar Tea House – love that Ice Wine Tea! – we did some bird watching on the nearby rail trail.  In one of the ponds, we saw the beautiful swans above.

 

Also in this pond, we were able to see a flock of Mergansers.  Here is one chap swimming solo, with his lovely feathery mane.

 

 

Later, I was surprised to see a whole flock of males and females swimming happily in the ocean.  I never realized this duck was an ocean as well as fresh-water critter!  You’ll have to forgive the fact that the photos are a bit blurry.  It’s not easy to get near these guys – especially with a cold ocean separating you. Still, if you click on the picture, you’ll be able to get a decent look at the ducks.

 

We also saw some of the ever-popular Mallards.  A happy pair celebrating an anniversary, no doubt, with an afternoon out on the ocean. These ducks are pretty common around New England, so I normally wouldn’t photograph them.  But they posed so beautifully, Yang couldn’t resist. Also, some of my other bird-loving followers might not have these guys in their necks of the woods – or ponds.

We also saw a pair of Eider ducks.  I know they are a little blurry, but, again, there’s that pesky ocean in the way.  Do you think the Eiders are funky enough to want to get down?  Sorry, I couldn’t resist.

 

 

Once again, the Megansers, just because I think they are so cool!

 

 

 

 

And, in a different pond, more swans!

But here’s where things get really weird.  Driving through the town of Falmouth, we had to stop for some feathered pedestrians.

So why did the turkey(ies) cross the road? We’ll never know.  They were in way too much of a hurry to stop and answer questions. They just wouldn’t talk turk . . . No, I can’t say it.  One bad pun per post is enough for any reader to suffer!

Falmouth Rail Trail – Look! Ospreys and Swans! Oh My!

Cape Cod, Nature, New England, Osprey, Rail Trails, Swans, , , , , , ,
Before the summer is over, I wanted to post some of my other favorite images from the summer adventures Yang and I had along the New England rail trails.  In June, we did a rail trail in Falmouth, on the Cape.  As always, we saw some of our favorite  birds there.  We sighted many rabbits and chipmunks, and at one point a fox dashed across the trail far ahead of us.  Per usual, the Catbirds wouldn’t hold still long enough to be photographed.
So, here are some of the lovely birds we could photograph.  In one little bay, we found this swan family:  Mummy and Daddy and several young cygnets.  falmouth2Interestingly enough, one of the kids had already turned white!

 

 

 

 

falmouth1

 

We also managed to photograph this gorgeous Osprey. falmouth3 Look at those eyes!  They’re enormous.  No wonder no prey escapes this guy or gal.  There are several spots along the trail that have osprey nests on poles and platforms erected by the good folks on the Cape.  There is even one platform in the bay near the docks in Woods Hole.  As your ship pulls in or out, you can see the family chilling in the nest.

 

falmouth4

 

 

 

 

 

 

 

We caught this swan falmouth6swimming forward to greet us in a different marsh along the trail.  I think he’s saying, “I’m ready for my close-up, Mr. DeMille” in this shot

 

 

This display is always fun to see along the trail. falmouth7 I think it’s neat that the people who live next to the trail here have such a fun and creative bent with all these nostalgic items.

falmouth8

 

 

This whole rail trail is wonderful to travel, and we usually take the ferry from Woods Hole to Martha’s Vineyard to walk around there and enjoy the beautiful houses, especially the Victorian camp cottages.  Sorry, no pictures.  I  feel intrusive taking those shots.  What a great – and exhausting way to spend the day!

falmouth5