Category: nature

WIR 1/12-1/18

Tuesday 1/12: Checked the duck pond. Bunch of mallards, 1 hairy, not much else in 15 minutes.

Wednesday 1/13: Charles, more of the same plus 5 Fish Crows.

Thursday 1/14: Paine, nothing different.

Friday 1/15: Beaver Brook North, nothing different.

Saturday 1/16: Took a long walk to Lot 1 and then the West Meadow. Two red-wings at Lot 1 were the highlight, although lots of regular stuff.

Sunday 1/17: Checked Rock Meadow in the morning, 2 bluebirds, 2 Carolina Wrens, lots of regular stuff. Led the Waltham Land Trust duck walk along the Charles in the afternoon. All the regular stuff (minus the goldeneye) were there and a Lesser Scaup was a very nice surprise. A big crowd as well.

Scaup

Monday 1/18: Snowed, stayed in taking photos (see next post).

WIR 1/5-1/11

Tuesday 1/5: Kestrel on the way to work. Charles again at lunch. Carolina Wren and Hairy were about the only things different.

Wednesday 1/6: Cooper’s keeping everything down in the yard before work. Paine at lunch: red-belly, creeper. Sharpie in one of the trees in the courtyard at work.

Thursday 1/7: Charles at Moody St: one tagged gull. Charles at Elm St: nothing different.

Friday 1/8: Waverly Oaks Marsh had nothing so did a quick Screech-Owl run.

Saturday 1/9: Charles again and again nothing different. The Common Merganser below did pose nicely at least. Also had 19 species in the yard.

Merganser Preening

And stretching

Sunday 1/10: Pretty much stayed in, quick check for the ravens late in the afternoon (mostly to show someone where they are, saw nothing on the ride).

Monday 1/11: Beaver Brook North: Flicker, 2 Tree Sparrows, Red-belly. New Beaver Brook/Rock Meadow Patch page

WIR 12/29-1/4

Tuesday 12/29: Too cold to go out, plus free lunch at work so no reason to go out.

Wednesday 12/30: Beaver Brook Ponds: Kingfisher (don’t understand, the Charles is totally open and there’s no kingfishers but I’ve found two in the last few days in spots that I could leap over the open water).

Thursday 12/31: Took a quick trip over to the Mystic Lakes (for Great Cormorant and eagles). Not a whole lot there, a quick walk at Sandy Beach had 2 Red-bellied Woodpeckers, a few hoodies, and a red-wing or two. Saw some ducks on the river at the other rotary on the way home, so pulled in and stopped for a minute. More hoodies and a Ring-neck among the mallards and swans. Started snowing then, but decided to stop at Dunback anyway. Snow was much worse there and I gave up after a brief search of the pines. Only thing of note was a big flock of White-throats foraging about 15 feet up in the pines.

Friday 1/1: Goldfinch for bird #1. Did the BBC trip, Laura’s report is up. Highlights: Ipswich Sparrow, Snowy Owl, Glaucous Gull, flock of Razorbills.

Saturday 1/2: Basically snowed in but ran out for a few minutes after hearing that a raven was on the deer carcass at the Cambridge Res. Took a bit of searching to find the carcass, but the bird was still there (no spot to stop though so no pictures).

Sunday 1/3: Snowed in again, nothing different for the yard but enough to be entertaining.

Monday 1/4: Charles at lunch for the Barrow’s Goldeneye that has reappeared. No goldeneye at all but 2 swans, 7 ring-necks, and a few Hooded and Common Mergansers made it a worthwhile trip.

Waltham Winter List 2009

Once again, taking an idea from the Canadians, here’s a December-February list for Waltham. Dates and locations are the first sighting. Birds in bold are my first Dec-Feb sighting in Waltham.

2007-2008

2008-2009

The List:

  1. Canada Goose (12/2, yard)
  2. Mute Swan (12/5, HP)
  3. Wood Duck (12/13, Purgatory Cove)
  4. American Wigeon (12/5, HP)
  5. American Black Duck (12/13, Purgatory Cove)
  6. Mallard (12/5, HP)
  7. Green-winged Teal (12/5, HP)
  8. Ring-necked Duck (12/19, Charles)
  9. Lesser Scaup (1/17, Charles)
  10. Common Goldeneye (12/23, Charles)
  11. Hooded Merganser (12/5, HP)
  12. Common Merganser (12/5, HP)
  13. Double-crested Cormorant (12/10, Lyman Pond)
  14. Great Blue Heron (12/5, HP)
  15. Turkey Vulture (2/20, Charlesbank)
  16. Bald Eagle (12/18, Purgatory Cove)
  17. Sharp-shinned Hawk (12/13, yard)
  18. Cooper’s Hawk (12/6, yard)
  19. Red-tailed Hawk (12/8, Lexington St)
  20. American Kestrel (12/26, Lot 1)
  21. American Coot (12/13, Charlesbank)
  22. Ring-billed Gull (12/1, WHS)
  23. Herring Gull (12/5, HP)
  24. Lesser Black-backed Gull (2/2, Purgatory Cove)
  25. Great Black-backed Gull (12/5, HP)
  26. Rock Pigeon (12/4, WHS)
  27. Mourning Dove (12/1, Paine)
  28. Eastern Screech-Owl (1/8)
  29. Great Horned Owl (12/4, Miriam)
  30. Belted Kingfisher (12/5, HP)
  31. Red-bellied Woodpecker (12/2, WHS)
  32. Downy Woodpecker (12/1, yard)
  33. Hairy Woodpecker (12/4, Beaver Brook North)
  34. Northern Flicker (12/18, Purgatory Cove)
  35. Blue Jay (12/1)
  36. American Crow (12/1, yard)
  37. Fish Crow (1/13, Charles)
  38. Common Raven (1/2, Cambridge Res)
  39. Black-capped Chickadee (12/1, Paine)
  40. Tufted Titmouse (12/1, Paine)
  41. Red-breasted Nuthatch (12/7, Paine)
  42. White-breasted Nuthatch (12/1, Paine)
  43. Brown Creeper (12/7, Paine)
  44. Carolina Wren (12/13, Purgatory Cove)
  45. Winter Wren (12/25, Lot 1)
  46. Golden-crowned Kinglet (12/1, Paine)
  47. Ruby-crowned Kinglet (2/19, Lot 1)
  48. American Robin (12/1, yard)
  49. Northern Mockingbird (12/2, yard)
  50. European Starling (12/2, yard)
  51. Cedar Waxwing (12/14, Lot 1)
  52. American Tree Sparrow (12/18, Beaver Brook North)
  53. Chipping Sparrow (12/19, Gore Place)
  54. Song Sparrow (12/8, Charles)
  55. White-throated Sparrow (12/1, yard)
  56. Dark-eyed Junco (12/1, yard)
  57. Northern Cardinal (12/1, yard)
  58. Red-winged Blackbird (12/2, WHS)
  59. Common Grackle (12/14, Lot 1)
  60. Common Chaffinch (12/1, yard)
  61. House Finch (12/5, yard)
  62. American Goldfinch (12/2, yard)
  63. House Sparrow (12/1, yard)
  64. Can’t say yet

Big misses: Barrow’s Goldeneye, Tufted Duck

Cumulative total: 86

And new this year:

  1. Autumn Meadowhawk (12/4, Beaver Brook North)

Waltham 2009

Once again, here’s lists for the year. Bold is yard, italics is new to Waltham.

Birds

  1. Canada Goose (1/2, Charles)
  2. Mute Swan (1/2, Charles)
  3. Wood Duck (3/30, Leitha)
  4. American Wigeon (3/15, yard/HP)
  5. American Black Duck (1/2, Charles)
  6. Mallard (1/2, Charles)
  7. Green-winged Teal (12/5, Hardy Pond)
  8. Northern Shoveler (10/9, Hardy Pond)
  9. Ring-necked Duck (1/2, Charles)
  10. Black Scoter (10/24, Cambridge Res)
  11. Bufflehead (2/15, Charles)
  12. Common Goldeneye (1/2, Charles)
  13. Barrow’s Goldeneye (1/2, Charles)
  14. Hooded Merganser (1/2, Charles)
  15. Common Merganser (1/2, Charles)
  16. Ruddy Duck (4/3, Hardy Pond)
  17. Wild Turkey (4/15, Met State)
  18. Pied-billed Grebe (10/13, Purgatory Cove)
  19. Red-necked Grebe (11/1, Cambridge Res)
  20. Double-crested Cormorant (4/19, Charles)
  21. Great Blue Heron (1/2, Charles)
  22. Great Egret (8/11, Trapelo & 128)
  23. Green Heron (6/25, yard)
  24. Turkey Vulture (3/27, Prospect Hill)
  25. Osprey (4/5, Bentley)
  26. Sharp-shinned Hawk (2/22, Leitha)
  27. Cooper’s Hawk (1/3, yard)
  28. Red-tailed Hawk (1/2, Met State)
  29. American Kestrel (10/19, Leitha)
  30. American Coot (1/26, Charles)
  31. Killdeer (3/26, UMass Field Station)
  32. Spotted Sandpiper (6/2, Waverly Oaks Marsh)
  33. Solitary Sandpiper (5/10, Met State)
  34. American Woodcock (3/18, Lot 1)
  35. Ring-billed Gull (1/2, Lexington St)
  36. Herring Gull (1/2, Charles)
  37. Iceland Gull (2/16, Charles)
  38. Lesser Black-backed Gull (2/25, Charles)
  39. Great Black-backed Gull (1/26, Charles)
  40. Rock Pigeon (1/2, Main St)
  41. Mourning Dove (1/2, yard)
  42. Yellow-billed Cuckoo (5/12, Met State)
  43. Eastern Screech-Owl (2/13)
  44. Great Horned Owl (1/2, Met State)
  45. Barred Owl (10/22, Prospect Hill)
  46. Common Nighthawk (8/20, Trapelo)
  47. Chimney Swift (5/4, Beaver Brook)
  48. Ruby-throated Hummingbird (9/1, Paine)
  49. Belted Kingfisher (8/18, Hardy Pond)
  50. Red-bellied Woodpecker (1/2, yard)
  51. Yellow-bellied Sapsucker (10/12, Met State)
  52. Downy Woodpecker (1/1, yard)
  53. Hairy Woodpecker (2/8, Met State)
  54. Pileated Woodpecker (kinda new) (8/31, Prospect Hill)
  55. Northern Flicker (1/21, Paine)
  56. Eastern Wood-Pewee (5/22, Met State)
  57. Least Flycatcher (9/1, Paine)
  58. Willow Flycatcher (6/2, Waverly Oaks Marsh)
  59. Eastern Phoebe (3/27, Prospect Hill)
  60. Great Crested Flycatcher (4/30, Prospect Hill)
  61. Eastern Kingbird (4/29, Beaver Brook)
  62. Blue-headed Vireo (4/27, Beaver Brook)
  63. Warbling Vireo (5/7, Hardy Pond)
  64. Red-eyed Vireo (5/10, Met State)
  65. Blue Jay (1/2, Met State)
  66. American Crow (1/3, yard)
  67. Fish Crow (4/25, yard)
  68. Common Raven (5/25, Prospect Hill)
  69. Northern Rough-winged Swallow (4/19, Charles)
  70. Tree Swallow (4/11, Hardy Pond)
  71. Barn Swallow (5/7, Hardy Pond)
  72. Black-capped Chickadee (1/1, yard)
  73. Tufted Titmouse (1/2, Met State)
  74. White-breasted Nuthatch (1/1, yard)
  75. Red-breasted Nuthatch (11/16, Prospect Hill)
  76. Brown Creeper (1/2, Met State)
  77. Carolina Wren (1/2, yard)
  78. House Wren (4/28, Met State)
  79. Winter Wren (3/15, Met State)
  80. Golden-crowned Kinglet (1/8, Prospect Hill)
  81. Ruby-crowned Kinglet (4/18, Met State)
  82. Blue-gray Gnatcatcher (4/30, Prospect Hill)
  83. Eastern Bluebird (11/1, Cambridge Res)
  84. Swainson’s Thrush (5/10, Met State)
  85. Hermit Thrush (4/18, Met State)
  86. Wood Thrush (5/10, Met State)
  87. American Robin (1/2, streets)
  88. Gray Catbird (4/28, Met State)
  89. Northern Mockingbird (1/1, yard)
  90. Brown Thrasher (4/28, Met State)
  91. European Starling (1/2, streets)
  92. Cedar Waxwing (2/16, Charles)
  93. Blue-winged Warbler (5/12, Met State)
  94. Tennessee Warbler (5/12, Met State)
  95. Nashville Warbler (4/28, Met State)
  96. Northern Parula (4/28, Met State)
  97. Yellow Warbler (5/4, Beaver Brook)
  98. Chestnut-sided Warbler (5/2, Paine)
  99. Magnolia Warbler (5/19, Paine)
  100. Cape May Warbler (10/1, Prospect Hill)
  101. Black-throated Blue Warbler (5/3, Paine)
  102. Yellow-rumped Warbler (4/29, Beaver Brook)
  103. Black-throated Green Warbler (4/30, Prospect Hill)
  104. Blackburnian Warbler (5/12, Met State)
  105. Pine Warbler (4/15, Paine)
  106. Prairie Warbler (9/1, Met State)
  107. Palm Warbler (4/18, Met State)
  108. Blackpoll Warbler (5/19, Paine)
  109. Black-and-white Warbler (4/28, Met State)
  110. American Redstart (5/11, Prospect Hill)
  111. Worm-eating Warbler (5/25)
  112. Ovenbird (5/2, Paine)
  113. Northern Waterthrush (5/8, Beaver Brook)
  114. Common Yellowthroat (5/6, Leitha)
  115. Hooded Warbler (5/14, Prospect Hill)
  116. Wilson’s Warbler (5/12, Met State)
  117. Scarlet Tanager (5/8, Prospect Hill)
  118. Eastern Towhee (5/25, Prospect Hill)
  119. American Tree Sparrow (1/1, yard)
  120. Field Sparrow (4/14, Met State)
  121. Chipping Sparrow (4/15, Paine)
  122. Savannah Sparrow (4/24, Beaver Brook)
  123. Song Sparrow (1/2, yard)
  124. Lincoln’s Sparrow (10/12, Met State)
  125. Swamp Sparrow (4/18, Met State)
  126. White-throated Sparrow (1/2, yard)
  127. Dark-eyed Junco (1/2, yard)
  128. Northern Cardinal (1/1, yard)
  129. Rose-breasted Grosbeak (4/28, Met State)
  130. Indigo Bunting (5/12, Met State)
  131. Bobolink (9/25, Met State)
  132. Red-winged Blackbird (2/15, Charles)
  133. Brown-headed Cowbird (3/28, Paine)
  134. Common Grackle (2/22, yard)
  135. Baltimore Oriole (4/27, Leitha)
  136. House Finch (1/1, yard)
  137. White-winged Crossbill (2/8, Met State)
  138. Pine Siskin (3/22, Paine)
  139. American Goldfinch (1/1, yard)
  140. House Sparrow (1/1, yard)

(56 yard, 1 missing from total for now)

Mammals

  1. Opossum (2/28, yard)
  2. Coyote (1/5, yard)
  3. Gray Squirrel (1/2, yard)
  4. Eastern Chipmunk (2/25, yard)
  5. Eastern Cottontail (1/31 (actually earlier), yard)
  6. White-tailed Deer (2/14, Cambridge Res)

Butterflies

  1. Silver-spotted Skipper (Epagyreus clarus) (5/22, Met State)
  2. Hoary Edge (Achalarus lyciades) (6/20, Prospect Hill)
  3. Northern Cloudywing (Thorybes pylades) (5/25, Prospect Hill)
  4. Common Sootywing (Pholisora catullus) (5/21, Met State)
  5. Juvenal’s Duskywing (Erynnis juvenalis) (5/2, Paine)
  6. Wild Indigo Duskywing (Erynnis baptisiae) (5/19, Prospect Hill)
  7. Least Skipper (Ancyloxypha numitor) (7/3, yard)
  8. European Skipper (6/20, Prospect Hill)
  9. Cobweb Skipper (Hesperia metea) (5/10, Met State)
  10. Indian Skipper (Hespeia sassacus) (6/1, Met State)
  11. Peck’s Skipper (Polites peckius) (5/25, Prospect Hill)
  12. Tawny-edged Skipper (Polites themistocles) (8/15, yard)
  13. Northern Broken-Dash (Wallengrenia egremet) (7/20, Prospect Hill)
  14. Little Glassywing (Pompeius verna) (7/5, Paine)
  15. Hobomok Skipper (Poanes hobomok) (5/22, Met State)
  16. Dusted Skipper (Atrytonopsis hianna) (5/25, Prospect Hill)
  17. Black Swallowtail (Papilio polyxenes) (5/8, Prospect Hill)
  18. Eastern Tiger Swallowtail (Papilio glaucus) (5/8, Prospect Hill)
  19. Spicebush Swallowtail (Papilio troilus) (5/12, Paine)
  20. Clouded Sulphur (Colias philodice) (4/28, Paine)
  21. Orange Sulphur (Colias eurytheme) (5/26, UMass)
  22. Cabbage White (Pieris rapae) (4/17, Bentley)
  23. American Copper (Lycaena phlaeas) (5/12, Paine)
  24. Banded Hairstreak (Satyrium calanus) (7/5, Paine)
  25. Eastern Pine Elfin (Callophrys niphon) (5/1, Prospect Hill)
  26. Eastern Tailed-Blue (Cupido comyntas) (5/8, Prospect Hill)
  27. Spring Azure (Celastrina ladon) (5/10, Met State)
  28. Cherry Gall Azure (Celastrina serotina) (5/16, Prospect Hill)
  29. Summer Azure (Celastrina neglecta) (7/5, Paine)
  30. Monarch (Danaus plexippus) (6/3, Charles)
  31. Red-spotted Purple (Limenitis arthemis) (6/1, Met State)
  32. Viceroy (Limenitis archippus) (5/25, Prospect Hill)
  33. American Lady (Vanessa virginiensis) (4/28, Met State)
  34. Red Admiral (Vanessa atalanta) (7/23, Paine)
  35. Mourning Cloak (Nymphalis antiopa) (3/17, Met State)
  36. Eastern Comma (Polygonia comma) (4/5, Paine Estate)
  37. Question Mark (Polygonia interrogationis) (9/23, Prospect Hill)
  38. Pearl Crescent (Phyciodes tharos) (5/20, Met State)
  39. Common Ringlet (Coenonympha tullia inornata) (8/14, Prospect Hill)
  40. Little Wood Satyr (Megisto cymela) (5/22, Met State)
  41. Common Wood-Nymph (Cercyonis pegala) (7/20, Prospect Hill)

Dragonflies

  1. Ebony Jewelwing (Calopteryx maculata) (5/25, Prospect Hill)
  2. Blue-fronted Dancer (Argia apicalis) (6/26, Charles)
  3. Aurora Damsel (Chromagrion conditum) (5/19, Prospect Hill)
  4. Azure Bluet (Enallagma aspersum) (8/18, Hardy Pond)
  5. Familiar Bluet (Enallagma civile) (7/27, yard)
  6. Stream Bluet (Enallagma exsulans) (6/26, Charles)
  7. Skimming Bluet (Enallagma geminatum) (5/22, yard)
  8. Orange Bluet (Enallagma signatum) (7/5, yard)
  9. Fragile Forktail (Ischnura posita) (5/20, Met State)
  10. Eastern Forktail (Ischnura verticalis) (5/8, yard)
  11. Lilypad Forktail (Ischnura kellicotti) (8/26, Purgatory Cove)
  12. Shadow Darner (Aeshna umbrosa) (8/10, Met State)
  13. Green-striped Darner (Aeshna verticalis) (9/18, Met State)
  14. Common Green Darner (Anax junius) (5/2, Paine)
  15. Springtime Darner (Basiaeschna janata) (5/11, Prospect Hill)
  16. Stream Cruiser (Didymops transversa) (5/16, Prospect Hill)
  17. Common Baskettail (Epitheca cynosura) (5/19, Prospect Hill)
  18. Prince Baskettail (Epitheca princeps) (7/13, Charles)
  19. Calico Pennant (Celithemis elisa) (7/27, Paine)
  20. Halloween Pennant (Celithemis eponina) (8/18, Hardy Pond)
  21. Common Pondhawk (Erythemis simplicicollis) (7/5, Paine)
  22. Common Whitetail (Plathemis lydia) (5/16, Prospect Hill)
  23. Slaty Skimmer (Libellula incesta) (7/28, Charles)
  24. Widow Skimmer (Libellula luctuosa) (7/20, Prospect Hill)
  25. Twelve-spotted Skimmer (Libellula pulchella) (5/25, Prospect Hill)
  26. Four-spotted Skimmer (Libellula quadrimaculata) (5/16, Prospect Hill)
  27. Painted Skimmer (Libellula semifasciata) (7/5, Paine)
  28. Blue Dasher (Pachydiplax longipennis) (7/5, Paine)
  29. Wandering Glider (Pantala flavescens) (8/10, WHS)
  30. Eastern Amberwing (Perithemis tenera) (7/5, Paine)
  31. ‘Ruby’ Meadowhawk (Sympetrum rubicundulum/internum, probably internum) (7/5, Paine)
  32. Band-winged Meadowhawk (Sympetrum semicinctum) (8/10, Met State)
  33. Autumn Meadowhawk (Sympetrum vicinum) (8/17, Met State)
  34. Black Saddlebags (Tramea lacerata) (8/18, Hardy Pond)

2009 in Review

So I suppose I should do a review like everyone else.

Top 10 things in Waltham this year:

10. Prince Baskettail
Not at all unusual, but finally getting a photo of one was nice.
9. Cape May Warbler
One of the less common warblers that I missed in the spring, getting it in fall and adding it to my Waltham list was a good surprise.
8. Iceland Gull
A second sighting for me in Waltham, but much more cooperative than the previous one (and it led directly to one of the other highlights).
7. Yellow-bellied Sapsucker
An overdue new bird for Waltham.
6. Red-necked Grebe
Another overdue bird and also only my second for the county.
5. Bald Eagle
Yet another overdue bird, but two of them putting on a good show would have made this list even if I had many previously.
4. Hooded Warbler
A nice spring overshoot, my first self-found one in Massachusetts.
3. White-winged Crossbill
Great birds and after chasing them around for several weeks, it was great to see them up close.

2. Lesser Black-backed Gull
A very good county rarity and one that points to the potential of the Charles.
1. Worm-eating Warbler
One of two birds that I couldn’t talk about at the time (the other is #0 on this list). I heard about one bird on territory and when I went to check it out, found a second nearby. Hopefully breeding will be confirmed next year. Given the amount of bushwhacking I did to find them, who knows how long they’ve actually been around? And how many other good birds are right under our noses?

And 10 more from elsewhere in Middlesex county:

10. Sleepy Duskywing
Probably the most common butterfly I had yet to identify before this year, I finally found a couple that felt satisfactory.
9. Summer Tanager
A bird that I’ve missed a couple times in the county. Running over to Mt. Auburn at lunch meant views were brief (especially since I was more interested in a presumed Bicknell’s Thrush nearby).
8. Harlequin Darner
Great dragonflies, even though one tried to take a bite out of my finger.
7. Lilypad Forktail
The ghost white mature females are extremely cool. After hearing about them at the DSA meeting, I was very happy to find them along the Charles. Hopefully I’ll be prepared with a camera next year.
6. River Otter
A very brief view but a great sighting in Wayland.
5. Great Meadows Shorebirds
Great Meadows had enough mudflats to bring in the shorebirds again this year and they showed up. I found 16 species including county rarities such as Baird’s, White-rumped, and Stilt Sandpipers, and American Golden- and Black-bellied Plovers. Not quite shorebirds but the bittern show was spectacular as well. Photos of some of those birds here.
4. Yellow-headed Blackbird
At one point, I had almost 20 county years birds in a row at Great Meadows (Common Nighthawk and Great Egret weren’t but they were both either coming or going so they almost count). The best was the Yellow-headed Blackbird that spent a few days right along the path, closing a big hole on my state list.
3. Lark Sparrow
After chasing and missing many over the years I finally got one in Massachusetts. Nice and cooperative (and at a spot that hosted several last year).
2. MacGillivray’s Warbler
A nice late fall rarity.
1. Tufted Duck
A nice early spring rarity. One of several excellent birds on these lists found by John Hines, I was able to get out to Water Row quickly and got good views and fair pictures (and I hear that those may be the first pictures of a Tufted Duck in Massachusetts).

And 5 from Massachusetts:

5. Comet Darner
One of the coastal plain specialties, huge and red, how can you go wrong. Highlighted a trip to Miles Standish State Forest. Unfortunately too fast to photograph, but some of the other things weren’t.
4. Black-capped Petrel
The pelagic highlight of the year. Would have been higher on the list, had the boat been steadier and I had gotten more than a couple seconds of views.
3. Ross’s Goose
One of the best days of the year started with a flock of these.

2. Short-eared Owl
And ended with these (and a Snowy).
1. Ivory Gull
I’m not convinced I wouldn’t put the adult as a top 5 bird in the world. Fortunately after just missing the Gloucester one, the Plymouth one hung around another week.

And a handful from out of state:

Vermont and northern New Hampshire
A few boreal bugs including Gray Comma, White-faced Meadowhawk, and Variable Darner along with Ruffed Grouse, Barred Owl, and a few warblers.
DSA Meeting, Southern New Hampshire
Still haven’t posted about it, but highlights included Coppery Emerald and Scarlet Bluet.
Texas
Great as a whole, but Ferruginous Pygmy-Owl, Chestnut Crescent, and Roseate Skimmer highlighted the trip.

Overall, 297 birds (25 lifers), 243 in state (6 new), 201 in county (9 new), and 142 in Waltham (12 new). Butterflies numbered 97 (36 new, thanks Texas), 56 in state (only 1 new), 55 in county (1 new), and 41 in Waltham (1 new). Dragonflies were 90 (16 new), 66 in state (1 new), 58 in county (2-3 new depending on how I sort out the meadowhawk mess), and 35 in Waltham (2-3 new). Also a few good tiger beetles, robber flies, moths, etc. No real complaints for the year but here’s to 2010 being better.

WIR 12/22-12/28

Tuesday 12/22: Charles by Moody St at lunch, almost totally frozen and nothing interesting among the gulls.

Wednesday 12/23: Checked the rest of the Charles: 2 goldeneye, 3 common mergansers, 2 hoodies.

Thursday 12/24: Dunback in the afternoon, nothing exciting other than robins everywhere.

Friday 12/25: Took a quick walk through Lot 1: Winter Wren, Red-winged Blackbird, Northern Flicker, several woodpeckers, big flock of juncos.

Saturday 12/26: CBC, separate post sooner or later.

Sunday 12/27: Stayed in.

Monday 12/28: Sick, stayed in.

WIR 12/15-12/21

Tuesday 12/15: Paine at lunch. Lots and lots of common stuff. Most interesting bird was a junco with a hint of white wingbars.

Wednesday 12/16: Lyman Pond, nothing of note. About 110 geese at Fernald.

Thursday 12/17: Too cold to go out even though I had taken the day off for CBC scouting. Fun time at the museum a least.

Friday 12/18: Eagles! Beaver Brook North after, 1 grackle, 2 Great Blue Herons, many Tree Sparrows.

Saturday 12/19: Down the rest of the Charles, not a whole lot. Also a stop at Gore Place where the Chipping Sparrow continued and a walk around Lot 1 with lots of robins and a few red-wings.

Sunday 12/20: CBC postponed because of snowstorm. Tree Sparrow in the yard among other things.

Monday 12/21: Annual holiday lunch, so no birding.

Waltham Eagles!

I took yesterday and today off to scout for the CBC. Yesterday was too cold and windy to go out (and I had other things to do that I’ll talk about eventually) but today was somewhat better. However, as I was getting ready to go I got a phone call saying check my email about an eagle on the Charles. It was in a spot that’s outside the count circle but I headed over (luckily while I was reading the email my father called to say he was heading home, so I was able to wait for him).

After looping around a bit due to road construction, we reached Woerd Ave. The observer lives on Riverview Ave, although I’m not sure where exactly, so we pulled in at the boat ramp for a quick scan and then headed to Purgatory Cove. Crossing the bridge, I saw two(!) huge lumps on the ice. After almost swerving off the road, I managed to park and we jumped out. There were two adult Bald Eagles sitting next to what appeared to have been a cormorant.

Eagles!

Eagles!

Eagles!

I set up the scope and attempted to digiscope a picture or two as well (not any better than these, so not uploading them). While doing so, a car screeched to a halt and someone got out. She came over and completely ignored the eagles, instead asking me to check on the swans that were way off to the side and see how many young ones there were. Not going to question, but I don’t understand.

After a few more shots, the cold and wind off the river got to be too much, so we turned around and headed home. A very overdue bird for Waltham (#183, 107 along the Charles).

Crows, Eagles, Most of a Cormorant

Crows had enough

WIR 12/8-12/14

Tuesday 12/8: Charles at lunch: 2 hoodies, very little else.

Wednesday 12/9: Too nasty out for anything.

Thursday 12/10: Lyman Pond: Double-crested Cormorant still around, Great Blue was about it otherwise. Big flock of geese on Warren Field but nothing interesting among them in a quick scan.

Friday 12/11: Paine, lot of the common stuff but nothing of real interest.

Saturday 12/12: Stayed in, 18 species in or around the yard.

Sunday 12/13: Dunback quickly: flicker was about it. Charlesbank had a coot and a ton of ducks just out of sight. Forest Grove and Purgatory Cove had 5 Wood Ducks and a flock of Red-winged Blackbirds. A quick check of the river by Cronin’s Landing found this along with a couple hoodies and many common gulls:

Goose

Monday 12/14: Green-winged Teal at the YMCA. Lot 1 had lots of birds including a grackle at the pond and some waxwings mixed in with the many, many robins.