This Wednesday was so different from last Wednesday that it rather defies the enormous vocabulary of the English language. It was a lovely late fall day on Cape Ann, frosty at first, then headed for 60 degrees for a high. The sea was calm, the birds were bright. Thirty people gathered in the Friendly’s parking lot, and we condensed to a reasonable caravan to make our twisty way through Gloucester and Rockport. Pulling up to our first stop at the Jodrey Fish Pier is a bit like walking up to one of the vistas on Plum Island. It’s always the same place, but with a vastly different “birdscape” from visit to visit.
Common Eider chokes down a mollusk – Mike Densmore
Common Eider drake agape – Susan Balser
This week, we found nearby Red-breasted Mergansers, the drakes molting into alternate plumage. Black and White-winged Scoters were sitting and diving in a big patch of sun glare to the left of the parking area, and scattered out over the harbor. This was the week of female scoters for some reason, with more Black Scoters than we usually see so far inside the harbor. Common Eiders of all plumages were scattered widely around the harbor and in a big raft off of the wharf that juts out by the coast guard station in town. The grass-covered warehouse near town was covered in gulls as well, though we detected no rarities this week.
Molting Red-breasted Merganser – Patti Wood
Gray Seal – Susan Balser
Our next stop was Niles Pond, skipping Eastern Point so as to leave time for Andrews Point, despite the possibility of missing Surf Scoter for this week’s list. The fresh water at Niles Pond hosted two American Coots, a female Hooded Merganser, two dozen Ring-necked Ducks, five Lesser Scaup, and lots more Red-breasted Mergansers. The latter were feeding actively in a cooperative flock, which made finding the one female Common Merganser among them rather difficult. Common resident passerines called and flitted in the voluminous hedges. Having exhausted the battery in Van 1 through pretty much no fault of his own, Dave Weaver lingered long enough for the silver lining of the calls of a couple of Carolina Wrens. Thanks, Dave Salt, for the jump!
Bufflehead display – Patti Wood
Atlantic Road hosted no cormorants, great or otherwise, but there were plenty of Purple Sandpipers at Bass Rocks. Lots of female scoters and Buffleheads foraged in close, while we spotted a few drake scoters out further. At first, we saw only two sandpipers, but when they suddenly flew the true strength of their numbers was revealed at around 45. The light was wonderful, so many of the photos show the orange of their legs and feet. A small flock of smallish gulls headed our way, and while we could have assumed they were Ring-billed Gulls and looked elsewhere. However, double-checking revealed the white leading edges of Bonaparte’s Gulls. A pair of birders broke off from our group at that point, sending word later ( but sadly too late for us, of sighting of a King Eider on the south end of Good Harbor Beach.
Purple-Sandpipers – Jon Linn
After a pit stop in Rockport Harbor, where we saw a couple of Northern Gannets over the distant sea, we were off to Cathedral Ledge. We had promised Harlequin Ducks to some newcomers, and were able to “check them off” with several rather distant views. That was not good enough, though, so we were glad to have enough time to get to Andrews Point, where lots of Harlequin Ducks swam and lounged on the rocks nearby. Before we departed the ledge, however, Stan Deutch showed us a photo of the female Surf Scoter the rest of us had missed by the shore, so we could record a scoter hat trick! The point was beautiful in the warm clear air. A Northern Gannet flew in rather close to us, and a Long-tailed Duck joined the many eiders and scoters around the rocks. Photos from several of “our” photographers later revealed that the two Daves misidentified eight duckies that flew by — rather than being Red-breasted Mergansers, they were Northern Pintails (6 drakes & 2 hens)! Oh, the shame . . . . 😉
Harlequin Ducks at Andrews Point – Tom Shreffler
Northern Gannet off Andrews Point – Susan Balser
Long-tailed Duck at Andrews Point – Mike Densmore
Lots of people check these sites for birds on a regular basis, recording their observations in ways that help us keep track of the wintering populations of coastal species. The good cheer, camaraderie, and especially the regularity of our Wednesday outings is unique in this area, however. We know that the birding year is entering one of its most exciting phases. Aside from the essential value of our watchfulness, let’s remember in this time of historic turmoil the unquestionable goodness of caring about living creatures. Thank you all for being part of over 100,000 people who have joined Mass Audubon to stand up for them.
WMB’rs at Andrews Point – Patti Wood
Our List (much gratitude to Dave Weaver for compiling this each week!):
Canada Goose (5) – Good Harbor Beach marsh.
Mute Swan (2) – 1, Niles Pond; 1, Rockport Harbor.
American Black Duck (5)
Mallard (~ 30) – Niles Pond.
Northern Pintail (8) – Andrews Point.
Ring-necked Duck (~ 24) – Niles Pond.
Lesser Scaup (5) – Niles Pond.
Common Eider – common.
Harlequin Duck (~ 52) – ~ 22, Cathedral Ledge; ~ 30, Andrews Point .
Surf Scoter (1) – hen, Cathedral Ledge.
White-winged Scoter – common.
Black Scoter (~ 50) – various, including Jodrey Fish Pier; all hens, not one drake seen.
Long-tailed Duck (1) – Andrews Point.
Bufflehead (~ 40) – various, mostly Bass Rocks.
Hooded Merganser (1) – hen; Niles Pond.
Common Merganser (1) – hen w/ many Red-breasted Mergansers; Niles Pond.
Red-breasted Merganser (~ 40) – ~ 10, Jodrey Fish Pier; ~ 30, Niles Pond.
Common Loon (5) – 2, JFP; 3, Cathedral Ledge.
Northern Gannet (5)
Double-crested Cormorant (~ 10) – various.
American Coot (2) – Niles Pond.
Purple Sandpiper (~ 45) – Bass Rocks.
Bonaparte’s Gull (7) – fly by, Bass Rocks.
Herring Gull
Great Black-backed Gull
Rock Pigeon
Mourning Dove (1)
American Crow (5)
Black-capped Chickadee (2) – Niles Pond.
Carolina Wren (2) – Niles Pond.
European Starling
Song Sparrow (3) – 1, Niles Pond; 2, Andrews Point.
Northern Cardinal (1)
House Sparrow – Niles Pond.