Category: nature

Wednesday 3/28: Pouring when I went out at lunch, so stopped at Hardy Pond and it immediately got nice. First Double-crested Cormorant of the year, 25 Great Black-backs, the usual.

Thursday 3/29: Purgatory Cove had a Green-winged Teal (or pair) in with about 10 Wood Duck. Tree Swallows over the river and a phoebe along the edge.

Friday 3/30: Prospect Hill was pretty much as Paine was earlier in the week.

Saturday 3/31: Quick buzz of Cambridge Res (1 Bufflehead, a few geese, 2 mallard) and Flint’s Pond (Common Mergansers, Ring-necks, Ruddy, Tree Swallows) in the morning. Out to New Salem, where 2 Purple Finches showed up at Ethan’s feeders. Walking around the center of town midafternoon, we had a Pine Warbler, Hermit Thrush, and Bald Eagle.

Sunday 4/1: About the same at Ethan’s feeders but a sapsucker was new and nice. A quick drive around added 2 turkeys. Seven more on the way home. Arlington Res in the afternoon: 5 GW Teal, 1 Gadwall, 1 Ruddy, 5 snipe, 1 Tree Swallow. Interesting Cooper’s in the yard:

Monday 4/2: Pretty sure I was hearing a Virginia Rail down the street this morning (plus a heron dropped in). Nothing much at the duck ponds.

Tuesday 4/3: Nothing exciting at BBN. Rail was much more obvious today, got a minimal recording in the evening.

Wednesday 3/21: Pine Warblers were in at Paine (and presumably had been). Also first Six-spotted Tiger Beetle and Cabbage Whites of the year.

Thursday 3/22: Prospect Hill: 2 phoebes, a sulphur, 4 Mourning Cloaks.

Friday 3/23: Purgatory Cove had nesting swans and there were 5 Wood Ducks split between there and the river.

Saturday 3/24: Walked Lot 1 to Met State. Ten turkeys and a singing Winter Wren at Lot 1, 3 phoebes and a Tree Swallow at Met State, not much at the West Meadow.

Sunday 3/25: Nothing on the Cambridge Res. Usual ducks (ruddy, mergansers, ring-necks) on Flint’s Pond. Nothing at School St or the prison fields. Hundreds of Tree Swallows at Great Meadows but nothing else new. Calling muskrats were interesting, not sure I’ve heard them before.

Monday 3/26: Nothing exciting in the wind at the duck ponds.

Tuesday 3/27: Eagle over Hardy Pond (and the house) in the morning (plus 2 Bufflehead, 1 Ruddy, 12 Common Mergansers, etc). Minimum of 5 Pine Warblers at Paine at lunch but not much else.

Wednesday 3/14: Pair of Wood Ducks at the duck ponds.

Thursday 3/15: Blackbirds, blackbirds, and blackbirds at Rock Meadow.

Friday 3/16: Wood Ducks at Paine.

Saturday 3/17: Joined the MBC walk at Horn Pond. Singing Fox Sparrow was the highlight. Stopped after for mm and mmm.

Sunday 3/18: Started at Waltham St. (snipe) and Dunback (singing creeper, phoebe, Mourning Cloak, missed 2 Fox Sparrows). Midmorning walk at Great Meadows had a shoveler, lots of ring-necks, coots, and pied-billed grebes but no Barrow’s. After lunch a quick trip out to the Rt. 20 bridge failed to find a second Barrow’s but did get first Tree Swallows of the year. Not much at Heard Pond or Cambridge Res. Only a handful of woodcock at Lot 1 in the evening but a bat was very nice.

Monday 3/19: BBN was fairly quiet. Phoebe and Mourning Cloak were about it. Missed an eagle at home.

Tuesday 3/20: Rock Meadow had Tree Swallows and people.

In Florida, trip report coming.

Wednesday 2/29: Nothing at Paine. Luckily, I stopped at the field station on the way and got 4 Killdeer without even having to stop the car. Needed the extra day, but that’s 70 for the winter list.

Thursday 3/1: Snow had changed to rain at lunch so ran to Purgatory Cove. One ring-neck on the cove, 14 more near Edgewater (and easier to see from there). While driving over, quick scan from Charlesbank had another Ring-neck plus about 50 coots. Not surprisingly with the snow, White-throat and Song Sparrow back in the yard.

Friday 3/2: River walk was as dead as I’ve ever seen it. Heard a Killdeer and there was a grackle in the big sycamore but otherwise nothing.

Saturday 3/3: Indoors at the Birder’s Meeting all day.

Sunday 3/4: Wandered BBN a bit. Started on Concord Ave, where there were Red-wings all over, plus a few Hoodies on the golf course. Two flyover Common Mergansers were a patch tick. Found a (or the) Swamp Sparrow at the West Meadow. A creeper and 2 possible Winter Wrens were about it at Met State, but 2 bluebirds were flying around Concord Ave getting back to the car. A quick stop at the duck ponds had very little.

Monday 3/5: Forest Grove: Killdeer, blackbirds, Common Mergansers. Turkey Vulture over downtown.

Tuesday 3/6: Prospect Hill was rather icy so just hung around the base watching mostly robins. Skunk cabbage coming up.

Wednesday 2/22: Shocking little around the marsh at BBN.

Thursday 2/23: Hardy Pond, 2 Ruddies were new and otherwise the same. Mergansers on the res.

Friday 2/24: Purgatory Cove: first Wood Duck of the year, plus a few Ring-necks and mergansers. Flicker and point-blank Golden-crowned Kinglets too. (Forgot this last week, but interesting news for the cove)

Saturday 2/25: Plum with MBC. Wind, wind, wind, and wind. Plus 2-3 Snowy Owls and a few other things.

Sunday 2/26: Arlington Res in the afternoon: 2 wigeon, 1 Gadwall, 4 Green-winged Teal, 3 Killdeer, etc.

Monday 2/27: Prospect Hill was very quiet. A certain squirrel reappeared late at night.

Tuesday 2/28: BBN was still very quiet. Blackbirds galore at home.

Wednesday 2/15: Duck ponds had lots of the usual.

Thursday 2/16: Woodpeckers, robins, and juncos at BBN.

Friday 2/17: Purgatory Cove: a few Ring-necks were joined by a Greater Scaup (Charles #131), plus various mergansers. No good gulls though.

Saturday 2/18: Towhee, also the usual Cape Ann stuff.

Sunday 2/19: Walked BBN. Nothing much at Lot 1 (except first of year for the patch Herring and Great Black-backed Gulls). Grackle flew over the boardwalk. Not much more at the Met State side. No wigeon on Hardy Pond late in the afternoon. Making this a nature post and not a birding one, first chipmunk of the year.

Monday 2/20: Cold and windy. Nothing at Hardy Pond or Waltham St.

Tuesday 2/21: Duck ponds were very quiet.

Wednesday 2/1: Duck ponds were fairly quiet, six hoodies were about it (although 2 Ring-billed Gulls on the ice were unusual for the spot).

Thursday 2/2: Morning stop at Hardy Pond: 4 Common Merganser. Nothing much at Prospect Hill at lunch, big flock of robins was about it. Eagle showed up at Hardy Pond, got a half second look on the way home but it took off before I was able to walk over. Did find 2 wigeon at least.

Friday 2/3: Nothing at Rock Meadow.

Saturday 2/4: Took a wander through Wayland. One Common Merganser at Horn Pond. Both kinglets were at the community gardens along with 5 bluebirds and good numbers of sparrows. At the Old Rt. 27 Bridge, I had 2 Bald Eagles and a harrier pass over in 5 minutes, probably should have sat around for a while to see what else came by. Wigeon continued on Hardy pond, GBBG up to 10.

Sunday 2/5: Dunback was quiet, did almost every bit anyway. Charles in the afternoon had one each of most of the expected ducks (few more hoodies) plus 3 herons. Just missed a kingfisher.

Monday 2/6: Supposed to be very mild, so took a long walk around the marsh at BBN and found absolutely nothing.

Tuesday 2/7: Duck ponds were quiet at lunch. Good stuff in the neighborhood early though, including a flicker, first of year Red-winged Blackbird, and a flyover Pine Siskin (3rd? yard record).