5.31.17  Salt Marsh Lesson - Green Briar Nature Center - Scorton Creek
Sandwich, MA

It's not often that I get to lead groups these days from Green Briar Nature Center, but when I do... it's ALWAYS a perfect way to start a day.  I had the BEST group of girls, ready to learn, eager to talk about what they already know about salt marshes and excited to literally walk into the creek & find what they could!  Amazingly enough, we were able to dodge the rain drops until the end of our time together.  

I couldn't help but point out the birds we saw & heard and fortunately for me... they were interested.  In my opinion, there's NOTHING that beats hands-on learning.  When you bring kids, or anyone, out into nature...opportunities to learn pop up at every turn.  Questions are asked.  Answers are given.  Learning takes place.  If you're lucky, a deep curiosity begins to grow about what they saw, smelled, heard, tasted (Glasswort! "sea pickle") and touched.
Learning with the senses.  It's the ultimate!

Our List:
Blue Jay
Black-capped Chickadee
Red-winged Blackbird
Song Sparrow
Herring Gull 
Turkey Vulture
Tree Swallow
Red-bellied Woodpecker
Osprey
Least Tern

Baby crab

Dirty happy feet!

Crab molt

Roly Poly - AKA Sow bug

High tide leaves these reed remnants behind on the
toppled over Oak Tree branches

Ghost shrimp & Sea Lettuce algae

Horseshoe Crab

Mummichogs & ghost shrimp

Mermaid's Purse - AKA Skate egg case

Checking out their finds before returning them back to the creek

Clean happy feet!

Happy Birding!

5.21.17  Bird Walk - Historical Society of Old Yarmouth - Botanical Trails
Yarmouthport, MA

You never know who you'll meet in this world along the way.  There was a day I was working at the Cape Cod Museum of Natural History when I was in charge of one of my favorite activities - painting bird houses, nest boxes (your choice).  There was a very nice & enthusiastic couple who brought their grandchild to this particular activity and we got to talking.  Turns out, William Archie and his lovely wife Margaret belong to the Historical Society of Old Yarmouth, in fact Bill is the Program Chairman.  We got to talking and Bill asked if I'd be interested in perhaps leading a bird walk along the Botanical Trails in Yarmouthport.  Well, ABSOLUTELY!

We had a fantastic turn out last year at this very same event, the main issue was doing my best to communicate with over 30 people on a very often single file gathering of bird enthusiasts along the trail.  Of course, Bill & Margaret came up with a great solution...they borrowed some sound equipment for participants to have an earpiece microphone if they were interested.  Yes.  That meant that no matter WHAT I said, there were more than 20 people listening to my spoken thoughts.  I was slightly concerned, but managed to keep all rated G... at least that's how I intended it!  It was fun to hear the polite chuckles at my goofy remarks.

I have to admit that my sense of timing was thrown off a bit by the beautiful song of a Wood Thrush.  I could NOT get my eyes to locate this master of camouflage!  SO FRUSTRATING! We all HEARD this bird and when I looked up the sound later, it totally, totally TOTALLY was a Wood Thrush!  SO incredible!  The good news is that he sure sounded like a healthy Wood Thrush, a species that is on the decline.  Bird watching can be frustrating in that regard though... being able to hear the bird so well, and just not being able to see him/her no matter how great your binoculars are.  There was a similar situation at the head of the trail with a vireo...  See photos below.  I was absolutely determined to get a good look at this bird, and once the crowd dispersed...I did & got some decent photos of a pair of Red-eyed Vireos.  I'm sorry we all didn't get to SEE them, but we heard their news caster type call. That's how I know there are vireos around....they have much news to report on.  (double click photos to enlarge)

Our List:
Brown-headed Cowbird 
Song Sparrow
Gray Catbird
Northern Cardinal
American Robin
Hairy Woodpecker
Black-capped Chickadee
Pine Warbler
Blue Jay
Baltimore Oriole
Tufted Titmouse
Great-crested Flycatcher
Wood Thrush (!!!)
Red-bellied Woodpecker
American Goldfinch
Eastern Towhee
White-breasted Nuthatch
Red-winged Blackbird
Red-eyed Vireo

Gathering before the walk

Brown-headed Cowbird - female
...searching for a nest to lay her eggs...lil' stinker

Song Sparrow welcoming us on our walk

American Robin

Baltimore Oriole

Spectacular rhododendrons in bloom

Grey Catbird Nest

Gray Catbird

Gray Catbirds

Eastern Towhee - male

Red-winged Blackbird - male

Baltimore Oriole - male (not the best photo!)

Poison Ivy

Gray Catbird

Happy bird walkers 

Buttercups on the trail

Red-eyed Vireo pair

Red-eyed Vireo

Red-eyed Vireo singing

Red-eyed Vireo

Thank you Bill & Margaret Archie!  Thank you Historical Society of Old Yarmouth!  I had a glorious morning with all of you and I'm so glad the birds provided the perfect soundtrack to our sunny warm walk through the woods!

Happy Birding!

5.16.18  Tuesday Tweets - Cape Cod Museum of Natural History - John Wing Trail
Brewster, MA

What a great feeling to know that outdoors will finally match our need for a bird walk today! What a morning!  It's like we're out of the dark tunnel here on the Cape and there was a celebratory crowd ready to walk the trails and take in the sights and sounds of Tuesday Tweets!  The birds are the stars of the show and right away... a Pine Warbler was busy singing out, as if to say..."Get going!  Wait 'til you see everyone along the way!" See, we did.  We built a great list today and one of the Tuesday Tweeters asked what other warblers we typically see/hear this time of year.  Most everything has been a bit on the "late" side as far as migrant arrivals go, although with May it seems things have seemed to be more on the "regular" schedule.  I was hoping for a Prairie Warlber, though I did warn that... it may be too early.

There were Tree Swallows darting acrobatically over the marsh and we did get to see the Osprey pair, one on the nest, one flying off for food.  There are two eggs now in the nest...wouldn't it be wonderful if there were three chicks again this year!?  Here's hoping they are successful.  We had a great visit from an Eastern Towhee and had a lovely unabashed song solo from a very vocal Gray Catbird!  S/he did not seem bothered by the group of us walking right by on the trail.  The musical morning continued.

As we entered the meadow, we caught sight of an Eastern Bluebird and several Tree Swallows.  These two species battle for nest boxes, 2 or 3 of which were right nearby.  It's just mind-blowing the brilliant color of the plumage of these birds!  Aquamarine, sky blue & rust, with bright white as a contrast.  It was on the approach to the beach that I heard it first... the Prairie Warbler!  What a great & unique song they have!  I asked our group to pause because though there were bird songs coming from every direction, I wanted them to dissect the sounds with their ears, much like a music teacher would ask of her musicians listening to a symphony and distinguishing between similar instruments' songs.
I do believe most everyone got to hear that sweet upward spiral call of the Prairie Warbler. What a gift to us all!  It was a song-filled Tuesday Tweets!  We heard even more from an American Goldfinch male, all teed up on a branch, singing away...so handsome!

We did make it to Cape Cod Bay with its own phenomenal allure.  When the weather is the way it was this morning... it really makes a Tuesday morning, hard to beat!  (double click photos to enlarge)

Our List:
Pine Warbler
Northern Cardinal
Gray Catbird
Black-capped Chickadee
Song Sparrow
Osprey
Ring-billed Gull
American Goldfinch
Herring Gull
European Starling
Red-tailed Hawk
Tree Swallow
Prairie Warbler
Eastern Towhee
Eastern Bluebird
Willet
Yellowlegs (Greater? Lesser? - we only heard them)
American Crow

Pine Warbler

Osprey

Bird Nerds on the salt marsh

Poison Ivy

Eastern Towhee - male

New buds on the trees contrasting with the blue sky

Gray Catbird

Gray Catbird

Tree Swallow - male

Bird Nerds heading toward Cape Cod Bay

American Goldfinch - male

American Goldfinch - male

American Goldfinch - male

American Goldfinch - male

Cape Cod Bay hues of the sandbars

Willet

Willet

Song Sparrow

Next opportunity for Tuesday Tweets: 6.6.17 9:30am $4Members/$6Non-members 
***Don't forget... in July, the time for Tuesday Tweets will be changing to start at 9am & run through 'til 10:30am***
Happy Birding!