Happy and Cold New Year!
The weather folks are claiming that this Saturday will be the coldest day so far this winter. Sunday morning at 9AM, the scheduled kickoff for the January Winter Bird Walk in the Arboretum, is predicted to be minus 3, with winds at 10-12 mph. Therefore I’m postponing the walk until Sunday January 14th, same time, same station. Let’s hope for winter, not arctic, weather.
Even though it has been nasty cold, I have gotten out briefly and seen and photographed a few birds. Yesterday I sought a rarity that has been hanging out in a park near Carson Beach in South Boston since Christmas- Ross’s Goose. This is the first Suffolk County record ever for this small goose that closely resembles another locally rare goose- Snow Goose. They are differentiated by the Ross’s smaller size, shorter bill, and the absence of a “grin patch”. Who knew geese could grin?
In any case my wife drove as we circled Moakley Park and I quickly spotted the bird, hanging out with a small flock of much larger Canada Geese on the barren field:
Ross’s Goose. A small white goose with black primaries and tiny triangle pink bill. These geese are common in California, but very rare on the Atlantic Coast.
Here is another shot of the bird after it took flight.
In this image you can see the black primary wing feathers and barely see the reddish legs. The bird was a lifer for me!
I also checked out the local ponds on the Emerald Necklace. Jamaica Pond is down to a small swimming pool of open water with four swans and a few other winter waterfowl; not clear how much longer they can hold out there. Leverett Pond, as usual, was partly open at its northern end and held a few very photographable ducks.
Male Northern Pintail, aptly named.
Another image of the pintail, above a common but lovely male Mallard.
And I can never get enough of the spectacular Wood Ducks; there were at least 6 still surviving in the open patch.
Male Wood Duck.
Note the iridescent sheen on the crest and the subtle patterns on the breast and side. And what eyes!
While I have your attention, the annual Boston Christmas Bird Count was held in relatively balmy weather (highs nearing thirty!) on December 17, 2017. The seven people in the Jamaica Plain sector tallied 48 species. Here is the list for the entire Boston count (thanks Bob Stymeist):
The 45th Greater Boston Christmas Count was held Sunday December 17th. 124 birders recorded 115 species and an additional five species during the Count Week. There was one new species, a Ruby-throated Hummingbird added to the overall list which is an amazing 231 species!
Greater Boston Christmas Bird Count- Bob Stymeist, compiler
- Greater White-fronted Goose 1 Jamaica Pond
- Snow Goose 2 Bear Creek
- Brant 17
- Canada Goose 8702
- Mute Swan 81
- Wood Duck 23 22 Leverett Pond
- Gadwall 3 2 Jamaica Pond
- American Wigeon 5 1 Jamaica Pond
- American Black Duck 371
- Mallard 2266
- Northern Shoveler 6
- Northern Pintail 1
- Green-winged Teal 5
- Ring-necked Duck 75
- Greater Scaup 402
- Lesser Scaup 5 1 Jamaica Pond
- King Eider 1 Deer Island
- Common Eider 508
- Surf Scoter 241
- White-winged Scoter 193
- Black Scoter 73
- Long-tailed Duck 89
- Bufflehead 305
- Common Goldeneye 78
- Barrow’s Goldeneye 1 Orient Heights Beach
- Hooded Merganser 398
- Common Merganser 190
- Red-breasted Merganser 261
- Ruddy Duck 49
- Ring-necked Pheasant 1
- Wild Turkey 119
- Red-throated Loon 45
- Common Loon 26
- Pied-billed Grebe CW
- Horned Grebe 35
- Red-necked Grebe 6
- Double-crested Cormorant 15
- Great Cormorant 1
- Great Blue Heron 55
- Turkey Vulture 1
- Northern Harrier 3
- Sharp-shinned Hawk 6
- Cooper’s Hawk 26
- Bald Eagle 3
- Red-shouldered Hawk 3 New High
- Red-tailed Hawk 104
- American Coot 88
- Killdeer 1
- Sanderling 1
- Dunlin 6
- Ring-billed Gull 1887
- Herring Gull 3597
- Iceland Gull 1
- Greater Black-backed Gull 270
- Razorbill 2
- Rock Pigeon 1396
- Mourning Dove 763
- Eastern Screech-Owl 49
- Great Horned Owl 11 1 Forest Hills Cemetery
- Snowy Owl 12
- Barred Owl 4
- Long-eared Owl CW
- Short-eared Owl 3
- Ruby-throated Hummingbird CW (new to count)
- Belted Kingfisher 19
- Red-bellied Woodpecker 78
- Yellow-bellied Sapsucker 5 1 Arnold Arboretum
- Downy Woodpecker 240
- Hairy Woodpecker 15
- Northern Flicker 21
- Pileated Woodpecker 1
- American Kestrel 4
- Merlin 1
- Peregrine Falcon 11
- Blue Jay 796
- American Crow 311
- Fish Crow 1
- Common Raven 11 Tied High Count
- Horned Lark 194 New High Count
- Black-capped Chickadee 788
- Tufted Titmouse 429
- White-breasted Nuthatch 251
- Brown Creeper 16
- Winter Wren 7
- House Wren CW
- Carolina Wren 47
- Golden-crowned Kinglet 110
- Ruby-crowned Kinglet 11
- Hermit Thrush 7 1 Arnold Arboretum
- American Robin 502
- Gray Catbird 8
- Brown Thrasher 1
- Northern Mockingbird 102
- European Starling 3042
- American Pipit 14 New High Count
- Cedar Waxwing 31
- Lapland Longspur 2
- Snow Bunting 88
- Orange-crowned Warbler 2
- Yellow-rumped Warbler 8
- Wilson’s Warbler 1
- Yellow-breasted Chat 1
- Eastern Towhee 2
- American Tree Sparrow 136
- Chipping Sparrow CW
- Grasshopper Sparrow 1 Mt Hood
- Savannah Sparrow 3
- Fox Sparrow 4
- Song Sparrow 458
- Swamp Sparrow 9
- White-throated Sparrow 316
- White-crowned Sparrow 1
- Dark-eyed Junco 1165
- Northern Cardinal 466
- Red-winged Blackbird 139
- Rusty Blackbird 1
- Common Grackle 102
- House Finch 278
- American Goldfinch 414
- House Sparrow 3043
I hope many of you will join me and my co-leader Brendan Keegan, who will discuss how birds utilize the woody plant collection in the AA as we walk, on Sunday January 14th, beginning at 9 AM from the front gate.
Good Birding!