Birding Rhode Island on 9-19-23

 We left our accommodations early Tuesday morning with the sun shinning in our eyes as we headed east to Sachest National Wildlife Refuge for our first introduction to birding The Ocean State. The bright sun and brisk breeze as well as a hurrican many many miles out in the Atlantic made for a great birding day.

 

On the Flint Trail where it was a bit more wooden than the open wild flower meadows warblers flitted in the undergrowth and vine tangles. We saw American Redstart, White-eyed Vireo...

 

Red-eyed Vireo ...

 

Palm Warbler...

 

And Common Yellowthroat...

 

We saw a large raft of Common Eider riding the swells near the rocks. Lots of Double-crested Cormorant perched on the rocks as waves beat around them. This one apparently had enough of the crashing surf...

 

 

Raptors patrolled the meadows ablaze with golden rod including this Northern Harroer...

 

And the meadows were buzzing the lots of American Goldfinches...

We drove a short way west to Jamestown Island, RI and Fort Wetherill State Park and Beavertail State Park, both on the southern end of the island poking out into the ocean and only minutes from each other. Not super birdy but we did see a White-winged Scoter keeping company with Mallards in a small cove while a Spotted Sandpiper probed the pebbled shore.

 

The Ocean State  is a fun place to bird and nothing is far away from each other!

Parker River National Wildlife Refuge, Plum Island MA 9-17-23

On a sunny Sunday, post hurricane Lee, we drove from our New Hampshire accommodations to Parker River NWR on the Atlantic shore of Massachusetts. We were not the only birders there scoping out the marsh on the western edge of the road. There was quite a crowd!

From our first stop at Salt Pannes we saw lots of Great and Snowy Egret, American Black Duck, Mallard, and a few great Crested Cormorant, Semi-palmated Plovers and Sandpipers,  and American Wigeon.

 

Great Egret

American Wigeon

 

We walked the .6 mile Hellcat raised boardwalk trail through marine forest of pitch pine, sassafras, beach plum, myrtle, and other lush flora many of them laden with berries. A Sharp-shinned Hawk flew across our path sending the nearby Blue Jays into a frenzy. A Least Bittern stepped out from the cattails, Mallard and Black Ducks dabbled, and Great and Snowy Egrets gathered while Canada Goose flew into the ponds. 

 

In the forest we saw numerous Grey Catbirds and a Phoebe. A Black-throated Green Warbler gave us excellent views:

 

Other winged things made themselves known on the trail.

 

And red squirrels chattered from the trees.

 

At the visitor center located on the Plum Island causeway, a juvenile Red-tailed Hawk perched in a nearby tree giving stunning views to anyone who glanced up.

It was a great way to end our morning at Parker River NWR!

Quincy Bog Natural Area, Rumney NH 9-15-23

 We had to change our plans to be on the Maine coast as Hurricane Lee was bearing down on where we intended to stay and do some birding. A wonderful choice with no such threat was about 100 miles inland near the small town of Rumney NH: Quincy Bog Natural Area. The sky was overcast as we walked the mile long loop trail around the bog and wetland at the southern edge of White Mountains National Forest.

We saw and heard Red-breasted Nuthatch, and Common Yellowthroat and...

Canada Goose

Juvenile Wood Duck

Ring-necked Duck

Black-capped Chickadee

Mallard

The end! :)

The Canadian Maritime Provinces, 9-11-23 to 9-13-23

 We entered Canada from Maine and into New Brunswick. Our one birding destination was the Irving Nature Park near Saint John. The time was low, as the Bay of Fundy there does report the most extreme tides on earth, which brought in plovers: Black-bellied and Semi-palmated. Out in the gentle waters of the bay we saw a large raft of Surf Scoter with about ten Ruddy Duck. Fortunately we brought our scope and was able to ID these birds from far off shore.

Irving Nature Park also has forests where Black-capped Chickadee and Dark-eyed Junco. We even saw a Ruby-throated Hummingbird in the last blooms of the Virginia roses.

 

The next day we headed to Prince Edward Island (PEI) via the Confederation Bridge where Herring Gulls swooped and cried and gathered on the shore of the island province. We headed to the north central part of the island to PEI National Park and the Cavendish Beach and Brockley Beach areas. 

The beach areas are a mix of shore, dunes, open wildflower and grass meadow, and fir forest. The weather was cloudy and intermittently drizzly. The birds were in general not too camera shy. We saw, among others...

Bonaparte's Gull

Common Tern

  Sanderling

 

Semi-Palmated Plover

Savannah Sparrow

On September 12th we hopped on the ferry from PEI to Nova Scotia. Herring Gull, Double-crested Cormorant hugged the shorelines as did a Common Yellowthroat and Bald Eagle. Our first day in Nova Scotia was all about rain and fog. The birding was not great so we relaxed and hoped for a better day on the 13th. It was better, foggy, but not much rain. We birded Cape Breton but the eastern part that sticks the farthest out onto the North Atlantic. We saw Savannah Sparrows at the Marconi National Historic Site as well a swooping Herring Gulls off the cliffs.

 

The birds were more cooperative with good views at Dominion Beach National Park a little to the north-west of Marconi. All in the general Glace Bay area.

Bald Eagle

Semi-palmated Sandpiper

Sanderling

Red Knot

Semi-palmated Plover

Greater Yellowlegs

Short-billed Dowitcher

Black-bellied Plover

 

We headed to the Fortress of Louisbourg, a wonderful historical site with a great reproduction of the dwellings and fortress built on the original site. The birds mostly ringed waters and grounds outside of the fort.

 

We saw Common Loon, Herring Gull. Savannah Sparrow, American Goldfinch, Common Eider, Black Guillemont, and Canada Goose. The most entertaining species were the juvenile Bard Swallows in one of the stone barns chasing and pestering the adults for food.

 

 

Despite the less than perfect weather the Canadian Maritime provinces did not disappoint in beauty and birds. We managed to get three life birds too!