Category: Wednesday Wild

Posted on

Wednesday Wild: Focus on Feeders Edition

© Ben Burns
© Ben Burns

This past weekend, MassAudubon sponsored its annual Focus on Feeders bird census. My kids and I managed to spot fifteen species of birds over the course of the two days. Most were at our feeders, but a few, like the crows and the red-tailed hawk, just happened to be flying overhead while we were counting. I was thrilled that one of our resident red nuthatches showed up and posed for a photo, and completely stoked that my son Ben was ready with the camera. (If you are into birds, you can compare this red nut to the white-breasted cousin from this recent post.) Here’s our full species list:

American crow

American goldfinch

Black-capped chickadee

Blue jay

Dark-eyed junco

Downy woodpecker

House finch

Mourning dove

Northern cardinal

Red-bellied woodpecker

Red-breasted nuthatch

Tufted titmouse

White-breasted nuthatch

Red-tailed hawk

Don’t worry if you missed the fun; Great Backyard Bird Count is just two weeks away! I’ll be counting with kids from my local elementary school. How about you?

Posted on

Wednesday Wild: Sharp-shinned Hawk

© Gerry Burns
© Gerry Burns

My husband was working quietly at the kitchen table this week when a juvenile sharp-shinned hawk snatched a dark-eyed junco out of mid-air, skidded across the kitchen window, then landed on the ground nearby to eat its catch. By the time I got home an hour later, soft gray feathers still clung to the window glass, and a light snow had settled on the bloody murder scene.

Some days are wilder than others, you know?

Posted on

Wednesday Wild: Nuthatches

© Loree Griffin Burns
© Loree Griffin Burns

This past weekend we set out our bird feeders; I’ve been staring out windows ever since. The usual fellows are visiting: tufted titmice, chickadees, dark-eyed juncos, blue jays, cardinals, mourning doves, downy woodpeckers. And white-breasted nuthatches, like the one in the image above. I’ve always loved the tidy nuthatches, so sharp-looking in their crisp gray and black feathers. But on Saturday, I spotted a pair that didn’t look quite right to me. They were scruffier than usual. Buffier in the breast. Wearing strange eye patches. Wait a second …

RED-breasted nuthatches!

I’ve not seen red-breasted nuts at my home feeders in more than fifteen years of watching. We’ve not added a new-to-us species to our birding journal since this sharp-shinned hawk stopped by last year. And I’ve not felt so grateful for a bird since this little brown creeper cheered up the winter of 2010.

“Those who dwell among the beauties and mysteries of the earth are never alone or weary in life,” Rachel Carson once said. This weekend, her words rang truer than ever.

Happy Wednesday, friends. I hope it’s a wild one.

Posted on

Wednesday Wild: Winter Moths

© Loree Griffin Burns
© Loree Griffin Burns

I’ve been noticing gray-white moths like the one in this photo on the side of my house for weeks now.  And I have been meaning to pore over my field guides in search of an ID for just as long. But you know how that goes: so many insects, so little time. What luck, then, that the good people at MassAudubon tweeted this link yesterday. Winter moths. Of course.

Maybe I need to spend more time on Twitter?

Posted on

Wednesday Wild: The Very Hungry Porcupine

© Loree Griffin Burns

I hiked through my local MassAudubon Sanctuary this week and came across this guy snacking in the middle of a trail. I took some pictures, sure he’d take off as soon as he heard the shutter click. When he didn’t, I moved in closer, shooting all the while.

Nibble. Nibble. Nibble.

“Hello?”

Nibble. Nibble. Nibble.

“Are you deaf?”

Nibble. Nibble. Nibble.

What choice was there? I took the long way back to the car.

Posted on

Wednesday Wild: Garter Snake

© Loree Griffin Burns

There was an eighteen-inch Eastern garter snake hanging out in my yard over the weekend, bringing the total number of snake species recorded here at the new Burns homestead to two. (Remember this guy?)

In other news, there is a Great horned owl hanging out somewhere nearby. I’ve heard him two out of the last three nights.  Sorta makes a girl want to head outside and look for pellets …

Have a wild day!

Posted on

Wednesday Wild: Vacation Edition #2

© Gerry Burns

 

More seaside wildlife this week, direct from our vacation on Mount Desert Island in Maine. This was a decent-sized hermit crab, though you’d never know it because we forgot to put something in the photo for scale. Anyway, he was discovered on the sandbar connecting Bar Harbor and Bar Island, just as the sun was setting on another gorgeous August afternoon.
I hope you had some wild in your Wednesday!

Posted on

Wednesday Wild: Vacation Edition

© Loree Griffin Burns

You know I love the wild in my own backyard … but this summer I had the chance to venture outside of it and explore another wild place: Acadia National Park.

Oh, my. It’s a spectacular place!

On one of my favorite adventures, we found this baby turtle sunning and stretching its legs (if you look closely you can see the stretching) on a pond not far from Eagle Lake on Mount Desert Island. If pictures came with audio, this one would feature the croaking of frogs, the chattering of squirrels, the squawking of crows, and the gentle rain of wind moving through the surrounding forest. Heavenly.

Posted on

Wednesday Wild: Barn Swallows

Photos © Loree Griffin Burns

 

Can you see them up there? They’re nesting in our barn and have been lovely tenants. (I am a bit worried, however, that once the babies come we will have to park our cars somewhere else.)

Anyway, our barn swallows are wishing you a Happy Fourth of July …

© Loree Griffin Burns

 

… a day filled with friends and family and finery. And a little wild, too.