Posts Tagged: birding

The Eastons Have Two Chicks

On June 20, 2023 - Loons, Wildlife Photography

The last three years, the Eastons have hatched their chicks the third Friday and Saturday of June. I’d visited last Friday without any sign of chicks. Monday’s forecast suggested a chance I’d not get rained on. I headed out to visit the Eastons in a thick fog.

The fog got even thicker when I arrived at the pond. Our heron – that I claim poses nicely for me twice a year – was posing nicely.

He was lackadaisically foraging from his perch. But he looked good doing it!

After a time, he headed out on whatever errands get great blue heron out and about. About five minutes after he left, our osprey nabbed a nice fish about five feet from the heron’s perch.

I saw and watched the loon on the nest for some time – without the weather improving. The last three years, the male has spent most of the time on the nest in the last few days before the chicks arrived, so I’m guessing this is dad. I couldn’t decide if he was hiding a chick under his wing. At one point, he stood up and I could see one egg, but still couldn’t decide if there was a chick.

While I waited to see if I could catch a nest exchange, the resident family of geese paraded by. It may look like a lot of goslings, but from the amount of poop on the boat launch, I was expecting another 25,000 or so geese. I I had to head out before finding out if our first loon chick had hatched. As I got back to the paved road to head home, the sun broke out.

The weather improved throughout the day, I went to visit the Middletons in the evening. Our off duty parent was preening for some time before giving a series of four stretches.

Nicely posed, even looking at the camera!

And one more before heading back to the nest to see if it was time for shift change.

I think the loon we found on the nest the last time was on the nest again. Once again, as the off duty loon approached, the on duty loon started doing some nest improvements.

The off duty loon made several trips to the nest to discuss things during the evening. I took it that he? wanted to take over nest duty. Could there be some status attached to being the parent on duty when the chicks hatch? Or was he? just bored of floating around on his own?

He? eventually gave up., left the cove with the nest and headed well down the pond.

A big snapping turtle came crashing through the marsh and was drifting along the surface near the nest. I watched for a reaction from the loon on the nest, but didn’t see one. The off duty loon was probably 750′ away from the nest. He? returned a a good clip, headed for the turtle.

Kind of hard to see, but that’s the top of the turtle underwater in the upper right, with the loon in the center. There was a bit of thrashing around – with all the action underwater. Eventually, the loon surfaced and kept dipping his? head underwater, apparently to make sure the turtle had taken the hint. Loons must have incredible eyesight. I’m always amazed at how far out they can tell the difference between a harmless osprey and a threat from a hawk or eagle. I was amazed the loon could spot the turtle.

Once again, I headed home not knowing if the first chick had hatched.

The forecast for this morning was for the fog to burn off and the morning to be partly cloudy. Low, heavy clouds greeted me when I got up, with some breaks to the north. I decided to risk it and headed back to see the Eastons.

There’s an island blocking the view of the nest from the boat launch. As I put in, the loons raised a ruckus, but I couldn’t see what was going on. As I rounded the island, I could see one loon in the water near the nest, and the second on just climbing off the nest. I couldn’t see the chicks, but one adult had a wing up inviting a chick aboard.

Dad is a much more attentive parent than mom, assuming we have the same female from the past few years. Dad is also banded, letting me tell them apart when I can see a leg. Dad rounded up
both chicks and got them aboard. Mom decided it would be a good time for her to go out and get her own breakfast. After about 15 minutes, dad started calling, it sure looked like he was reminding her that she needed to get to work.

Mom soon returned and started foraging for the chicks. Lots of fingerling fish this morning.

The chicks spent a fair bit of their morning going at each other while on dad’s back. Loon chicks are competitors, there’s no family loyalty. If one fails to thrive, the parents will abandon it and put their work into the stronger chick. This squabble ended with mom delivering another fish. I’m not sure if this was an actual squabble between the chicks or if they’re just figuring out what is edible and what isn’t. Both tried a number of dad’s feathers, deciding they weren’t very tasty.

Mom goes for the handoff! There’s a fumble! The chick didn’t manage to hang onto the fish. Mom had to catch it and offer it to the chick again.

The sun finally broke through and the chicks cooperated by looking cute.

Back to squabbling! Why does it look like dad is thinking it will be a long summer?

One of the chicks hopped off dad’s back and swam around him for a few minutes. Dad is inviting him back aboard.

Getting aboard is a big job for little loons.

When I went down the pond to retrieve the nesting sign, our heron was back, trying to convince me he was walking on water.

I’ll try to keep up with all three families through the summer. If you know someone who might be interested in following along, please share my blog with them.

baby loons, birding, birds, common loons, loon chicks, loons

First Loon Chicks Have Arrived

On June 16, 2023 - Loons, Moose, Wildlife Photography

UPDATE: We’ve got a second pair of chicks that have hatched since I posted this. Lots of pix in their own post at here.

The weather final cleared enough to let me get back out to check on our three loon families. Well, sort of. I got very wet the first evening and made it back to the car with seconds to spare the second.

First, there’s some sad news from Vermont, the oldest known loon in Vermont has died. His age was estimated at 31 years. VT Digger https://vtdigger.org/2023/06/15/vermonts-oldest-loon-dies-at-the-estimated-age-of-31/ has a piece interviewing Eric Hanson, Lead Biologist at the Loon Conservation Project about the loon.

With loon chicks hatching it is once again time to request that you give them space if you go to see or photograph them. You may not intend them any harm, but you may distract the parents from seeing other threats. Our new loon chicks were greeted by a circling eagle on their first or second day out. The parents need to concentrate on the real threats, keep back and let them do their job. All the images of chicks here were with a 600mm lens and heavily cropped.

Tuesday evening I got a message from a friend on the Weston’s pond that the chicks had arrived. And that the eagle was eyeing them. Wednesday morning was wet and windy. It gradually cleared a bit through the day. I set out in the evening to check on the chicks. It was sunny when I left the house. On the way into the pond, I had to wait while a doe browsed from the road – with her fawn gamboling about in the road. By the time I had everything in the boat, there were a few sprinkles. Not enough to dissuade in intrepid photographer.

By the time I found the loon family, the rain was steady.

The rain got heavier, but I was already wet and wasn’t going to let it stop me. The lighting quickly changed my mind…..

When I got up at 0345 on Thursday ready to head out, it was raining heavily. Early morning is the most productive time in the office, almost no one calls before 0700 or 0800. I got a fair bit done. When the dogs finally got up, I noticed some breaks in the clouds when I let them out. Hoping it would clear a bit, I headed off to to check on the Middletons.

They’re still sitting on the eggs. I missed exactly when they laid the eggs, the earliest we can expect chicks is this weekend.

Our off duty parent had time to preen and gave several nice stretches.

Being a sucker for the stretching shot, I took full advantage.

The off duty loon approached the nest three times over a couple hours. The loons held a discussion each time, but the on duty loon stayed on duty. Interestingly, the on duty loon just sat and watched when alone. When the other loon approached, the on duty loon busied itself sorting out the brush around the nest and added material to the nest. When the other loon left, the on duty loon went back to sitting.

The off duty loon seemed to be checking in to see if it was shift change yet.

As the off duty loon approaches, the on duty loon starts making nest improvements.

Dredging up some vegetation when the off duty loon showed up.

One more shot of the on duty loon gathering material.

While I waited to catch the nest exchange, I amused myself watching several eastern kingbirds hunting dragonflies.

Kingbirds hunt from low perches along the water’s edge – frequently over lily pads. They make short, fast flights to grab dragonflies and damselflies out of the air.

Eventually, it came time for the loon to switch.

When doing a nest exchange, loons will often forage and preen together for a time before one returns to the nest. Not this time, The off duty loon wasted no time in climbing onto the nest.

Before settling in for the shift, the now on duty loon takes time to turn the eggs.

It took three tries to get everything properly arraigned.

Third time is the charm! After this, the loon settle down and sat. I headed out, hopefully to get back this weekend.

Thursday evening, I went back to check on the Westons. This time with just a couple puffy clouds in the sky.

Both parents were foraging for the chicks near the nest.

This young, the chicks are rarely more than a couple feet away from a parent. Although, both parents may dive at the same time leaving the chicks briefly alone.

This morning, I was up and out by 0430, with clouds above and fog below me as I headed to see the Eastons. They’re up in the White Mountain National Forest, they were on their nest by the time the Forest Service got the road to the pond open, so we don’t know when to expect the chicks. But, the last three years, they’ve hatched in the third weekend of June, so soon…..

When I arrived, one loon was on nest duty. I had a bit of excitement as I looked through the lens. It looked like a chick peeking out from under the wing. No such luck, enlarging the image showed it to be a stray feather. This is the pair where the male is banded. If I can see a leg, I can tell mom from dad. I missed any nest exchange this morning, so I can’t say for sure. But, I’d bet it was dad on the overnight, he’s taken the last few overnights the past three years.

There as a surprising moose to loon ratio on the pond this morning at 1.5:1. This bull looks like the one I saw on June 2. He’s shaking his head after submerging it to get the tasty water plants.

Sometimes I’m convinced the critters know how to frustrate my photography. With the fog and the back light, I suspect this fellow knew he was frustrating me and enjoyed it as he had breakfast.

Our off duty loon was lazily cruising around the pond, occasionally diving to forage. I went looking for other photo opportunities. There seemed to be more herons on the pond this morning. There’s been a resident pair every year since I started visiting in 2012. Later in the season chicks from the nest join the parents. Most of the time, herons are content to stand or slowly stalk along the water’s edge. Occasionally, they’ll make short flight to a new hunting spot or to roost in a tree. This morning I saw about a dozen heron flights and the herons were more vocal than normal. Not sure if the resident pair was restless or if more have moved in.

This heron posed nicely. He kept me occupied by occasionally crouching as if about to strike – which kept me glued to the camera. Before I could get a pic, I was distract by two new visitors to the pond.

Mrs. moose was out and about. Seeing two moose in a day is a treat. But we weren’t done.

A second bull was foraging with the cow. I can remember just a couple days in my life that I’ve been lucky enough to see three moose in a day.

I’ll be out looking for the rest of our chicks as soon as we get a break in the weather.

Link to the newer post: https://blog.ianclark.com/photography/wildlife-photography/the-eastons-have-two-chicks/

birding, birds, bull moose, common loons, loon chicks, loons, moose, new hampshire wildlife, vermont wildlife

Bluebirds Going for a Second Brood

On June 7, 2023 - Bluebird Cam

After the first chicks fledged, I’d see bluebirds around the edge of our field occasionally, but their activities were no longer centered around the house. Monday afternoon, I noticed both mom and dad talking from several perches near the house. Yesterday, mom popped into the box to do some quick upgrades and returned this morning to lay an egg.

bird video, birding, birds, bluebird, bluebird nest, bluebird video, bluebirdcam, eastern bluebird, new hampshire wildlife, vermont wildlife

Checking in with the Loon Families

On June 3, 2023 - Loons, Wildlife Photography

With the beautiful weather we had last week, I was out morning and evening every day checking in on all three loon families along with their neighbors. The Forest Service road to the Easton’s pond is now passible so I finally got up to check on them.

A raft of new subscribers joined us this last week. If you found me from the Paradise City show, thanks for stopping by. For the new visitors, to protect the loon families, I don’t publish their location on the web. Not everyone on the web has wildlife’s best interests at heart. The three families I follow are the ‘Eastons,’ on the easternmost pond I frequent, the ‘Westons’ are on the westernmost and the ‘Middletons’ are in the middle.

The first visit to the Eastons was last Tuesday evening. There was a strong wind kicking up the occasional whitecap. On my first lap around the pond, I didn’t spot any loons and last year’s nesting site was untouched. After time, one adult loon appeared, foraging lazily. The chop was too much for photos and the black flies had decided I was the buffet, so I called an early quit and headed home.

Wednesday morning, I headed out to see the Westons.

A broad-winged hawk settled near the boat launch as I was putting in.

It didn’t take long to find a single adult loon foraging and preening out on the pond. The other loon was sitting on their nest.

After a bit, the loons swapped nest duty and the newly released loon had a good stretch before settling in for a nap. I wandered off to see who else was out and about.

Many painted turtles were hauled out around the edge of the marsh and several snapping turtles were floating with their heads and top of their shells out of the water.

Mrs. hooded merganser was out in the clear – rarely do they stay out of the reeds when someone is in sight. She even gave a good stretch before heading off to forage among the lily pads.

Female red-winged blackbirds are sitting on their nests. The males are keeping watch nearby.

Male common yellowthroats are plentiful in the marsh and are happy to announce their presence.

Leaving the pond, I saw something I’ve not seen before; a hawk or raven was dive bombing a kettle of turkey vultures. By the time I pulled over, the corvid was gone – of course.

Wednesday evening, I dropped in on the Middletons. It was well into the 90s. In previous years, the nest was fairly exposed to the afternoon sun and the loon with afternoon nest duty often sat in full sun for a couple hours. I headed over to check on the nest. On my way, the resident osprey took a fish from just a few yards in front of me. Of course, I didn’t see him until he was just a few feet above the water, I had to watch instead of taking photos.

This year the grass has grown up considerably giving them some afternoon shade. But, not enough to keep them from getting hot enough to pant. Loons will pant like dogs do, holding their bill open and breathing quickly to try to cool off.

Our other loon was floating around the pond and eventually gave a stretch. With one loon on the nest and the other just killing time, it was time to see who else was around. Eventually, the loons swapped nest sitting duty and with my binoculars I was able to see two eggs.

Red-eyed vireos are actually very common, but somewhat rare to see – apparently because I’m always looking on the top of the branch…. They spend most of their time high in the tree canopy, you can hear them regularly. This one ventured down almost to eye level briefly to forage. Looks like he’s trying to pull a spider out its hidey hole. He eventually pulled something free and promptly returned upstairs. I encouraged him to take some black flies along, but he declined.

Thursday morning I headed back to visit the Eastons, hoping both had returned. There was no wind, it was a perfect morning just to be out on the water, even better for photos. As I headed down the pond, I quickly spotted a loon sitting on the bank a couple hundred feet from the previous nesting site. Studies of banded loons suggest that if they are successful in hatching chicks in a nesting site, they’ll reuse the site. The literature says the male picks the site, I hoped our male had returned (I want all my critters to live long happy lives before retiring to Boca Raton.) The male on the pond the last few years was banded, I wanted to get a look at their legs.

A loon was preening a few hundred feet from the nest and stretched as I went by. I got a good look at her legs, no bands.

Nearby, one of our spotted sandpipers was foraging along the rocks exposed above the water. Checking each rapidly before moving to the next.

Our loon not on duty did a slow tour of the pond. Before heading towards the nest.

The off duty loon wandered over to confer with the loon on the nest. They exchanged hoots, apparently discussing the shift change.

The loon on the nest agreed it was time to hand things off and left the nest.

Free of having to sit, he stretched and then scratched an itch – letting me spot the bands on his legs. Our male is back.

Mom climbed up on the nest and checked on the eggs.

Mom took time to turn both eggs. We think birds turn their eggs to both help distribute nutrients to the developing chick and to keep the chick from adhering to the side of the egg. Mom got them arraigned properly and settled in. I scouted for other wildlife.

Pickings were slim. Merlin claimed there were lots of warblers around, all I could find was common yellowthroats. There was a lone duck foraging along the grass.

Thursday evening I headed back to see the Westons. Their nest is well camouflaged and usually provides good shade. With the temps in the 90s again, the loon on duty was hot and panting.

Hank Heron, or maybe his cousin, Wade, was working through the marsh nearby.

I guess he didn’t like the looks of me, he decided to be elsewhere.

There was an eastern kingbird that was picking perches in beautiful light, I watched him for a time. Kingbird numbers seem to be down on all three ponds this year.

Friday morning, I packed up the Loon Preservation Committee’s nesting sign and headed back to the Eastons.

The loons had company for breakfast, a bull moose was browsing along the edge of the pond. Conditions were good to let me get relatively close, there was a slight wind blowing towards me and I was in deep shadows with him looking up into the sun. I was able to watch him for a time.

After dunking his head under to get a mouthful of underwater plants, he’d give a good shake, scattering water almost as far as a soggy husky can.

Another head shake. Most of the time when I encounter moose in the morning, they’re out before sun up and wander back into the shade before the light hits the pond. This fellow stayed out about 20 minutes after the light reached the pond, then headed back into the woods. I returned my attention to the loons.

Once again, our male had taken the night shift and was on the nest waiting to be relived.

When he was relived, I waited for the stretch.

He cooperated nicely and found a spot with beautiful light. I set out their nest sign and headed home for a much needed nap.

birding, birdlovers, birds, common loons, loon nest, loons, nature, new hampshire wildlife, vermont wildlife, wildlife, wildlife lovers

We Say ‘Good Bye’ to The Bluebirds

On May 22, 2023 - Bluebird Cam

All four chicks fledged within a few minutes of each other this morning. Unfortunately, the network dropped not long before they did and we didn’t get any video. This video is within the hour of them fledging. I’ve got a new camera and router to install if I can get to it before they try a second brood.

I was able to get out to visit the Middletons this evening. There was a loon sitting on last year’s nesting site. An update post shortly.

bird video, birding, birds, bluebird, bluebird nest, bluebird video, bluebirdcam, eastern bluebird, new hampshire wildlife, vermont wildlife

Saturday with the Bluebirds

On May 20, 2023 - Bluebird Cam

Today was the first day we could have expected them to fledge. All four are still with us after dinner this evening. But, it won’t be long now. Our yard has several bobolinks fluttering and calling.

We’re watching eastern bluebirds in a nesting box with a camera installed inside to let us watch without disturbing them. The camera switches to black & white in low light. And, the exposure control stinks, that’s why it washes out or goes black as a bird comes or goes. We occasionally get some pixelated frames in the video, I think that is a WiFi issue. A new WiFi repeated is on the way.

bird video, birding, birds, bluebird, bluebird nest, bluebird video, bluebirdcam, eastern bluebird, new hampshire wildlife, vermont wildlife

Friday with the Bluebirds

On May 19, 2023 - Bluebird Cam

We’re coming to the first day when the chicks may fledge. They’re big, their feathers are growing in. They’re testing their wings. Previous clutches have shown more interest in looking out the box opening a couple days before they fledged, so I bet we’ll have these guys a few more days.

It was very windy here on the hill this afternoon, that’s the roaring background sound.

bird video, birding, birds, bluebird, bluebird nest, bluebird video, bluebirdcam, eastern bluebird, new hampshire wildlife, vermont wildlife

Thursday with the Bluebirds

On May 18, 2023 - Bluebird Cam

We’re enjoying a beautiful spring afternoon here on the hill. Mom and dad bluebird are off on errands, they’re returning to the nest with food now and then. They’re much less active in the afternoon than the evening. Are the parents off foraging for themselves? Are the insects that much less active during the day? Our chicks are glad to be fed whenever the meal arrives.

bird video, birding, birds, bluebird, bluebird nest, bluebird video, bluebirdcam, eastern bluebird, new hampshire wildlife, vermont wildlife

Wednesday with the Bluebirds

On May 17, 2023 - Bluebird Cam

Not only are the chicks getting big, they’re getting loud. They’re on the front of the house, my office is in the back. I can hear them calling when they think there’s a chance for snacks.

bird video, birding, birds, bluebird, bluebird nest, bluebird video, bluebirdcam, eastern bluebird, new hampshire wildlife, vermont wildlife

More Time with the Loons

On May 17, 2023 - Loons, Wildlife Photography

Last weekend, I was able to spend both mornings on the Middleton’s Pond. They’ve got a new neighbor, it looks like they may be having second thoughts about the nest location and they, once again, told an intruder to go away.

I’ll be down at the Paradise City Show in Northampton, MA, over Memorial Day Weekend. I’ll have lots of wildlife prints, including lots of loons, as well as note cards. Stop by to say hello. All the show details here.

Saturday morning found a great egret foraging not far from where the loons nested last year and may again this year. The loons were off in another cove on the pond.