Barnacle Goose - a really rare sighting from Europe!

These Barnacle Goose pictures were captured by my son, Pete, in Concord, MA on October 24, 2010. Barnacle Geese are not native to the United States, so this is a very rare sighting indeed. These birds are from Greenland and Norway, so this guy must have been blown clear across the Atlantic Ocean to end up here!


This is why I'm losing my Lifelist competition. Pete also saw Sandhill Cranes this month! Worst of all, I taught him how to use ebird and massbird to select birding locations in the first place. I don't mind losing, but I do mind losing by a mile! I'm getting destroyed in this competition, and I'm not taking it well!


Until recently, we were pretty even - mostly because we had different specialties. Pete is an expert at finding little forest birds like warblers and phoebes and flycatchers, but he has no patience with shorebirds, terns, and gulls. I can't even see the speedy little birds he likes so much, but I could spend years with shorebirds, terns, and ducks. I love ducks!


Lately, however, Pete has developed an interest in ducks, shorebirds, and everything else that exists in Massachusetts. In the past month alone he must have added 10 new species. He must have added 5 species while I was sick the past two weeks!


Isn't he a beautiful bird? He was around the concord area for over a week, and I went out to find him on Thursday. I got hopelessly lost, however, and saw nothing at all!

My First Evening Grosbeak in 30 Years!

Evening Grosbeaks used to be common backyard birds when I was a kid. In fact, we had an Audubon tea towel decoration in our kitchen called Common Backyard Birds and there was an Evening Grosbeak pictured.


I haven't seen on in at least 30 years. It was so long ago that I couldn't include it on my lifelist - not according to the rules of a current competition that I'm involved in. You have to have a clear and distinct recollection of the sighting to include it in your life list - and a photo is actually preferred.


FINALLY I'm able to claim an Evening Grosbeak. Right in my own backyard, even. Better yet, my competitor has yet to see one at all! After two weeks of being too sick to go birding, I still feel great about this fall!

And the Feathers will Fly; Gull Fight!

This impressive display is evidently a Great Black-backed Gull's way of threatening other gulls.


There were two GBBG's competing for proximity to some fishing poles.


They screamed at each other and followed each other around for a while.


Then one of the gulls got serious about chasing the other away.


The attacker was like a whirling dervish as he pursued his rival. Pretty soon he had the beach to himself.