Stéphane’s Blog for June 01, 2011

Windstorm!

On this first day of June, it was blustery! The West wind blew hard and long, so much that there was absolutely no banding this morning. A census and some casual observations were all that we could do. Large flocks of Canada Goose have started to move north, mostly made, I suspect, of non-breeders and failed breeders, going North to find a safer place to moult, like the Hudson’s Bay shoreline…

In the afternoon, during a short walk, I spotted a Northern Goshawk perched in a tree. Man, they’re big! At first, when it took off, it looked so big that I thought it was a Great Horned Owl. I suspected that it perched quickly again and close by: sure enough, I got a chance to get another look at it and I was impressed by its size. It surely was a female, big and mean!

Later on, as I was lying in the alvar, enjoying the sun, I heard the distinctive cries of ravens telling that something big and mean as well was around. Because the sounds were localized on one spot and not moving, I decided to walk there for a closer look: it was a Great Horned Owl being harassed by 2 ravens who wanted the world to know of the owl’s presence. The owl was not happy about it and flew a few times from one perch to another, certainly spurred as well by my presence.

With the observation of Bald Eagle in the morning, it makes for 3 species of top predators seen in a single day in a relatively small area. Quite impressive! Cabot Head is definitively a unique and special place!

Stéphane