Northern Maine Birds: 23 April- 4 May 2011

Northern Maine is slowly emerging from winter.  The past ten days passed without a flake of snow falling and the temperature pushed up into the 60's on several days.  April ended with slightly above normal precipitation total (2.95 inches at Caribou) and slightly cooler temps for the month.

Only the bigger lakes in the region are still ice covered.  Our favorite central Aroostook impoundments Christina Reservoir and Lake Josephine, lost their ice on the 28th this year.  Water levels in streams and rivers remains quite high with the St John River just reaching flood stage late last week due to snowmelt.

Hardwoods have begun to flower and amphibian and insect activity has increased substantially.

New and arriving species seen during this period:

Snow Goose             4/27
Gadwall                      4/26
American Wigeon       4/23
Northern Pintail          4/23
Blue-winged Teal       5/1
Redhead                    4/23
Lesser Scaup             4/29
Greater Scaup           5/1
Black Scoter              5/4
Surf Scoter                5/4
Barrow's Goldeneye   4/26
Bufflehead                  4/29
Ruddy Duck               5/4
Red-necked Grebe     5/1
Pied-billed Grebe       4/26
Broad-winged Hawk    4/23
Peregrine Falcon           5/3
Ruby-throated Hummingbird  5/3
Blue-headed Vireo        5/1
Brown Thrasher            5/4
Palm Warbler                5/1
Northern Parula           5/3
Yellow-rumped Warbler     4/27
Black-and-White Warbler  5/1
Northern Waterthrush     5/3
Fox Sparrow                4/23
Chipping Sparrow         4/23
Swamp Sparrow           4/28

Waterfowl diversity took a big jump in the county this week with ice-out occurring at the premier duck ponds: Lake Josephine in Easton and Christina Reservior in Fort Fairfield.  Eighteen species of waterfowl have been reported this period.

Snow Geese returned to the St. John River flats in Grand Isle last week.  Over 500 were estimated to be feeding in the potato fields there on the 27th.  13 including one Blue phase were also spotted in Madawaska on the 3rd. Flocks of Canada Geese continue to be reported as they move through.  As mentioned earlier, many locally breeding Canadas are already on nests.

Expected arrivals this week included Gadwall and Blue-winged Teal (at Lake Jo), American Wigeon (at Collins Pond in Caribou) and Lesser Scaup (at Lake Jo and Christina Reservoir).     Most noteworthy of the ducks was a  pair of Redheads returning on the 23rd to a pond near Lake Josephine.  Paul Cyr photographed the pair on the 25th.  Among numbers of Commons, three Barrows Goldeneye's (26-29th) were nice finds at Lake Jo.

A Long-tailed Duck and a Bufflehead arriving as the ice left Christina Reservoir on the 29th were also notable.  These were joined by more of their kind by May 4th at Lake Josephine.  Yet another Long-tail was spotted by the UMPI Ornithology class on Presque Isle Stream in Presque Isle on the 3rd.  Greater Scaup were spotted in Grand Isle 3 May and at Lake Jo 4 May.  Black and Surf Scoters  put down into Christina Reservoir on the 4th.  Three males were the first Ruddy Duck arrivals at Lake Jo on the 4th.

The first Pied-billed Grebe was heard calling at Christina Reservoir on the 26th.  Another was heard near the Muscovic Road in Stockholm on May 1st.  A special discovery was a Red-necked Grebe photographed  in breeding plumage on Lake Josephine on the 1st.  The attractive diver is seen in Paul Cyr's photo at the top of this post

Double-crested Cormorants and Common Loons were quick to crowd into open water as the await the opening of the ice cover on the larger lakes.  This nice breeding plumaged adult was photographed by Paul Cyr.  You can even seen one of its "crests"!

A Great Blue Heron was photographed in Littleton on the 27th and other was seen at Easton on the 2nd.  A Turkey Vulture was seen feeding on the roadside in Conner Twp on the 4th.

Birders found a good diversity of raptors in northern Maine this week with 11 species noted.  Bald Eagles continue on the nests at Ashland, Fort Fairfield, Presque Isle and Van Buren. Ospreys are also now occupying most nest sites in the area including the large nest on the power poles near Route 1 in Van Buren.  A previous report noted a young Bald Eagle adding sticks to the structure...

 Sharp-shinned Hawks were seen in Fort Fairfield on the 23rd, as was the first arriving Broad-winged Hawk of the year. A Red-tailed Hawk was a Square Lake Township on 1 May and a Northern Goshawk flew over Barren Lake in Caribou on the 28th.  A large Coopers Hawk was chased by an American Kestrel near the Presque Isle Airport on Wednesday the 4th.

Always a notable sight in Aroostook, an adult Peregrine Falcon was spotted feeding on a Ring-billed Gull beside the Roosevelt School in Hamlin on the 3rd.  Merlins were seen and heard in Caribou on May 1, Quimby (Winterville) on 25 April  and Stockholm on the 25 April and 1 May.  American Kestrels were widely reported.  

Boreal Chickadees were heard on the Muscovic Road on the 1st of May and Gray Jays were spotted in New Sweden on May 1.  Both Ruby-crowned and Golden-crowned Kinglets are singing loudly the conifer woods these days.  The first Ruby-throated Hummingbird for the county was reported from Stockholm on the 3rd...early for sure.

The first Blue-headed Vireo of the year arrived on schedule at New Sweden on 1st.  Loud couplets announced the arrival of a Brown Thrasher at Presque Isle Airport on the 4th.

The first warblers of the season were trickling in to northern Maine as April gave way to May.  Yellow-rumps were reported across the area in moderate numbers.  Other warbler arrivals in central Aroostook included Palm Warblers at the Muscovic Road in Stockholm and the Burnt Landing Road in Cross Lake Twp on the 1st; a Black-and-White Warbler at Mantle Lake Park in PI on the 1st; a Northern Parula at Madawaska Lake on the 3rd; a Black-throated Green Warbler at Barren Lake in Caribou on the 3rd;  Northern Waterthrushes at Arnold Brook Lake in Presque Isle on the 3rd and Collins Pond in Caribou and Christina Reservoir in Fort Fairfield on the 4th.

A pair of Northern Cardinals are visiting a Presque Isle feeder.  Ted Roberts got this shot of the pair on Wednesday the 4th.

Blackbird numbers continued to increase as territories are occupied in area marshes.   Paul Cyr sent over this nice shot of a singing male.

Notable change in the finch department were lots of Purple Finches arriving at the end of the month.

Evening Grosbeaks continue in pairs and small flocks at Castle Hill, Caribou, Fort Fairfield, Fort Kent, New Sweden, Portage Lake, Presque Isle, St. Francis, St. John Stockholm, Winterville and Woodland.  Though most have now departed, small numbers of Common Redpolls are still being reported around the area.  A Hoary Redpoll was part of one of the last flocks to visit my feeders in Woodland on the 23rd.  A handful of Pine Siskins were seen (Caribou, Madawaska Lake, Presque Isle, Woodland) and numbers of these seem to be increasing.

Bald Eaglets in Aroostook

Paul Cyr recently took a buzz around central Aroostook coutny and checked on our nesting eagles. What he saw was very encouraging. After several seasons of poor production it looks like many of the nests have successfully hatched eggs!

In all Paul counted seven eaglets at four nests: three in Presque Isle and one in Fort Fairfield. He commented that most of the nests had small caches of meats and fish to feed the young birds. You can see what appears to be a fish next to one eaglet in the top picture and an impressive pile of red meat around the rim of the second nest!

It was also interesting to note how most of eagle nests are located in mature Poplar trees rather than White Pines as is often the case in the state south of here.

We are looking forward to monitoring the birds progress from here.

Thanks to Paul for these great pictures

Northern Maine Birds 21-31 March 2009

Things are gradually warming in northern Maine. Last weekend the mercury in the thermometer took its first trip across the 50 degree mark this year. Snow melt has been quite gradual thus far and snow cover remains intact in most places. A surprise snow "shower" left anywhere from an inch to a foot of snow in places on Monday.

Streams have come up a bit and open water is increasing. Some small and mid-sized streams have lost most of their ice. Mile-long stretches are now open on the Aroostook River in several spots.
A few waterways in fields have lost their snow as the runoff melted it from below. Southward facing banks are bare in many spots.

A few emerging moths were seen over the weekend.

New and arriving species this week:

Snow Goose 3/31
Canada Goose 3/27
Great Blue Heron 3/28 (early)
American Kestrel 3/22 (early)
Northern Harrier 3/27
American Woodcock 3/27
Killdeer 3/29
Ring-billed Gull 3/20
Herring Gull 3/26
American Robin 3/27


A single Snow Goose seen in the Aroostook River in Presque Isle on the 31st was an early bird and the waterfowl highlight this week. The first Canada Geese seen were a flock of 8 on the 27th in Caribou, 13 in Easton and 9 in Presque Isle on the 28th. Singles, pairs and small groups of Hooded Mergansers were reported from Bancroft to Limestone. Common Mergansers were seen in Fort Fairfield and Caribou. These divers are squeezing into leads in the ice where other ducks would be releuctant to land. Mallards and American Black Ducks continue to be the only dabbling ducks found in the area to date. Ken Lamb got some nice shots of these Common Goldeneyes courting in Presque Isle>


A very early Great Blue Heron was photographed by Ken Lamb in Presque Isle on the 28th. This was the earliest arrival of this species by more than a week and two weeks ahead of normal arrival dates in my record book.

Good raptors for the area included some early arriving falcons. A male American Kestrel seen at a nest box in Portage Lake on the 22nd was more than a week early and another eager arrival was found in Woodland on the 29th. A Merlin paused for a moment in Hersey on the 28th and then continued northward. An arriving male Northern Harrier was hunting over snow covered fields in Bancroft in southern Aroostook County on the 27th.

Bald Eagles continue to be seen at nests in Fort Fairfield, St Agatha, Van Buren and Presque Isle. The interesting plumaged 3rd? year bird at the end of this post was photographed by Paul Cyr.

The first Killdeer arrived on schedule in central Aroostook County on the 29th. The plovers appeared to regret their ambitious efforts the following day when 6+ inches of new snow made foraging difficult for these birds. By the 31st, Killdeer had been reported from Caribou, Easton, Portage Lake, Mapleton, Presque Isle and Woodland. An American Woodcock was probing the thin margin of bare and unfrozen sod along my driveway on the night of the 27th.

A pair of Barred Owls were vocalizing in Woodland on the 31st. Horned Larks have increased along roadsides in the open country. 2 were seen in Castle Hill and another small group was encountered in Fort Fairfield.


A noticeable pulse of Bohemian Waxwings pushed through the area this week. Flocks were seen in several locations in Caribou and Presque Isle and others were reported in Ashland, Chapman, Portage Lake, Easton, Fort Fairfield, Houlton and Island Falls. Paul Cyr photographed the waxwings as they tossed back the last bits of fruit in his yard.

A trickle of arriving American Robins on the 27th transformed into sizeable wave by the following day. Mentioned by many reporters as a true harbinger of spring, the robins were wallowing in deep snow by Monday. Most robins seen this week appeared to be the dark subspecies from Labrador and Newfoundland. Paul Cyr got the shot at the top of this post...a dark robin squeezing the juice from one last highbush cranberry.

Another Northern Shrike was seen in Danforth on the 24th.

American Crows continue to work on nests and several carrying twigs were reported in central Aroostook county.

American Tree Sparrow reports dropped substantially in late March and it appears this bird is making an early departure. In its place, Dark-eyed Juncos have started to appear in ones and twos under area feeders. A younger male junco was spotted in Caribou with an apparently injured foot. Plenty of Snow Buntings are still being seen. The largest group was 400+ seen in eastern-most Limestone on the 28th. Others were reported from Caribou, Castle Hill, Easton, Fort Fairfield, Washburn and Woodland.

Surprisingly no other migrant sparrow species has been reported in the area yet this year.

Right on schedule, substantial numbers of blackbird species arrived during the period and have been widely reported from throughout the region. Male Red-winged Blackbirds are already defending territories in central Aroostook wetlands, areas that remain frozen solid and covered in several feet of snow and ice. The season's first Brown-headed Cowbirds made timely arrivals in Caribou on the 21st and Woodland on the 28th.

Both Common Redpoll and American Goldfinch numbers increased at area feeders during the period. Several hundred redpolls were seen at a feeder in New Sweden. Males of both species are coloring up nicely. A few White-winged Crossbills made appearances but their numbers remain in the single digits. Crossbills were spotted at feeders in Caribou, Portage Lake, Presque Isle and Woodland. Evening Grosbeaks continue but numbers are dwindling.

Low on most birder's lists but none-the-less rare and noteworthy in northern Maine, House Finches and House Sparrows were reported again this week. The House Finch continues to make appearances at a feeder in Presque Isle and a pair of House Sparrows arrived in my yard in Woodland on the 31st.

Presque Isle ME Christmas Bird Count 2008

The 2008 Presque Isle Christmas Bird Count was held Saturday 27 December despite the usual nasty weather. 13 field observers covered the region despite the intermittently falling snow and cold temperatures. There was about 1 foot of snow on the ground and only the fastest water was not frozen.

The PI CBC is the northern-most count in the eastern US and this was the 51st time the count has been run.

35 species were found during the day, which was right on the 10 year average for this count. Highlights included some count-firsts: the overdue Sharp-shinned Hawk and an unexpected Merlin. Sharp-shins have shown up as Count Week species in the past, but until Saturday, it was not found during an actual count day. We also found our second-ever Cooper's Hawk which is not unexpected considering this species continued expansion in the region.

Notable high counts were record numbers of Bald Eagles, Blue Jays and Bohemian Waxwings. Even with some conservative editing to avoid duplicate observations of the same individuals, the final tally of 11 eagles shattered the previous high of 3. All sightings were 4th year or mature birds. Even through the heavy snowfall, Paul Cyr was able to get a shot of this eagle eyeing the ducks in the Presque Isle waste water treatment plant.

Other noteworthy finds on the count were Common Merganser, Snowy Owl, Song Sparrow and Common Grackle. Among the missing were White-breasted Nuthatch, Purple Finch and any gull species. A Canada Goose seen during the count week was not found during the count.

All observers commented that generally the woods and fields were very quiet and most sightings were made around feeders and in town locations. The cone crop this year is spotty at best and the last of the fruit is being gobbled up by the waxwings.

In addition to the recent and widespread invasion of Bohemian Waxwings, Evening and Pine Grosbeaks both made good showings. Four Northern Shrikes made for the second highest count ever.



Thanks to the field observers, feeder watchers and the Griffiths for hosting the post-count potluck and tally!


Here's the (unofficial) numbers:

Canada Goose		CW
Mallard		22
Am. Black Duck		56
Mallard x Am. Black Duck hyb		1
Common Merganser		1
Ruffed Grouse		5
Bald Eagle		11
Sharp-shinned Hawk		1
Cooper's Hawk		1
Merlin		1
Mourning Dove		103
Rock Pigeon		333
Snowy Owl		1
Downy Woodpecker		19
Hairy Woodpecker		12
Pileated Woodpecker		2
Northern Shrike		4
Blue Jay		257
Common Raven		123
American Crow		85
Black-capped Chickadee		374
Red-breasted Nuthatch		7
Bohemian Waxwing		270
European Starling		137
Northern Cardinal		2
American Tree Sparrow		10
Song Sparrow		1
Dark-eyed Junco		23
Snow Bunting		495
Common Grackle		2
Pine Grosbeak		148
Pine Siskin		1
Common Redpoll		23
American Goldfinch		193
White-winged Crossbill		10
Evening Grosbeak		204
House Sparrow		23
total species		35
total individuals		2961

Northern Maine Birds 14-27 February 2008

The pattern of regular precipitation in northern Maine continued in the second half of February. Of course, most of that precip has come down in the form of snow. Despite a brief thaw and rain event on the 18^th, snow depths weren’t impacted much and remain at about four feet in the woods. The Caribou weather station noted a couple of daily record snowfalls during the period and totals now stand at about 12 feet of snow this season. About four feet of this snow came down in February. Southern portions of Aroostook County seemed to get more snow than the north. A couple of recent storms also resulted in some significant icing there. Patty Jennings photographed this Hairy Woodpecker in Stacyville after one of the ice storms.

Though the expected late-February warming trend is being experienced, most streams and rivers remain locked up in a thick layer of ice. The lowest and warmest temperatures of the month occurred on Presidents Day weekend (16-18^th) and made it interesting for travelers.

With the increasing day length and sun intensity, the birds appear to be getting restless and some movement is already being seen. Some early bird song, territorial behavior and breeding displays were noted by reporters. The Great Backyard Bird Count turned up some good birds in northern Maine this year.

Common Goldeneye drakes have started doing their bizarre breeding display for the hens at the Aroostook River dam in Caribou. Mallards and American Black Ducks were seen in a couple of locations in Presque Isle. A mixed flock of ~30 were seen in a pond behind the hospital here.

Judging from the up tick in reports, it appears that Bald Eagles have begun returning to the area and have even started to show up at some nest sites. Adults were seen at the nest on Crystal Lake in Hersey in southern Aroostook County and at the nest on the Aroostook River in Fort Fairfield. Others were seen Ashland, Caribou, Island Falls, Houlton, Littleton and Presque Isle. Paul Cyr photographed this adult in Fort Fairfield on the 17th.

A Northern Goshawk buzzed some feeders in Caribou on Sunday the 24th. An early (overwintering?) Red-tailed Hawk was spotted along Interstate 95 in New Limerick on the 26^th. The Presque Isle Cooper’s Hawk continues.

The only gull species reported in the area was a small flock of 16 Great Black-backeds that returned this week. They have been seen in Caribou and at the Tri-Community Landfill in Fort Fairfield.

A Barred Owl was heard calling in the Woodland Bog Preserve in Woodland on the 24^th.

With the onset of the breeding season, the woodpecker species have featured prominently in many reports. Literally dozens of Hairy and Downy Woodpeckers were reported drumming from around the county. Pileated Woodpeckers were also seen in good numbers especially at in-town locations.

Northern Shrikes were seen in Caribou (21^st), Woodland (23^rd) and Chapman (24^th). As Ken Lamb's picture shows, the weak mask, barring on the belly and bi-colored bill all indicate the Chapman Shrike was an immature bird.

As of yet unsubstantiated, a Black-billed Magpie was reported to have been photographed in Limestone on the 18^th. If it can be confirmed, this would be a first for northern Maine.

Gray Jays were seen last week near Chamberlain Lake in northern Piscataquis county and 5 were reported from the Houlton area over the President’s Day weekend. American Crows appear to be increasing in numbers and spreading out around the countryside. A Common Raven was seen carrying a stick in Mount Chase…an early nest builder for sure!

The Great Backyard Bird Count produced a bunch of interesting discoveries during the count weekend of the 15^th through the 18th. Reports included the first returning Horned Larks in Fort Fairfield, Boreal Chickadees found in Mars Hill and a Brown Creeper in Island Falls. A second over-wintering Tufted Titmouse for northern Maine, was reported in Island Falls on the count. The long-staying Presque Isle titmouse continues as the northern-most in the US!

Both White-breasted and Red-breasted Nuthatches turned up on the count in good numbers. Rare away from feeders in northern Maine, a White-breasted Nuthatch was seen near Chamberlain Lake northwest of Baxter Park last week. Ken Lamb and Trina Coffin photographed these nuthatches in Presque Isle (White-breasted)and Caribou (Red-breasted).

Northern Cardinals were seen in Caribou, Houlton and Presque Isle. The Caribou bird has begun to sing.

The Eastern Towhee continues on in Sherman Mills and according to the GBBC maps, appears to be the northern-most individual of this species on the continent! The bird is reported to be coming to the feeder daily.

Snow Buntings are reappearing in good numbers as winter winds down. Double digit counts were reported from flocks in Ashland, Caribou, Patten, Presque Isle, Smyrna, Washburn and Woodland. Paul Cyrs Game camera captured a couple of squabbling buntings at one of his feeding stations in Presque Isle.

The over-wintering Rusty Blackbird continues in Presque Isle and was seen as recently as the 26^th.

Finch highlights this period included three Hoary Redpolls at a feeder in Mount Chase, a Red Crossbill in Island Falls and House Finches at northern outposts in Caribou and Houlton. Carroll Knox documented his House Finch in Caribou with this photo. Both American Goldfinches and Pine Siskins were seen as increasing in numbers, following the lead of Common Redpolls which are dominating counts at many area feeders. Rare this winter, Purple Finches were seen in Washburn and Mars Hill.

Pine Grosbeaks remain widespread and numerous throughout the county. Evening Grosbeaks are more spotty, but good sized flocks are still being reported. 50+ of each species visit my feeders daily in Woodland.

Loons of Lower LaPomkeag (guest post)

Many (most) of the bird sightings and pictures for the reports here come from a small network of birders/naturalists here in northern Maine. A longtime friend, Bill Hersey, of Caribou, is one of those reporters. Bill regularly keeps me up to date with the bird life he sees at his home, camp and as he travels around the county. Like most of us, Bill has been thinking of the warmer days to come and reflecting back on the past year. I thought I'd share (with his permission) some very interesting Common Loon observations Bill recently recounted... Enjoy...

Hi Bill;

Finally am getting around to writing to you about my observations at Lower Lapomkeag Lake in T8 R7. This is the same little (100 acres + or -) mud bottom lake where I saw 6 ospreys fishing at the same time the day after ice out last spring. I’m not sure whether the early morning of August 11, 2007 was the most exciting time of my life, or whether it was another early morning while serving in South Vietnam in 1969.

Things started to happen shortly after 7:00 A.M. while sitting on the dock having a coffee in the early morning sun; and while watching a loon and her about 2 week old chick. The dad was aimlessly floating about 500' away from the mom (presumably), and her little, black fluff ball.

Before I get to the exciting part, I’ll bore you with:

THE LOONS OF LOWER LaPOMKEAG

My brother-in-law (now deceased) and I inquired about obtaining a camp lease in 1986. In 1987 we obtained a lease and put in the access road during the summer of 1988, followed by a camp platform in 1989, a privy in ‘90 and construction of the camp on the platform in ‘91. We built a small 4' by 10' dock in ‘95. We noticed during these years that there were 2 - 4 loons on the lake most of the time, but never saw any evidence of any nesting, or of chicks.

One of us had read somewhere that some ponds were bachelor ponds for loons, so we never thought much about there not being any nesting activity. Until I read that at some lakes and ponds there was no nesting due to a lack of suitable nesting sites (or site). And in some places - especially New Hampshire - rafts were placed in protected coves to provide a nesting site.

So in 2000 I decided to place a raft in a protected cove. During Memorial weekend my sister-in-law and nephew and I (my brother-in-law had died of colon cancer in April) built a 4' by 4' raft from eastern white cedar logs. We covered the bottom with mesh wire to hold the bark gathered from a near-by wood harvesting site. And put a couple of inches of blueboard under the raft to supply additional floatation, then hauling it with a canoe to a protected cove near the south shore of the lake. During the summer we gathered wetland plants like sedges, blue flag, cattails (they grew great for 2 years then died out), and other plants from wet areas. We planted small eastern white cedar in the 4 corners, all of which died. Over the years, the raft picked seeds out of the air and became well vegetated with “volunteers”.

And wouldn’t you know it , that year (2000) a loon nested on a small peat island near the lake inlet. She incubated 2 eggs, both of which hatched. A dead chick was found on the nest. The second chick was seen riding on its mom’s back. Trips to camp only occur about once/month so a lot happens that is not seen. There are only two other camps on the lake - no one has ever been seen at one, and the other only gets visited on some long weekends. The next trip to camp revealed no chick. It must have died or been predated by an eagle or turtle.

In 2001 a Canada goose purloined the nest. In 2002 and 2003 (6 eggs) a Canada goose again used the nest. It is not known if the eggs hatched and the goose left the lake with her brood, or disappeared as the result of predation. No goslings were seen in either of the 3 years. In 2004 there were 2 loon eggs in a new location on a nearby peat island at the inlet . Again, the egg shells remained but no chicks were seen (presumably they hatched, but did not survive). And something dined on fresh water clams, leaving the shells on the nest. 2005 resulted in 2 loon eggs on the peat island. It is not known whether the eggs hatched or not, but no chicks were seen. No nesting activity was seen in 2006.

No nesting activity was seen on the 4^th of July weekend in 2007 at the peat island near the inlet. Only one loon call was heard that weekend, which I thought came from the upper lake. And since no loons were seen, I thought the lake was inactive again as far as loon nesting was concerned. I decided to take a trip to the raft just before leaving to go home at the end of the weekend to see what might be there; as often there are fish skeletons left from where eagles (there is a bald eagle nest on the upper lake, and eagles are often seen fishing or perched beside the lower lake), or otters have used the raft for a feeding platform. Also, the biggest bull frogs in Maine sun themselves on the logs.

A good variety of vegetation has seeded in on the raft over the years, so during the summer it is now well vegetated to a height of about 3', so one must round the raft to see what is there. We rounded the far side of the raft and low and behold - surprise - there was a loon nest with two olive, brown, spotted eggs. We boogied out of there pretty damn fast. Never did see the loons, and never heard a peep from them either. In fact, at the time I thought the nest had been abandoned due to the lack if loons. But after 7 years, the raft was being used.

I returned to the lake on August 1^st with my grandson and never saw or heard any loons. On August 4 we jumped into a couple of kayaks and circled the lake looking at the 2 nests near the inlet - no activity. We then circled the loon nesting raft. Both eggs had only shells remaining. Since I had not seen any loons, I supposed the nest had been parasitized by the eagles, or other animal. We headed toward camp, as the wind was coming up. On the way, I noticed the loons at the far southerly end of the lake where the water was more calm. Looking at them through my unsteady, rocking binocs I saw a small, black, fuzz ball which I assumed was only a couple of days old. The loons had hatched at least one of the eggs, and it was still alive (I suspect both eggs hatched but one chick was lost).

In the 20 years we have been at the lake no chicks had survived. The only time I knew for sure they hatched an egg (2000), the chick did not survive. No chicks were seen the other years the loons had nested, though the eggs apparently had hatched. Until this year. I did not expect to see the chick when I next returned the evening of August 10. But, looking through the gathering darkness, there was the chick swimming beside its parents in the middle of the lake.

So on a nice, warm, sunny morning on August 11, 2007 at about 7:00 A.M. I carried a coffee down and sat on the dock watching through my binocs the mother loon near the southerly side of the lake with her nearby chick. Dad was aimlessly floating about 500' away.

Mom (I assume the one tending the chick was the mom) had a fish about 10" long in her beak, and was swinging her head side to side. You could see its white sides and belly flashing in the early morning sun as she did so. I remember asking myself why she had such a big fish, since it was much too big to feed to Junior, but figured she was teaching the chick something. All of a sudden - simultaneously with her alarm cry - a mature bald eagle followed by an immature swooped down from the easterly lake shore. Upon hearing mom’s shriek or wail , the male loon immediately started running on the water, shrieking, beating its wing tips on the water, presumably to make himself more fierce. As the mature eagle got to the mother loon, she (the loon) jumped out of the water to deflect him (or her), dropping the fish. The eagle flew by and did a F-16 loop, and came back to the loon and her chick, with the male loon still walking on water, beating it wings, and making a helleva noise. The eagle lowered to the lake surface (the immature eagle had turned around and headed back east) and picked something out of the lake. I said to myself “holy shit he got the baby loon”. I could see something in his talons as he left. About 5 seconds later (about the same time dad arrived on the scene) the baby loon popped to the surface. The baby apparently dove to escape the eagle; and the eagle must have taken off with the fish mom had been displaying. The mature eagle then flew off easterly from where it came, and disappeared around the corner into the woods.

Exciting, but it does not end. About 5 minutes later what I assume was the same mature eagle reappeared, and perched in a big pine tree on the south shore about 400' away from the 3 loons. In about another 5 minutes (how does one tell time when one is having so much fun?) an osprey flew in from its usual direction across the northeast corner of the lake. Hovering over the lake near the inlet (near the original loon nest), it dove and came up with a fish, again about 8" long. It headed back from where it came (since it comes from the same direction most of the time I assume there is a nearby nest) carrying the fish. Immediately, the eagle took off from its perch to intercept the osprey. As it neared the osprey the osprey cried out and the male loon again walked on the water, vocalized, and beat his wingtips on the water while “running” to the aid of the osprey. As the eagle neared the osprey, the osprey dropped the fish (the osprey never gained much altitude as it was still below the tree tops); which the eagle tried to retrieve, from the lake. The osprey started dive bombing the eagle, forcing it down into the water. The osprey dive bombed the eagle about a half dozen more times, and took off in the direction from where it originally came, presumably somewhat pissed. The male loon stopped its approach about 200' away from the eagle and osprey. The eagle seemed to rest for awhile. As it was in water to deep to apparently take flight, it walked to the shore. In about a minute, the eagle flew off without the fish. The male loon had since returned to mom and chick.

The end result - besides about 15 minutes of sheer delight - was the eagle got the fish from the loon, but did not retrieve the one from the osprey.

After the excitement, I went back up to the camp and pulled out the topo map. I scaled off the distance from the map covered by the osprey and the eagle; as I knew where the eagle was perched, about where the osprey caught the fish, and where the eagle caught up with the osprey. In the pursuit, the eagle covered about 1000' while the osprey was covering about 600'.

Time for breakfast and another coffee!

I made it a point to return to the lake at least once per week - even if only for 15 minutes - to check on the chick. It kept growing, though slower than I thought it should. One time during its early flight training, I heard what I thought was a lynx or bobcat on the far shore, meowing softly, until I noticed that the sound seemed to move with the mom and the chick (dad was almost always away goofing off). All of a sudden the chick took off and flew about 300'. Apparently mom was making a deep guttural sound, encouraging her chick to fly. The next time I was at the camp the chick flew and circled the lake three times. Dad had left by this time - or at least was not around. I was unable to get to camp the weekend of Nov. 3. By the next weekend mom and chick were no where to be seen. I expect (hope) they are swimming off of Schoodic Peninsula.

I’m going to forward this to The Cornell Lab. They ran an article in the Autumn issue of Living Bird about eagles stealing from ospreys. This puts a little different twist on it.

I doubt if I’ll ever see two geographic moments together like this again. Glad I had the one chance.

Bill Hersey..