I’ve enjoyed two very productive days of birding on Monday and Tuesday. Although I have no real rarities, per se, to show for it, lots of birds and pleasant weather made for two good days out and about.

On Monday, I covered the Southcoast from Kennebunk Beach to Kittery. I began at Kennebunk Beach, searching for Scarlet Tanagers – not what one usually goes out looking for on a February morning in Maine! But, I received a report of two adult males from a yard here – a very intriguing sighting indeed. It was seen on Thursday, and as I later found out from the homeowner, it has not been seen since. I searched the area a bit, but didn’t turn up anything bright red other than a male Northern Cardinal. But, about 50 Purple Sandpipers offshore and a close pass by a Cooper’s Hawk made the stop worthwhile.

I then worked my way down to Wells, then skipped down to Kittery. Two Savannah Sparrows at Fort Foster were probably my default “bird of the day,” but I was more than happy with the full-scope views of a mixed flock of American Robins (about 15) and Cedar Waxwings (about 30). Actually, it was these two species – in mixed groups and in small homogenous flocks as well – that were the news of the day; I encountered many of each throughout the day in all sorts of locations from parking lots to parks.

A couple of Harlequin Ducks at the Nubble brightened the day, as did a photogenic Great Cormorant:

(This shot suffered from overly bright conditions, but the breeding plumage was certainly in full affect!)

(Action shot, resulting in a flashback of a day spent helping researchers on St. Paul Island, AK studying Black-legged Kittiwake nestlings, BELOW a plethora of nesting Red-faced Cormorants!)

51 Harlequin Ducks at the Cliff House in Ogunquit, however, was a great count, and probably one of the highest that I have made at any single Southcoastal Maine location. Then, I added another 26 Harlies along Marginal Way (and over 185 Mallards in Perkin’s Cove) before finishing the day back in the Webhannet Marsh of Wells.

On Tuesday, Jeannette and I were treated to a gorgeous day. Warming temps (into the upper 30’s) and almost no wind made for a very pleasant outing. First, we walked at Bradbury Mountain Park, where Jeannette found a Northern Shrike on Monday morning, right at the summit. She also has two or more White-winged Crossbills fly overhead. We were looking for those; we saw neither.

Then, with the glass-calm conditions out on Casco Bay, we headed offshore on our “Poor Man’s Pelagic,” otherwise known as the Casco Bay Ferry Line’s Mailboat Run. Visiting Great Diamond Island, Diamond Cove, Long Island, Chebeague Island, and Cliff Island, this three-hour tour is a great way to see – and bird – Casco Bay. While pelagic birds are pretty rare inshore (despite our nickname for the trip; although we did once see a Red Phalarope off Long Island), it’s a great way to enjoy the quantities of waterfowl in the area. We also had two 20-minute layovers on this day - Chebeague and Cliff Islands- which allowed for a quick hit of landbirding. I was hoping to find some Brant and Purple Sandpipers, but we saw neither. We did, however, see more Common Loons and Surf Scoters than I expected, so I certainly learned something this day (as with ANY birding trip)!

(Long Island)

While we did not see anything out of the ordinary on this trip, our tallies were pretty good for many species. One Harbor Porpoise, and multiple Harbor Seals, were also seen.

Here are the totals from the outing:
Common Eider: 652
Long-tailed Duck: 463
Surf Scoter: 95
Bufflehead: 73
Common Goldeneye: 45
Common Loon: 43
Red-breasted Merganser: 38
American Black Duck: 35
Canada Goose: 25
Red-necked Grebe: 16
Black Guillemot: 8
Horned Grebe: 5
Red-throated Loon: 2
Ring-billed Gull: 2
Black Scoter: 1
Lots of Herring and Great Black-backed Gulls.