Three to five inches of sticky, wet snow fell on Saturday morning, finally winding down around noon, as a low pressure system passed offshore. While the opening of the Bradbury Mountain Hawkwatch was delayed a bit, we did enjoy a very successful birdwalk outing: 6 Canvasbacks, 36 Greater Scaup, 1 Ring-necked Duck, 1 Barrow’s Goldeneye, and 10 other species of waterfowl, all within the boundaries of Yarmouth!

I spent a couple of hours at the hawkwatch in the afternoon, and spotted the only 2 “countable” birds of the day – two northbound Turkey Vultures. Well, at least we weren’t skunked on Day 1! A local Red-shouldered Hawk put in an appearance, however.

An upper level trough produced some light not-really-accumulating snow on Sunday, as a stronger storm developed well offshore. During the flurries and snow showers, I spent the morning birding around Biddeford Pool. Song Sparrows, as well as Common Grackles and Red-winged Blackbirds are definitely increasing. There were quite a few Common Mergansers around as well: 4 off of the Saco Yacht Club, 9 off of Laurel Hill Cemetery, and an impressive 64 off of the Biddeford public boat launch. I had 9 Brant at East Point, and a goodly 78 in the Pool itself – another March migrant.

Other highlights included a single Razorbill off of East Point, a drake Harlequin Duck off of Ocean Avenue, 16 Ruddy Turnstones and 4 Dunlin in Biddeford Pool, and a Red Fox in Laurel Hill Cemetery. The drake Barrow’s Goldeneye continues behind the condos on Water Street in Saco, as well. I also spotted a tight flock of about 30 Bohemian Waxwings over I-295 in Cumberland, near mile marker 14 on my way back to the store.

The Water St. Barrow's Goldeneye:

And, I was quite happy with this shot that nicely shows the differences in head and bill shape between the Barrow's and a Common Goldeneye (female).

The real highlight for me, however, was two more Northern Shrikes. I found an immature along Pool Rd in Biddeford Pool, my 30th shrike in Maine this winter. And, a short while later, an adult at the Saco Yacht Club was number 31. My previous record was 22, and we still have at least another few weeks of northbound shrikes!

This Shrike was actually from last week in Scarborough Marsh that I forgot to post at the time. I wasn't able to snag a photo of the big #30 today.

Then, in the afternoon, my THIRD shrike of the day appeared at the store’s feeders. Another immature, and one that looked similar (rather gray for a young bird) to the bird that we last saw here on 2/20. Therefore, I have decided not to add this sighting to my total for the season; I’m presuming that this is the same bird that was here a few weeks ago.

A stiff northerly wind tempered our enthusiasm for the first sunny day of the Bradbury Mtn. Hawkwatch season. However, when I left at 11:30, we had already tallied 6 Bald Eagles, and 2 Red-tailed Hawks, which, given the wind, was not too shabby at all. At the very least, it was a good taste of what’s to come!

And today, in our garden at the store, a true sign of spring has emerged:

The narrow strip of garden sandwiched between a warm, blacktop parking lot and the south face of the building allows for “spring” to arrive a couple of weeks earlier. And this year, that is none too soon!