by Marion Sprague
On Saturday November 21st, we visited at Fort Foster where our goal was to see some lingering passerines and our returning winter visitors. Before we even officially started our walk we were greeted by a pair of Pileated Woodpeckers working away at a tree across from where we parked.
We started our day along the road leading to the pier. We were greeted by not 1 but 2 Hermit Thrushes foraging around the ground at the tree line. As we crested the hill to descend toward the beach, a flurry of activity caught our eye to the right of the trail. Among the mixed flock we counted 3 singing Carolina Wrens and picked up a Tree Sparrow.
The day was unseasonably warm, which made the trek out to the end of the pier the most enjoyable of all the November Fort Foster trips to date. It was well worth walking out there! We saw a Belted Kingfisher along the structures to the left of us, counted 5 Red-throated Loons (with a showing of Common Loons as well), and a Surf Scoter. But the real highlight was a flock of over 50 Snow Buntings that flew overhead and landed near the beach! We continued our walk along the shore trials along Rocky and Windersurfer’s Beaches. Highlights included really nice looks at a Red-tailed Hawk across the marsh.
In total we saw 48 species, including a terrific sampling of Southern Maine’s woodpecker species—Pileated, Downy, Hairy and Red-bellied. We were only missing the Northern Flicker to round out our list.
As with any trip we are happy to take a minute to pause for things other than birds. When Garrett spotted a vole scurrying around under a log next to the rocky water’s edge, we stopped to watch it forage for a few minutes.
It was a great outing with wonderful weather! You can see our full list of birds here: https://ebird.org/me/checklist/S76494482.
Stay tuned for our next trip announcement coming shortly. Happy birding!
