Beautiful Monday...

Yes, truly beautiful -- lots of birds and sunshine and birders out and about. Made me remember why I love birding in Rhode Island. Started the day at Mud Pond with an American Bittern (new 2024 bird). Had some great time with a few other Redheads ;) Ending the morning at my patch Quonnie Breachway - won't be too long before I will be sitting there daily and soaking in the birds.

Mud Pond

Great Blue Heron

Ruddy Duck

American Bittern

When I first spotted it -- very well camouflaged...

Starting to peek out

Ah - there it is...

All unfurled

South Kingstown Town Beach

Red-winged Blackbird

Killdeer

Perry Pond

Redhead

Quonnie Breachway

Common Eider

Just a quick bird on Tuesday Morning because I had a lunch in Greenwich CT on Tuesday and of course there was a Accident on 95 a few miles before I needed to exit.

After Lunch had to go up to the Merritt Parkway to get home. Long day.

Mud Pond

Northern Harrier

Ruddy Duck

Atlantic Avenue, Misquamicut

Common Raven

While I was sitting in traffic on Tuesday some visitors from Maine - the folks who run the pelagic I got to in June discovered a Pink-footed Goose at a nursery in Middletown. So Wednesday I headed over the bridges early (because of the construction) and I was hoping to hear the Eastern Screech Owl that had been reported in a wooded park in Newport. I was in place @5:15am.

I did hear the Owl fairly quickly, but stuck around to see if it might vocalize again and listen to the other sounds of the woods in the dark -- a couple of American Woodcocks were active and so were several male Northern Cardinals. I had never seen Cardinals behave like that.

Went to the Goose site next, but no Geese -- not surprising, I find they usually spend the night on water and only go to the feeding grounds a little later. So I did a tour of Middletown & Newport.

Gardiner Pond

Great Blue Heron (fuzzy Common Merganser in back)

Ocean Drive

Harlequin Ducks

Brant

Fort Getty

Immature Male Common Goldeneye

Ross's Goose

This is an older photo of a Pink-footed Goose. The one from today was in the back of a brushy field across a busy street and a photo wasn't possible. This one was at a pond in Cranston and I took it right before the stress fracture in my foot kicked in (that lead to surgery) -- at least I got a good life bird before I was out of commission for awhile.

Rainy day on Thursday, so basically quiet & wet. Had to meet a fellow birder the lend him an extra camera body while his was being fixed and ended up at Camp Cronin. Had some nice moments with the Scarborough Beach Black-headed Gulls.

Succotash Marsh

Northern Harrier

Great Blue Heron

Scarborough Beach

Black-headed Gulls

Camp Cronin

Red-throated Loon

Horned Grebe

Took a ride on the Block Island Ferry on Friday -- have been trying to do that for a few weeks, but either the marine forecast, my schedule or FOG stopped me. I met James at the Ferry and another birder also joined us.

Very productive trip out -- a Black Guillemot (maybe 2) & 2 Common Murres were new year birds for me. I didn't get a lot of photos because on the way out the weather was very good and too many people crowded the front deck making it challenging to get photos. Here's what I had worth posting.

Block Island Ferry

Common Murre

Surf Scoter

Razorbill

Spent Saturday at a conference -- it is early Sunday morning and its pretty messy out there (rain, astronomical high tide & WIND!), so I might wait until low tide this afternoon to venture out.

Basically there was NO low tide today -- just extremely high tide and high tide. So just a few photos from Quonnie Breachway.

Common Loon coming into breeding plumage

Grey Seal fighting the tide

Here's hoping for better weather next week.