Mainly Maine

Barbara Seith
Jun 30, 2024
3 min read

Off to Maine for the annual family vacation to Boothbay Harbor. Our condo is right on the harbor and very convenient to the downtown. It also has a large great room where we have a family party (I have 4 cousins - with lots of kids & grandkids who lived in a vicinity). Unfortunately one of my cousins tripped and fractured her hip early on at the party -- and subsequently had surgery in Portland. Wanted to see her while she was still in Maine, so that meant a few trips to Maine Medical in Portland 1.5 hours away.

Fortunately since I had a pretty robust Maine list from last year's visit, I wasn't expecting to have a lot of new birds. We went on the Puffin trip to Eastern Egg Rock on Tuesday -- the day was gorgeous! I also after seeing my from Robin's posts on Facebook (and getting some great tips from her), I decided to venture north west to the Rangely/Eustis area. I was not useless in Eustis -- it was quite the successful trip -- including two new life birds in Rangely - Canada Jay & Ruffled Grouse.

Here's a bit of the week...

Scarborough Marsh - was my first stop on the way up to Boothbay Harbor. I spent a few hours in on and off rain observing the Marsh.

The marsh behind the Pelreco Building

Glossy Ibis

Least Tern & Snowy Egret

Dunstan Landing

American Goldfinch

Eastern Kingbird

The I hit Grondin Pond -- which I thought was a new hotspot, but turns out I've been there before, but in the winter.

Glossy Ibis in a worm dispute

This is the view from the Condo

Sunday was a bit foggy, but took off for Pemaquid Point where I saw a single Black Guillemot.

Black Guillemot

Pemaquid Point

The Road to New Harbor

Marsh on the road to Pemaquid Harbor

Pemaquid Cove

Pemaquid Harbor

Common Loon

Common Tern

Laughing Gull

Common Tern

Roseate Tern

Common Tern

Monday started in Northern Lincoln County (Burkett Mill Preserve) looking for an Olive-sided Flycatcher -- no success. Decided to head further north to Weskaug Marsh and then to Hidden Valley Nature Center to the west.

Burkett Mill Preserve

Northern Flicker

Weskaug Marsh

Snowy Egret

Egypt Marsh

Common Grackle

Common Yellowthroat

Cedar Waxwing

Yellow Warbler

Yarrow

Eastern tiger swallowtail

Chestnut-sided Warbler -- singing all over the place, hard to get a good photo!

Bobolink

Tuesday dawned crisp and clear. I ran over to East Boothbay and Ocean Point before the 10am Puffin Boat departure.

Ocean Point

View from the Drive

Osprey

Island with Pine Tree & Osprey

Black-capped Chickadee

Puffin Boat -- Cap'n Fish Cruise

Double-crested Cormorant

Wilson's Storm Petrel

Common Eider

Black Guillemot

Arctic Tern

Common Tern

Laughing Gull & Black Gilllemot

Arctic Tern

Atlantic Puffin

Windjammer just outside of Boothbay Harbor on the way back in.

I woke very early on Wednesday to head up to Eustis intending to see Moose. I drove fairly slowly from Rangely to Eustis and finally settled in the Sand pit, my friend had told me about. Lots of birds singing -- but just one duck and one deer there.

The Sand Pit (it's on the other side of the road)

White-tailed Deer

Field Sparrow

Moose Cow #1 - she was small, probably a yearling, although still really big...

Twirling her ears

She crossed the road in front of me... after carefully looking both ways.

Moose Cow #2 -- much larger. We spent about 10 minutes together, looking in each other's eyes, then she crossed the road behind me after carefully looking both ways. Those flies look really annoying.

Further down the road, I stopped to take a photo of this -- thinking the top was a bird... it isn't!

Then I saw this Great Horned Owlet that my friend Robin had been posting about...

and a second Owlet

Lupine

Northern Crescent Butterfly

White Admiral Butterfly

My last real day of birding in Maine took me back to Weskaug Marsh. A Tricolor Heron had been spotted there a few days before and I thought I would just go back and sit for a while. Was glad I did -- there were several very cooperative Nelson's Sparrows, which I had yet to get a good photo. That is not an issue any more.

Mallard