I made a special effort to try to photograph birds in flight during the second half of summer. I’ll start with those and then show you Common Mergansers fighting over a huge brown trout, two wren species that posed nicely for me, many warblers, and a few migrating sparrows.
Birds in Flight
American Kestrels
I had a productive 12 minutes with a half dozen or so American Kestrels that gathered along Trask Road in Sunapee on August 21. Here is an overview of the site. Some of the photos that follow show kestrels in the top of the largest tree in the center of this photo.
One male buzzed a female sitting high in a tree, then moved on.
It seemed it was mostly males in flight in these four photos.
Common Nighthawks
For the first time ever, I got desperate enough to see nighthawks in the US (vs. Brazil and Costa Rica) to make the one-hour trip down the river to Westminster, VT. The evening I was there around 950 were counted. However, many hundreds could only be seen as small dots through a scope. There were some flyovers with small groups of birds close enough for marginal photos. I’m glad I went, but I concluded it would probably take many trips to capture really good photos. That would likely be when there was a major flying ant hatch in the field were we sat.
This photo shows the flying ants (tiny black spots) that the nighthawks were feeding on.
I caught two photos of a nighthawk about to swallow an ant. These (and the other nighthawk photos) are highly cropped.
Cedar Waxwings
I arrived 24 hours late to see nighthawks at Campbell Flat in Norwich. Instead I photographed adult and juvenile Cedar Waxwings flying to a distant perch.
Here is an adult in flight.
And juveniles.
One juvenile landed near an adult and begged for food while the adult ignored it. (Later in the blog I will show feeding.)
Hummingbirds
Very few Hummingbirds visited our feeders this year. And the ones that came did so only very sporadically — maybe once every few days. Very disappointing. But I did get some in flight in the wild.
This one was feeding on common evening primrose along the Sugar River Trail in Newport.
In Norwich this one was about to take flight from a perch near the waxwings.
Other Birds in Flight
Individual birds flew by or launched when I had my camera up to my eye.
Common Merganser with Brown Trout
I stopped at Mascoma Lakeside Park hoping to find warblers. No luck with them or other land birds. But I did see a commotion in the lake as I parked. So I hustled down to the shore to photograph a Common Merganser playing keep-away with a huge brown trout.
I do not believe the trout was ever swallowed. I would have loved to see that.
Great Blue Herons
I photographed Great Blue Herons in Newport and Sunapee.
Where the Sugar River flows under Routes 11 and 103 in Newport, I found a Great Blue Heron that was pretty much oblivious to me and the man who came by with his dog. For many photos I had to back up to get the whole heron in the frame with the lens I was using.
It caught what I believe is a crayfish.
It walked from backlit sun to the shade of the bridge and caught another crayfish. But it did not seem to want to swallow it so it tossed it back into the river.
After 10 minutes I left it to feed in peace.
In Sunapee my grandson spotted a Great Blue Heron at sunset. We both were able to get photos. He got a shot with a fish in its mouth before I arrived and sat next to him for many minutes of photographing as the light faded to dusk.
Two days later we photographed another heron not far from the rocks the first stood on.
Cedar Waxwings Feeding Young and Themselves
At Campbell Flat in Norwich I photographed juvenile Cedar Waxwings getting fed small dark berries.
At Mascoma Lakeside Park, a flock of around 40 juveniles Cedar Waxwings were feeding on red osier dogwood near the shore of the lake.
Warblers
Warblers had been scarce that last few weeks. Then a flock of Yellow-rumped Warblers moved through our yard late Sunday afternoon. During the seven weeks of late summer I found some nice species — normally when looking for them, but sometimes when doing something else like reading or hiking.
American Redstart
In late August I photographed a male American Redstart in Newport.
And a female in Sunapee.
Black-and-White Warbler
Photographed August 27 along the Sugar River Rail Trail in Newport, NH.
Black-throated Green Warbler
Along Trask road in Sunapee I found a Black-throated Green Warbler on August 21 and September 11.
Jann had a carpal tunnel operation at Alice Peck Day, a hospital we think is excellent. While this was in progress I spent 40 minutes along the Mascoma River Greenway. I instantly saw and photographed a Blackburnian Warbler and later a Magnolia Warbler. But the birds I mostly saw were Black-throated Green Warblers. They were feeding madly, but it appeared one, in the last photo below, ignored an ugly-looking insect.
Blackburnian Warbler
A brief look at one in Newport.
And here is the one from the Mascoma River Greenway.
Blackpoll Warbler
My grandson visiting from Wisconsin and I were about to hike Bog Mountain in Wilmot. And then we saw birds! Unfortunately I only had a short lens, but I got this highly cropped shot of a Blackpoll Warbler. It looks nothing like a spring male.
Common Yellowthroat
The most photographed warbler during these weeks was the common Common Yellowthroat. The majority were photographed along the Sugar River Trail in Newport at two spots several miles apart. These at Oak and Greenwood.
And near where Routes 11 and 103 cross the trail, I found these. A juvenile was seriously in need of getting fed.
Along Trask Road in Sunapee I photographed one in late August.
I photographed this vibrant adult at Knight’s Meadow Marsh in Webster.
I also found some adult Common Yellowthroats at the Esther Currier WMA in New London.
Magnolia Warbler
I found a Magnolia Warbler along the Sugar River Trail in Newport.
And I was treated to a very brief look at one along the Mascoma River Greenway.
Pine Warbler
While sitting on my porch reading, I caught movement in the nearby trees. A flock of warblers was moving quickly through. Among them was at least one Pine Warbler.
Wilson’s Warbler
I saw a Wilson’s Warbler in Newport late in August.
Yellow-rumped Warbler
Yellow-rumped Warblers interrupted my reading on September 9th and 21st. Here are a dozen photos.
Wrens
House Wren
I found a House Wren along Trask Road in Sunapee.
But the major spot for House and Carolina Wrens appeared to be at Oak and Greenwood in Newport.
Here is a slide show of the House Wrens that I photographed on three different days in August and September.
Carolina Wren
At the same spot in Newport, a Carolina Wren posed for me. It waited patiently for over 6 minutes, helpfully moving just a bit, while I walked around attempting to photograph it with various backgrounds. This bird appears to be a juvenile.
Sparrows
During the last half of summer, I photographed seven sparrow species. Although the very common Song Sparrow is a pretty bird, whenever I see a bird that is obviously a sparrow, I think, “I hope it is not another Song Sparrow”. To my joy some of them that look a bit like a Song Sparrow turned out to be Lincoln’s or Savannah Sparrow.
Chipping Sparrow
Right at the end of summer I found Chipping Sparrows at Mascoma Lakeside Park.
Dark-eyed Junco
I found a Dark-eyed Junco at Mill Pond in Etna.
Lincoln’s Sparrow
I feel the Lincoln’s Sparrow is a beautiful bird. This one was photographed at Campbell Flat in Norwich.
Savannah Sparrow
Savannah Sparrows were present in Sunapee along Trask Road for at least two weeks at the end of August and the beginning of September. Here is a slide show of a dozen photos from Sunapee.
I also found a Savannah Sparrow at Mascoma Lakeside Park.
Song Sparrow
Our common Song Sparrow seems to be everywhere. Here are 10 photos from Hanover, Enfield, and New London.
Swamp Sparrow
On August 11, I photographed Swamp Sparrows in Newport and Sunapee.
White-throated Sparrow
I photographed White-throated Sparrows in Norwich, VT and Enfield, NH.
Woodpeckers
I photographed three woodpecker species. A Pileated Woodpecker flew to a tree near where I was standing in Newport. It moved fast and was never in a position I hoped for. But I got a few shots.
In Sunapee I found a Downy Woodpecker.
And a Yellow-bellied Sapsucker in Newport.
Eastern Phoebe
I found Eastern Phoebes in New London, Sunapee, and at Mill Pond in Etna.
I especially like the way this one posed near a spider web along the shore of Mill Pond.
We had a pair of Eastern Phoebes in our Etna yard again this year. They are regulars. In late September a half dozen or more moved through our trees. The red maple provided a colorful background and blurred foreground for two of the photos.
Gray Catbird
I photographed Gray Catbirds skunking in low brush in many locations:
Sutton
Newport
Sunapee
Enfield
Yet More Birds
Tufted Titmouse
In Newbury, Newport, and Sunapee
Note the interesting tail feathers on the birds below.
Black-capped Chickadee
Red-breasted Nuthatch
Red-eyed Vireo
In Etna, Newbury, and Newport
Solitary Sandpiper
In Mill Pond in Etna
Broad-winged Hawk
At Knight’s Meadow Marsh in Webster
American Goldfinch
At the Community Gardens in Concord
American Robin
Ruby-throated Hummingbird
Common Grackle
Blue Jay
If you missed the full trip report from my visit to Costa Rica earlier this year, you can get to a page with links to 12 pages of photos and text if you CLICK HERE.