We are in Merrimac, MA for a while and enjoyed a wonderful Christmas. This morning, I took the dog and went looking for birds for a few hours on a brisk, but sunny Saturday morning. One of my favorite places to exercise the dog while birding is Cherry Hill Reservoir in West Newbury — although on a Saturday, half the world seems to have dogs cavorting so we passed on that and went looking for a Greater White-fronted Goose which has been reported hanging out with a gaggle of Canada Geese there as well as nearby Artichoke Reservoir.
I spotted geese feeding in a field beside the water and scanned them with no luck and went on to check the rest of the reservoir. Reversing course, I noticed more geese on the water that were not visible during my first look, and sure enough, a GWFG was in the midst of them. Here are some shots that I took as it cruised around.
I decided to drive over to Salisbury State Beach Reservation so that I could let the dog run a bit off leash. While there were dozens of dogs everywhere, the campground was rather empty and perfect for a workout. We then checked the river for Harbor Seals and Common Eider (plenty of both) and I decided to check out the boat ramp area. I saw a grey bump on a log way off but could not distinguish it with my binoculars. But, just in case, I dragged out my scope from the truck cap and set it up in the breeze and sure enough, way off was a juvenile Snowy Owl.
I think that it’s the first one this season from Salisbury. In any case, even though it was looking West most of the time, it was a nice find on a nice Saturday morning.
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You got great photos of the GWFG, better than the ones I got last winter on Cape Cod. DId you use your sx-50? DId you digiscope them. Good for you for the Snowy, too.
I did use the SX-50. I find that I need good light, little wind, and relatively close distances to make it effective. I’ll fiddle with digiscoping more once we get to warmer climes. Hope our paths cross in 2015 — hope your Christmastide is going well.