American Kestrel

Whenever I can, I walk a 5K stretch of beach for exercise. During the winter months, I often see an American kestrel hunting the dunes for prey. My first kestrel sighting for this year was on November 7th and I have brought my camera along with me since in hopes to capture a photo or two.

Here are a few photos I took of the kestrel perched …

… and here are a few photos of it on the wing:

Seeing this American kestrel from time-to-time makes my beach walks even more special!

Autumn Waning

Some leaves are still clinging on to the trees,

no matter how strong the northerly breeze.

Those flowers that linger are still warmed by the sun,

while others now dormant their growing is done.

As we transition towards winter, the snow and the cold,

we need to remember that there's much to behold.

4,000+ Tree Swallows

On August 22^nd, Mark and I joined our friend Jim and his birding trip along the southern coastline of Massachusetts.  One of the spots that we stopped at was Gooseberry Neck, which is part of the Horseneck Beach State Reservation in Westport.  One of my favorite things about birding coastal areas during mid-to-late August is catching large flocks of staging tree swallows before they leave and migrate south to their wintering grounds.  On this day, we caught a flock of 4,000+ tree swallows at Gooseberry Neck!  We were able to walk right through the flock along a trail that bisects the area. 

It was such a thrill to be so close to so many birds!

Bon voyage little guys!