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Aroostook County |
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While everybody else is heading for the Maine
coast and Acadia in the summer, some birding experts head for
the northern tip of Maine. It's another whole world up there,
dominated by breeding birds not found farther south. Birders in
the southern U.S. might get to glimpse Fox and Lincoln's
Sparrows in migration, as well as Tennessee, Bay-breasted, and
Mourning Warblers, but they don't get to hear them sing! Birds aren't the only critters to spy on. Aroostook is home to many moose - so many, in fact, that drivers must be careful. |
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Besides the normal breeding birds, this is the first place to experience irruptions. In particular, crossbills wander far and wide, settling in wherever the cone crop is good. They can be absent for long periods, and then suddenly become abundant when least expected. On this particular adventure, both Red Crossbills (left) and White-winged Crossbills (right) were just moving into Maine, with the White-wings singing up a storm. Since this year's cone crop is looking better than the last two years, another crossbill boom appears to be getting started in Maine and we were there just in time to watch it begin. |
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No trip to Aroostook County is complete without a stop at Lake Josephine, which was our Friday afternoon destination. In reality, this "lake" is a former sewage lagoon for the McCain's potato processing plant in Easton. It now resembles the kind of wetland one might find out in the prairie potholes of the plains states and it's breeding bird bonanza for Maine. Ruddy Ducks (left), Redheads, and Northern Shovelers are rare breeders here. Mallards, American Black Ducks, and Pied-billed Grebes (right) are common breeders. Every dabbler in the eastern U.S. can be expected here in migration and many of the divers, too. Sora and Virginia Rails are abundant in the cattails. |
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Warblers fly right over the other eastern states in a rush to get to Maine every spring. The group snagged 19 warbler species over the weekend. (How did we miss Canada and Blackburnian? It should have been at least 21!) Most are easy. Magnolias and Nashvilles are particularly abundant. Others were more difficult, such as the secretive Mourning (left) and Wilson's (right) Warblers. Bay-breasted and Tennessee Warblers can also be tough, but since it was still singing season, we just pulled the car over whenever we heard one. |
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Another great thing about birding Aroostook County is the terrific variation in habitat. Friday took us to the wetlands of Lake Josephine and Christina Reservoir, followed by the grasslands of Aroostook National Wildlife Refuge. Saturday was spent exclusively in boreal spruce-fir habitat along Route 161, with a side trip to the farm lands east of Fort Kent. Sunday explored the more deciduous habitat along Route 11 in the vicinity of Eagle Lake, which produced the day's only Scarlet Tanager (left) and bunches of Black-throated Blue Warblers (below left). As is normally the case, White-throated Sparrows (right) were everywhere. |
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