On Sunday March 6th, James Smith, Brian Kane
and I made a trip to Race Point in Provincetown in search of Massachusetts
first Yellow-billed Loon! The YB
Loon was found a week earlier by the sharp eyes of Steve Arena. We departed
Belchertown at 5AM and made it to the Race Point parking lot by about 9AM and
then started the 1.9 mile march down the beach in the soft sand. We also made
out like bandits with the weather this day, light winds and temps in the low forty’s,
about an hour later we were on the Yellow-billed Loon!! As it would turn out,
the Yellow-billed Loon was only part of the prize that day; the other part was
the incredible amount of loons that were at the point. Without a doubt, it was the
best viewing of winter plumage Common, Red-throated and even Pacific Loons that
I had ever encountered! Very rough figures on the number of loons at the point
that day, Common 70-100, Red-throated
150-200 and 3 Pacific. We just worked
over the loons for the next several hours, along with the flotilla of loons;
there were few hundred Razorbills, a handful Thick-billed and Common Murres,
Iceland Gulls and the normal sea ducks one would encounter in late winter. It
was a great outing with great company, the drive home just flew by……photos
below
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| Yellow-billed Loon-1st Yr . Race Point |
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| Yellow-billed Loon |
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| Yellow-billed Loon |
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| Common Loon and Yellow-billed Loon (rear) |
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| Common & Yellow-billed Loon |
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Pacific Loon- one of three out on the point. Although rare in New England, in recent years Pacific Loons have been regular at Race Point. |
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| Pacific Loon-Certainly not a great shot, but shows the thin chin strap, sharp demarcation line along the neck. |
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| Pacific Loon |
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| Iceland Gull |
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| Black Scoters |
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closer to home.....Fox Sparrow (Red) at the feeder, |
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| Red-tail Hawk in the West Meadows-Northampton |
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| Red-headed Woodpecker- Still present as of yesterday (3-19-16) at the Fannie Stebbins Refuge in Longmeadow, Mass |
