Looking Back: 1Q2015

My hiking activity was severely limited this quarter due to the 8 feet of snow we had here in Massachusetts.  Yes, we broke the historic record for the snowiest winter with 108.6".  If we hadn't taken our trip to Florida, I imagine this quarterly review would have been pretty boring.  I have to admit I'm pretty glad to say farewell to this particular quarter!

New Butterflies:

1. Cassius Blue Butterfly
2. Gulf Fritillary
3. Orange Barred Sulphur
4. White Peacock
5. Zebra Longwing

New Birds:

1. AMERICAN WHITE PELICAN
2. ANHINGA
3. BARROW'S GOLDENEYE (Boston, MA)
4. BLACK-BELLIED PLOVER
5. BLACK SKIMMER
6. BOHEMIAN WAXWING (Gardner, MA)
7. BURROWING OWL
8. CAROLINA CHICKADEE
9. CATTLE EGRET
10. FORSTER'S TERN
11. LIMPKIN
12. LOGGERHEAD SHRIKE
13. MOTTLED DUCK
14. PAINTED BUNTING
15. RED KNOT
16. REDDISH EGRET
17. RED-SHOULDERED HAWK
18. ROYAL TERN
19. RUDDY TURNSTONE
20. SEMI-PALMATED PLOVER
21. TRI-COLORED HERON
22. WHITE IBIS
23. WHITE-EYED VIREO
24. WOOD STORK
25. YELLOW-CROWNED NIGHT HERON
26. YELLOW-THROATED WARBLER

Of these, only two were found in Massachusetts.  The rest were on my trip to Florida.  Here are the Massachusetts life birds:

Bohemian Waxwing

Barrow's Goldeneye

To date, my 2015 bird list stands at 131, and 26 of those were new *life* birds.  My yard list has slowly ticked up to 26 birds.  Florida really provided a big boost to my 2015 list!  I'd have to say that my favorite new bird was a toss up between the Painted Bunting and the Bohemian Waxwing!

New Places:
Corkscrew Swamp Sanctuary
Ding Darling National Wildlife Refuge
Naples Botanical Garden
Naples Zoo at Caribbean Gardens
Deer Island Harbor Walk, Boston

This year, I started photographing town and city halls in the areas where birding takes me.  During 1Q2015 I managed to visit 50 town/city halls while on my trips around Massachusetts.

I also attended a Capture the Stars Workshop with Christopher Georgia at Nubble Lighthouse in York, Maine.  I have admired his photographs on Facebook over and over again and really wanted to learn how to photograph the night sky.  It was a wonderful experience, and I can't wait to practice this skill a bit more.

Best Surprise:

The best closeup of a Snowy Owl I've ever had was while on a walk at Duxbury Beach.  Oh my!!!  They played a huge part in my being motivated to get out during the past winter!


Favorite Photos:

I noticed an emerging theme when I pulled these photos.  Water and light!