Photo by Andy Molloy

Cedar and Bohemian Waxwings are foragers of fast food.

Possessing distinct black masks, flocks of the birds are spotted year round in Maine. Hanging on fruit trees, chirping in a choir of inebriated delight, the birds love to consume fermented berries. I've watched them drop 10 feet from limbs to the snow after exceeding the dozen berry limit. Shaken, but not stirred, the Waxwings perch atop a branch before taking flight. Then they ingest more berries.

Saturday a flock of Cedar Waxwings descended upon a bush loaded with ripe, red berries. They emitted the a soft "zeee-zeeet" summoning others to the party. I anticipated the usual brawl of wings flapping and beaks dripping with juice as a dozen Waxwings joined the vanguard.

Instead, a Waxwing erupted from the bush and flew in an arc over the Kennebec River, snagging a dragonfly in its beak.

In addition to the Flycatchers and Swallows residing along the Kennebec, Waxwings are veracious bug hunters. Some Waxwings ingested berries before pursuing the dragonflies emerging from the Kennebec.

The teetotalers appeared more successful.

Photo by Andy Molloy
Sibling immature eagles brawl over a fish last summer on the Kennebec River.

Neil Stottler, of Farmingdale, nailed the bird by the claw.

He identified the claws in last week's photo as belonging to an osprey.

Bald Eagles, particularly younger birds, have a yellow hew on the claw. Fish Hawks are white and black.

Wee Stottler also resides along the Kennebec River. He can watch the avian peak of the alewife migration over the next few weeks from the shore. Which is a superior spot to experience the next spectacle to descend upon the river.

Fledgling eagles, ospreys and Kingfishers will be joining the fray over the next few weeks.

A previous post asked species was the most efficient airborne angler.

Chris Del Plato claims Kingfishers possess the best diving skills.

"By my observations (mostly on Cobbossee)," Del Plato writes, "Kingfishers are the most efficient - though eagles seem fairly close, ospreys the least. I've seen some fairly ineffective ospreys miss about 8 or so times in a row, expending a lot of energy in the process (circle, dive, plunge, takeoff, shake/dry, and repeat. Eagles make it look quite effortless, almost plucking fish from the water."

Soon the winged babes of each species will be crashing and splashing as they adapt to feeding themselves. But I must concur with Del Plato. Remarkably, within a month, most of the Kingfishers will be able at hunt beneath the surface after plunging from the sky.

The ospreys learn how to snatch a meal by the fall migration.

The immature eagles, solid black and towering over their parents, appear most skilled at scavenging.

Photo by Andy Molloy
What caught the alewive on the Kennebec River Thursday?

Post an answer. Next week I’ll post mine.

American Bald Eagles, Ospreys and Belted Kingfishers all reside and dine on the Kennebec River.

Last week, watching each feed on fish beneath the surface of the river, I wondered which species is the best angler?
All photos by Andy Molloy

Eagles roost and exert little energy until striking. Half the time they miss their mark.

As the Ospreys circle, chirping smack, they arc and dive. By my estimate, they get lucky once out of every three strikes.

Kingfishers, usually hunting in pairs, seem to hit the mark most often.

What do you think?

Friday #1: Kingfishers

All photos by Andy Molloy
At 5:53 a.m. Friday a Kingfisher surveyed the Kennebec River for fish.

Friday #2: Hen Mallard

By 6:05 a.m. a hen Mallard descended upon the Kennebec River before returning to their nests.

Friday #3: Baltimore Oriole

Around 6:09 a.m. a Baltimore Oriole serenaded the Kennebec.

Friday #4: Hen Hummingbird

At 10:30 a.m. a hen Ruby-throated Hummingbird arrived on the river.

Friday #5: Drake Ruby-throated Hummingbird

A drake Ruby-throated Hummingbird arrived at 11:42 a.m.

Friday #6: Hawk and Sparrow

At 12:03 p.m. hawk swooped in for lunch on the Kennebec River with a sparrow.

Friday #7: Hen Redstart

At 1:39 p.m. an American Redstart hen dropped by the Kennebec.

Staff photo by Andy Molloy

A Red-winged Blackbird chases a Turkey Vulture from a wetland Thursday in Hallowell. A flock of the vultures was roosting above a carcass when the Red-winged Blackbird gave chase. Turkey Vultures detect deceased animals to consume with the superior sense of smell it possesses.

Staff photo/TRAVIS BARRETT

After the first 90 minutes of sucking down coffee in the middle of the night, trying to keep my eyes from slamming shut and muttering to myself about having forgotten a warmer jacket, I thought there was no way I was going to survive a birding "marathon."

Just 90 minutes after sunrise some 5 hours later, I still wasn't so sure.

In between there were bard owls swooping overhead, trees filled with the beautiful songs of warblers, bald eagles, wild turkeys and gulls and ducks galore.

But one of the things that struck me most was that a birding "marathon" can be every bit as competitive as the traditional running race of the same name. There's game-planning, marathon strategy, endurance techniques and, well, the will to win.

Participants are trying to identify -- usually by sound -- as many bird species as possible in a 24-hour span.

"Some people find it troublesome. They like the idea of this purity, the
pure outdoor enjoyment kind of thing," said Jeff Wells of Gardiner, a local ornithologist who has participated in the World Series of Birding in Cape May, N.J., in the past. "People enjoy certain kinds of sports for purity’s sake. I enjoy being able to press my skills, as esoteric as they are, to the limit. There’s not much call for that in everyday life.

"If you’re good at any sport or activity, having the chance to flex those
skills is enjoyable. I enjoy that."

Even if he has to stay up all night.

Read the complete story in today's Kennebec Journal.

Photo by Andy Molloy

A variety of songbirds displaying a mix of colors and sounds have arrived on the Kennebec River this week in Maine.

I've got a few random thoughts rattling around my head after a soggy weekend in the bush...

* It's a beautiful thing, being in the woods before sunrise, listening to all of the sounds. The songbirds as they greet the day, the wild turkeys gobbling off in the distance, the relentless hammering of woodpeckers.

Two toddlers in the house, plus an odd work schedule that isn't really on a schedule at all, makes early mornings difficult in the best of times. Still, every time I make the decision to get out while it's dark, I'm never disappointed.

* You know you're getting a little punchy there, junior, when a dog barking in the distance sounds like a tom answering your call.

* Kudos to the 118 anglers -- paired off into 59 teams -- that made it out to the Maine Open B.A.S.S. Tournament on Cobbossee Lake on Sunday.

It was wet, cold and rough going on the open water. But, as one of the fishermen put it, "Other than that, it was perfect."

* It's officially open water fishing season now. How do I know?

Well, it had nothing to do with ice-out or water temperatures and everything to do with permission. As in, when my wife turned to me and said, "You really ought to try to touch water with the canoe this weekend," I knew I was good to go.

* The red-winged blackbirds are back. It must be spring.

-- TB

Staff photo by Andy Molloy

A ruffed grouse challenges a visitor Friday in Augusta. The most common upland game bird in Maine, the ruffed grouse - or partridge - is encountered in woodlots across southern Maine.

With spring breeding season under way, male grouse are often heard drumming their wings to solicit the companionship of hens.

The partridge courtship only lasts a few days.

Females go it alone, seeking nests at the base of trees, under piles of slash and along overgrown stone walls. When encountered while roosting on eggs, the female may display a “broken wing” to draw predators away from nests.

Staff photo by Andy Molloy

THE MOCKINGBIRD: The bird is prolific and loud. It resides, with its spouse, in the hedges at the entrance of the Piggery Road off Hospital Street in Augusta. Heading south, take a left on the road leading to the CARA fields. The birds often perch in the clump of fir trees just past the parking lot on the right. The two are frequently spotted displaying on the Maine State Arboretum fields. The pair have a range of vocals and often mimic other song birds in the area.

The return of tree swallows is always a good sign and a harbinger of warm weather.

Have you ever watched these aerial acrobats happily soar and dive after insects? They're amazing birds.

Staff photo by Andy Molloy
Where cracks on the ice emerge each spring Hooded Mergansers descend.

The diving ducks move inland and north as the ice melts on lakes in Maine. The white crest adorning the head of drakes are easy to distinguish from their cousins, the Common Mergansers.

The males will be performing their courtship ritual this spring before mating. The drakes swim in circles around hens pumping their crests, tossing their heads and uttering calls that resemble a frog.

The birds nest in tree cavities like Wood Ducks along water ways.

To order reprints of photos, click here.

A Ring-billed Gull laughs while feeding with a mob on the Kennebec River in Gardiner. The misnomer "seagull" is often used for the prolific bird. In fact, the gull breeds and resides primarily inland.

By Andy Molloy, staff photographer

Gulls in Maine are like Elvis in Las Vegas.

Diving in the sky, swimming on the water and scavenging in dumpsters. But Elvis is easier to identify except for those gulls with sideburns.

The gull photo worked visually. But not without the identity of the species. This was a job for the Great One. I enlisted Jeff Wells.

If Elvis is the King, Jeff Wells is the Great One. He is the Senior Scientist for the Boreal Birdsong Initiative. Regarded, worldwide, as an authority on birds and biological conservation, Wells maintains an office in Gardiner. And he promptly returns my emails.

This is an excerpt from my message: "Oh Great One: Herring Gull?

Wells immediately wrote back: "I love the photo! But it is actually a Ring-billed Gull."

So why is he the Great One? That is Jeff's exclamation point following the words love photo.

Unlike me, Jeff is profoundly modest. Go to his blog (www.borealbirds.org/blog) and give the Great One a shout out.

I know I will soon. Unless birds grow sideburns.

To order reprints of photos, click here.

Male Downy, left, and Hairy Woodpeckers feed at a suet station Wednesday in Hallowell. The birds have similar plumage but a few key distinctions. The Downy is smaller while the Hairy has a longer beak and fewer white flakes on its wings.

Side by side comparison makes differences apparent

Story and photo by Andy Molloy, staff photographer

Photographing at feeders is fast, easy and convenient, which is why I love it. But is bait and wait natural? Visually, at least, encountering critters in their environment, not ours, is always more rewarding. And woodpeckers pecking wood is particularly bountiful.

Out photographing the wild stuff over the last month, I endeavored to illustrate the distinction between Hairy and Downy woodpeckers. Pecking wood, of course. They are the most common of the avian species heard rattling trees in Maine (http://www.mainebirding.net/birds/Woodpeckers).

To my untrained eyes, they are almost indistinguishable. I discovered a Hairy smacking a maple in Monmouth and a Downy rapping away in Vassalboro. I think. With Hairys and Downys, size matters. The Hairys are larger. Scrutinizing the photos, however, I was unable to make the measure. The subjects in each photo appeared to be the same size. The beautiful birds were photographed hitting the wood, but I was stumped.

Wednesday I pulled over after seeing double. A male Downy and Hairy were assaulting the same slug of suet at a feeder. The difference between the species could not be clearer. The face off furnished a fast, easy and convenient guide. Here's another: http://www.birds.cornell.edu/pfw/AboutBirdsandFeeding/woodpeckerIDtable.htm

To order reprints of photos, click here.

Staff photos by Andy Molloy
BERRY BANDIT: A cedar waxwing snags a berry during a snowstorm in March 2005 in Augusta. Flocks of the birds descend on fruit trees as spring arrives.

BERRY GOOD: A Cedar Waxwing pops a winterberry down its beak while feeding with a flock in Oakland in 2007.

To order reprints of photos, click here.

A Pine Grosbeak collects a berry Tuesday from a tree in Augusta.

Foraging birds are the epicenter of my winter photos.

Words & photos by Andy Molloy, staff photographer

Robins and Cedar Waxwings are the native actors who always enter the visual stage to eat berries.

I spotted a huge flock of birds at dawn recently attached to a fruit tree.

I pulled over, put the camera over my shoulder and sprinted through the fresh snow.

A few yards from the tree, resonating with chirps, I focused the lens on a bird perched in a cluster of berries.

It was an avian freak show. They were neither Robins nor Waxwings.

The Canadians had invaded. The fruit munchers were Pine Grosbeaks who had come in large numbers from the boreal forest of Canada. A spectacular site encountered across Maine this winter.

I burned a 100 frames and returned to my truck. The flock rose, flew across Western Avenue and landed on a fruit tree in front of the Augusta Armory.

I gave chase. The tree, a mix of white snow and blood red berries, was irresistible. I pulled out the long, 500mm lens and started banging frames from inside my truck.

I turned to a knock on my passenger door. It was a soldier. He indicated I should roll down the window. "What are you up to?" h
e asked.

I explained that I was photographing the birds a few feet from us.

He studied the flock clucking with berry delight. He said it was all right if I stayed. He was just vigilant about intruders.

I said he found some airborne ones. From Canada. The tree was overrun. Hundreds had descended. They already conquered an apple tree across the road...

Have a nice day, he said, before abruptly walking back into the armory.

A male Pine Grosbeak eats the buds from a maple tree Thursday in Augusta. The boreal finch is native to Canada and the western United States. Bird watchers are reporting flocks of the birds feeding on fruit in Maine this winter.

To order reprints of photos, click here.

Staff photo by Andy Molloy
An American Bald Eagle lands with the carcass of a gull it it killed along the banks of the Kennebec River in Augusta in 2005. A flock of gulls and a murder of crows mobbed the eagle as it sat on the ice next to an emerging spot of water. Provoked, the eagle pinned a gull to the ice. The eagle ate his meal in peace until resuming his flight upstream.

About the shot

A classic winter bird fight raged above the Kennebec River. Gulls shrieking, crows squawking and a lone eagle uttering pathetic chirps.

Two women had joined me beneath Memorial Bridge in Augusta while I photographed the Bald Eagle being mobbed in the air by gulls and crows.

"Eagles don't consume birds," I told the women. I clicked a few frames. They are fish eagles, I explained, devoting most of their energy to capturing critters beneath the water.

I had a captive audience: An eagle in the lens and a pair of ladies watching me. The gulls dove on the eagle and crows snatched at it while it wobbled in the sky above the Kennebec River.

It's a shame, I recall saying, because eagles could eat well and eat often if they did eat birds. But, I said with pitiful emphasis, they don't.

At that moment the eagle turned, dove and snatched a gull with its talons. Silence from my companions and silence in the sky as the murder of crows and mob of gulls abandoned the eagle's airspace. The eagle calmly picked apart the gull on the shelf of ice next to the flowing Kennebec.

"What else don't they eat?" one of my friends asked.

Silence from the photographer, too.

--by Andy Molloy, Kennebec Journal staff photographer

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Staff photo by Andy Molloy
BIRDS OF A FEATHER: A Cedar Waxwing, left, watches a Bohemian Waxwing collect a berry from a bush behind Fuller's Market in West Gardiner Monday afternoon. Large flocks of Bohemians are irrupting across Maine and, in some instances, joining the native Maine Cedar waxwings feeding on fruit this winter. Bohemians tend to be slightly larger and grayer than their Cedar cousins.

To order reprints of photos, click here.

On a day like this everyone can use a reminder that winter doesn't last forever (although it seems like it might this year). Robins are our traditional first signal that winter is coming to a close, but lately they've become almost year-round residents.

Staff photo by Andy Molloy
SPRING FLING: A robin picks a berry from a bush last week in Augusta. Flocks of birds have been spotted feeding across Maine.

To order reprints of photos, click here.

Staff photo by Andy Molloy
EAGLE EYES: A bald eagle scrutinizes a human while perched Monday in Vassalboro. A pair of the raptors have been watching the fields and streams next to a farm along Seven Mile Brook this winter.

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