Tag Archives: Cape Cod Birding

Cape Cod Birding, Cape Cod Blog, Cape Cod Photography

Courting Wild Turkey In Our Yard On Cape Cod!

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There is never a dull moment in our yard here on Cape Cod! The other morning Phil called out, “There’s another turkey in the yard!” Sometimes they like to dig up the fallen bird seed which really makes a mess of the yard. So Phil went outside to gently nudge her into the woods when… (Click on link to see other photo.)

This gorgeous male Wild Turkey came strutting into our yard, his feathers displayed in regalia. He was following the female everywhere and he was magnificent!

“Male Ritual: The male Wild Turkey has a conspicuously bright coloring of plumage. In the way of attracting females,  they are very much like peacocks. They have fan-like fancy tails and a cocky strut.”

After about 15 minutes of watching him follow her all around the yard, they both sauntered into the woods.

Wow! What a show!

 

Cape Cod Birding, Cape Cod Blog, Cape Cod Photography

Calling All Female House Sparrows On Cape Cod!!

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We’ve had this male House Sparrow sitting on the birdhouse outside our bedroom chirping for the past 6 days, almost nonstop. He starts about 5:00 am and chirps until dark. We thought he had lost his mate or something catastrophic. His constant chirping is “driving us crazy!” 🙂

When Phil did some research last night, he found that “Male House Sparrows take up nesting sites before the breeding season, by frequently calling beside them. Unmated males start nest construction and call particularly frequently to attract females.”

This totally explains why he has been bringing long grasses into the birdhouse and sitting on top of the birdhouse chirping non stop. (He does occasionally stop to get some food from our bird feeders or a drink from our birdbath.) He is getting the house and nest ready for when the female arrives…. which we hope is SOON!

(He is a  bit skittish as when I try to take his photograph from outside, he will fly away. Thus, this photograph was taken from inside our bedroom, through the window and the screen.)

 

Cape Cod Beaches, Cape Cod Birding, Cape Cod Blog, Cape Cod Photography

Colorful Ruddy Turnstone At The Wellfleet Bay Wildlife Sanctuary On Cape Cod.

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If you haven’t been to the Wellfleet Bay Wildlife Sanctuary at low tide, put it on your list. You can walk all the way out to the beach and you never know what you  will see and you’re never disappointed!

I saw this Ruddy Turnstone, and many more, the other day. There were so many on the outer beach scurrying about, it was hard to count.

I love his very distinctive coloring. What do you think?

Cape Cod Beaches, Cape Cod Birding, Cape Cod Blog, Cape Cod National Seashore, Cape Cod Photography

The Piping Plovers Are Nesting on Coast Guard Beach On Cape Cod!

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Yesterday was a gorgeous day so we took a walk down Coast Guard Beach. It was glorious… one of the Top 10 days!

We got part way down the beach and there were some new signs that said, “Nesting Nervous Birds” and  “Area Closed.” We were surprised as the area was not closed a few days ago. We stopped and looked around getting ready to turn back.

Out of the corner of my eye I saw a Piping Plover in the distance. Something else was scurrying  by the water. My camera has an awesome zoom so I was able to take a few photographs of the family of Piping Plovers from afar.

I had never seen a Piping Plover chick before. They were so cute and so tiny. What an experience…

Cape Cod Birding, Cape Cod Blog, Cape Cod Photography

Semipalmated Plover At Rock Harbor On Cape Cod.

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It was pretty cool to see this Semipalmated Plover at Rock Harbor the other day. It was the first one I’ve seen this summer. It was wading in the water back by the boats on the Eastham side of the harbor.

The Semipalmated Plover has a black face,  a black collar and orange legs and feet. I love the black-tipped orange bill. According to the Range Map, they spend their winters down south and summers in the Arctic. Maybe he is just passing through on his way up north?

Have you ever seen a Semipalmated Plover?