Vermont's Northeast Kingdom is known for many things: moose, spruce bogs, poverty, isolation, fiercely independent residents. It also has birds that can't be found elsewhere in the state, boreal birds that normally live out their lives north of us in Canada.
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| Canada Jay |
We were way overdue for a return visit but COVID keeps us wary of staying in motels, interacting with people in restaurants, etc. We lucked into a remote off-the-grid airbnb cabin in West Burke, where we could cook our own meals and see no other people.
On our first full day, we spent five hours birding at Moose Bog in Ferdinand VT with boreal bird guru Tom Berriman.
Tom birds this area several times a week, all year round, on foot or snowshoes. He knows where the male Spruce Grouse takes dust baths, and the fallen log where its mate prefers to sit and watch anyone who happens to pass by. He knows that there are two families of Canada Jays and that none of them like any bird from the "wrong" family horning in on their territory. He can call in Black-backed Woodpeckers and White-winged Crossbills. (Photos of these birds are at our first NEK post here.)
Tom took us first on a short walk along South America Pond Road, before the sun had burned off the morning's fog.
Then on to the bog!
As we scanned the still waters, Tom said "Everything happens here" - and he was right. Almost immediately, we saw a Merlin atop a tall dead tree - and then another Merlin - and a third - and then a Peregrine Falcon! For several breath-held moments, we three watched in astonishment as one of the Merlins chased a Lesser Yellowlegs (a shorebird not often seen in the NEK) - two sleek, fast, streamlined birds, one intent on eating the other. The yellowlegs not only eluded the falcon but then, to rub it in, doubled back and flew right below its perch before leaving the area!
Canada Jays appeared soon after Tom spread out some unsalted peanuts for them. These appealing birds were called Gray Jays until a couple of years ago, and they've had several folk names including Whiskeyjacks (a mispronunciation of an Algonquin term) and "camp robbers" - because they would come right down into logging camps to find food.
Canada Jays are extremely well-designed for a cold climate, both physically and in their habits. They're intrepid, curious and omnivorous. Their thick, puffy plumage gets puffed out in the winter, providing excellent insulation all over their bodies, even covering their legs and feet. They stash large quantities of food for use during the Northeast Kingdom's long winters. They even nest in the winter!
When they came down for peanuts, they stuffed as many as possible into their mouths and throats before flying off. Tom: Just about every tree around here has untold numbers of nuts poked into crevices and hidden under bark.
After our remarkable birding day, we two spent our time right at our cabin - eating, reading, drowsing, playing cards, talking and just vegging outdoors. We could hear distant cars and machinery sometimes, but for the most part we were in silence except for the quiet sounds of birds and insects.
The cabin was beautifully designed and beautifully constructed out of local timber and lots and lots of windows.
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