Birds of January 2011

Images from around the North Shore of Massachusetts

"Click" on any image for a larger photo...

My morning drive went from good to bad in a matter of minutes. A drive by the Rte 133 Screech Owl roost in Essex found a different,
gray morph, owl in residence. The composite on the left below shows both owls seen in the past two days. Whooo knows... maybe a pair? I hope so.

A few miles down the road in Hamilton I was greeted by a lump in the road as I approached the roost hole of a red morph Screech I had seen a
few times recently. The owl was an apparent victim if a vehicle strike, something that happens all to often with these owls as they roost and hunt
along our roadways. The photo below on the right is a composite of a shot taken on Wednesday and this morning.

E. Screech Owl - Essex, MA - Jan. 06 & 07

E. Screech Owl - Hamilton, MA - Jan. 05 & 07

A drive to the bank on Wednesday the 5th turned up four Screech Owls roosting in various holes.

Two along Rte 133, one in the center of Essex and a fourth along a side road in Hamilton!

Photos of only two, with the two below of the same bird, the first showing a bit more of the hole it was roosting in.

E. Screech Owl - Essex, MA - Jan. 05

E. Screech Owl - Hamilton, MA - Jan. 05

Western Tanager - Peabody, MA - Jan. 04

A Western Tanager was seen on January 4. It's coming to a feeder at a private residence in Peabody.

Unfortunately the homeowners are not interested in having people stop by.