Re: FW: [Maine-birds] Fulmars, puffins Old Man Island

Hi Marie,

 

You have it correct.  It is at the end of Little Machias Road where there is a large white house with a big lawn that goes down to the shore.  I am not sure about the road that goes to the west near the end house.  I just go to the end of Little Machias Road and view from that spot. 

 

Just before the end of the road there is a private road to the east or to the left (I think that is your Sea Ledges Road).  This road to the east is gated.  I used to count birds from that road, which took you into a subdivision, which never went on the market as far as I know.  There is a nice network of roads in there.  Blackpoll warblers, bay-breasted warblers, yellow-bellied flycatchers and boreal chickadees were common nesters.  There were also a number of Cape May warblers but that was in the mid to late 1990's. 

 

From Rte. 1 in East Machias, follow Rte. 191 toward Cutler.  The Little Machias Road is a sharp right turn just after a cemetery.  From there, it is 2 miles to the end. While traveling toward Cutler along Rte. 191, the extensive flats below Looks Canning Factory in Whiting are worth scanning, especially as the shorebird migration begins to improve.  The bridge across Holme's Creek is next to a series of ledges and a small salt marsh where gulls, ducks and shorebirds rest at high tide. This bridge is not too far beyond Looks Canning Factory.  The last place to buy gas, custom cooked red hotdogs, beer and junk food of all sorts is about a third to half mile ahead on the right where the administration buildings for the Cutler Naval Station are located.   There is a small modern firehouse immediately after you turn right. Keep to the right to get to the store.  Actually, it is not a bad store.  They make good pizza and sandwiches.

 

As you continue toward Cutler Village, Rte. 191 makes a sharp left turn when you reach the head of Little Machias Bay.  The coniferous wood leading up to the turn (several miles) has been good for the occasional Cape May, Tennessee and bay-breasted warblers, yellow-bellied flycatchers, spruce grouse (they can be seen picking up gravel in the winter, but are difficult to locate this time of year) boreal chickadees and most of the coniferous nesting warblers and related species.  The blueberry barrens and mud flats at the head of Little Machias Bay are home to 15 to more than 40 whimbrels from early July to mid September, plus loads of shorebirds.  Continue over Turner's Bridge and follow Rte. 191 until you reach the cemetery and Little Machias Road after about a mile (guestimate). 

 

At Dennison Point, you will need a scope to see most of the birds on Old Man Island.  It is hard to predict what may be out there the collection of birds vary with the weather, sea conditions, recent fog history, time of year, stage of the tide, direction of the wind, stage of the nesting season and random luck.  If you are going to make a day of it in the eastern Maine area, stop there several times because each stop will be different, especially during migration and the  stage of the tide.  Old Man splits the tide and creates upwellings in the area. 

 

Enjoy.

 

Norm Famous

On Tue, Apr 23, 2013 at 8:54 PM, Marie <mijord@maine.rr.com> wrote:

Norm,

                I read with interest this report and your conversation with Craig. 

                Could you give more specific directions  to the point in case I get down that way again. 

                I am looking at the google map and it puts Dennsion Point at the end of Little Machias Road which bends East and become Sea Ledges Rd.   The satellite view shows a house with a large lawn at the end of the L M road with what looks like a road to the west that ends at the top of a large field that goes down to the ocean.   Is that the area you are speaking about?  Or some other - if the latter please lead me to the spot that you were referring to.  

                Thanks.  Marie Jordan from South Portland.    

 

From: maine-birds@googlegroups.com [mailto:maine-birds@googlegroups.com] On Behalf Of Norman Famous
Sent: Tuesday, April 23, 2013 11:54 AM
To: Craig Kesselheim
Cc: Maine Birders Listserv
Subject: Re: [Maine-birds] Fulmars, puffins Old Man Island

 

Hi Craig,

 

There is full access at the turn-around at the end of the road.  However, the house below the turn-around is private property.  If owners are present, they enjoy learning about their birds and welcome you to view from their yard.  It does not bring you closer to Old Man Is but gives you a better view of the shoreline east of the house (Harlequin habitat plus occasional seabirds offshore in that direction).

 

Check Little Machias Bay on the way from East Machias (Turners bridge is the whimbrel stop, plus scoters are usually present throughout the year - sometimes way off).

 

Cheers,

 

Norm

On Tue, Apr 23, 2013 at 9:07 AM, Craig Kesselheim <ckesselheim@gmail.com> wrote:

Great sightings, Norm. Many thanks for the tip on that location. Can I assume Dennison Point is public access?

Best,
Craig

 

On Tue, Apr 23, 2013 at 9:56 AM, Norman Famous <nfamous@maine.edu> wrote:

Hi Birders,

Sorry about the delayed report as I was working Downeast until late Sunday and tied up yesterday.  I had a nice assemblage of seabirds on and around Old Man Island in Cutler late Sat afternoon.  I was scoping the island from Dennison Point, located at the end of Little Machias, 2 miles south of Rte. 191.

The wind had just increased to 15-20+ with the passage of the cold front and was hitting the cliffs from the west, although it was hard to determine if there was a SW component.  In any event, many birds were lifting and holding in a WNW direction, mostly on the WSW side of the island. 

What caught my attention were 3 northern fulmars in the air at the west end and a fourth at the east end, among the gulls (mostly herring) with a few kittiwakes also stiffly hovering.  The kittiwakes were mostly gliding up and down.  The fulmar's short stocky neck, short fanned-out tail and wings articulating stiffly (infrequently when pitched into the wind and more frequently when flying low over the water) stood out.  Three of the four birds presented dark silhouettes, but their backs were slightly tilted towards the shore while hovering.  The overall size, position of the wings (slightly forward), proper wing length for the species with stiff shallow wing-beats, a short thick neck, short tail and straight wings were noted.  I have seen the birds on the water in the lower Bay of Fundy, but rarely from land (a half a dozen times).

Northern gannets sitting atop vertical ledges was a surprise!  Gannets have historically nested in the region and individual pairs have been prospecting off and on over the last 30 years (e.g., Whitehorse Island in Passamaquoddy Bay where they have nested during this time period).  Although this was a single observation, the site appears to be too small and the risk of wash-overs on those ledges is high.  If other observors see birds sitting on the vertical ledges on these smaller 'islets' on the west end of Old Man Island should report them (the row of islets starts about 20-30 feet from the island (my distance is a guess but they are close).

The fulmars were only a part of the assemblage:

3  Atlantic puffin – Side views standing near razorbills

25+ Razorbills/Large alcids  Most were standing on the vertical side of the main island where they nest.  Some may have been murres as I only saw five clear razorbill heads.  Technically, 20 should be listed as Large alcid sp.  These were on the nesting cliffs and indistinguishable at that distance and falling light conditions.

2 black guillemots

5  Northern gannets  Normally I do not get too excited about gannets in this area.  However, two were sitting as a pair atop a vertical square-shaped flat ledge and a third bird was sitting on an adjacent vertical ledge (there could have been a bird behind it). 

7  Harlequin ducks  There was a pair below the turn-around at the end of Dennison Point

1 Common eider (male)

3  Purple sandpipers

1 Great cormorant Oddly, there were no double-crested cormorants there as hundreds were migrating along the coast that day and this is a nesting colony.

1     Imm bald eagle sitting near the ledge among a small group of kittiwakes.  These guys look big next to a kittiwake.

250+ Black-legged kittiwakes roosting on the side of the island facing shore; there were another 50+ cruising around and I could not get a count on the south side.

20-30  Herring gulls with about 2/3 lifting on the south side of the island and the other third scattered over the upper surface of the island

10-15  Great black-backed gulls mostly scattered on the top of the island within the gull colony.  Some were flying

Good birding from Augusta

 

Norm Famous

--

Norman Famous, Wetlands and Wildlife Ecologist

513 Eight Rod Road

Augusta, ME 04330

(207) 623 6072

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--

Norman Famous, Wetlands and Wildlife Ecologist

513 Eight Rod Road

Augusta, ME 04330

(207) 623 6072

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--

Norman Famous, Wetlands and Wildlife Ecologist

513 Eight Rod Road

Augusta, ME 04330

(207) 623 6072

--
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maine-birds@googlegroups.com
http://groups.google.com/group/maine-birds
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