[Maine-birds] Northern Maine Birds: Cackling Goose, Peregrine Falcon and Black-bellied Plovers

 I stopped at Collins Pond in Caribou this afternoon and found a crabby Cackling Goose in the flock of 700+ Canada Geese that are roosting on the pond.

The first of the fall for me, the Cackler was asleep, with it's head buried in its back, when I first spotted it.  It would have gone unnoticed, but this goose had a prominent white ring at the base of its black neck which gave the bird away.  The little goose did not appreciate being jostled by the other water birds roosting on the pond and I saw it hiss at and try to bite a Mallard, a Herring Gull and a Canada Goose in turn.    I spent quite a while trying to get a documentation photo when its head was exposed, but the little goose would go right back to sleep mode after each squabble.

I put a couple pics in the eBird list: http://ebird.org/ebird/me/view/checklist?subID=S25282889.

The duck flock is also pretty good a Collins Pond now with 10 to 20 Northern Shovelers, 50+ teal (of both Green-winged and Blue-winged persuasion) and 200 or so Mallards and Blacks.  

At the Mill Pond in Mars Hill, there is also a very big goose flock now with at least 3,000 geese in the pond at mid day.  Yesterday afternoon, I found 10 Northern Pintail in the duck flock that numbers close to 500 birds.

Other recent northern Maine bird goodies include a young Peregrine Falcon hunting over Christina Reservoir on the morning of September 29th.  A lateish Sora and a (the?) American Coot were also present.  More recently, two immature Black-bellied Plovers were seen with Semipalmated Plover here on the 2nd.  Black-bellies are uncommon in northern Maine- though early October is the best time to see them.

American Pipits are now ubiquitous in the harvested potato and grain fields.

Good Birding.

Bill

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Bill Sheehan
Woodland, Aroostook Co., Maine
http://northernmainebirds.blogspot.com/

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