December 2025 Jamaica Pond, Cape Ann, Plum Island
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| Sunrise Jamaica Pond December 16 |
Monday December 1 While this is not strictly a nature note, I couldn't resist including this new Massachusetts license plate, featuring the Cat in the Hat, to celebrate a Springfield, Massachusetts native, Ted Geisel, aka Dr. Seuss. I spotted this one in the main parking lot in JP.
When I was a kid, my brothers and I used to play the license plate game, trying to see a plate from every Canadian province and US state in a single year; Niagara Falls, where we grew up, is a particularly good location for this. My parents would drive us down to the Falls for an outing, and instead of looking at the Falls, we would check out the license plates on the cars parked along the road. The hardest plates to see were Newfoundland and Labrador; Yukon; Northwest Territories; Hawaii and Alaska: far away places with few people. The absolute best plate is the iconic NWT plate: white plate in the shape of a polar bear. As you can tell, I still check out license plates.
I liked the color in these leaves, still hanging on with winter approaching.
Saturday December 6 Jeannie's Christmas cactus, bursting with blooms.
Sunday December 7 Great day of birding at Cape Ann, about an hour north of Boston. The road skirts around the edge of the Cape, hugging the rocky coastline, providing lots of places to stop and scan the ocean for wintering ducks.
At Gloucester harbor, rafts of common eiders and red-breasted mergansers. Heading around the eastern edge of the harbor, by Niles Beach, surf scoters and buffleheads. On the Atlantic side, white-winged scoters, black scoters and red-throated loons. Harlequin ducks bobbing in the waves breaking over the rocks near the Emerson Inn and at Andrews Point.
Wednesday December 10 Bought my wreath at Allandale Farm and hung the animal decorations this afternoon.
Sunday December 14 Lots of hooded mergansers at the pond now; some days I see 50 to 60, other days only a couple of dozen. I caught a few diving close to the shore of the pond.
I regularly see ring-necked ducks, too, at the pond. The ruddy ducks seem to have moved on.
Wednesday December 17 I've been seeing a few common mergansers at the pond. Sometimes just one, sometimes 6 or 7.
Saturday December 20 Heard the pair of great horned owls hooting back and forth to each other at the Arb at dusk today, near their nest from last spring. Announcing their territory, getting ready to mate and nest.
Sunday December 21 First day of winter. A few days ago, my neighbor, Mary, spotted these two tiny snow people holding hands (well, twigs) on a branch overhanging the water.
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| Mary Horst |
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| Mary Horst |
After reading a report of a snowy owl at Plum Island, north of Boston, yesterday, I drove up there to see if I could find it: no luck. Only a few of the migrating ducks around: mostly black ducks and a few pintails. But I did see two white geese, which I think were snow geese. One of the other birders thought they were Ross's geese, but their range maps don't show them in Massachusetts.
Friday December 26 (aka Boxing Day) Spotted a bald eagle circling over Commonwealth Avenue in Newton, about 5 miles from my house, this morning.
Sunday December 28 Beautiful morning light with the sun gleaming off the ice on the pond. There's still open water along one side of the pond, with the geese and ducks all crowded in. Some of the mergansers have taken off, but hopefully they'll return when it warms up a bit (it's supposed to be 50F (10C) tomorrow).
Driving to run an errand this afternoon, I spotted a juvenile bald eagle perched high in the sycamore at the edge of the pond. By the time I pulled over and parked, it had taken off, but I saw it flying low over the ice at the opposite side of the pond, squabbling with some gulls, which then flew away. It landed and pecked at something on the ice for a while.
Birds Up Close update: I've scheduled several post-publication book talks
There are two ornithological conferences in New England this summer that I plan to attend: the American Ornithological Society in Amherst, MA and the Wilson Ornithological Society in Newport RI. I'll also be doing talks for Mass Audubon and the Arnold Arboretum. Whew!
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| Sunrise December 31 |
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