The MaineBirds listserv recently received posts from people in Liberty and Camden who have been seeing bald birds around their yards. Such sightings harken us back to our days at the Cornell Lab of Ornithology, where questions about birds with featherless heads ranked high on the list of FAQs from our members and the public. Read More
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NRCM Staff Share Apps to Help You Explore Maine’s Outdoors
Looking for ways to explore and learn more about Maine’s environment? Check out these NRCM staff picks! If you have other apps you use, please share them with us at nrcm@nrcm.org. LEAF SNAP: Abben Maguire (Administrative Assistant/Accounts Payable Coordinator) uses this handy plant ID app to identify mushrooms, plants, flowers, and more! Fun fact he learned from the Read More
Learn to Talk Bird with Five Easy Wild Bird Sound Imitations
The tools now available to help us all learn more about the birds in our area are incredible. Apps like Merlin, for example, allow you to “aim and ID” bird vocalizations. But if you want to remember who the avian songsters are when and wherever you hear them, one of the best learning strategies is Read More
Avian Flu and Maine Birds
As we’ve been talking to friends and meeting fellow birders along the trails, two words seem to be making it into our conversations: avian flu. While we humans have been dealing with the tragic implications of COVID-19, birds have been dealing with their own deadly virus. It’s called Highly Pathogenic Avian Influenza (HPAI). For more Read More
My Maine This Week: Kelly Magalis
Many of you may have read about rare sightings of a Summer Tanager in Biddeford Pool and other areas around Maine recently. Well, we are very happy to be able to share these photos of the bird. Kelly Magalis of Brunswick, Maine, shares her photos of a molting Summer Tanager that she spotted in late Read More
Birds, Trees, and the Air We Breathe
Trees and people share the same breath. As Earth Day approached in April, we found ourselves having that discussion. Fascinating, when you think about it. Willows, pines, oaks, spruce—they also share their breath with birds. And with every oxygen-breathing creature on Planet Earth. Every minute of every day, we breathe deep into our lungs the Read More
Exploring Maine’s Beaches in the Offseason
For most people, “beach season” is a very specific time of year in Maine: that luxurious four-month spell of warm weather from June to September when the sun convinces visitors to brave the icy bite of the Gulf of Maine. For some more intrepid recreationists, the off-season holds promise for surfing as winter swells bring Read More
My Maine This Week: “Vitamin N” by David Small
Each week, NRCM member David Small of Old Town, Maine, shares via email some of his beautiful photos of wildlife and nature with several of his friends. NRCM is lucky enough to be one of those friends, so we are always delighted when David’s photos show up in our inbox. David recently shared these spring Read More
“Pop-up Pond” Birding
There are many ways to spend time birding in the spring. As for us, we especially enjoy the surprises found by “pop-up pond” birding. To us, it has become a savored spring birding tradition. Sure, springtime birding also means frequent visits to favorite ponds, lakes and rivers. The increasing ice out means an increasing chance Read More
