A hot one today! 84 degrees... 4/13/2023

A solo journey was my destiny today as I still had symptoms of Covid and was testing positive. After three years of being extra cautious for medical reasons, my husband brought it home from work, and we both succumbed to the disease. The symptoms were a bit of a struggle, but this disease really hit hard by causing me to cancel so many events and outings that I was looking forward to as well as missing so much work at MA Audubon. Not worth getting anyone else sick though! My destination for this wicked hot Thursday was a south shore trip from Tiverton back towards Wareham looking for American Oystercatchers as well as other birds reported on ebird. My first stop was the Emilie Rueker RI Audubon site in Tiverton to look for a Great-horned Owl that was nesting there. I was told that the trail that the nest was near was blocked off, but that you could still see the nest and photograph the birds. They were pretty distant with lots of brush in the way, but it was so awesome to see both parents on the nest with what looks like two owlets below. A poor quality photo, but such a unique family dynamic.

I next headed south to Seapowet Marsh but there was not much activity. As it was hot (80 degrees) and around noon, I wasn't surprised that things were slowing down. A birding friend had mentioned a Tiverton neighborhood that had a famous Screech Owl that hung out and popped up as the sun was ready to set. As it was only ten minutes away, I decided to check it out knowing it was not likely to put in an appearance. My lucky day! This beautiful rufous-morph Eastern Screech Owl was posed in full view in his little nook and, considering the hot weather, I considered myself lucky! I took some quick photos using my car as a blind and left him to his warm snooze.

After a few more stops, I reached my final birding destination in Wareham where, for the last ten years, Oystercatchers have colonized a little island in this cove along with a pair of nesting Osprey. No Oystercatchers yet but the Osprey pair were on their nest, even after it was destroyed by tides last year. Determined! I also had a great time talking to the neighbors who were very welcoming when I told them that I worked for MA Audubon. They have been keeping an eye on the birds for years as well, and I could tell that they were very protective of their birds. I was also informed that Diamondback Terrapins were breeding in the cove which is yet another reason for a return trip!