It was sunny, but extremely windy. A nor'easter was moving up the coast, and the wind was its advance warning. This was my last birding day of the trip, and I already had 71 avian species on my trip list. I didn't expect to see any new avian species at Blackwater, but decided to give it a go and enjoy the outing. That turned out to be a really good decision. There were the same species as I started out on Wildlife Drive.
Sub-adult (Basic III) Bald Eagle
Sub-adult (Basic III) Bald Eagle
Great Blue Heron
Northern Shoveler
Northern Shovelers
Red-shouldered Hawk
Red-shouldered Hawk (full resolution detail)
Farther down Wildlife Drive, I saw the pair of Bald Eagles that had been in that same area all week. This morning, they were perched on outcroppings in the shallow water by the drive.
Bald Eagles
While I photographing the Bald Eagles, I heard quite a bit of avian commotion. It might have been American Crows or Canada Geese; I'm not sure, as all of this happened so quickly. One of the Bald Eagles immediately took off.
Bald Eagle
Bald Eagle
I looked up and saw two hawks circling high above me. The higher one was a Red-tailed. The lower one looked very large and my first impression was a Northern Harrier.
Red-tailed Hawk
But as it circled and I got a view of its backside, I didn't see the white rump of a Northern Harrier. That was strange! The larger hawk circled down toward where I was standing. It was HUGE! It was a juvenile Northern Goshawk!
Northern Goshawk
Northern Goshawk
Northern Goshawk
Northern Goshawk
Northern Goshawk
Northern Goshawk
Northern Goshawk
Northern Goshawk
Northern Goshawk
I don't know if the Goshawk was looking at me or at the Bald Eagles, but it quickly turned and flew over a tree line.
Northern Goshawk
There was a huge flock of Canada Geese in the field on the other side of that tree line, and all of them took to flight making a very loud noise. One of the Bald Eagles flew in the direction of the Goshawk, presumably to chase it away.
Bald Eagle and Canada Geese
Well, that was really neat to see, and the Northern Goshawk was my trip bird species #72. I drove the loop again looking for the Goshawk, but did not see it again. I headed back to the hotel, and saw my last Bald Eagle of the trip when I got there.
Bald Eagle
Here's my list of birds seen on this trip (B: Blackwater; C: Cambridge; E: Egypt Road):
Common Loon C
Double-crested Cormorant C
Great Blue Heron BC
Snowy Egret B
Tundra Swan B
Canada Goose B
Cackling Goose B
American Black Duck BC
Mallard BC
Northern Shoveler B
Bufflehead C
Ruddy Duck C
American Wigeon C
Hooded Merganser B
Black Vulture BCE
Turkey Vulture BCE
Bald Eagle BC
Sharp-shinned Hawk B
Cooper's Hawk B
Northern Goshawk B
Northern Harrier B
Red-shouldered Hawk B
Red-tailed Hawk BE
Killdeer E
Black-bellied Plover E
Lesser Yellowlegs B
Ring-billed Gull BCE
Herring Gull C
Laughing Gull BC
Rock Pigeon C
Mourning Dove BC
Belted Kingfisher BC
Downy Woodpecker B
Hairy Woodpecker B
Red-bellied Woodpecker B
Pileated Woodpecker B
Northern Flicker B
Eastern Phoebe B
Blue Jay BC
American Crow BC
Fish Crow B
Horned Lark E
Carolina Chickadee BC
Tufted Titmouse B
Brown-headed Nuthatch B
Carolina Wren BC
Marsh Wren B
Winter Wren B
Golden-crowned Kinglet B
Ruby-crowned Kinglet B
Eastern Bluebird B
Hermit Thrush B
American Robin BC
Northern Mockingbird BC
American Pipit E
Cedar Waxwing C
European Starling BCE
Palm Warbler E
Yellow-rumped Warbler C
Northern Cardinal BC
Field Sparrow BC
Song Sparrow BC
Chipping Sparrow B
White-throated Sparrow B
Savannah Sparrow E
Swamp Sparrow B
Dark-eyed Junco B
Eastern Meadowlark E
Red-winged Blackbird B
Brown-headed Cowbird B
American Goldfinch C
House Sparrow C
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