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Young Pileated Woodpecker the day before it fledged.

Mad Birder Mary Spencer got this terrific shot of a Young Pileated Woodpecker peeking out of its nest in a poplar tree on Center Fayston Road in Fayston.  Surprisingly the nest was in the middle of a yard where there was frequent human activity.  Mary saw an adult Pileated feed breakfast to the young ones on […]

Blue Headed Vireo Nest

Unidentified bird chatter led Mad Birder Jeannie Elias to look about 15-20 feet up in a small maple on Two Dog Mountain in Fayston, Vermont, revealing this wondrous nest filled with loud, insistent baby birds.  When an adult bird returned on numerous occasions to feed the occupants it became clear that this was a nest […]

Young Robins in the nest

Tina Valentinetti got these great shots of a clutch of young robins in a nest built on the side of her Moretown home.  She noticed the nest being built in mid May.  Robins are born altricial, but according to the Birder’s Handbook (and Tina) they fledge within 14 days of birth.    This is the […]

Mt. Ellen Ascent pays off with Bicknell’s Thrush

Perfect weather and good birding karma gave a troupe of Mad Birders the prize they’d hoped for following an ascent of Mt. Ellen in Fayston on Saturday June 6th… a terrific look at the Bicknell’s Thrush.  Scott Saintsbury took these shots…a great view in every direction.  What a day!

Phoebe Babies in Waitsfield

Sandra Reilly and her husband John have had nesting Eastern Phoebes for years.  Here is a shot of this year’s new crew.

Common Snipe on New Section of Mad River Path

This Common Snipe called many times before it posed on a light fixture above the outdoor skating rink in Waitsfield, perhaps trying to ward off trespassers from trampling a nest of offspring nearby in a wetland meadow.  Eight Mad Birders got great looks at it on a weekly Spring Migration Walk on the new section of […]

Hummingbird Nesting at MadBush

James and dawna Foreman noticed this female hummingbird building a nest about thirty feet off the ground in a Sugar Maple tree near the MadBush Condos on Rolston Road in Waitsfield.   Note the careful construction and attention to detail as well as the attractive lichen exterior.  Pat Folsom got this shot.

Woodcocks Hatch and Go

…and then there were none.  On Wednesday 5/27 the female American Woodcock was still on the nest, but forty eight hours later, she and presumably all four Woodcock chicks were gone, leaving only the nest and some eggshells as evidence of their three week residence on Two Dog Mountain.  As predicted, the precocious youngsters, once hatched, were never spotted […]