As promised, here is the shot of the common loon cruising off the little beach earlier this month. It took some research in my bird books to ascertain that the common loon looks rather dull in the winter and this is likely one of them. Loons in salt water along the Connecticut coast is not something I have seen before; loons on Maine lakes is a favorite sight, and they are seen on the Maine seacoast as well.

On a clear winter day in the Maine woods, the jets inbound from Europe sometimes are the only birds I can find.

While on a patrol toward the far bog in Maine, we heard the loud tapping of a hairy woodpecker