Celebrating 40 Years of Preserving and Protecting Westford's Open Space and Natural Resources.
Scientists have only recently learned that birds, like insects, can see ultraviolet light. Birds can see the entire spectrum of light from ultraviolet to infrared. They see the same colors we see, but much more. And this explains a lot. The history of research on this phenomenon is reported in The American Institute of Biological … Read more
Common Grackles Are your feeders dominated by grackles? Ours are too. Common Grackles are large birds, 11-13 inches long, with long beaks. Their coloring is black with a beautiful iridescent sheen of blue, purple and bronze. Their eyes are bright golden yellow. Surprisingly, though they are common and widespread, grackles are among those birds that … Read more
One of my favorite hobbies is collecting old bird and wildflower guides. Perhaps you have a passion for this type of old book too. Recently, I was fortunate to be given a wonderful old pocket bird guide by a Westford friend. The book is titled Land Birds Bird Guide: Song and Insectivorous Birds East of … Read more
Brighter Outlook by Stepping Out Westford has lost a talented photographer, poet and nature lover, and I have lost a friend. Doug Pederson sent me many of his lovely bird photos over the years I knew him, and gave me permission to use them for the Westford Wildlife Watch column. His family put together some … Read more
What is your favorite bird? Many of us would answer, “Chickadee!” After all the black-capped chickadee is the Massachusetts state bird. Chickadees’ cheerful presence at our bird feeders or in the trees along our walk, is always welcome. Its range is confined to North America, from the northeast to northern California and south to the … Read more