Celebrating 40 Years of Preserving and Protecting Westford's Open Space and Natural Resources.
One of the fall events bird lovers look forward to is the return of the dark-eyed juncos to our feeders. Juncos are one of North America’s most common birds. Dark-eyed juncos are black and white or gray and white. Males are darker gray or even black on their head and back, white on their belly, … Read more
Where have all the grackles gone? Common Grackles are those large, glossy iridescent blackbirds. Males glow with a copper, blue and green sheen in the right light. They have light colored yellow eyes. Females are a bit less iridescent, more brown, with the light eye. Juveniles are all brown with a brown eye. Their song … Read more
Did you know that many female birds sing? I didn’t, but read about the phenomenon in the summer issue of Living Bird. I had heard about the female rose-breasted grosbeak sometimes singing from the nest, and some years ago I witnessed this phenomenon. I heard the singing, assumed it was a male rose-breasted grosbeak and … Read more
Have you seen any Monarch Butterflies this spring? I haven’t, and if last year is any precedent, we won’t see many this spring and summer either. Monarchs are declining precipitously. Experts estimate that these migratory butterflies have declined by 90% in the past twenty years. The Mexican Oyamel Fir Forest, monarchs’ wintering habitat, has shrunk … Read more
Maybe you are, like me, a “tree hugger”. One of my earliest memories as a child is of a huge tulip tree in my yard. My friends and I played in our big side yard with the tulip tree as base for all games of Tag, Mother-May-I and Red Light, Green Light. My other favorite … Read more