Birding Down East by Norman C. Famous
[ Top ]
Quoddy Head State Park
Located at the eastern most point of land in the United States,
Quoddy Head State Park is a day-use only park.
The first sun's rays reach the U.S. coast each day at Quoddy Head State Park,
which during the breeding season (late May through July),
is accompanied by a flute-like musical dawn chorus comprised of Swainson's Thrush,
Hermit Thrush, American Robin, and less commonly, Bicknell's Thrush.
Bicknell's Thrush, formerly the more brown colored race of the Gray-cheeked Thrush,
has been heard singing near the junction of the Green Point trail and the Peat Bog path
during the breeding season (along with Spruce Grouse, Boreal Chickadee, Blackpoll Warbler,
and Yellow-bellied Flycatcher).
Bicknell's Thrush did not breed, however.
Bicknell's as well as Gray-cheeked Thrush, are possible as migrants during the
last week of May and first few days of June.
As dawn progresses, listen for Blackpoll, Black-throated Green, Bay-breasted, Yellow-rumped, Nashville, Magnolia, Black-and-white, and Tennessee Warblers. Other warblers common in the park include American Redstart, Northern Parula, and Common Yellowthroat. In the vicinity of the bog look for Palm and Wilson's Warblers and listen for Olive-sided Flycatcher. Yellow and Chestnut-sided Warblers are possible around edge habitats associated with the parking area and lighthouse.
If one arrives before the gate opens, park in the parking lot located at the top of the hill near the entry gate. Spend a little time along the road near the gate. Species seen or heard along the road during breeding season censuses between 1993 and 1996 include Black-throated Green, Yellow-rumped, Bay-breasted, Nashville, Magnolia, and Yellow Warblers, Northern Parula, Golden-crowned Kinglet, Yellow-bellied Flycatcher, White-throated Sparrow, Swainson's and Hermit Thrush, Solitary Vireo, Pine Siskin, Dark-eyed Junco, and Winter Wren. Species recorded here 2 or 3 of the last 4 years include Red and White-winged Crossbill, Common Raven, Boreal Chickadee, and Ruby-crowned Kinglet. Families of Spruce Grouse have been observed in the woods near the gate. Other less predictable but, nonetheless, good possibilities include Black-backed Woodpecker and Gray Jay, both regularly breeding in the park during the 1970's and 1980's. Look for family groups of Gray Jays this summer because populations in eastern Maine appear to be higher than the previous 6 years.
The picnic area by the lower parking lot is a refreshing experience with or without the often present fog. On clear days one can see Grand Manan Island, New Brunswick, Canada, 7 miles south of the lighthouse. The small island 100 yards south of the lighthouse and parking area is Sail Rock. Look for the odd Great Cormorant and Black-legged Kittiwake roosting on the rocky ledges. On the water look for late migrating Northern Gannet as well as some of the seabirds nesting in the region. All are possible. During late fall through mid to late May look for flocks of Purple Sandpiper. Individual Purple Sandpipers sometimes summer in similar habitats (check the rocky intertidal shoreline of Machias Seal Island). Also during fall gales, look for Northern Gannet, Greater and Sooty Shearwaters, kittiwakes, dovekies, and large alcids.
Quoddy Head and the Grand Manan Channel are also know for their whale and dolphin populations. It is not uncommon to see fin, minke, and humpback whales, white-sided dolphins, and harbor porpoise from the comfort of the picnic tables. Often these marine mammals are associated with feeding groups of seabirds especially from mid July to late October. It is not uncommon to see large mixed feeding groups of kittiwakes, Northern Gannet, large alcids, Bonaparte's, Herring, and Great Black-backed Gulls, Cormorants, Red-breasted Merganser, and Bald Eagle feeding alongside harbor porpoise and large whales in the many convergence lines and upwelling zones.
The oceanographic system here is highly productive and dynamic due to
tidal-induced upwellings produced by 26 foot tides and the 4 to 6 knot
tidal currents passing through the Grand Manan Channel into the Bay of Fundy
and into the smaller Passamaguoddy and Cobscook Bays.
The many small upwelling and convergence areas that concentrate copepods,
krill, and fish change locations throughout the incoming and outgoing tidal cycles.
This complex system is highly mobile and dynamic.
Generally, feeding groups form an hour after high or low tide and
break up about an hour before the next tide.
Check the local newspaper, the Quoddy Tides,
for weekly tide charts. The Quoddy Tides frequently report whale concentration areas and
other interesting natural history sightings.
Present near the shore of Quoddy Head State Park from late May through early September are Arctic and Common Tern. Look also for Common Murre (sometimes Thick-billed Murre), Razorbill, Black Guillemot, Common Eider, and, less frequently, Atlantic Puffin. Dovekies can be seen here from late fall through early spring. Dovekie numbers are highly irregular and close shore detection occurs most often during storms and their attendant strong southeast and southwest winds. With or without birds, Sail Rock and the Grand Manan Channel are extremely exciting and powerful during storm events.
Back in the lower parking lot, the surrounding woods contain most of the same nesting species as the gate area. Particularly common are Blackpoll, Black-throated Green, Magnolia, Yellow-rumped, and Nashville Warblers, Common Yellowthroat, Dark-eyed Junco, Swainson's Thrush and Boreal Chickadee. For the best overall land birding, take the Green Point path south, passing through low dense balsam fir and red spruce forests. Again listen for Blackpoll, Black-throated Green, and Magnolia Warblers, American Redstart, and Swainson's Thrush. Look for the illusive and usually quiet Spruce Grouse which is a regular breeder but very difficult to detect. Although quiet, male Spruce Grouse respond to playbacks of female vocalizations and females respond to high pitched whistles given by distressed or lost young. The latter vocalization sounds like a very high-pitched pew call note of the Veery. These dense, very green woods are full of mosses and lichens which are a delight to view backwards through your binoculars, though a hand lens or botanist's loupe is much easier.
Continue along the wide trail until you reach the fork for the Peat Bog and Green Point paths. This juncture area has regularly occurring Blackpoll, Black-throated Green, Yellow-rumped, and Bay-breasted Warblers as well as Swainson's Thrush, Solitary Vireo, Boreal Chickadee, and Golden-crowned Kinglet. Bicknell's Thrush was heard here during the 1993 breeding season while Spruce Grouse can be found dusting or foraging along both trails. Stop and listen to the sounds for several minutes.
Take the Peat Bog trail which leads to a boardwalk traversing a classic boreal bog. The dense black spruce surrounding the bog contain nesting Yellow-bellied Flycatcher, Ruby-crowned and Golden-crowned Kinglet, and Yellow-rumped Warblers. The bog itself is home for Palm Warbler (usually 1 or 2 pair), Lincoln's Sparrow (1 or 2 pair), Common Yellowthroat, Nashville Warbler, and White-throated Sparrow. Listen for the piercing cries of Merlin which usually nest in the park (heard at different locations in the park 3 of the last 4 breeding seasons).
The bog is a great place to visit even when bird activity is low.
As you return to the parking area, take time to enjoy the steep cliffs above Gulliver's Hole. The sounds here are wonderful with the waves dissipating through the cobble beach below. Those sounds, combined with singing White-throated Sparrows and Black-throated Green Warblers, the smell of balsam fir, and a green carpet of mosses and herbs make this location a very sense-oriented experience, not easily forgotten. After the cliffs follow the shore path back to the parking lot. Expect to see or hear Dark-eyed Junco, Winter Wren, Swainson's Thrush, Black-throated Green and Blackpoll Warblers, and the occasional Spotted Sandpiper.