Category: Bird

Observer: Paul Lauenstein Observation Date: 5/26/14 Observation Time: 5:55 p.m. Observation Location: field near Gavins Pond dam Common Name: Field sparrow Scientific Name: Spizella pusilla Comments: The song of a field sparrow starts out slowly and then gets faster, like a bouncing ping-pong ball. There are at least 18 species of sparrows in Massachusetts. Learning their respective calls is a good way to find and identify them. More […]

Observer: Paul Lauenstein Observation Date: 5/26/14 Observation Time: 11:45 a.m. Observation Location: Borderland State Park Common Name: Great crested flycatcher Scientific Name: Myiarchus crinitus Comments: The great-crested flycatcher has a pale yellow breast. The memory hook I use to remember its call is “weep, weep, weep.” More Information: All About Birds

Observer: Paul Lauenstein Observation Date: 5/23/14 Observation Time: 5:15 p.m. Observation Location: field near Gavins Pond dam Common Name: Prairie warbler Scientific Name: Setophaga discolor Comments: Prairie warblers are typically found in open fields and under power lines. Listen for their ascending trill. More Information: All About Birds

Observer: Paul Lauenstein Observation Date: 5/21/14 Observation Time: 4:40 p.m. Observation Location: Gavins Pond Common Name: Warbling vireo Scientific Name: Vireo gilvus Comments: Warbling vireos are usually found near water. More Information: All About Birds  

Observer: Paul Lauenstein Observation Date: 5/19/14 Observation Time: 12:20 p.m. Observation Location: Gavins Pond Road Common Name: Yellow warbler Scientific Name: Setophaga petechia Comments: The yellow warbler has a song that sounds like, “sweet-sweet-sweet little more sweet.” It is typically found near wetlands. More Information: All About Birds  

Observer: Paul Lauenstein Observation Date: 5/16/14 Observation Time: 12:35 p.m. Observation Location: Moose Hill Audubon Wildlife Sanctuary Common Name: Scarlet Tanager Scientific Name: Piranga olivacea Comments: Scarlet tanagers are common in Sharon, but few people see these brilliantly colored birds because they live in the woods where they are concealed by foliage. If you learn their song, which sounds like a robin with a sore throat, you can […]

Observer: Paul Lauenstein Observation Date: 5/16/14 Observation Time: 6:20 a.m. Observation Location: Moose Hill Audubon Wildlife Sanctuary Common Name: Ovenbird Scientific Name: Seiurus aurocapilla Comments: The ovenbird’s rapid-fire “teacher-teacher-teacher” song rings out in summer hardwood forests from the Mid-Atlantic states to northeastern British Columbia. It’s so loud that it may come as a surprise to find this inconspicuous warbler strutting like a tiny rooster across the dim […]

Observer: Paul Lauenstein Observation Date: 5/15/14 Observation Time: 5:10 p.m. Observation Location: Gavins Pond Road Common Name: Redwing blackbird Scientific Name: Agelaius phoeniceus Comments: Redwing blackbirds are typically found near water. More Information: All about Birds

Observer: Paul Lauenstein Observation Date: 5/15/14 Observation Time: 3:40 p.m. Observation Location: field near Gavins Pond dam Common Name: Eastern Towhee Scientific Name: Pipilo erythrophthalmus Comments: The Eastern towhees is the largest member of the sparrow family. Its call, “Drink your tea.” can be heard much more often than it is seen, but once you become aware of them, you will realize that they are very common in […]

Observer: Paul Lauenstein Observation Date: 5/14/14 Observation Time: 2:35 p.m. Observation Location: Moose Hill Audubon Wildlife Sanctuary Common Name: Common yellowthroat Scientific Name: Geothlypis trichas Comments: This masked warbler is typically found near wetlands or ponds. More Information: All About Birds

Observer: Paul Lauenstein Observation Date: 5/14/14 Observation Time: 2:25 p.m. Observation Location: Moose Hill Audubon Wildlife Sanctuary Common Name: Eastern Bluebird Scientific Name: Sialia sialis Comments: Sharon Fiends of Conservation maintain about 30 bluebird houses in town. Volunteers check the bluebird houses weekly, and the data is used to help determine the optimum locations for bluebird houses. More Information: All About Birds

Observer: Paul Lauenstein Observation Date: 5/14/14 Observation Time: 12:00 p.m. Observation Location: Moose Hill Audubon Wildlife Sanctuary Common Name: Wood thrush Scientific Name: Hylocichla mustelina Comments: The “Ee-oh-lay” song of the wood thrush has a melodic quality. More Information: All About Birds

Observer: Paul Lauenstein Observation Date: 5/14/14 Observation Time: 10:50 a.m. Observation Location: Moose Hill Audubon Wildlife Sanctuary Common Name: White-throated sparrow Scientific Name: Zonotrichia albicollis Comments: The song of the white-throated sparrow sounds like, “Oh, say, Canada-Canada-Canada.” It is a reminder that they are only passing through Sharon on their annual migrations. More Information: All About Birds

Observer: Paul Lauenstein Observation Date: 5/13/14 Observation Time: 1:45 p.m. Observation Location: Moose Hill Audubon Wildlife Sanctuary Common Name: Magnolia warbler Scientific Name: Setophaga magnolia Comments: Magnolia warblers are striking birds, but they are hard to photograph because these nervous little birds move constantly. More Information: All About Birds

Observer: Paul Lauenstein Observation Date: 5/13/14 Observation Time: 1:40 p.m. Observation Location: Moose Hill Audubon Wildlife Sanctuary Common Name: Yellow-rumped Warbler Scientific Name: Setophaga coronata Comments: Colorful woodland warblers such as this yellow-rumped warbler are often observed at Moose Hill Audubon Wildlife Sanctuary in the early morning in May as they migrate through Sharon to breeding grounds farther north. More Information: All About Birds

Observer: Paul Lauenstein Observation Date: 5/13/16 Observation Time: 9:35 a.m. Observation Location: Moose Hill Audubon Wildlife Sanctuary Common Name: Red-bellied Woodpecker Scientific Name: Melanerpes carolinus Comments: Primarily a bird of the southeast, where its rolling calls are familiar sounds in swamps and riverside woods. Omnivorous and adaptable, this woodpecker has also adjusted to life in suburbs and city parks, and in recent years it has been […]

Observer: Paul Lauenstein Observation Date: 5/8/14 Observation Time: 7:10 a.m. Observation Location: Moose Hill Audubon Wildlife Sanctuary Common Name: Tree swallow Scientific Name: Tachycineta bicolor Comments: Tree swallows compete with bluebirds for nesting boxes. However, if nesting boxes are sited in pairs, a tree swallow will occupy one box and drive away other tree swallows from the other box. That will allow bluebirds to nest there. More Information: […]

Observer: Paul Lauenstein Observation Date: 5/8/14 Observation Time: 7:00 a.m. Observation Location: Moose Hill Audubon Wildlife Sanctuary Common Name: Northern Cardinal Scientific Name: Cardinalis cardinalis Comments: One of the most common birds in Sharon, cardinals have a whistle-like voice, and sing strongly. Learn to recognize their various vocalizations at: http://www.allaboutbirds.org/guide/northern_cardinal/sound Cardinals typically travel in pairs. The female is mostly tan. More Information: All About Birds

Observer: Paul Lauenstein Observation Date: 3/9/14 Observation Time: 2:40 p.m. Observation Location: 4 Gavins Pond Road Common Name: Red-shouldered hawk Scientific Name: Buteo lineatus Comments: As I sat at my desk talking on the phone, this hawk swooped in and landed on a branch outside my window. I grabbed my camera with my free hand and snapped this shot. I got help with the identification from my […]

Observer: Paul Lauenstein Observation Date: 3/8/14 Observation Time: 11:10 a.m. Observation Location: Moose Hill Audubon Wildlife Sanctuary Common Name: Red-bellied Woodpecker Scientific Name: Melanerpes carolinus Comments: Red-bellied woodpeckers are often victims of European starlings. As many as half of all red-bellied woodpecker nests in some areas get invaded by starlings. More Information: Cornell Lab of Ornithology “All About Birds”

Observer: Paul Lauenstein Observation Date: 3/8/14 Observation Time: 11:00 a.m. Observation Location: Moose Hill Audubon Wildlife Sanctuary Common Name: White-breasted nuthatch Scientific Name: Sitta carolinensis Comments: This white-breasted nuthatch was attracted to the suet feeder at Moose Hill Audubon Wildlife Sanctuary headquarters. More Information: All About Birds: White-breasted Nuthatch

Observer: Paul Lauenstein Observation Date: 3/8/14 Observation Time: 10:55 a.m. Observation Location: Moose Hill Audubon Wildlife Sanctuary Common Name: Dark-eyed Junco Scientific Name: Junco hyemalis Comments: Juncos are winter birds in Sharon. More Information: Cornell Lab of Ornithology “All About Birds” Previous, Subsequent, or Similar Sightings: Dark-eyed Junco, 1/1/09 Dark-eyed Junco, 5/4/11

Observer: Paul Lauenstein Observation Date: 3/1/14 Observation Time: 10:30 a.m. Observation Location: Ward’s Berry Farm Common Name: Horned Lark Scientific Name: Eremophila alpestris Comments: In winter, horned larks can be found scavenging for seeds in Ward’s Berry Farm fields bounded by Wolomolopoag St. and South Main Street. Hopefully someone will submit a better photo than this one in the future. More Information: All About Birds

Observer: Josh Simons Observation Date: 2/16/14 Observation Time: 9:00 a.m. Observation Location: Moose Hill area Common Name: Downy Woodpecker Scientific Name: Dendrocopos pubescens Comments: Dendrocopos means “tree dagger” and “pubescens” refers to its downy hairs of puberty compared to those of the Hairy woodpecker, D. villosus.[The Dictionary of American Bird Names by Ernest A. Choate] More Information: All About Birds