Sightings – Page 55 – Sharon Friends of Conservation

Tussock Sedge – 5/12/11

Observer: Paul Lauenstein Observation Date: 5/12/11 Observation Time: 6:50 a.m. Observation Location: Moose Hill Audubon boardwalk Common Name: Tussock Sedge Scientific Name: Carex stricta Comments: A clumping, upright sedge with narrow, yellowish green leaves. Reddish brown flowers bloom early summer. Prefers moist fertile soil but will tolerate dry or wet sites. More Information: North Creek Nurseries

Red Admiral butterfly – 5/7/11

Observer: Paul Lauenstein Observation Date: 5/7/11 Observation Time: 11:40 a.m. Observation Location: 4 Gavins Pond Road Common Name: Red Admiral butterfly Scientific Name: Vanessa atalanta Comments: Red Admirals prefer sap flows on trees, fermenting fruit, and bird droppings; visiting flowers only when these are not available. Then they will nectar at common milkweed, red clover, aster, and alfalfa, among others. More Information: Butterflies and Moths of […]

Eastern Towhee – 5/4/11

Observer: Paul Lauenstein Observation Date: 5/4/11 Observation Time: 1:50 p.m. Observation Location: Gavins Pond Common Name: Eastern towhee Scientific Name: Pipilo erythrophthalmus Comments: Towhees are the largest of the sparrows. They are quite common in Sharon. They have a distinctive call that sounds like “Drink your tea.” More Information: All About Birds.org

Tree Swallow – 5/4/11

Observer: Paul Lauenstein Observation Date: 5/4/11 Observation Time: 1:00 p.m. Observation Location: near Gavins Pond Dam Common Name: Tree swallow Scientific Name: Tachycineta bicolor Comments: Tree swallows compete for bluebird nesting boxes. Bluebird house are often set out in pairs. One box gets taken by a pair of tree swallows. They drive other tree swallows away from the other box, but allow bluebirds to move in. More Information: […]

Short-tailed Weasel – 4/16/11

Observer: Paul Lauenstein Observation Date: 4/16/11 Observation Time: 7:35 p.m. Observation Location: Gavins Pond Road behind Shaw’s Plaza Common Name: Short-tailed weasel Scientific Name: Mustela erminea Comments: White undersides (as opposed to cream-colored), white feet, and small size differentiate this road-kill specimen from a long-tailed weasel. Mink are all brown. Short-tailed weasel is also known as a stoat. In winter, they turn all white with a black-tipped tail, […]

Song Sparrow – 4/7/11

Observer: Paul Lauenstein Observation Date: 4/7/11 Observation Time: 5:40 p.m. Observation Location: Gavins Pond Road near soccer fields Common Name: Song Sparrow Scientific Name: Melospiza melodia Comments: This song sparrow was gleaning seeds. Their distinctive, melodious song is a good one to memorize because it is so common. More Information: Cornell Lab of Ornithology “All About Birds”

Bald Eagle – 4/2/11

Observer: Paul Lauenstein Observation Date: 4/2/11 Observation Time: 4:15 p.m. Observation Location: Gavins Pond soccer field parking lot Common Name: Bald Eagle Scientific Name: Haliaeetus leucocephalus Comments: Adult with white head and tail. Very distinctive! More Information: Boidnoise: Adult Bald Eagle Call

Ring-Necked Duck – 3/25/11

Observer: Paul Lauenstein Observation Date: 3/25/11 Observation Time: 5:20 p.m. Observation Location: Gavin’s Pond Common Name: Ring-necked Duck Scientific Name: Aythya collaris Comments: Ring-necked ducks migrate through Sharon, and can be seen in spring and fall. More Information: All About Birds: Ring-necked Duck

Wild Turkey – 3/18/11

Observer: Josh Simons Observation Date: 3/18/11 Observation Time: 8:00 a.m. Observation Location: Moose Hill area Common Name: Wild Turkey Scientific Name: Meleagris gallopavo Comments: One of our largest and heaviest birds; smaller than a Trumpeter Swan; about twice the size (and four times as heavy) as a Ring-necked Pheasant. However, they can still fly. At night, groups of turkeys roost in trees. More Information: Cornell […]

Lead-Backed Salamander – 3/17/11

Observer: Paul Lauenstein Observation Date: 3/17/11 Observation Time: 3:15 p.m. Observation Location: Coach Lane Common Name: Lead-backed salamander Scientific Name: Plethodon cinereus Comments: The lead-backed salamander is a color variant of the red-backed salamander. They live under rotting logs. More Information: Fairfax County Public Schools

Garter Snake – 3/17/11

Observer: Paul Lauenstein Observation Date: 3/17/11 Observation Time: 2:20 p.m. Observation Location: Coach Lane Common Name: Garter Snake Scientific Name: Thamnophis sirtalis Comments: This is a common snake. It is harmless. More Information: Wikipedia Back to the Sightings List

Redwing Blackbird – 3/1/11

Observer: Paul Lauenstein Observation Date: 3/1/11 Observation Time: 5:10 p.m. Observation Location: near Gavins Pond Common Name: Redwing blackbird Scientific Name: Agelaius phoeniceus Comments: First redwing I’ve seen this season. The ground is blanketed in old snow and the pond is still frozen solid. In fall and winter they eat weedy seeds such as ragweed and cocklebur as well as native sunflowers and waste grains. More Information: All about Birds

Red-Bellied Woodpecker – 2/9/11

Observer: Josh Simons Observation Date: 2/9/11 Observation Time: 10:00 a.m. Observation Location: Moose Hill area Common Name: Red-bellied Woodpecker Scientific Name: Melanerpes carolinus Comments: These birds have extended their breeding range north over the last 100 years. More Information: All About Birds

Carolina Wren – 1/30/11

Observer: Josh Simons Observation Date: 1/30/11 Observation Time: 1:30 p.m. Observation Location: Moose Hill area Common Name: Carolina Wren Scientific Name: Thryothorus ludovicianus Comments: For more than 70 years, no Carolina Wrens were recorded during a Christmas Bird Count in Vermont. Then, in 1975, two were spotted. After being observed sporadically on subsequent counts, the bird began making regular appearances in 1991, and its numbers […]

Carolina Wren – 1/17/11

Observer: Paul Lauenstein Observation Date: 1/17/11 Observation Time: 3:40 p.m. Observation Location: 284 Mountain Street Common Name: Carolina Wren Scientific Name: Thryothorus ludovicianus Comments: Following the SFOC walk on Martin Luther King Day (January 17), while sipping hot cider at Vera Cross’s house at about 3:40 p.m., a pair of Carolina wrens appeared out the window. It was only 20 degrees outside. The wrens were flitting in and […]

Hooded Merganser – 11/14/10

Observer: Paul Lauenstein Observation Date: 11/14/10 Observation Time: 9:15 a.m. Observation Location: Gavins Pond Common Name: Hooded merganser Scientific Name: Lophodytes cucullatus Comments: Hooded mergansers are diving ducks. The drake (male) has a spectacular white “hood” on the back of its head, and striking black and white bars on its body, while the female is drab reddish brown. “A small fish-eating duck of wooded ponds, […]

Opossum – 10/12/10

Observer: Richard Mandell Observation Date: 10/12/10 Observation Time: dusk Observation Location: Mountain St. Common Name: Opossum Scientific Name: Didelphimorphia Comments: Opossums are voracious eaters that will try anything they find. Surprisingly, opossums eat ticks by the thousands. Ticks, particularly the black-legged ticks like deer ticks that are responsible for the spread of Lyme disease, appear to be a top item on the opossum’s menu. Several years […]

Yellow Toadflax – 10/3/10

Observer: Paul Lauenstein Observation Date: 10/3/10 Observation Time: 9:10 a.m. Observation Location: Gavins Pond Road Common Name: Yellow Toadflax (a.k.a. Common Toadflax) Scientific Name: Linaria vulgaris Comments: Also known as butter and eggs plant or wild snapdragon, this invasive perennial weed from Eurasia thrives in poor soil where there is little competition from larger plants. More Information: Wikipedia

Eastern Bluebird – 9/30/10

Observer: Paul Lauenstein Observation Date: 9/30/10 Observation Time: 9:25 a.m. Observation Location: Gavins Pond Road near soccer fields Common Name: Eastern Bluebird Scientific Name: Sialia sialis Comments: Bluebirds are becoming an increasingly common sight in the open fields bordered by woods in the vicinity of the soccer fields on Gavins Pond Road, thanks to the nesting boxes provided by SFOC. More Information: Cornell Lab of Ornithology […]

Fisher – 9/23/10

Observer: Kate Kavanagh Observation Date: 9/23/10 Observation Time: 7:15 a.m. Observation Location: Woods at the end of South Pleasant St. Common Name: Fisher Scientific Name: Martes pennanti Comments: Not too far from the neighborhood houses, moving quickly through the woods along the trail path. More Information: MassAudubon.org or Wild Things Unlimited

Bullhead Catfish – 8/27/10

Observer: Paul Lauenstein Observation Date: 8/27/10 Observation Time: 3:45 p.m. Observation Location: Beaver Brook near tennis courts Common Name: Bullhead Catfish Scientific Name: Ameiurus melas Comments: I noticed a number of small black fish swimming near the dam, so I got a dipnet and caught this one (don’t worry, I released it alive!). It turned out to be a bullhead catfish. When the Department of […]

Snapping Turtle Drama – 8/25/10

Observer: Paul Lauenstein Observation Date: 8/25/10 Observation Time: 7:30 a.m. Observation Location: Spillway at Gavins Pond dam Common Name: Snapping Turtle Scientific Name: Chelydra serpentina On August 25 the spillway at the Gavins Pond dam was flowing strongly following four inches of rain in three days. A good-sized snapping turtle had gotten swept by the current into the spillway at the Gavins Pond dam. It […]

Snapping Turtle – 8/21/10

Observer: Paul Lauenstein Observation Date: 8/21/10 Observation Time: 7:50 a.m. Observation Location: Gavins Pond Road Common Name: Snapping Turtle Scientific Name: Chelydra serpentina Comments: It is a common misconception that snapping turtles may be safely picked up by the tail with no harm to the animal; in fact, this has a high chance of injuring the turtle, especially the tail itself and the vertebral column. […]

Pickerel Frog – 8/20/10

Observer: Paul Lauenstein Observation Date: 8/20/10 Observation Time: 7:45 a.m. Observation Location: Gavins Pond Dam Common Name: Pickerel Frog Scientific Name: Rana palustris Comments: The skin secretions of a stressed pickerel frog are known to be toxic to other frogs, as many a novice frog catcher has found when he finds only the pickerel frogs still alive in his bucket. These secretions can also be […]

Wild Turkey – 8/11/10

Observer: Judy Heap Observation Date: 8/11/10 Observation Time: evening Observation Location: Wilshire Drive backyard Common Name: Wild Turkey Scientific Name: Meleagris gallopavo Comments: Wild turkeys can be aggressive, so keep a safe distance. More Information: Cornell Lab of Ornithology “All About Birds”

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