These photos were taken a few days ago when it was sunny but very cold. We are waiting for snow to fall here on Cape Cod so I thought I’d just post these for fun. The first gull is a greater black backed gull.
These gulls look black against the light but that’s just because the sun is behind them, making them look like silhouettes.
These gulls were in the parking lot sitting out of the wind, at least the wind off the water. Most of these are ring billed gulls.
Stay warm!
Category Archives: cape cod winter birds
Horned Larks
Do you see the little birds in this photo? It was taken at the edge of the marsh next to some low dunes and you can see how well camouflaged they are, if you can see them at all….
They moved into the sand area so you should be able to see them better now. There is one standing in the sand and one still in the grass.
These lovely little birds are horned larks. You can almost see the yellow on the face/chin area in the top picture but it really shows up in the picture below.
These birds are about the size of a sparrow and they have black feathers that stick up on the sides of their heads that look like horns, hence their names. Pretty cool, huh? You can often find horned larks in our sandy dune areas such as Sandy Neck and Coast Guard Beach. These birds were photographed at First Encounter Beach in Eastham where I almost always see them in fall and winter.
Winter Scenes
I drove to Provincetown today and these are some of the photos I took along the way. Cape Cod Bay has lots of ice. This shot is from First Encounter Beach in Eastham.
Herring Cove Beach in Provincetown had a very brisk wind and these gulls were hunkered down in the sand to stay warm and out of the wind.
This view is overlooking Nauset Marsh from the Coast Guard station in Eastham.
Another view of Nauset Marsh showing the ice.
On the other end of Nauset Marsh, the view from Fort Hill in Eastham…
It was a cold and windy day but still beautiful here on Cape Cod. We saw very few other people out and about but lots of other cool things. I will post some of them as the week goes on.
Where do the Swans Go?
Did you ever wonder where all the swans go in the winter when all the ponds ice over?
They find open water on our rivers that remain open because there is so much salt water at the beginning of the estuary. As you know, salt water can freeze but it takes much longer. This picture, taken by and sent in to me by Linda Robbins of Falmouth, was taken at the Moonakis River in Falmouth this weekend. (Thanks, Linda!)
Swans eat vegetable matter, not fish, by the way, which is why they are often bottoms up, feeding on water plants on the bottom of shallow lakes and ponds. Usually swans are not overly friendly to other birds, including other swans in their territories but at this time of year survival seems to win out over territorial rights. You will even find mallards and Canada geese among them, something you will never see in the spring or summer.
There are several other areas on the Cape where you can find hundreds of swans in winter, most notably Swan River in South Yarmouth. Bet you can guess how it got that name….
Do you know this bird?
Sort of looks like a small flock of Canada geese, doesn’t it? But it’s not!
These small geese winter here and are especially easy to find along our south facing beaches where there is plenty of eel grass. 
Notice that the black on the neck goes all the way down the front of the bird and that there is no white on the face. These geese are called Brant and come here to feed in our open waters during the winter. In the spring they will head northward and nest on the Arctic tundra.
These birds were photographed at Craigville Beach in Centerville but may also be found at Kalmus and Sea Street Beaches in Hyannis, Dowses Beach in Osterville and other south facing beaches. They may also be found along the bay beaches if there is eel grass nearby.