November 20, 2021. The season’s change is as dramatic going from fall to winter as from winter to spring. Today was 42 degrees with winds from the north and northwest at 10 mph. Nantucket’s trees are leafless, except for the browned leaves hugging the scrub oak. The groundsel is still a shrubby green, but the blooms have blown. Holly berries’ reds are the brightest colors, along with the cedars and hollies. The bright blue skies and sun light up the landscape.
The waters are the star now. The ocean is full of ducks and gulls. On the ferry over, I saw at least two thousand surf scoters, especially in the open water. Long tail ducks and back and white winged scoters popped about, flying out of the ferry’s path. The eiders and cormorant hugged Coatue.
At home in Sconset, there was a feeding frenzy off the bluff. Hundreds of dainty Bonaparte gulls mixed with kittiwakes, herring, ring-billed, greater black backed gulls. And the ducks were there too. A parasitic jaeger came to scare up the Bonies. Several gannets and 11 razorbills joined the feeding frenzy. What a day. Birders have been seeing a major “gull show” for the past week.
Josh and I hiked Norwood Farm, and there the birds were quiet. Crows, red tail and Cooper’s hawks were most visible, a few jays called and one last towhee flew past. American black ducks flew out of the ponds.
On the mainland, yesterday I was taking pictures of bright yellow leafed ginkgo biloba, orange-leaved bald cypress and red leaved Japanese red maples. Here we are moving into the austereness of late fall and winter.
