This story was originally published in May of 2019. The program dates have been updated for the 2022 season.
As the days warm and long in spring, the woods around my house come alive with the sounds of birdsong, pulling me outside with my camera in hand.
A number of animals stick to the long, harsh winters in Maine, but the number of active wildlife in the state increases significantly during April and May as birds migrate from the south, black bears climb out of their dens and frogs emerge from the mud.
This is a particularly exciting time to see wildlife. During the spring you can watch the animals build nests, dance and sing to impress your mates, and later in the spring – raise their young. There is nothing quite as adorable as baby ducklings that follow their mother’s every move.
If you’re new to wildlife watching, here are some ideas for finding the critters in spring. Just remember to keep a good distance. Try using a binoculars or a long viewfinder. And after having fun in the wild (even in a city park), double-check for ticks. Unfortunately, we can’t pick and choose which creatures wake up in spring. If we could, I would tell the ticks to go back to bed.
1. Visit the swamp
Many public trails visit the edge of the swamps, where springtime wildlife spotting is almost guaranteed. This type of wetland, lush with plant life, is an ideal nesting area for many bird species. Some of the species commonly spotted in swamps include duckweed, woodland ducks, red-winged blackbirds, and grouse. Muskrats and beavers are also commonly spotted in the swamps, and in the evening, many of the swamps come alive with the high-pitched calls of spring peepers, a small, loud frog.
Take a look at this Photo Gallery One of the animals I found in a swamp at the Essex Woods property in Bangor in early April 2019. This is Photo Gallery of animals on the same property in late May – including ducklings!
2. Take a paddle slowly
I’ve discovered that one of the best ways to spot wildlife is by water, and it doesn’t have to be an epic adventure. A small pond or quiet stream can offer many changes for animal viewing. Turtles basking on logs and half-submerged rocks is one of the most common sightings I’ve seen kayaking in the area’s ponds during the spring. I also often see belted fisherman, a bird that nests in the burrows they dug in banks, often near water. This bird has a distinctive rattling cry and admirably dives into the water to grab fish, making it hard to miss. Spring is also the time when reptiles return to the Lakes of Maine to inhabit. Likewise, many bald eagles return to nests built over the years in tall trees by the lake (usually white pines).
One year, I came across a Canadian goose sitting on a nest on the edge of an island in Lake Maine. For my ignorance, I thought that the bird had died until it raised its head! She ran away quickly, afraid to disturb her.
paying off this video From a kayaking trip I did at Jones Pond in Goldsboro in May.
3. Attend a bird festival or walk
Many local organizations plan birding events during the spring. For example, the annual “Wings, Waves and Woods Birding” festival on Deer Island is scheduled for May 20-22 and features a three-day schedule filled with guided picnics, boat trips, and workshops. The Maine Audubon offers weekly bird walks on Thursday mornings with Gilsland Farm, while Fields Pond offers nature walks on Friday mornings.
paying off this video From a bird boat trip from Stonington that I attended in late March 2019. This guided tour was a great opportunity for me to see and identify a variety of birds (and seals) with local bird experts.
4. Find a spring pond
Spring ponds or “spring ponds” are shallow depressions in the forest that usually contain only water for part of the year, in the spring and part way through the summer. These small bodies of water serve as a primary breeding habitat for certain types of wildlife, including salamanders, frogs, and fairy shrimp because they are too small and temporary to support large predators such as fish. In the springtime, spring pools are great places to visit because they are full of amphibians, egg masses, water bugs, and more.
Spring baths are everywhere in Maine. Take a look at this Spring video In the Caribou Bug Conservation Area in Orono, where I found salamander eggs in a spring pond. A great way to find a vernal gathering is by calling your local land trust and asking if they own property where you can visit a vernal gathering by the driveway. Being an important habitat, land trusts tend to keep track of their whereabouts.
5. Harvesting the nesting box
You can watch the wildlife by visiting nesting boxes in the spring, however, it is important to keep a good distance so as not to disturb and frighten the birds from their nests. I suggest observing the nested boxes with binoculars or a long viewfinder.
In Maine, you will notice square nesting boxes on poles in lawns, often on farms and conservation lands. Birds that you will find using these nests include bluebirds and tree swallows. Additionally, nesting boxes are often placed in wetland areas, usually by conservation organizations. In these chests, you will often find waterfowl such as masked corals and wood ducks.
no Field Pond Audubon Nature Center in Holden and Hirundo Wildlife Sanctuary In Alton she has nested chests and maintains the lanes that pass near these chests.
6. Visit the city park
The green spaces in the middle of urban areas are popular stopping places for migratory birds to rest. You might be surprised at what you can find in a city park during the spring, especially if that park has a pond or even a few bird baths. When visiting these green spaces, keep an eye out for songbirds, a group of colorful songbirds that fly from the south every spring to nest and raise their young in Maine. During the summer, Maine is home to twenty breeding species of poodle birds, according to This column by Bob Duchesne, and they all have their own feather patterns and colors.
In Bangor, I suggest to visit Cascade ParkWhich contains a fountain, gardens, lawns and woodland area. From this garden, if you go uphill (away from the road) on the trails, you will enter Saxl Garden, an open meadow with cut paths where you will find a greater variety of birds. Another good place in the heart of Bangor is Prentice Woodsa forest with a network of easy public paths.
