So why was there a great egret in a salt marsh at Tom’s Neck on Chappaquiddick on Feb. 9? I

An American bittern is an incredible species.

Birds are starting to sing again, though the dawn chorus is still mostly quiet.

Last week’s column mentioned Allan Keith’s unexpected sighting of a golden eagle at Sheriff’s Meadow Sanctuary.

An adult golden eagle was spotted by Allan Keith as it flew over Sheriff’s Meadow Sanctuary on Jan. 13, heading toward Oak Bluffs.

So now the 60th annual Christmas Bird Count is history. It was held on Jan. 4, and as Lanny McDowell succinctly put it, “It was memorable because it was so not memorable.”