Avid birders flock to Cape Elizabeth after rare grey heron sighted
The grey heron seen in Cape Elizabeth. (Courtesy of Peter Griffin)
CAPE ELIZABETH — For a moment, no one spoke.
Eyes were glued to scopes, and binoculars were trained beyond the piles of mulch and gravel and fields of sprouting rows.
“Look at how white the thighs are,” Jose Ramirez, of Scarborough, said as he squinted into his scope. “This is the one.”
A grey heron. A bird seen for the first time in Maine on Sunday, Oct. 18.
To the uninitiated, it looks like a great blue heron, its distant relative. But grey herons, which are native to Europe, Africa and Asia, have white on the bend of their wings and thighs. Their more common counterparts have rusty red accents. Grey herons are daintier and more compact, with shorter legs and smaller bills.
And they are incredibly rare, especially on this continent.
Advertisement
There have been just a handful of grey heron sightings in North America ever (a couple in Alaska, a few in Canada). One was spotted on an island off the coast of Nantucket in 2020, the first time the bird made its way to the lower 48 states. Presumably that same bird was seen in Virginia a little while later.
Birders gather on Wells Road Thursday seeking a glimpse of a grey heron recently spotted in Cape Elizabeth. (Shawn Patrick Ouellette/Staff Photographer) Purchase this image
But this time is different. This bird is hanging out in an accessible spot, in the fields and marsh that surround Jordan’s Farm in Cape Elizabeth, on the corner of Spurwink Avenue and Wells Road.
On a sunny Thursday afternoon, the heron was unknowingly hiding from a gaggle of birders, some of whom had traveled a long way in search of the bird.
The birders were patient. They traded field stories and chatted about other species they’ve chased. Tim and Erin Metcalf, who drove up from Richmond, Rhode Island, plan their vacations around spotting different species (They’re 29 states into seeing 100 birds in every state, and they’ve already crossed off big birding states like Texas and Arizona).
The heron strutted back into view, a diva returning to the spotlight. The crowd of onlookers excitedly followed it with their binoculars.
‘WE’VE ALL BEEN DYING TO SEE IT’
This part of Cape Elizabeth has become a zoo this past week, driven by a Beatlemania-like craze by birders from both Maine and away.
Advertisement
“It’s one of those birds we’ve all been dying to see for a long time,” said Doug Hitchcox, a naturalist with Maine Audubon.
Portland-based birder Peter Griffin first spotted the grey heron on Sunday. By Monday, people had already arrived from Massachusetts, New York and Connecticut to see it, according to Hitchcox.
Hitchcox set up a scope by the marsh on Monday from 6 a.m. to noon, and around 200 people came to take a peek. At times, the area has become a bit of a traffic nightmare, with some birders stopping their cars in the middle of the road, anxious to see the bird.
Liz Bullis, who works for Jordan’s Farm, said people from North Carolina, Connecticut and Pennsylvania have popped into the store to pick up donuts, apples and other snacks. Some of the farmers have named the bird Sheldon.
“If we served hot beverages, we’d be really popular,” she said. Each morning when she drives to work, the crowd — with different members each time — is back.
Art and Sandi Jacques, of Warwick R.I., look into a field off Wells Road In Cape Elizabeth where birders have recently spotted a rare grey heron. (Shawn Patrick Ouellette/Staff Photographer) Purchase this image
On Wednesday, Hitchcox spoke with an enthusiastic birder who flew in from Michigan, got a look at the bird and flew home the same day.
Advertisement
“That’s having a lot of faith that it would be there,” he said.
With each successive day that the heron remains here, birders from farther away grow more confident traveling to see it, Hitchcox said.
‘WORTH A SECOND LOOK’
It’s a difficult field identification.
Some juvenile great blue herons have pale patches, fooling even experienced birders.
It took hours of close observation and encouragement from a few birding friends before Griffin believed what he suspected: He had indeed spotted a grey heron.
“I had to explain this to my mom,” he said.
Advertisement
He drove by the bird, which was located 20 or 30 yards from the road, on his way to scope out other birds in a nearby pumpkin patch. Like many hobbyists, he got into birding during the COVID-19 pandemic, and his interest grew from there.
“A thought popped into my head that this one was worth a second look,” he said. “It seemed a little different.”
He snapped some photos when it flew away, which highlighted some of its trademark characteristics, like those vibrant white patches. He texted a friend: “There’s no way this is a grey heron, right?”
Peter Griffin spotted a grey heron near Jordan’s Farm on Oct. 18. The bird has stuck around. (Courtesy of Peter Griffin)
Other birders confirmed the sighting within a couple of hours.
And there’s photo evidence that this rare bird has been camping out in the marshy field since the beginning of October, under the noses of the many experienced birders who frequent this part of southern Maine, according to Hitchcox.
“It’s funny to think that people have seen it and probably thought ‘Oh, a great blue heron,’” Hitchcox said.
Advertisement
On a sunny Thursday afternoon, a group of birders gathered on the wrong side of a road near the Jordan’s Farm stand, about a hundred yards from another clump of birders. Their scopes were trained on the wrong bird. A friendly birder invited them to join the rest of the watchers.
No one knows how long the bird will stay, fueling a feverish desire to get to Cape Elizabeth as soon as possible. Some great blue herons in the area are already starting to migrate south.
“Birds have wings,” Hitchcox said. “They can disappear at any moment.”
Southern Maine has been no stranger to visits from rare birds.
In 2018, a great black hawk was sighted in Portland, a first in the North American record, and a statue was built in its honor after the hawk, which took up residence in Deering Oaks park, died.
A couple of years ago, a Steller’s sea eagle (nicknamed Stella), appeared in towns like Georgetown along the midcoast. Birders traveled from other countries to take a look at the giant eagle from Siberia with an eight-foot wingspan.
Advertisement
Maine Audubon has a Maine Rare Bird Alert group chat, which now has more than 4,000 members, that people can sign up for on their website. It’s the go-to source for minute-by-minute updates about the grey heron’s whereabouts.
Not all of those trying to catch a glimpse of the grey heron are fanatical birdwatchers.
Peter and Sara Merrill live in Cape Elizabeth, just a couple of miles from Jordan’s Farm. They perched their scope right next to their car.
They consider themselves “backyard birdwatchers.”
“Well, when this is your backyard,” Peter Merrill said, gesturing to the field as the heron stood gracefully in the distance, “you have to come take a look.”
Copy the Story Link
Tagged: birding
Dana Richie is a community reporter covering South Portland and Cape Elizabeth. Originally from Atlanta, she fell in love with the landscape and quirks of coastal New England while completing her undergraduate. More by Dana Richie
