\n The Weatherford Democrat\u00a0–\u00a0Aug 22 8:42 AM
\nOn their trip south, a short Plum Island layover
\nBy Stephen Tait
\nTHE DAILY NEWS (NEWBURYPORT, Mass.)<\/p>\n
PLUM ISLAND, Mass. \u2014 The sign leading into the Parker River National Wildlife Refuge tells the story of swarms of swallows stopping here to eat up the plentiful moths, spiders and mosquitoes.<\/p>\n
On a simple white marker board with a drawing of a swallow-like bird, it asks visitors to drive slowly through the refuge to avoid hurting or killing swallows. \u201cPlease drive slowly,\u201d it reads, \u201cTree swallows in road.\u201d<\/p>\n
In fact, the swallows, tens of thousands of them, aren\u2019t just in the road at the refuge: they\u2019re everywhere.<\/p>\n
David Larson, the education coordinator at Massachusetts Audubon\u2019s Joppa Flats, said the swallows \u2014 up to four species of them \u2014 are stopping on the island as they prepare for their journey south. He said they will fatten up by eating insects and bayberries.<\/p>\n
Larson said the birds eat bayberries, which are used to make candles, and turn the wax into much needed fat.<\/p>\n
\u201cIt\u2019s all about food when you\u2019re migrating and getting enough food to go long distances,\u201d he said. \u201cThat\u2019s what their up to.\u201d<\/p>\n
Depending on the time of day or one\u2019s luck, the island could provide a glimpse of hundreds or even thousands of birds flying overhead, feeding on gnats, mosquitoes and other insects.<\/p>\n
\u201cIt is really quite spectacular,\u201d Larson said. \u201cI am sure there are undoubtedly many tens of thousands of swallows there.\u201d<\/p>\n
He said the birds have been roosting in the evenings, when they don\u2019t hunt for insects to eat, in the north pool area in the brackish water marsh on the refuge.<\/p>\n
Sunday afternoon Barbara Roggeveen of Needham was with friends at the Hellcat section of the refuge with binoculars around her neck looking for birds on the island. One bird she had no problem finding, she said, were the tree swallows.<\/p>\n
\u201cAs we drove in, they were just all over the place,\u201d she said.<\/p>\n
The swallows will use the island as a migrating pit stop for the next several weeks, probably into the first week of September, Larson said.<\/p>\n
Graham Taylor, the refuge manager, said observing the birds on the island is an \u201camazing sight.\u201d<\/p>\n
\u201cIt is a truly extraordinary event to see thousands and thousands of these birds swirling around and feeding as they make their way south for the winter,\u201d he said. \u201cIt is a constant stream of birds passing through the area.\u201d<\/p>\n
Calvin and Loretta Louks of Salem, N.H., have also been soaking in the migration.<\/p>\n
While sitting in their car and peering out over the salt marsh, they recounted the experience with the birds they saw late last week. They said it was mid afternoon Friday, just after lunch, when they saw hundreds of the swallows on the refuge.<\/p>\n
\u201cIt was remarkable to see the number of birds coming through,\u201d Calvin Louks said. \u201cThey just kept coming in waves and waves.\u201d<\/p>\n
Jennifer McQueen of South Africa was with Roggeveen at the refuge looking at many birds which she cannot find in her home country. She pointed out that this is just the beginning of the season when birds collect food in preparation for migration, which gives other birders the opportunity to see the huge flocks starting their journeys from Plum Island.<\/p>\n
\u201cIt\u2019s been just the start of the collecting,\u201d she said.<\/p>\n
Stephen Tait writes for The Daily News in Newburyport, Mass<\/p>\n","protected":false},"excerpt":{"rendered":"
The Weatherford Democrat\u00a0–\u00a0Aug 22 8:42 AM On their trip south, a short Plum Island layover By Stephen Tait THE DAILY NEWS (NEWBURYPORT, Mass.) PLUM ISLAND, Mass. \u2014 The sign leading into the Parker River National Wildlife Refuge tells the story of swarms of swallows stopping here to eat up the plentiful moths, spiders and mosquitoes. […]<\/p>\n","protected":false},"author":5,"featured_media":0,"comment_status":"open","ping_status":"open","sticky":false,"template":"","format":"standard","meta":[],"categories":[413],"tags":[],"yoast_head":"\n