Press Release

PRESQUE ISLE, Maine – Bird expert Bill Sheehan saw something on Saturday he had never before seen during a guided bird walk.

As the group of birders watched, a female hummingbird flew around, hovered and actually landed on her nest.

The small occurrence was the highlight of the first Aroostook State Park Birding festival and a new experience for Sheehan and those who had joined him on the walk.

A total of 135 people from around the state and even New Brunswick, Canada, participated in the event, seeing birds up close, helping to catch and band them, learning about bird calls and enjoying the beauty of Maine’s first state park.

Fifty-six species of birds were seen, including a number of woodpecker varieties for which the park is known. The most common bird seen was Maine’s official bird, the black-capped chickadee, followed by the American redstart and the Northern parula. Sheehan noted that the little hummingbird’s nest was seen in a birch tree along the campground road. As the birders watched, the tiny female brought lichens and spider webs to construct the nest’s cup and fluff for its lining, he reported.

The birding festival was a success in a number of ways for the park, according to Park Manager Scott Thompson.

“It’s a huge success for Aroostook County, for the birding world in Maine,” Thompson said. “It’s a huge success in that it was getting individuals who had never been here to this part of Maine.”

“This type of natural resources activity is a different avenue for us,” he continued. “The different activities we’re offering are bringing a wide variety of people to the park.”

Thompson estimated that about 40 percent of festival participants were new to the park, and he said the age range varied from “some on the backs of their parents to individuals in their eighties.” People came from as far away as Kennebunk, Brunswick and the Bangor area.

A couple from Brunswick took part in the event, went out to eat and spent the night at local lodging, which shows how such a festival can enhance the local economy, Thompson explained. “They were totally satisfied, glad they made the trip,” he said.

The weather also “worked to a T,” the park manager said. The rains that fell earlier in the week kept birds on their nests and not active, he said. On Saturday, with the mist and later, lots of sunshine, they were “tremendously active” and the park was alive with the sound of bird calls, Thompson said.

The event started at 5 a.m., with visitors seeing such sights as a string of Canada geese and fledglings swimming in a line through the mist on Echo Lake. Walks were led by expert birders Sheehan and Linda Alverson. Later in the day, Dr. Jason Johnston, an assistant professor of wildlife ecology at University of Maine at Presque Isle, demonstrated bird banding. He caught three birds in a net that were weighed and banded, including a chickadee that weighed 14 grams.

Other events included a display of live birds of prey by Art Howell of Spruce Acres Refuge in North Amity; optics demonstrations by Judith Roe; and bird calling demonstrations by Master Guide and animal behaviorist Dave Kelso.

Thompson praised the 20 volunteers and experts who took part, including the park staff, Allen Cleaves, Russell Mount, and James Nadeau. “It was a successful venture, because of all involved,” Thompson said.

Ask if the event would be held again next year, the park manager said, “We’re planning on it already,” adding he hoped it would an annual event.

For more information, contact Scott Thompson, park manager, at 768-8341, or go to: http://www.parksandlands.com