Boston in 2022: Wildlife

The turkeys (sometimes ornery), coyotes, rabbits and even bald eagles continued reclaiming their habitat this year. A little round bird blown across country by storms wound up on Mission Hill. A whale showed up in Dorchester Bay. But did a capybara really stroll down a lane in Charlestown?

Let's review the year in Boston wildlife - with a special thanks to Mary Ellen, who gets up early to take so many shots of Boston's fauna (you can follow her work - and that of her fellow Hub animal enthusiasts in the Boston Nature Group.

Waterfront dining in Jamaica Plain 1/17/22 Mike Howlett was walking along Jamaica Pond yesterday when he spotted an eagle chowing down on a freshly caught herring gull...

Citizen complaint of the day: Round, mean mugging turkey downtown 1/24/22 A citizen filed a 311 report this afternoon that consists of a picture of a round turkey at State and Kilby streets and a...

Junco at the parko 1/26/22 Mary Ellen spotted a male junco singing his heart out at Millennium Park in West Roxbury yesterday.

Swan on ice 1/26/22 One of the five swans at Jamaica Pond took a moment to ponder life shortly before sundown yesterday.

In an emergency, turkeys are not your friends 1/31/22 Ron Germán looked out his window on Upland Avenue in Dorchester this morning to see a standoff between Boston EMS and the...

Falcon stuck in Jackson Square T stop 2/3/22 Yesterday afternoon, Francis Delaney noticed a raptor inside the Jackson Square Orange Line station. He reports he called...

Logan was hopping this morning 2/5/22 Epic Stratton couldn't help but notice the rabbit hopping around Baggage Claim 2 at Logan's Terminal C this morning. Wild...

Frog legs were on the menu at one West Roxbury spot today 2/12/22 People weren't the only ones taking advantage of today's nice weather. Mary Ellen watched a great blue heron gulp down some...

Westie hoodie and the missus 2/20/22 Mary Ellen spotted a pair of hooded mergansers in one of the unfrozen parts of Sawmill Brook at Millennium Park in West...

Heading off into the sunset 2/21/22 Esperanza watched captured one of two swans heading off from East Boston into Chelsea Creek at sunset today. Before the...

Coyotes follow the Brookline path blazed by the turkeys 2/24/22 Greg Hunt lives in one of the more urbanized parts of Brookline, up near Packards Corner, and so was a bit surprised to look...

Eider down at Castle Island 3/3/22 A bunch of common eiders, including this guy, were bobbing around on the Sugar Bowl side of Castle Island this afternoon (...

Some ruffled feathers at Millennium Park 3/6/22 Mary Ellen spotted this wind-tossed eagle at Millennium Park in West Roxbury today. She says she spotted three in total: Two...

Signal-box painter in Jamaica Plain highlights threatened species, including one found only in a small pond near the Muddy River 3/9/22 Jovielle Gers's mural on a traffic-signal box at 3201 Washington St. in Jamaica Plain has depictions of four rare species in...

Seems a bit cold for sunbathing, but, then, we're not wearing a fur coat 3/15/22 Owens408 spotted this coyote on the beach at H Street this morning - possibly the one that had been hanging out at Moakley...

Her breadcrumbs bring all the birds to the yard 3/20/22 Roving UHub photographer Jed Hresko noticed all these birds flocking down to the Costco lot at Gateway Center, no doubt...

Double eagle in West Roxbury 3/25/22 On a walk around Millennium Park in West Roxbury this morning, Mary Ellen spotted two eagles perched on the transmission...

Spring house shopping in West Roxbury 4/2/22 Mary Ellen spotted a male bluebird checking out a possible nesting site in Millennium Park this morning.

Rara avis in Franklin Park 4/8/22 Mary Ellen hied over to Franklin Park yesterday in time to spot this yellow-throated warbler, which are pretty uncommon north...

Angry bird 4/18/22 Mary Ellen spotted this blue-gray gnatcatcher at Millennium Park in West Roxbury this morning (OK, maybe it was just a shadow...

Maybe there are more turkeys on Beacon Hill than we think, they've just managed to blend in 4/22/22 Dr. Jessica Dello Russo reports that, at first, she thought this bird on Ridgeway Lane on Beacon Hill might be a decoy to...

Turtletown 4/23/22 The turtles were out in force at Jamaica Pond today. In addition to the premium location on the branches near the northern...

Boston is for the birds 4/24/22 Adam Balsam chronicles the 27 different species of birds he spotted over a week in the North End and the Public Garden.

Citizen complaint of the day: Police can't collar loose goose 5/6/22 Earlier this week, a concerned citizen, or perhaps, a concerned member of the local constabulary, filed a 311 complaint about...

Make way for goslings on the Expressway 5/7/22 State Police posted photos from a rescue mission in the HOV lane on the southbound Expressway in Dorchester, where a pair of...

They're cheep-er by the dozen 5/13/22 Beth Gavin watched a newly expanded family of geese quickly making their way near the Black Falcon Pier today: Sure sign...

Rodent of unusual size spotted in Charlestown? 5/14/22 Steve Holt alerts us that in a Charlestown Facebook group, an Albion Place resident reported spotting a capybara...

Connectorbun rescued 5/14/22 Enoch Pratt reports this baby bunny was running up the Leverett Connector today when a woman stopped, jumped out and managed...

An early morning nosh 5/17/22 Mary Ellen spotted an eastern phoebe grabbing some breakfast yesterday, but in West Roxbury, not at Central Perk.

A blue bird of happiness 5/18/22 Mary Ellen spotted this indigo bunting on Mission Hill yesterday.

His serene highness 5/28/22 One of the larger turtles in Jamaica Pond took in some sun yesterday at the pond's main turtle haven.

Today's fun fact: Snakes that live in Needham's Cutler Park can rattle, but they're not rattlesnakes 5/29/22 A little hard to see, but there's a snake near the center of the photo, which Greg Hunt took today at Powell Island, a part...

Urban geese learn to adapt 5/31/22 Michael Spicher spotted some geese littles taking advantage of a puddle near the Expressway and the narrow end of Fort...

Heron keeps a watchful eye along the Esplanade 6/6/22 Ladybugs Leaf spotted the Esplanade's latest visitor today. Patrick Roath saw him in the Fens yesterday: This guys is...

New homes going in at Jamaica Pond 6/7/22 Male bluegills have been busy of late building communal nests at several locations along the Jamaica Pond shoreline, such as...

Everything just ducky at Jamaica Pond 6/8/22 A family of wood ducks glided along the surface of Jamaica Pond yesterday.

A quick dip in the Charles 6/11/22 Mary Ellen videoed a deer going for a swim in the Charles River at Millennium Park in West Roxbury yesterday.

Citizen complaint of the day: That's no Dick Van Dyke singing 'Chim Chim Cher-ee' 6/13/22 A shocked resident of East Concord Street in the South End filed a 311 complaint about what he or she saw when looking out...

Solid 6/15/22 Where does a snapping turtle go? Anywhere it wants, Maria M finds in Alewife Brook Reservation in Cambridge. Copyright...

Young'uns at Jamaica Pond 6/16/22 The other day, a mother duck and her ducklings were at the northernmost end of Jamaica Pond, slowly paddling through the muck...

Feeding frenzy at the Charles River Dam 6/19/22 We walked across the temporary North Washington Street Bridge today and couldn't help but notice the large colony of terns...

Raising this year's crop of urban buns 6/26/22 A roving UHub photographer reports these two mini-buns seem to be doing well in one of the more vegetated patches near...

Taking flight in Dorchester 6/26/22 This egret had been standing in the marsh along the Dorchester side of the Neponset River, near the bridges, when either it...

They rule the roost 7/1/22 Some pigeons up a couple floors at the old boiler plant at the Shops at Riverwood on River Street in Hyde Park.

Ka-ping! 7/4/22 Jim Gavaghan watched this young American kestrel launch itself off the top of a 65-foot pine tree in South Boston around 6 p....

Some good chow in West Roxbury 7/9/22 Mary Ellen captured a deer enjoying some choice foliage along the Charles River in West Roxbury the other day. No doubt the...

Citizen complaint of the day: Raccoon family on the move in Charlestown 7/10/22 A concerned citizen files a 311 complaint about a family of raccoons roaming the neighborhood (with a note that there are two...

Charles River drops below a beaver's knees in West Roxbury 8/1/22 It's got to be frustrating to be a Millennium Park beaver these days: There's just not enough water to dam up along the...

Kind of a fuzzy dragonfly at Jamaica Pond 8/3/22 About to walk down from Perkins Street to the path around this pond this afternoon when I spotted this guy alighting on some...

Citizen complaint of the day: Huge wasps build giant nest in Jamaica Plain 8/4/22 A concerned citizen files a 311 complaint about a wasps' nest that has all of McBride Street buzzing. Giant wasps nest...

Serene green queen 8/5/22 Mary Ellen spotted this frog just hanging out in Cow Island Pond, the part of the Charles River along Rivermoor Street in...

Baby wheel in Dorchester Bay 8/7/22 Paul Nutting Jr. watched one of those humpback whales that have been cruising the coast of late having some fun in Boston...

You never know what you'll see at the Witness Post 8/7/22 The Army Corps of Engineers maintains a "witness post" at the dam that diverts some of the Charles River into the Mother...

Receding Charles River has exposed not just mud but invasive snails 8/8/22 Walk out onto what used to be the middle of the Charles River at Millennium Park these days and you'll see not just sand and...

Duck, duck, herons 8/17/22 In the dawn mist along the Charles River at Millennium Park this morning, Mary Ellen spotted a black crowned night heron, a...

Great Blue and the Night Herons drop their first album 8/20/22 The other day along the Charles River in West Roxbury, Mary Ellen spotted a great blue heron and four black-crowned night...

Deer ears 8/30/22 Mary Ellen discovered what might happen if Dumbo were reincarnated as a deer and showed up along the Charles River in West...

Wild turkey? Not when they're this wet 9/6/22 Welcome to Dot spotted these drenched, bedraggled turkeys on the Harborwalk near the JFK Library in Dorchester on this, our...

Blue heron in green water 9/17/22 Prescottjr spotted this great blue heron in Forest Hills Cemetery's Lake Hibiscus this afternoon.

Peck, peck, peckin' on heaven's door 9/18/22 Roving UHub photographer Melissa Hirshson spotted this bird seeking a chance to speak about her Lord and Savior, or maybe to...

Heron in the mist 9/19/22 Mary Ellen spotted this great blue heron in the mists along the Charles River in West Roxbury yesterday.

Giving a hoot about the South End 9/19/22 Odillion.hache spotted this barred owl in the alley along Ringgold Park this morning, wonders: A cure for Boston's rat...

Inoffensive little fluffy thing that's done absolutely nothing to deserve the name it's saddled with 10/8/22 Wandering the moors along the Charles River in West Roxbury, Mary Ellen spied a dickcissel, no doubt debating whether those...

Appeal to the great spirit: Get this bird off my face 10/11/22 Max spotted a hawk performing a balancing act on Dallin's Appeal to the Great Spirit in front of the MFA this morning....

The turkey matador of Dorchester finds himself surrounded 10/15/22 Welcome to Dot files a dispatch this afternoon from Ocean Street in Dorchester, already known for the meanest turkeys in all...

Lovebirds 10/22/22 Mary Ellen caught a pair of red-tailed hawks doing some heart-shaped bonding in West Roxbury the other day.

Somebody gives a hoot 11/1/22 Mary Ellen spotted this barred owl in East Boston yesterday.

It takes a lot to ruffle Remy the Cat's feathers, marauding turkey flock learns 11/30/22 Joshua Lupkin shows us the scene this morning outside Harvard's Barker Center, where some of Harvard Square's tougher toms...

Never mind the prince and princess landing here, a bald eagle touched down near Davis Square today 11/30/22 Patrick Knight forwarded a couple of photos his neighbor, Erin H., took of the bald eagle that landed in his backyard on...

Those nearing release are allowed to wander the grounds 12/6/22 Jill Cetel was passing by the Boston Pre-Release Center on the Mattapan/Roslindale line and wonders what the turkey did.

One of these geese is not the same 12/17/22 Samuel Maskell watched a flotilla of geese floating along in the Esplanade lagoon.

A warbler on Mission Hill is far from home 12/22/22 Mary Ellen spotted this MacGillivray's Warbler in McLaughlin Woods, part of Mission Hill's McLaughlin Playground. They're...

Ongoing Boston wildlife news and photos.