Steve Maguire

My name is Steve Maguire and I grew up in Burlington, MA.  I have been a birder for over 40 years, as my love of birds started when I was 4 years old; when my Dad used to hold me up to the bird feeders at our house to fill them up.  I started my teaching job at Scituate High School in September of 2001 and moved here in 2005. Having had a love of birds and birding, I approached our Guidance staff and Principal about 10 years ago and said “Hey, what do you think of us offering an Ornithology class here at the high school?” All these years later we now offer both College Prep and Honors level Ornithology classes to well over 100 Scituate High School Students each year.  In fact, we are only one of a handful of public schools in the country that offers these courses. Five years ago, I started www.birdingscituate.com where I offer adult birding classes to anyone that wants to learn more about these amazing animals. We are constantly updating our coursework, so please feel free to check-in!

Scituate is an incredible place for all levels of birders. Being a coastal community, we have amazing sea ducks that come to our waters during the Fall and Winter.  We have plenty of woodland habitats for the small migrants that work through in the Spring and Fall.  The diversity of habitats is absolutely incredible. Some of my favorite spots to bird in Scituate are the Minot area, Conservation Park on the Driftway, and the relatively new Crosbie Family Property in the West End.

Here are some tips and 5 places to bird in Scituate, as told by Steve Maguire:

A day of birding:

• Early morning tends to be the best time to bird, as most birds are active in the AM, especially in the spring
• Because we have such great diversity of habitats in Scituate, I would typically go the marshes, beaches, ocean, and woods
• Keeping a list of species is important to know what you have seen
• The end of day looks like tallying your total species and reviewing what you have seen

1. Conservation Park on the Driftway due to the diversity of habitat
2. The harbor and the beaches in the winter for sea ducks
3. The west end Crosbie Family land for amazing spring migrants
4. The Glades for spring/fall migrants and diversity of habitat
5. The back trail behind Scituate high school