It’s a great time for a wild goose chase. Insect-eaters are typically the first birds to skip town, migrating south. Seed-eaters linger a little longer. Waterfowl take their own sweet time.

As long as there is food in an ice-free pond, ducks and geese are happy to stay right here. Cold doesn’t bother them much, as anyone who has cooked a duck knows. They’ve got a fat layer of insulation that just won’t quit.

Goose-watching is like panning for gold. You’ve got to sift through a lot of sand to find a nugget. Canada geese are abundant. But there are sometimes strangers hiding among them. Many less common geese seem to be turning up this autumn, hiding in plain sight.

Snow geese appear regularly in Maine in autumn. They are abundant and extremely social, traveling and foraging in big flocks. They nest along the Arctic tundra edge clear across North America. In mid to late October, they migrate straight south, so most eastern Canadian breeders end up along the eastern seaboard. Central Canadian breeders winter along the Gulf coast. Western birds wait out the cold months along the Pacific.

Snow geese migrate at their leisure, stopping for long periods to feed on the sedges and tubers they love. There is so much of this food supply along the Saint Lawrence River above Quebec that the province started a Snow Goose Festival, appropriately named in French “Festival de l’Oie des Neiges.” Hundreds of thousands of snow geese pass through, most stopping off at Cap Tourmente National Wildlife Refuge.

These snow geese typically bypass Maine, choosing instead a route over Vermont, where they know their favorite food is waiting for them. Dead Creek Wildlife Management Area in Vermont is the core area to see hundreds of thousands at this time of year.

Next stop: Middle Creek Wildlife Management Area in Pennsylvania; then on to the coast, from Delaware to North Carolina.

Not surprising for an abundant species, some snow geese wander into Maine on their way south. They’ve been entertaining birders across the state. If encountered, take a second look. You might find a Ross’s goose. It strongly resembles a snow goose, though smaller and with a shorter bill.

Ross’s goose summers and winters in the central regions of North America. Vagrants in Maine are rare, but one popped up in Ellsworth a couple weeks ago. Another attracted a lot of attention in Bangor’s Maple Grove Cemetery three years ago.

A widespread species like the Canada goose typically has regional variation. In 2004, there were 11 recognized subspecies. That year, ornithologists decided the smallest subspecies was sufficiently different to declare the cackling goose as an official new species.

Cackling geese breed on the far northern edges of Canada and Alaska. In winter, they head south, mostly west of the Great Lakes. However, some wander.  One turned up in Mars Hill Pond in Aroostook County a few weeks ago. Last Sunday, on a Maine Audubon-led field trip, seven birders enjoyed viewing a cackling goose at Arnold Brook Lake Recreation Area in Presque Isle.

That same field trip turned up a greater white-fronted goose at Lake Josephine in Easton. Greater white-fronted geese also breed in the far north, almost exclusively west of Hudson Bay. They winter west of the Mississippi all the way down to Louisiana. But a few visit Maine every autumn, so it’s not a surprise when one appears.

Pink-footed geese are a surprise. They breed on the far side of Greenland and winter in Northern Europe. In recent years, more have been visiting the eastern coast of North America. Those lucky Aroostook County birders turned one up at Lake Josephine. Besides Maine, there are currently pink-footed geese attracting attention in Connecticut, New Jersey, and Nova Scotia.

Perhaps the Holy Grail of goose-chasing is the barnacle goose. Its nesting range extends from Eastern Greenland to Siberia. However, any bird that can both fly and swim is not so shy about crossing water, and barnacle geese occasionally show up here. I enjoyed my first (and only) sighting in Houlton a few years ago. And, yes, I learned the pair was there, and scheduled a wild-goose chase to see them.

Barnacle geese are currently present in Québec and Nova Scotia. One was in New York in early October.

Birding in late autumn need not be dull. Songbirds may have headed for the tropics, but other birds have secretly taken their place. There are big flocks of Canada geese everywhere. Take a second look.

AUGUSTA — Republicans on the Legislature’s budget and taxation committees are calling for a public hearing in November on federal tax cuts signed by President Donald Trump in July.

The request follows a briefing last week in which state officials updated lawmakers on federal cuts to social service programs and the elimination of taxes on tips and overtime, among other changes.

Earlier this month, Gov. Janet Mills delayed making a decision on whether Maine would conform to the federal tax changes, saying it should be up to lawmakers to decide.

Mills’ office estimated all the tax cuts could result in a $400 million hit to the state budget. 

But this week, Rep. Amy Arata, R-New Gloucester, said information from Maine Revenue Services provides a more precise breakdown for cuts that total about $108 million.

That includes adopting a $750 increase in the standard deduction ($31 million), a new $6,000 deduction for seniors ($31 million), eliminating taxes on overtime ($28 million), eliminating taxes on tips ($9 million) and a deduction on car loan interest ($9 million).

The cuts are part of what Trump formerly called the One Big Beautiful Bill that he signed into law July 4.

“We should have called our Tax Committee back July 5 and had a special session right after that to give people an idea of what their taxes are going to be,” Arata said. 

After last week’s meeting, Democrats released a statement saying they need more time to review the impact of all the federal changes, which in addition to tax cuts, include cuts to food stamp benefits, Medicaid and healthcare subsidies.

“The decisions ahead are complex and will require careful analysis,” Sen. Peggy Rotundo (D-Lewiston) and Rep. Drew Gattine (D-Westbrook) said in a statement. “We are committed to working with colleagues, agencies and stakeholders to understand the implications and take responsible steps to protect the health and economic stability of our state.”

While the federal bill has been criticized for cutting taxes for the wealthy, Arata said the provisions Maine Republicans are most focused on are designed to cut taxes for working Mainers and seniors.

“I think the general public needs to let their voices be heard,” she said. “We hear a lot from lobbyists. Regular working people, a lot of times they don’t have a lobbyist. They have to be their own lobbyist. They have to reach out to legislators and let them know how they feel.” 

AUGUSTA — Poll results released Thursday show a closely divided electorate on two hot-button questions on the Nov. 4 ballot.

Results show a virtual tie on Question 1, which proposes several changes to absentee voting and a new photo ID requirement at the polls. The survey shows 48% voting yes, 49% voting no and 3% undecided, according to the University of New Hampshire Survey Center.

On Question 2, the “red flag” law that would allow family members to directly petition a court to remove firearms from those considered dangerous, the poll shows 38% voting yes, 40% voting no and 22% not sure.

The Pine Tree State Poll has a 3-percentage point margin of error.

The two citizen initiatives are the only statewide issues on the ballot this fall. Several cities and towns have municipal elections and issues on local ballots.

Both questions show a clear partisan breakdown, with 96% of Republicans saying they support Question 1 and 92% of Democrats opposing it. Among independents, 54% say they plan to vote no on Question 1, according to poll conducted Oct. 16-21.

When it comes to Question 2, 63% of Democrats say they plan to vote yes, while 74% of Republicans say they plan to vote no. The polls shows 44% of independents support the measure, 31% oppose it and 24% are undecided.

The large percentage of voters who say they are unsure leaves a lot of room for both campaigns to pick up voters in the final days.

Absentee voting is underway across Maine and will continue until Oct. 30. Polls will be open on Election Day, Nov. 4, until 8 p.m.