Westwood In A Minute: Wildlife Sightings on a Fall Day

The recent sunny days and mild temperatures are bringing out creatures great and small in the Westwood area. From small insects to some of Massachusetts's largest water birds, the wildlife seems especially abundant around this time of year. If you haven't spotted them around town, keep your eyes open - they are around! And in the meantime, enjoy these photos.

Can you spot the praying mantis in the picture, below?

Photo by Westwood Minute/Darlene Wong Cancell. Praying mantis, Westwood, MA, September 22, 2025.

Need a hint? 

Scroll down to the next picture.

A close-up will help you know what to look for.

Photo by Westwood Minute/Darlene Wong Cancell. A praying mantis hides in the grass where Rice Reservation meets the Westwood High School playing fields.

Here's another see-if-you-can-spot it photo. There are both a woodpecker and fishing line in the below picture of a tree.  The fishing line is easier to spot, with its spot of red at its end from the plastic bobber. 

Photo by Westwood Minute/Darlene Wong Cancell. Woodpecker and fishing line are found in a tree, together, at Buckmaster Pond on September 29, 2025.

Need help with finding the woodpecker? Hint: The woodpecker is in the upper right quadrant of the photo, and is ready to peck on the tree trunk.

It must be time for the blue herons to come out. Two days before watching one engrossed in hunting for something to eat at Buckmaster Pond, a blue heron was spotted in the middle of a Norwood pond, still as a statue, perhaps enjoying the warm sun.

Photo by Westwood Minute/Darlene Wong Cancell. This blue heron could have been confused with a statue, standing still with barely a movement for around an hour, in the center of a pond on Endicott Street in Norwood, MA on October 1, 2025.

Do you have a special moment in time in or around Westwood to share in one or a few photos? Register for a free account and post to share with our community. Or send your photos with short description to WestwoodInAMinute@gmail.com.

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