Black Tern and Blue winged Teal and others

 

Blue-winged Teal, Lake Wallace, Belchertown, MA, Aug 25, 2012

 

 

Blue-winged Teal, Lake Wallace, Belchertown, MA, Aug 25, 2012

 

 

Blue-winged Teal, Lake Wallace, Belchertown, MA, Aug 25, 2012

Blue-winged Teal, Lake Wallace, Belchertown, MA, Aug 25, 2012

Green Herons (3 of at least 7), Lake Wallace, Belchertown, MA, Aug 25, 2012

Green Herons capturing frog,  Lake Wallace, Belchertown, MA, Aug 25, 2012

 

Pied billed Grebe (with Mallard), Lake Wallace, Belchertown, MA, Aug 25, 2012

Another great day of birding the local area as I caught up with a number of noteworthy birds.  I decided to try my luck once again at Lake Wallace at dawn and I was not disappointed.  One of the first birds I looked at through the scope was a Blue-winged Teal.  I have been trying to find this species here for quite some time this late summer and I finally caught up with not one, but six individuals there.  The Blue-winged Teal was species #193 for the year in Hampshire county.
There was a reduction in the number of Mallards (38) and Wood Ducks (44) but still impressive numbers for such a small area.  Another great bird found just before I left was a Pied-billed Grebe juvenile.  The area looks great as a potential breeding spot but this bird was likely a migrant.  It will be worth checking closely for this species here next spring as a possible breeder.  The number of Green Herons continues to be impressive with at least seven individuals present with up to three in one scope view.  They were all quite successful in hunting the area with one capturing a rather large frog.  I managed to get several photos but the light was terrible and many were taken through the scope. 

Black Tern (center of photo, left and above Mallards...very distant), Quabbin Park, MA, Aug 25, 2012

Wild Turkeys sitting on fence, Quabbin Park, MA, Aug 25, 2012

Black and White Warbler, Quabbin Park, MA, Aug 25, 2012

Carolina Wren (unusual here), Quabbin Park, MA, Aug 25, 2012



Common Mergansers, Quabbin Park, MA, Aug 25, 2012

Common Mergansers, Quabbin Park, MA, Aug 25, 2012

I next headed for Quabbin Park where I started out at Winsor Dam where I had a Common Loon as well as a group of 23 ducks that appeared to be Mallards far out in the fog.  I decided to make the trip into the park and try to get a better view of them from the area of the police boat launch.  When I arrived there I couldn't see them so I headed back down to view from the opposite side of Winsor Dam.  This proved to be a great decision as it resulted in finding a Black Tern feeding over the reservoir.  This added yet another county species for the year bringing the total to 194.  I also ran into a father/son birding team from the other end of the state and was able to show them the Black Tern and give them some ideas for other birding stops in the area.  Hopefully their day continued to be productive.  Other birds of note included a single flyby Red Crossbill at Hank's Meadow, four Yellow-throated Vireo's, a few dozen Red-eyed Vireo's, my first Northern Parula of the season, nearly a dozen calling Eastern Wood Pewee's, four Common Loons, a half dozen Common Mergansers, a couple Double-crested Cormorants, a flyover Bobolink and three shorebird species.

Red breasted Nuthatch, Quabbin Park, MA, Aug 25, 2012

At all locations today (really the last several days) the number of Red-breasted Nuthatch's continues to grow with dozens seen throughout the morning.  It looks like a large incursion of this species is underway.

Common Nighthawk, Home, Belchertown, MA, Aug 25, 2012

Common Nighthawk, Home, Belchertown, MA, Aug 25, 2012

This evening at home I had my best night yet of nighthawk watching.  I had a total of 51 with almost all moving northeast, low over the trees feeding.  While outside watching I had a Barred Owl start calling at 5:55 and called for 20 minutes.  Also a handful of Tree and Barn Swallows as well as a couple Chimney Swifts.

I have also passed 25,000 views on the blog as of a few days ago...amazing.