Honeypot in the fog

Vesper Sparrow, Honeypot, Hadley, MA, Oct 5, 2012



Vesper Sparrow, Honeypot, Hadley, MA, Oct 5, 2012

Lincoln's Sparrow, Honeypot, Hadley, MA, Oct 5, 2012

White crowned Sparrow, Honeypot, Hadley, MA, Oct 5, 2012

American Pipit, Honeypot, Hadley, MA, Oct 5, 2012

I had a little time in the morning to get out and see what I could find on what was forecast to be a warm and sunny day.  The day started off with foggy conditions that persisted for the better part of the morning.  The dense fog of the morning made viewing (and photography) difficult at times but with the temperatures still quite warm in the upper 50's at first light the birds were quite active. I started before dawn at Winsor Dam but the fog was too thick to see anything. I next headed over to the Honeypot in Hadley. The sparrow numbers were fantastic again and I only hit a few of the areas there during my two hours there. There were large numbers of Song (87), White throated (88), Savannah (61) and Swamp Sparrows (29) and lesser numbers of White crowned (3), Lincoln's (7), Chipping (2) and Vesper Sparrows (2). Overall diversity was down a bit but the numbers were still impressive.   Other notable sightings included eleven  Eastern Phoebe's (no odd flycatchers unfortunately), a Sharp shinned Hawk that appeared out of the fog and flew within five feet of me, nearly 30 American Pipits and three Indigo Buntings in a single group.

The fog finally broke mid morning, the sun came out and the temperatures rose to near 80. A brief stop at Winsor Dam produced no waterfowl. A walk along Jabish Canal added more groups of sparrows and more Eastern Phoebe's.  Probably one of the last warm days of the season around here.

Red breasted Nuthatch, Belchertown, MA, Oct 5, 2012

Red breasted Nuthatch, Belchertown, MA, Oct 5, 2012

I spent the afternoon at home catching up on work around the yard and had some birds around.  The highlight was a flyby Red Crossbill (may have been more but the bird(s) were heard only).  Also a few warblers around as well as several vocal Red breasted Nuthatch's.