Quick birding at Quabbin and Hadley

Pied billed Grebe, Quabbin Park, Jan 9, 2013

Pied billed Grebe (rear left) and Horned Grebe (center bottom), Quabbin Park, Jan 9, 2013

I was able to get in a little birding between appointments this morning and I managed to find a few decent birds around.  At Quabbin Park I had a Pied billed Grebe, a half dozen Horned Grebes, a single Pine Grosbeak and a half dozen Common Redpolls flying over. 

Ring necked Duck (male, right side) with Mallard pair, Honeypot, Hadley, MA, Jan 9, 2013

Common Merganser with fish, Honeypot, Hadley, MA, Jan 9, 2013

Common Merganser with fish, Honeypot, Hadley, MA, Jan 9, 2013

A pass through the Honeypot produced a Ring necked Duck male with a couple Mallards and several Common and Hooded Mergansers, a Clay colored Sparrow near the cemetery and flocks of Horned Larks and Snow Buntings.  On South Maple Street there were several Red tailed Hawks plus a large gathering of Horned Larks (145+) at the corner of Mill Valley and S. Maple.  No owls present that I saw or heard about.  It goes without saying there was no Gyrfalcon to be found.  I think finding a unicorn would be easier at this point and just as likely.  I cannot help but feel the alleged sightings of this mythical bird of the north are nothing more than a conspiracy to get me outside in the cold.  It is a well developed and thought out conspiracy involving dozens of people from far and wide with a multitude of eyewitness accounts and photographs.  It is a story worthy of a movie by Oliver Stone...I'm still working on a appropriate title.