Species #229 for the year breaks my previous Hampshire County record!

Surf Scoters, Distant shots of two females showing the dark cap, white vertical patch behind bill and white head patches, Winsor Dam, Quabbin Park, MA, Oct 15, 2013

Black Ducks and Mallards, mixed group of approx 100 birds at first light, Quabbin Park, Oct 15, 2013

With just a little time between it being light enough to see and having to make it to work I decided to once again hit Quabbin Park with stops at Winsor Dam and Hanks Meadow only looking primarily for waterfowl.  The air was calm and the water was like glass without fog which made viewing superb.  I managed to find some good stuff in the limited areas I searched including a new species for Hampshire County this year, a couple of Surf Scoters at Winsor Dam.  The Surf Scoters became species #229 which breaks my previous best year total of 228 which I set last year.  It will be interesting to see what my final county tally for the year will be.  I still have two and a half months to add birds (but not a lot of possible species).  Other waterfowl this morning included an impressive 68 Black Ducks, 9 Common Mergansers, 27 Mallards and a Horned Grebe. I wish I had more time to explore the area in greater detail as the viewing was so good but it was not to be today.  I was very happy to add a new species so I will call it a very successful morning.