Weekday morning birding looking for continued rarities produces some and misses others

White eyed Vireo, Belchertown, MA, July 3, 2015

White eyed Vireo, Belchertown, MA, July 3, 2015

Black Vultures, Moody Bridge Rd, Hadley, MA, July 2, 2015

Black Vulture, Moody Bridge Rd, Hadley, MA, June 30, 2015

I made a number of stops this week (mostly on my way to work) looking for several of the rarities that have been around the area including Common Gallinules, White eyed Vireo, Great Egret and Black Vultures.  I had good luck with some species but missed others.  I made three stops by Lake Wallace but only managed to hear a Common Gallinule vocalize a couple times on one stop midweek.  Today I managed to catch up with the White eyed Vireo as it continues to been seen and heard in the same area it has been in for about six weeks now. A couple stops this week at Lower Mill Pond in Easthampton in search of the Great Egret came up empty for this species.  I had better luck finding Black Vultures (three present each time) during a couple stops at the vulture roost along Moody Bridge Road.

Hooded Mergansers, Lake Wallace, July, 2015

Sunrise, Moody Bridge Road, Hadley, MA, July 2, 2015

Eastern Meadowlark, Moody Bridge Road, Hadley, MA, June 30, 2015

Barn Swallows, Moody Bridge Road, Hadley, MA, June 30, 2015

Turkey Vultures and Black Vultures, Moody Bridge Road, Hadley, MA, July 2, 2015

Blue winged Warbler, Belchertown, MA, July 3, 2015

Green Heron, Lake Wallace, Belchertown, MA, July 3, 2015

Raccoon, Lake Wallace, Belchertown, MA, July 3, 2015

Wilson ready for the 4th of July, Belchertown, MA, July 3, 2015

Besides the unusual species mentioned above I ran across a good number of more expected species with lots of evidence of breeding.  I have included a few selected lists from the week below:

Lower Mill Pond:
http://ebird.org/ebird/view/checklist?subID=S24089448
http://ebird.org/ebird/view/checklist?subID=S24120905

Lake Wallace:
http://ebird.org/ebird/view/checklist?subID=S24100367
http://ebird.org/ebird/view/checklist?subID=S24111141
http://ebird.org/ebird/view/checklist?subID=S24131172

Moody Bridge Road:
http://ebird.org/ebird/view/checklist?subID=S24100371
http://ebird.org/ebird/view/checklist?subID=S24120900

Belchertown
http://ebird.org/ebird/view/checklist?subID=S24132245

Quabbin Park
http://ebird.org/ebird/view/checklist?subID=S24131527


As June ends and July begins the obvious and vocal bird activity drops off quite a bit and the chances for rarities goes down as well as the birds concentrate on raising the next generation. Although July is the birding doldrums, the beginning of shorebird migration is not too far away!  The possibility of a tropical storm having an impact also increases as the summer goes on (although the forecast is for a below average season, it only takes one well placed storm to bring some once in a lifetime birds to the area).