A trip between Northampton and Longmeadow produces five wader species including Snowy Egret and Black crowned Night Heron

Black crowned Night Heron, Big E lagoon, West Springfield, MA, Aug 31, 2016

Black crowned Night Heron, Big E lagoon, West Springfield, MA, Aug 31, 2016

Snowy Egret, Big E lagoon, West Springfield, MA, Aug 31, 2016

Green Heron, Big E lagoon, West Springfield, MA, Aug 31, 2016

Great Blue Heron, Lake Wallace, Belchertown, MA, Aug 31, 2016

Green Heron, Lower Mill Pond, Easthampton, MA, Aug 31, 2016

Great Egrets, Arcadia, Northampton, MA, Aug 31, 2016

After seeing numerous reports of both Snowy Egrets and Black crowned Night Herons  plus great numbers of Great Egrets down in Hampden County I decided to head down that way after checking some other spots in Hampshire County.  I spent the entire morning covering the area from Hadley to Holyoke in Hampshire County and then down to Stebbins and the Big E lagoon in Hampden County before returning back to Holyoke and then back home.  I ended the morning with five species of waders with the following totals:  Great Blue Heron (48), Great Egret (63), Snowy Egret (1), Green Heron (11) and Black crowned Night Heron (3).  I had no luck relocating the Little Blue Heron below the Holyoke Dam but it was a really good morning nonetheless.  The numbers of Great Egrets continue to be impressive with the most productive spots being Arcadia with 22 and Stebbins with 32.  I'm certain there are over a hundred individuals of this species in the valley and likely more.  As I don't get down to Hampden County very often I managed to get two new species (Snowy Egret and Black crowned Night Heron) for that county this morning bringing my total there to 173.

Greater Yellowlegs, Big E lagoon, West Springfield, MA, Aug 31, 2016

Semipalmated Sandpipers, Big E lagoon, West Springfield, MA, Aug 31, 2016

Besides the waders it was a decent morning for shorebirds with six species including Killdeer, Least Sandpiper, Semipalmated Sandpiper, Spotted Sandpiper, Solitary Sandpiper and Greater Yellowlegs.  

Wood Ducks, Lake Wallace, Belchertown, MA, Aug 31, 2016

Green winged Teal, Lake Wallace, Belchertown, MA, Aug 31, 2016

Other highlights besides the waders and shorebirds included the following:  110 Chimney Swifts and 160+ Bank Swallows at the Holyoke Dam, 54 Wood Ducks at Stebbins and 71 Wood Ducks and four Green winged Teal at Lake Wallace.

Full lists from stops this morning with additional photos:

Arcadia:  http://ebird.org/ebird/view/checklist/S31338630

Lower Mill Pond:  http://ebird.org/ebird/view/checklist/S31341879

Holyoke Dam:  http://ebird.org/ebird/view/checklist/S31341880

Fannie Stebbins:  http://ebird.org/ebird/view/checklist/S31343774

Big E lagoon:  http://ebird.org/ebird/view/checklist/S31343775

Holyoke Dam:  http://ebird.org/ebird/view/checklist/S31343778

Lake Wallace:  http://ebird.org/ebird/view/checklist/S31344257

Tropical Storm Hermine projected path, Aug 31, 2016 (courtesy of NHC)

TD 9 has finally formed into Tropical Storm Hermine and will likely be a strong tropical storm or possibly a weak hurricane when it hits the west coast of Florida.  The projected path of the storm continues to be pushed a bit more north toward the northeast but should still stay offshore.  With that said it may indeed get close enough to bring some substantial rains if it does track close enough.  The likely time for impact here would be Sunday or Monday.

Decent numbers of waders continue the last couple days including the Little Blue Heron

Little Blue Heron, Holyoke Dam, South Hadley, MA, Aug 29, 2016

Little Blue Heron and Double crested Cormorants, Holyoke Dam, South Hadley, MA, Aug 29, 2016

Great Egret, Little Blue Heron, Holyoke Dam, South Hadley, MA, Aug 29, 2016

Green Heron, Arcadia, Northampton, MA, Aug 29, 2016

Great Egret, Arcadia, Northampton, MA, Aug 29, 2016

Killdeer, Lower Mill Pond, Easthampton, MA, Aug 29, 2016

Green Heron, Lower Mill Pond, Easthampton, MA, Aug 29, 2016

Great Black backed Gull, UMASS pond, Amherst, MA, Aug 29, 2016

Yesterday I was up before dawn and out the door to spend the morning in search of some early migrants and dispersing birds post breeding with the main focus on waders and shorebirds. I had to be over in Hadley late in the morning for an appointment so I decided to spend the whole morning out and about. I started at Lake Wallace where I had my first Great Egret of the day as well as a couple of begging juvenile Great Horned Owls. I then headed down to the Holyoke Dam where I eventually turned up the continued Little Blue Heron. This stop also produced 15 Great Egrets plus a number of Great Blue Herons. I the checked in on the herons and egrets at Arcadia and although the numbers were a little lower than the previous couple days I still had 8 Great Blue Herons, 15 Great Egrets and four Green Herons. Most of my shorebirds for the morning were once again at Lower Mill Pond including an larger than average Least Sandpiper that had me hoping it was something more unusual. I then traveled up through Hatfield and then across the bridge and back down the east side of the river through Hadley before ending up at UMASS. A productive morning that turned up some good stuff. Overall for the morning I had four species of wader with the following overall totals for the morning: 26 Great Blue Heron, 32 Great Egrets, a Little Blue Heron and 11 Green Herons. Shorebirds topped out at five species including Killdeer, Least Sandpiper, Solitary Sandpiper, Spotted Sandpiper and Lesser Yellowlegs.

Great Blue Heron, Arcadia, Northampton, MA, Aug 30, 2016

Green Heron, Arcadia, Northampton, MA, Aug 30, 2016

Raccoon, Arcadia, Northampton, MA, Aug 30, 2016

Great Blue Heron, Holyoke Dam, South Hadley, MA, Aug 30, 2016

Common Mergansers, Holyoke Dam, South Hadley, MA, Aug 30, 2016

Woodchuck, Holyoke Dam, South Hadley, MA, Aug 30, 2016

Great Egret, Lake Wallace, Belchertown, MA, Aug 30, 2016

Green Heron, Lake Wallace, Belchertown, MA, Aug 30, 2016

Today I once again went out in search of wader (and other stuff) but covered a little less territory.  I started predawn at Winsor Dam where I had at least two Eastern Whip Poor Wills calling.  I was glad to finally find them again here as I had struck out on them the last few times I have tried.  After Winsor Dam I stopped along the river and checked some fields in Hadley before heading over to Arcadia then Lower Mill Pond and finally down to the Holyoke Dam before heading back toward home with a stop off at Lake Wallace.  No luck with the Little Blue Heron this morning but it is probably still around.  Overall the numbers of waders were down a bit from yesterday but the stop at Lake Wallace turned up some decent waterfowl variety and numbers.  Below are a few of the lists from the morning.

Arcadia:  http://ebird.org/ebird/view/checklist/S31327085
Lower Mill Pond:  http://ebird.org/ebird/view/checklist/S31327141

Holyoke Dam:  http://ebird.org/ebird/view/checklist/S31327136
Lake Wallace:  http://ebird.org/ebird/view/checklist/S31327093

Winsor Dam, Quabbin Park, MA, Aug 30, 2016

The drought continues around here with no real prospects of any substantial rain on the horizon.  The level at Quabbin continues to drop and the reservoir is somewhere around 87% capacity.

Tropical outlook via NHC, Aug 30, 2016

Tropical Depression 9 projected path as of Aug 30, 2016 (courtesy of the NHC)

The tropics continue to heat up with more and more activity. There are a number of systems to watch right now but none should have any direct impact here. Hurricane Gaston (cat 2) continues to churn way out in the Atlantic. Closer to the U.S. are two tropical depressions, TD 8 and TD 9. TD 8 is off the coast of North Carolina and will likely become a tropical storm as it brushes past the outer banks. TD 9 (old invest 99L) is in the southern Gulf of Mexico just northwest of Cuba and is still struggling to form. The forecast is for the storm to gain tropical storm status before impacting central and northern Florida before it too heads out into the Atlantic.  The latest National Hurricane Center projected path has moved the storm a little closer to us but we would still only be on the outer fringes of a fairly weak storm but it bears watching.  There is another decent looking wave (Invest 92L) coming off Africa and heading out across the Atlantic. This will certainly have to be watched as it has a decent chance of developing.

Little Blue Heron again, lots of other herons/egrets and the fifth anniversary of Hurricane/Tropical Storm Irene

Great Blue Herons and Great Egrets, Arcadia, Northampton, Aug 27, 2016

Great Egret and Raccoon, Arcadia, Northampton, Aug 27, 2016

Dawn, Honey Pot, Hadley, MA, Aug 27, 2016

Bobolink, Arcadia, Northampton, Aug 27, 2016

On Saturday morning I made a quick check of the river and turned up a three Great Egrets viewed from North Lane. A brief run through the fields of the Honey Pot didn't turn up any shorebirds but I didn't look in too many spots. I had about 45 minutes to try for some other stuff before going to work so I headed to Arcadia. I scanned the Oxbow and didn't turn up too much and the fog was thick in spots. I was thinking of heading over to Lower Mill Pond once again to check for shorebirds but I decided instead to stay at Arcadia and spend a little more time checking a few areas in greater detail. I walked out though one of the fields to check Ned's Ditch for any waders and I was glad I did. In a relatively small area of low water and mud I had a large gathering of waders that reminded me more of Florida then around here. I only had a few minutes to scan through but in that time I totaled up the following: 19 Great Blue Herons, 21 Great Egrets and 4 Green Herons. There were also a number of Wood Ducks and Raccoons enjoying the feast.

Little Blue Heron and Great Egret, Holyoke Dam, South Hadley, MA, Aug 28, 2016

Little Blue Heron and Great Egret, Holyoke Dam, South Hadley, MA, Aug 28, 2016

Little Blue Heron, Holyoke Dam, South Hadley, MA, Aug 28, 2016

Great Egrets, Arcadia, Northampton, Aug 28, 2016

Great Blue Heron, Arcadia, Northampton, Aug 28, 2016

Great Egrets, Arcadia, Northampton, Aug 28, 2016

Green Heron, Arcadia, Northampton, Aug 28, 2016

After work on Sunday morning I immediately headed back to Arcadia to spend a little more time checking out the gathering of waders I had yesterday and I turned up even more birds this morning with 24 Great Blue Herons, 23 Great Egrets and 7 Green Herons. I tried to find something even more unusual among them (like a Snowy Egret or nigh heron) but no luck. Given the large numbers of waders there I almost expect something unusual to show up.  I was very tired from work but wanted to make a brief check at the Holyoke Dam and I was glad I did as I turned up an immature Little Blue Heron once again (likely the same bird I had there a week ago). I got much better looks at it this time as it flew up river and landed a couple hundred feet north of me along the rivers edge. I also had eight Great Egrets and 11 Great Blue Herons. The numbers of Great Egrets continue to impress with at least 31 present at my two stops. With dozens being seen further south along the river it makes me wonder once again how many there are in the entire valley now....a hundred, maybe more?


Although I have posted about it extensively in the past I will once again mention Tropcial Storm Irene as it hit here five years ago today. It was a truly epic day of birding and one I will never forget (full list from day here: http://ebird.org/ebird/view/checklist/S8750565 ). The hurricane season is approaching the most active period historically so I will keep my eyes on anything that might have an impact here. As of today there are a number of tropical systems at varying levels of development but none will have any impact

The last few days produce more waders, more waterfowl and increased numbers of nighthawks

Green Heron, Lake Wallace, Belchertown, MA, Aug 24, 2016

Green Heron, Lake Wallace, Belchertown, MA, Aug 24, 2016

Blue winged Teal, Lake Wallace, Belchertown, MA, Aug 24, 2016

Green winged Teal, Lake Wallace, Belchertown, MA, Aug 24, 2016

Peregrine Falcon, Lake Wallace, Belchertown, MA, Aug 24, 2016

Peregrine Falcon, Lake Wallace, Belchertown, MA, Aug 24, 2016

Great Egrets and Great Blue Herons, Holyoke Dam, South Hadley, MA, Aug 24, 2016

Common Nighthawk, Home, Belchertown, MA, Aug 24, 2016

Common Nighthawk, Home, Belchertown, MA, Aug 24, 2016

Chimney Swift, Home, Belchertown, MA, Aug 24, 2016

On Wednesday morning I headed out before dawn and started my day at Lake Wallace. The activity started right away with at least seven Common Nighthawks feeding over the water and nearby fields. They quickly went to roost as the morning got brighter and I'm sure some were roosting right near the lake but I could not find any of them despite scanning loads of trees. I scanned the lake and came up with some notable waterfowl right away with 112 Wood Ducks, a Blue winged Teal and two Green winged Teal plus Mallards and Canada Geese. August has been unusually good for waterfowl with the Lesser Scaup that stayed until August 1st, the Red necked Grebe I had a few days ago plus both species of teal. So far I have had 13 species of waterfowl in the county for the month which is my best August ever. I also managed to get my highest count ever for Green Heron at the lake this morning with at least 15 present! After leaving Lake Wallace I headed south to the Holyoke Dam and once again had some decent sightings there. I had 31 Common Mergansers, ten Great Blue Herons, 15 Great Egrets, 120+ Chimney Swifts and 300+ swallows with most being Bank and Tree Swallows but at least 2 Cliff Swallows and a couple dozen Barn Swallows. After getting so many Great Egrets at the dam I decided to work back up river to Hadley to see how many more I could find. I managed to find three more bringing the total to at least 18 along the river (and that was without stopping around the Arcadia area or further up river in Hatfield...certainly a great year for Great Egrets up and down the valley).  In the evening at home I had around twenty Common Nighthawks moving rapidly north plus a number of swifts and swallows.

Least Sandpiper and Mourning Dove, Lower Mill Pond, Easthampton, MA, Aug 25, 2016

Thursday morning on my way in to work I checked the river in Hadley and had a single Great Egret coming in and out of view in the fog. My next stop at Arcadia didn't turn up anything unusual but there were more Ring billed Gulls (around 35) then on any other morning so far this late summer/early fall. Notables at Lower Mill Pond included three Green Herons, 7 Killdeer and 8 Least Sandpipers.

Great Egrets, Holyoke Dam, South Hadley, MA, Aug 26, 2016

Double crested Cormorant, Holyoke Dam, South Hadley, MA, Aug 26, 2016

Cooper's Hawk, Lake Wallace, Belchertown, MA, Aug 26, 2016

Green Heron, Lake Wallace, Belchertown, MA, Aug 26, 2016

I only had a short amount of time this morning before I had to be home to get some work done but I made a couple stops including the Holyoke Dam and Lake Wallace. The Holyoke Dam had the following for highlights: 7 Great Egrets, a Common Nighthawk and a several dozen swifts and swallows. Lake Wallace highlights included 63 Wood Ducks, 7 Green Herons and a Cooper's Hawk which had lots of interactions with a small group of crows.