Morning at Arcadia and the Honey Pot and an update on Hurricane Matthew (now a Category 4 storm!)

Common Yellowthroat, Arcadia, Northampton, MA, Sep 30, 2016

White breasted Nuthatch, Arcadia, Northampton, MA, Sep 30, 2016

Black and White Warbler, Arcadia, Northampton, MA, Sep 30, 2016

Lincoln's Sparrow, Arcadia, Northampton, MA, Sep 30, 2016

Yellow rumped Warbler 'myrtle', Honey Pot, Hadley, MA, Sep 30, 2016

Field Sparrow, Honey Pot, Hadley, MA, Sep 30, 2016

Nashville Warbler, Honey Pot, Hadley, MA, Sep 30, 2016

Eastern Phoebe, Honey Pot, Hadley, MA, Sep 30, 2016

Swamp Sparrow, Honey Pot, Hadley, MA, Sep 30, 2016

I spent the morning birding a potion of the morning with Keenan and then a bit on my own in some very fall like conditions with overcast conditions, a steady breeze and temperatures starting in the 50's and not warming a whole lot.  It was a bit quiet at times due to the conditions but we still found some good stuff during our time at Arcadia including another Connecticut Warbler and an Orange crowned Warbler among eight species of warbler plus at least eight species of sparrows as well as another that may have been a Nelson's Sparrow but I was unable to confirm.  Also a decent show of raptors around which certainly kept some birds from showing themselves to us.  After Keenan had to leave I spent a bit more time at Arcadia before heading over to the Honey Pot where I found more warblers (including a late Yellow Warbler) and sparrows.  Also ran across a large gathering of Eastern Phoebes at 'That's a Plenty Farm' that I hoped to find an unusual flycatcher in but no luck today.  Full lists with more photos below:

Arcadia: http://ebird.org/ebird/view/checklist/S31823303
Honey Pot:  http://ebird.org/ebird/view/checklist/S31823336

Hurricane Matthew projected path, Sep 30, 2016 (courtesy NHC)

Hurricane Matthew, Sep 30, 2016 (courtesy of NASA)

Now for the latest on what is now Hurricane Matthew spinning down in the southern Caribbean.  It reached hurricane strength yesterday and then rapidly intensified to a Cat 4 storm today with 140 MPH winds with a pressure down  to 949mb!  It strengthened much more rapidly than predicted despite some fairly strong wind shear (makes me wonder what will happen once the shear drops off a bit).  It is starting to look more and more impressive and is almost certain to have a major impact somewhere in the Caribbean.  The current forecast has the storm continuing west before making a sharp turn to the north and impacting Jamaica and Cuba as a strong Cat 3 storm.  The real question then becomes what happens to the storm after that.  It should end up in the Bahamas slightly weakened after interactions with one of the large islands but given the warm SST's there it is likely to regain strength once again and then either threaten somewhere on the east coast of the US or head out to sea.  Still a lot of variables that will have an impact on the storm over the long term but suffice it to say the storm has some great potential to impact the US somewhere, possibly even New England.

Tropical update and motion camera shots and a new species for the yard

Model tracks for Invest 97L, Sep 28, 2016

Hurricane Hazel track 1954 (courtesy of Weatherunderground)

Now for an update on the tropical Atlantic and an area of disturbed weather (Invest 97L) that could threaten the United States at some point.  The system has been moving fairly rapidly across the Atlantic toward the southern part of the Lesser Antilles.  The track of the system is fairly far south for a tropical system..in fact it is far enough south to threaten the upper coast of South America.  The speed of the system as well as its more southern track has kept development slow so far.  All forecast models seem to be in agreement that the system will develop into a named system over the next few days (when it will receive the name Matthew).  The future of the system at that point becomes a bit more murky with lots of variables coming into play.  The  latest models have shown the system continuing to head west over the short term before making a hard turn to the north.  The speed at which this all happens differs greatly between the big models (Euro vs GFS) with the Euro slowly the system down a lot.  It could then hit Florida, the east coast of the US or head out to sea.  The very rapid turn to the north is a bit unusual but not unprecedented.  Hurricane Hazel back in 1954 took a somewhat similar path and made a landfall on the South Carolina/North Carolina border as a major hurricane (Cat 4).  The system certainly bears watching and it has the potential at least to become a major problem somewhere in the United States.  Some of the best sites to keep track of the system include the following:
National Hurricane Center:  http://www.nhc.noaa.gov/
Tropical Tidbits:  http://www.tropicaltidbits.com/
Jeff Masters Weather Blog:  https://www.wunderground.com/blog/JeffMasters/show.html

Swainson's Thrush, Home, Belchertown, MA, Sep 26, 2016

Striped Skunk, Home, Belchertown, MA, Sep 22, 2016

Ruby throated Hummingbird, Home, Belchertown, MA, Sep 18, 2016

I have finally got a few captures of birds on the motion camera at the pond in the last several days.  Nothing new but I did get another Swainson's Thrush, a few White throated Sparrows and a chickadee.  The camera has been very quiet the last few weeks so it was nice to see some stuff.  The mammals have been more active with the usual chipmunks and squirrels plus a Striped Skunk.  The camera on the hummingbird feeder is up and waiting for something unusual to show.  The last capture of a Ruby throated Hummingbird at the feeder was on the 18th.

I also added a new species to the yard list today when I was down along Jabish Brook...a Connecticut Warbler chipping away.  It continues to be an amazing fall for this species and I have seen more this fall than any other.  The Connecticut Warbler becomes species #162 for the yard and the 28th species of warbler.  I have had several unusual to rare warbler species in the yard including Orange crowned, Kentucky, Mourning, Cape May and Bay breasted Warblers but still have not had a Blue winged Warbler!

Long weekend trip to Northern Vermont and nearby New York

Button Bay SP, Ferrisburgh, NY, Sep 24, 2016

Mt Philo SP, Charlotte, VT, Sep 24, 2016

Fort Ticonderoga, NY, Sep 25, 2016

Fort Ticonderoga viewed from Mount Defiance, Ticonderoga, NY, Sep 25, 2016

Made a long weekend trip up to northern Vermont and adjacent New York with a number of stops including some parks in Vermont along Lake Champlain and Fort Ticonderoga in New York.  Not a birding trip but I nonetheless came across a number of new species for both Vermont and New York with 45 new species in Vermont bringing my state total there to 67 and five new species for New York bringing my state total there to 123.  I was able to indulge my inner history geek a bit too.

Yellow Warbler, Arcadia, Northampton, MA, Sep 27, 2016

Yellow Warbler, Arcadia, Northampton, MA, Sep 27, 2016

Dickcissel, Arcadia, Northampton, MA, Sep 27, 2016

On my way to work yesterday I had very little time to check anywhere plus it was foggy in most locations and quite cool with temperatures around freezing.  When I got out of work today the rain from overnight was just ending so I made a couple quick stops looking for shorebirds but had none beyond a few Killdeer.  A brief walk at Arcadia turned up some decent stuff including a Dickcissel, a Yellow Warbler, a Orange crowned Warbler and at least eleven Lincoln's Sparrow plus my first White crowned Sparrows of the fall.  I managed to get a few marginal photos with my phone through the binoculars of a couple of the notable species.  Full list from Arcadia here: http://ebird.org/ebird/view/checklist/S31782690

A Clay colored Sparrow, more Connecticut Warblers and a Dickcissel today and a Yellow breasted Chat at UMASS yesterday

Clay colored Sparrow, Honey Pot, Hadley, MA, Sep 22, 2016

Clay colored Sparrow, Honey Pot, Hadley, MA, Sep 22, 2016

Connecticut Warbler, Arcadia, Northampton, MA, Sep 22, 2016

Connecticut Warbler, Arcadia, Northampton, MA, Sep 22, 2016

Connecticut Warbler, Arcadia, Northampton, MA, Sep 22, 2016

Lincoln's Sparrow, Arcadia, Northampton, MA, Sep 22, 2016

Lincoln's Sparrow, Arcadia, Northampton, MA, Sep 22, 2016

Swamp Sparrow, Arcadia, Northampton, MA, Sep 22, 2016

Indigo Bunting, Arcadia, Northampton, MA, Sep 22, 2016

Song Sparrow, Arcadia, Northampton, MA, Sep 22, 2016

Today I decided to head back over to Arcadia to try to turn up some more unusual birds and I managed to find two Connecticut Warblers (easily my best fall for this species ever), a Dickcissel and a decent influx of sparrows (7 species) including an amazing 17 Lincoln's Sparrows.  I also stopped at the Honey Pot on my way home and added a couple more species of sparrows including a Clay colored Sparrow, which became species #225 for the county this year.  Full lists with loads more photos at the following links:

Arcadia:  http://ebird.org/ebird/view/checklist/S31703955

Honey Pot:  http://ebird.org/ebird/view/checklist/S31703956

Yellow Warbler, Arcadia, Northampton, MA, Sep 21, 2016

Common Yellowthroat, UMASS, Amherst, MA, Sep 21, 2016

Yesterday I spent a few hours at UMASS with the highlight being a Yellow breasted Chat that popped into view briefly not long after I was joined by Keenan and Isabel. Eventually the bird popped back up again briefly but none of us were quick enough to get a photo. The chat became my 32nd warbler species that I have seen at UMASS...a real hotspot for warblers to be sure. I added a Mourning Warbler a little later in the morning in the fields near Sylvan. Other notables included three species of wrens including a Winter Wren.  A brief stop at Arcadia on my way to an appointment produced a couple of Yellow Warblers but no other unusual species.

A fruitless look for shorebirds after the rain and a Least Bittern yesterday

Killdeer, Honey Pot, Hadley, MA, Sep 19, 2016

Savannah Sparrow, Honey Pot, Hadley, MA, Sep 19, 2016

Yellow Warbler, Honey Pot, Hadley, MA, Sep 19, 2016

Yellow Warbler, Honey Pot, Hadley, MA, Sep 19, 2016

Barn Swallow, Honey Pot, Hadley, MA, Sep 19, 2016

Great Egrets and Great Blue Herons, North Lane, Hadley, MA, Sep 19, 2016

Common Mergansers, North Lane, Hadley, MA, Sep 19, 2016

Although the weather set up last night with rain arriving overnight after sunset and continuing into the morning held hope for various migrants being forced down (mainly shorebirds but anything would be possible) a check of a few great looking fields this morning turned up nothing but Killdeer.  Surprising and disappointing but that is how it goes sometimes.  I guess you never know if anything will be out there until you look and sometimes you don't find much.  I didn't spend as much time out looking around as the rain made any lengthy walk unpleasant and just sitting in the car is too tough on the back.  Although I had no luck with shorebirds I did have a few notable sightings including a flock of 114 Common Mergansers and four Great Egrets on the CT river, 4 Barn Swallows, 3 Yellow Warblers, a flyby Dickcissel, 180+ American Goldfinches and a Rusty Blackbird at the Honey Pot.

Blue winged Teal, Lake Wallace, Belchertown, MA, Sep 18, 2016

Blue winged Teal, Lake Wallace, Belchertown, MA, Sep 18, 2016

Blue winged Teal, Lake Wallace, Belchertown, MA, Sep 18, 2016

Green winged Teal, Lake Wallace, Belchertown, MA, Sep 18, 2016

Wood Ducks, Lake Wallace, Belchertown, MA, Sep 18, 2016

Yesterday I made it out for a little while around the local area with a stop by Lake Wallace dodging the numerous rain showers.  I got there a little before six and one of the first birds I heard was a Least Bittern calling from the reeds!  A truly tough bird to find around here and only the second one I have ever had in the county (the other was a Covey WMA almost ten years ago).  The bittern called just three times and my attempts to coax it in did not work and I had no luck finding it scanning the edge of the reeds.  I was not quick enough to get any recordings of it but it was giving its distinctive 'chucking' call.  The Least Bittern became species #224 for Hampshire County this year.  Besides the bittern the notable species around the lake included 66 Wood Ducks, a half dozen Blue winged Teal (a very high count for the county), 7 Green winged Teal and four Green Herons.  I also got a text from Steve M. that he relocated the American White Pelican roosting on the Longmeadow sandbar.  It flew off to locations unknown but hopefully it will work its way back north again.  As the rain continued and my back started hurting without enough walking, I headed for home.

Rarities continue including Sedge Wren, Marsh Wren, Dickcissels, Connecticut Warblers, etc...a five wren day too!

Sedge Wren, Arcadia, Northampton, MA, Sep 17, 2016

Sedge Wren, Arcadia, Northampton, MA, Sep 17, 2016

Sedge Wren (photo taken with iPhone handheld..that is how close the bird was!) , Arcadia, Northampton, MA, Sep 17, 2016

Dickcissel, Arcadia, Northampton, MA, Sep 17, 2016

Connecticut Warbler, Arcadia, Northampton, MA, Sep 17, 2016

Connecticut Warbler, Arcadia, Northampton, MA, Sep 17, 2016

Palm Warbler ('yellow'), Arcadia, Northampton, MA, Sep 17, 2016

Common Yellowthroat, Arcadia, Northampton, MA, Sep 17, 2016

Yellow Warbler, Arcadia, Northampton, MA, Sep 17, 2016

Prairie Warbler, Arcadia, Northampton, MA, Sep 17, 2016

Brown Thrasher, Arcadia, Northampton, MA, Sep 17, 2016

House Wren, Arcadia, Northampton, MA, Sep 17, 2016

Dawn at Arcadia, Northampton, MA, Sep 17, 2016

Although I didn't get any new rarities today there were a number of them around this morning with the highlight by far being point blank looks of the Sedge Wren at Arcadia and luckily Keenan and Isabel arrived just in time to see it too.  It was so close at times the camera could not focus and I actually got an identifiable photo just hand holding my iPhone.  It stayed with us for more than ten minutes before it moved away.  I arrived there before dawn and quickly ran across a Dickcissel, a Marsh Wren and then the Sedge Wren within minutes of each other.  Overall unusual species there included a Least Flycatcher, 17 House Wrens, the Sedge Wren and Marsh Wren, at least 13 Northern Mockingbirds, two Connecticut Warblers (a truly amazing showing of this species this year), 4 Yellow Warbler, a couple 'yellow' Palm Warblers and two Dickcissels.  I was joined by Aidan and Devin a bit later in the morning and also ran across several other birders that were there.  It was nice to be out walking a bit more after hurting my back...doctors orders to keep walking as much as I can so I could not think of a better way to follow orders than birding along the flat trails at Arcadia.  Full list with more photos here:  http://ebird.org/ebird/view/checklist/S31621592

I managed to achieve something I have never gone before when I was able to find five wren species in a day...Sedge Wren, Marsh Wren and House Wren at Arcadia, a Winter Wren at home and a Carolina Wren. I also checked again for the pelican but it appears to be long gone (but there is always a chance it will show somewhere else in the area).