The peak of fall migration is here and with it a bunch of notable species have shown up in the last few days for me and I will cover them all below with a separate entry for each day. Today was a bit overcast with some drizzle that eventually gave way to more sun. I stayed local as I had some other commitments that limited my birding time. I decided to try some new spots this morning to try to get away from the mosquitoes that have become extremely annoying at many of my stops the last couple days. I started out before dawn at Winsor Dam and still had an Eastern Whip Poor Will singing as well as a number of flight calls from migrants. I then went to the rail trail in Amherst where the most notable species there being at least two Marsh Wrens singing from the marsh at Hop Brook. My final stop before heading home was to a small area of Quabbin Park which turned out to be somewhat quiet but I still turned up some birds. If I'm right in my interpretation of the upcoming weather the next couple days should see a big influx of migrants.
Friday was cloudy throughout the day with an occasional breeze. The mosquitoes were horrendous for most of the morning at every location I birded. Most of my time was spent at Arcadia and overall it was mainly quiet until a bit after nine when I ran across a large mixed flock. Within the flock were a decent numbers of warblers including an oddly plumaged Northern Parula (more details and more photos at the following link). Among the other 14 species of warblers was my first Wilson's Warbler of the fall as well as at least five Yellow Warblers. Other notable species for the morning included a late Least Flycatcher, lots of Red eyed Vireos and House Wrens and two Dickcissels among 76 species.
Thursday I got up to some rain coming down and the radar looked like the wet conditions would continue but as the rain was moving steadily east I headed west to get out of it sooner. While waiting out the worst of the rain by running a few errands, I still made it to my first stop by 6:30. Although the migration conditions were less than ideal I still knew there would be stuff to see as it is mid September and stuff is always moving this time of year. My main goal was a Connecticut Warbler and I managed to find two for the day! More on the Connecticut Warblers can be found at the following link: Connecticut Warblers. In addition to the first CONW for the day at my first stop I had a couple late flycatchers including a Least Flycatcher and Great crested Flycatcher. My next stop was to the nearby Honey Pot where I walked a bit of the road mainly in search of unusual sparrows (I found none). Nonetheless I still had some good birds including a few flyover shorebirds including an American Golden Plover plus three Peregrine Falcons flying over (with a Solitary Sandpiper flying right near them), a 'yellow' Palm Warbler and at least four Blue Grosbeaks together. I then made a stop at the mosquito haven (also known as Silvio Conte NWR-Fort River) where I gave a lot of blood and had some birds including some migrant raptors as well as some warblers including a banded Common Yellowthroat.
On the 15th I stayed closer to home on a cloudy and humid morning. I started before dawn at Quabbin Park. The morning started with at least one Eastern Whip Poor Will still singing. Once it got I bit lighter I covered a handful of areas in the park and turned up the following notables: at least 5 Wood Thrushes, lots of Eastern Towhees and a dozen species of warblers. The conditions made finding passerines a bit of a challenge as the breeze continued to pick up as the morning moved along.
On Tuesday the 14th I started out my morning before dawn at Arcadia where I had an influx of Red eyed Vireos, a couple Philadelphia Vireos, at least 18 House Wrens, a dozen species of warblers and a Dickcissel among a total of 76 species over the course of a little shy of four hours. I then made a stop in the East Meadows looking in vain for the Yellow headed Blackbird I had seen there the day before. The most notable sighting there were two Dickcissels together (a really great fall for the species around here).
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