May comes to an end

Arctic Terns, Quabbin Gate 5, Belchertown, MA, May 13, 2022

White eyed Vireo, Fisk Meadow WMA, Chesterfield, MA, May 24, 2022

Red headed Woodpecker, Quabbin Park, MA, May 26, 2022

Cattle Egret, Hadley, MA, May 1, 2022

Canada Goose goslings, Rail trail, Amherst, MA, May 3, 2022

Cerulean Warbler, Skinner SP, Hadley, MA, May 5, 2022

Black throated Blue Warbler, Quabbin Park, MA, May 6, 2022

Lawrence's Warbler, Belchertown, MA, May 7, 2022

Great Egret, Lake Wallace, Belchertown, MA, May 10, 2022

White crowned Sparrow, Quabbin Park, MA, May 12, 2022

Worm eating Warbler, Skinner SP, Hadley, MA, May 14, 2022

Chestnut sided Warbler, Quabbin Park, MA, May 16, 2022

Blackburnian Warbler, Cadwell Memorial Forest, Pelham, MA, May 18, 2022

Red eyed Vireo, Quabbin Park, MA, May 21, 2022

Common Yellowthroat (with a bit of a lower eye arc), Ware, MA, May 26, 2022

Hooded Warbler, Westfield, MA, May 28, 2022

Spotted Turtle, Belchertown Land Trust Trail, Belchertown, MA,  May 28, 2022

A quick summary of the big month of May now that it has come to an all to quick end.  Overall the month ended with a lower than normal total species for me in Hampshire County with 170 species (my lowest total in the last five years but still an impressive tally).  Migration was a bit later than has been typical the last several years but it finally increased mid month when I had an impromptu big day in Hampshire County with 142 species.  There were a number of highlights including an amazing 18 Arctic Terns at Quabbin (a new species for me in the county...#303), a White eyed Vireo, a Cattle Egret, a returning Purple Martin in Hadley and a Red headed Woodpecker in Quabbin Park plus others.  June still has the potential of some late migrants and hopefully a rarity or two but I will spend a lot of time conducting various breeding bird surveys.

Hooded Merganser chicks in duck box #1, Home, Belchertown, MA, May 31, 2022

Raccoon, Home, Belchertown, MA, May 26, 2022

American Crow, Home, Belchertown, MA, May 24, 2022

On the last day of the month I checked the last remaining duck box nest and found newly hatched out Hooded Mergansers that will fledge soon.  Another year of two successful Hooded Merganser nests plus another box that ended up with lots of eggs but the nest was abandoned.  At least the crows and raccoons got to enjoy the eggs left over.

Poverty Mountain bird survey

Black Bear, Rail trail, Amherst, MA, May 29, 2022

Belted Kingfisher, Rail trail, Amherst, MA, May 29, 2022

Fog over the marsh, Rail trail, Amherst, MA, May 29, 2022

I made the trek over to Kevin and Cynthia's property this morning to conduct the annual bird count there.  I have lost count of how many years I have been doing this survey but I suppose it must be over 15 by now.  Before making it over to conduct the survey I took a walk along the rail trail in Amherst in the hopes of finding some late migrants and had some luck when I ran across an Acadian Flycatcher.  Most of the remaining birds appeared to be breeders.  The best non birding sighting of the morning was a Black Bear that appeared out of the fog at the edge of the marsh.

I arrived up at the bird survey site around 7AM and then went out with a number of other birders and we managed to find a total of 26 species for our portion of the survey during two hours of walking.  I'm still waiting to hear back the overall total from Kevin and I will post those numbers when I get them.  It was a gorgeous day to explore their impressive property and the weather could not have been better with comfortable temps, low humidity, no wind and sunny skies and almost no mosquitoes or other annoying insects.  

Peak migration comes to an end

Red headed Woodpecker, Quabbin Park, MA, May 26, 2022

Common Yellowthroat (with a bit of a lower eye arc), Ware, MA, May 26, 2022

Hooded Merganser on nest box, Lake Wallace, Belchertown, MA, May 25, 2022

Mallard ducklings, Pines Edge Conservation Area, Northampton, MA, May 24, 2022

White eyed Vireo, Fisk Meadow WMA, Chesterfield, MA, May 24, 2022

Brewster's Warbler, Sweet Alice Conservation Area, Amherst, MA, May 23, 2022

Red eyed Vireo, Quabbin Park, MA, May 21, 2022

Canada Warbler, Belchertown Land Trust Trail, Belchertown, MA, May 20, 2022

Mourning Warbler, Mitch's Way, Hadley, MA, May 20, 2022

The peak of spring migration is now behind us for another year although there certainly are still migrants moving through and I will certainly be out trying to track stuff down.  As always it has been hectic to try to fit in as much time outside while still dealing with work and the rest of life.  The last week or so has produced some good stuff including a continued Red headed Woodpecker at Quabbin Park, a day when I found ten Mourning Warblers, a White eyed Vireo and others.  I'll include a selection of photos to illustrate some of my sightings.  I'll try to do an end of month wrap up if I can.  June will be here in less than a week and with it will come my various breeding bird surveys as the birds get down to nesting for the season.  I also hit a milestone with my 39,000th complete eBird list submitted today.

Red headed Woodpecker at Quabbin Park

Red headed Woodpecker, Quabbin Park, MA, May 23, 2022

Red headed Woodpecker, Quabbin Park, MA, May 23, 2022

Red headed Woodpecker, Quabbin Park, MA, May 23, 2022

Yellow bellied Sapsucker, Quabbin Park, MA, May 23, 2022

Yellow bellied Sapsuckers mating, Quabbin Park, MA, May 23, 2022

After another long shift at work I got out this morning to sunny skies and temps that were only in the upper 50's...quite a change from the previous two days when temps reached into the 90's.  I was originally going to try to track down a reported Hooded Warbler at Mt Tom but after seeing negative reports from others and the increasingly windy conditions I ditched that plan and instead made a brief stop down at Arcadia before heading home.  I did some stuff around the house and was finishing up a few odd and ends when I saw a report from Sara of a Red headed Woodpecker in Quabbin Park.  I headed right over to the general area and after quite a bit of looking I heard and then saw the bird, a stunning adult.  I got some recordings and distant photos.  The Red headed Woodpecker is a new species for me in Quabbin Park (species #250) as well as in the Quabbin area overall (species #254).  This follows on the heals of the unprecedented number of Arctic Terns that gave me another new Quabbin species earlier this month.

Rainy and cool day grounds a few migrants

Bonaparte's Gulls, Winsor Dam, Quabbin Park, MA, May 19, 2022

Bonaparte's Gulls, Winsor Dam, Quabbin Park, MA, May 19, 2022

Olive sided Flycatcher, Quabbin Park, MA, May 19, 2022

American Redstart, Quabbin Park, MA, May 19, 2022

Bay breasted Warbler, Quabbin Park, MA, May 19, 2022

Today dawned cool (temps in the 40's) and a light rain falling.  In conditions like this there is lots of potential with gulls, terns and shorebirds being at the top of the list.  I made a dawn stop at Winsor Dam and didn't see anything of note so I headed elsewhere to take a walk in the rain in Ware.  After that stop I returned to Winsor Dam and this time I had three Bonaparte's Gulls.  I also saw reports from others a bit further west reporting more species downed by the rain and I spent more time at the dam in hopes of more stuff showing up without any luck.   Passerines can also be found in this weather and with this in mind I made my way into Quabbin Park and found a few pockets of migrants but then the rain just got too heavy so I made my way back to the dam.  The gulls continued in the same location with most of their time spent on the water or perched on a large buoy.  As the rain let up a bit I heard a distinct three part call coming from the west and heard it several times and got brief looks at a shorebird moving off to the northeast.  I recognized it as a Short billed Dowitcher and without a camera handy due to the rain I fumbled with my phone to try to get a recording but by the time I started recording the bird was too far away.  I had hoped the bird had landed along the dam but repeated scanning turned up nothing and I think it just kept moving off.  I had a similar experience on May 17, 2009 at Winsor Dam during another rainy morning when I had a flock of 32 Short billed Dowitchers fly in and actually settle along the dam.

Mourning Warbler, Home, Belchertown, MA, May 19, 2022

Magnolia Warbler, Home, Belchertown, MA, May 19, 2022

Bay breasted Warbler, Home, Belchertown, MA, May 19, 2022

Once I got home late in the morning I immediately noted some warblers singing including Blackpoll and Bay breasted.  I grabbed the binoculars and camera and headed out.  The rain continued to fall but the birds were active and vocal.  As I was walking along the driveway I heard a Mourning Warbler singing and got a recording to determine the regionlect.  I then spent a lot of time trying to get looks and a photo of the bird and had some success.

Olive sided Flycatcher, Quabbin Park, MA, May 19, 2022

I made another brief trip to Quabbin Park and found the area much quieter than earlier in the morning but I did manage to get better looks at the Olive sided Flycatcher.  Winsor Dam was also quiet with no sign of anything unusual at all.

The next few days look to see a big warm up with temps on the weekend possibly breaking records with highs in the mid 90's.  It will be quite a change from temperatures today in the mid 50's!

Impromptu Hampshire County big day yields 142 species

 

Chestnut sided Warbler, Quabbin Park, MA, May 16, 2022

Veery, Quabbin Park, MA, May 16, 2022

Black and White Warbler, Quabbin Park, MA, May 16, 2022

Canada Warbler, Quabbin Park, MA, May 16, 2022

Magnolia Warbler, Quabbin Park, MA, May 16, 2022

Bay breasted Warbler, Quabbin Park, MA, May 16, 2022

Yesterday was an epic day of birding and made up for what had been a rather lackluster migration season so far with several species a bit behind in their arrival and overall numbers down despite what appeared to be decent migration conditions over the previous few nights.  I did not start the day with intention of doing a big day but it morphed into one as the day wore on with my original focus on a big Hampshire County warbler day eventually becoming a big Hampshire County day. I was up before dawn and checked the radar and it appeared very busy and when I went outside I could hear some migrants calling overhead.  I decided to head to Quabbin Park where I would spend just over four hours of time during which I would find an incredible 103 species just there.  Predawn featured some singing Eastern Whip Poor Wills and calling American Woodcocks plus the beginning of the dawn chorus.  I could tell right away there was a noticeable arrival of migrants.  I anxiously waited for the gates to open to the park and once they did I started checking some areas I know to be productive and I was not disappointed.  I added a few new warblers for me for the year with multiple Blackpoll Warblers and Tennessee Warblers.  I also had multiple Bay breasted Warblers within mixed flocks feeding in the tall oaks.  Besides the 24 species of warblers within the park I had many other highlights including my first Common Nighthawk of the year (which vocalized a few times), an Olive sided Flycatcher that sang a few times and a decent showing of thrushes plus lots of other good stuff.  With all the warblers I had by just after eight in the morning I decided to turn the day into a big warbler day...more on the warblers for the day with lots more photos at the following link.

Brewster's Warbler, Sweet Alice Conservation Area, Amherst, MA, May 16, 2022

American Wigeon, Hadley Cove, Hadley, MA, May 16, 2022

Semipalmated Plover, Hadley Cove, Hadley, MA, May 16, 2022

After my time at Quabbin Park I headed over toward Hadley with my main destination being Skinner State Park but before I got there I took a quick stop off to see the continued Brewster's Warbler hybrid.  At this point I noticed there were still several species of shorebirds being seen along the Connecticut River and at this point I started thinking of the day possibly turning into an overall big day for Hampshire County.  I arrived at the cove and quickly seven species of shorebirds as well as a late American Wigeon.  I ended up with soaked feet from the mud but it was worth it for sure.  

Cerulean Warbler, Skinner SP, Hadley, MA, May 16, 2022

Cerulean Warbler, Skinner SP, Hadley, MA, May 16, 2022

With my mind still on maximizing the diversity of warblers for the day a trip up to Skinner SP was a must to add Cerulean Warbler and Worm eating Warbler.  I got both of these species rather easily at the top and watched a female Cerulean Warbler collecting nesting material (I was unable to spend time trying to track down the nest site).  The summit was alive with birds with lots of song and a fairly diverse assortment of species and I added the breeding Dark eyed Juncos to the list for the day.

Wood Thrush, Hadley, MA, May 16, 2022

Wood Thrush with nest material, Hadley, MA, May 16, 2022

Black and White Warbler, Hadley, MA, May 16, 2022

I then headed down the mountain to check a few spots in Hadley to add a few new species for the day including the continued Purple Martin plus a variety of grassland species.  I also got to watch some nesting activity of a variety of species.  It is always amazing how fast the various species get down to nesting once they arrive in the area.

Common Yellowthroat, Rail trail, Amherst, MA, May 16, 2022

Rose breasted Grosbeak, Rail trail, Amherst, MA, May 16, 2022

Rose breasted Grosbeak, Rail trail, Amherst, MA, May 16, 2022

While walking in Hadley I got a tip from Joe that he and Aaron had a Mourning Warbler along the rail trail in Amherst and that was then picked as my next stop.  I tried in vain to turn up the Mourning Warbler despite spending quite a bit of time listening and looking (I ended up returning to the spot today today and had it and got recordings which I will be sending off to a researcher who studies the different vocalizations of the species).  My consolation prize for checking out the rail trail was a Yellow bellied Flycatcher.   It was at this point I decided I would to try for a big day in the county so I knew I had to make a few stops to add a few more easily obtained species like Fish Crow, Peregrine Falcon, Mute Swans, gulls and others.  I then made a variety of stops in Amherst, Hadley and then finally down to the dam in South Hadley.  By this time in was mid afternoon and the weather featured a few isolated showers.  I headed home to get some food and recharge for a bit.  After a quick rest I made a final spin through Quabbin Park in the vain hope of finding a Mourning Warbler but no luck but I did get a Red shouldered Hawk for the day.  Once I returned home for dinner I added one more species for the day with a flyover Broad winged Hawk.  I think this is my highest ever one day total for me in the county but I have never done  a true big day before but I think I have had days in previous years were I reached into the 130's for species but I don't think I have ever achieved 142 species.

The timing for a big day was right with a big influx of migrants in mid May and weather that was overcast with no sun until later in the morning.  These conditions keep the birds singing and more obvious later into the day compared to if it was sunny from the start.  The late afternoon turned windy and eventually rainy so that part of the day was less than optimal but no complaints from me for the day overall.  As with any big day attempt I had a number of misses including Barred owl, Great Horned Owl, Cooper's Hawk and Purple Finch.  I could almost certainly have added a few more species (like Sandhill Crane, Evening Grosbeaks, Purple Finch, etc) if I had crossed over the river and spent some time in the hill towns or gotten out a little earlier to check for nocturnal species and marsh birds.  Amazing the diversity of species here in May even when one limits themselves to one county (really just five towns in the east part of the county for me on this day).

I have a link to the eBird trip report for the day at the following link that lists all the species for the day.