It was an eventful first week of October with the big highlight being three Pink footed Geese that showed up at the ever productive UMASS campus pond. and continued on and off through the period during which they were seen by many. I focused mainly on warblers for the first week as I tried to catch up with as many species as I could before the vast majority smartly move south to warmer locations and found 15 species in the first seven days.
To begin October I headed right over to Arcadia to start adding species for the new month with my main focus being on warblers. I had some good luck with warblers with ten species present including multiple Tennessee Warblers, Cape May Warblers and Northern Parula as well as a noticeable influx of 'yellow' Palm Warblers. The biggest highlight beyond the warblers was a very late Great crested Flycatcher. I made a few other stops as I headed toward home without finding anything too unusual. Nonetheless it was a good start to the month with 70 species for the day.
I had to work again on Monday so not much birding that day beyond a quick stop at Silvio Conte where the highlight was a distantly calling Sandhill Crane. Once I was out of work on Tuesday morning I once again tried Arcadia but had to fight thick fog and an overall lack of activity. The biggest change from a couple days before was a big increase in the number of Savannah Sparrows. After waiting a bit for the fog to burn off I finally gave up and went across the river to Silvio Conte NWR-Fort River which was also foggy, although not quite as thick. Highlights there included a slightly late Barn Swallow and a Gray cheeked Thrush in the same area as a few Swainson's Thrushes. I made a few more stops to end the eventually sunny morning mainly looking for warblers again and having some success.
Wednesday started out as usual with fog that burned off to another gorgeous sunny day with temps that made it into the low 80's. I started my morning along the rail trail in Ware where I had a late Ruby throated Hummingbird, a flyover Type 12 Red Crossbill, loads of White throated Sparrows and a late Rose breasted Grosbeak. I also stopped at Quabbin Park briefly and then a couple spots in Belchertown to end the morning.
Thursday the 5th was Wilson's surgery appointment down in Sturbridge. With a drop off at 7:30 there was no time for any birding in the morning. Once my boy was dropped off we headed home and found the fog had settled in quite thickly. I made a few brief stops at Lake Wallace and Quabbin Park but found the areas just too socked in with fog, although I did still have some good stuff including a late Green Heron at the lake. I finally found a fog free spot in Belchertown and had some great stuff there with a dozen species of warblers with highlights including a late Ovenbird, three late Cape May Warblers and three Northern Parula plus loads of Ruby crowed Kinglets among a total of nearly 40 species. This would be the last of our sunny and warm days for quite awhile.
Friday was a transition day from the beautiful sunny weather the previous few days to overcast conditions with temps starting their slow downward trend. Although fog was predicted it never materialized so that was nice. I had a few hours free in the morning before I had to bring Wilson back down to Sturbridge to have the surgeon take a look at his foot a day after surgery. I tried a few spots in Hadley and Amherst with the focus on sparrows and warblers and then a quick stop to see if the Pink footed Geese were still present (they were not when I stopped but did show up again late in the morning). A non birding highlight was a Bobcat that strolled down a farm road in Hadley. I also took a short walk after getting back home with Wilson without finding too much.
The first week of October ended on a wet note with occasional drizzle in the morning that continued throughout the day. I dodged the drizzle as best I could and spent some time along the rail trail before heading to Winsor Dam and then over to Lake Wallace. The rail trail was quiet overall for the hour I was there. The dam produced a Bonaparte's Gull that was flying around when I arrived and eventually it settled on the water. A late Green Heron was the highlight at Lake Wallace. A front will move through tonight and tomorrow will be much cooler and windier. I ended the first week with 110 species in the county, which is quite low but there were certainly quality birds among the total.
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