I had some time free in the morning and after some showers that moved through overnight I had some hopes that something good would be brought down by the weather so I headed to Winsor Dam at first light and found the fog too thick to see too much beyond a few species of waterfowl. The beginning of the morning was still productive with the first Eastern Whip Poor Wills of the year. I decided to try a few spots in Ware before making a return to the dam. My second visit to the dam was even less productive with the visibility reduced even more. I then headed home to check on things and to pick up Wilson for his walk. That walk proved fairly productive with a decent influx of warblers (seven species including my first Yellow Warbler of the spring here). After the walk with Wilson I did a few things around the house before making another stop at the dam and this one was more productive with a flock of 43 Bonaparte's Gulls...my second highest total I have ever had in the county. It has been a great spring for Bonaparte's Gulls in the area although I was working on the day when triple digit counts showed up at Quabbin. I also made a return trip to an area I visited with Wilson earlier to sort through the warblers present and had nearly seventy Yellow rumped Warblers in just over half a mile of the trail. There was also several species carrying nest material and building nests as breeding season heats up. Wish I had more time to explore other areas but not in the cards in the immediate future.
Strong southerly winds overnight brought in the best influx of birds so far for the spring migration season with several early arrivals found for the day. I figured this would be the case given the conditions and I was happy to be right. I only had a couple hours available and stayed within about 15 minutes of home. I tried for Eastern Whip Poor Wills at Quabbin early and didn't have any luck (the breeze probably cut down on the ability to hear any distant individuals). I then hit the rail trail on the Amherst/Belchertown line and had an early Green Heron. I then returned to the south Quabbin area with a brief stop at Winsor Dam and then a small portion of Quabbin Park. I initially had nothing of note at the dam beyond an Eastern Towhee with some odd white markings on its face. Quabbin Park produced a slightly early Black and White Warbler among a group of other migrants. I saw a report from Brian that he had a rare for spring Surf Scoter flying around at Winsor Dam so after my time in Quabbin Park I made another stop at the dam and was lucky to find the Surf Scoter on the water way out and got some marginal photos and some slightly better video. After checking back at the house and then heading out with Wilson we had another Black and White Warbler during our walk. The strong south winds drove the temps up to near 80 and kept raptors moving most of the day. Year to date I'm at a record setting pace for the year and also at my highest total ever for the month as of the date (currently at 123 species for the month)
Today also marks the 250th anniversary of the battles of Lexington and Concord that kicked off the American Revolution...we now find ourselves as a country at a crossroads that may indeed tear the country apart and lead us down a path that the founding fathers tried to avoid with the checks and balances enshrined in the constitution. Time will tell if we emerge on the other side of this current turmoil.
I have also found a few other early arrivals the last few days including my earliest ever date for Black throated Green Warbler and increasing numbers of other migrants including Ruby crowned Kinglets and Yellow bellied Sapsuckers plus several waterfowl species
Now that the middle of April has arrived the weather has finally started to feel like it should with warmer temps the last couple days ago after we have endured below average temps and occasional rain and snow for the previous several days. I could not get out yesterday due top work but did get out this morning and added a number of species for the year during a number of stops including Fitzgerald Lake and Great Pond. For the year I now stand at 141 species and 114 species for April with both totals a bit ahead of my ten year average in Hampshire County.
I also checked the ducks boxes today and found that I now have eggs in all three boxes with Hooded Mergansers sitting on eggs in two of the three boxes. The last box didn't have eggs in it a few days ago so happy to see some in it today...another year of all three boxes being used.
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Sooty faced Finch, Hotel Quelitales, Costa Rica, Mar 31, 2025 White bellied Mountain Gem, Hotel Quelitales, Costa Rica, Mar 31, 2025  Black bellied Hummingbird, Hotel Quelitales, Costa Rica, Apr 1, 2025 |
