May comes to an end

Cedar Waxwing, Hadley, MA, May 30, 2025

Mourning Dove fledgling, Hadley, MA, May 30, 2025

Blue winged Warbler, Muddy Brook WMA, Hardwick, MA, May 29, 2025

Black and White Warbler, Ware, MA, May 29, 2025

Orange crowned Warbler, Quabbin Park, MA, May 12, 2025

Dunlin, East Meadows, Northampton, MA, May 10, 2025

Short billed Dowitchers, East Meadows, Northampton, MA, May 10, 2025

Brant, Winsor Dam, Quabbin Park, MA, May 9, 2025

May has come to an end on a rainy note...much as the last third of the month has been.  The early part of the month through the middle was overall great for migration and the birds moved through a bit early with many not stopping.  Nonetheless I still had many fantastic days of birding and ended the month with 170 species in Hampshire County, which is roughly average over the last ten years or so.  Notables for the month included Brant, Dunlin and Short billed Dowitchers, Least Bittern, Black crowned Night Heron, Acadian Flycatcher, Gray cheeked Thrush, Orange crowned Warbler and Hooded Warbler (more on warblers for the month at the following link: warblers for May) plus Blue Grosbeak.  I'm sure I could have gotten even more species but circumstances at home kept me a little closer to home than usual and I was not able to stay out as long on some mornings.  

End of the fourth week of May

Magnolia Warbler, Quabbin Park, MA, May 23, 2025

Wilson sleeping, Home, Belchertown, MA, May 23, 2025

Hooded Merganser egg remnants in duck box #3, Home, Belchertown, MA, May 24, 2025

Lincoln's Sparrow, Rail Trail, Ware, MA, May 24, 2025

Olive sided Flycatcher, Rail Trail, Ware, MA, May 24, 2025

Tiger Swallowtail, Rail trail, Amherst, MA, May 26, 2025

Gray Catbird, Rail trail, Amherst, MA, May 26, 2025

Blue Jay, Rail trail, Amherst, MA, May 26, 2025

Willow Flycatcher, Silvio Conte NWR-Fort River, Hadley, MA, May 26, 2025

Eastern Bluebird nestlings, Home, Belchertown, MA, May 27, 2025

Veery, Quabbin Park, MA, May 27, 2025

Mourning Warbler, Quabbin Park, MA, May 27, 2025

Red eyed Vireo, Quabbin Park, MA, May 27, 2025

Beaver, Rail Trail, Amherst, MA, May 28, 2025

Dawn over marsh, Rail Trail, Amherst, MA, May 28, 2025

Chestnut sided Warbler, Quabbin Park, MA, May 28, 2025

Migration conditions finally improved to end out the last full week of May.  Late season migrants continue to move through but the big numbers have already come and gone.  It was nice to finally get some sun and warmth to end out the week.  Notables for the week have included the arrival of  Olive sided Flycatchers, Mourning Warblers and a Gray cheeked Thrush.  One of my Hooded Merganser nests fledged and I got video of them leaving (link to them leaving nestbox).  Now comes several breeding bird counts over the next few weeks as migration comes to an end.  Not a lot of time to add more details for the week so will just add some photos to summarize it all.  I would be remiss if I didn't mention an interaction I had with another birder today.  I was listening to a rare and threatened breeding species in the area and a car pulled up a few hundred feet away from me.  They got out and immediately started blasting playback of the species.  Keep in mind the species was singing very closely and with even a minor amount of effort could be seen.  Instead they got out of the car and with 30 seconds started using amplified playback.  I immediately approached and called them out their extremely unethical behavior.  They had no excuse beyond 'we wanted to see the bird'...no effort at all to actually look for it so instead they figured they would stress out the bird in breeding season so they could see a bird they knew was there.  They thankfully walked away with their heads hung low and left the area.  This was not a new birder and someone I know should know better.  It was disheartening to see and only reinforces my decision to report less and less of the birds I see in a timely manner.  The amount of unethical behavior from both birders and photographers seems to be getting worse and makes more and more people stop reporting rarities (myself included).  

Annual Poverty Mountain bird census

I made it up once again to Kevin and Cynthia's property on the Shutesbury/Amherst line to assist with the annual bird census on their fantastic property.  I have taken part in the survey since 2007 so it is a bit of a tradition.  I had a few hours free and joined Kevin, Steve and Leslie in checking out at least part of the property.  It was as wet as I have ever seen it with some trails more like brooks than trails and the weather was overcast and cool throughout.  It was far from a blockbuster morning but I still managed 48 species with the highlight being a Yellow bellied Flycatcher.

Third week of May

Northern Parula, Quabbin Park, MA, May 21, 2025

Blue winged x Golden winged Warbler hybrid, Quabbin Park, MA, May 21, 2025

Cerulean Warbler with leg bands, Skinner SP, South Hadley, MA, May 20, 2025

Yellow Warbler, Quabbin Park, MA, May 19, 2025

Eastern Wood Pewee, Quabbin Park, MA, May 19, 2025

Magnolia Warbler, Rail trail, Ware, MA, May 19, 2025

Orchard Oriole, Silvio Conte NWR-Fort River, Hadley, MA, May 18, 2025

Prairie Warbler, Covey WMA, Belchertown, MA, May 17, 2025

I have not had much time to update things here during what is always a hectic month (and perhaps even a bit more hectic this year).  Migration is now slowing down and the weather conditions to end the third week have been very uncooperative for late season migrants to move through with cool conditions and unfavorable winds.  I have gotten out as much as circumstance allow for the third week of the month and have concentrated on warblers.  I have had a few notable warbler encounters including a Hooded Warbler that turned up at UMASS on the 16th, a number of hybrid warblers and a couple color banded Cerulean Warblers.  There have been a few new arrivals of late season migrants but I suspect there will be at least one more good push once the migration conditions improve..perhaps by the end of the weekend?  We shall see.

American Robin fledgling and Baltimore Oriole, Home, Belchertown, MA, May 20, 2025

Ruby throated Hummingbird, Home, Belchertown, MA, May 19, 2025

Blackpoll Warbler, Yellow rumped Warbler 'myrtle' and Chipping Sparrow, Home, Belchertown, MA, May 16, 2025

Blackburnian Warbler and Eastern Bluebird, Home, Belchertown, MA, May 16, 2025

American Redstart, Home, Belchertown, MA, May 16, 2025

The camera at the water feature has been capturing lots of stuff this spring and the above is but a small sample of the species that have shown up....already a dozen species of warblers plus lots of other stuff.

Hooded Warbler at UMASS

After another night with great migration I got up and got some stuff down around the house and then headed out for a little birding before having to run some errands.  It was warm and humid with low clouds to start the day and I ran across some birds for sure with just a smattering of obvious migrants.  While I was on my way to run some errands I saw a post from Aaron from UMASS saying his group of students had a Hooded Warbler on the northwest side of campus so I made sure I had a bit of time to try for it and headed in the direction of the campus.  I knew it was graduation weekend and the doctoral degrees were being awarded during the morning but I figured I was early enough to beat the crowds and came in the backside of the campus.  I arrived on campus and started the walk out to the area where the bird was reported and had some birds on the way.  Once I made it to the area I had a Magnolia Warbler singing strongly and sounding a lot like a Hooded Warbler (I even tried an experiment with the often fallible Merlin app and it suggested both species as possibly making the song).  I had a fear that perhaps the original observers had mistaken the Magnolia Warbler for a Hooded Warbler but given that they usually get their identifications correct I was still hopeful.  Steve arrived and we discussed the bird and decided to give it another try and after a bit of waiting we finally heard the Hooded Warbler fairly close.  Despite being so close we could never get a look at it as it moved through the woods.  The bird moved around a fair amount and usually was not too close and would also go silent for periods.  After lots of scanning I had a few second view of the bird and it was the only view I would get of the bird.  A very frustrating bird to try to see for sure.  Eventually the sun came out and it warmed up quickly and really felt like summer.  A decent morning with a bit over a hundred species despite not covering as many areas or spending as much time outside.

The second week of May

 

Chestnut sided Warbler, Quabbin Park, MA, May 14, 2025

Wild Turkeys, Quabbin Park, MA, May 14, 2025

Cerulean Warbler, Quabbin Park, MA, May 13, 2025

Pileated Woodpecker, Quabbin Park, MA, May 12, 2025

Orange crowned Warbler, Quabbin Park, MA, May 12, 2025

Cape May Warbler, Quabbin Park, MA, May 12, 2025

The second week of May has now arrived and with it the peak of migration (which continues to be great for birds with lots of great migration conditions).  I don't have time to go into a lot of details beyond that the birds are back in numbers and every day produces 100+ species, even without being out as much as I want to be.  I have had 160 species so far for the month.  I will post more pictures from the week when I get a chance...for now just a couple from today.

Dunlin and Short billed Dowitchers for Global Big Day on a rather rainy day

 

Dunlin, East Meadows, Northampton, MA, May 10, 2025

Dunlin and Spotted Sandpiper, East Meadows, Northampton, MA, May 10, 2025

Short billed Dowitchers, East Meadows, Northampton, MA, May 10, 2025

We endured another bout of heavy rain and even some thunderstorms overnight and into a good portion of the morning today with at least another couple inches of rain.  I heard about a number of shorebirds that showed up in the flooded fields of the East Meadows of Northampton yesterday but I was unable to make the trip over until this morning.  With the crappy weather I figured there was a decent chance the birds did not continue their migration north.  I had a few hours available in the morning so headed over to be there for sunrise.  The radar showed moderate rain but it looked like it might lift (it did not lift for hours and instead just sad and pinwheeled in more rain for hours).  Despite all the rain the roads were not as muddy as I feared they might be.  I made it down to where the shorebirds were yesterday and quickly found at least four Dunlin among the more expected species.  With a bit more scanning I turned up the two Short billed Dowitchers.  I had an impressive eight species of shorebirds in the area plus a few other rarities including Sandhill Crane and Green winged Teal.  I checked a few other areas along the river for shorebirds before returning to the Quabbin area and then to home.  Today was Global Big Day and World Migratory Bird Day and despite having crappy weather and not as much time free as usual I still managed 92 species.

Brant at Winsor Dam this morning

Brant, Winsor Dam, Quabbin Park, MA, May 9, 2025

Brant, Winsor Dam, Quabbin Park, MA, May 9, 2025

Brant (plus Bufflehead), Winsor Dam, Quabbin Park, MA, May 9, 2025

Brant, Winsor Dam, Quabbin Park, MA, May 9, 2025

With rain forecast for most of the day I didn't get up and moving as typical for early May (which is still early nonetheless).  I checked the radar and saw that there was no rain nearby and I figured I could get a couple hours of birding in before the rain eventually arrived.  I decided to try my luck at Winsor Dam where I arrived a bit before 5:30.  I scanned the water as I was getting the scope out and noticed a group of larger waterfowl on the water near the boat cove that looked interesting.  Once I got a look with the scope I quickly identified them as Brant...a rare species in the area for spring.  I got some photos in the bad light and got the word out to some others.  As I watched them they took off and circled around a couple times before disappearing to the north where I followed them until they were out of view.  I then informed people the Brant had unfortunately departed.  Much to my surprise the Brant returned around six and then disappeared to the southeast over the dam.  I figured this would be the last I saw of them but I was once again wrong as several minutes later they reappeared once again and then settled on the water fairly close in.  I once again got the word out and a few birders arrived to see them as they took off and then settled very far out.  A truly rare sighting for a species I don't expect to see until the cold of fall arrives and usually they are seen on windy days at that point.  Besides the Brant there were other notable waterfowl around for the date including Bufflehead (at least ten individuals over multiple stops), three Red breasted Mergansers and a high count of nine Hooded Mergansers (I ended up having all three species mergansers there for the morning).  To show one just how rare Brant are in Hampshire County in the spring this is my first spring record ever (granted I do not spend a lot of time looking for waterfowl at the peak of warbler migration but on crappy weather days I certainly spend some time at the dam and other spots where Brant could show up).

Today also marked a milestone for the year in Hampshire County as I reached the 200 species mark earlier than I ever have before.  This is mainly thanks to a slightly earlier migration for a number of species.  There have been a few rarities around for the year so far but not too many.  I managed to reach this milestone even with missing a number of species (such as Sandhill Crane and Least Sandpipers) that have been around that I have not chased as circumstance have kept me closer to home.  I'm unlikely to beat my best year ever in the county without tons of rarities but one never knows.