Some birds for the first three days of May despite poor migration conditions

Brewster's Warbler, Rail Trail, Amherst, MA, May 3, 2026

Orchard Oriole, Silvio Conte NWR-Fort River, Hadley, MA, May 3, 2026

Red winged Blackbird, Rail Trail, Amherst, MA, May 3, 2026

Chestnut sided Warbler, Quabbin Park, MA, May 2, 2026

Northern Yellow Warbler, Quabbin Park, MA, May 2, 2026

Pine Warbler collecting nest material, Quabbin Park, MA, May 2, 2026

Eastern Towhee, Quabbin Park, MA, May 2, 2026

Gray Catbird, Quabbin Park, MA, May 2, 2026

Merlin, Quabbin Park, MA, May 2, 2026

Blue winged Warbler, Rail Trail, Amherst, MA, May 1, 2026

Blue Jay, Rail Trail, Amherst, MA, May 1, 2026

Chipping Sparrow, Skinner SP, Hadley, MA, May 1, 2026

Cerulean Warbler, Skinner SP, Hadley, MA, May 1, 2026

Worm eating Warbler, Skinner SP, Hadley, MA, May 1, 2026

Wild Columbine, Skinner SP, Hadley, MA, May 1, 2026

The first three days of May have overall been slower than usual for species with the weather being poor for migration with less than ideal winds, some bouts of rain and cool temps.  Nonetheless birds continue to push in as the desire to move north to breed can overcome some less than ideal conditions for migration.  To start off the month I headed out mainly looking for warblers and found some including my first Cerulean Warblers and Worm eating Warblers for the year.  I stayed mainly in the Hadley/Amherst area for morning and then spent the afternoon doing stuff around the yard.  Tuesday the 2nd started off rainy and I got as much birding in around Quabbin Park as the bouts of rain would allow.  Although birding conditions were tough at times, I did add one new warbler for my big warbler year in the US with a Chestnut sided Warbler that became warbler species #41 for the year.  With more north winds overnight I didn't expect to find too much this morning and was pleasantly surprised to have a number of good sightings including a Glossy Ibis I flushed out of a small pond at Silvio Conte NWR at Fort River, a Northern Harrier doing a courtship flight (also at Conte) and a Brewster's Warbler that showed up in the same spot in Amherst for a third year in a row and possibly a fourth year.  By mid morning it was getting too windy to see much and I headed home to take Wilson for a walk.  Overall not a terrible start to the month with 117 species so far for the county.

The next few nights look to feature some good migration conditions with strong southerly winds and some warm temps.  I expect a big influx of birds during the period before the weather turns less conducive for migration for multiple nights.