A hot July comes to an end with a Glossy Ibis

Glossy Ibis, East Meadows, Northampton, MA, Jul 31, 2025

Glossy Ibis, East Meadows, Northampton, MA, Jul 31, 2025

Glossy Ibis, East Meadows, Northampton, MA, Jul 31, 2025

Solitary Sandpiper, East Meadows, Northampton, MA, Jul 31, 2025

Green Heron, Lake Wallace, Belchertown, MA, Jul 31, 2025

Double crested Cormorant, Holyoke Dam, South Hadley, MA, Jul 31, 2025

The hot and humid month of July has now come to an end.  July is usually a fairly slow month for birds overall but it did have some big highlights for me including two new species for me in the county with a Stilt Sandpiper and a White Ibis bringing my Hampshire County total to 309 and then added a Glossy Ibis this morning (becoming likely the first person to ever get two ibis species in Hampshire County in a single month).  I'm actually at my highest total ever in the county YTD with a total of 225 species as of today...I have not really chased any rarities either but perhaps I should now and possible top my best year ever in the county.  I also retired last week and now can devote all my time to birding, travel and hanging out with Wilson.  There was also some sad news with the passing of long time valley birder Tom Gagnon in the early part of the month.  

Multiple rarities to start off August

Sedge Wren, Silvio Conte NWR-Fort River, Hadley, MA, Aug 1, 2024

Field Sparrows, Silvio Conte NWR-Fort River, Hadley, MA, Aug 2, 2024

Purple Martins, Silvio Conte NWR-Fort River, Hadley, MA, Aug 2, 2024

Purple Martin nestling, Silvio Conte NWR-Fort River, Hadley, MA, Aug 2, 2024

Green Heron, Lake Wallace, Belchertown, MA, Aug 3, 2024

Glossy Ibis, Lake Wallace, Belchertown, MA, Aug 3, 2024

Lesser Yellowlegs, East Meadows, Northampton, MA, Aug 4, 2024

Winsor Dam, Quabbin Park, MA, Aug 5, 2024

Hermit Thrush, Reed Conservation Area, Belchertown, MA, Aug 5, 2024

Common Yellowthroat, Reed Conservation Area, Belchertown, MA, Aug 5, 2024

Black and White Warbler, Reed Conservation Area, Belchertown, MA, Aug 5, 2024

The first few days of August continued to be hot with temps the first couple days in the 90's and humid.  Despite other commitments and work I got out as much as I could and concentrated mainly on tracking down a number of rarities continuing in the area and had some great luck.  On the first on my way to work I stopped by Silvio Conte NWR in Hadley and had Northern Pintail, Purple Martins, at least three singing Sedge Wrens and an Orchard Oriole among nearly fifty species in less than a half an hour.  I added Blue Grosbeak at the Honey Pot before heading to work for another incredibly busy shift.  Once I was out of work on Friday morning I stopped back by Silvio Conte NWR and had some of the same species from the day before as well as observing some bird banding on site.  I then ran some errands in Hadley and then headed toward home with a brief stop at Winsor Dam where I added the long staying female Common Goldeneye to my August list.  On the third the best species I found was a juvenile Glossy Ibis at Lake Wallace (a new species for me at the location).  I had an overtime day shift on the 4th but got a little birding in on the way to work with some shorebirds in the East Meadows and a flyover Snowy Egret (with a Great Egret) at Arcadia and I added a Red Crossbill for the month once I was home in the evening.  The fifth was mainly spent tracking down warblers with some success.  No big rarities for that day but some good variety nonetheless.

May comes to an end

Glossy Ibis, East Meadows, Northampton, MA, May 1, 2024

Black and White Warbler, Rail trail, Amherst, MA, May 1, 2024

Canada Goose goslings, Rail trail, Amherst, MA, May 2, 2024

Ruffed Grouse, Quabbin Park, MA, May 6, 2024

Orange crowned Warbler, UMASS, Amherst, MA, May 6, 2024

Mourning Dove nest with young, Rail trail, Amherst, MA, May 10, 2024

Rose breasted Grosbeak, Rail trail, Amherst, MA, May 10, 2024

Baltimore Oriole, Quabbin Park, MA, May 13, 2024

White eyed Vireo, Hadley, MA, May 14, 2024

Chestnut sided Warbler building nest, Quabbin Park, MA, May 14, 2024

Least Bittern, Rail trail, Amherst, MA, May 17, 2024

Blue Jay carrying nest material, Rail trail, Amherst, MA, May 17, 2024

Prothonotary Warbler, Bachelor Brook Conservation Area, South Hadley, MA, May 18, 2024

Canada Warbler, Quabbin Park, MA, May 19, 2024

Red Crossbill, Quabbin Park, MA, May 20, 2024

Tennessee Warbler, Quabbin Park, MA, May 20, 2024

Peregrine Falcon, Yard species #174, Home, Belchertown, MA, May 20, 2024

Carolina Wren fledgling, Home, Belchertown, MA, May 21, 2024

Wild Turkey, Quabbin Park, MA, May 21, 2024

Eastern Bluebird nest with eggs, Home, MA, May 25, 2024

American Woodcock, Rail trail, Amherst, MA, May 25, 2024

Blue winged Warbler, Quabbin Park, MA, May 27, 2024

Dusted Skipper, Rail trail, Amherst, MA, May 28, 2024

Wilson enjoying the sun, Home, Belchertown, MA, May 28, 2024

Tree Swallow with leg bands, Silvio Conte NWR-Fort River, Hadley, MA, May 31, 2024

The big migration month of May has now come to an end and it was a decent migration with the best results from those early arriving and those arriving during the peak through mid month.  Later season migrants (Olive sided Flycatcher, Swainson's Thrush, Mourning Warbler, etc) were very low in number and my thoughts as to why include that many just flew right on past thanks to great migration conditions and/or the species mainly avoided the general area.  Despite not being able to make it up to a few of the higher elevations and more rugged trails due to my back injury I still did as well as I could given my limitations and ended the month with 174 species in the county (which is about average for me the last several years).  I know I could have added a few more species if I visited more areas but it was just not to be this year.  Highlights for the month in the county included a pair of Common Goldeneyes that stayed through the end of the month at Quabbin, Least Bittern, Glossy Ibis, White eyed Vireo, Sedge Wren, a record setting 31 species of warblers including Prothonotary Warbler, two Orange crowned Warblers and Hooded Warbler as well as the Blue Grosbeaks returning to breed for another year.  I also added a new yard species (#174) when a Peregrine Falcon flew overhead.  Thankfully I was feeling better as the month wore on but still not up to making steep hikes but I was able to complete my first Eastern Whip Poor Will survey and the annual bird survey at Poverty Mountain.  So far for the year I stand at 206 for Hampshire County which is my lowest total year to date since 2017 and this is largely due to lack of being able to chase a few rarities and a very slow season for shorebirds.  It will not be a record setting year for me.  I also managed to find at least 100 species every day for the entire month in the county, something I have never been able to do before and I managed this without being able to get to spots I would normally have gone to.  A silver lining to walking a lot everyday to make my back loosen up a bit.

The first three days of May

Glossy Ibis, East Meadows, Northampton, MA, May 1, 2024

Least Sandpipers, East Meadows, Northampton, MA, May 1, 2024

American Robin with leg band, Silvio Conte NWR-Fort River, Hadley, MA, May 1, 2024

Mourning Dove on nest, Rail trail, Amherst, MA, May 1, 2024

Blue winged x Golden winged Warbler hybrid, Rail trail, Amherst, MA, May 1, 2024

Red eyed Vireo, Quabbin Park, MA, May 1, 2024

Nashville Warbler, Quabbin Park, MA, May 1, 2024

Black and White Warbler, Quabbin Park, MA, May 1, 2024

Ruby crowned Kinglet, Quabbin Park, MA, May 1, 2024

Northern Parula, Quabbin Park, MA, May 1, 2024

Carolina Wren nest, Home, Belchertown, MA, May 1, 2024

The first three days of May has seen a decent influx of species and I have tried to get out as much as I can.  My back injury has certainly curtailed my typical activity this time of year as it hurts too much to go off the beaten path.  I can certainly say that I'm thankfully I have a light camera set up now as there is no way I could lug around my old 7D with the way I have been feeling.  I had to drop some work paperwork off in Northampton and headed there before dawn after walking up at 3AM and then finally getting out of bed around 4:15 and needed to enjoy the seat warmer in the car for a bit and then take some walks to loosen the back up for the day.  The first day of the month produced an amazing 118 species.  I'm sure I could have added several more species with more effort off the trail but not to be at this point. 

Blue winged x Golden winged Warbler hybrid, Rail trail, Ware, MA, May 2, 2024

Baltimore Oriole, Quabbin Park, MA, May 2, 2024

Ovenbird, Quabbin Park, MA, May 2, 2024

Red Crossbill, Quabbin Park, MA, May 2, 2024

Canada Goose goslings, Rail trail, Amherst, MA, May 2, 2024

Great crested Flycatcher, Rail trail, Amherst, MA, May 2, 2024

The second started off quite cool and cloudy with occasional drizzle but once the sun broke out late in the morning it warmed up rapidly with temps near 80.  The radar overnight showed lots of birds moving and I had thoughts of walking at Skinner SP but my back just said no so I stayed in level areas.  I found a few new species over the course of the day and eked out another 100 species day with the last bird of the day being a Lincoln's Sparrow at home. 

Cape May Warbler, Silvio Conte NWR-Fort River, Hadley, MA, May 3, 2024

Baltimore Oriole, Silvio Conte NWR-Fort River, Hadley, MA, May 3, 2024

Pine Warbler, Home, Belchertown, MA, May 3, 2024

Blue headed Vireo, Home, Belchertown, MA, May 3, 2024

Bald Eagles, Home, Belchertown, MA, May 3, 2024

Today I made a few early walks in Hadley after another good night of migration.  It was yet another cloudy start but not as cold as the day before.  The most noticeable species for the morning seemed to be Nashville Warblers with quite a few at multiple locations.  I really wanted to walk the ridge on the Holyoke range but I figured my back would not be able to take the uneven surfaces.  I stuck to even paths to avoid any issues.  I didn't stay out as long as previous days and despite that I was able to reach 102 species for the day.  The house was quite productive with quite a few warblers around (a dozen species at least).