Cooler day with north winds brings in more waterfowl at Winsor Dam

Greater Scaup and Lesser Scaup, Winsor Dam, Quabbin Park, MA, Oct 27, 2026

Greater Scaup and Lesser Scaup, Winsor Dam, Quabbin Park, MA, Oct 27, 2026

Long tailed Ducks, Greater Scaup and Lesser Scaup, Winsor Dam, Quabbin Park, MA, Oct 27, 2026

Bonaparte's Gull, Winsor Dam, Quabbin Park, MA, Oct 27, 2026

Red breasted Mergansers, Winsor Dam, Quabbin Park, MA, Oct 27, 2026

Winsor Dam, Quabbin Park, MA, Oct 27, 2026

Winsor Dam, Quabbin Park, MA, Oct 27, 2026

Our sunny weather continues although today we cooled down on the heals of some stronger northerly winds and with the winds came more waterfowl.  I spent about two hours at Winsor Dam with Ted, Jack and Scott (plus another birder that showed up at the tail end of the time).  It stayed active throughout the time although the busiest (and windiest) time was early on.  We had 14 species of waterfowl including at least one Gadwall, a small mixed group of Greater and Lesser Scaup, lots of Black Scoters, a few White winged Scoters, Long tailed Ducks and all three merganser species.  In addition to the waterfowl I had at least one Pine Warbler in with a mixed flock of mainly Dark eyed Juncos and Eastern Bluebirds plus a couple Bonaparte's Gulls and some raptors.

Yellow rumped Warbler 'myrtle', Winsor Dam, Quabbin Park, MA, Oct 27, 2026

American Black Ducks, Winsor Dam, Quabbin Park, MA, Oct 27, 2026

After making a short trip elsewhere to get out of the wind for a bit I returned to the dam to try to get photos of the Pine Warbler with no luck in relocating it.  Waterfowl continued to move a bit while I walked around the area and a number of Black Scoters continued way out.

First snow storm of the season today, Yellow rumped Warblers yesterday plus the return of a banded Black capped Chickadee

Wilson enjoying the first snow of the season, Home, Belchertown, MA, Dec 2, 2025

Black capped Chickadee with leg bands, Home, Belchertown, MA, Dec 2, 2025

Black capped Chickadee with leg bands, Home, Belchertown, MA, Dec 2, 2025

Long tailed Ducks, Winsor Dam, Quabbin Park, MA, Dec 2, 2025

Winsor Dam, Quabbin Park, MA, Dec 2, 2025

Today brought us our first snowstorm of the season with several inches of snow, sleet and then some rain.  I managed to get out at first light before the snow arrived and actually had a great assortment of waterfowl at Winsor Dam with ten species at least (some just too far away in bad light to ID).  I wanted to go into Quabbin Park itself for more waterfowl but they closed the park not long after I arrived due to the impending snow storm.  I then headed home and took Wilson for an early walk and the snow was just starting as we ended the walk a bit after nine.  I put out a few feeders for the first time just before the snow and the birds quickly found them.  I even caught sight of a banded Black capped Chickadee that was banded as an adult in the yard back in the summer of 2021.  I had not seen the individual since April of this year so was very happy to see it still around.  It is getting to be an old chickadee with the typical life span of the species being 2-3 years.  Wilson also got to enjoy the snow and was something I was glad to see him do.  Now we are in for below normal temps with more mid winter like with multiple days not breaking freezing and temps at night in the single digits.  Average highs now should still be in the low 40's but we don't look to be near that temp for the foreseeable future.

 

Yellow rumped Warbler 'myrtle', Hadley, MA, Dec 1, 2025

   

Eastern Bluebird, Hadley, MA, Dec 1, 2025

Yesterday I also managed to find multiple Yellow rumped Warblers despite the breezy weather and the start of shotgun season for deer.  I only had a couple hours available to be out and I'm glad I tried for the warblers as it extended my consecutive streak of months of seeing at least one warbler species in Hampshire County to 104 months.  

Huge numbers of Horned Grebes today plus loads of other stuff put down by the weather

Red necked Grebes, Quabbin Gate 5, Belchertown, MA, Apr 11, 2025

Long tailed Ducks, Quabbin Gate 5, Belchertown, MA, Apr 11, 2025

Horned Grebes, Quabbin Gate 5, Belchertown, MA, Apr 11, 2025

Red breatsed Mergasners, Quabbin Gate 5, Belchertown, MA, Apr 11, 2025

View toward Quabbin tower, Quabbin Gate 5, Belchertown, MA, Apr 11, 2025

After a dusting of snow overnight I had hopes that the precipitation that came in overnight might have put down some migrant waterfowl (and perhaps others) so I headed to Winsor Dam at first light and started scanning the water.  I came across three Long tailed Ducks right away as well as a smattering of other species including dozens of birds that were just too far away to ID.  I decided to leave the dam and head to Gate 5 and see if I could get a better look at some of the birds from there.  I made the walk down to the water as quick as I could and started scanning and immediately started coming across noteworthy birds with many highlights including my highest count ever in the county for Horned Grebes with an amazing 114 individuals, blowing away my previous high count of 26 that I set back in December 2009.  I also had at least eight Red necked Grebes, two Ruddy Ducks, two White winged Scoters and 62 Long tailed Ducks as well as other more common species.  After about an hour at gate 5 I returned to Winsor Dam and could view some of the species from there although the numbers and diversity continued to drop as the day brightened up a bit and the precipitation lifted.  

Horned Grebes, Ware, MA, Apr 11, 2025

Red necked Grebes, Ware, MA, Apr 11, 2025

I tried a few other nearby areas for waterfowl and a small lake in Ware produced another ten Horned Grebes and four Red necked Grebes.  A really spectacular day for both species and not one I'm likely to repeat again.  I ended the morning with an impressive 18 species of waterfowl.

End of the second week of the month comes to a cold end

Gray Catbird, Mitch's Way, Hadley, MA, Nov 13, 2022

Light colored Mallard, Arcadia, Northampton, MA, Nov 13, 2022

Mute Swans, Arcadia, Northampton, MA, Nov 13, 2022

Winsor Dam, Quabbin Park, MA, Nov 13, 2022

The second week of November has now about come to an end and with it the end of our unseasonably warm weather.  We are now in a cooler than normal pattern that looks to continue into the foreseeable future with highs in the 40's and lows in the 20's.  The warm weather was nice while it lasted.  Sunday was the first really cool day with a wind out of the west and northwest bringing in the cold air with showers throughout much of the day, especially through midday.  I started the morning at Winsor Dam but it was rather slow with just the expected stuff around.  I then dodged rain for the next few hours as I visited spots along the river that I usually don't hit during hunting season and found a few notable birds including a late Gray Catbird and some waterfowl.  I also started checking areas that have featured overwintering Yellow rumped Warblers and found one at Mitch's Way...hopefully it (and others) stay all winter.  

Winsor Dam, Quabbin Park, MA, Nov 12, 2022

Saturday featured very warm and humid weather thanks to the remnants of Hurricane Nicole.  The morning low was 68 degrees!  I started off the rainy morning at Winsor Dam and didn't find much at all. I made a few return trips to the dam during the morning and the highlight was a single distant Red throated Loon.

Partial leucistic Common Grackle, East Meadows, Northampton, MA, Nov 11, 2022

Partial leucistic Common Grackle, East Meadows, Northampton, MA, Nov 11, 2022

Song Sparrow, Hadley town well area, Hadley, MA, Nov 11, 2022

Savannah Sparrow, East Meadows, Northampton, MA, Nov 11, 2022

Long tailed Ducks, Connecticut River, Hadley, MA, Nov 11, 2022

On Veterans Day I had some hope that history would repeat itself and I would turn up a big rarity at Winsor Dam but no luck this year although after two days of rarities (Common Eider on the 9th and Black legged Kittiwake on the 10th) I can't complain.  I made multiple stops over the course of the morning and had a few highlights including a large mixed flock of grackles (one partially leucistic individual), blackbirds, starlings and cowbirds in the East Meadows.  I continue to add species at a good clip for the month in Hampshire County with a total of 114 so far, which is just behind my highest ever at this point of the month and well ahead of a typical November (I had 118 by mid month in 2020 and ended that month with my best ever total for November in the county with 122 species).  

Several unusual species to start December

Marsh Wren, Pines Edge Conservation Area, Northampton, MA, Dec 3, 2020

Swamp Sparrow, Pines Edge Conservation Area, Northampton, MA, Dec 3, 2020

Canada Goose with white on neck, Meadow St, Amherst, MA, Dec 3, 2020

Canada Goose with dark body, Meadow St, Amherst, MA, Dec 3, 2020

Cackling Goose, UMASS, Amherst, MA, Dec 3, 2020

Cackling Goose, UMASS, Amherst, MA, Dec 3, 2020

Long tailed Duck, Winsor Dam, Quabbin Park, MA, Dec 3, 2020

    

Bonaparte's Gull with Ring billed Gulls, Winsor Dam, Quabbin Park, MA, Dec 3, 2020

Golden Eagle (top) with Bald Eagle, Winsor Dam, Quabbin Park, MA, Dec 3, 2020

Golden Eagle, Winsor Dam, Quabbin Park, MA, Dec 3, 2020

After getting out of work this morning I took advantage of the sunny (but cool to start) weather and headed back over to the Pines Edge Conservation Area where I had at least one Marsh Wren during a brief stop the previous morning.  I made the walk into the wildlife blind which looks over a moderately sized cattail marsh and I located two Marsh Wrens fairly quickly (but it took some time to get any looks and even longer to get any photos).  I also had some flyover Red Crossbills as I searched a few other access points of the marsh trying to turn up a late Common Yellowthroat without success.  I then headed across the river and checked a few fields in Hadley and Amherst looking for geese before stopping at UMASS where at least 1800 Canada Geese were loudly taking up temporary residence.  A field along Meadow Street held several hundred geese including a very dark bodied bird and another with extensive white on the neck.  Among the thousands of geese at UMASS was a single Cackling Goose (possibly Richardson subspecies).  This is the largest group of geese I have had so far this fall.  My final stop at Winsor Dam proved to be another great stop with a continued Bonaparte's Gull, a female Long tailed Duck and best of all, an adult Golden Eagle.  I caught sight of the bird through the scope and slowly watched it drift south, interacting with an adult Bald Eagle along the way.  I tried to get digiscoped shots of the bird but the results were less than stellar but given the great distance I was lucky to get anything at all for photos.  The Golden Eagle becomes species #247 for the year in Hampshire County.

Yellow rumped Warbler 'myrtle', Arcadia, Northampton, MA, Dec 1, 2020

American Tree Sparrow, Arcadia, Northampton, MA, Dec 1, 2020

On the first on the month I headed over to Arcadia primarily trying to locate some late warblers and any other lingering species I could find.  After a bit of walking I located two Yellow rumped Warblers (marking 44 consecutive months of finding at least one warbler in Hampshire County...more on that at the following link)

PURPLE SANDPIPER becomes my 300th species in Hampshire County plus other good stuff as October comes to a rainy, snowy, cold end

Purple Sandpiper, Holyoke Dam, South Hadley, MA, Oct 30, 2020

Purple Sandpiper (with American Pipit), Holyoke Dam, South Hadley, MA, Oct 30, 2020

Purple Sandpiper, Holyoke Dam, South Hadley, MA, Oct 30, 2020

What a fantastic day (really last few days) capped off with my 300th Hampshire County species this afternoon with a Purple Sandpiper initially found by Ted and seen by many over the course of the afternoon as the snow finally came to an end (after getting 3" or so here in Belchertown).  This is the first Hampshire County record for the species as well as the first one in the valley and only the third in western Massachusetts (with two old records from the 1950's and 1960's in the Berkshires)...in fact there is only one other non coastal sighting of the species and that was in Randolph (not very far inland at all).  What a great species to get me to the rarified air of 300 species in the county.  The sandpiper also becomes my 241st species in the county for the year, tying my previous best year set in 2018 and with two months of the year still left to go!  In addition this bird was a life bird for me (I never get to the coast when the species shows up for the winter) bringing me to a total of 1579 species.  I almost didn't get to try for the sandpiper as I was getting estimates for work at the house when I got the text from Ted and as soon as I could break free I headed down to the dam.  When I arrived a number of birders were already there and the bird was playing hide and seek in among the rocks and it would disappear from view occasionally.  Beyond the Purple Sandpiper there were a number of other notable species present including two Dunlin (what a fantastic last couple weeks for that species), the continued Brant and two Gadwall as well as multiple American Pipits and at least one Snow Bunting.  A big thank you to Ted for finding the species and staying around to get others on it.  Nothing like finding a first county record and sharing it with others.  More on the last few rainy and snowy days below.

Red breasted Mergansers, Winsor Dam, Quabbin Park, MA, Oct 28, 2020

Hooded Merganser, Winsor Dam, Quabbin Park, MA, Oct 28, 2020

Long tailed Ducks Winsor Dam, Quabbin Park, MA, Oct 28, 2020

Long tailed Duck, Mitch's Marina, Hadley, MA, Oct 29, 2020

Gadwall, Holyoke Dam, South Hadley, MA, Oct 29, 2020

Brant with American Black Ducks, Holyoke Dam, South Hadley, MA, Oct 29, 2020

Brant, Holyoke Dam, South Hadley, MA, Oct 29, 2020

Lesser Black backed Gull (L) with Ring billed Gulls, Winsor Dam, Quabbin Park, MA, Oct 30, 2020

Lesser Black backed Gull (L) with Ring billed Gulls, Winsor Dam, Quabbin Park, MA, Oct 30, 2020

Wood Ducks and Hooded Mergansers, Quabbin Park, MA, Oct 30, 2020

The end of October finished rainy and then snowy but nonetheless was very productive for birds for me with a number of rarities showing up and a new high count for me for the month in Hampshire County (more on all that at the bottom of the post).  The last few days have featured rainy days (including the remnants of Hurricane Zeta coming through Thursday) which grounded a number of species (mainly waterfowl and shorebirds).  On Wednesday I stayed mainly around the south Quabbin area (primarily Winsor Dam with multiple visits) and over the course of the day found eleven species of waterfowl including all three scoter species, a group of 11 Long tailed Ducks, lots of Bufflehead and two Red breasted Mergansers.  With a brief lull in the rain early on Thursday I headed over to Arcadia, the East Meadows, the Holyoke Dam and then back to Winsor Dam.  The rain started back up by 9am and continued for the rest of the day.  I was lucky to catch up with a Short eared Owl before dawn at the Honey Pot on my way to the locations mentioned above.  Other notable species for the morning on Thursday included at least three American Woodcocks I flushed at Arcadia, an American Coot at Arcadia, a lone Long tailed Duck in the river at Mitch's Marina, the continued Brant and two Gadwall as well as a 100+ Common Mergansers at the Holyoke Dam.  Winsor Dam featured a number of loons including a small individual that was something other than a Common Loon but it was just too far out and the fog too thick to definitively identify.  On Friday I woke up to rain that quickly turned to snow and got heavy for a time resulting in us getting a couple inches of wet snow.  As soon as it was light I was over at Winsor Dam trying to find something interesting before the rain changed to snow and knocked down visibility too much.  Unfortunately the change over to snow occurred just as it was getting light so there was a very small window of any visibility at a very windy Winsor Dam.  Nonetheless I still managed to find a good bird when I had a Lesser Black backed Gull in with a single Herring Gull and multiple Ring billed Gulls.  I got a few marginal shots through the scope showing the darker mantle and size but little else.  Would have loved to get some better shots but I was lucky to get any at all.  I also had two very intriguing shorebirds whip by before I could ID them.  As the snow became heavier and heavier and the wind continued to roar out of the northeast I left the dam and tried the Route 9 marsh before heading for home as the roads started to get slushy.  I made it back to the dam midday but the snow and wind were still keeping visibility way down but I did have some birds including a Greater Scaup that made a brief stop and small groups of Mallards, Black Ducks and Double crested Cormorants.  I planned on a return to Winsor Dam as soon as the snow let up but the text from Ted regarding the Purple Sandpiper changed all that!  I eventually made it back to the dam with the most interesting sighting for that stop being a high count of 66 Long tailed Ducks.  I suspect tomorrow will turn up more waterfowl as winds continue out of the north and the temperatures drop to record low levels.

Cackling Goose, Arcadia, Northampton, MA, Oct 20, 2020

Franklin's Gull, Arcadia, Northampton, MA, Oct 26, 2020

Cattle Egret, Meadow St, Amherst, MA, Oct 16, 2020

Lark Sparrow, East Meadows, Northampton, MA, Oct 20, 2020

I finished the month with 163 species which blew away my previous high for the month of 152 set in 2018.  As mentioned above there were a number of rarities around for the month and I managed to catch up with a few but not all of them.  Notable species in addition to those mentioned above included Barnacle Goose (species #299 in Hampshire County for me), Cackling Goose, Franklin's Gull, Cattle Egret and Lark Sparrow as well as irruptives including Evening Grosbeak, Purple Finch, Common Redpoll, Red Crossbill and Pine Siskin.

Black capped Chickadee with leg bands (banded in 2017), Home, Belchertown, MA, Oct 30, 2020

Black capped Chickadee with leg bands (banded in 2019), Home, Belchertown, MA, Oct 30, 2020

Black capped Chickadee with leg bands (banded in 2019), Home, Belchertown, MA, Oct 30, 2020

Jabish Brook in the snow, Home, Belchertown, MA, Oct 30, 2020

Wilson at the beginning of the storm, Home, Belchertown, MA, Oct 30, 2020

With the snow and cold temperatures I decided to put out a feeder and some suet to help the birds survive the early arrival of winter like conditions.  As I watched the birds come and go I noticed first one, then two and finally three different banded Black capped Chickadees with the biggest surprise being one banded in 2017 that I have not seen around in years...wonder where he has been hiding!