October Big Day yesterday

Dawn, Amherst, MA, Oct 10, 2026

Magnolia Warbler, Amherst, MA, Oct 10, 2026

Northern Flicker, Amherst, MA, Oct 10, 2026

White throated Sparrow, Amherst, MA, Oct 10, 2026

Yellow rumped Warbler 'myrtle', Amherst, MA, Oct 10, 2026

Blackpoll Warbler, Belchertown, MA, Oct 10, 2026

Black throated Green Warbler, Belchertown, MA, Oct 10, 2026

Ruby crowned Kinglet, Belchertown, MA, Oct 10, 2026

Yellow rumped Warbler 'myrtle', Belchertown Land Trust Trail, Belchertown, MA, Oct 10, 2026

Nashville Warbler, Belchertown Land Trust Trail,, Belchertown, MA, Oct 10, 2026

Black Bear, Belchertown Land Trust Trail, Belchertown, MA, Oct 10, 2026

Northern Water Snake, Belchertown Land Trust Trail, Belchertown, MA, Oct 10, 2026

Woodchuck, Home, Belchertown, MA, Oct 10, 2026

Yesterday was the annual October Big Day (as well as the one month mark from losing Wilson) and with fantastic weather (despite a cold start in the 40's) I spent all morning out tracking down birds (focusing on warblers but checking out everything).  I covered areas from Amherst back to Belchertown and found a total of 63 species with the notable species being a couple late warbler species (Magnolia Warbler and Cape May Warbler).  It was a stunningly beautiful morning with a fantastic sunrise and loads of sunshine with little wind until later in the morning.  Beyond the birds I had some mammal and reptile sightings along the way.

Decent migration to close out August

Wilson's Warbler, Ware, MA, Aug 31, 2026

Magnolia Warbler, Ware, MA, Aug 31, 2026

Winsor Dam, Quabbin Park, MA, Aug 31, 2026

Common Yellowthroat, Quabbin Park, MA, Aug 29, 2026

Blackburnian Warbler, Belchertown, MA, Aug 29, 2026

Tennessee Warbler, Belchertown, MA, Aug 29, 2026

White dotted Prominent Caterpillar, Quabbin Park, MA, Aug 29, 2026

I have had some decent luck the last few mornings catching up with some mixed flocks and having slightly less mosquitoes stealing my blood.  The migration so far has been rather slow although it certainly picked up lately.  I added four new warbler species for the month in just the last two mornings with one being a Wilson's Warbler.  Just the sign of things to come as the month of September starts and with it the peak of fall migration.  

A big warm up and multiple nights of good migration conditions

Purple Martin and Tree Swallows, Silvio Conte NWR-Fort River, Hadley, MA, May 19, 2026

Purple Martin, Silvio Conte NWR-Fort River, Hadley, MA, May 19, 2026

Northern Cardinal with nest material, Bachelor Brook Conservation Area, South Hadley, MA, May 19, 2026

Mourning Warbler, Mitch's Way, Hadley, MA, May 19, 2026

Gray cheeked Thrush, Belchertown, MA, May 19, 2026

Raccoon swimming, Mitch's Way, Hadley, MA, May 19, 2026

Ruby throated Hummingbird, Quabbin Park, MA, May 18, 2026

Lawrence's Warbler, Hardwick, MA, May 18, 2026

Gray Catbird, Ware, MA, May 18, 2026

Butterfly species, Quabbin Park, MA, May 18, 2026

Blue gray Gnatcatcher constructing nest, Quabbin Park, MA, May 17, 2026

Rainbow Scarab, Quabbin Park, MA, May 17, 2026

Solitary Sandpiper, Rail trail, Amherst, MA, May 17, 2026

Magnolia Warbler, Rail trail, Amherst, MA, May 17, 2026

Tree Swallow with nest material, Rail trail, Amherst, MA, May 17, 2026

Bay breasted Warbler, Skinner SP, Hadley, MA, May 17, 2026

Worm eating Warbler, Skinner SP, Hadley, MA, May 17, 2026

Blackpoll Warbler, Skinner SP, Hadley, MA, May 17, 2026

Hooded Merganser eggs in duck box #2, Home, Belchertown, MA, May 17, 2026

We have had multiple nights of great migration conditions thanks to southerly winds that also ushered in record setting temps in the 90's.  As expected I have been out as much as I can each morning before returning to take the Wilson for his required walk.  Even with some species still moving through to points to the north breeding activity around here is in full swing with the first waterfowl young out and about and many species collecting nesting material and building nests.  I have added several new species for the year in the county as well as some rarities.  The highlights included Purple Martin, Gray cheeked Thrush, Yellow breasted Chat, two new species of warbler for the year as part of my warbler big year in the US and a Lawrence's Warbler.  Migration has now peaked at this point and now we begin the downhill slide of another spring migration.  

Rufous Hummingbird in Amherst

Rufous Hummingbird, Amherst, MA, Apr 26, 2026

Rufous Hummingbird, Amherst, MA, Apr 26, 2026

Rufous Hummingbird, Amherst, MA, Apr 26, 2026

Rufous Hummingbird, Amherst, MA, Apr 26, 2026

 

Rufous Hummingbird, Amherst, MA, Apr 26, 2026

I took a brief break from my typical birding by stopping by Josh Rose's house in Amherst to hopefully catch a glimpse of a Rufous Hummingbird that showed up at his feeders a few days ago.  He initially reported it as an early arriving female Ruby throated Hummingbird.  The day after the report he contacted me with some slightly better photos that showed the bird was possibly a selasphorus species of some type (Rufous or Allen's Hummingbird being the most likely).  His photos were not great so I stopped by a couple days ago to try to see the bird and get some photos however the bird never made an appearance.  Josh continued to try to get some photos and eventually he got some better ones that clearly showed it was not a Ruby throated Hummingbird.  He had a few people come by before I could get there today and Brian Z. got some great tail spread photos that confirmed the identification to Rufous Hummingbird.  At this point Josh made the decision to release the sighting to the general birding public...a tough decision to make with a rarity that shows up in your yard in a crowded neighborhood.  He let his neighbors know about the likely influx of birders and spelled out as well as possible the actions any interested birders should make if they wanted to try for this rarity to limited disruption to both his house and the general area.  With all this in mind I decided to swing by briefly this morning before the hordes would inevitably descend.  When I arrived Joe was already there as was another birder and quickly followed by a few more birders.  I had a decent look at the feeder in the front yard from my car and after a wait of perhaps 15 minutes the hummingbird made a visit to the feeder and I got a few distant photos.  I left not long after as to not be a pest to the neighborhood and free up a prime spot to view the bird for someone else.  This is only second Rufous Hummingbird I have seen in Hampshire County with my first being one that visited a feeder at a private home (also in Amherst) back on October 20th, 2012 (when Ian, Jacob and Keenan were still college students).  This western species is exceedingly rare in the county (and in all of western Massachusetts) and almost all other records pertain to individuals showing up in fall.  Spring records for the state overall are quite rare.  Other county records for the species in eBird include the one mentioned above in October of 2012, one in South Hadley in late October into early November 2005, one in Amherst from September-October 2002, multiple years of "Ruffie" overwintering at Tom Gagnon's residence in Northampton in the late 1990's and another in Northampton in September 1995.  I'm certain there are some earlier records but I could not find any.  In the end it is an exceedingly rare species in the county with spring records even more so.

Magnolia Warbler, Quabbin Park, MA, Apr 26, 2026

Magnolia Warbler, Quabbin Park, MA, Apr 26, 2026

Magnolia Warbler, Quabbin Park, MA, Apr 26, 2026

Magnolia Warbler, Quabbin Park, MA, Apr 26, 2026

Blue headed Vireo, Quabbin Park, MA, Apr 26, 2026

Butterfly species, Quabbin Park, MA, Apr 26, 2026

Other birding stops for the morning produced a variety of species including the continued record early Magnolia Warbler I found yesterday in Quabbin Park plus a noticeable increase in Blue headed Vireos at multiple locations.  I also noticed that I recently submitted my 60,000th complete eBird list with a trip to Quabbin Gate 5 yesterday...a nice place to reach a milestone list.