Rain overnight into this morning produces either an Arctic or Common Tern plus other sightings from the last few days

Arctic/Common Tern, Quabbin Gate 5, Belchertown,  MA, May 30, 2016

Arctic/Common Tern, Quabbin Gate 5, Belchertown,  MA, May 30, 2016

Arctic/Common Tern, Quabbin Gate 5, Belchertown,  MA, May 30, 2016

Winsor Dam, Quabbin Park, MA, May 30, 2016

Lesser Scaup, Winsor Dam, Quabbin Park, MA, May 30, 2016

With southerly winds continuing overnight and some heavy rain (associated with once Tropical Storm Bonnie) that moved in well before dawn I had hopes that some migrants would be grounded by the weather. I could not get out until after work but I still managed to turn up a good bird. I worked my way over to Winsor Dam after a brief, fruitless stop at some farm fields in Hadley. It was still raining fairly hard as I scoped around and found the Lesser Scaup once again and then noticed a small bird sitting on the small platform way out. I had terns at the same location earlier in May and the bird looked really good for a tern so I headed over to Gate 5 to get a better look. I made it down to the water just as it started to rain even harder but I was still able to view the bird. It appeared good for an identification as a Common Tern although it appeared a bit smaller than the terns I had on the platform at the beginning of the month so it is best left as either an Arctic or Common Tern...always frustrating to not get a definitive ID.  Much thanks to the several experts I sent the photos to for their feedback.  The bird flushed up once when an eagle came through but them quickly returned to the platform. I managed to get some distant in flight shots as well as a video. I also checked the area of Goodnough Dike for anything good but no luck. Full album of the tern can be found at the following link:  https://www.flickr.com/photos/54277284@N05/albums/72157666532757794
It has been a very good year for terns in the area (mainly due to some rainy weather that hit at the right time to bring the birds down).

Lesser Scaup, Winsor Dam, Quabbin Park, MA, May 29, 2016

Winsor Dam, Quabbin Park, MA, May 29, 2016

Blue Jay, rail trail, Amherst, MA, May 29, 2016

Snapping Turtle laying eggs, rail trail, Amherst, MA, May 29, 2016

Before work yesterday I made a few stops with my first over to Winsor Dam were I once again had the male Lesser Scaup continuing to hanging around.  I then headed over to the Hop Brook along the rail trail looking for shorebirds but only found some Spotted Sandpipers.  I did have a few Snapping Turtles laying eggs just off the rail trail as well as a Blue Jay taking apart the nest it was sitting in last week and moving it to a new nesting location.  I assume the initial nest failed but tough to say if it is the same bird raiding its old nest of material or a new jay.

Mourning Warbler, UMASS, Amherst, MA, May 28, 2016

Mourning Warbler, UMASS, Amherst, MA, May 28, 2016

On Saturday I headed out early to avoid the heat later in the day (record setting high in the mid 90's) making multiple stops over the course of the morning starting at Winsor Dam (continued Lesser Scaup and three Eastern Whip Poor Wills being highlights) and continuing over to Amherst and Hadley.  One of the best birds of the morning was a male Mourning Warbler at Orchard Hill at UMASS which I first detected as it sang. I eventually tracked it down and got some decent looks before it disappeared back into the brush, not to be seen again.

UMASS and some spots in Hadley finds a few migrants

Northern Parula, Orchard Hill, UMASS Amherst, MA, Sep 14, 2014

Northern Parula, Orchard Hill, UMASS Amherst, MA, Sep 14, 2014

Rose breasted Grosbeak, Orchard Hill, UMASS Amherst, MA, Sep 14, 2014

Scarlet Tanager, Orchard Hill, UMASS Amherst, MA, Sep 14, 2014

House Wren, Orchard Hill, UMASS Amherst, MA, Sep 14, 2014

American Redstart, Orchard Hill, UMASS Amherst, MA, Sep 14, 2014

I spent this cold morning (mid 40's at dawn) birding Orchard Hill at UMASS with Ian and then the Honey Pot and the Connecticut River in Hadley by myself...it was like old times back up on O Hill and despite the cool temps we had some decent birds. Highlights on the hill included a dozen Ruby throated Hummingbirds, a couple Wood Thrushes, ten Northern Parula (including some individuals still singing), two Yellow Warblers, a Bay breasted Warbler, a couple White throated Sparrows, 17 Scarlet Tanagers, seven Rose breasted Grosbeaks and a couple flyby Purple Finches among 43 species (including nine species of warbler).

Indigo Bunting, Honey Pot, Hadley, MA, Sep 14, 2014

Indigo Bunting, Honey Pot, Hadley, MA, Sep 14, 2014

Cooper's Hawk, Honey Pot, Hadley, MA, Sep 14, 2014

Bobolinks, Honey Pot, Hadley, MA, Sep 14, 2014

Once I parted ways with Ian I headed over to the Honey Pot and made a stop at the dike to scan for shorebirds. No luck with shorebirds but the Broad winged Hawks were already forming small kettles in every direction at 9 AM with at least 200 birds in view. Certainly looked like a good day to be looking for hawks with a nice breeze out of the north and northwest. Other notable birds here included a total of seven raptor species, half a dozen Barn Swallows, a Lincoln's Sparrow, eight Indigo Buntings and sixteen Bobolinks.  Not as active as I had hoped for but with all the raptors around not too surprising.

Solitary Sandpipers, Connecticut River, Hadley, MA, Sep 14, 2014

The Connecticut River was down fairly low exposing some mud flats which contained a Spotted Sandpiper, five Solitary Sandpipers and nine Least Sandpipers plus a Great Egret.

Various stops in the valley

 

Blue winged Warbler, Rail trail, Amherst, MA, May 30, 2014

Song Sparrow with leg bands, UMASS, Amherst, MA, May 30, 2014

Song Sparrow with leg bands, UMASS, Amherst, MA, May 30, 2014

Although it was another cool morning it eventually warmed nicely into the 70's again...certainly feeling more like September with cool mornings and days warming up with low humidity. I'm sure it will change soon but it is enjoyable now. I started off my morning over at UMASS trying to catch up with a reported Lawrence's Warbler but didn't have any luck tracking it down.  I tracked down every Blue winged Warbler today (like I always do) but no hybrids among them although it is neat to see some of the variation among individuals of a species.  I did run across a few leg tagged Song Sparrows on Orchard Hill which I managed to get a few marginal shots of as I was heading out. I assume it is someone's project at UMASS and if I hear any details about it I will post an update.  The northwest part of campus also held a nice variety of birds but nothing too unusual.  My next stop was over to the rail trail where I found the mudflats nearly devoid of birds with just a single Spotted Sandpiper and a couple Killdeer.

I then headed home early to pick up Wilson and we went for a long walk along the land trust trail in Belchertown and managed to come across a great bird when we were off on a side trail in some deeper woods...a Gray cheeked Thrush seen in direct compassion to a nearby Hermit Thrush (which eventually it chased). The bird had no hint of rufous at all so I feel confident it was not a Bicknell's although the bird was silent. Usually I get Gray cheeked Thrush as a nocturnal migrant by flight call so it is always fun to actually get to see it during the day.  The thrush became species #213 for the county this year.  No photo as I only had my binos and phone and the bird didn't stay still long enough to grab a shot.  Also had another Black billed Cuckoo which allowed for some great views...seems like a good year for this species.

Broad winged Hawk, Covey WMA, May 30, 2014

Blue winged Warbler, Covey WMA, May 30, 2014

Blue winged Warbler, Quabbin Park, May 30, 2014

After our long walk I dropped Wilson off at home and I headed out again with stops at Covey WMA and a small part of Quabbin Park.  I did catch a snippet of a call from a large marsh at Covey WMA that sounded a lot like a Common Gallinule but I only heard it once and lots of searching didn't turn up anything...probably just a frog, but who knows?  Also had a Peregrine Falcon flying by quite high.  I don't know of any nesting falcons anywhere close by so I wonder where the bird came from.

Overall not too many obvious migrants with most birds seemingly on territory. The exception to that would of course be the previously mentioned Gray cheeked Thrush as well as several Blackpoll Warblers at a few different stops.  Migration is rapidly coming to a close but there are always birds moving so interesting stuff could still show up at any time.

The warblers continue...

 

Scarlet Tanager, UMASS Amherst, Sep 20, 2013

Cape May Warbler, UMASS Amherst, Sep 20, 2013

Cape May Warbler, UMASS Amherst, Sep 20, 2013

 

'Traills' Flycatcher, UMASS Amherst, Sep 20, 2013

Another cool, foggy start to the day with a sunny and warm end. The fog stayed in place through most of the morning and only burned off late morning. Once again the fog made viewing a bit difficult and photography a bit of a challenge. I started off the morning at UMASS where several other birders and I had another spectacular day of watching the migrants move through. I have included the eBird list below. Some of the numbers were quite impressive in my humble opinion.

UMass Amherst
6:14 AM - 9:44 AM

Mourning Dove  1
Red-bellied Woodpecker  3
Yellow-bellied Sapsucker  1
Downy Woodpecker  3
Hairy Woodpecker  1
Northern Flicker  3
Pileated Woodpecker  1
Eastern Wood-Pewee  1
Alder/Willow Flycatcher (Traill's Flycatcher)  1     Late, photos.
Eastern Phoebe  5
Blue-headed Vireo  3
Warbling Vireo  1
Philadelphia Vireo  1
Red-eyed Vireo  12
Blue Jay  9
American Crow  2
Black-capped Chickadee  12
Tufted Titmouse  2
White-breasted Nuthatch  2
House Wren  4
Carolina Wren  3
Ruby-crowned Kinglet  1
Wood Thrush  6     Calling in morning
American Robin  12
Gray Catbird  22
Cedar Waxwing  5
Black-and-white Warbler  5
Tennessee Warbler  7     Amazing numbers with variety of plumages
Nashville Warbler  2
Common Yellowthroat  11
American Redstart  11     One adult male
Cape May Warbler  1    bright adult male
Northern Parula  26     Minimum
Magnolia Warbler  8
Blackburnian Warbler  1
Chestnut-sided Warbler  7     Minimum
Blackpoll Warbler  12
Pine Warbler  1
Yellow-rumped Warbler (Myrtle)  17
Black-throated Green Warbler  24     Minimum
Wilson's Warbler  1
Chipping Sparrow  1
Song Sparrow  9
Lincoln's Sparrow  3
White-throated Sparrow  6
Scarlet Tanager  5     Minimum
Northern Cardinal  7
Rose-breasted Grosbeak  3
Indigo Bunting  1
Bobolink  1     Heard
House Finch  12
American Goldfinch  2
 

 

Tennessee Warbler, Silvio O. Conte NWR, Hadley, MA, Sep 20, 2013

Tennessee Warbler, UMASS Amherst, Sep 20, 2013

Tennessee Warbler (1st year), UMASS Amherst, Sep 20, 2013

Tennessee Warbler (1st year), UMASS Amherst, Sep 20, 2013

Tennessee Warbler (1st year), UMASS Amherst, Sep 20, 2013

 It certainly has been a great year for warbler species that feed on spruce bud worm outbreaks. The numbers of Bay breasted, Cape May and Tennessee Warblers have been very impressive and are some of the best counts I have ever had of them. Sometimes these species are difficult or impossible to find during fall but not this year. The most numerous of the three has been Tennessee Warbler and I think the large number of them around has led to many (but not all) reports of early Orange crowned Warblers. The 1st year Tennessee Warblers can look ALOT like an Orange crowned and I don't think many appreciate just how close they can appear to each other. Hopefully everyone gets out and enjoys this spectacle of unusual warblers as they move through on their way to the tropics.

Great Blue Heron, Silvio O. Conte NWR, Hadley, MA, Sep 20, 2013

Great Blue Heron, Silvio O. Conte NWR, Hadley, MA, Sep 20, 2013

Eastern Phoebe, Silvio O. Conte NWR, Hadley, MA, Sep 20, 2013

Field near entrance, Silvio O. Conte NWR, Hadley, MA, Sep 20, 2013

 

Yellow Warbler, Silvio O. Conte NWR, Hadley, MA, Sep 20, 2013

Nashville Warbler, Silvio O. Conte NWR, Hadley, MA, Sep 20, 2013

 

Brown Thrasher, Silvio O. Conte NWR, Hadley, MA, Sep 20, 2013

Once I finished up at UMASS I headed over to the Silvio O. Conte NWR in Hadley to check out the area. Even though it was late morning the area still had a lot of birds with highlights being another Tennessee Warbler, a couple Yellow Warblers, a couple Brown Thrashers and lots of phoebes. The area looks great to attract an odd flycatcher or sparrow this fall. I bet a return trip here in spring could produce some amazing warblers.

Another good day for migrants

Red tailed Hawk, Orchard Hill UMASS Amherst, Sep 19, 2013

Tennessee Warbler (w/ black throated green warbler), Orchard Hill UMASS Amherst, Sep 19, 2013

Tennessee Warbler (w/ black throated green warbler), Orchard Hill UMASS Amherst, Sep 19, 2013

Started out another productive day before dawn at Orchard Hill.  The birds came fast and furious for awhile.  I have included the list for the morning below.  A great morning there indeed and not really expected given the less than optimal migration conditions last night.  I spent about 3 1/2 hours there exploring several areas.

Orchard Hill

Sharp-shinned Hawk  1
Accipiter sp.  1
Red-tailed Hawk  2
Mourning Dove  2
Ruby-throated Hummingbird  4
Red-bellied Woodpecker  4
Downy Woodpecker  2
Hairy Woodpecker  1
Northern Flicker  5
Eastern Wood-Pewee  2   still calling
Alder/Willow Flycatcher (Traill's Flycatcher)  1     Seen early, attempted photo
Empidonax sp.  1
Eastern Phoebe  5
Blue-headed Vireo  1
Red-eyed Vireo  6
Blue Jay  19
American Crow  3
Common Raven  1
Black-capped Chickadee  14
Tufted Titmouse  3
Red-breasted Nuthatch  1
White-breasted Nuthatch  4
House Wren  6
Carolina Wren  4
Ruby-crowned Kinglet  2
Catharus sp.  1
Wood Thrush  1
American Robin  8
Gray Catbird  26
Brown Thrasher  1
European Starling  2
Cedar Waxwing  12
Black-and-white Warbler  6
Tennessee Warbler  4     Amazing number, minimum
Nashville Warbler  3   including one very dull individual
Common Yellowthroat  11
American Redstart  8     Two adult males
Cape May Warbler  1     Dull individual, may have been two as one was seen by another birder in another area
Northern Parula  16     Some still singing
Magnolia Warbler  9
Blackburnian Warbler  2
Yellow Warbler  2     One brightly colored male with rufous still on chest, other individual dull
Chestnut-sided Warbler  8     Minimum
Blackpoll Warbler  10
Black-throated Blue Warbler  1
Pine Warbler  1
Black-throated Green Warbler  31     Minimum
Canada Warbler  1     Late. Called...not what we expected to hear
Wilson's Warbler  3
warbler sp.  25
Eastern Towhee  4
Chipping Sparrow  3
Field Sparrow  1
Song Sparrow  5
Lincoln's Sparrow  1
White-throated Sparrow  6
Scarlet Tanager  3     Minimum
Northern Cardinal  5
Rose-breasted Grosbeak  4
House Finch  6
American Goldfinch  6

Indigo Bunting, Honeypot, Hadley, Sep 19, 2013

Indigo Bunting, Honeypot, Hadley, Sep 19, 2013

Bobolink, Honeypot, Hadley, Sep 19, 2013

A brief stop at the curve at the Honeypot produced a Vesper Sparrow, a Lincoln's Sparrow 1, at least 16 Indigo Buntings and a dozen Bobolinks.  The fog was yet again thick by the river and only lifted around ten or so.

I got home, picked up Wilson and we headed to Jabish Canal where we ran across a few migrant groups (including several warbler species and a Yellow throated Vireo among others) as well as a nice show of broad winged Hawks numbering over 225 with 178 of those in one group.  Probably missed many in the clear blue skies.  Hopefully it was another productive day at the hawk watches.  The Broad winged Hawk migration this season in the state has been unequalled and record setting with several watches having five digit counts, some with multiple days with 10,000 plus birds.  One watch is at six consecutive days with 1000+ birds and I bet today will make seven. 

American Redstart, Quabbin Park, Sep 19, 2013

American Redstart, Quabbin Park, Sep 19, 2013

American Redstart, Quabbin Park, Sep 19, 2013

Eastern Wood Pewee, Quabbin Park, Sep 19, 2013

I decided to keep my good day rolling with a visit to a few spots at Quabbin Park including the marsh on route 9 and a nearby trail.  The highlight by far was a late Great crested Flycatcher that I watched glide in from up hill and land in tree, only in view for 5 seconds before leaving so no chance for photos. A bright individual which I was unable to make into something more unusual. A Great Egret and Black Duck continued at the marsh (seen earlier by others)

Merlin with a dragonfly, Covey WMA, Sep 19, 2013

My last stop for the day was a brief one at Covey WMA where I made it down to a few of the marshes and was rewarded with a Merlin that came in briefly and left with a dragonfly.

Another day with at least 20 warblers.  I really didn't think I would break the twenty mark again this season but with a little luck perhaps I will do so again tomorrow?