Very hot start to July with a multi day heat wave

American Redstart, Quabbin Park, MA, Jul 1, 2026

Red eyed Vireo, Quabbin Park, MA, Jul 1, 2026

Scarlet Tanager, Quabbin Park, MA, Jul 1, 2026

Yellow throated Vireo, Quabbin Park, MA, Jul 1, 2026

Peregrine Falcons, East Meadows, Northampton, MA, Jul 2, 2026

Common Yellowthroat during banding process, Silvio Conte NWR- Fort River, Hadley, MA, Jul 2, 2026

Blackburnian Warbler fledgling, Mount Holyoke Range SP, Granby, MA, Jul 3, 2026

Black and White Warbler, Mount Holyoke Range SP, Granby, MA, Jul 3, 2026

Prairie Warbler, Mount Holyoke Range SP, Granby, MA, Jul 3, 2026

Turkey Vultures, Hickory Ridge Conservation Area, Amherst, MA, Jul 3, 2026

Downy Woodpecker, Rail Trail, Amherst, MA, Jul 3, 2026

Sun through the trees on a very humid morning, Mount Holyoke Range SP, Granby, MA, Jul 3, 2026

White spotted Skipper, Home, Belchertown, MA, Jul 3, 2026

Eastern Bluebird nest construction underway, Home, Belchertown, MA, Jul 3, 2026

Chestnut sided Warbler fledgling, Quabbin Park, MA, Jul 4, 2026

Chestnut sided Warbler, Quabbin Park, MA, Jul 4, 2026

Black and White Warbler, Quabbin Park, MA, Jul 4, 2026

Wood Duck with ducklings, Lake Wallace, Belchertown, MA, Jul 4, 2026

White tailed Deer, Quabbin Park, MA, Jul 4, 2026

A heat wave that started on the last day of June continued into the first four days of July with highs that reached the upper 90's with high humidity on multiple days.  I started the month by tracking down all the regularly occurring warblers in Hampshire County and getting lots of other species along the way.  After a number of thunderstorms overnight into the 2nd I headed out before dawn to track down more species for the month hitting multiple spots along the Connecticut River from the Holyoke Dam north to Hadley.  On July 3rd I started in Belchertown and then over to Amherst before ending my morning in Granby.  It was incredibly humid and the low temp to start the day was 72!  Really felt like being in the tropics.  Saturday was the last day of the heat wave and for that day I went after a few nocturnal species at Quabbin Park and nearby Ware before a longer walk along the rail trail in Ware.  I then spent a few hours in Quabbin Park plus a brief stop at Lake Wallace before heading home early to get Wilson a walk.  Lots of evidence of breeding around as expected for early July.  Despite the heat the first four days of the month have been productive in the county with 123 species so far.

Breeding Bird Survey completed this morning

Great Blue Heron, Breeding bird survey stop #9, Ware, MA, Jun 6, 2026

White tailed Deer, Breeding bird survey stop #21, Palmer, MA, Jun 6, 2026

Prairie Warbler, Breeding bird survey stop #34, Monson, MA, Jun 6, 2026

Northern Yellow Warbler, Breeding bird survey stop #40, Monson, MA, Jun 6, 2026

Sawmill Brook, Breeding bird survey stop #42, Monson, MA, Jun 6, 2026

Farm fields, Breeding bird survey stop #31, Monson, MA, Jun 6, 2026

UMASS orchard, Breeding bird survey stop #3, Belchertown, MA, Jun 6, 2026

Although I usually try to run by annual breeding bird survey route on a Sunday the forecast looked better for Saturday so I ran it today.  With our weekends always seeming to produce less than stellar weather I did not want to take a chance and wait for a later Sunday in June.  Breeding bird surveys are long term studies to look at breeding species along a 25 mile route with three minute stops every 1/2 mile.  The survey starts early (4:42AM) so being a morning person certainly helps!  This was my 17th consecutive year conducting this route that starts in Belchertown and continues south to the Connecticut state line.  Although not a record breaking year for species I still had a good showing with a total of 75 species.  The top five species as far as being recorded at the most stops included  American Robin (40 stops), Gray Catbird (31 stops), Ovenbird (30 stops), American Crow (29 stops) and Red eyed Vireo (28 stops).  No new species for the route this year so my total whole conducting the route still stands at 114 species.  Full trip report at the following link: BBS 2026 trip report.

Below is table of each year I have conducted the survey with # of species seen and date of survey

year            # of species            date of survey 

2010             71                         June 20 

2011             64                         June 26 

2012             56                         June 3 

2013             67                         June 23 

2014             70                         June 15 

2015             75                         June 14 

2016             78                         June 19 

2017             73                         June 22 

2018             71                         June 22 

2019             83                         June 9 

2020             76                         June 14 

2021             71                         June 19 

2022             78                         June 5 

2023             77                         June 25 

2024             84                         June 2

2025             77                         June 8

2026             75                         June 6

An oddly plumaged bright yellow Scarlet Tanager found while conducting field bird surveys on the Prescott Peninsula

Scarlet Tanager with pigment issue, Prescott Peninsula, New Salem, MA, Jun 4, 2026

Scarlet Tanager with pigment issue, Prescott Peninsula, New Salem, MA, Jun 4, 2026

Scarlet Tanager with pigment issue, Prescott Peninsula, New Salem, MA, Jun 4, 2026

Scarlet Tanager with pigment issue, Prescott Peninsula, New Salem, MA, Jun 4, 2026

Scarlet Tanager with pigment issue, Prescott Peninsula, New Salem, MA, Jun 4, 2026

Scarlet Tanager with pigment issue, Prescott Peninsula, New Salem, MA, Jun 4, 2026

Prairie Warbler, Prescott Peninsula, New Salem, MA, Jun 4, 2026

Indigo Bunting, Prescott Peninsula, New Salem, MA, Jun 4, 2026

Black capped Chickadee carrying food to nest, Prescott Peninsula, New Salem, MA, Jun 4, 2026

Black capped Chickadee nest, Prescott Peninsula, New Salem, MA, Jun 4, 2026

Post burn, Prescott Peninsula, New Salem, MA, Jun 4, 2026

First post surgery walk for Wilson, Belchertown, MA, Jun 4, 2026

I made it on to the restricted Prescott Peninsula at Quabbin to conduct the first of my field bird surveys for the year.  It is part of an ongoing study of the small remaining fragments of farm fields left on the peninsula.  On the vast peninsula some of these small fields hold the only populations of a number of species of bird on the peninsula that require more open areas.  It was beautiful weather with clear skies, no wind and low humidity.  I started my surveys a little before five and then stayed on the peninsula for the next two and half hours completing most of the field locations.  The usually most productive and largest field recently had a prescribed burn done.  It will be interesting to see the impact (if any) that comes from the burn.  Most of the species I would expect to be present were indeed present so no major impact for this year beyond the density of a few species are lower likely due to a reduction in available cover and breeding locations.  One of the oddest finds happened while surveying the fields where an old observatory once stood.  I saw a yellow bird flying high from tree to another and expected it to be an oriole but instead I saw a bright yellow overall bird with jet black wings...a male Scarlet Tanager with some type of pigment issue.  The yellow was not the dull yellow of a fall plumaged bird but instead seemed more like the bright yellow one would see on a Western Tanager.  I have seen a few adult male Scarlet Tanager over the years that have a less vibrant red color, to the point of looking more orange.  The individual today was unlike any I have ever seen.  I poked around a bit to see what I could find regarding the likelihood of this plumage abnormality and did not find much.  David Sibley wrote a short article about it...link here: yellow Scarlet Tanager and it is interesting he lives not too far away and his article also mentioned another one in Washington, MA the same year.  Perhaps this area of western Massachusetts hosts a population more inclined to have this abnormality?   A very cool looking individual and one I hope to relocate on subsequent surveys.  I made a couple other stops before heading home to pick up Wilson for his first real post surgery walk and he did well.

Migration update

Scarlet Tanager, Quabbin Park, MA, May 12, 2026

Wild Turkey, Quabbin Park, MA, May 12, 2026

American Redstart, Quabbin Park, MA, May 11, 2026

Field Sparrow, Covey WMA, Belchertown, MA, May 11, 2026

Prairie Warbler, Covey WMA, Belchertown, MA, May 11, 2026

Wilson's Warbler, UMASS, Amherst, MA, May 10, 2026

Canada Goose with goslings, UMASS, Amherst, MA, May 10, 2026

Cerulean Warbler, Quabbin Park, MA, May 9, 2026

Blue winged Warbler with dark forehead, Rail Trail, Amherst, MA, May 8, 2026

Northern Waterthrush, Rail Trail, Amherst, MA, May 8, 2026

Lincoln's Sparrow, Rail Trail, Amherst, MA, May 8, 2026

American Redstart, Quabbin Park, MA, May 7, 2026

Black and White Warbler, Quabbin Park, MA, May 7, 2026

Northern Yellow Warbler, Quabbin Park, MA, May 7, 2026

Birds Foot Violets, Covey WMA, Belchertown, MA, May 7, 2026

Although overall cooler than normal with mainly unfavorable winds there continues to be birds pushing in with multiple new species over the last several days.  No other major rarities for the season that I have been able to track down.  As you can tell from the photos it has been mainly about warblers...more on those here.  Too many travels and sightings so the photos will have to tell part of the story.  The next few days look to be unsettled with multiple bouts of rain and at least some favorable winds.  This will hopefully entice a push of birds and the bouts of rain could ground some species that otherwise just fly right by.  Could be some interesting few mornings.