Global big day

Swainson's Thrush, Skinner SP, Hadley, MA, May 13, 2023

Veery, Skinner SP, Hadley, MA, May 13, 2023

Blackburnian Warbler, Skinner SP, Hadley, MA, May 13, 2023

Black throated Green Warbler, Skinner SP, Hadley, MA, May 13, 2023

Cerulean Warbler, Skinner SP, Hadley, MA, May 13, 2023

Barred Owl, Quabbin Park, MA, May 13, 2023

Blue winged Warbler, Quabbin Park, MA, May 13, 2023

Indigo Bunting, Quabbin Park, MA, May 13, 2023

Today brought the annual Global Big Day and I started off my morning at Quabbin Park and was having a great morning with lots of stuff around and my original intention was to stay at the park for a few hours but a text from Jack changed my plans when he had a Hooded Warbler at Skinner SP.  I ditched my plans to stay at the park and headed over to Skinner SP where I arrived a bit before six and made the walk up the hill to the area where he had the Hooded Warbler.  I looked and listened for awhile but no luck.  I eventually caught up with Jack and we discussed the bird and where it seemed to be headed (upslope and further down the ridge).  I headed in the direction it seemed to be heading and yet again had no luck.  However a bunch of other migrants were showing well with a number of warbler species as well as a big influx of thrushes with really impressive numbers of Swainson's Thrushes and Veery...some of the biggest numbers of these species I can remember in a single location.  After getting caught up in the migration spectacle on the way to the summit I got another text from Jack saying he relocated the Hooded Warbler so I headed back down again.  It had gone silent again by the time I arrived and I then spent a significant amount of time trying to hear it or see and eventually I got rewarded with distant songs.  It only sang a few times again and then went silent.  Although I never saw the bird it was nice to hear it (even distantly) as I totally missed the species last year.  After three hours at Skinner I headed back over to Quabbin Park where I had a decent amount of migrants around but failed to relocate the Lawrence's Warbler I had at then location yesterday.  As a word of warning the ticks were extreme if one goes off trail in the park...I ended up with 38 ticks in going perhaps three hundred feet off trail...a crazy amount of ticks, even for Quabbin.  I didn't really try to maximize species for Global Big Day but I still managed to find 106 species with only a few stops...gotta love mid May!

Remains after fledging in duck box #2, Home, Belchertown, MA, May 13, 2023

Hooded Merganser eggs in duck box #3, Home, Belchertown, MA, May 13, 2023

I also checked duck box #2 today and found the Hooded Mergansers had fledged.  I immediately took the camera off the base of the nest box pole to see if I managed to capture any video of the birds leaving the nest.  I also checked duck box #3 (the next in line to fledge and found the eggs unhatched).  Once I checked the card from the camera I was very happy to see I got video of the Hooded Mergansers leaving the next box on the 11th.  A link to the video can be found here:  Hooded Mergansers leaving the nest

September comes to an end

Yellow throated Vireo, Belchertown, MA, Sep 30, 2022

Magnolia Warbler, Belchertown, MA, Sep 30, 2022

Yellow rumped Warbler 'myrtle', Arcadia, Northampton, MA, Sep 30, 2022

Bay breasted Warbler, Arcadia, Northampton, MA, Sep 30, 2022

Song Sparrow, Arcadia, Northampton, MA, Sep 30, 2022

Northern Mockingbird, Arcadia, Northampton, MA, Sep 30, 2022

Sun halo, Arcadia, Northampton, MA, Sep 30, 2022

The last couple nights have featured the largest number of migrants for the fall so far (according to Birdcast) with an estimated 2.2 million birds last night and 3.0 million the night before.  Due to work the only morning I could get out for an extended was today after finishing my shift and I headed right over to Arcadia.  Overall it was slower than I expected but I still found 63 species in a bit under a couple hours.  I was really surprised by the lower number of sparrows as I expected a huge increase in number given the date and migration conditions.  Among the highlights for my time there included continued numbers of Blue Jays migrating, my first Dark eyed Junco in the valley and eleven species of warbler (more on warblers to end the month at the following link).  I then headed over to a spot in Belchertown in the hopes of turning up a continued Connecticut Warbler that had been present at the location for a few days.  I had no luck with that warbler but did have a decent mixed species flock that held a late Yellow throated Vireo and eight species of warblers among other species.  

Overall for the month I had 158 species in Hampshire County, which is around average for the last several years for me but well off my best September which occurred last year when I had 171 species.  October will certainly see less species overall as the peak of diversity of fall migration is past us but it will feature the peak of sparrow migration, a large amount of waterfowl migration and the increased chance of rarities.  

Dawn, Honey Pot, Hadley, MA, Sep 29, 2022

I had very limited time on Thursday morning before work so made a stop in the Honey Pot area of Hadley but the birding was slow.  I'm sure it got better once the sun came up and warmed it up a bit.

Blackpoll Warblers, Home, Belchertown, MA, Sep 29, 2022

Red breasted Nuthatch, Home, Belchertown, MA, Sep 29, 2022

Black capped Chickadee with leg bands, Home, Belchertown, MA, Sep 29, 2022

Swainson's Thrush, Home, Belchertown, MA, Sep 30, 2022

The camera at the water feature has caught both migrants and some resident species the last couple days....nice to have something watching for birds when I'm not there.

Third week of May

Chestnut sided Warbler, Quabbin Park, MA, May 21, 2021

Wilson's Phalarope, East Meadows, Northampton, MA, May 20, 2021

Blue winged x Golden winged Warbler hybrid, Southampton WMA, Southampton, MA, May 20, 2021

Common Yellowthroat, Arcadia, Northampton, MA, May 20, 2021

White eyed Vireo, Southampton WMA, Southampton, MA, May 19, 2021

Black Bear, Southampton WMA, Southampton, MA, May 19, 2021

Great crested Flycatcher with nest material, Quabbin Park, MA, May 19, 2021

Yellow Warbler, Quabbin Park, MA, May 17, 2021

Brewster's Warbler, KC Trail, Amherst, MA, May 17, 2021

Red necked Phalarope (yes,really), East Meadows, Northampton, MA, May 17, 2021

Blue winged Warbler with yellowish wing bars, Quabbin Park, MA, May 15, 2021

As is typically the case in mid to late May the last week has been very busy with new arrivals (including a number of rarities).  Although the peak of migration is coming to an end there are still late season migrants moving through even as many local species get down to nesting activity for the year.  The most notable rarities found during the last week were two species of phalaropes with a Red necked Phalarope showing up at a small puddle in the East Meadows on the 17th and then three Wilson's Phalaropes in the same puddle found on the 19th (I saw them the following morning).  Any phalarope is unusual in western mass but to have two different species show up within days of each other at a small puddle with the weather nice is unheard of.  Another good rarity that showed up was a White eyed Vireo in Southampton.  I managed to get to see the the bird on the 19th but it has not be relocated since.  While in the area enjoying the vireo I noticed an odd Blue winged x Golden winged Warbler hybrid and as I walked up the path trying to get some photos a large Black Bear came out of the tangles and blocked the path.  Eventually a detour needed to be made as the bear appeared to be in no hurry to move.  I made it back to the same area the next day and got some photos of the hybrid (no bear this time!).  I also completed a warbler big day in Hampshire County on the 18th and found a total of 28 species of warbler.  A very productive week for sure with overall pleasant weather conditions with some real warmth by the end.

Eastern Whip Poor Will, Quabbin Park, MA, May 19, 2021

Ruffed Grouse, Prescott Peninsula, New Salem, MA, May 20, 2021

Sunset at survey stop 1, Prescott Peninsula, New Salem, MA, May 20, 2021

I completed both of my annual Eastern Whip Poor Will surveys on Wednesday and Thursday evenings.  It is tough to get these surveys completed sometimes as the conditions have to be just right (clear skies, little or no wind) and only completed when the survey window is open (related to the phases of the moon).  The two survey routes consist of Quabbin Park and south and the second on Prescott Peninsula.  The conditions were perfect on Wednesday for the Quabbin Park route and we had a great showing of Eastern Whip Poor Wills and I even managed a very crappy photo of one.  The conditions on Thursday were less than perfect with some wind but the route got completed nonetheless.  Being able to be 'behind the gates' at Quabbin after hours is always fun and almost guarantee some Moose sightings (which I had on Prescott as usual).  I look forward to conducting field surveys on Prescott once nesting season is in full swing.

Hooded Merganser egg remnants in box 2, Home, Belchertown, MA, May 18, 2021

Eastern Bluebird eggs in nest box, Home, Belchertown, MA, May 20, 2021

Gray Catbird nest with eggs, Home, Belchertown, MA, May 20, 2021

 Blackpoll Warbler, Home, Belchertown, MA, May 15, 2021

Swainson's Thrush, Home, Belchertown, MA, May 15, 2021

Meanwhile at home lots of birds have either completed nesting or have just started.  The second Hooded Merganser box fledged (unfortunately the camera set up on the box malfunctioned and I didn't get any video of them leaving the box).   I have found a few different nests around the yard including Eastern Bluebirds in one of my nest boxes and a Gray Catbird nesting right off the deck.  The yard has also produced a number of migrants including several Blackpoll Warblers and a Swainson's Thrush that stayed around all day feeding along the driveway.

More sparrows arriving and a few rarities around

Palm Warbler 'western', Arcadia, Northampton, MA, Oct 11, 2020

White crowned Sparrow, Arcadia, Northampton, MA, Oct 11, 2020

American Redstart, Arcadia, Northampton, MA, Oct 11, 2020

Swainson's Thrush, Arcadia, Northampton, MA, Oct 11, 2020

Vesper Sparrow, Arcadia, Northampton, MA, Oct 11, 2020

With the forecast of sunny conditions and lighter wind compared to yesterday I decided to head back to Arcadia before dawn.  Unfortunately the forecast was wrong and the winds were blowing throughout the day (thankfully not as bad as yesterday but still fairly strong at times).  The sparrows were still around in good numbers but slightly reduced from the last couple mornings.  Unusual species around including a Brown Thrasher and an America Redstart.  As the winds continued I decided to cut my time short at Arcadia and start heading toward home but after hearing that Aaron relocated the Nelson's Sparrow in the East Meadows I decided to try my luck with relocating it.  I arrived to find a few others looking for it but not finding it.  I walked the general area it was seen in and turned up lots of sparrows (including a Grasshopper Sparrow) but as expected no sign of the Nelson's Sparrow.  As I was once again about to pull the plug on the morning of birding I got a text from Scott saying he had a Brewer's Blackbird in North Hadley (a very rare bird anywhere in the state and one I have never seen around here).  I immediately left the meadows and headed across the river and up to the fields in North Hadley.  I arrived to find Scott still there trying to relocate the bird.  A few other birders arrived not long after and we all spent a hour plus waiting in vain for the bird to return.  The bird could be anywhere in the local area as there is a number of farms in the area that would be attractive to the species.  As we were waiting a number of other sparrows made appearances as well as an obvious migration of raptors and geese.

Palm Warbler 'yellow', Arcadia, Northampton, MA, Oct 10, 2020

White crowned Sparrow, Arcadia, Northampton, MA, Oct 10, 2020

White crowned Sparrow, Arcadia, Northampton, MA, Oct 10, 2020

Purple Finch, Arcadia, Northampton, MA, Oct 10, 2020

Saturday dawned sunny and warm and with strong southerly winds that picked up early the high made it into the high 70’s. I went right to Arcadia after getting out of work and checked a few areas. The winds made picking out stuff a bit difficult but I nonetheless turned up some good stuff early on including a late American Redstart and Magnolia Warbler as well as an Orange crowned Warbler. Although the sparrow numbers were down compared to what I saw early on Friday morning there were still impressive numbers and diversity with an obvious influx of birds including double digit counts of White crowned Sparrow (including my first adults and a few birds singing). There were also loads of Purple Finches and Pine Siskins moving with the calls of both present almost constantly. 

Fox Sparrow, Arcadia, Northampton, MA, Oct 9, 2020

With the northerly winds continuing overnight into the morning on Friday I knew there would be an influx of species and I decided to spend the few minutes I had at dawn at Arcadia before I had to head to work. The sparrows were everywhere and I wish I had more time to explore the area. The best species I had during my limited time there was an early Fox Sparrow. 

Brant, Winsor Dam, Quabbin Park, MA, Oct 8, 2020

Brant, Winsor Dam, Quabbin Park, MA, Oct 8, 2020

Brant with Black Ducks, Winsor Dam, Quabbin Park, MA, Oct 8, 2020

Bald Eagle, Winsor Dam, Quabbin Park, MA, Oct 8, 2020

Blue Jays, Winsor Dam, Quabbin Park, MA, Oct 8, 2020

After a strong cold front came through on Wednesday afternoon (with lots of tree damage and power outages in the area) the weather turned cooler and windier with fairly strong northwest winds on Thursday. I headed to Winsor Dam as soon as I got out of work and spent a little time there and oddly there was not much for waterfowl. I tried nearby Beaver Lake and the Route 9 marsh and both of those spots were also fairly quiet. The road through the park was closed due to tree damage so I elected to stop back at Winsor Dam. Almost as soon as I arrived I noticed a couple of Brant flying around as well as two female Northern Pintails. They flew around the area for several minutes and then I lost track of them. Scott and Mary arrived not long after and while scanning the area Scott picked the two Brant back up again and we got good looks as the Brant joined a trio of Black Ducks moving south. We stayed for awhile after that sighting but not much else for waterfowl was moving. There was an obvious migration of Blue Jays occurring as well as multiple Purple Finches and Pine Siskins flying south.

The remnants of Hurricane Delta (which came ashore in Louisiana on Friday) looks to bring some rain into the area from Monday into Tuesday with the heaviest rain overnight Monday into Tuesday.  There is always a chance of the rain grounding some migrants (especially waterfowl) so it will be worth checking out some areas for those days.