More new species as winter continues

Hooded Mergansers, Swift River, Belchertown, MA, Feb 17, 2026

Mallards, Swift River, Belchertown, MA, Feb 17, 2026

Winsor Dam, Quabbin Park, MA, Feb 16, 2026

Hermit Thrush, Hadley, MA, Feb 15, 2026

American Robin, Hadley, MA, Feb 15, 2026

Common Goldeneye, Holyoke Dam, South Hadley, MA, Feb 15, 2026

Barred Owl, Quabbin Park, MA, Feb 14, 2026

Tufted Titmouse, Quabbin Park, MA, Feb 14, 2026

During the week I was back here in this Arctic hell I did manage to track down a number of new species in the county for the year including a few unusual ones with a Pine Warbler probably being the most unusual.  The extreme cold let up a bit with more average temps overall.  The snow pack is still well over a foot and half on average and most bodies of water remain frozen solid (including Quabbin).  The few patches of open water have featured some unusual waterfowl (discussed more in depth here).  I managed to track down twenty two new species for the year in the county while I was back and my total now stands at 88.  I'm now off to Texas and then Arizona to soak in some more warmth and find more birds.  Hopefully some of the snow and ice will be gone by the time I get back home.

Recording setting first week of January

Rough legged Hawk, East Meadows, Northampton, MA, Jan 7, 2025

Lapland Longspur, East Meadows, Northampton, MA, Jan 7, 2025

Snow Buntings and Horned Larks, East Meadows, Northampton, MA, Jan 7, 2025

Black Vultures, Moody Bridge Rd, Hadley, MA, Jan 7, 2025

Wilson, Belchertown, MA, Jan 7, 2025

To end the first week of the new year I got out after work and headed down to the East Meadows to try to track down a Lapland Longspur for the year.  It was only in the teens with a breeze that picked up even more when the sun came up producing wind chills down near zero. I had some luck with raptors including two each of Northern Harrier and Rough legged Hawk (possibly even three).  I found a few large flocks of Snow Buntings and Horned Larks and after picking through found at least three Lapland Longspur including one with a lot of retained cinnamon on back of head.  The ever increasing wind eventually drove me out of the area.  I was also able to add Pine Siskin for the year with a flyover at the house with a group of goldfinches.  I have now had a total of 90 species in Hampshire County this year...my best first week of January ever.  My previous high at this point was 87 back in 2021 and that month ended up being my best January ever with 105 species!  Doubt I will beat that total without lots of irruptives around but I will try.

I had to work on Monday so only able to get a short, cold walk in with the biggest highlight being at least one and possibly two Virginia Rails at a marsh in Northampton...amazing to hear them calling despite the cold predawn conditions.

 Tufted Titmouse, Hadley, MA, Jan 5, 2025

Dark eyed Junco, Hadley, MA, Jan 5, 2025

White throated Sparrow, Hadley, MA, Jan 5, 2025

Hermit Thrush, Hadley, MA, Jan 5, 2025

White crowned Sparrow (Gambel's), Great Pond, Hatfield, MA, Jan 5, 2025

Great Blue Herons, Great Pond, Hatfield, MA, Jan 5, 2025

Green winged Teal, Great Pond, Hatfield, MA, Jan 5, 2025

Dark eyed Junco with white wing bars, Hickory Ridge Conservation Area, Amherst, MA, Jan 4, 2025

Dark eyed Junco with white wing bars, Hickory Ridge Conservation Area, Amherst, MA, Jan 4, 2025

Eastern Bluebird, Hickory Ridge Conservation Area, Amherst, MA, Jan 4, 2025

Northern Harrier, Hickory Ridge Conservation Area, Amherst, MA, Jan 4, 2025

Barred Owl, Hickory Ridge Conservation Area, Amherst, MA, Jan 4, 2025

On my last two days off I was out early on both mornings despite the continued strong winds with the goal being a number of owl species I have not yet had for the year.  I started at Quabbin on Saturday and got a Northern Saw Whet Owl before dawn and then added a Barred Owl in Hadley.  Other notables for the day including a smattering of waterfowl at Winsor Dam over the course of the day including Long tailed Ducks, Bufflehead and a Red breasted Merganser and a rather interesting look Dark eyed Junco in  Amherst that may be a White winged Junco subspecies...still waiting for others to review.  Sunday I started off along the river and added Short eared Owl and then a few Eastern Screech Owls a bit further north.  I then spent over an hour around Great Pond and had 36 species with notables including almost 75 American Black Ducks, two Green winged Teal, a Northern Pintail, two Great Blue Herons and large numbers and variety of sparrows (eight species) with the most common species being American Tree Sparrow, Song Sparrow and White throated Sparrows and the rarest being at least three White crowned Sparrows (with examples of both Gambel's and dark lored) and some Swamp Sparrows.  I continued my morning a little further south along the river and added my first Yellow rumped Warbler of the year that flew over (I was never able to relocate it on the ground) and a few Hermit Thrushes.

Say's Phoebe and others the last several days as I fight a cold

Say's Phoebe, Winsor Dam, Quabbin Park, MA, Mar 25, 2024

Eggs in  duck box #1, Home, Belchertown, MA, Mar 25, 2024

Hooded Merganser eggs in  duck box #3, Home, Belchertown, MA, Mar 25, 2024

Eastern Phoebe, Lake Wallace, Belchertown, MA, Mar 20, 2024

Black capped Chickadee with leg bands, Tufted Titmouse and Dark eyed Junco, Home, Belchertown, MA, Mar 19, 2024

Raccoon, Home, Belchertown, MA, Mar 19, 2024

Pine Siskin, Home, Belchertown, MA, Mar 17, 2024

After coming down with a cold almost a week and a half ago the symptoms have faded a bit still not back to normal.  The weather lately has not been really great for birding with mainly cool temps, breezy conditions (mainly out of the north) and some heavy rain.  I have gotten a little birding in at times but mainly I have been staying home.  Nonetheless I have still had some good stuff including the long staying Say's Phoebe continuing through today and lots of Eastern Phoebes.  The camera at the water feature continues to capture birds and mammals.  A check of the duck boxes today found a Hooded Merganser on eggs in duck box #3 and a full clutch of eggs in duck box #1 (still unknown on the species but I suspect another Hooded Merganser nest).  Oddly still no eggs in duck box #2, which is the first time since I put the boxes up that I have not had eggs in that box.  The rest of the month looks to feature less than great migration conditions but I will try to get out to find stuff when work and weather allows.

High count of Northern Shoveler at Winsor Dam (plus other good stuff)

Northern Shovelers, Winsor Dam, Quabbin Park, MA, Nov 24, 2023

Northern Shovelers, Winsor Dam, Quabbin Park, MA, Nov 24, 2023

Northern Pintails (with two Mallards and an American Black Duck), Winsor Dam, Quabbin Park, MA, Nov 24, 2023

Pine Warblers, Winsor Dam, Quabbin Park, MA, Nov 24, 2023

Black capped Chickadee, Winsor Dam, Quabbin Park, MA, Nov 24, 2023

Tufted Titmouse, Winsor Dam, Quabbin Park, MA, Nov 24, 2023

Red winged Blackbirds, Winsor Dam, Quabbin Park, MA, Nov 24, 2023

Although not a blockbuster morning for diversity of waterfowl at Winsor Dam I did manage to get my largest group ever of Northern Shovelers in Hampshire County when a group of eight flew past heading south plus I also had a group of 13 Northern Pintails also flying south (with a couple of Mallards and an American Black Duck joining them).  My previous high count for Northern Shoveler was back in early April 2015, when I had six in Hadley.   I almost missed these birds as my original plan was not to spend too much time at the dam again after spending an hour there yesterday (mainly checking up on the continuing group of Pine Warblers).  I started my morning at the dam but the selection of waterfowl was quite sparse with the highlight being a dozen Common Loons scattered across the reservoir so I headed to another spot in Quabbin Park.  Without too much activity at that stop and wanting to stay local and not drive far I quickly headed back to the dam and figured I would once again concentrate on tracking down the Pine Warblers.  I quickly found at least five feeding in the tops of the cone laden Eastern White Pines, along with a number of other species enjoying the great cone crop.  I then walked around the area of the dam and admin building with a couple brief stops to scan the waters of the reservoir.  I ended up spending two hours there and was quite happy with my choice of staying close to home....although finding a Ancient Murrelet or Dovekie would have really been nice!

The first week of February comes to an end with a decent influx of waterfowl including an American Green winged Teal x Eurasian Green winged Teal intergrade

Lapland Longspur, East Meadows, Northampton, MA, Mar 1, 2023

Lapland Longspur, East Meadows, Northampton, MA, Mar 1, 2023

Horned Lark, East Meadows, Northampton, MA, Mar 1, 2023

Tufted Titmouse, Hadley, MA, Mar 1, 2023

American Robins, Hadley, MA, Mar 1, 2023

'MERICA!, Bald Eagle, Winsor Dam, Quabbin Park, MA, Mar 1, 2023

Black Vulture, Moody Bridge Rd, Hadley, MA, Mar 1, 2023

To start off the new month of March I headed out early and although I still didn't feel great I thought I would try to take advantage of warmer weather and sunny, calm conditions.  I hit a variety of areas with quite a bit of birding from near the car.  My main goal was to find a warbler to start the month and I succeeded with a flyover Yellow rumped Warbler at Arcadia.  Unfortunately I was unable to find where the bird landed so no chance for a photo.  During the remainder of my time out I had a total of 61 species, which is surprisingly the best first day of March I have ever had here (could have added a few more species if I felt up to it).  Highlights for the morning (besides the warbler) included eleven species of waterfowl including a Common Loon, a couple Black Vultures, a Lapland Longspur and my first Fox Sparrow of the year.

Black capped Chickadee with leg bands, female banded July 2021 (red/yellow on left and alum. on right...missing purple color band on right), Home, Belchertown, MA, Feb 21, 2023

Black capped Chickadee with leg bands, close up on alum band on bird pictured above, Home, Belchertown, MA, Feb 21, 2023

Black capped Chickadee with leg bands, female banded in Jun 2021 (pink/pink on left and pink/alum on right), Home, Belchertown, MA, Mar 2, 2023

The morning was fairly rainy on Thursday so I hit just a couple places close to home with the highlight being a total of 11 Northern Pintails way out at Winsor Dam.  A couple other spots that recently have been good for waterfowl were frozen over.  I laid low at home mainly but did get out a little to check on the continued large numbers of Black capped Chickadees with multiple banded birds continuing...at least eight different banded individuals over the last week or so.  I was able to solve one mystery bird when I got a close up shot of the aluminum band on one individual that had lost a color band.

Double crested Cormorant, UMASS, Amherst, MA, Mar 3, 2023

Black capped Chickadee, Hadley, MA, Mar 3, 2023

I took advantage of the calm before our next storm to check a few areas in Amherst and Hadley.  I decided to take an early morning swing by the campus pond at UMASS to see the continued Double crested Cormorant that has been present since the end of February.  I then headed down to a couple spots along the river in the hopes of finding a Yellow rumped Warbler that I could actual get photos of but I had no luck.  A lot of the snow we had has settled in the past few days so there is only a couple inches of crusty snow left plus some icy spots so walking was a bit tough at time but it was nice to be outside for a longer period of time compared to the first days of the month.

Wilson playing ball in the snow, Home, Belchertown, MA, Mar 4, 2023

Wilson playing ball in the snow, Home, Belchertown, MA, Mar 4, 2023

Our next storm arrived overnight Friday into Saturday with a few more inches of heavy, wet snow.  I spent the entire day at home with multiple trips outside to both clean up the snow and to play with Wilson in the snow...he certainly loves the snow.

Wood Duck, Lake Wallace, Belchertown, MA, Mar 5, 2023

Belted Kingfisher, Rail trail, Amherst, MA, Mar 5, 2023

Mallard, Rail trail, Amherst, MA, Mar 5, 2023

Red winged Blackbird, Rail trail, Amherst, MA, Mar 5, 2023

Hooded Merganser, Rail trail, Amherst, MA, Mar 5, 2023

Hooded Mergansers, Rail trail, Amherst, MA, Mar 5, 2023

Canada Goose, Rail trail, Amherst, MA, Mar 5, 2023

Common Merganser, UMASS, Amherst, MA, Mar 5, 2023

Double crested Cormorant, UMASS, Amherst, MA, Mar 5, 2023

On Sunday morning I was out early and started my morning at Winsor Dam (which turned out to be quiet).  I then went to nearby Lake Wallace in the hopes of finding an early Virginia Rail but had no luck with that species.  The lake had thankfully thawed nearly completely and the waterfowl arrived to take advantage of the open water with five species present.  I then travelled west to the rail trail in Amherst where I walked from Station Road up past Hop Brook.  Again lots of open water among the marshy areas.  After over an hour along the rail trail I made a brief visit over to the UMASS campus pond and the Double crested Cormorant continued in the same location.  The pair of Common Mergansers were also still present. I spent much of the morning trying various settings on the new camera to try to come up with the best combo for the birds.

Green-winged Teal (Eurasian x American) intergrade, Great Pond, Hatfield, MA, Mar 7, 2023

Green-winged Teal (Eurasian x American) intergrade, Great Pond, Hatfield, MA, Mar 7, 2023

Green winged Teal, Great Pond, Hatfield, MA, Mar 7, 2023

Northern Pintails, Hadley, MA, Mar 7, 2023

Northern Pintail, Hadley, MA, Mar 7, 2023

Red tailed Hawk, Hadley, MA, Mar 7, 2023

House Finch, Hadley, MA, Mar 7, 2023

I had to work on Monday and made just a couple brief stop on my way in without finding anything noteworthy.  After work on Tuesday morning I decided to head north and check the area around Great Pond.  It was still below freezing when I arrived but was thawing by the time I left and mud would definitely be an issue if I stayed longer.  The big draw was of course waterfowl and I spent over an hour scanning the water from a variety of viewpoints (I also kept my ears and eyes out for an early Tree Swallow but no luck with finding one).  I had a total of nine species of waterfowl plus a fairly rare intergrade (or hybrid depending on which taxonomic classification one uses).  The intergrade was an American Green winged Teal x Eurasian Green winged Teal in among a large flock of American Green winged Teal.  I have found this hybrid combo twice before in Hampshire County including one I found in Hadley in late March 2018 and another in Belchertown in early April 2021.  I got out of the Great Pond area before it got too muddy and heading north to cross the river and then head south again on the east side of the Connecticut River with a couple stops in Hadley with the main focus again being waterfowl.  I had a total of seven species of waterfowl in Hadley with great counts of Northern Pintails.  Just as I was getting ready to leave I noticed Cory had a sighting of a Yellow rumped Warbler in the area but I was unable to relocate it.  I made it back home late in the morning and took Wilson for a walk.  I noticed a post about a female Canvasback in Northampton but I didn't have the energy to drive back over to look for it but I did let others know about it...perhaps it will hang around and I can relocate it tomorrow morning if I have time.