End of first week of October brings first frost

Tennessee Warbler, Arcadia, Northampton, MA, Oct 7, 2026

Yellow rumped Warbler 'myrtle', Arcadia, Northampton, MA, Oct 7, 2026

Swamp Sparrow, Arcadia, Northampton, MA, Oct 7, 2026

Lincoln's Sparrow, Arcadia, Northampton, MA, Oct 7, 2026

Black and White Warbler, Arcadia, Easthampton, MA, Oct 7, 2026

White crowned Sparrow, Arcadia, Northampton, MA, Oct 7, 2026

Black throated Green Warbler, Belchertown, MA, Oct 7, 2026

Ruby crowned Kinglet, Belchertown, MA, Oct 7, 2026

Yellow rumped Warbler 'myrtle', Belchertown, MA, Oct 7, 2026

Today started off cold with the first frost of the season and just a hint of the hell of winter to come.  I decided to head across the river to Arcadia to start my morning.  When I arrived it was sunny and cold (31 degrees) but then the fog moved in and kept activity somewhat subdued until in finally burned off.  There were loads of sparrows around as well as lots of Yellow rumped Warblers.  Once it warmed a little I started getting some other species with the most notable being a slightly late Black and White Warbler and at least three Tennessee Warblers. After about three hours in the cold I moved on to run a few errands and then headed toward home with another stop at a spot in Belchertown where I turned up more species for the day despite the increasing wind.  By the end of the day I had around 65 species with eight species of warblers.

Yellow rumped Warbler 'Audubon's' subspecies today to end a fairly productive November

Yellow rumped Warbler 'Audubon's', Mitch's Way, Hadley, MA, Nov 30, 2025

Yellow rumped Warbler 'Myrtle', Mitch's Way, Hadley, MA, Nov 30, 2025

Hooded Merganser, Bufflehead and Mallard, Winsor Dam, Quabbin Park, MA, Nov 30, 2025

Common Loon, Quabbin Park, MA, Nov 29, 2025

Hooded Mergansers, Quabbin Park, MA, Nov 29, 2025

Winsor Dam, Quabbin Park, MA, Nov 29, 2025

Red breasted Nuthatch, Quabbin gate 8, Pelham, MA, Nov 28, 2025

Eastern Phoebe, Lake Wallace, Belchertown, MA, Nov 27, 2025

Bald Eagle, Quabbin Park, MA, Nov 26, 2025

Winsor Dam, Quabbin Park, MA, Nov 25, 2025

Common Yellowthroat, Great Pond, Hatfield, MA, Nov 24, 2025

White crowned Sparrow, Great Pond, Hatfield, MA, Nov 24, 2025

White throated Sparrow, Hadley, MA, Nov 23, 2025

A long and rather cold November has come to an end.  A slightly above average total for the month in Hampshire County with a total of 117  species (my third highest ever total for November here).  The very end of the month certainly felt more like winter than fall with cold temps and some flurries.  The highlight by far for me was catching up with an 'Audubon's' subspecies Yellow rumped Warbler that Ted found this morning in Hadley (much more on that bird can be found at the following link: Audubon's Warbler)

This subspecies should be elevated back to full species status at some point.  It is very rare in the area with just one other documented record in western Massachusetts (Greenfield in 1988) and no other records in the county.

With my commitments at home I have stayed fairly close to home most of the time to end the month, concentrating on the south Quabbin area which has gotten me a fair assortment of waterfowl.  There are a number of other lingering species around the area plus increasing numbers of multiple irruptive species.  The forecast looks to feature more winter like conditions as we enter December with a snow storm forecast for Tuesday into Wednesday.

The third week of October

Nashville Warbler, Belchertown, MA, Oct 21, 2025

Palm Warbler 'yellow', Amherst, MA, Oct 21, 2025

Swamp Sparrow, Hickory Ridge Conservation Area, Amherst, MA, Oct 21, 2025

Song Sparrow, Hickory Ridge Conservation Area, Amherst, MA, Oct 21, 2025

Common Loons, Winsor Dam, Quabbin Park, MA, Oct 20, 2025

Winsor Dam, Winsor Dam, Quabbin Park, MA, Oct 20, 2025

Tennessee Warbler, Belchertown, MA, Oct 19, 2025

 

Blue Jay, Belchertown, MA, Oct 19, 2025

 

House Wren, Amherst, MA, Oct 19, 2025

Yellow rumped Warbler 'myrtle', Amherst, MA, Oct 19, 2025

White crowned Sparrow, Amherst, MA, Oct 19, 2025

Tennessee Warbler, Belchertown, MA, Oct 17, 2025

Orange crowned Warbler, Amherst, MA, Oct 17, 2025

Bald Eagle, Winsor Dam, Quabbin Park, MA, Oct 16, 2025

Winsor Dam, Quabbin Park, MA, Oct 15, 2025

The last week has seen more great migration conditions early on and then a bit of a warm up and some rain to end the time period.  Warbler migration is largely over beyond the late season migrants although I did have a very good day yesterday with a total of eight species of warblers (quite good for this late in the month this year given all the great migration conditions).  Sparrows continue to arrive in numbers with a great selection of species around.  Waterfowl numbers and diversity have been on the low side so far although I expect that will change with the arrival of cooler weather into the four week of November.  Purple Finches and Pine Siskins continue to increase in number and will hopefully be just the vanguard of irruptive species to arrive this year...time will tell.  I'm a bit behind for the month as waterfowl has not really shown up in numbers and I have concentrated on finding late warblers...I currently stand at 125 species, which is my lowest count at this point in October since 2017.  I also presented a program at the Hampshire Bird Club on the evening of the 14th and it was apparently well received and had the biggest crowd for a program at the club since Covid.  The topic was "Endemic Warblers of the Caribbean".  I have made a couple presentations recently and have found that I really enjoy doing them.

Another addition to my Hampshire County list today

Nelson's Sparrow, East Meadows, Northampton, MA, Oct 12, 2025

Nelson's Sparrow, East Meadows, Northampton, MA, Oct 12, 2025

Nelson's Sparrow, East Meadows, Northampton, MA, Oct 12, 2025

Nelson's Sparrow, East Meadows, Northampton, MA, Oct 12, 2025

Cackling Goose/Canada Goose with group of Canada Geese (2nd from right), East Meadows, Northampton, MA, Oct 12, 2025

Cackling Goose/Canada Goose with group of Canada Geese (2nd from right), East Meadows, Northampton, MA, Oct 12, 2025

White crowned Sparrow, East Meadows, Northampton, MA, Oct 12, 2025

Despite the impending arrival of a nor'easter today the birding was fantastic and I managed to add a new species to my Hampshire County list, bringing the total species I have seen in the county to 310.  I was out birding in the Ware area (more on that below) and was on my way to another spot in Belchertown when I got a text from Ted saying he found an unusual sparrow in Northampton.  Normally I would stop my birding and go chasing a rarity unless it is a rare warbler or a new species for me in the county and with the sparrow being a potential new species for me I made my way over after dropping some items at the house.  I then made the ride over and found Ted and Scott at the location but without any sightings of the sparrow.  The species is very tough to get looks at as it stays hidden most of the time and is more likely to move through the grasses like a mouse instead of flying to a new location.  We walked around the area for nearly an hour before we flushed it a couple times where it would fly a short distance and then settle back down out of sight.  I did see it scurrying through the grasses once but otherwise the bird stayed hidden from view most of the time.  During our search for the bird we also had a Nelson's Sparrow pop up and land briefly at the edge of the corn and I got a few marginal photos.  Two rare sparrows in one spot was really cool to see.  The area is in a private area of the meadows and for that reason I will not be reporting it right away to eBird and will not include specific locations.  The sparrow was the third new species I have added to my Hampshire County list so far this year with the two others being a White Ibis and a Stilt Sandpiper.

Palm Warbler 'yellow', Rail trail, Ware, MA, Oct 12, 2025

Yellow rumped Warbler 'myrtle', Rail trail, Ware, MA, Oct 12, 2025

Ruby crowned Kinglet, Rail trail, Ware, MA, Oct 12, 2025

Winsor Dam, Quabbin Park, MA, Oct 12, 2025

Before making the drive over to Northampton I was out early to try to catch up with some warblers before the weather got too windy.  I checked out the rail trail in Ware and I had a dozen species of warblers.  I also made a few stops at Winsor Dam looking to see if any waterfowl got blown in by the northeast wind but no luck.  If I had not heard about the sparrow in Northampton I'm sure I could have turned up more warblers.

Third week of October

White throated Sparrow, Amherst, MA, Oct 15, 2024

Gray Catbird, Amherst, MA, Oct 15, 2024

Canada Geese, Amherst, MA, Oct 16, 2024

Red bellied Woodpecker, Hickory Ridge Conservation Area, Amherst, MA, Oct 16, 2024

Northern Cardinal, Hickory Ridge Conservation Area, Amherst, MA, Oct 16, 2024

Song Sparrow, Amherst, MA, Oct 17, 2024

Yellow rumped Warbler 'myrtle', Amherst, MA, Oct 17, 2024

White crowned Sparrow, Hickory Ridge Conservation Area, Amherst, MA, Oct 17, 2024

Cooper's Hawk, Hickory Ridge Conservation Area, Amherst, MA, Oct 17, 2024

Purple Finch, UMASS, Amherst, MA, Oct 19, 2024

Merlin, Amherst, MA, Oct 19, 2024

Dark eyed Junco, Amherst, MA, Oct 19, 2024

Nashville Warbler, Amherst, MA, Oct 19, 2024

Ruddy Ducks, Winsor Dam, Quabbin Park, MA, Oct 21, 2024 

Winsor Dam, Quabbin Park, MA, Oct 21, 2024 

Palm Warbler 'yellow', Hickory Ridge Conservation Area, Amherst, MA, Oct 21, 2024 

Northern Flicker, Amherst, MA, Oct 21, 2024 

Song Sparrow, Amherst, MA, Oct 21, 2024 

The last week has produced a few new species for me for the month, which now stands at 132 (which is one of my lowest totals for October in several years).  I have continued to concentrate on warblers so I'm sure I have missed some species I would otherwise have tracked down for the month.  The weather has been fairly cooperative with mostly sunny conditions through most of the last week with steadily increasing temperatures (with cool to cold mornings every day).  Migration conditions were overall conducive for birds to move and loads of stuff moved through.  Sparrows, raptors and other late season migrants continue to show in good numbers and waterfowl is slowly continuing to increase in diversity.  Purple Finches have also arrived with multiple individuals heard at most every stop for the past week.  The weather looks to remain sunny and warm for a couple more days before more seasonable temps arrive.

Wilson recovering from surgery, Home, Belchertown, MA, Oct 21, 2024

Our boy Wilson had to have another surgery on Saturday to remove a few masses before they became too problematic for him.  We anxiously await the results to see if we are dealing with more cancer.  He is slowly recovering and hopefully he will be back to his old self soon.