MA - monster snapper

Didn't have a lot of time for birding today but checked a couple of spots in the Gill/Turner's Falls area. The Upinngil fields once again had a nice flock of Canada Geese but I couldn't find any Cacklers or White-fronts with them today. The 'Giant' Canada Goose located yesterday was relatively close to the road impressively towering above the surrounding canadensis. 

Elsewhere, three American Coots continued at Barton Cove but otherwise it was relatively quiet with a huge Snapping Turtle providing the highlight of the morning.

'Giant' Canada Goose (B.c. maxima) - middle bird with mostly Atlantic (canadensis) Canada Geese, Gill, Franklin Co., MA. October 14th, 2015. 

Cooper's Hawk mobbing immature Bald Eagle - Turner's Falls power canal, Franklin Co., MA. October 14th, 2015. 

This young eagle had a nice white tail with a blackish terminal band providing a potential pitfall for immature 

Golden Eagle. The same bird appears in the image below. 

 Snapping Turtle - Turner's Falls power canal, Franklin Co., MA. October 14th, 2015.

Massive individual with the guard rail provided some sense of scale. 

MA - Cackling and White-fronted Geese again...plus a few new birds.

Yet another fantastic day to be out. Calm, foggy and autumnal in the morning then warming up rapidly in the afternoon with a nice SW breeze. Hopes of getting down to Barton Cove early were dashed with the appearance of Canada Geese in the fields near Upingil Farm. It didn't take long to find the continuing Cackling Goose along with (as many as) three different forms of Canada Goose (maxima, canadensis and interior). 

 Cackling Goose - continuing bird, Gill, Franklin Co., MA. October 13th, 2015.

Seen at various locations including Turner's Falls and Barton Cove since September 29th. 

 Cackling Goose (center) - continuing bird behind Canada Goose (possibly B.c. interior), Gill, Franklin Co., MA. October 13th, 2015. 

possible 'Giant' Canada Goose (B.c. maxima) center - Gill, Franklin Co., MA. October 13th, 2015. 

The bird to left could also be B.c. maxima, both of them among canadensis and interior.

possible 'Interior' Canada Goose (B.c. interior) lower left -  Gill, Franklin Co., MA. October 13th, 2015. 

With B.c. maxima towering over group of canadensis.

In the mean time, Josh Rose had detected the first American Coots (3) of the fall at Barton Cove and they were still present when I arrived in mid-morning, along with a Pied-billed Grebe. The power canal had been re-flooded over the weekend and was in full flow once more. Initially things were quiet with just 5 Common and 2 Hooded Mergansers of note, but around noon several hundred Canada Geese flew in, apparently carrying little of note with them. Passerines included several Gray Catbirds, Blue-headed Vireos, Blackpoll Warblers and a Common Yellowthroat among the more numerous Yellow-rumped Warblers.

 Gray Catbird - Turner's Falls, Franklin Co., MA. October 13th, 2015. 

Common Yellowthroat - Turner's Falls, Franklin Co., MA. October 13th, 2015. 

Later in the day, Barton Cove once again played host to the continuing Greater White-fronted Goose among several hundred Canada Geese rounding off yet another interesting day of incidental birding!

Greater White-fronted Goose - adult continuing, Barton Cove, Gill, Franklin Co., MA. October 13th, 2015. 

First noted by Eric Huston on October 5th.  Very distant (and grainy) this evening.

MA - spring in autumn

North Cross Road, Gill, Franklin Co., MA. Mid-October, 2015. 

Columbus Day weekend (as with any holiday weekend) was absorbed by family time leaving very few time-windows for birding. Even so, it was a joy to be outside and Columbus Day itself was just about as glorious as any New England day could be. Despite a chilly, foggy start, the day filled up with warm sunshine which seemed to be a cue for many birds to start singing. Around the fields and woods of Gill, the air was full of birdsong as my morning bike ride encountered Northern Mockingbirds, Northern Cardinals, Eastern Bluebirds, White-throated, White-crowned and Song Sparrows some singing rather vigorously as though spring was just around the corner. The highlight was a singing Orange-crowned Warbler on North Cross Road very close to the Bernardston townline, the second time that I've heard an Orange-crowned Warbler singing locally this week. Although it's not rare to hear some species break into song on autumnal days, the volume of song this morning was struck me as unusual. Other birds of note included a Blue-headed Vireo calling across the road from Gill Elementary School and about half-a-dozen American Pipits in the fields at Upinngil Farm.

North Cross Road, Gill, Franklin Co., MA. Mid-October, 2015. 

MA - October: Rusties, scoters and a super tame Horned Lark

After the best part of a week of lovely but rather uneventful weather, this morning's low cloud base combined with showers and drizzle brought some fresh birds locally and left me wishing I could have stayed out for longer. After bumping into Josh Rose at Riverview Drive in Gill where we shared a juv Ring-necked Duck and a Green-winged Teal, I headed down to the power canal finding it still drained and attracting a few interesting birds. The Depot Road (bike path side) was particularly birdy and after an hour or so I'd found a dozen Rusty Blackbirds, 150 Common Grackles (not mixing with the Rusties), a couple of Semi-palmated Plover, a juvenile Herring Gull, about a dozen yellow (Eastern) Palm Warblers, and a (getting late) House Wren. On the way home, I called in at Unity Park finding a freshly arrived immature Surf Scoter and an exceedingly approachable Horned Lark at the bike path access parking area. In years of birding here, it was the first time that I'd ever seen a grounded Horned Lark anywhere around Barton Cove.

 Rusty Blackbirds - Turner's Falls bike path, Franklin Co., MA. October 9th, 2015.

About a dozen hanging around the maple/alder swamp to the east of the bike path but not especially easy to get close to!

 Horned Lark - age/sex uncertain, Turner's Falls bike path at Unity Park Franklin Co., MA. October 9th, 2015.

Exceedingly unusual location for this species.

Herring Gull - first-cycle, Turner's Falls power canal, Franklin Co., MA. October 9th, 2015.

 Surf Scoter -   juv/fem from Turner's Falls bike path at Unity Park Franklin Co., MA. October 9th, 2015.

 Snow Geese - flock of five with Canada Geese, Main Road, Gill, Franklin Co., MA. October 9th, 2015.

Attempts to get back home were again interrupted, this time by five adult Snow Geese in with some Canada Geese off Main Road in Gill - they too, were my first of the season. Later in the afternoon, goose numbers had swollen to about c.350 in the same field off Main Road. As it happens, there were actually seven Snow Geese, two of which were juveniles and apparently hidden in the furrows on my first visit this morning. Even better, an adult Greater White-fronted Goose which called a few times when I got out of the car to scope the Snow Geese. Again, my first of the season and possibly the same bird first seen by Eric Huston at Barton Cove on Oct 5th. Things are picking up!

 Snow Geese - flock of seven with Canada Geese, Main Road, Gill, Franklin Co., MA. October 9th, 2015.

The two juveniles are crouched low on the ridge just right of center. 

 Snow Geese (left) and Greater White-fronted Goose (right) - with Canada Geese, Main Road, Gill, Franklin Co., MA. October 9th, 2015.

Greater White-fronted Goose (center) - adult with Canada Geese, Main Road, Gill, Franklin Co., MA. October 9th, 2015.

MA - October: Cackling Goose still around

October has always been a special month for me. Whether it be searching for rare migrants on some remote windswept headland in the UK, or scouring 'oases' for Siberian/Asian waifs in the extreme deserts of southern Israel, and now watching for just about anything amid the beautiful fall foliage of New England, the month always brings a welcome sense of anticipation. In the last few years, the New England states have produced a succession of mid-October 'mega-rarities' ranging from shorebirds such as Gray-tailed Tattler, Wood Sandpiper and European Golden Plover through toultra-rare migrants such as Brown-chested Martin. Of course, the coast catches most of these vagrants but even for interior birders (such as myself), it's always worth keeping an open mind, amply demonstrated by the Pink-footed Goose that showed up at Turner's Falls in October 2011. At the time, it was just the fourth state record. 'Lesser' rarities such as Northern Wheatear, Say's Phoebe and Scissor-tailed Flycatcher have all appeared in or near the Pioneer Valley in the last few years and could show up again and it's the potential promise of birds like these that inspire many a good field outing in October.

After a chilly start to the month with winds in the northern quarter, we seem to have settled into a High Pressure system bringing cool, foggy starts and beautiful, sunny, autumnal days - wonderful to be outside but hardly the weather for producing a more interesting range of species.

Surprisingly, last month's Cackling Goose continues to stick around with a small group of Canada Geese now frequenting Barton Cove in Gill after the recent draining (temporary) of the Turner's Falls power canal. It was re-located on October 5th by when Eric Houston found it along with a Greater White-fronted Goose off Riverview Drive.

 Cackling Goose - Barton Cove, Gill, Franklin Co., MA. October 8th, 2015.

 Cackling Goose - Barton Cove, Gill, Franklin Co., MA. October 7th, 2015.

Cackling Goose - Barton Cove, Gill, Franklin Co., MA. October 7th, 2015.

MA - Cackling Goose; first of the autumn

Warm, muggy southerlies today, hardly the sort of day to be looking for Arctic geese but a quick check of Turner's Falls found the first Cackling Goose of the autumn season loafing on the power canal with a mere 70 Canada Geese. This is the earliest Cackling Goose I've found locally, though I have suspected late September birds before, usually fly-overs with Canada Geese. The waterfowl numbers were small but diverse at Turner's Falls this afternoon with 2 Hooded Mergansers and a Green-winged Teal at the power canal and an American Wigeon and the long staying Gadwall above the dam at Unity Park.

Forecast calls for rain, temperature drop and winds from the northern quarter in the next couple of days...could bring some interesting changes....let's see what happens.

Cackling Goose (left) - Turner's Falls power canal, Franklin Co., MA. September 29th, 2015. 

 Cackling Goose (left) - Turner's Falls power canal, Franklin Co., MA. September 29th, 2015. 

Cackling Goose (raised wings) - Turner's Falls power canal, Franklin Co., MA. September 29th, 2015. 

 Gadwall -  Unity Park, Turner's Falls, Franklin Co., MA. September 29th, 2015. 

 Green-winged Teal - Turner's Falls power canal, Franklin Co., MA. September 29th, 2015. 

American Wigeon - Unity Park, Turner's Falls, Franklin Co., MA. September 29th, 2015. 

MA - more dabblers!

Some welcome rain brought slightly cooler temperatures today but it still felt very muggy to me. I had a quick cruise around some of the fields in Gill this morning but found little of interest except a couple of Bobolinks off Boyle Road. Little seemed to have changed at Barton Cove as well, that's until I bumped in Josh Rose at Unity Park in Turner's Falls. Again, the motley Mallard flock drew in yet another species of dabbling duck - four Blue-winged Teal. Unlike last week's Green-winged Teal, these birds didn't mind being watched at close quarters and hung around until Josh and I left at about 09:45 hrs. The molting drake Gadwall continued, now present for about a month at Unity Park. Other than that, a Pied-billed Grebe off Riverview Drive and the continuing, summering Great Black-backed Gull. But, Blue-winged Teal was the bird of the day.....no doubt about that one.

 Blue-winged Teals - four today on the CT river at Unity Park, Turner's Falls, Franklin Co., MA. September 10th, 2015. 

 Common Nighthawks - two distant birds heading east, Barton Cove boat ramp, Gill, Franklin Co., MA. 

September 10th, 2015. 

Gadwall -  continuing molting male, Unity Park, Turner's Falls, Franklin Co., MA. September 10th, 2015. 

Later in the day, a quick check of Unity Park on a rainy, gloomy evening found the four Blue-winged Teal still present and Eric Huston scoping them out! Eric had mentioned seeing a fairly late nighthawk. Luckily for me, a quick stop at Barton Cove boat ramp found two Common Nighthawks heading east through the gloom at speed. It's getting quite late to see nighthawks locally though I think we still have a chance of seeing some stragglers through to the end of the month.

MA - September odds n' ends

The heat of mid-summer is still very much with us in the Pioneer Valley and with this afternoon's temps hitting 90 degrees in Gill, it really doesn't feel very autumnal at the moment. My blog posts have been sadly neglected over the last few weeks but a few things have caught my eye especially at Turner's Falls where the 'motley' molting Mallards at Unity Park have drawn in three other species of dabbler duck including a summering drake Gadwall (throughout August) and a molting drake Green-winged Teal on the 4th.

Gadwall - male non-breeding plumage, Unity Park, Turner's Falls, Franklin Co., MA. August 13th, 2015. 

 Gadwall - male non-breeding plumage, Unity Park, Turner's Falls, Franklin Co., MA. August 31st, 2015. 

Same as above, seen here with female Mallard. 

 Gadwall - male non-breeding plumage, Unity Park, Turner's Falls, Franklin Co., MA. September 8, 2015. 

Same as above, breast darkening and contrasting more with gray face. White secondaries showing here. 

Green-winged Teal - male non-breeding plumage, Unity Park, Turner's Falls, Franklin Co., MA. September 4th, 2015.

American Black Duck - male, Unity Park, Turner's Falls, Franklin Co., MA. September 4th, 2015.

Beautiful male hanging out with the local Mallards. 

Fish Crows continued to impress (me at least) with several noisy family groups in Turner's Falls including Unity Park and at Avenue A near the Cumberland Farms gas station.

Although most bird song tapered in August, vireos continue to be quite vocal with a Yellow-throated Vireo singing at the rail yard in East Deerfield on Sep 1st and wide scatter of Warbling Vireos still singing in Gill and Turner's Falls through to Sep 8th.

I had my first Pied-billed Grebe of the fall at Turner's Falls power canal on Sep 1st with another at Unity Park on Sep 4th.

Pied-billed Grebe - Unity Park, Turner's Falls, Franklin Co., MA. September 4th, 2015.

And for the second summer in succession, a Great Black-backed Gull, perhaps a failed breeder, has summered at Turner's Falls, often the only gull present.

Great Black-backed Gull - Unity Park, Turner's Falls, Franklin Co., MA. September 8, 2015. 

Present throughout August into September. Almost certainly a returning 'summering' bird from 2014. 

MA - local Olive-sided Flycatcher over the weekend

We recently had an immaculate weekend for weather with much cooler air, pleasant sunshine and very little humidity - perfect for bike riding! At the end of my ride on Saturday I had a really nice surprise in the form of an Olive-sided Flycatcher at Gill Elementary School. I'd just dismounted when I noticed a passerine atop a very large willow. It sallied out and returned to the same perch, much like an Olive-sided Fly would.......but since Gill was full of Cedar Waxwings, and had been for some time, I was a little guarded about getting too excited over what might turn out to be a juv Cedar Waxwing. Fortunately I had the camera in the car and rattled off a few shots before (and much to my surprise) the bird took off, headed south and never returned. As far as I'm aware, Olive-sided Flycatcher is no a longer a regular breeder in Massachusetts so this bird was a certain migrant, and slightly earlier than most.

Elsewhere in Gill and Turner's Falls, still lots of late bird song including Hermit Thrush and Winter Wrens singing from the hemlock woods, and the occasional Louisiana Waterthrush still singing in Gill. Fish Crows continue to feature in Turner's Falls around Unity Park and the residential areas south-east of there.

The Turner's Falls power canal has been relatively quiet but has had a lingering Great Egret for about a week, and four Double-crested Cormorants in the rain this morning.

Olive-sided Flycatcher - Gill Elementary School, Franklin Co., MA. August 8th, 2015.

Rather rare/scarce autumn migrant in Franklin County. 

Great Egret - Tuner Falls power canal, Franklin Co., MA. August 9th, 2015. 

 iphone shot taken during a family bike ride. 

Belted Kingfisher - Tuner Falls power canal, Franklin Co., MA. August 11th, 2015. 

Taken in today's deluge.