MA - Pacific-slope Flycatcher still in Hadley after a frigid week!

Pacific-slope Flycatcher - off Huntington Road, Hadley, Hampshire Co., MA. November 15th, 2019.

This week seemingly brought an abrupt end to fall with frigid temperatures overnight and most days barely reaching above freezing. Today, Friday the 15th, was the first day since Monday with some genuine warmth in the sunshine. Coupled with relatively light winds, the conditions seemed ideal to check on the Pacific-slope Flycatcher in Hadley. The bird was already in view when I arrived at about 10:30 am and was kindly pointed out to me by Mary Ess-Why and Nancy Demers, and together we enjoyed super views at close range in bright autumnal sunshine. Quite how this tiny 'western' flycatcher is surviving the freezing temperatures in Hadley I'm not quite sure but at least today it was warm enough for the bird to be actively foraging as well as perched up absorbing the sun's warmth for sustained periods. 

Pacific-slope Flycatcher - off Huntington Road, Hadley, Hampshire Co., MA. November 15th, 2019.

And it was even foraging from the ground along the main track in front of us!

The Pacific-slope Flycatcher has definitely been the 'banner' species this week but I did manage to connect with the Clay-colored Sparrow on the 12th found by Josh Layfield in Deerfield's North Meadows. On the same day there was also a Red-throated Loon at Turner's Falls Rod and Gun club. It's actually been a good week for sparrows with increased numbers of White-throated Sparrows and Dark-eyed Juncos, as well as American Tree Sparrows.  Scarcer species have included White-crowned Sparrow (3) and Field Sparrow (1) at Deerfield North Meadows. Less usual, and the first that I've noted this fall, was a Red Crossbill moving south over Pine Meadow Road in Northfield on the 15th.

Clay-colored Sparrow - Deerfield Meadows, Franklin Co., MA. November 12th, 2019.

Originally found by Josh Layfield on November 11th. 

Red-throated Loon - non-breeding plumage, Turner's Falls, Franklin Co., MA. November 12th, 2019.

White-crowned Sparrow - first-winter, Deerfield Meadows, Franklin Co., MA. November 14th, 2019.

American Tree Sparrow - Deerfield Meadows, Franklin Co., MA. November 14th, 2019.

MA - Pacific-slope Flycatcher plus a stellar cast of locally rare passerines

Pacific-slope Flycatcher - Hadley, Hampshire Co., MA. November 4th, 2019.

Pacific-slope Flycatcher - Hadley, Hampshire Co., MA. November 4th, 2019.

Update November 11th; despite ever decreasing temperatures and the potential for snow in tomorrow's weather forecast, the Pacific-slope Flycatcher continues to put on quite the show in Hadley. This morning, Susannah, Matan and I joined not more than half-a-dozen birders patrolling the staked out area off Huntington Road. Initially, things seemed pretty quiet, very quiet in fact and several disappointed birders left the area without success. But around 11:30 hours one sharp-eyed gent kindly waived us over after he'd just had brief views of the flycatcher right off the main track. The bird was low, furtive and very, very difficult to see well but eventually we all had pretty good views over a thirty minute period as it worked up and down the low vegetation along the main pathway under the power lines. One week on from the really good views I had on November 4th, I can admit to being genuinely surprised that it's still hanging on so deep into the fall. 

 Pacific-slope Flycatcher - Hadley, Hampshire Co., MA. November 11th, 2019.

In the mean time, while we were chasing the rarest of flycatchers in Hadley, Josh Layfield was busy finding his own birds in Deerfield and simultaneously came up with a Clay-colored Sparrow in the North Meadows! 

 Clay-colored Sparrow - Deerfield Meadows, Franklin Co., MA. November 11th, 2019.

Found and photographed by Josh Layfield. 

November 4th; A few years ago I ran into Frank Gallo at Hammonassett Beach State Park in Connecticut. It was a brisk November day and I was still relatively new to US birding, but one of Frank's comments from that day really stuck with me when he said, "anything that's green and yellow at this time of year has to be worth a closer look". How right he was. Here we are in early November 2019 being treated to a host of avian gems in the Pioneer Valley, brightly colored and relatively easy to pick out amid the denuded sumac thickets. Chief among these has to be the long staying Pacific-slope Flycatcher off Huntington Road in Hadley right along the eastern bank of the Connecticut River. First found by Joe Oliverio on October 23rd, this unexpected waif from the Pacific Northwest has both treated and frustrated hundreds of birders during its two week stay. It was even courteous enough to allow my UK tour group to catch up with it on October 28th, and stick around offering spectacular views on November 4th. Such rarities only come around once in a generation and this bird looks set to become the first state record for Massachusetts thanks to a wealth of sound recordings, photographs and expert opinion. Thanks go to all of those folks for being so keenly involved in the identification and for keeping tabs on the bird's movements. 

Pacific-slope Flycatcher - Hadley, Hampshire Co., MA. November 4th, 2019.

Often flicked its tail upward when perched. 

Pacific-slope Flycatcher - Hadley, Hampshire Co., October 28th, 2019.

Continuing with the 'green and yellow' theme, and not to be outdone by the flycatcher, Brian Kane and Noel Watkins came up with a local rarity of their own in the form of a White-eyed Vireo in Montague on November 3rd. Only the third Franklin County record that I know of and fitting neatly into a concentrated pattern of late autumn occurrences as follows; Northfield Meadows on Nov 2nd 2013 (Eric Huston), Turner's Falls during Oct 26th - Nov 8th, 2017 (JPS), and now Montague Nov 3rd - 5th, 2019 (BK and NW). 

White-eyed Vireo - Montague, Franklin Co., MA. November 5th, 2019.

Showing characteristics of a first-winter individual and quite strikingly different 

to the Turner's Falls bird from 2017 featured below. 

White-eyed Vireo -  Turner's Falls, Franklin Co., MA. November 1st, 2017.

Nashville Warbler - Deerfield Meadows, Franklin Co., MA. November 2nd, 2019.

Late, bright and unexpected. My personal latest in Massachusetts. 

Marsh Wren - Turner's Falls, Franklin Co., MA. November 5th, 2019.

Late, super skulking and again, unexpected. Only my second observation of Marsh Wren in Franklin County. 

Aside form the discovery of the Pacific-slope Flycatcher in Hadley, October produced a host of noteworthy grassland species many of which showed in the Deerfield area;

Le Conte's Sparrow - Mill Village Road, Deerfield, Franklin Co., MA. October 17th, 2019. 

Found by Chuck Caron on October 13th, 2019.

Le Conte's Sparrow - Mill Village Road, Deerfield, Franklin Co., MA. October 14th, 2019. 

Initially found by Chuck Caron on October 13th, 2019.

Blue Grosbeak (first-winter) - North Meadows, Deerfield, Franklin Co., MA. October 9th, 2019. 

Found by Aaron Hulsey and Joe Oliverio. 

Dickcissel - North Meadows, Deerfield, Franklin Co., MA. October 4th, 2019. 

A stellar month for this species with  1 - 4 irregularly in Deerfield Meadows between October 4th and 13th. 

Clay-colored Sparrow  - North Meadows, Deerfield, Franklin Co., MA. October 2nd, 2019. 

A fairly rare autumn migrant in Franklin County this being only my second record,  

with the first at Turner's Falls on October 12th, 2017. 

MA - Dickcissel, Clay-colored Sparrow and more...

Dickcissel - Deerfield Meadows, Franklin Co., MA. October 4th, 2019.

October opened with a welcome change in the weather. Muggy, showery southerlies gave way to breezy, cooler conditions and a cold front on the 4th. By the 5th we'd had our first frost of the fall and the 6th, while pleasant enough, was distinctly dank with the hanging threat of rain throughout the day. All of a sudden, it really felt like autumn had arrived. If late September had been more subdued than average in northern Franklin County, October had gotten off to a cracking start! Deerfield Meadows proved to be something of a 'sweet' spot with a Marsh Wren on the 1st (David Sibley), a Clay-colored Sparrow on the 2nd and a Dickcissel on the 4th.

Clay-colored Sparrow - Deerfield Meadows, Franklin Co., MA. October 2nd, 2019.

Noteworthy arrivals of passerines to 'greater' Franklin County included Ruby-crowned Kinglets (fairly widespread from the 1st), White-crowned and Song Sparrows from the 2nd, Yellow-rumped Warblers from the 3rd (including 150 at Northfield Meadows on the 5th - Josh Layfield) and White-throated Sparrows from the 4th, Dark-eyed Juncos from the 5th and an early Snow Bunting (over South Ferry Road, Montague) on the 6th.  Less expected was a Winter Wren at Caldwell Road fields, Northfield on the 3rd and an Eastern Meadowlark in Montague on the 6th, a species I almost never encounter locally on fall migration. 

Yellow-rumped Warbler - Northfield, Franklin Co., MA. October 1st, 2019.

Winter Wren - Northfield, Franklin Co., MA. October 3rd, 2019.

White-throated Sparrow - Deerfield Meadows, Franklin Co., MA. October 4th, 2019.

Eastern Meadowlark - Montague, Franklin Co., MA. October 6th, 2019.

Common Yellowthroat - Pine Meadow Road,  Northfield, Franklin Co., MA. October 1st, 2019.

Good numbers of Common Yellowthroats in early October, certain spots harboring 8 -10 individuals.

Great Blue Heron (juvenile) - Deerfield Meadows, Franklin Co., MA. October 4th, 2019.

Solitary Sandpipers (2) - Deerfield Meadows, Franklin Co., MA. October 4th, 2019.

Not an easy species to find in Franklin County but birds have been lingering here, and at Hell's Kitchen in Northfield.

Raptor migration hasn't been particularly strong or obvious in the first week although a smattering of American Kestrels passed through, and a Peregrine migrated over Montague on the 6th. The 4th was probably the best day with 45 Turkey Vultures, 2 Black Vultures, Osprey, Northern Harrier and Sharp-shinned Hawk all passing over Deerfield Meadows within the space of 25 minutes. 

Odds n' ends included 6 Fish Crows still lingering outside the 'Big Y' at Greenfield shopping plaza off the Mohawk Trail on the 5th. (Josh Layfield), a Greater Yellowlegs over Turner's Falls on the 1st, and up to 18 Ring-necked Ducks and 3 Pied-billed Grebes in the Turner's Falls area.

Greater Yellowlegs - Turner's Falls, Franklin Co., MA. October 1st, 2019.

MA - Turner's migrant sparrows

Clay-colored Sparrow - Turner's Falls, Franklin Co., MA. October 12th, 2017.

Finally a shift to cooler more autumn-like conditions bringing a crisp start to the day and some fresh arrivals. My early morning jog around Gill Elementary school produced a calling Swainson's Thrush in the predawn while the playing fields were evidently full of roosting Savannah Sparrows. A Greater Yellowlegs flying around calling at about 06:30 was far less usual, and slightly puzzling with no obvious wetlands close by.

After  making a quick stop at Turner's Falls airfield in mid-morning, I dropped down to the Rod and Gun Club finding three Green-winged Teal with the Canada Geese and a Greater Scaup out in the open channel. A fairly late Osprey was fishing on the Gill side of the river but it wasn't long before several foraging sparrows caught my attention including one small, pallid sandy-gray individual - a Clay-colored Sparrow!

Over the years I've had some luck with Clay-colored Sparrows in the Pioneer Valley but all of them have been in the Hadley floodplain in Hampshire County, including two on Christmas bird counts with Scott Surner. As far as I can remember, this is the first that I've actually seen in Franklin County and certainly my first at Turner's Falls. This particularly bird seemed content following the five or so juvenile White-crowned Sparrows present along with several Song and Swamp Sparrows. 

White-crowned Sparrows (first-winter) with Song Sparrow - Turner's Falls, Franklin Co., MA. October 12th, 2017.

MA - Northampton CBC - 12/21

Photo-highlights from today's (12/21/13) Northampton Christmas Bird Count. As usual I joined Scott Surner for his sector of the CBC featuring the Hadley Honey Pot, Hadley Cove and North Hadley taking in various views along the Connecticut River. It was another hugely enjoyable day with Scott, beginning and ending in the Honey Pot with temperatures approaching a balmy 50 deg F by the end of the day - and the rain held off until the end of the count!

In addition to the photo-highlights below, we also found a Yellow-bellied Sapsucker, Winter Wren and Yellow-rumped Warbler finishing off the day in superb fashion with two Short-eared Owls hunting over the Honey Pot at dusk - not too shabby.

Clay-colored Sparrow - Aqua Vitae Road, Hadley, Hampshire Co, MA. December 21st, 2013.

Nice pick-up by Scott, ultimately approachable to within a few feet. Only my second on this count.  

 Horned Larks - Aqua Vitae Road, Hadley, Hampshire Co, MA. December 21st, 2013.

 Lapland Longspurs - Hadley Honey Pot, Hampshire Co., MA. December 21st, 2013.

A fine showing of these including five in the same field in the Honey Pot and at least one other 

on the Aqua Vitae Road. On a personal level, the most I've had on this particular count. 

 Ring-necked Duck - female/imm, North Hadley, Hampshire Co., MA December 21st, 2013.

Another one found by Scott and I think my first on this count.

Savannah Sparrow - Aqua Vitae Road, Hadley, Hampshire Co, MA. December 21st, 2013.