NH - Hinsdale Rough-legged Hawk

 

Rough-legged Hawk (first-winter) - Patterson Farm, Hinsdale, Cheshire Co., NH. February 24th, 2021.

While running errands this morning I was more than happy to have five minutes of quality time with the Hinsdale Rough-legged Hawk just off Route 63. It looked healthy and settled, and even had a brief altercation with a young Red-tailed Hawk that had the nerve to take a vole from the Rough-leg's favored field at the Patterson Farm! I first noted this particular Rough-legged Hawk on Feb 22nd and fully expect it to stick around for a few more days at least. 

MA - Golden Eagle and another Rough-legged Hawk in Buckland

 

Rough-legged Hawk (light morph) - Buckland, Franklin Co., MA. February 14th, 2021. Possibly sub-adult.

Another Sunday and another family visit to Berkshire East Mountain Resort in Charlemont. After dropping off Matan for some snowboarding I drove the quiet country roads around Heath hoping for a perched raptor, maybe some irruptive finches, or perhaps even a few Bohemian Waxwings. The day was exceptionally quiet and I actually didn't see a single bird other than a few Black-capped Chickadees visiting a feeder in Heath Center.  As the breeze started to pick up and I elected to take my chances at the Deerfield River overlook on the Mohawk Trail, a spot that has recently produced two locally decent  raptors in the form of a Rough-legged Hawk on January 8th, and a Golden Eagle on January 27th. Both of these beauties happened to be juvenile/first-winter birds and both were obliging enough to stick around and be seen by multiple observers - nice! 

Rough-legged Hawk (light morph) - Charlemont/Buckland, Franklin Co., MA. February 14th, 2021. Possibly sub-adult.

Compare with the juv/first-winter (below) photographed from the same location on January 8th, 2021.

Rough-legged Hawk (light morph) - Charlemont/Buckland, Franklin Co., MA. January 8th, 2021. Juvenile/first-winter.

Compare with the probable sub-adult above photographed roughly six weeks later and clearly involving a different (new) individual bird.

Arrival at the overlook was immediately greeted by a Rough-legged Hawk, remarkably similar to my experience on January 8th. Moreover, like the January 8th bird, it was a light morph but as I watched it pass over the Mohawk Trail I noticed a few subtle differences. Some six weeks had passed since the last confirmed sightings of that bird originally found by Brendan Murtha on January 7th. Even so, I'd barely had time to contemplate the idea that the Rough-legged Hawk in view might be a new individual when I picked up a distant high-flying raptor gliding to the NW. As I followed it in the scope it banked before hitting an updraft revealing a stark white tail with a thick black terminal band. It was the immature Golden Eagle! After briefly circling it continued gliding into the NW breeze before losing height as it headed towards Heath Center. 

Golden Eagle (juv/first-winter) - Buckland, Franklin Co., MA. February 14th, 2021. 

Distant scope bird but still exhibiting classic Golden Eagle shape and features including white tail with thick black terminal band, pale, whitish bases

to the primaries, relatively small head and curved trailing edge to the wings typical of young Golden Eagle.

Conditions seemed to be so good for raptors that I hung around the Deerfield River overlook scanning for the next three hours. While there was no further sign of the Golden Eagle, I did have prolonged views of the Rough-legged Hawk confirming my original thought that it was an older individual than the first-winter seen in early/mid-January.  Other raptors also included an immature Bald Eagle, a couple of Red-tailed Hawks and a distant Sharp-shinned Hawk but the afternoon really belonged to the magnificent Rough-legged Hawk that put on a wonderful show. 

Rough-legged Hawk (light morph) - Buckland, Franklin Co., MA. February 14th, 2021. Possibly sub-adult.

The following day (Feb 15th), I spent some time driving the area hoping for either the eagle or the Rough-leg but didn't come up with either perhaps due to poor weather, though I did come across a nice Barred Owl perched out in the open.

Barred Owl - Buckland, Franklin Co., MA. February 15th, 2021. 

MA - Boreal Chickadee in the Berkshires!

Boreal Chickadee - North Hoosac Road, Williamstown, Berkshire Co., MA. January 14th, 2021.

Ever since my chance encounter with a Boreal Chickadee in New Salem last November, I don't mind admitting that I've become a little obsessed with the idea of finding another, partly because I'm genuinely fond of the species but also because I narrowly missed getting documentation photos of the New Salem bird. Throughout the remainder of the fall and winter I've been hopeful that another would come my way and my interest was more than a little piqued when I noticed a report from Lori Van Handel in Williamstown on January 11th. The initial report was followed by multiple successes from local birders and the site (along North Hoosac Road) was subsequently posted as a "stakeout". This morning I decided to take my chances and drove out to Williamstown, just over an hour from Northfield. On arrival I was slightly surprised see no other birders at the scene but on other the hand I was thrilled to open the car door and hear the Boreal Chickadee calling from the closest spruce grove! It made one circuit around the neighborhood evergreens and then moved off to the SW, its call notes being lost amid traffic and construction noise. My twelve minute stay was short but sweet having produced fabulous views and three very satisfactory audio clips of the diagnostic, wheezy calls. Gracious thanks go to the finder, Lori Van Handel.

Boreal Chickadee - North Hoosac Road, Williamstown, Berkshire Co., MA. January 14th, 2021.

Approximate location relative to North Housac Street, Williamstown.

Habitat for a wintering Boreal Chickadee, Williamstown. A quiet neighborhood with plenty of spruce and hemlock. January 14th, 2021. 

As far as I'm aware this is at least the fourth in Massachusetts during the current 2020/21 incursion with two reports from Franklin County in early November, and another that visited a yard in Wellfleet on the Outer Cape in early December. 

Boreal Chickadee - New Salem Vista, Franklin Co., MA. November 3rd, 2020.

Sketch of the New Salem bird from last fall, just by way of comparison to the current bird in Williamstown. 

The journey home was swift and neatly punctuated by a light morph Rough-legged Hawk flying alongside Rt 2 at Mile Long Farm in Charlemont, that's just a couple of miles west of last week's close views of a light morph along the same stretch of road and almost certainly the same bird. 

MA - local Rough-legged Hawk plus Harelquin and more

 

Rough-legged Hawk (light morph juvenile) - Mohawk Trail Scenic Byway, Charlemont, Franklin Co., MA. January 8th, 2020. 

Found by Brendan Murtha on January 7th, 2020. 

For some inexplicable reason, Rough-legged Hawks appear to be pretty rare in Franklin County. Over 15 years of regularly birding the county at the right time of year I've managed to see just two; one at Turner's Falls Airfield on Nov 4th, 2013 and another at the Quabbin Reservoir, first found by Bill Lafley, on Jan 16th, 2016. I really don't have a clear explanation as to why my favorite North American buteo has been so aloof over the years but needless to say, when Brendan Murtha reported a light morph near Shelburne Falls on Jan 7th my interest was more than a little piqued! The location was a familiar one, a rather picturesque roadside picnic area by the Deerfield River along the Mohawk Trail. This is well known territory for our family with dozens of trips to Thunder Mountain Bike Park and Berkshire East Mountain Resort logged in years past. 

Rough-legged Hawk (light morph juvenile) - Mohawk Trail Scenic Byway, Charlemont, Franklin Co., MA. January 8th, 2020. 

This morning's venture could hardly have gone any better. No sooner had I pulled in to the rest stop and had started to layer up with warm gear than the Rough-leg appeared. It was low, close and stunning! No need for binoculars, it was an easy naked-eye identification. It drifted around the fringe of the White Pines and out of view only to return via almost exactly the same route some 30 minutes later. It was a classic, crisp New England winter's day and the views of the Rough-leg were as pure as anything I could have hoped for.  It drifted low over the Deerfield River and began quartering the lower lying fields in Buckland. 

Harlequin Duck (first-winter male) - Millers River, Franklin Co., MA. January 8th, 2020. 

Northern Pintail (fem/imm) - Turner's Falls power canal, Franklin Co., MA. January 8th, 2020.

Later in the day I caught up with the Harlequin Duck back on the Millers River, the Lesser Back-backed Gull again at Barton Cove, and the young male Barrow's Goldeneye back at the Turner's Falls power canal where a female Northern Pintail looked like the only new arrival of the day. 

Lesser Black-backed Gull (sub-adult) - Barton Cove, Gill, Franklin Co., MA. January 8th, 2020.

NY - one or two Short-eared Owls

Short-eared Owl - Washington County Grasslands WMA, February 21st, 2017

Last week I made the two hour journey west to the Fort Edward Grasslands IBA in extreme eastern New York State. The site had been recommended to me some years ago by a birder that I'd met at Turner's Falls and had always been at the back of my mind for a winter visit. More recently, Laura Gaudette and JoAnne Russo made the journey from Putney, Vermont and spoke so highly of the experience that I could hardly resist the opportunity for a visit before the winter petered out. 

On reaching the area, I found numerous birders cruising the quiet country roads looking for raptors and it wasn't too long before I encountered my first Rough-legged Hawks and Northern Harriers. But having driven for over two hours to get the site I didn't want to stay in the car and decided to stretch my legs by walking down to the public viewing deck in the center of the IBA. Despite the birder traffic along the roads I was genuinely surprised to find myself alone on the deck, perhaps a little unnerving since I could a see a concentration of birder's cars on a nearby street leaving me to wonder if I was in the right place after all!

But, raptors were on view all the time from the deck as Rough-legs, Red-tails and harriers hunted around the area and sparred with each other. As dusk approached, I began to get to concerned that the hoped-for Short-eared Owls had already moved out for the winter. Then thankfully around 17:10hrs, the first owl appeared and, after briefly sparring with two harriers, flew right past the deck at close range. Moments later, another flew past me. I was surprised how vocal they were and watched them chasing over the fields barking and screaching, surprsingly audible at distance. With these two birds still in view, I quickly became aware of more owl vocals behind me and turned around to see a concentration of nine owls in a tight swirl remaniscent of a flock of migrating nighthawks. I could hardly believe it, 11 Short-eared Owls in the air simultaneously! At the same, and seemingly out of nowhere, the fields were suddenly 'cloaked' in quartering in Northern Harriers with at least 12 in view including three gray males. From then on, the owl and harrier activity continued until it was almost too dark see, though the owls remained vocal well into the dusk. On the other hand, the Rough-legs had dispersed early with around a one hour pause between the last Rough-leg sighting and the appearance of the first Short-eared Owl.

All in all, a wonderful experience and special thanks to Laura and JoAnne for encouraging me to give it a go - what an amazing place for raptors!

Short-eared Owls - Washington County Grasslands WMA, February 21st, 2017.

Four of the flock of nine visible from the viewing deck. 

Northern Harrier - Washington County Grasslands WMA, February 21st, 2017.

Minimum of 12 individuals during the afternoon, including three males.

Rough-legged Hawks - Washington County Grasslands WMA, February 21st, 2017.

Minimum of six individuals seen from the viewing deck. 

Short-eared Owls - Washington County Grasslands WMA, February 21st, 2017.

NH - a day on the New Hampshire Coast - Oct 24th, 2016

Lapland Longspur - Rye Habor SP (Ragged Neck), Rockingham Co., NH. October 24th, 2016.

One of two birds feeding at our feet - literally!

Last October I had the pleasure of guiding a small group of Brits around a few of the New England states. We began on the New Hampshire coast where our first full day in the field just happened to coincide with the passage of a cold front resulting in a cool day with blustery NW winds. Our day was highlighted by a broad range of species observed in beautiful fall sunlight, and all against the backdrop of the picturesque New Hampshire coast. Thanks to Robert Carr, Pete Lansdown, and Peter & Margaret Ward for sharing such a wonderfully rewarding day. 

Brant (pale-bellied) - Hampton Beach SP, Rockingham Co., NH. October 24th, 2016.

Semi-palmated Plovers - Hampton Beach SP, Rockingham Co., NH. October 24th, 2016.

Pine Warbler (first-winter) - North Hampton Beach SP, Rockingham Co., NH. October 24th, 2016.

Cooper's Hawk (juv/first-winter) - North Hampton Beach SP, Rockingham Co., NH. October 24th, 2016.

Yellow-rumped Warbler - North Hampton Beach SP, Rockingham Co., NH. October 24th, 2016.

Wilson's Snipe (presumed) - Rye Habor SP (Ragged Neck), Rockingham Co., NH. October 24th, 2016.

Doesn't really get better than this in terms of views of a snipe but aside from range and distribution is 

it really possible to rule out Common Snipe (Gallinago gallinago)?

Rough-legged Hawk (light morph) - Rye/North Hampton townline, Rockingham Co., NH. October 24th, 2016.

Nice pick-up by Pete Lansdown. High flying migrant drifting south over the open ocean. 
In view for quite a while but never came close enough to shore for images. 
One of the least expected birds of the day. 

Double-crested Cormorants - Rye, Rockingham Co., NH. October 24th, 2016. Hundreds of migrants passed south all day.

Field Sparrow - Wallis Sands, Rye, Rockingham Co., NH. October 24th, 2016.

 Ipswich Savannah (upper) and Savannah Sparrows - Odiorne Point, Rye, Rockingham Co., NH. October 24th, 2016.

Orange-crowned Warbler - Odiorne Point, Rye, Rockingham Co., NH. October 24th, 2016.

One of two foraging at close range. 

Western Kingbird - Pulpit Rocks/Wallis Sands, Rye, Rockingham Co., NH. October 24th, 2016.

Long staying rarity. Gave us the run around a few times before eventually feeding in the open at dusk.