MA - a Rufous Hummingbird in Millers Falls

 

Rufous Hummingbird - Millers Falls, Franklin Co. MA. November 11th, 2022. 

Found by Bruce Kanash at his home, ID ultimately verified by Master bander Anthony Hill. 

November 10th was warm and breezy with winds in the southern quarter. Since I hadn't been out to the Quabbin for a few weeks I thought I'd give it a try feeling open minded but not overly optimistic. On arrival at Gate 35 a chance encounter with Jeff Johnstone ultimately led to an encounter with a Rufous Hummingbird in Millers Falls later the same morning! A Selaphorus hummingbird had been coming to a feeder at a residence close to Millers Falls center. As it turned out, Jeff and the home owner, Bruce Kanash, had been friends for years. Bruce had first noted the hummingbird at his feeders on October 8th and kudos to Jeff, together with Ernie LeBlanc and Bruce, who identified it as a Rufous/Allen's on November 8th. 

Rufous Hummingbird - Millers Falls, Franklin Co. MA. November 11th, 2022. 

Found by Bruce Kanash at his home, ID ultimately verified by Master bander Anthony Hill. 

Quite naturally I was interested in taking a look at such a rarity, especially since I pass through Millers Falls almost every day and Bruce's house happened to be on one of my regular biking riding routes! Bruce was extremely generous with his time which was fortunate because the bird itself proved to be rather skittish. In the event, I visited on Nov 10th and 11th but never saw the hummingbird whilst standing outside. At the time, it could only be viewed from inside Bruce's home but thanks to Bruce I managed nice views on both days and secured some shots of the spread tail on Nov 11th. Certainly the images of the spread tail showed a moderate notch in R2 pointing towards a Rufous Hummingbird and I messaged Bruce with my suspicions. A few days later, on the 14th, Bruce was courteous enough to call and let me know that Anthony Hill had just successfully caught and banded the bird and identified it as hatching-year Rufous. Moreover, the bird was in good condition weighing in at 4 grams and returned to the feeders straight after banding! As the weather worsens and night time temperatures drop to well below freezing, it should certainly be interesting to see how long the hummer sticks around at Bruce's home. On a personal level, I'm extremely grateful to Bruce for sharing his hummingbird, and his hospitality.  

Around 45 confirmed records of Rufous Hummingbird currently exist for Massachusetts with others pending. However, reports from Franklin County appear to be exceedingly rare with only one other verified record to date, a single bird that came to a feeder in Ashfield in Nov/Dec 2004. 

Red-throated Loons (3) - Turner's Falls Rod and Gun club, Franklin Co., MA. November 16th, 2022.

Red-necked Grebe (juvenile) - Lake Mattawa, Franklin Co., MA. November 16th, 2022.

November in the Pioneer Valley often has a treat or two in store aside from rarities. After a fairly low key migration of waterfowl through our area it was good to finally see some Red-throated Loons in Turner's Falls on the 16th, part of a mini fall-out and a result of inclement weather, with a wider spread arrival of Red-throated Loons in southern Vermont and the Berkshires. Many of these, much like the Turner's loons, moved on quickly as the weather conditions eased somewhat during mid-morning. The same day also saw 13 Buffleheads and a Surf Scoter (immature male) at Turner's Falls and a Red-necked Grebe at Lake Mattawa. 

In terms of passerines, well this does seem to have been a very good month locally for Winter Wrens with multiple sightings at Northfield (Caldwell Road), Gill (North Cross Road), Barton Cove, Turner's Falls and Montague at the very least. It's not a rare species but numbers of fall migrants do appear to fluctuate from year to year, and this seems to be a good late fall period for them.

Winter Wren - Barton Cove, Gill, Franklin Co., MA. November 17th. 2022.

Snow Buntings - Turner's Falls Rod and Gun club, Franklin Co., MA. November 16th, 2022.

Six in total and nice to see a few on the ground instead of the usual flyovers!

Barred Owl - with prey, possibly Eastern Chipmunk. Northfield, Franklin Co., MA. November 13th, 2022. 

Good numbers of Barred Owls in Gill/Northfield/Bernardston this fall including, sadly, several road killed on I-91 and Rt 10. 

MA - Sage Thrasher, Harlequin and more good birds in 'the valley'

 

Sage Thrasher - Cow Bridge Road, Hatfield, Hampshire Co., MA. January 20th, 2021.

This bird was first found on Dec 13th, 2020 by Theresa Gessing.

January 20th, 2021. Today was a good day. Another mild, calm and not especially wintery morning was temptation enough for me to try for the Hatfield Sage Thrasher, the same long staying individual that I last saw on December 14th and now well into its sixth week of winter residence. Originally found by Theresa Gessing on December 13th, 2020 this bird, much like the individual upriver at Hinsdale, New Hampshire seems to becoming increasingly bold perhaps accustomed to the daily birder attention? Either way, the thrasher gave remarkable views today sitting up and feeding on bittersweet berries in the relatively warm January sunshine. 'Chapeau' to the generous fellow who beckoned me over and walked me to the spot where he'd left the thrasher feeding just a few minutes earlier. Considering the degree of difficulty in viewing the bird during my last visit on December 14th, today's views were simply out of this world. I was the only birder at the scene and left it feeding, unmolested, in its favored hedgerow.

Sage Thrasher - Cow Bridge Road, Hatfield, Hampshire Co., MA. January 20th, 2021.

Approximate location for the Sage Thrasher along Cow Bridge Road, near great Pond, Hatfield. 

Later in the day I was fortunate (again) to connect with the Barrow's Goldeneye at the Turner's Falls power canal which continues to join the pre-roost flocks of Common Goldeneye flying in from the Connecticut River at dusk. Further up the Connecticut, the first-winter male Harlequin Duck continues to forage in the white water rapids along the Millers River above Cabot Camp. Even so, it can be aloof and seems to be spending more time roosting than in past visits making it difficult to find at times. 

Barrow's Goldeneye (left) - first-winter male with Common Goldeneyes, Turner's Falls power canal, Franklin Co., MA. January 20th, 2021.

This bird was first noted on Dec 25th, 2020. 

Harlequin Duck  (first-winter male) - Millers River, Erving, Franklin Co., MA. January 20th, 2021.

First found on Jan 1st, 2021 by Anne Jemas. 

Of the passerines, well Red Crossbills continue to roam and show up in a wide scatter locations but have generally been incredibly consistent at several spots in northern Franklin County with 25 - 35 regularly in the Montague Plains, 5 - 11 in Gill and up to 13 in Erving. While the large numbers of Pine Grosbeaks that we saw around Christmas and New year appear to have moved out, smaller numbers (1 - 5 birds) continue to be found in Gill, Northfield, Millers Falls and Greenfield. The relatively mild days have also favored Winter Wrens which continue to crop up regularly at spots like the Millers River at Cabot Camp, Turner's Falls power canal and North Cross Road, Gill. 

The Williamstown Boreal Chickadee also continues at the suburban location just off North Housac Road though I would have to admit that my recent visits have not been anywhere near as successful as the first on January 14th. In fact, I've only been able to note the bird as a 'heard-only' and managed to get just the one additional audio clip since January 14th. That's a tough bird to see!

MA - pictorial highlights during Thanksgiving week

Barnacle Goose (adult) - Greenfield, Franklin Co., MA. November 28th, 2020. No doubt the same bird that's been using the Turner's Fall power canal for roosting and bathing since November 23rd. 

As if the prospect of one or more lingering Barnacle Geese wasn't enough to grace Thanksgiving week, winter finches continued to show in numbers almost unabated. In particular, Pine Grosbeaks settled into a couple of reliable feeding spots at Wendall and Northfield after several weeks of frustrating flyovers. Red Crossbills remained in their reliable haunts at Montague Sand Plains (85+) and North Cross Road, Gill (5+) and flocks of Common Redpolls, mercurial if nothing else, showed up in flocks of 25 - 30 in several birch stands before disappearing just as suddenly as they'd appeared. Of the irruptive finches, White-winged Crossbills have been the most difficult to catch up with and continue to elude my camera though I got pretty close this morning (Nov 28th) with two passing low over North Cross Road, Gill. The latter site is also currently hosting a fairly late Yellow-bellied Sapsucker and a couple of Winter Wrens. However, numbers of Evening Grosbeaks do appear to be tapering and in fact I only saw a single over North Cross Road during the whole of Thanksgiving week where formerly I was seeing them almost daily. A Yellow-rumped Warbler on Pine Meadow Road, Northfield on Nov 26th could well be my last warbler species of the year though I wouldn't rule out finding another in December. 

Barnacle Goose (adult) - Greenfield, Franklin Co., MA. November 28th, 2020.

Pine Grosbeaks -  on a soggy Thanksgiving morning, Wendall State Forest, Franklin Co., MA. November 26th, 2020. First noted by Bruce Kanash on November 25th. 

Aside from rare geese, the Turner's Falls area managed to pull in a Red-throated Loon on Nov 25th, 5 Greater Scaup on Nov 26th and the first Iceland Gull of the fall on Nov 27th/28th. 

Red-throated Loon (adult) and Red Fox - Turner's Falls,  Franklin Co., November 25th, 2020. 

Red-throated Loon (adult) - Turner's Falls,  Franklin Co., November 25th, 2020. 

Greater Scaup (5) -  Unity Park, Turner's Falls, Franklin Co., November 26th, 2020. 

Iceland Gull (kumlieni)  -  first-winter, Unity Park, Turner's Falls, Franklin Co., November 28th, 2020. 

Yellow-rumped Warbler - Pine Meadow Road, Northfield, Franklin Co., MA. November 26th, 2020. 

Horrible shot I know. Taken through the car windscreen during a downpour and included purely for the records. 

Common Redpoll  -  Montague, Franklin Co., November 18th, 2020. 

Red Crossbill (fem/imm) -  Montague, Franklin Co., November 25th, 2020. 

Pileated Woodpecker  -  Unity Park, Turner's Falls, Franklin Co., November 26th, 2020. 

MA - Acadian Flycatcher nesting in Franklin County - July 11th

Acadian Flycatcher at nest - Bernardston, Franklin Co., MA. July 11th, 2020.

A balmy Saturday evening with a strong southern wind seemed like a good opportunity to get outdoors and go for a family bike ride. Our destination was close to home in Bernardston and we aimed to do about 10 miles at a casual pace. My expectations for bird finding in the summer heat were pretty low but I carried my iphone all the same, just in case I heard or saw something unusual. We'd barely gone a mile into the ride when I heard the distinctively sharp 'peek' notes of what could only have been a calling Acadian Flycatcher. By the time I'd stopped to get a sound recording and fumbled around with my phone, Susannah and Matan were way up the road and the bird had stopped calling. But on the return leg of the journey I fared better. The bird was again calling spontaneously. This time I managed three recordings above the background noise of the stream and had brief naked-eye views of the bird zipping back-and-forth high amid the Eastern Hemlocks. Even without binocular views, I was pretty well convinced that it was an Acadian Flycatcher, a scarce/rare, low-density breeder at a handful of widely scattered sites in the Pioneer Valley. On a personal level, I recognized several years ago that I'd never actually seen an Acadian Flycatcher in Franklin County so to locate a self-found bird was especially satisfying. After the bike ride we returned to the same area, armed with bins and camera and soon located the bird, and it was still calling. It was so fast and tricky to view but, remarkably, it was clearly in the early stages of building a flimsy, basket-like nest high on the outer limbs of an Eastern Hemlock. I snapped a few pics as best I could and then moved on. 

Acadian Flycatcher at nest - Bernardston, Franklin Co., MA. July 11th, 2020.

Subsequent visits on July 13th and 14th found that the nest had very clearly been built up and attended to, and it looked relatively complete by the 14th. Oddly, there was no sign of the actual bird on either of those dates and the 11th was the only date on which I actually heard and saw the bird itself. I'll be keeping a close eye on the nest and will likely offer a more more updates to this page over next couple of weeks. 

Acadian Flycatcher nest - Bernardston, Franklin Co., MA. July 13th, 2020.

The nest had clearly been worked on since the 11th, but no sign of the flycatcher during my visit on the 13th.

Acadian Flycatcher nest - Bernardston, Franklin Co., MA. July 14th, 2020.

More material added to the nest since the previous day, but still no sign of the flycatcher on the 14th!

MA - more Dickcissels and a Blue Grosbeak!

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

It's been another sensational week of fall birding in Franklin County. From a personal perspective, the highlight would have to be the Blue Grosbeak found by Aaron Hulsey and Joe Oliverio in Deerfield Meadows on the 9th. I don't mind admitting that I've been on the look out for this species in the county for years but hadn't even heard of one until Aaron very kindly sent me a text to let me know of his find. Fortune worked in my favor and I had an appointment that afternoon that placed me only ten minutes away from the spot where Aaron and Joe had found the grosbeak. Within a few minutes of arriving I was watching the bird, albeit briefly and in the rain. No matter, I was really happy with the find and very grateful to Aaron and Joe.

Dickcissel - Deerfield Meadows, Franklin Co., MA. October 8th, 2019.

Deerfield Meadows was again the 'sweet spot' of the week as it had been in the first week of the month. Numbers of Song, White-throated, White-crowned and Savannah Sparrows concentrated here along with a couple each of Vesper and Lincoln's Sparrows and a good late showing of Indigo Buntings. Among them, more Dickcissels could be found with 4 on the 8th and another on the 10th. In a typical autumn I'm lucky to see a single Dickcissel so to tally 6 individuals from a single site in matter of days was well beyond expectation.

Dickcissel - Deerfield Meadows, Franklin Co., MA. October 10th, 2019.

Dickcissel - Deerfield Meadows, Franklin Co., MA. October 10th, 2019.

Other passerines of note included a Vesper Sparrow Caldwell Road Sod fields in Northfield on the 6th, at Red-eyed Vireo at Deerfield Meadows on the 10th,  50 American Pipits together at Caldwell Road Sod fields in Northfield on the 11th, and a Winter Wren in Wendell State Forest on the 12th. Large movements of Yellow-rumped Warblers have been seen over North Cross Road, Gill on most mornings this week, usually involving 45-65 birds with most activity occurring around sunrise. Hermit Thrush, Ruby-crowned Kinglet and Field Sparrow have all featured as migrants on North Cross Road as well this week.

(Western) Palm Warbler - Deerfield Meadows, Franklin Co., MA. October 10th, 2019.

Vesper Sparrow - Deerfield Meadows, Franklin Co., MA. October 10th, 2019.

Winter Wren - Wendell State Forest, Franklin Co., MA. October 12th, 2019.

MI - Warblers in Spring Part III

Kentucky Warbler - Tawas Point SP, Michigan. May 18th, 2019.

Originally found by Scott Surner on May 15th and looking somewhat bedraggled by May 18th. 

Despite having fabulous views of Kirtland's Warblers the previous evening, we returned on Sunday morning for a second helping and to enjoy some of the other species that we'd seen all-too-briefly the day before. These included Brown Thrasher, Hermit Thrush and Nashville Warbler. We worked hard for Upland Sandpipers but couldn't find any before moving onto Hartwick Pines State Park for fantastic views of Evening and Rose-breasted Grosbeaks, Yellow-bellied Sapsucker and Winter Wren. And there was even a Barred Owl calling the classic 'who-cooks-for-you' in the middle of the morning. The afternoon was dedicated to Bobolinks around Mio and the early evening to marshland birds where we heard lots of Soras and Virginia Rails but couldn't work-up any magic with Yellow Rail.

Winter Wren - Hartwick Pines SP, near Grayling, Michigan. May 17th, 2019. 

Evening Grosbeaks - Hartwick Pines SP, near Grayling, Michigan. May 17th, 2019. 

Rose-breasted Grosbeak - Oak Openings, Ohio. May 14th, 2019. 

We rounded off a brilliant spring trip with time spent at another migration hotspot, Tawas Point State Park. It was alive with migrant warblers and vireos, not least of which was a lingering Kentucky Warbler found on May 15th be fellow Pioneer Valley birder Scott Surner. We also enjoyed more Golden-winged and Orange-crowned Warblers, and what could only be described as a 'flock' of Philadelphia Vireos on the very last morning of the trip. I dare say that had we been given more time, Tawas Point would have kept on giving to us. John and I rounded up a stunning tour with 31 species of wood-warbler recorded. A big miss this year was Mourning Warbler but then the views that we had of Connecticut Warbler at Magee Marsh seemed like an appropriate trade off and there were no complaints forthcoming from us!

Blackpoll Warbler - Tawas Point SP, Michigan. May 18th, 2019. 

Red-breasted Nuthatch - Tawas Point SP, Michigan. May 19th, 2019.

Philadelphia Vireo - Tawas Point SP, Michigan. May 19th, 2019.

MA - crossbills and other cool passerines in early December

Red Crossbill (male) - Montague Plains, Franklin County, MA. December 5th, 2018.

Identified as 'eastern' Type 10 after analysis of the sound recordings by Tim Spahr.

Passerines of interest this week included six Red Crossbills in the Montague Plains on Dec 5th, identified as 'eastern' Type 10 after analysis of sound recordings taken at the scene. The flock was skittish, mobile and difficult to pin down so I was quite happy to come away with a handful of shots and a decent recording. In the same area, a lose flock of some 15 - 20 Red-breasted Nuthatches was no less impressive. Evening Grosbeaks (1 - 3) flew over North Cross Road, Gill every morning during Dec 1st - 5th, with another 3 over Turner's Falls Airfield on Dec 5th. A wide scatter of wandering Snow Buntings with 25 on Upper Farms Road, Northfield on Nov 30th, 11 on River Road, Gill on Dec 2nd and a single (male) over North Cross Road, Gill on Dec 6th. Skulkers included a smart Winter Wren on Pine Meadow, Northfield on Nov 30th with two together in Northfield Meadows on Dec 7th, and another on North Cross Road, Gill on the 8th. Dawn Winkler and Harvey Allen found a late Gray Catbird at Bennett Meadow, Northfield on Dec 3rd, and a very late Common Yellowthroat showed up in Northfield Meadows on Dec 7th & 8th.

Red Crossbill (female) - Montague Plains, Franklin County, MA. December 5th, 2018.

Identified as 'eastern' Type 10 after analysis of the sound recordings by Tim Spahr.

Red Crossbill (male) - Montague Plains, Franklin County, MA. December 5th, 2018.

Identified as 'eastern' Type 10 after analysis of the sound recordings by Tim Spahr.

Red Crossbill (male) - Montague Plains, Franklin County, MA. December 5th, 2018.

Identified as 'eastern' Type 10 after analysis of the sound recordings by Tim Spahr.

Red-breasted Nuthatch - Montague Plains, Franklin County, MA. December 5th, 2018.

Red-breasted Nuthatch - Montague Plains, Franklin Co., MA. December 5th, 2018.

Winter Wren - Pine Meadow Road, Northfield, Franklin Co., MA. November 30th, 2018.

Winter Wren - Pine Meadow Road, Northfield, Franklin Co., MA. November 30th, 2018.

Gray Catbird - Bennett Meadow, Northfield, Franklin Co., MA. December 3rd, 2018.

Image appears courtesy of Dawn Winkler.

Common Yellowthroat (first-winter male) - Northfield Meadows, Franklin Co., MA. December 8th, 2018.