Tag: weekinreview

Wednesday 3/27: Purple Finches at Lot 1, Rusty over the West Meadow.

Thursday 3/28: Snipe at Kaveski but missed the Gadwall and a meadowlark at Elm Brook.

Friday 3/29: PB Grebe plus first for Framingham Bufflehead at Farm Pond.

Saturday 3/30: Decided to do a Worcester county swing. Got 5/16 targets, which was pretty good considering several were only reported nowhere near where I actually went. First stop was Bolton Flats. Ran into Neil walking out, who had just had a shrike. No luck with that, but we stood there for a good 3 hours. Unfortunately most things were in flight but we had thousands of blackbirds, hundreds of ducks, one of the Sandhill Cranes (which I figured were long gone), a meadowlark (saved me a trip elsewhere), and some snipe. It eventually slowed down, so I moved on to Wachusett Res where the Surf Scoter was obvious. Tick and run to Sterling Peat. Wasn’t a whole lot there but a Pine Warbler was foraging above the car as I was read to leave, so I got 5 warblers in state before April.

Sunday 3/31: FOY Harrier and Virginia Rail at Great Meadows. Early afternoon check of Arlington Res had an early Rough-winged Swallow but little else. That was #99 for the year, so I checked Waltham St., Hardy Pond, and the res without finding #100.

Monday 4/1: #100 was the Ospreys at the nest at Knox Trail. Raven there, nothing at School St. Too windy everywhere.

Tuesday 4/2: Buzzed Elm Brook again and got the Gadwall finally. Gave the Old Rt. 27 bridge a few minutes and saw next to nothing. Drove off and thought I saw an egret on the pond on the other side of the golf course. Doubled back and didn’t see it, but since it was there Wednesday I’m calling it. Nice early date.

Wednesday 3/20: Fish Crows and a few ducks at Great Meadows.

Thursday 3/21: Bluebird and Fox Sparrow at BBN, although the technical highlight was a pair of Mute Swans.

Friday 3/22: Did a bit of a pond loop, other than Tree Swallows at Heard, nothing of note.

Saturday 3/23: Bit too windy. Nothing on the res. Went to Hobbs Brook and walked around for a change, saw just short of nothing. Ruddy at Hardy among the other regulars. Decided that it wasn’t too bad out of the wind so gave the duck ponds a quick check. They were pretty empty.

Sunday 3/24: Early BC Night-Heron on the Charles by Watertown Square while running errands. Once clear, went to Fowl Meadow (Rusty Blackbird, Purple Finch, Winter Wren) and Great Pond (Lesser Scaup, probable Ruddy).

Monday 3/25: Phoebe was the most exciting thing at Heard Farm.

Tuesday 3/26: Few ducks at Elm Brook, no Gadwall. Nothing at Great Meadows.

Wednesday 3/13: Heard Barred Owl and siskin at College Pond.

Thursday 3/14: Finally got the Red-shoulder at Kaveski, along with a few redpolls.

Friday 3/15: Nothing exciting at Rock Meadow or the duck ponds.

Saturday 3/16: RN Grebe was still at Horn Pond, along with 2 Tree Swallows and a Fox Sparrow. Usual at Sandy Beach. RT Loon and Great Cormorant down the lakes. Nothing at Draw Seven. Red-shoulder at Arlington Res along with a few ducks but no sign of yesterday’s yellowlegs. Four Turkey Vultures on the way home.

Sunday 3/17: Did a Plymouth county run. Probably should have waited for a week when it was less windy, but it was tolerable. Ellisville Harbor was fairly quiet, minimal at Manomet Point. Pair of Barrow’s Goldeneye at Great Herring Pond, then I worked my way west. Greater Scaup and a Fox along the bay, then a few expected county birds at the goose fields (but no good geese). Several other unproductive stops, although phoebes at a few places were my first of year.

Monday 3/18: Had to take the car in, so just a quick buzz of Nine Acre (nothing of note) and Pelham Island Rd (ditto). Looped a bit on the way home, Heard Pond was opening and had a bunch of mergansers. Nothing new on Pelham Island Rd until I drove off and had a Pileated fly over. Res open a bit, just mergansers though.

Tuesday 3/19: Grosbeak and 3 crossbills at Dunback plus a Rusty or two.

Wednesday 3/6: Got the grackle in the yard I missed the other day. Quick check of Nine Acre and Pelham Island Rd didn’t have much, Ring-neck on the river about it.

Thursday 3/7: Nothing of note at BBN. Eagle over Lake Cochituate on the way to work.

Friday 3/8: Quiet at Great Meadows, a few displaying goldeneye.

Saturday 3/9: Wandered Assabet a bit looking for finches. Got a few siskins but not much else. Buzzed Nine Acre and School St which basically had nothing before deciding to wander Dunback a bit.

Sunday 3/10: Too rainy.

Monday 3/11: Killdeer at Wayland Community Garden.

Tuesday 3/12: Eagle at Forest Grove. Surprised no Wood Ducks, but 8 further up at Norumbega. Not a whole lot else.

Wednesday 2/27: Nothing at Dunback, guess I missed getting grosbeaks for the month.

Thursday 2/28: Yard day, nothing of note.

Friday 3/1: Meriam’s and Kaveski. No luck with Bob’s grosbeak but did have a Fox Sparrow.

Saturday 3/2: Thought it was going to be a yard day but the storm was a bit of a bust, so did a quick loop midafternoon. Two eagles on the ice on the Mystic Lakes but no cormorant or much else. Chipping Sparrow was still at Mt. Pleasant (61 species in every month for the county), usual at Blair Pond.

Sunday 3/3: Birders’ Meeting for most of the day. Stopped at Wachusett Res on the way home and got both Horned Grebe and Snow Bunting for Worcester county (#150 and 151).

Monday 3/4: Snow day, normal stuff in the yard, I missed the first grackle of the year.

Tuesday 3/5: Riverwalk was quiet.

Wednesday 2/20: Nothing of note at Dunback.

Thursday 2/21: Bit too slick, so just buzzed Pelham Island Rd. Pileated flew across and 2 teal were in the swamp.

Friday 2/22: Peregrine at Forest Grove, eagle at Norumbega.

Saturday 2/23: Started with a Winthrop loop. Snowy visible from Deer Island plus lots of ducks. First presumed migrant grackle on the greenway. Nothing at Belle Isle. Continued home along the Mystic. Usual at Draw Seven and Station Landing. RB Mergs made it up to the lower Mystic Lake. Pulled in at Mt. Pleasant and finally caught up with the Chipping Sparrow there.

Sunday 2/24: Stayed in.

Monday 2/25: Couldn’t get to Nashawtuc due to an accident. Nothing much on Pelham Island Rd.

Tuesday 2/26: Still too cold. Did Nine Acre and saw even less than yesterday,  then the Water Row area (Wood Ducks at the Old 27 Bridge) and Pelham Island Rd.

Wednesday 2/13: Still too snowy for much. Tried a drive through of Norumbega but the lot wasn’t plowed and it looked like gulls and nothing else.

Thursday 2/14: Nothing of note at Dunback.

Friday 2/15: RB Merg along Moody St but not much else there or at Purgatory. Did have a banded Ring-billed Gull, which was from Montreal, slightly more movement than the last one I reported.

Saturday 2/16: Red-wings singing from the yard first thing. Attempted a central MA loop. No Snow Buntings at Wachusett in a short walk, 3 loons about it. Headed north from there and ran into either unplowed or iced over lots just about everywhere. Did take a long walk at Townsend State Forest, which had chickadees, titmice, nuthatches, jays, ravens, juncos, and a dove. Gave up after that and headed to School St (crows) and Dunback (nothing).

Sunday 2/17: Horn Pond had a redpoll, a bunch of Red-wings, and 2 wigeon. Nothing at Mary Cummings. Both loons at Draw Seven, not much at Earhart.

Monday 2/18: Stayed in.

Tuesday 2/19: Red-wing and little else at BBN.

Wednesday 2/6: Little chase. Swamp Sparrow was the only other bird of note.

Thursday 2/7: Got the siskins at Thoreau, little else. Nice little tour from David though.

Friday 2/8: Dunback got rainy. Did get Purple Finch for the commute list but no grosbeaks or anything.

Saturday 2/9: Chipmunk in the yard to start the day. Too windy for much, but did a Meadowbrook/Mystic Lakes loop. Nothing of note there. Stopped briefly at Blair Pond (Common Merganser was the most interesting although Mute Swan was new for me there) and Fresh Pond (nothing) too.

Sunday 2/10: Started with a Concord/Acton loop. Nothing at Nine Acre, School St, or the sand pits. Decided to work the Charles a bit. Nothing new at either Moody St or the riverwalk. Stopped at Gore and couldn’t find the Chipping Sparrows.

Monday 2/11: Barred Owl flying off and little else at Heard Farm.

Tuesday 2/12: Zip at Kaveski.

Wednesday 1/30: Forest Grove was very quiet but did have a couple redpolls fly over. Weird domestic at Norumbega too, maybe the thing that had been reported as a Snow off and on.

Thursday 1/31: Too cold, House Finch in the yard.

Friday 2/1: Still too cold. Did check Pelham Island Rd and had a couple Common Mergs, 5 geese, and 2 swans.

Saturday 2/2: Wandered Dunback a bit. Coyote, Winter Wren, Yellow-rump, not much else. Did a loop of Concord Ave, Wilson Farms (mostly to confirm the gulls at Dunback were from there), and the res without anything.

Sunday 2/3: Nothing at the lower end of the Mystic Lakes. Flock of redpolls and an eagle on the Wellington Greenway. Redpolls moved across the river to Earhart but couldn’t get the eagle from there. Continued to Lynn and King’s Beach but tide was wrong and no Mew Gull(s). Did have 2 banded Ring-bills and FOY Sanderlings. Quick check of Winthrop Beach looked pretty dead, so swung into Belle Isle to check the feeders before heading home. Hermit Thrush flushed as I pulled in, not much else there. Did hear about a Barred Owl on the Winthrop Greenway, so went over there but no luck.

Monday 2/4: Raven, Rusty Blackbird at the Wayland Community Gardens.

Tuesday 2/5: Eagle, goldeneye, not much else at Great Meadows.

Wednesday 1/23: Riverwalk was busy but just the usual.

Thursday 1/24: Too rainy. Nothing but starlings at Nine Acre, black ducks, swans, geese, and mallard on Pelham Island Rd.

Friday 1/25: Usual at Wayland Community Garden. Probably walked past a Barred Owl but did get cowbird to finish 24 half-months.

Saturday 1/26: Started at Horn Pond, which was quiet beyond a flyover Red-wing. Continued up to Lowell. Iceland Gull at the boathouse, Turkey Vulture and a few other things at the Tsongas Center (BC Chickadee, junco, Song Sparrow new for Lowell).

Sunday 1/27: Tried for a few year birds locally, not overly successful. First stop was Cousin’s Park, where I did have siskins within seconds of getting out of the car. Also had the 8+ Chipping Sparrows and some bluebirds. Geese and Horned Lark at School St, couldn’t find the Red-shoulder, Savannah, or Pileated at Meriam’s and Kaveski (or much of anything). On to Cambridge. Got the GW Teal at Alewife but no Wood Duck. Fresh Pond was very quiet, no ducks at all and I didn’t find anything among the gulls. Think that made me two for seven or so, probably not hitting 100 before the end of January (need 6, which seems unlikely without a weekend). 

Monday 1/28: Looped the marsh at BBN and saw nothing. Had a couple minutes for the parkway after.

Tuesday 1/29: Tried Meriam’s and Kaveski again. Still no Red-shoulder but a Pileated did fly over.