WIR 7/19-7/25

Wednesday 7/19: Usual at Forest Grove.

Thursday 7/20: Nothing exciting at Sedge Meadow beyond a Monarch.

Friday 7/21: Somatochlora and the usual at BBN.

Saturday 7/22: Did some more county listing. Started at Belle Isle where I got four for Suffolk (all easy, SB Dowitcher flyover, Bank and Rough-winged Swallow, and Saltmarsh Sparrow). Lots of peep but nothing all that exciting. Continued to the far side, which had more of the same. Decided to skip the beaches and go to Squantum where I got Semipalmated Sandpiper, Lesser Yellowlegs, Pectoral Sandpiper, and Least Tern for Norfolk. Quick stop at Blair Pond had a few Least but no Semi.

Sunday 7/23: Wandered Bedford a bit. Ravens at Hartwell Town Forest, Broad-wings at Fawn Lake (and lots of odes including Vesper and Slender Bluets). Decided to continue into Billerica and walked the Great Meadows trail for a while, which was quiet. Hummer was the best on the trail and a Fish Crow while walking from the parking lot to the river were about it.

Monday 7/24: Finally got a Least Bittern at Great Meadows before the rain got too bad. Least Sandpiper too.

Tuesday 7/25: Nothing unusual at Heard Pond but the swallow show was something.

Swallows

 

WIR 7/12-7/18

Wednesday 7/12: Looped Lincoln without anything overly interesting.

Thursday 7/13: Drove up to NH for the DSA meeting via Amherst.

Friday 7/14: Went with Josh and Ken to Moose Bog. Weather wasn’t good for odes but outside of Spruce Grouse (which was the only one I really wanted), we got the complete boreal list: Gray Jay, Boreal Chickadee, Black-backed Woodpecker, Olive-sided Flycatcher, Palm Warbler, Lincoln’s Sparrow, Moose. Rained too hard to do anything after but we did have a Snowshoe Hare while poking around for future locations.

Saturday 7/15: Went to some random pond in NH. Weather was fair and odes weren’t overly cooperative. Best was an Eastern Red Damsel totally out of habitat. Some decent butterflies and a family of Ruffed Grouse. We continued to the Nash River where we had Superb Jewelwings and not much else (but another family of grouse along the road).

Sunday 7/16: Went to Trudeau Rd which had crossbills and a few emeralds. On to Profile Lake where we had distant Lake Emerald (plus a nymph) but no captures. Then a long ride home.

Monday 7/17: Quick loop of the duck ponds was quiet.

Tuesday 7/18: College Pond had the usual.

WIR 7/5-7/11

Wednesday 7/5: Nothing unusual at Forest Grove.

Thursday 7/6: Weasel at Dunback.

Friday 7/7: YT Vireo and not much else at Heard Farm.

Saturday 7/8: Half-assed attempt at the pelican mostly as an excuse to fill some Norfolk county holes. Picked up a few shorebirds and Willow Flycatcher to get over 100 before it got too hot and buggy. First Wandering Glider of the year and first Seaside Dragonlet in a little while too.

Sunday 7/9: Concord butterfly count. Back in the Acton sector, which was quiet for butterflies. Broad-wing and a Bank Swallow colony were nice as was the presumed Mocha Emerald.

Monday 7/10: Single Red-bellied Tiger Beetle at Prospect Hill finally but next to nothing else.

Tuesday 7/11: Nothing at Great Meadows

WIR 6/28-7/4

Wednesday 6/28: Buckeye but no tiger beetles at Prospect Hill.

Thursday 6/29: Very quiet at Round Hill other than lots and lots of meadowhawks.

Friday 6/30: Not much at Prospect Hill, FOY Painted Lady about it.

Saturday 7/1: Got Indigo Bunting and gnatcatcher in Bedford finally. Slender Bluets on the Concord were county ode #105. BH Vireo at Hugh Cargill along with Bog Coppers.

Slender Bluet

Sunday 7/2: Nothing at the duck ponds. Carlisle dragonfly walk was pretty quiet beyond a distant Swamp Darner.

Monday 7/3: Lot 1 had Rough-winged Swallows and a kingfisher. Spinyleg was a patch first ode.

Tuesday 7/4: Couldn’t find a Wood Thrush at Horn Pond but had a few other things. Handful of hairstreaks on the mountain.

WIR 6/21-6/27

Wednesday 6/21: Nothing much at Dunback.

Thursday 6/22: Red-shoulder, 2 BB Cuckoos, meadowhawk at Rock Meadow.

Friday 6/23: Did the Minuteman survey finally. Too much traffic and would have been better a couple weeks earlier.

Saturday 6/24: Ran to Nine Acre (Cliff Swallow at the nest) and Great Meadows (nothing) before the rain. Tried to check the res in the downpour and got soaked for a loon.

Sunday 6/25: Couldn’t find the junco or Blackburnian at Watatic but did have lots of good bugs. And more at Townsend State Forest.

Monday 6/26: Usual at Cow Common.

Tuesday 6/27: Usual at Meriam’s Corner and Kaveski.

WIR 6/14-6/20

Wednesday 6/14: Rough-winged Swallows were new for College Pond plus Delta-spotted Spiketail and a probable Spatterdock Darner.

Delta-spotted

Thursday 6/15: Checked out the Hamlen area in Wayland. Northern Waterthrush singing but not much else.

Friday 6/16: Nothing at Forest Grove.

Saturday 6/17: Waited for the mist to more or less stop then hit the Mystic Lakes (gulls and cormorants), Sandy Beach (the usual), and North Reservoir (the usual but a few gaps in my Winchester list, down to just Arlington and Bedford under 100 locally).

Sunday 6/18: Black-and-white at BBN was a bit of a surprise. Indigo was nice too.

Monday 6/19: Got out of the car at Great Meadows and saw a weasel run from under the tower. It didn’t return and there wasn’t much else around.

Tuesday 6/20: Wandered out to Lincoln. Stepped out of the car and almost had a young Pileated drop onto me.

Pileated

WIR 5/31-6/13

Wednesday 5/31: Mourning Warbler singing at Forest Grove.

Thursday 6/1: Virginia Rail and Magnolia at College Pond.

Friday 6/2: BT Blue and Black-and-white at Prospect Hill.

Saturday 6/3: Distant singing Prothonotary at October Farm, too cloudy for odes at the Cranberry Bog.

Sunday 6/4: Went out to Athol with Alan. Explored every part of the area except the one that had the ode we wanted but a few FOYs and an Olive-sided made for a decent trip.

Monday 6/5: Stood on the tower at Great Meadows but nothing exciting.

Tuesday 6/6: Too rainy and too many errands to run.

Wednesday 6/7: Hardy Pond had nothing exciting.

Thursday 6/8 – Monday 6/12: DSA meeting, details sooner or later (right after I finish 2012, 2015, and 2016…)

Tuesday 6/13: Short walk around Prospect Hill had nothing of note.

WIR 5/24-5/30

Wednesday 5/24: Got the YT Vireo I hoped for at the Wayland CG plus bonus BB Cuckoo and GH Owl.

Thursday 5/25: Hobbs Brook had too much water. Couldn’t pull any good swallows but heard both Blue-winged and Prairie Warblers for #163 and 164 for the patch.

Friday 5/26: Nothing in the rain.

Saturday 5/27: Missed the Gray-cheeked at Nahanton. Missed the Olive-sided and Red-headed Woodpecker at D. Blakely Hoar but did get a Barred Owl. Got the Little Blue in Quincy but no shorebirds at Squantum. Common Tern very briefly at Earhart.

Sunday 5/28: Cuckoos on the Great Meadows BBC walk but no bittern (I think, can’t say that the one I heard was definitely the survey tape) and couldn’t quite convince myself of the Alder. Blackburnian and the usual stuff at the Massport Trails after.

Monday 5/29: Didn’t expect it to be quite so lousy out. Started with a quick check of McClennen. Kingbird and Warbling Vireo finally in Arlington but expected a few other easy ones. Arlington Great Meadows next. No thrasher but a BB Cuckoo posed nicely (camera in the car though). Hobbs Brook was interesting (Orchard Oriole and a few others besides those detailed separately).

Tuesday 5/30: Farm Meadow: 11+ Bobolinks, Veery, calling Barred Owl.

WIR 5/17-5/23

Wednesday 5/17: Nobscot had an Olive-sided, BB Cuckoo, a few warblers, etc.

Thursday 5/18: Couple Canadas among others at Prospect Hill. Good variety of butterflies and a Stream Cruiser too.

Friday 5/19: Mink at Great Meadows.

Saturday 5/20: Started at Watatic with a bunch of warblers, Bay-breasted being the highlight. Also some whitefaces, Silvery Blues, and an American Emerald. Went to Heald Orchard in Pepperell next, great place. Even with a noon start, there were birds all over including 2 BB Cuckoos, several empids, and double digit warblers.

Sunday 5/21: Quiet at Mt. Auburn, did get Swainson’s Thrush finally. Quick check of the duck ponds had another.

Monday 5/22: BB Cuckoo, Willow Flycatcher, waterthrush at Forest Grove plus over 60 Chimney Swifts on the cove.

Tuesday 5/23: Bit nicer than expected so BBN. First bird out of the car was a flyover loon. Fairly quiet after that, although quite a few patch first of years still trickling in (BB Cuckoo the best).

WIR 5/10-5/16

Wednesday 5/10: BBN was quieter than I hoped. FOY Nashville, a few other warblers, an Orchard Oriole about it.

Thursday 5/11: BT Blue, Wilson’s, etc at Dunback.

Friday 5/12: Blackpoll at Purgatory, few others at Forest Grove.

Saturday 5/13: Slow MBC bird day, just 85 species. Did clear 100 in Burlington finally and just about there in Winchester (which would be well over if I split the Fells properly).

Sunday 5/14: Res in the rain had the Ruddies that were missing yesterday and a Green Heron. Afternoon check of School St had a single Least Sandpiper and Great Meadows had 4 yellowlegs and a couple Cliff Swallows.

Monday 5/15: Fairly quiet at Heard, swallow sweep and a Marsh Wren.

Tuesday 5/16: Arrivals at BBN included a Bay-breasted, BT Green, Wood Thrush, and Red-eyed Vireo.