Wasn’t sure if I made the right decision to get up early this morning when I saw the fog. But since I was up, I headed to the UMass Field Station.
And found #201 for Waltham, a nice Blue Grosbeak. Trying to phone-bin a photo in the fog didn’t quite work, but you can see the general color at least. Got better views later but didn’t try for another photo.
Wednesday 9/26: Nothing doing.
Thursday 9/27: BBN and West Meadow before work, nothing too interesting. Same teal and not much else at Purgatory Cove later. BBC/MBC trip to Great Meadows in the evening had a nice duck flight plus good numbers of herons and shorebirds.
Friday 9/28: Hardy Pond: 2 Ring-necks, 6 Ruddy. Very surprising Horned Grebe at the Cambridge Res. Not up for searching Bird Observer records, but only one other inland September record in eBird (from the Quabbin earlier this year). Lovely phone-scoped photo in the rain:
Saturday 9/29: No Horned Grebe, but 2 Pied-billeds on the res, another at Hardy Pond, and a Common Loon at Flint’s. Great Cormorant at Arlington Res. Also some sparrows.
Sunday 9/30: Original plan was to check School St fields in Acton and then Meriam’s Corner and nearby areas. It started raining on the way, so after seeing nothing at the fields, I went to Great Meadows instead. Wasn’t too much unusual there, but a swift and swallow flock flew in and there was a BT Green down near the river (which was new for me at Great Meadows). Started raining heavily again, so I went home instead of over to the fields.
Monday 10/1: Duck ponds were quiet in the wind. Lots of Wood Ducks and robins but little else. Yellow-rumps and stuff around the neighborhood.
Tuesday 10/2: Joined the MBC trip to Rock Meadow for a few minutes in the morning. Pipits were very nice but I couldn’t stay long enough for the sapsucker. Turkeys, a Gray Hairstreak, and first Ruby-crowned Kinglet of the fall at Prospect Hill made for an ok trip but then a spectacular Connecticut Warbler popped up.
It’s sparrow season, here’s a few from Saturday:
Funky Chipping Sparrow, Busa Farm (really far away)
Vesper Sparrow, Waltham St. Fields
Clay-colored Sparrow, Waltham St. Fields
Second Clay-colored (I think and haven’t had anyone say not), Waltham St. Fields
Now to find my own Lark…
Wednesday 9/19: BBN was pretty quiet. Good variety of dragonflies but the flock of warblers didn’t show up until I had to leave.
Thursday 9/20: Made quick trip to the UMass Field Station in the morning. Barely had time to check the community garden portion but had a Lincoln’s, Swamp, and White-throat. Prospect Hill at lunch had 3 ravens and a sharpie.
Friday 9/21: Hardy Pond before work: kingfisher, Chimney Swifts, Blackpoll. Purgatory Cove: Wigeon, 5 GW Teal, 50+ Wood Duck, 22 Mute Swan (ugh), 3 Rough-winged Swallow.
Saturday 9/22: Cambridge Res to Waltham St. to Rock Meadow to Met State, posted most on ArlingtonBirds but add a Field Sparrow at the north end of the res and Purple Finches at Waltham St.
Sunday 9/23: Led MBC trip to Lincoln where Karsten found a Blue Grosbeak. Farm Meadow was hopping with common stuff as well. Lindentree was quiet by the time we got there.
Monday 9/24: West Meadow was quiet at lunch. Dunback in the afternoon looking for Western Kingbird. Another nice Merlin, plus a Virginia Rail(!).
Tuesday 9/25: Rock Meadow started with a Blackburnian in the parking lot. A fertilizer truck was driving all over the fields, so stuck to the gardens where I found 2 Indigo Buntings and not much else.
Wednesday 9/12: Nothing exciting at Hardy Pond.
Thursday 9/13: Rock Meadow before work: Palm Warbler among a handful of others. Green-winged Teal at Purgatory Cove.
Friday 9/14: Prospect Hill: Redstart and pewee at the base. Walked up to the water tanks and back and saw one bird on the hill. It was a Connecticut Warbler.
Saturday 9/15: Arlington Res: Dickcissel at Busa, not much else. Up in NH for a wedding, lots of Monarchs along the beach. Quick stop at Cambridge Res had something:
Sunday 9/16: Started at the Wayland Community Gardens with first of fall Lincoln’s Sparrow and Blue-headed Vireo. Moved on to Assabet River NWR hoping for crossbills. No luck but one nice flock of warblers and a Field Sparrow, plus first of fall White-throated Sparrows (and probably a junco).
Monday 9/17: Rock Meadow and BBN: 10 warblers, almost all in good numbers. Also Scarlet Tanager, Lincoln’s Sparrow, many White-throated Sparrows, a Wood Thrush, etc. Tried to pad the list up to 50 with a stop at the duck ponds. Didn’t quite get there but did have a Swainson’s Thrush (to balance out the one that got away at BBN).
Tuesday 9/18: Paine: borderline late Ovenbird, Parula, Pine Warbler, couple RB Nuthatches. Likely more but looking up into the gray sky made things impossible.
Wednesday 9/5: 60+ Wood Ducks and a couple Spotted Sandpipers at Purgatory Cove (sandpipers and half of the ducks on the river). Cambridge Res after work had a nighthawk but otherwise about the same.
Thursday 9/6: Prospect Hill in the morning was on the quiet side. Two parula, a Blackpoll, a Pine, a Redstart, and lots of RB Nuthatches. More nuthatches at Paine.
Friday 9/7: Just about nothing at BBN.
Saturday 9/8: Walked to Rock Meadow. Redstarts all along, Black-and-white and Blackpoll at Lot 1, Wilson’s and 2 Bobolink at the West Meadow, and a Canada Warbler at BBN.
Sunday 9/9: Started at Great Meadows which was pretty quiet. About 20 Least Sandpipers and a Solitary at the Cambridge Res. Decided to stop at Hayden Woods on the way back and found one flock with a couple Parula, Blackpoll, and Scarlet Tanagers.
Monday 9/10: BBN in the morning: turkey (in flight), Redstart, Bobolink were it. Wild Indigo Duskywings at Prospect Hill at lunch, but next to no birds.
Tuesday 9/11: Rock Meadow was pretty quiet but I did eventually dig up a parula.
A few photos from last weekend.
Presumed Pickerel Frog
Black-billed Cuckoo
Upper Spectacle Pond
Black-tipped Darner
Wednesday 8/29: Green Heron and Gray Hairstreak (yet another butterfly patch tick) at the duck ponds, very little else.
Thursday 8/30: Morning run around Rock Meadow: patch tick Bay-breasted (finally), BT Green, Black-and-white, Chestnut-sided, 3 Warbling Vireo, 2 RB Grosbeak, Baltimore Oriole, 2 hummingbirds. BBN at lunch: BT Green, Shadow and Green-striped Darners, Spotted Spreadwings. More spreadwings and 2 Turkey Vultures during a fire drill at work.
Friday 8/31: Cambridge Res again. Two Pectorals, a few Semipalmated Sandpipers, the usual.
Saturday 9/1: Out to Otis for the weekend. Didn’t leave the porch but had probably 400-500 Monarchs plus a kestrel and probable harrier.
Sunday 9/2: Explored Otis State Forest. Ended up with 11 species of warbler including a Tennessee, plus Least Flycatcher, Black-billed Cuckoo, and a few other things.
Monday 9/3: Nothing of note out west, but a quick check of the Cambridge Res had about the same as Friday.
Tuesday 9/4: BBN before work: Yellow-billed Cuckoo (oops, forgot to update the list at the time and this was #100 for the patch year list) and parula. Swallows at Hardy Pond at lunch, nothing at the Cambridge Res.
Wednesday 8/22: Nothing doing at Rock Meadow but good stuff later.
Thursday 8/23: Blue-winged Teal at Purgatory Cove. Great Meadows BBC trip in the evening was fairly quiet. Little Blue and Snowy Egret showed fairly well but the circling shorebirds and blackbirds did not.
Friday 8/24: Few RB Nuthatches at Paine.
Saturday 8/25: Long walk around Prospect Hill. Olive-sided Flycatcher, Least Flycatcher, Canada Warbler, 25+ RB Nuthatch. Would have been better if the possible Mourning Warbler popped up for another couple seconds of viewing. Stopped at north end of the Cambridge Res after, all the usual shorebirds plus 4 Great Egrets.
Sunday 8/26: BBN: Blackburnian, Parula, Raven, Solitary Sandpiper.
Monday 8/27: North end of the Cambridge Res was pretty quiet.
Tuesday 8/28: Bank Swallows at Hardy Pond before work.
There was a Warbling Vireo in the tree across the street this afternoon, which became yard bird #99. Time to look back at this post and take a guess at 100.
Since that post, we’ve had Wild Turkey, Bald Eagle, and Warbling Vireo. Added to the street and Hardy Pond lists were White-winged Scoter, Red-breasted Merganser, and Least Tern. Not expecting any of those from the yard, so it’s either something previously mentioned or something totally unexpected.
My top pick at the moment is Black-crowned Night-Heron. They’re regular on Hardy Pond and it’s just a matter of time before one lands in sight of the yard or flies over. Raven’s probably #2 and pewee and phoebe tie for #3. Anyone else want to guess?
Good time in the yard after the vireo, almost immediately I watched an Osprey go over (4th yard record) then snapped some photos of dragonflies and got a Clamp-tipped Emerald, which is #26 for the yard.