Trip Highlights

Seven members took part in today’s field trip in Hadley, identifying a total of 27+ species.  Highlights included nesting Green Herons from the Fort River boardwalk and nesting Meadowlarks and Bobolinks from Moody Bridge Road. Those who stayed longer to try for the reported Prothonotary Warbler in South Hadley were rewarded for their efforts!  Click below to view partial species list.

Three intrepid birders showed up for birding despite a gloomy weather forecast.  We walked almost 4 miles and identified a total of 38 species.  View complete list by clicking below.

Eight members participated in the morning walk, identifying a total of 39 species.  Some who were able to stay a little longer were rewarded with a Least Bittern.  Click below to view a complete trip list.

Six members, plus three birders who joined in on our walk, enjoyed terrific birding on this sunny, but cool morning on Mt. Holyoke.

We can start off this report by stating that we got all of our target birds! The top three being the Worm-eating, Bay-breasted, and Cerulean Warblers. Great views and plenty of photo ops for our members with cameras.

Other warblers that made our list were Black-throated Blue, Black-throated Green, Ovenbird, Black-and-white, Blackpoll, Redstart, Tennessee, and Yellow-rumped.  Other target birds spotted included Indigo Bunting, Scarlet Tanager, and the Rose-breasted Grosbeak. We had close views of 2 Ravens, and a Veery who posed for photos on the road within 10 yards of us.

The surprise bird of the morning was a Nighthawk!

We also had Robins, Catbirds, Phoebes, Eastern Bluebird, Goldfinch, Red-eyed and Yellow-throated Vireos, Yellow-bellied Sapsucker, Red-bellied Woodpecker, Winter Wren, Wood and Hermit Thrush, Chipping and Song Sparrow, Dark-eyed Junco, Tufted Titmouse, Cardinal, Great Crested Flycatcher, and Brown-headed Cowbird.

Seen flying high were Turkey Vultures, Red-tailed Hawks, and Chimney Swifts.

Another surprise awaited us to end our trip. We all headed over to the Batchelor Brook Conservation Area, where the majority of us were able to view the Prothonotary Warbler!  A lifer for a few of us!!  It was a great morning of birding, and great ending of our walk! Click below to view complete trip list.

2024 May Count Summary

There were 16 teams and 32 observers out in Hampden County territories for the count held on May 17-18.  The weather was cool in the lower 50s on Friday evening with 5 mph breeze from the NW.  Saturday early morning was on the cold side, with temps in the low 30s for those who owled, reaching 50 by 9:00 a.m. and climbing to a high of 68 by mid-afternoon.  The wind was negligible, from 0-5 mph—a good birding day all the way around.  Together the teams recorded 137 species, which was seven less than last year, but two more than the average counted in the last ten years.  At 9,783 individuals, we were ~340 birds above the ten-year average.

As is typical, most of the common species were near their recent or long-term average, but a few were noticeably higher.  In parentheses is the total for 2024, followed by the past 10-year average:  Yellow-bellied Sapsucker (14-8), Eastern Wood-Pewee (48-21), Great Crested Flycatcher (90-55), Red-eyed Vireo (164-95) and House Finch (92-66).  Other species reached an all-time max since 1963.  In parentheses is the total for 2024, the all-time max, followed by the 10-year average:  Canada Goose (563-411), Mute Swan (32-7), Carolina Wren (90-30), Eastern Bluebird (27-9), Fish Crow (17-6), and Raven (15-8).

We did not add any new species to the May Count this year, but we did have a few species that had not been counted for several years.  The date following the species is when it was last recorded on the May Count:  Red-headed Woodpecker (2017), Cerulean Warbler (2007), and Purple Finch (2010).

There were quite a few species with low counts this year.  In parentheses is the total for 2024, followed by the 10-year max, and the 10-year average: Solitary Sandpiper (4-36-19), Least Sandpiper (10-63-28), Ring-billed Gull (2-89-39), White-breasted Nuthatch (27-88-48), Northern Parula (9-193-51), Magnolia Warbler (7-53-26), Black-throated Blue Warbler (1-73-25), Yellow-rumped Warbler (21-174-70), and White-throated Sparrow (1-219-25).

Noticeable misses this year were Great Horned Owl, only missed two other times in the last 50 years and Eastern Meadowlark.  

Thanks to all who spent many hours in the field, especially the teams of Janice Z and Dave M, who put in 15 or more long hours of effort, and Dave M’s team, who always captures the most species, 108 this year.  The variety of habitats in certain territories lends itself to finding higher counts and unusual species, and some teams managed to find a species or two or more that no other team identified on the count.  My team got Red-shouldered Hawk, Joseph S and Terri S picked up Cooper’s Hawk and Purple Finch, Ben H added American Kestrel and Yellow-billed Cuckoo, Vince and Cathy Y found Nashville Warbler, White-throated Sparrow and Semi-palmated Plover, Harvey and Craig A came up with Broad-winged Hawk, Upland Sandpiper and Grasshopper Sparrow, and Steve S found Red-headed Woodpecker and Cerulean Warbler.  To finish, I’ll rattle off all the species Dave M and Kim J added to the count this year—Virginia Rail, Hooded Merganser, Sora, Black-throated Blue, Wilson’s and Worm-eating Warblers, Peregrine Falcon, Marsh Wren and Dark-eyed Junco.  Though these teams stand-out, EVERY team that participates contributes to covering a piece of the pie and all efforts are sincerely appreciated.

Click below to view or download complete count results.

2024 May Count Results