Birdingonthe.Net Recent Postings from The Massachusetts Birding List > Home > Mail > Alerts Updated on Tuesday, November 3 at 11:36 AM ET The most recently received Mail is at the top.	Banded Kingfisher,©Barry Kent Mackay

3 Nov Sharon Birds [John Baur ] 03 Nov Nov 3, '09, Plum Is, Cackling Takes Goose Highway, Purple Sandpipers [Thomas Wetmore ] 03 Nov Brookline Bird Club, Fall Lecture Meeting, Friday, Nov. 6, 7:30pm [Linda Pivacek ] 3 Nov Red-headed Woodpeckers YES 11-03-09 ["Jonathan Center" ] 3 Nov Probable owl calls, West Bridgewater [] 3 Nov Hudsonian Godwit, Cackling Goose, PRNWR [Bird Watchers Supply & Gift ] 03 Nov Ipswich Cackling Goose - 11-3-09 [Phil Brown ] 3 Nov Re: status of the Ipswich farm fields [Tim Factor ] 03 Nov status of the Ipswich farm fields ["Jim Berry" ] 2 Nov Saturday's Allens Pond MAS walk [Paul Champlin ] 02 Nov CT Report 11/01/2009 C Eiders, H Godwit [Roy Harvey ] 2 Nov Re: How many blackbirds? (answer) [Dale J Martin ] 3 Nov purple finches, Newton 11/2 [] 02 Nov How many blackbirds? (answer) [Steve Mirick ] 2 Nov Re: Ipswich Cackling Goose 11/02, etc [Tim Factor ] 2 Nov Fw: eBird Report - Ipswich-Northgate Rd Farm Field , 11/2/09 [Paul Peterson ] 02 Nov HSR: Blueberry Hill (02 Nov 2009) 39 Raptors [] 2 Nov Ipswich Cackling Goose 11/02, etc [Tim Factor ] 02 Nov Brooks Mathewson Avian Photography on Display at the Watertown Public Library [] 2 Nov Re: Red-headed Woodpeckers, notes on juv. sighting/behavior [] 2 Nov eBird Report - Parker River National Wildlife Refuge , 11/1/09 [Fred Bouchard ] 02 Nov Cumbies on Thursday ["Myer S. Bornstein" ] 2 Nov Fwd: eBird Report - Great Meadows NWR--Concord Unit , 11/2/09 Bluebirds, Tree Sparrows [Alan Bragg ] 2 Nov Surf Scoter, etc., Concord, 11/2/09 [Willy Hutcheson ] 2 Nov Cumberland Farms SUnday: LeConte's YES, Shorebirds [Evan Dalton ] 2 Nov Lake Massapoag, Sharon 11/02/09 [Vin Zollo ] 2 Nov Greater White-fronted Goose, Sharon continues 11/2 [Vin Zollo ] 2 Nov Red-headed Woodpeckers [Jeffrey Offermann ] 2 Nov Cape Cod Bird Club Meeting, Nov 9, Shawn Carey Photography ["cvf AT juno.com" ] 02 Nov Hermit Thrushes - Natick ["Greg Dysart" ] 02 Nov Eastern Point Gloucester, 11/1/09 [Susan Hedman ] 2 Nov Red-headed Woodpecker Continues 11-2 [Bird Watchers Supply & Gift ] 02 Nov Hoarding Acorns... Red-headed Woodpecker [Sue McGrath ] 1 Nov Mount Toby vicinity, Leverett MA [] 1 Nov Great Horned Owl Calls [Paul Peterson ] 2 Nov Cackling Goose-Ipswich YES [Bird Watchers Supply & Gift ] 01 Nov Red-headed Woodpecker - Yes [Linda Ferraresso ] 01 Nov CT Report 11/01/2009 C Eiders, H Godwit, S Crane [Roy Harvey ] 1 Nov Ipswich Am Golden Plover correction [Neil ] 01 Nov Salisbury ~ 11/1/09 [Sue McGrath ] 01 Nov How many blackbirds? [Steve Mirick ] 1 Nov Lecontes sparrow- still there [Tom Sayers ] 01 Nov Westport 11/1 ["Mark Lynch" ] 01 Nov BBC Trip to NH Coast (Eurasian Wigeon, Common Murre, RIVER OF BLACKBIRDS) [Steve Mirick ] 1 Nov Ride Needed, Red-headed Woodpeckers-Whenever [Paul Peterson ] 1 Nov Great Pond Addendum [Paul Peterson ] 1 Nov Fw: eBird Report - Braintree/Randolph-Great Pond Reservoir , 11/1/09 [Paul Peterson ] 01 Nov Tom Carrolan's blog on hawks ["Jim Berry" ] 01 Nov Fw: eBird Report - Ipswich Town Farm area , 11/1/09 ["Jim Berry" ] 1 Nov Ipswich - 11.1.09 Snow Goose, Hudsonian Godwit, Am Golden Plover [Neil Hayward ] 1 Nov Cumberland Farms fields - Northern Shrike - 11/1 [james sweeney ] 1 Nov Quabbin H.Q. [] 01 Nov HSR: Blueberry Hill (01 Nov 2009) 31 Raptors [] 1 Nov Plymouth County 10/31-11/1/09 [Ian Davies ] 1 Nov Belle Isle Marsh: Nelson's Sparrow [Tim Factor ] 1 Nov BBC Lakes of Wakefield & Lynnfield trip [David Williams ] 1 Nov RE: Sandhill Crane update ["Soheil Zendeh" ] 01 Nov 10/31 Duxbury Beach - big winds; queries re seal photos [Rick Bowes ] 01 Nov Waltham to Concord: RN Grebe, Cackling Goose, etc 11/1 [Jason Forbes ] 01 Nov Re: Red-headed Woodpecker [Christopher Ciccone ] 1 Nov Pectorals, Killdeer; Concord 11/1/09 [Willy Hutcheson ] 1 Nov Red-headed Woopecker YES, plus an IMMATURE bird!!! [Birding Lists ] 1 Nov Re: Red Headed Woodpecker - YES & a 2nd IMMATURE one too [Birding Lists ] 1 Nov Red Headed Woodpecker - YES [Bird Watchers Supply & Gift ] 1 Nov Re: Sandhill Crane update [Fred ] 01 Nov Sandhill Crane update ["Judy Davis" ] 31 Oct CT Report 10/31/2009 C Eiders, H Godwit [Roy Harvey ] 1 Nov Red-headed Woodpecker in Dracut for past week [] 31 Oct eBird Report - Cackling Goose - Concord, MA , 10/31/09 [Jeremiah Trimble ] 31 Oct Re: Fresh Pond, 3 Canvasbacks: Sad ["Jim Barton" ] 31 Oct Little Gull - Salisbury 10/31 ["Bird Watcher's Supply & Gift" ] 31 Oct Argilla/Northgate fields & Rantoul Pond, Ipswich, 10/31/09: cackling goose ["Jim Berry" ] 31 Oct Johnson's Pond, Groveland ["Douglas Chickering" ] 31 Oct Bear Creek walk Sunday Nov 8, 8 am ["Soheil Zendeh" ] 31 Oct GYRFALCON Another great Allens Pond walk [Paul Champlin ] 31 Oct Clear cutting and the damage it does ["Scott Ricker" ] Subject: Sharon Birds From: John Baur <john_baur AT yahoo.com> Date: Tue, 3 Nov 2009 09:05:18 -0800 (PST) In the last few days have had some interesting birds around Sharon. On Sunday, in addition to the Greater White-fronted Goose reported by Will Sweet and Vin Zollo, there were about 25 American Pipits moving around the Ward's Farm fields. The Canada Goose flock there has grown to about 500. This morning at Lake Massapoag, I found 14 Black Scoters (in a tight group) about 5 Greater Scaup and 19 Ring-necked Ducks. I also found my first American Tree Sparrow of the fall at the south end of the lake near the community center. I did not see the any grebes or the long-tailed Duck or White-winged Scoter that Vin found yesterday. Best, John Baur Sharon, MA john_baur (AT) yahoo.com Subject: Nov 3, '09, Plum Is, Cackling Takes Goose Highway, Purple Sandpipers From: Thomas Wetmore <ttw4 AT verizon.net> Date: Tue, 03 Nov 2009 11:33:15 -0500 PI/MA Birders, Doug Chickering and I independently decided to get to Stage Island Pool early this morning before the Great Goose Ipswich Exodus. We followed each other down the island and got to Stage around 6:20, a few minutes after dawn. From the top of the lot seven tower we were able to quickly locate the CACKLING GOOSE among the 350 or so Canadas that were there. We watched the bird for the next 45 minutes or so until it left for the Ipswich fields. It probably left around 7:15 to 7:20. And Phil Brown had the bird in Ipswich at 8:00. With the experiences with the Ross's Geese earlier this year, and now with the Cackling Goose, it is clear that the majority of the geese that spend the night on Stage Island Pool spend their days grazing in the Ipswich farm fields. Whether vice versa is true I cannot say, but I have now witnessed many of these early morning goose exodi from Plum Island and have watched many of the flocks until they disappeared from view. All head southwest over or past Little Neck and the mouth of the Ispwich River and continue straight though often starting a slight right turn as they pass from view. They usually pass over some hills as they are beginning to descend. Checking maps they are clearly heading directly for the Ipswich farm fields. After the geese left Doug and I checked Emerson Rocks. There were about 150 Sanderlings huddling on the higher rocks as the tide came in. We then both found two PURPLE SANDPIPERS each, though for awhile we thought we were both looking at the same two birds. There may have been a total of five but I'm only sure of four. Good birding, Tom Wetmore Newburyport, MA http://bartonstreet.com/tom/birds/ Think globally, bird locally. Subject: Brookline Bird Club, Fall Lecture Meeting, Friday, Nov. 6, 7:30pm From: Linda Pivacek <lpivacek AT comcast.net> Date: Tue, 03 Nov 2009 10:55:40 -0500 Massbirders, The Brookline Bird Club Fall Lecture Meeting is Friday, Nov. 6, at 7:30pm at the Harvard Museum of Natural History, Geological Lecture Hall, 24 Oxford Street, Cambridge, MA Dr. Ian Newton, Ph.D., D.Sc. will discuss Population Limitation in Migrants. This talk will examine factors that influence migratory bird populations. In the last 30 years, when many bird species have declined in numbers, much effort has been devoted to finding when in the annual cycle their numbers are limited. A look at the effects of events on the breeding grounds, crucial stopover sites and wintering areas on the limitations of population of migratory birds and how understanding the connectivity between these events may direct appropriate conservation efforts. Dr. Newton is a population ecologist with a love of birds. He recently retired from the National Environmental Research Council in Great Britain. Perhaps he is best known for his work on birds-of-prey, including a population study of the European Sparrowhawk, and for his work on pesticide impacts on birds. Members and guests are cordially invited. Admission and parking are free. Directions may be found on our website, www.massbird.org/bbc/ Please bring your used binoculars and other birding equipment for donation to the Birders ExchangeProgram. Annual membership renewals would be welcome at the meeting. This is a convenient opportunity to renew and it would help spread out the workload for our new volunteer membership secretary. See you there! Linda Pivacek, Corresponding Secretary Linda Pivacek, Nahant lpivacek AT comcast.net Subject: Red-headed Woodpeckers YES 11-03-09 From: "Jonathan Center" <jbcenter AT comcast.net> Date: Tue, 3 Nov 2009 10:16:16 -0500 Massbirders, Bill Drummond and I had the two Red-headed Woodpeckers (1 adult and 1 immature) again this morning around 9:00am at the same location at the Lowell-Dracut-Tyngsboro St. Forest. Take Trotting Path road on the left off Althea Road. Park at the end. Walk straight out and look for the arrow on ground consisting sticks and stones on left. Walk out here through the woods to edge of the swampy pond. The adult has been hanging out on the far side flying once to the near shore. The immature has been staying to the far left edge of the swamp. Good luck! Jonathan Center Chelmsford jbcenter AT comcast.net Subject: Probable owl calls, West Bridgewater From: Goshawk3 AT aol.com Date: Tue, 3 Nov 2009 10:10:50 EST Most evenings (7-10 PM) this summer, and continuing to present, we have been hearing a series of "mew" calls from all around our property. I have heard as many as three individuals at once. They make an ascending then descen ding whistle with no raspiness, and mews like a kitten, and last night I heard a different call that was clearly the raspy call of a Great Horned Owl. There have been no hoots of any kind so far this year. If I hadn't been outside with a ten pound black and white dog I would have hooted to see if there was an identifiable response. Anyone know any good sites where I can listen to alternate owl calls? I'm thinking the more common calls might be saw-whet owls, but I can't find an Internet site with alternate calls. I hope this is my biggest problem this fall! Denise Cabral goshawk3 AT aol.com Walnut St., West Bridgewater Subject: Hudsonian Godwit, Cackling Goose, PRNWR From: Bird Watchers Supply & Gift <birdwsg AT comcast.net> Date: Tue, 3 Nov 2009 15:07:33 +0000 (UTC) Tom Wetmore called the store at 9:30 to report that at 7:30 this morning he observed a Cackling Goose leaving the Stage Island pond flying off in the direction of Ipswich. He also observed 4 Purple Sandpipers at Emerson Rocks. Also, there was a message left on our machine at 8:55 this morning reporting 2 Hodsonian Godwits in the south pannes across from parking lot 3. I'm sorry, but I could not clearly hear the name of who left the message (Jim Statten perhaps?). Barrett Bacall for SG Steve Grinley Bird Watcher's Supply & Gift and Nature Shop at Joppa Flats Newburyport, MA USA REPLY TO: BirdWSG AT verizon.net 978-462-0775 www.birdwatcherssupplyandgift.com Subject: Ipswich Cackling Goose - 11-3-09 From: Phil Brown <nebirdsplus AT comcast.net> Date: Tue, 03 Nov 2009 09:02:09 -0500 A stop at the fields along Argilla Road just before Northgate Rd this morning, 8am, found the CACKLING GOOSE foraging with several dozen Canada Geese. A flyover PINE SISKIN was an added bonus. The geese moved to the field behind the fence by 8:30. I'll post several photos of the goose this evening at the link below. Work beckons at the moment..:) http://www.nebirdsplus.org/CacklingGoose.htm - Photos this evening.... Enjoy, Phil Brown Essex, MA 01929 nebirdsplus AT comcast.net Subject: Re: status of the Ipswich farm fields From: Tim Factor <tef617 AT gmail.com> Date: Tue, 3 Nov 2009 07:50:31 -0500 Thanks Jim, ... Most birds in the area can be seen from one of the three roads > (Northgate Rd. connects the other two on the east side of the pastures), so > it is rarely necessary to leave the roads to see them. ... > > Absolutely. The Cackling Goose was only seen and could only have been seen from Argilla Road yesterday morning. Everyone who saw it, including me, parked at the Trustees Hamlin area on Argilla across from Ascot Stables and walked down Argilla towards Northgate. The vantage points from the surrounding roads are all better than any from within the fields. Tim Factor Boston Subject: status of the Ipswich farm fields From: "Jim Berry" <jim.berry3 AT verizon.net> Date: Tue, 03 Nov 2009 00:30:26 -0500 Tim mentions walking the fields between the respective stables on Argilla Rd. (Ascot) and Essex Rd./rt. 133 (Buttonwood). Birders need to know that every square foot of that huge quadrangle is private property. It is not posted, which implies that it is open, but be aware that birders in general cannot walk the trails within the quadrangle without permission. Most birds in the area can be seen from one of the three roads (Northgate Rd. connects the other two on the east side of the pastures), so it is rarely necessary to leave the roads to see them. More important is what's going on now. The Raymond family, which owns 250 acres out of the roughly 450 acres in question, has negotiated a deal with the Trust for Public Land (representing the town of Ipswich) for those 250 acres to go under a conservation restriction, which would protect them forever from development. The funding for the project looks reasonably secure, but the deal will not be closed any earlier than late winter. The terms of the CR have not been worked out yet. The tentative agreement includes a trail through the property that would be open to the public, but it is not yet a sure thing. It is a sensitive time now for the future of this land, which is of enormous value to the town as part of its scenic and agricultural heritage, and as wildlife habitat. Most birders know that this is one of the best agricultural areas in the county for birds, such as the Ross's geese that dropped in for a week or more in the spring migration. It is therefore extremely important that birders do not walk through that property until and unless the deal is closed and the trail opens to the public. The Raymonds are wary of people walking through their land, and I don't go in there myself even knowing the family. I'm not criticizing Tim for walking through; maybe he had permission. I simply want all birders to know that sensitive negotiations are still going on about the terms of the CR, and the last thing we want to do is jeopardize the potential for a public trail that we all might be able to enjoy within a few months. Thanks for cooperating, and I will certainly keep you posted on how things develop. Jim Berry Ipswich, Mass. jim.berry3 AT verizon.net ----- Original Message ----- From: "Tim Factor" To: "MASSBIRD" Sent: Monday, November 02, 2009 6:25 PM Subject: [MASSBIRD] Ipswich Cackling Goose 11/02, etc > Mass Birders, > > The Cackling Goose spotted on Saturday by Jim Berry (and presumably > earlier > on Plum Island by Tom Wetmore) was present again this morning in the > Argilla/Northgate/Essex Roads area of Ipswich. It was seen at around 11:30 > (but not at 9:30) in the field south of Argilla near the intersection with > Northgate. > > It was about 60% of the average size of the Canadas it was with, had a > proportionally very short bill, a blockier head with a more abrupt > forehead, > and a very short neck. The plumage didn't differ significantly except > perhaps for more distinct pale edging on its back feathers giving it a > more > banded look. There were 863 (yes, I counted) Canadas to compare it too, > plus > five Snow Geese. > > I didn't see any shorebirds while walking the fields between Ascot and > Buttonwood Stables (and the polo field) but did witness a Cooper's Hawk > run > down and catch a Horned Lark then administer what looked like a coup de > grace with its bill in flight to the still struggling Lark.... Subject: Saturday's Allens Pond MAS walk From: Paul Champlin <skua99 AT hotmail.com> Date: Mon, 2 Nov 2009 23:30:04 -0500 Hi Folks, Here's the list from Saturday's Allens Pond walk: Common Loon 1 Northern Gannet 1 (also a report ofmany gannets and several jeagers off Gooseberry Point, Westport) D C Cormorant X Great Blue Heron 4 (no egrets) Mute Swan 1 Brant 2 Green-winged Teal 18 American Wigeon 6 Black Duck X Northern Pintail 1 (female) Hooded Merganser 7 Red-breasted Merganser X Peregrine Falcon 1 Gyrfalcon 1 (young gray phase bird observed for approximately 25 minutes interacting with peregrine) Osprey 1 (late) Northern Harrier 2 (1M, 1F) Turkey Vulture 8 Red-tailed Hawk 1 Gr. Yellowlegs 15 White-rumpped Sandpiper 23 (primarily represented by a large flock that made regular passes) Pectoral Sandpiper 4 Stilt Sandpiper 2 Long-billed Dowitcher 2 (presumably, 2 dows seen during the walk were these, later seen well, roosting) Herring Gull X R B Gull X Gr. Bl-backed Gull X Rock Pigeon 2 Downy Woodpecker 1 Blue Jay 3 American Crow 7 Black-capped Chickadee 5 Tufted Titmouse 2 White-breasted Nuthatch 1 Carolina Wren 1 Golden-crowned Kinglet 5 Northern Mockingbird 1 European Starling X American Pipit 10 Palm Warbler 3 Yellow-rumpped Warbler 1 (ONLY ONE! Two weeks ago... hundreds.) Northern Cardinal 1 Savannah Sparrow 7 Song Sparrow 6 White-throated Sparrow 7 After the walk I searched for the falcon and found the following: Black-bellied Plover 1 Semipalmated Plover 1 Sanderling 2 Dunlin 1 Horned Lark 3 _________________________________________________________________ Hotmail: Trusted email with powerful SPAM protection. http://clk.atdmt.com/GBL/go/177141665/direct/01/ Subject: CT Report 11/01/2009 C Eiders, H Godwit From: Roy Harvey <rmharvey AT snet.net> Date: Mon, 02 Nov 2009 22:19:25 -0500 From Jack Wells via Jerry Connolly: 11/02/09 - Madison, Hammonasset SP -- HUDSONIAN GODWIT continues in the grassy area just west of the West Beach Parking Lot, NORTHERN GOSHAWK (juv), 4 EASTERN MEADOWLARKS in the West "Meadow". From Sara Zagorski: 11/02/09 - Madison, Hammonasset SP -- WESTERN KINGBIRD continues in the trees around the first rotary. From Twan Leenders: 11/02/09 - Stratford, Stratford Point -- at 8:30, adult male White-winged Scoter, two female Common Eider on the Short Beach side of Stratford Point very close to shore (I had to step back from the bluff a ways to get my scope to focus close enough). Also 6 Northern Gannets on the LIS and 5 Snow Bunting. From Hank Golet: 11/02/09 - Old Lyme, Griswold Pt -- LAPLAND LONGSPUR (1), SNOW BUNTING (27). From Paul Cianfaglione: 11/02/09 - Farmington, Farmington Meadows -- 2 WILSON'S SNIPE, 1 AMERICAN WOODCOCK, 26 RUSTY BLACKBIRD, 11 AMERICAN PIPIT, 1 FOX SPARROW, 1 LINCOLN'S SPARROW and 2 WHITE-CROWNED SPARROW. From Dana Campbell: 11/02/09 - East Hartford, yard -- 1 COMMON RAVEN. From Beverly Propen: 11/02/09 - Madison, Hammonasset State Park -- 9:30AM-11AM; 3 Common Eiders to the left of the jetty. From Dave Rosgen, w/ John Eykelhoff & Keith Cudworth: 11/02/09 - Litchfield/Morris, N. Shore Rd. (Bantam Lake's Pt. Folly & Central section) -- 2 LONG-TAILED DUCKS, 16 BLACK SCOTERS, 3 Horned Grebes. From John Schwarz: 11/02/09 - Madison, Hammonasset State Park -- 12.:30-2:00 PM, jetty area, 3 Common Eiders, 1 White-winged Scoter; 4 Eastern Meadowlarks on the ground adjacent to the shelter #2 picnic tables at east end of the west beach parking lot. From Ted Gilman: 11/01/09 - Greenwich, Audubon Center -- SNOW GEESE (~150) flying very high towards the south, about 1:30PM. From Meredith Sampson w/ Debby Ethridge, Cynthia Ehlinger & First Sundays group: 11/01/09 - Old Greenwich, Greenwich Point -- WINTER WREN, AMERICAN PIPIT, NORTHERN GANNET (adult). ********************************************************************** This CTDailyReport list is sponsored by the Connecticut Ornithological Association (COA). It is primarily meant to meet the informational needs of the active CT birder. Any other use requires written authorization from the board of directors of the COA. ********************************************************************** Visit the COA web site at http://www.ctbirding.org Reports should be sent to CTBirdReport AT ftml.net. Reports should include sender's name, date, location of sightings and species of note at each location. Reporting Guidelines are available at: http://www.ctbirding.org/ecommittee.htm#reporting To change your subscription options, or unsubscribe, please visit http://lists.ctbirding.org/mailman/listinfo/ctdailyreport_lists.ctbirding.org Archives of these reports may be found at either of these locations: http://www.virtualbirder.com/bmail/ctbird/latest.html http://lists.ctbirding.org/pipermail/ctdailyreport_lists.ctbirding.org/ Subject: Re: How many blackbirds? (answer) From: Dale J Martin <dale AT massapoag.org> Date: Mon, 2 Nov 2009 22:02:08 -0500 Hi Steve, I used an image processing program to analyze the photo and it counted 704 birds. The program is called ImageJ from NIH and is used for mainly in the medical research field. One use is for counting cells, so I thought I would try this for counting birds. I seemed to work well for this photograph. Regards, Dale Dale J. Martin Massapoag Pond Photography 1070 Lancaster Ave. Lunenburg, MA email: dale AT massapoag.org website: http://massapoag.org On Nov 2, 2009, at 8:54 PM, Steve Mirick wrote: > Here's the photo again.... > > http://www.pbase.com/lmedlock/image/118952550/original > > I broke down the photo into sections and methodically counted the > number of birds (primarily grackles). > > I concluded there were 676 birds in the photo (plus or minus a few)! > > I had three people send me estimates of 725, 910, and 600. Not > bad! My quick guesstimate was closer to 500. Now how in the world > do you estimate when they are flying by from different directions > and different distances, and varying concentrations!? Maybe next > time I'll try to get some high speed video! > > Steve Mirick > Bradford, MA > Subject: purple finches, Newton 11/2 From: maurice.gilmore AT comcast.net Date: Tue, 3 Nov 2009 02:37:02 +0000 (UTC) Folks, At Crystal Lake in Newton this AM at 9: 1 ruddy duck 3 male bufleheads robins, grackles, starlings, house and white-throated sparrows a pair of purple finches. Pete Gilmore Newton, MA maurice.gilmore AT comcast.net Subject: How many blackbirds? (answer) From: Steve Mirick <smirick AT comcast.net> Date: Mon, 02 Nov 2009 20:54:58 -0500 Here's the photo again.... http://www.pbase.com/lmedlock/image/118952550/original I broke down the photo into sections and methodically counted the number of birds (primarily grackles). I concluded there were 676 birds in the photo (plus or minus a few)! I had three people send me estimates of 725, 910, and 600. Not bad! My quick guesstimate was closer to 500. Now how in the world do you estimate when they are flying by from different directions and different distances, and varying concentrations!? Maybe next time I'll try to get some high speed video! Steve Mirick Bradford, MA Subject: Re: Ipswich Cackling Goose 11/02, etc From: Tim Factor <tef617 AT gmail.com> Date: Mon, 2 Nov 2009 20:16:26 -0500 Here's the only photo I have that shows the Ipswich Cackling in profile with Canadas - it tended to stay a little distance away from the other geese: http://www.flickr.com/photos/41379962 AT N08/4069805817/in/set-72157622597125605/ This is the first I've seen since the species was split so I'd be interested to hear comments. Tim Factor Boston tef617 AT gmail.com Subject: Fw: eBird Report - Ipswich-Northgate Rd Farm Field , 11/2/09 From: Paul Peterson <petersonpaul63 AT yahoo.com> Date: Mon, 2 Nov 2009 16:35:36 -0800 (PST) ----- Forwarded Message ---- From: "do-not-reply AT ebird.org" To: petersonpaul63 AT yahoo.com Sent: Mon, November 2, 2009 7:31:31 PM Subject: eBird Report - Ipswich-Northgate Rd Farm Field , 11/2/09 Location:    Ipswich-Northgate Rd Farm Field Observation date:    11/2/09 Notes:    There were hundreds(maybe 600)of Canada Geese in two large flocks in the Argilla Rd. farm fields(none from Northgate Rd. excepting flybys). I tried to find the Cackling Goose but poor sightlines precluded good viewing. However, I did see three Canada Geese of the plastician subspecies at the Northgate Rd. side whose lives were summarily cut short thanks to a nice kick from a cow. Last time I checked they were standing on their heads! Number of species:    11 Canada Goose    150 Black-bellied Plover    15 Semipalmated Plover    1 Killdeer    5 White-rumped Sandpiper    7 Pectoral Sandpiper    1 Dunlin    1 Wilson's Snipe    3 Ring-billed Gull    2 Horned Lark    25 American Pipit    2 This report was generated automatically by eBird v2(http://ebird.org) Subject: HSR: Blueberry Hill (02 Nov 2009) 39 Raptors From: reports AT hawkcount.org Date: 02 Nov 2009 19:11:08 -0400 Blueberry Hill Granville, Massachusetts, USA Daily Raptor Counts: Nov 02, 2009 ------------------------------------------------------------------- Species Day's Count Month Total Season Total ------------------ ----------- -------------- -------------- Black Vulture 0 0 0 Turkey Vulture 0 1 431 Osprey 0 0 140 Bald Eagle 0 2 47 Northern Harrier 0 1 57 Sharp-shinned Hawk 2 7 752 Cooper's Hawk 4 4 99 Northern Goshawk 0 0 6 Red-shouldered Hawk 9 11 42 Broad-winged Hawk 0 0 5003 Red-tailed Hawk 24 43 217 Rough-legged Hawk 0 0 0 Golden Eagle 0 0 4 American Kestrel 0 0 240 Peregrine Falcon 0 0 6 Merlin 0 0 34 Unknown Accipiter 0 0 5 Unknown Buteo 0 0 4 Unknown Eagle 0 0 1 Unknown Falcon 0 0 2 Unknown Vulture 0 0 0 Unknown Raptor 0 1 31 Total: 39 70 7121 ---------------------------------------------------------------------- Observation start time: 08:15:00 Observation end time: 15:15:00 Total observation time: 7 hours Official Counter: John Weeks Observers: Dick Haas, John Weeks, Scott Fowler Weather: Variable cloud-cover (50% increasing to 95%, then decreasing to 35%). Wind NE 12-19 km/h. Temperature 6-8 C. Raptor Observations: Not counted as migrants: adult Bald Eagle, Sharp-shin, Cooper's Hawk. Non-raptor Observations: Canada Goose (1!), American Crows (ca. 310), Eastern Bluebirds (9), American Robins (76). ======================================================================== Report submitted by John Weeks (aerie.john AT cox.net) Subject: Ipswich Cackling Goose 11/02, etc From: Tim Factor <tef617 AT gmail.com> Date: Mon, 2 Nov 2009 18:25:48 -0500 Mass Birders, The Cackling Goose spotted on Saturday by Jim Berry (and presumably earlier on Plum Island by Tom Wetmore) was present again this morning in the Argilla/Northgate/Essex Roads area of Ipswich. It was seen at around 11:30 (but not at 9:30) in the field south of Argilla near the intersection with Northgate. It was about 60% of the average size of the Canadas it was with, had a proportionally very short bill, a blockier head with a more abrupt forehead, and a very short neck. The plumage didn't differ significantly except perhaps for more distinct pale edging on its back feathers giving it a more banded look. There were 863 (yes, I counted) Canadas to compare it too, plus five Snow Geese. I didn't see any shorebirds while walking the fields between Ascot and Buttonwood Stables (and the polo field) but did witness a Cooper's Hawk run down and catch a Horned Lark then administer what looked like a coup de grace with its bill in flight to the still struggling Lark. At Salisbury Beach earlier in the morning notables were a Forster's Tern and an immature Northern Gannet both plunge diving into a rip current among dozens of gulls, cormorants, and Harbor Seals. I was very surprised to see the Tern but maybe it's not so remarkable - eBird bar charts show them occuring up to the end of November in Eastern MA. And both adult and immature Red-headed Woodpeckers were still at Dracut (town motto: "You'll Need GPS Because We've Given All Roads the Same Name") between 1:30 and 3:00 this afternoon. The adult was present and conspicuous for nearly all 90 minutes but always across the swamp, the immature only made a cameo appearance. Thanks to Linda and Neil for their great directions that I was almost capable of following and of course to RockDancer/Arthur, who I met briefly, for publicizing this fantastic find. Tim Factor Boston tef617 AT gmail.com Subject: Brooks Mathewson Avian Photography on Display at the Watertown Public Library From: bgmathewson AT aol.com Date: Mon, 02 Nov 2009 18:05:03 -0500 Dear Mass Birders, I just wanted to let everyone know about my exhibit at the Watertown Public Library in Watertown Square (123 Main Street) through the end of November. It features avian photographs from Mount Auburn Cemetery, Ninigret National Wildlife Refuge in Charlestown, RI, and Merritt Island National Wildlife Refuge in Titusville, Florida. I hope some of you get a chance to check it out, and enjoy the images! Thanks very much! Sincerely, Brooks Mathewson Subject: Re: Red-headed Woodpeckers, notes on juv. sighting/behavior From: rockdancer97 AT comcast.net Date: Mon, 2 Nov 2009 20:42:20 +0000 (UTC) I spent about 30 mins today watching the juvenile Red-headed at close range. Access isn't pretty to the other side of the swamp but without a scope, the next best thing.... (Request? If someone takes decent photos of the juvenile bird I'd love to look at them online, so please post them. It's unlikely that I'll do the work for the juvenile bird since was so much work. I'm using a film camera with 400 mm lens... not as good as a lot of you bird photographers.) Anyway, I could only detect 1 juvenile bird, it was answering the adult when the adult was on my side of the swamp. It's a low croaking or chirruping sound (Sibley says "dry rattle krrrrr"). The sound was distinctive enough for me to zero in on the bird in the times I lost visual contact. The coloring of the bird greatly resembles Sibley's (Jul-Feb) juvenile, with two exceptions. In strong light the head isn't brown but instead a muddy red. By that I mean it's not flecked in red on a brown background, the color looked uniform, and to my eye it wasn't brown. The head is in strong contrast to the silky black on the back. The chest is not completely mottled being clear mostly from mid-chest towards the vent. There were brown tones in the chest feathers that neighbor the wings, more than what is in Sibley. The black tips of the secondaries makes a distinctive zig-zag pattern that doesn't appear on the adult. Behavior of the juv. was similar to the adult, including bringing acorns to the top of a dead tree, trapping the acorn in a small pocket and then hammering away at it. It also displayed fly-catching and eating at this same dead tree. (Thanks to Sue McGrath for the behavior notes!) I'm not certain if the bird was eating the contents of the acorns but I thought so. Perhaps the hoarding of insects & acorns would indicate plans for wintering-over? I've been assuming all along that they would depart sometime soon to (hopefully) return in the Spring. If so would they hoard in the present location in order to return to a ready food supply? The juvenile, up to today, had escaped my notice. It turns out that it has it's own tree-circuit, separate from the adult bird. It's base location seems to be a very large pine (opposite side of swamp and slightly left) and then it visits dead trees at several locations also on the opposite side. Since I had already observed the adult pattern of moving from tree to tree, I was curious to see if they intersected or interacted. Nope! at least not today. When they were both on the same side of the swamp (the far side from the viewing spot) they stayed in communication, vocalizing, but didn't approach each other and their paths didn't cross. Think non-intersecting circles, one bird to a circle. If there are additional birds then perhaps they are further into the swamp than these two, like a string of circles. It'll take a bit more work to explore those inner swampy areas, perhaps later this week. It's been great meeting the birders that have come out from their more regular haunts to see this bird. It's also fun to introduce folks to a perhaps unknown birding area that for many is right in their own backyard. I live in Lowell so having the state forest nearby has been a treat for me. --RockDancer (aka Arthur Gaudet) Subject: eBird Report - Parker River National Wildlife Refuge , 11/1/09 From: Fred Bouchard <frederickbouchard AT gmail.com> Date: Mon, 2 Nov 2009 15:02:27 -0500 Location: Parker River National Wildlife Refuge Observation date: 11/1/09, 12-4pm Notes: Easily the biggest group of Shovelers I've ever seen. Number of species: 34 (selected) Canada Goose 25 Mute Swan 5 American Wigeon 55 Mallard 15 *Northern Shoveler 25* Northern Pintail 60 Green-winged Teal (American) 10 Greater Scaup 4 Common Eider (Atlantic) 60 Surf Scoter 5 White-winged Scoter 80 Black Scoter 40 dark-winged scoter sp. 40 Red-breasted Merganser 5 Red-throated Loon 10 Common Loon 2 Northern Gannet 2 Double-crested Cormorant 3 Great Blue Heron 2 Turkey Vulture 1 Northern Harrier 2 Cooper's Hawk 1 Merlin 1 Semipalmated Plover 4 Greater Yellowlegs 3 Sanderling 70 Dunlin 2 peep sp. 5 Blue Jay 10 American Crow 10 swallow sp. 1 Black-capped Chickadee 2 Northern Mockingbird 2 European Starling 75 White-throated Sparrow 5 Dark-eyed Junco (Slate-colored) 2 Snow Bunting 35 This report was generated automatically by eBird v2(http://ebird.org) -- frederickbouchard AT gmail.com 78 farnham st belmont 02478 ma 617-484-6692 www.fredbouchard.com Subject: Cumbies on Thursday From: "Myer S. Bornstein" <mborn AT massmed.org> Date: Mon, 02 Nov 2009 19:14:43 GMT My son and I went to Cumberland's on last Thursday to look around and between the manure pits and the area where the LeConte sparrow has been we saw a Ruddy Shelduck.  At first could not id it but submitted to my photo list for id which gave me the answer.  This was probably an escapee but if not it makes an other interesting bird for this fall Myer Bornstein Taunton, MA mborn AT massmed.org ps as soon a I upload its picture to flicker I will send the URL Subject: Fwd: eBird Report - Great Meadows NWR--Concord Unit , 11/2/09 Bluebirds, Tree Sparrows From: Alan Bragg <alan.ruth.bragg AT gmail.com> Date: Mon, 2 Nov 2009 13:50:18 -0500 Location:     Great Meadows NWR--Concord Unit Observation date:     11/2/09 Notes:     Great Meadows Bird Survey by Volunteers: Alan Bragg, Will Martens & Willy Hutcheson Number of species:     37 Canada Goose     100 Mute Swan     1 American Black Duck     2 Mallard     2 Blue-winged Teal     2 Northern Pintail     11 Green-winged Teal     4 Ring-necked Duck     4 Hooded Merganser     4 Pied-billed Grebe     3 Great Blue Heron     2 Turkey Vulture     2 Sharp-shinned Hawk     2 Cooper's Hawk     1 Accipiter sp.     2 Red-tailed Hawk     6 American Coot     10 Belted Kingfisher     1 Red-bellied Woodpecker     3 Downy Woodpecker     5 Hairy Woodpecker     1 Blue Jay     9 American Crow     5 Black-capped Chickadee     14 Tufted Titmouse     2 White-breasted Nuthatch     6 Eastern Bluebird     5 American Robin     13 European Starling     1 Cedar Waxwing     22 Yellow-rumped Warbler     1 American Tree Sparrow     3 Song Sparrow     5 Swamp Sparrow     1 White-throated Sparrow     6 Dark-eyed Junco     8 sparrow sp.     3 Red-winged Blackbird     20 American Goldfinch     6 This report was generated automatically by eBird v2(http://ebird.org) Alan Bragg Bedford MA Subject: Surf Scoter, etc., Concord, 11/2/09 From: Willy Hutcheson <jeccawilly AT yahoo.com> Date: Mon, 2 Nov 2009 10:29:36 -0800 (PST) This afternoon an imm. male Surf Scoter appeared on Bateman's Pond, Middlesex School, Concord. According to the records I'm able to access, this is only the second observation of the species here in over 100 years (one was shot on the pond in 1904). As the school campus and environs is one of my local patches, I was pretty excited by this bird. In other news, the two Pectorals continue at the back of the Concord rotary prison fields. I also spent the better part of the morning censusing birds at GMNWR, and I expect Alan Bragg will post those results soon. Good birding. Willy Hutcheson Concord, MA jeccawilly AT yahoo.com Subject: Cumberland Farms SUnday: LeConte's YES, Shorebirds From: Evan Dalton <evanndalton AT gmail.com> Date: Mon, 2 Nov 2009 13:22:27 -0500 Sunday afternoon I convinced the girlfriend that slogging round in the mud in order to see a Le Conte's Sparrow was worth it. Don't know if she was convinced, but we both got pretty good looks at the bird between 3 and 4 PM. We also had some other quality birds at Cumberland Farms in Halifax. Highlights (in no particular order) included: 1 LeConte's Sparrow - HY looks rather shaggy; not that wary of the model planes flying overhead 1 Wilson's Snipe 1 Pectoral Sandpiper 1 Greater Yellowlegs - Flyby with Lesser 1 Lesser Yellowlegs 6 Black-bellied Plover - flying in a flock with the Pec. Pretty good bird this far inland. American Pipit - three flyovers, not sure if they were different individuals or the same bird. pic of the sparrow here http://picasaweb.google.com/evanndalton/NewEnglandBirds# Cheers, Evan Dalton Kingston, MA evanndalton AT gmail.com Subject: Lake Massapoag, Sharon 11/02/09 From: Vin Zollo <vzollo1 AT yahoo.com> Date: Mon, 2 Nov 2009 07:39:17 -0800 (PST) Location: Lake Massapoag Observation date: 11/2/09 Notes: Nice variety of waterfowl on the lake this morning (Nov. 2). Weather: P. Sunny, Med. NNE wind, 45F Number of species: 44 Brant 16 Canada Goose 111 Wood Duck 3 Small pond on south end of lake Mallard 22 Greater Scaup 8 White-winged Scoter 2 Both females Long-tailed Duck 1 Female, winter plumage Bufflehead 48 Hooded Merganser 2 2 males Red-throated Loon 1 Nice to see inland Pied-billed Grebe 1 Horned Grebe 3 Red-necked Grebe 1 Seems to be a good place inland during migration. Double-crested Cormorant 2 Great Blue Heron 1 Osprey 1 Getting late! Adult Sharp-shinned Hawk 1 Red-tailed Hawk 1 Ring-billed Gull 55 Herring Gull (American) 13 Great Black-backed Gull 1 Belted Kingfisher 1 Red-bellied Woodpecker 1 Downy Woodpecker 2 Northern Flicker (Yellow-shafted) 2 Blue Jay 9 American Crow 15 Fish Crow 1 Black-capped Chickadee 4 Tufted Titmouse 3 White-breasted Nuthatch 2 Brown Creeper 1 Golden-crowned Kinglet 2 American Robin 33 Northern Mockingbird 1 European Starling 7 Song Sparrow 1 White-throated Sparrow 1 Northern Cardinal 2 Red-winged Blackbird 4 Common Grackle 8 House Finch 2 American Goldfinch 4 House Sparrow 5 This report was generated automatically by eBird v2(http://ebird.org) Vin Zollo Walpole, MA vzollo1 AT yahoo.com Subject: Greater White-fronted Goose, Sharon continues 11/2 From: Vin Zollo <vzollo1 AT yahoo.com> Date: Mon, 2 Nov 2009 07:51:25 -0800 (PST) The Greater White-fronted Goose found on 10/31 by Will Sweet is still present on Wolomolopoag Pond along S. Main St./Wolomolopoag St. in Sharon. It looks like an adult of the Greenland population (Orange bill). Vin Zollo Walpole, MA vzollo1 AT yahoo.com Subject: Red-headed Woodpeckers From: Jeffrey Offermann <offermann AT comcast.net> Date: Mon, 2 Nov 2009 10:05:05 -0500 The birds are present as described today 11-02-09. Thanks to Rockdancer for finding the birds, Steve Grinley for his excellent directions and to Linda Ferraresso for her creative arrow marking the way! Jeffrey Offermann OffermannATcomcastDOTnet Somerville Sent from my iPhone Subject: Cape Cod Bird Club Meeting, Nov 9, Shawn Carey Photography From: "cvf AT juno.com" <cvf@juno.com> Date: Mon, 2 Nov 2009 16:22:54 GMT The Cape Cod Bird Club November meeting will be Monday, November 9 at 7:30pm at the Cape Cod Museum of Natural History in Brewster. Meetings are free and open to the public. Directions and information on the meeting (and scheduled fall and winter walks) can be found at www.massbird.org/ccbc. November's speaker is Shawn Carey on “Photographing Birds and other Wildlife: Where, When and How" Over the last ten years, photographing birds and other wildlife has become increasingly popular with the vast improvements in digital technology. With that is the understanding there are many challenges that need to be better understood. "Where", "When" and "How" do you photograph birds are the three questions that are at the top of the list. Shawn will speak to these topics as well as the equipment needed (camera, computer and software) and tricks of the trade. To illustrate this, he will look at Wellfleet Bay Sanctuary and two other Mass Audubon properties, all of which have observation blinds or photo blinds to assist in seeing and photographing birds. He will have some interesting stories and welcomes lots of give and take with the audience, which should provide for a lively meeting. Shawn Carey moved from his home in Erie, PA in 1986 to Cambridge MA and started watching birds in 1988. He combined his interests in photography and birds in 1991, and three years later he and good friend Jim Grady started Migration Productions (www.migrationproductions.com) to present their multi-image slide programs to a live audience. Over the last fifteen years, Migration Productions has been presenting quality bird/wildlife programs with stunning photographs, video, sound tracks, and interviews to birding organizations, local bird clubs, and at birding events. In 1997, Shawn started teaching bird photography workshops (Fundamentals of Bird Photography) for Mass Audubon, and four years ago started teaching a summer three-day field school workshop at Wellfleet Bay. Shawn's photos have been published in the Boston Globe, New York Times, Mass Audubon Sanctuary magazine, Hawk Mountain Sanctuary magazine and many others. He is Vice President of Eastern Mass Hawk Watch and i! s on the Board of Directors of the Brookline Bird Club. This is a great opportunity to view a fabulous program and improve your photography skills as well! Cynthia Franklin for the Cape Cod Bird Club So. Wellfleet, MA cvf AT juno.com ____________________________________________________________ Top Bathroom Remodelers Get up to 4 free bathroom remodel estimates today. No obligation! http://thirdpartyoffers.juno.com/TGL2131/c?cp=CdCeXRiJB-um3NXPr2XdHgAAJz3JfUSYJN-PYvGixxncVuG5AAQAAAAFAAAAANIjGz8AAAMlAAAAAAAAAAAAAAAAABIYGAAAAAA= Subject: Hermit Thrushes - Natick From: "Greg Dysart" <dysart AT volume3.com> Date: Mon, 02 Nov 2009 16:16:03 GMT Sunday, Nov 1, 09 Natick MA Partially Sunny Seasonable 50’s Autumn Day While working around the house and yard, I enjoyed a few brakes to watch the local yard birds. Two Hermit Thrushes kept eating the remaining berries on our Dogwoods along with a Robin. White-throated Sparrows were in and out of the thickets along with many Juncos. A Yellow-rumped Warbler was with the group of Chickadees. White-breasted Nuthatches were back and forth. A Red-bellied Woodpecker came in along with the Downies. The Blue Jays were patrolling including an appearance of the Leucistic one reported last week. I took a good photo of one of the Hermit Thrushes at one of our bird baths and posted it to http://dysart.zenfolio.com/birds/hb66e82f#hb66e82f Great day to be out. Greg Dysart Subject: Eastern Point Gloucester, 11/1/09 From: Susan Hedman <winterwren2 AT verizon.net> Date: Mon, 02 Nov 2009 09:33:55 -0600 (CST) Location: Eastern Point Gloucester- a late afternoon walk 3-5pm Observation date: 11/1/09 Notes: Warm 59 degrees with little wind Winter Wren was singing! 2 Pied Billed Grebes on Niles Pond, Buffleheads on Niles Pond Number of species: 20 Mallard 7 Ring-necked Duck 9 Common Eider 8 Bufflehead 9 Red-breasted Merganser 2 Pied-billed Grebe 2 Great Blue Heron 2 Black-crowned Night-Heron 4 Cooper's Hawk 1 Semipalmated Plover 1 Ring-billed Gull X Herring Gull X Great Black-backed Gull X American Crow 7 Black-capped Chickadee 2 Carolina Wren 3 Winter Wren 1 Northern Mockingbird 1 Song Sparrow 10 House Sparrow 2 This report was generated automatically by eBird v2(http://ebird.org) The previous day John Nelson, Ginie Page and I were at Cumberland Farms to look for the Lecounts Sparrow. The gusty wind worked against us keeping many sparrows low looking for cover. We did manage to see the bird briefly. John got a good look and Ginie and I just got a glimpse. It will have to go into the "Better view desired" category. A big thanks to Tom Pirro for getting us to the right chunk of land! Word of warning...the mud is scary and a number of times tried to take my wellies. Between the mud sucking and the wind gusts it was pretty treacherous going. winterwren2 AT verizon.net Susan Hedman, Gloucester "I believe in God, only I spell it Nature." Frank Lloyd Wright Subject: Red-headed Woodpecker Continues 11-2 From: Bird Watchers Supply & Gift <birdwsg AT comcast.net> Date: Mon, 2 Nov 2009 14:55:31 +0000 (UTC) Herman D'Entremont called to report that the red-headed woodpeckers were still present at 9am this morning in the Lowell-Tyngsboro-Dracut State Forest in the same location previously reported. Steve Grinley Bird Watcher's Supply & Gift and Nature Shop at Joppa Flats Newburyport, MA USA REPLY TO: BirdWSG AT verizon.net 978-462-0775 www.birdwatcherssupplyandgift.com Subject: Hoarding Acorns... Red-headed Woodpecker From: Sue McGrath <newburyportbirders AT comcast.net> Date: Mon, 02 Nov 2009 07:28:04 -0500 Birders, Rockdancer's post refers to acorns: "He returns to the same tree, sometimes with acorns and other times perching and catching bugs from the top..." The Red-headed Woodpecker is known to cache food and covers its cache with bark or wood chips. Red-headed Woodpeckers store seeds & insects in cracks in wood, in bark crevices, in fence posts, and under shingles. Grasshoppers are stored alive and wedged into crevices so tightly that they are unable to escape ~ Red-headed Woodpeckers are skillful flycatcher. "Territories and caching-related behavior of Red-headed Woodpeckers..." Wilson Bulletin, December 01, 1996, Doherty, Paul F., Jr.; Grubb, Thomas C., Jr.; Bronson, C.L. "Red-headed Woodpeckers (Melanerpes erythrocephalus) are larder hoarders during the fall and winter (Bent 1939, Kilham 1983). In autumn, these birds aggregate and establish singular winter territories at sites of high mast production (Smith and Scarlett 1987). Each territorial bird sequesters mast in one or a few larder trees which are then defended both inter- and intraspecifically. Red-headed Woodpeckers are known to store mainly acorns and beechnuts and an occasional insect (Hay 1887, Agersborg in Beal 1911, Kilham 1983). While acorn storing has been described for Red-headed Woodpeckers in Maryland, Louisiana, and Florida by Kilham (1983), MacRoberts (1975), and Moskovits ... " Thank you Rockdancer ~ this is a wonderful find! Good birding, Sue Sue McGrath Newburyport Birders Observe ~ Appreciate ~ Identify Newburyport, MA 01950 978-462-4785 newburyportbirders AT comcast.net www.newburyportbirders.com Subject: Mount Toby vicinity, Leverett MA From: opihi AT mindspring.com Date: Sun, 1 Nov 2009 23:56:06 -0500 (EST) Hi MassBirders, Got out birding for the first time in a few weeks this morning: while my wife and kids were attending Mount Toby Friends (Quaker) meeting, I walked one of the nearby trails. Had less than an hour, did not see anything Earth-shattering. Most noteworthy was two Red-breasted Nuthatches, calling back and forth at each other, on a pine-covered slope west of the beaver meadow. First of that species I have encountered since moving up here from Texas. Maybe even since I left North Carolina three and a half years ago... At one point, I was picking through a mixed-species insectivore flock (the usual chickadee-titmouse-GC kinglet-WB nuthatch-Downy mixture) when the birds went bonkers. Several chickadees and titmice flew to a tree and peeked into a cavity as they were scolding. I can only guess that something threatening was spending the day in that hole. Screech-owl, maybe? Good birding, Josh Rose Amherst Subject: Great Horned Owl Calls From: Paul Peterson <petersonpaul63 AT yahoo.com> Date: Sun, 1 Nov 2009 20:52:11 -0800 (PST) Hi, Two people gave me unsolicited and conflicting information about which Great Horned Owl has the louder call that also is more emphatic on the last two notes...So now I AM soliciting a knowledgeable response that I would love for to be posted up on massbird. Than you very much Paul Peterson petersonpaul63 AT yahoo.com Boston  Subject: Cackling Goose-Ipswich YES From: Bird Watchers Supply & Gift <birdwsg AT comcast.net> Date: Mon, 2 Nov 2009 03:55:32 +0000 (UTC) Margo and I, along with Doug Chickering and Lois Cooper and another couple, saw the CACKLING GOOSE from Argilla Road in Ipswich this morning around 9:45am. It was in the field across from the gravel turnout with "No Parking" signs. We later had great looks at both the adult and immature RED-HEADED WOODPECKERS at the Lowell-Dracut-Tyngsboro State Forest, thanks to directions from Linda F. For those going to see these birds, some clarification on the directions: It is easiest to go in from Althea Rd to Trotting Park Rd., which dead ends with a small area to park. Do not walk in through the double gate to the right, rather proceed straight on a path toward another single gate, with a yellow house on the right. BEFORE the yellow house on the right, you need to walk LEFT into the woods just after a 5 ft. pine sappling next to the path on the left. Linda Ferraresso and Jonathan Center marked the "path" with an arrow. Bushwack in to the edge of the swamp. Stand at the edge of the swamp, almost perpendicular from where the cars are parked, and at a lone dead tree on the near shore. Patiently scan the dead trees across the water for the birds. The adult bird was usually directly across, and even came t! o the near side for a while. The immature bird preferred the dead trees across and more to the left. Our thanks to Rockdancer for posting, whom we met in the parking area after viewing the woodpeckers. Steve Grinley Bird Watcher's Supply & Gift and Nature Shop at Joppa Flats Newburyport, MA USA REPLY TO: BirdWSG AT verizon.net 978-462-0775 www.birdwatcherssupplyandgift.com Subject: Red-headed Woodpecker - Yes From: Linda Ferraresso <tattler1 AT verizon.net> Date: Sun, 01 Nov 2009 22:38:30 -0500 Hi, While waiting for the Red-headed Woodpecker to fly in this a.m. - there were some other nice birds to keep birders entertained including (in no order): Black-capped chickadee Tufted Titmouse Golden-crowned Kinglet White-breasted Nuthatch Downy Woodpecker Red-bellied Woodpecker Northern Flicker Winter Wren Blue Jay American Robin Brown Creeper Canada Goose Dark-eyed Junco Yellow-rumped Warbler Red-winged Blackbird Brown-headed Cowbird European Starling Thanks to RockDancer97's coordinates and Google, getting to the spot was not difficult. Waiting for the Red-headed Woodpecker may take some patience but it will be worth it. The only thing to add to the directions already given is the area with the best views is accessed by a short walk through the woods(no real path) opposite the gate going into the state forest heading toward the swamp. And no, you wont need wellies unless you decide to take a plunge into the swamp! Cheers, Linda -- Linda Ferraresso Watertown, MA tattler1(at)verizon(dot)net “Faith is the bird that feels the light and sings when the dawn is still dark" - Tagore Subject: CT Report 11/01/2009 C Eiders, H Godwit, S Crane From: Roy Harvey <rmharvey AT snet.net> Date: Sun, 01 Nov 2009 22:33:16 -0500 From Fran Zygmont: 11/01/09 - New Hartford, Maple Hollow Rd swamp -- 1 SHRIKE sp., 1 ORANGE-CROWNED WARBLER, 4 Purple Finches. 11/01/09 - Barkhamsted, Barkhamsted Reservoir (from dam) -- 1 NORTHERN PINTAIL. From Brian O'Toole & Co: 11/01/09 - Greenwich, Quaker Ridge Hawkwatch -- 2 Sandhill Cranes at 2:15 p.m. From Sara Zagorski with Greg Hanisek and class: 11/01/09 - Madison, Hammonasset State Park -- Western Kingbird without a tail is back, in the first rotary when you enter. Also, all the other birds reported yesterday (Hudsonian Godwit and Common Eiders, Lapland Longspurs, White-rumped Sandpiper) are still here. From Bob White: 11/01/09 - Madison, Hammonasset State Park -- HUDSONIAN GOTWIT feeding in the grass just beyond the far west end of the West Beach parking lot at 11 AM. From Steve Mayo: 11/01/09 - New Haven, Lighthouse Point Park -- 5 feeding NORTHERN GANNET off the beach, 4 SNOW BUNTING, 1 BROWN THRASHER, 1 late BALTIMORE ORIOLE. ********************************************************************** This CTDailyReport list is sponsored by the Connecticut Ornithological Association (COA). It is primarily meant to meet the informational needs of the active CT birder. Any other use requires written authorization from the board of directors of the COA. ********************************************************************** Visit the COA web site at http://www.ctbirding.org Reports should be sent to CTBirdReport AT ftml.net. Reports should include sender's name, date, location of sightings and species of note at each location. Reporting Guidelines are available at: http://www.ctbirding.org/ecommittee.htm#reporting To change your subscription options, or unsubscribe, please visit http://lists.ctbirding.org/mailman/listinfo/ctdailyreport_lists.ctbirding.org Archives of these reports may be found at either of these locations: http://www.virtualbirder.com/bmail/ctbird/latest.html http://lists.ctbirding.org/pipermail/ctdailyreport_lists.ctbirding.org/ Subject: Ipswich Am Golden Plover correction From: Neil <neil.hayward AT gmail.com> Date: Sun, 1 Nov 2009 22:21:24 -0500 Dear birders, I made a mistake and a mis- identification with my earlier posting at Ipswich. I reported 9 American Golden Plovers. I hadn't seen Jim Berry's post for the previous day of 10 Black-bellied Plovers (as well as the amazing molting Hudsonian Godwit which I thought I'd found!). I based my identification on location and perceived bill size - but truthfully, probably more so the former. I never saw the birds fly and so never saw the axillaries. It's a humbling lesson in taking good field notes, rather than jumping to conclusions. Probably won't be the last time I do this - but I'll try to pay more attention in future. Apologies to everyone - I hope no-one is out there now with a flash light trying to find them. If you are - then I owe you a large drink ;-) Neil Hayward Cambridge, MA Sent from my iPhone Subject: Salisbury ~ 11/1/09 From: Sue McGrath <newburyportbirders AT comcast.net> Date: Sun, 01 Nov 2009 19:20:58 -0500 Birders, A small group of birders joined me for a brisk, Sunday morning ramble on Salisbury's Rail Trail where we had the following: Bald Eagle, Merlin, Green-winged Teal, Great Blue Heron, Mallard, Hooded Merganser, Hermit Thrush, Wild Turkey, American Crow, White-breasted Nuthatch, Eastern Bluebird, American Robin, Marsh Wren, Northern Mockingbird, European Starling, Blue Jay, Northern Cardinal, American Goldfinch, Song Sparrow, Swamp Sparrow, White-throated Sparrow, Dark-eyed Junco, Savannah Sparrow, Belted Kingfisher, Downy Woodpecker, Northern Flicker, Cedar Waxwing Good birding, Sue Sue McGrath Newburyport Birders Observe ~ Appreciate ~ Identify Newburyport, MA 01950 USA 978-462-4785 newburyportbirders AT comcast.net www.newburyportbirders.com Subject: How many blackbirds? From: Steve Mirick <smirick AT comcast.net> Date: Sun, 01 Nov 2009 21:30:32 -0500 Counting birds is a very difficult and challenging exercise. I have no idea how Rick Heil and Blair Nikula estimate their huge numbers of seabirds; however, years of experience certainly helps. Estimating a "river" of blackbirds is probably easier than other species because of their uniform flow, but it still very daunting, to say the least! For an excellent overview of counting birds, visit these e-bird articles: http://ebird.org/content/ebird/news/bird-counting-101 http://ebird.org/plone/ebird/news/bird-counting-201 and if you think your good......give it a shot with this game.......... http://personal.inet.fi/cool/live/birds/index.html Tonight, the blackbirds at the Great Bog blackbird roost in Portsmouth, NH flew over from about 4:15 to 5:00 PM. Although the rate varied, it never stopped, and at times there were two rivers. If I estimate that there were 200,000 birds, that means that an average of over 4,000 birds per minute should have flown by. Tonight there were two primary routes that the birds followed, likely conforming to the easterly and southerly shorelines of Great Bay. We chose to bird from the parking lot at Target for ease of parking and for viewing a wider area. This was great for following the "east river", but the majority of birds followed the "west river" according to this map and flew roughly over the McDonald's at the intersection of Ocean Road. An accurate count would require a couple of teams of counters carefully estimating birds coming in from different directions. Here's a map... http://home.comcast.net/~smirick//blackbirdroost.jpg Here's a beautiful photo of "the river" passing in front of a full moon this evening taken by Len Medlock. A challenge........how many blackbirds are there? http://www.pbase.com/lmedlock/image/118952550/original Answer to follow............ Steve Mirick Bradford, MA Subject: Lecontes sparrow- still there From: Tom Sayers <sayers.tom AT gmail.com> Date: Sun, 1 Nov 2009 21:17:25 -0500 I consider myself so fortunate (even though I'm a foreigner from CT) to be able to access Massbird and benefit from the wonderful birding community that supports it. Life got in the way recently and I was not able to get to Cumberland Farms to see the Lecontes sparrow. I was convinced I had missed it. My recent plea for an update resulted in a recent sighting email from Marshall and ultra-precise directions from Barry (sorry Barry-forgot your last name) that led me today to the bird. I was thinking on the way home how incredible it is that we live in an age where you can drive 135 miles, walk to the 300 foot circle out of hundreds of acres where a rarity is, and get point blank looks at the bird. Amazing. Thank you all for your help. Tom Sayers Tolland, CT Subject: Westport 11/1 From: "Mark Lynch" <moa.lynch AT verizon.net> Date: Sun, 01 Nov 2009 20:57:23 -0500 Sheila Carroll, Kevin Bourinot, Rebeca Bourinot and I spent the morning and early afternoon in the Westport area. We hoped for Cave Swallow and (not surprisingly) dipped. We did have 1 distant swallow that we watched far up the beach that at one point looked like it was going to come our way, flew back and forth several times, then disappeared before we could get an ID. Waterfowl numbers and variety were good; shorebird variety was also nice, but passerines were in very short supply, even out on Gooseberry Neck. Highlights today included: Red-throated Loon (14) Common Loon (35) Pied-billed Grebe (7) N Gannet (9) Double-crested Cormorant (108) Great Cormorant (1) Great Blue Heron (7) Great Egret (5) Turkey Vulture (3) Canada Goose (148) Brant (2) Mute Swan (102) American Wigeon (26) A Black Duck (213) Mallard (36) Green-winged Teal (26) Ring-necked Duck (64) Greater Scaup (111) Lesser Scaup (48) Common Eider (1084) Harlequin Duck (7) Surf Scoter (32) White-winged Scoter (62) Bufflehead (3) Hooded Merganser (12) Red-breasted Merganser (89) Ruddy Duck (8) Sharp-shinned Hawk (1) Red-tailed Hawk (4) Black-bellied Plover (26) Semipalmated Plover (1) Killdeer (19) Greater Yellowlegs (8) Lesser Yellowlegs (1) Ruddy Turnstone (2) Sanderling (14) Pectoral Sandpiper (2) Dunlin (7) Laughing Gull (19) Belted Kingfisher (1) Red-bellied Woodpecker (2) Downy Woodpecker (2) Hairy Woodpecker (1) N Flicker (7) Yellow-rumped Warbler (37) C Yellowthroat (2) Plus: many hundreds of robins seen in the sky; 1 large Eastern Coyote out on Acoaxet (new location for me); and Monarch (1). Mark Lynch/Sheila Carroll Moa.lynch AT verizon.net Subject: BBC Trip to NH Coast (Eurasian Wigeon, Common Murre, RIVER OF BLACKBIRDS) From: Steve Mirick <smirick AT comcast.net> Date: Sun, 01 Nov 2009 20:42:32 -0500 15 ± birders joined Jane and I for a fun-filled day of birding along the NH Coast on a trip we led for the Brookline Bird Club. For more information on the BBC, visit the web site at http://massbird.org/BBC. The day started off with a complete change in itinerary as we veered northward for a staked out Eurasian Wigeon on Great Bay that flew off just as we arrived! We then visited the Exeter wastewater treatment plant and then headed east to the coast and worked north stopping at Hampton Beach State Park, Bicentennial Park, Ragged Neck, Seal Rocks and then Odiorne Point State Park. A trip extension finished the day at the Great Bog blackbird roost. Generally land birds were VERY SCARCE along the coast. Sparrows were in short supply and essentially zero warblers! A short walk around Odiorne produced almost nothing! Fortunately, we managed to scare up a few nice birds for the day! 8:00 AM - 5:00 PM Partly cloudy and clearing skies 45F-60F Winds NW 15-25 mph Total species - 69 --------------------------- Canada Goose Mute Swan Wood Duck - 5 flying by at dusk near blackbird roost. EURASIAN WIGEON - 1 male seen by only a few members of group from Sunset Farm on Great Bay in Greenland. Unfortunately the bird flew with the American Wigeon as most of the group drove up! :-( American Wigeon - 4 from Sunset Farm. American Black Duck Mallard NORTHERN SHOVELER - 1 female continues at Exeter WWTP. Green-winged Teal - 17 at Exeter WWTP Greater Scaup - A couple hundred+ distant from Sunset Farm on Great Bay Lesser Scaup - 5 at Exeter WWTP Common Eider Surf Scoter White-winged Scoter Long-tailed Duck Bufflehead - 2 at Exeter WWTP Red-breasted Merganser Red-throated Loon - Including 31 counted on water off Ragged Neck in Rye. Common Loon Horned Grebe Red-necked Grebe Northern Gannet - Lots along coast. Most far out, but a few not too far offshore. Mostly adults. Double-crested Cormorant Great Blue Heron GREAT EGRET - 1 at Sunset Farm on Great Bay. Getting late. Especially for Great Bay. Sharp-shinned Hawk - A couple Red-tailed Hawk - A few along coast. A couple appeared to be migrating. Peregrine Falcon - Distant views of a bird chasing pigeons near Hampton beach. Semipalmated Plover - About 12 at Ragged Neck. Greater Yellowlegs Sanderling - 300+ at Jenness Beach. Huge flock continues, but not carefully counted. WHITE-RUMPED SANDPIPER - 17 juveniles continue at Ragged Neck in Rye, NH. Although not rare in early November, this is a large group for the date. Dunlin - Including 19 at Sunset Farm on Great Bay. Wilson's Snipe - 1 at Exeter WWTP Bonaparte's Gull Ring-billed Gull Herring Gull ICELAND GULL - 2 first winter birds continue at Exeter WWTP. Great Black-backed Gull COMMON TERN - 2 picked out by Nick Barber flying into Hampton Harbor. Late. Our last tern in NH this fall was on October 4th. COMMON MURRE - 1 continues in Rye Harbor. Great bird for NH coast and very odd for one to be hanging out in Rye Harbor. Unfortunately, it may be an ill bird.....hope it makes it. Only my 3rd record for NH. Here's my photo again from yesterday: http://home.comcast.net/~smirick//photos/commonmurre1.jpg Rock Pigeon Mourning Dove Red-bellied Woodpecker - 1 vocalizing at Sunset Farm Downy Woodpecker Northern Flicker Blue Jay American Crow Horned Lark - 7 at Hampton Beach State Park. Black-capped Chickadee Golden-crowned Kinglet - 2 at Odiorne Point State Park Ruby-crowned Kinglet - 2 at Exeter WWTP Eastern Bluebird - 1 at Sunset Farm American Robin European Starling Cedar Waxwing Warbler sp. - 1 at Ragged Neck. Incredibly only one warbler for the day and could not be tracked down. Possible Yellowthroat/Orange-crowned. American Tree Sparrow - 1 at Odiorne Point State Park. Our first of the winter??!!!!! "Ipswich" Savannah Sparrow - 6 including 3+ at Hampton Beach State Park and great views of 3 feeding together in grasses at Odiorne Point State Park. Song Sparrow Swamp Sparrow - 1 at Exeter WWTP White-throated Sparrow - A few at Exeter WWTP Dark-eyed Junco Snow Bunting - About 311 including 170 at Hampton Beach SP, 16 at Exeter WWTP, 75 at Ragged Neck and 50 at Odiorne. Northern Cardinal Red-winged Blackbird COMMON GRACKLE - 200,000. For those who stuck around to the bitter end, we finished the day at the Great Bog blackbird roost and witnessed "The River" of blackbirds from the parking lot of the Target Store along Rt. 33 at the Greenland/Portsmouth town line. Today it started later than yesterday....at about 4:15 PM (EST) and continued non-stop until very late when it finished somewhat abruptly almost exactly at 5:00 PM. About 25 minutes after sunset! I really don't know how many birds there are in "The River", but today's flight was significantly longer than last nights and lasted about 40-45 minutes. Based on input from others, I decided to up last nights estimate of 100,000 to 200,000 birds tonight. There may have been more than that and Len seemed to think closer to 400,000 birds.....who knows? More in a separate post. Brown-headed Cowbird House Finch House Sparrow Mammals ---------- White-tailed Dear Red Squirrel Gray Seal - Now regular along NH coast Harbor Seal Herps ------ Painted Turtle - 1 at Exeter WWTP Insects ------- Cabbage White Clouded Sulphur - Many RED ADMIRAL - 1 at Ragged neck (late?) American Lady - 1 or 2 COMMON GREEN DARNER - 1 at Ragged Neck Meadowhawk sp. - A few along coast including pair flying in tandem (likely Autumn Meadowhawk) Steve & Jane Mirick Bradford, MA Subject: Ride Needed, Red-headed Woodpeckers-Whenever From: Paul Peterson <petersonpaul63 AT yahoo.com> Date: Sun, 1 Nov 2009 17:21:40 -0800 (PST) Hi, Is anyone from the Boston area going for the Red-headed Woodpeckers  and wouldn't mind another set of eyes and ears to go along? I will pay for gas. Call me at 617-566-1375 since I don't have a computer. Thanks Paul Peterson petersonpaul63 AT yahoo.com Boston Subject: Great Pond Addendum From: Paul Peterson <petersonpaul63 AT yahoo.com> Date: Sun, 1 Nov 2009 16:27:17 -0800 (PST) Sorry,I  forgot to put in the following: Ruddy Duck 60 Paul Peterson petersonpaul63 AT yahoo.com Boston Subject: Fw: eBird Report - Braintree/Randolph-Great Pond Reservoir , 11/1/09 From: Paul Peterson <petersonpaul63 AT yahoo.com> Date: Sun, 1 Nov 2009 16:25:16 -0800 (PST) ----- Forwarded Message ---- From: "do-not-reply AT ebird.org" To: petersonpaul63 AT yahoo.com Sent: Sun, November 1, 2009 7:15:33 PM Subject: eBird Report - Braintree/Randolph-Great Pond Reservoir , 11/1/09 Location:    Braintree/Randolph-Great Pond Reservoir Observation date:    11/1/09 Notes:    I spent over six hours in this place. I covered over three miles. 48 species of birds ain't bad for the date.(actually 49 but who's counting.) Number of species:    47 Canada Goose    15 Mute Swan    5    a juv. was with parents(so cute) Wood Duck    20    are there more wary ducks than these? American Black Duck    9 Mallard    13 Ring-necked Duck    340    still here(see post from 5 days ago) Greater/Lesser Scaup    10 Bufflehead    1    the vanguard individual! Common Goldeneye    2 Hooded Merganser    18 Double-crested Cormorant    6 Great Blue Heron    2 Sharp-shinned Hawk    1    juv. being harrassed by five Blue Jays Merlin    1    what speed and drama accompany this species when it hunts. WOW Ring-billed Gull    6 Herring Gull    3 Great Black-backed Gull    3 Rock Pigeon    9 Mourning Dove    10 Great Horned Owl    2    male and female at dusk calling. I assume the male had the considerably louder voice Red-bellied Woodpecker    2 Downy Woodpecker    7 Hairy Woodpecker    2 Northern Flicker (Yellow-shafted)    2 Blue Jay    25 American Crow    18 Black-capped Chickadee    25 Tufted Titmouse    11 White-breasted Nuthatch    7 Carolina Wren    4 Golden-crowned Kinglet    4 Ruby-crowned Kinglet    1 American Robin    12 European Starling    3 Cedar Waxwing    20 Yellow-rumped Warbler (Myrtle)    3 Palm Warbler    2 Blackpoll Warbler    1 Savannah Sparrow    2 Song Sparrow    6 White-throated Sparrow    4 Dark-eyed Junco (Slate-colored)    28 Snow Bunting    12    these birds camouflage amazingly well while feeding on the ground. WOW Northern Cardinal    6 Red-winged Blackbird    30 Common Grackle    5 American Goldfinch    3 House Sparrow    X This report was generated automatically by eBird v2(http://ebird.org) Subject: Tom Carrolan's blog on hawks From: "Jim Berry" <jim.berry3 AT verizon.net> Date: Sun, 01 Nov 2009 18:57:35 -0500 Tom Carrolan, one of the northeast's best hawkwatchers, has moved to upstate New York but has kept in touch. His website has morphed into a blog site, but the link has remained the same: www.hawksaloft.com. Tom is a great writer, and he makes hawk ID (among other things) very interesting. It's a good site to bookmark if you want to keep up on hawk ID problems and hawk matters in general. Jim Berry Ipswich, Mass. jim.berry3 AT verizon.net Subject: Fw: eBird Report - Ipswich Town Farm area , 11/1/09 From: "Jim Berry" <jim.berry3 AT verizon.net> Date: Sun, 01 Nov 2009 18:37:29 -0500 > Location: Ipswich Town Farm area > Observation date: 11/1/09, 1000-1215 > Notes: Many species seemed absent today at this brushy former dump > area with loads of habitat and a good wild food crop. Completely missed > were raptors, gulls, parids, wrens, catbirds, myrtle warblers, > white-crowned sparrows, blackbirds, and house finches. Highlights were a > Lincoln's sparrow and an orange-crowned warbler, but only one of each. > Even swamp sparrows were hard to find. By the way, the forthcoming issue of Bird Observer features a lot of good places for sparrows in fall across the state. > Number of species: 19 > > Belted Kingfisher 1 > Downy Woodpecker 1 > Northern Flicker 1 > Blue Jay 19 > American Crow 3 > White-breasted Nuthatch 3 > Eastern Bluebird 4 > American Robin 21 > Northern Mockingbird 1 > European Starling 10 > Orange-crowned Warbler 1 > Savannah Sparrow 10 > Song Sparrow 40 > Lincoln's Sparrow 1 > Swamp Sparrow 3 > White-throated Sparrow 47 > Dark-eyed Junco (Slate-colored) 2 > Northern Cardinal 14 > American Goldfinch 18 > > This report was generated automatically by eBird v2(http://ebird.org) Jim Berry Ipswich, Mass. jim.berry3 AT verizon.net Subject: Ipswich - 11.1.09 Snow Goose, Hudsonian Godwit, Am Golden Plover From: Neil Hayward <neil.hayward AT gmail.com> Date: Sun, 1 Nov 2009 18:33:17 -0500 Dear birders, No luck finding the Ipswich Cackling Goose today. There were several hundred Canada Geese distributed all around the fields between Essex Road, Northgate and Argilla Roads - many of which were hard to see from the road, so it probably wasn't too far away. But I did find some very nice shorebirds on my way back... I stopped at Northgate road - half-way between Essex and Argilla Roads, where there's a small lay-by and entrance to the fields to the West. There's also quite a bit of water in these fields. I had 9 American Golden Plovers in quite close to the road here (it was seeing these moving around on the fields that first drew my attention and caused me to stop). It was getting dark, and there could well have been more of them further out. As I was counting them, I was very surprised to find a Hudsonian Godwit near one of the pools. It was probing around in the mud, and running around quite a bit too. I'm familiar with this species (although probably a lot more famliar with Bar-Tailed Godwit!) but have never seen one in a field like this - and, from eBird, this looks very late. (I did capture some pictures of the Godwit and Plovers using my phone camera and scope although they are very poor quality in poor lighting - but I'm happy to share if anyone would like to contact me offline.) At least 20 White-Rumped Sandpipers flew in and landed around the puddles, and then kept flying off, circling round, and returning. As I was heading out, 5 Snow Geese flew over and appeared to land towards the intersection of Argilla and Northgate. Definitely worth stopping and getting out the car! Location: Argilla Road, Ipswich Observation date: 11/1/09 Number of species: 5 Snow Goose 5 Canada Goose 250 American Golden-Plover 9 Hudsonian Godwit 1 White-rumped Sandpiper 20 Neil Hayward Cambridge, MA neil.hayward AT gmail.com Subject: Cumberland Farms fields - Northern Shrike - 11/1 From: james sweeney <assawompsett AT yahoo.com> Date: Sun, 1 Nov 2009 12:00:28 -0800 (PST) Hello Massbirders, I birded several areas at the Cumberland Farms fields in Middleboro/Halifax between 12:00pm and 2:00pm today (11/1). The highlight of my trip was an adult Northern Shrike found on the main road running north/south from the River St. entrance. The bird was just north of the point where the main road runs into the southern road that runs east/west. There were lots of sparrows on the Rt. 105 side of the fields and a good number in and around the manure pit area. The following species were observed: Great Blue Heron (1) Northern Harrier (4) Red-tailed Hawk (3) Wilson's Snipe (1) Ring-billed Gull (20) Hairy Woodpecker (1) Northern Flicker (1) Northern Shrike (1, adult) American Robin (100) Northern Mockingbird (3) European Starling (100) American Pipit (5) Cedar Waxwing (15) American Tree Sparrow (1) Field Sparrow (2) Savannah Sparrow (55) Song Sparrow (40) Swamp Sparrow (15) White-crowned Sparrow (4 imm., thanks to a tip from Matt Garvey) Northern Cardinal (2) Red-winged Blackbird (15) House Finch (3) American Goldfinch (2) Jim Sweeney assawompsett A yahoo . com East Bridgewater, Ma Subject: Quabbin H.Q. From: SSURNER AT aol.com Date: Sun, 1 Nov 2009 17:25:40 EST A quick trip to Quabbin H.Q. (Windsor Dam) this morning produced a small, but nice variety of waterfowl, which was welcomed compared to only 2 Common Loons during yesterdays storm. From there I headed out to Hadley and had a couple flyover Lapland Longspurs in the Honey Pot. Good Birding, Scott Location: Quabbin Reservoir--Park HQ. Observation date: 11/1/09 Number of species: 18 Canada Goose 1 Lesser Scaup 3 Surf Scoter 3 White-winged Scoter 1 Long-tailed Duck 1 Bufflehead 7 Wild Turkey 12 Common Loon 2 Accipiter sp. 1 Eastern Phoebe 1 American Crow 6 Black-capped Chickadee X Carolina Wren 1 Golden-crowned Kinglet 4 American Robin 5 American Pipit 1 White-throated Sparrow X Dark-eyed Junco (Slate-colored) X American Goldfinch 1 Location: Honey Pot (Hadley) Observation date: 11/1/09 Number of species: 19 Red-tailed Hawk 2 Ring-billed Gull 70 Rock Pigeon 24 Northern Flicker (Yellow-shafted) 1 Blue Jay X American Crow 70 American Robin 20 European Starling X American Pipit 14 Savannah Sparrow 19 Song Sparrow 6 White-throated Sparrow X White-crowned Sparrow (Eastern) 2 Dark-eyed Junco X Lapland Longspur 2 Northern Cardinal 2 House Finch 5 American Goldfinch 1 House Sparrow X This report was generated automatically by eBird v2(_http://ebird.org_ (http://ebird.org/) ) Belchertown- Goodell Street Sharp-shinned Hawk (1Ad) Great Horned Owl (1) Pileated Woodpecker (1) Subject: HSR: Blueberry Hill (01 Nov 2009) 31 Raptors From: reports AT hawkcount.org Date: 01 Nov 2009 18:11:07 -0400 Blueberry Hill Granville, Massachusetts, USA Daily Raptor Counts: Nov 01, 2009 ------------------------------------------------------------------- Species Day's Count Month Total Season Total ------------------ ----------- -------------- -------------- Black Vulture 0 0 0 Turkey Vulture 1 1 431 Osprey 0 0 140 Bald Eagle 2 2 47 Northern Harrier 1 1 57 Sharp-shinned Hawk 5 5 750 Cooper's Hawk 0 0 95 Northern Goshawk 0 0 6 Red-shouldered Hawk 2 2 33 Broad-winged Hawk 0 0 5003 Red-tailed Hawk 19 19 193 Rough-legged Hawk 0 0 0 Golden Eagle 0 0 4 American Kestrel 0 0 240 Peregrine Falcon 0 0 6 Merlin 0 0 34 Unknown Accipiter 0 0 5 Unknown Buteo 0 0 4 Unknown Eagle 0 0 1 Unknown Falcon 0 0 2 Unknown Vulture 0 0 0 Unknown Raptor 1 1 31 Total: 31 31 7082 ---------------------------------------------------------------------- Observation start time: 08:45:00 Observation end time: 15:00:00 Total observation time: 6.25 hours Official Counter: John Weeks Observers: John Weeks, Scott Fowler, Seth Kellogg, Sol Satin Weather: Mostly cloudy (60-90% cloud-cover), a disappointment, as it was supposed to be sunny. Wind NW 10-20 km/h. Temperature 8-11 C. Raptor Observations: Far fewer Red-tails than we had hoped to see. Male Harrier at 9:22 EST was the highlight. Not counted as migrants: Cooper's Hawk, 2 Red-shouldered, 1-2 Red-tails. Non-raptor Observations: American Crows (ca. 165), Eastern Bluebirds (5), American Robins (18), Savannah Sparrows (2), Fox Sparrow, Song Sparrow, White-throated Sparrows (2). ======================================================================== Report submitted by John Weeks (aerie.john AT cox.net) Subject: Plymouth County 10/31-11/1/09 From: Ian Davies <goshawk227 AT earthlink.net> Date: Sun, 1 Nov 2009 17:09:53 -0500 I spent the morning yesterday birding with Trevor Lloyd-Evans and this morning with Jeff Offermann, both days mainly poking around the coast seeing what was around in this most interesting of seasons, with a special focus on Cave Swallow. Sadly, despite much effort, no Cave Swallows were located from Scituate to Manomet on either day. However, some good birds were still floating around. On Saturday, Daniel Webster hosted an early juvenile Northern Shrike, my first for the county, and singing to boot! Today the main highlights were shorebirds at Mushquashicut Pond in Scituate, and two Common Terns at Nelson Beach in downtown Plymouth. Mushquashicut Pond held tons of birds today, including a Least Sandpiper, eleven Semipalmated Plovers, and many ducks. This pond could be very good this winter, at it's lowest water level that I've ever seen. Mounce's Meadow in Marshfield today was also incredible, with literally thousands of birds present, quite a spectacle. Highlights from the past two days below, as well as a picture of the shrike. 10/31/09: Daniel Webster Wildlife Sanctuary--IBA (0930-1000): Canada Goose 45 American Black Duck 1 Mallard 14 Great Blue Heron 1 Red-tailed Hawk 2 Downy Woodpecker 2 Northern Flicker (Yellow-shafted) 1 Northern Shrike 1 *Rare, early. My county Northern Shrike, a juvenile bird singing it's head off on the northern side of the main field, visible from the main pan area. Photograph at: http://www.flickr.com/photos/54107105 AT N00/4066016074/ Northern Mockingbird 2 Song Sparrow 3 Swamp Sparrow 1 White-throated Sparrow 1 Snow Bunting 1 Calling flyover heading south. Northern Cardinal 2 Red-winged Blackbird 50 Large flock of icterids marauding around the neighborhood on the way in. Common Grackle 370 Large flock of icterids marauding around the neighborhood on the way in. 11/1/09: Musquashicut pond, Scituate (0840-0900): Mute Swan 12 Gadwall 7 American Black Duck 27 Mallard 120 Northern Pintail 2 Two females at the south end. Red-breasted Merganser 16 Double-crested Cormorant 7 Great Blue Heron 1 Northern Harrier 1 Strange, chasing a ball of starlings, a new behavior for me by this species. Black-bellied Plover 2 Semipalmated Plover 11 *Late. All at the north end, good numbers for November! Greater Yellowlegs 7 *Late numbers. Good numbers for November! Least Sandpiper 1 *Late. Mixed in with Dunlin at the north end. Dunlin 24 Feeding on mudflats at the north end. Bonaparte's Gull 1 Adult on mudflats at the north end. Ring-billed Gull 10 Herring Gull (American) 10 Great Black-backed Gull 3 Belted Kingfisher 1 Northern Flicker (Yellow-shafted) 1 Mounce's Meadow (0930-1010): What a place this turned out to be today, with thousands of birds singing and whirling around in every direction. Cooper's Hawk 1 Almost caught a Red-winged Blackbird. Red-tailed Hawk 2 Red-bellied Woodpecker 1 Downy Woodpecker 2 Northern Flicker (Yellow-shafted) 1 Blue Jay 6 American Crow 15 Black-capped Chickadee 2 Tufted Titmouse 1 White-breasted Nuthatch 2 Carolina Wren 1 American Robin 140 European Starling 1200 *High count. Spectacular numbers festooning treetops and providing a constant background noise. Cedar Waxwing 12 With the robins. Song Sparrow 21 Surprisingly low sparrow numbers for the PERFECT habitat. Swamp Sparrow 2 White-throated Sparrow 14 Dark-eyed Junco (Slate-colored) 36 *High count. Nice numbers of these, despite the paucity of other sparrows. Northern Cardinal 4 Red-winged Blackbird 54 Mixed in with the other black birds, likely many more. Common Grackle 1100 *High count. MASSIVE flock of birds flying as one giant ball, this is one conservative estimate. Landed out of sight, unable to be scoped for anything out of the ordinary. Brown-headed Cowbird 64 *High count. Mixed in with starlings, quite a surprising number. House Finch 240 *High count. Feeding in a field with goldfinches, the field was seemingly empty until you walked in it, when all of a sudden hundreds of finches exploded out of nowhere into the nearby treetops. Quite an experience. American Goldfinch 110 *High count. Feeding with the House Finches in the field. Plymouth Downtown Area (1025-1100): Store Pond, Hedges Pond, Nelson Field. Brant (Atlantic) 130 Nelson Field, checked fruitlessly for Black Brant. Mute Swan 5 Gadwall 28 American Black Duck 113 Mallard 30 Surf Scoter 5 Red-breasted Merganser 15 Double-crested Cormorant 5 Great Cormorant 2 American Coot 1 Store Pond Black-bellied Plover 1 Nelson Beach Greater Yellowlegs 2 Nelson Beach Bonaparte's Gull 3 Nelson Beach Ring-billed Gull 45 Herring Gull (American) 20 Great Black-backed Gull 10 Common Tern 2 *Late. Nelson Beach, two first-winter birds flying around out in Plymouth Harbor. Sterna sp. 1 *Late. One bird farther out than the Commons, probably a Forster's Tern. Never got good enough looks to confirm. Rock Pigeon 15 Mourning Dove 5 Yellow-rumped Warbler (Myrtle) 1 This report was generated automatically by eBird v2(http://ebird.org) Good birding, Ian Davies Manomet, MA goshawk227 AT earthlink.net www.pbase.com/daviesphoto http://picasaweb.google.com/goshawk227 http://www.flickr.com/photos/54107105 AT N00/ Subject: Belle Isle Marsh: Nelson's Sparrow From: Tim Factor <tef617 AT gmail.com> Date: Sun, 1 Nov 2009 16:48:18 -0500 Excellent looks at a Nelson's Sparrow (coastal flavor) was my reward for a couple of hours in Wellingtons slogging through the Spartina at Belle Isle Marsh this morning. It wasn't my first time salt-marsh-slogging this fall hoping for Nelson's but I'd been assuming that I'd find them in the same habitat as I'd expect Saltmarsh Sparrows in breeding season, in short Spartina patens. Apparently they prefer the taller S. alterniflora, which at Belle Isle grows abundantly in the "Key" in the Revere section at the end of Summer St. I flushed five Sharptail-types there and one very cooperatively teed up to let me tick off field marks. A couple of Snipe were the only other birds seen within the marsh itself. Tim Factor Boston tef617 AT gmail.com Subject: BBC Lakes of Wakefield & Lynnfield trip From: David Williams <dave.williams6 AT gmail.com> Date: Sun, 1 Nov 2009 16:29:16 -0500 Birds seen on this mornings trip included: The number of ducks was low, except for Suntoug Reservoir. A possible reason for the low numbers at the 2 Wakefield lakes may be that the town has hired a goose control agent. He has a boat moored at both lakes and he and his dogs patrol the 2 lakes and chase off the geese. Well, this time of year, the other ducks are scared off, too. Lake Quanapowitt, Wakefield Double-crested cormorant - 3 Canada geese - 65 Mallard - 5 Killdeer - 3 Ring-billed gull - 17 Herring gull- 3 Crystal Lake, Wakefield Pied-billed grebe - 2 Double-crested cormorant - 2 Canada geese - 23 Mute swan - 2 Wood duck - 8 Mallard - 33 Ring-neck duck - 5 Hooded merganser - 2 Ring - billed gull - 10 Herring gull - 2 Suntoug Reservoir, Wakefield/Peabody Double-crested cormorant - 5 Great blue heron - 2 Canada geese - 75 Mute swan - 2 Mallard - 17 Ring-neck duck 38 Lesser scaup - 11 Hooded mergansers - 3 Ruddy duck - 37 Ring-billed gull - 125 Herring gull - 210 Greater black-backed gull - 17 Belted kingfisher - 1 American crow - 110 Common raven - 1 Other birds seen during the trip included: Red-tailed hawk - 3 Rock dove - 115 Mourning dove - 17 Downy woodpecker - 3 Northern flicker - 1 Blue jay - 12 Black-capped chickadee - 7 Tufted titmouse - 6 Red-breasted nuthatch - 1 White-breasted nuthatch - 5 Golden-crowned kinglet - 2 Robin - 150 Starling - 10 Song sparrow - 2 White-throated sparrow - 2 Junco - 4 Red-winged blackbird - 2 Goldfinch - 4 House sparrow - 13 Dave Williams Reading Subject: RE: Sandhill Crane update From: "Soheil Zendeh" <szendeh AT rcn.com> Date: Sun, 1 Nov 2009 15:52:49 -0500 Fred, good sleuthing. I'm convinced! Soheil Zendeh 42 Baker Ave Lexington, MA 02421 home phone 781-863-2392 cell phone 617-763-5637 office phone 617-528-4013 TASL web site http://www.gis.net/~szendeh/tasl.htm -----Original Message----- From: massbird-approval AT world.std.com [mailto:massbird-approval AT world.std.com] On Behalf Of Fred Sent: Sunday, November 01, 2009 10:06 AM To: MassBird Subject: Re: [MASSBIRD] Sandhill Crane update > See below for a message Bob Conway received re a sighting of the 5 > Sandhill Cranes in NJ yesterday. Having grown very fond of these > birds after observing them on several occasions on the Tihonet Rd > bogs in Wareham, I really appreciate the ability to follow their > journey through reports from the larger birding community. Here is a > link to the photo Tom sent to Bob: > http://www.flickr.com/photos/jrd_photos/4063137832/ Well, it's ~not~ exactly a "positive ID", but, to answer the question "But are they the same five birds?", I compared the photo from NJ (link above) to some of mine from a few days ago in Wareham, such as http://fredw.smugmug.com/Animals/WarehamCraneberryCranes-102609/10104828_2y3 Tr/1/693923477_HJvqD/Large or http://fredw.smugmug.com/Animals/WarehamCraneberryCranes-102609/10104828_2y3 Tr/1/693925004_AH4v3/Large . There is an obvious "notch" in the left wing of one of the birds in each case. Now, I'm strictly an "armchair ornithologist" (), but I think that the "notches" in each case are not only in what seems to be the same place on the left wing, but is also more prominent than a mere "feather separation" would be, and is more likely due to at least one feather being missing in each case. So, my hunch is that they are indeed likely (though not positively) the same five cranes from Wareham. (???) http://fredw.smugmug.com/Animals/WarehamCraneberryCranes-102609/10104828_2y3 Tr Fred (Frederick Wasti) Marshfield, Massachusetts Subject: 10/31 Duxbury Beach - big winds; queries re seal photos From: Rick Bowes <rbowes AT bowesweb.com> Date: Sun, 01 Nov 2009 15:49:42 -0500 Sat. 10/31/09; 11:30-4:00; HiTide 10:01 (10.2ft). Pt cloudy. SW wind 20-30mph. Whitecaps on bay. Ocean small waves. The day was dominated by strong WSW winds with gusts easily in excess of 30mph. Scope wasn't of much use most of the time except on Gurnet cliff where I could get behind a building. The wind brought out a large number of kiteboarders (10 or so ) and they pretty much assured that there would be no birds on the Bay as they zoomed up and down the water surface under their colorful kites. They sometimes came so close to the shore that the shorebirds spooked as well - though most weren't there to be rattled in the first place preferring the lee of the oceanside. Crescent Beach felt the brunt of the winds and held only Brant and gulls. The wind kept everything hunkered down, and I saw almost no passerines. Thus the highlights for the day were a super Gannet show in fabulous light and an influx of seals including a photogenic white youngster. The Gannets were numerous all along the 3.5 miles of beach about 200 yards offshore and beyond. Some were plunge diving, some were sitting on the water, and others were just riding the wind as they headed south. The sky was blue and the water bluer - against that background and with the late afternoon sun shining on them these brilliant white and black birds were simply hypnotic! It seemed like every rock at Gurnet had a seal on it. I've only seen a few this season, but on Saturday there were seals aplenty! I took a lot of pix for fun including several of a very appealing young'un. I do not know my seal species - these are probably all harbor seals I suspect - but the variety of "plumages" triggers my curiosity - especially an all white young one and another that was almost black . There were large white spotted ones and still larger gray ones. A couple of youngish ones were squabbling in the water. (If anyone could point me to a good resource to help sort out what I was seeing, please email me!) Here are some pix; enjoy! http://www.pbase.com/rickbowes/seals_10_31_2009&page=all Complete eBird list follows: Brant X American Black Duck X Common Eider X Surf Scoter X White-winged Scoter X Red-breasted Merganser X Red-throated Loon X Many moving south offshore & a few near shore - all ocean side. Also at Gurnet. Common Loon X several along the shoreline oceanside and off Gurnet Northern Gannet X Many birds - hard to count - a fun show the 3.5 mi. length of beach. Plunge diving. 80% adults Double-crested Cormorant X Great Egret 3 Together in marsh north of Bridge.(getting late) Northern Harrier 1 Cooper's Hawk 1 flew low out of Plum Hills trees landed in marsh Merlin 1 fast mover low over Gurnet houses Black-bellied Plover 19 scattered Semipalmated Plover 1 2nd xover. oceanside Greater Yellowlegs 6 4 running skimmer-like north of Bridge, 2 in Gurnet marsh Sanderling 139 Flocks or 48,30,20 rest scattered on both sides Dunlin 271 Flocks of 223 oceanside, 40 bayside. Rest scattered both sides Bonaparte's Gull 21 Flock 13 oceanside north of 3 xover, 5 off Gurnet cliff,others oceanside near shore Ring-billed Gull X Herring Gull X Great Black-backed Gull X American Crow X Golden-crowned Kinglet 1 Gurnet brush Song Sparrow 1 "only" Wind kept them down White-throated Sparrow 1 High Pines White-crowned Sparrow 1 Roadside just n. of High Pines Dark-eyed Junco 2 High Pines Snow Bunting 40 Flock in Plum Hills marsh Northern Cardinal 1 Gurnet This report was generated automatically by eBird v2(http://ebird.org) - - - - - - - - - - - - - - - - - - - - - - - - - - Rick Bowes rbowes AT bowesweb.com PO Box 1637, Duxbury, MA 02331 Subject: Waltham to Concord: RN Grebe, Cackling Goose, etc 11/1 From: Jason Forbes <jason AT brewsterslinnet.com> Date: Sun, 01 Nov 2009 15:24:54 -0500 I spent most of the morning and early afternoon working my way from Waltham to Concord and back, with several good birds around. Highlights: Cambridge Res, Waltham: Red-necked Grebe Common Merganser - 12 Hooded Merganser - 12 Eastern Bluebird - 1 heard Flint's Pond, Lincoln Hooded Merganser - 5 Common Goldeneye - pair Eastern Bluebird - couple heard Meriam's Corner, Concord: Besides the sparrows Willy just reported, a few more bluebirds, several yellow-rumps, 1 Cooper's Hawk, and 65 Canada Geese (no Cackling, one bird did appear to be slightly smaller but I think it was just a slightly smaller regular Canada and not a Lesser or anything). Waltham St. Fields, Lexington White-crowned Sparrow - 2 Good numbers of Swamp, Song, and Savannah Sparrows along with a single Chipping Eastern Bluebird - 2+ (must be some moving as Meriam's is the only one of these spots where I see them consistently) Concord Prison Fields: Just after 12:00, I picked out the/a Cackling Goose in the back, right portion of the flock. I only stayed long enough to confirm it as Cackling and didn't scan the rest of the flock (or check for anything other than geese). Checking the School St. fields and the ones across Rt. 2 first, I found lots of people and absolutely no birds. Great Meadows NWR, Concord: Blue-winged Teal - 2-3 flying around Northern Pintail - 2 Bufflehead - 1 male American Coot - 12+ Spotted Sandpiper - 1 (way late, dropped into the vegetation on the water on the left side about where the benches are and disappeared pretty quickly) American Pipit - 1 overhead Jason -- Jason Forbes Waltham, MA jason AT brewsterslinnet.com www.brewsterslinnet.com Subject: Re: Red-headed Woodpecker From: Christopher Ciccone <cnc_bird_lists AT comcast.net> Date: Sun, 01 Nov 2009 15:04:53 -0500 Good Afternoon Massbirders, I apologize for the multiple posts earlier with all the embarrassing typos - technological glitch (ie - user error) Some photos taken today of the Red-headed Woodpecker in Dracut can be seen at: http://www.pbase.com/bluegoose/rhwo4 Unfortunately, I got no photos of the immature bird (just too distant for the camera, but the scope views were great) Thanks to RockDancer97 for alerting us to the presence of the bird and providing excellent directions. Cheers, Christopher Christopher Ciccone Woburn, MA Blog: www.picusblog.com Photos: www.pbase.com/bluegoose Birding Lists wrote: > Hi Massbirders, > > When Pan and I arrived at the Red-headed Woodpecker location, Linda and > Jonathan were on the bird. At the time it was a "scope-bird", and while > watching it across the swamp, it ducked into a cavity one or two times. > While it was out of sight at one point, I caught sight of another bird > with a RHWO wing pattern BUT no red on the head. A quick bit of scanning > and Jonathan got the bird in the scope - a second (immature) Red-headed > Woodpecker!!! (almost all dk grey head with just a hint of red feathers > coming in behind and below the eye) > > The adult also did come in to the closer snag a few times. (Hope to post > a few pics later) > > For anybody going, keep an eye out for this second bird (and maybe for a > second adult!) > > Cheers, > Christopher & Pamela > > Sent from my iPhone > Subject: Pectorals, Killdeer; Concord 11/1/09 From: Willy Hutcheson <jeccawilly AT yahoo.com> Date: Sun, 1 Nov 2009 11:29:31 -0800 (PST) I walked the perimeter of the Barrett's Mill conservation land/McGrath's Farm this morning, then checked the prison fields and some Meriam's Corner weed patches. The Barrett's farm fields had at least 43 white throated, 36 song, 17 savannah, 12 swamp, and 3 chipping sparrows, along with 13 juncos. Flyovers included about 500 robins, 23 bluebirds, and 6 purple finches. A ruby crowned kinglet turned up as well. At the prison farm, there were 2 Pectoral Sandpipers among 62 killdeer, 206 Canada geese (no cackling at that time),102 ring-billed gulls, and a pipit. At Meriam's corner the fields were pretty quiet, with about 20 Savannah sparrows, 10 swamp, 8 song, and 6 white-throats in and around the sunflower patch. Good birding. Willy Hutcheson Concord, MA jeccawilly AT yahoo.com Subject: Red-headed Woopecker YES, plus an IMMATURE bird!!! From: Birding Lists <cnc_bird_lists AT comcast.net> Date: Sun, 1 Nov 2009 13:43:26 -0500 Hi Massbirders, When Pan and I arrived at the Red-headed Woodpecker location, Linda and Jonathan were on the bird. At the time it was a "scope-bird", and while watching it across the swamp, it ducked into a cavity one or two times. While it was out of sight at one point, I caught sight of another bird with a RHWO wing pattern BUT no red on the head. A quick bit of scanning and Jonathan got the bird in the scope - a second (immature) Red-headed Woodpecker!!! (almost all dk grey head with just a hint of red feathers coming in behind and below the eye) The adult also did come in to the closer snag a few times. (Hope to post a few pics later) For anybody going, keep an eye out for this second bird (and maybe for a second adult!) Cheers, Christopher & Pamela Sent from my iPhone Subject: Re: Red Headed Woodpecker - YES & a 2nd IMMATURE one too From: Birding Lists <cnc_bird_lists AT comcast.net> Date: Sun, 1 Nov 2009 13:26:59 -0500 Hi Massbirders, When we arrived at the Red-headed Woodpecker location, Linda and Jonathan were on the bird. At the home it was a "scope-bird", and while watching it across the swamp, it ducked into a cavity one or two times. While it was out of sight at one point, I caught sight of another bird with a RHWO wing pattern BUT no red on the head. A quick bit of scanning and Jonathan got the bird in the scope - a second (immature) Red-headed Woodpecker!!! For anybody going, keep an eye out for this second bird (and maybe for a second adult!) Cheers, Christopher Sent from my iPhone On Nov 1, 2009, at 11:29 AM, Bird Watchers Supply & Gift wrote: > > Linda Ferraresso called the store at 11:20 to report having a brief > siting of the Red Headed Woodpecker flying across the swamp at the > Lowell/Dracut/Tygesboro State Forest. It had not yet come to the > dead tree as has been previously reported on its' loop of the area. > Here's hoping patience and due diligence pays off. > > Barrett Bacall for SG > > Steve Grinley > Bird Watcher's Supply & Gift and Nature Shop at Joppa Flats > Newburyport, MA USA > REPLY TO: BirdWSG AT verizon.net > 978-462-0775 > www.birdwatcherssupplyandgift.com Subject: Red Headed Woodpecker - YES From: Bird Watchers Supply & Gift <birdwsg AT comcast.net> Date: Sun, 1 Nov 2009 16:29:17 +0000 (UTC) Linda Ferraresso called the store at 11:20 to report having a brief siting of the Red Headed Woodpecker flying across the swamp at the Lowell/Dracut/Tygesboro State Forest. It had not yet come to the dead tree as has been previously reported on its' loop of the area. Here's hoping patience and due diligence pays off. Barrett Bacall for SG Steve Grinley Bird Watcher's Supply & Gift and Nature Shop at Joppa Flats Newburyport, MA USA REPLY TO: BirdWSG AT verizon.net 978-462-0775 www.birdwatcherssupplyandgift.com Subject: Re: Sandhill Crane update From: Fred <fred AT cetussoft.com> Date: Sun, 1 Nov 2009 10:06:01 -0500 > See below for a message Bob Conway received re a sighting of the 5 > Sandhill Cranes in NJ yesterday. Having grown very fond of these > birds after observing them on several occasions on the Tihonet Rd > bogs in Wareham, I really appreciate the ability to follow their > journey through reports from the larger birding community. Here is a > link to the photo Tom sent to Bob: > http://www.flickr.com/photos/jrd_photos/4063137832/ Well, it's ~not~ exactly a "positive ID", but, to answer the question "But are they the same five birds?", I compared the photo from NJ (link above) to some of mine from a few days ago in Wareham, such as http://fredw.smugmug.com/Animals/WarehamCraneberryCranes-102609/10104828_2y3Tr/1/693923477_HJvqD/Large or http://fredw.smugmug.com/Animals/WarehamCraneberryCranes-102609/10104828_2y3Tr/1/693925004_AH4v3/Large . There is an obvious "notch" in the left wing of one of the birds in each case. Now, I'm strictly an "armchair ornithologist" (), but I think that the "notches" in each case are not only in what seems to be the same place on the left wing, but is also more prominent than a mere "feather separation" would be, and is more likely due to at least one feather being missing in each case. So, my hunch is that they are indeed likely (though not positively) the same five cranes from Wareham. (???) http://fredw.smugmug.com/Animals/WarehamCraneberryCranes-102609/10104828_2y3Tr Fred (Frederick Wasti) Marshfield, Massachusetts Subject: Sandhill Crane update From: "Judy Davis" <jrdavis1 AT verizon.net> Date: Sun, 01 Nov 2009 00:16:08 -0400 Massbird: See below for a message Bob Conway received re a sighting of the 5 Sandhill Cranes in NJ yesterday. Having grown very fond of these birds after observing them on several occasions on the Tihonet Rd bogs in Wareham, I really appreciate the ability to follow their journey through reports from the larger birding community. Here is a link to the photo Tom sent to Bob: http://www.flickr.com/photos/jrd_photos/4063137832/ Judy Davis Marion MA jrdavis1 AT verizon DOT net ------------------------- From: Thomas Vouglas Subject: [JerseyBirds] Sandhill Cranes at Merrill Creek Reservoir To: JerseyBirds AT Princeton.EDU Date: Friday, October 30, 2009, 3:05 PM Bob, I,m forwarding my post to Jersey Birds regarding our sighting of 5 Sandhill Cranes. Merrill Creek is located in Warren County, northwest New Jersey. The birds did not stay on the ground very long. The field where they landed is frequented by birders, hikers and dog walkers. I was fortunate to apparently be the first to come upon them. When they became aware of my presence they took to the air and flew off to the southwest. I've attached a photo taken by one of the folks at the hawk watch. Tom Vouglas Merrill Creek Reservoir hosted 5 Sandhill Cranes in the field near the Upper Beers Farm on the yellow trail at 12:45 PM, Friday, 10/30. The birds took off, gained altitude, circled the field twice and then flew off to the southwest. As they flew over the reservoir they were seen and photographed by the folks at the Scott's Mountain Hawk Watch. Regards, Tom Vouglas Subject: CT Report 10/31/2009 C Eiders, H Godwit From: Roy Harvey <rmharvey AT snet.net> Date: Sat, 31 Oct 2009 22:48:39 -0400 From Judith Stevens With Bedford Audubon Society (NY) Field Trip: 10/31/09 - Madison, Hammonasset SP -- Hudsonian Godwit was located between 11:30 a.m. and noon between pavilions 2 and 3 at the West Beach parking area. From Jerry Connolly and The Audubon Shop Sat. Bird Walk Crew: 10/31/09 - Madison, Hammonasset SP -- 3 COMMON EIDERS (2 adult males, 1 sub-adult male) with WHITE-WINGED SCOTERS and Surf Scoters just beyond jetty at Meigs Point, 5 NORTHERN GANNETS, HUDSONIAN GODWIT in grassy area between gravel parking lot (across from "Swan Pond" and paved West Beach parking lot, 1 LAPLAND LONGSPUR. From John Oshlick: 10/31/09 - Madison, Hammonasset SP -- 1 White-rumped Sandpiper. 1 Lapland Longspur in nature center parking area; Common Eiders near the jetty; 1 White-winged Scoter and many Northern Gannets. From David Babington: 10/31/09 - Washington yard -- Common Raven. From Debby Ethridge: 10/31/09 - Greenwich, Greenwich Point -- SNOW GOOSE in a flock of Canada Geese in the water on south side of the Point. From Dave Rosgen: 10/30/09 - Litchfield, White's Woods Rd. (White Memorial Foundation's Cemetery Pond, 5:20 p.m. 'til dark) -- 2 Wilson's Snipe, 1 Rusty Blackbird. White Hall Rd. (White Memorial Foundation's Lake Trail) -- 2 Brown Creepers. (Mill Field) -- 1 Common Raven, 1 Purple Finch. From Lois Melaragno: 10/30/09 - Litchfield, White Hall Rd. (White Memorial Foundation's Museum Area) -- 1 Fox Sparrow. ********************************************************************** This CTDailyReport list is sponsored by the Connecticut Ornithological Association (COA). It is primarily meant to meet the informational needs of the active CT birder. Any other use requires written authorization from the board of directors of the COA. ********************************************************************** Visit the COA web site at http://www.ctbirding.org Reports should be sent to CTBirdReport AT ftml.net. Reports should include sender's name, date, location of sightings and species of note at each location. Reporting Guidelines are available at: http://www.ctbirding.org/ecommittee.htm#reporting To change your subscription options, or unsubscribe, please visit http://lists.ctbirding.org/mailman/listinfo/ctdailyreport_lists.ctbirding.org Archives of these reports may be found at either of these locations: http://www.virtualbirder.com/bmail/ctbird/latest.html http://lists.ctbirding.org/pipermail/ctdailyreport_lists.ctbirding.org/ Subject: Red-headed Woodpecker in Dracut for past week From: rockdancer97 AT comcast.net Date: Sun, 1 Nov 2009 00:58:28 +0000 (UTC) For the pictures see http://picasaweb.google.com/RockDancer97 Saw this bird earlier in the week and then returned a couple of times to take photos. He returns to the same tree, sometimes with acorns and other times perching and catching bugs from the top. He loops around to at least 2 other trees, the circuit takes about 40 mins. Pictures were taken on Thursday and he's returned each day since. Best time to view seems to be 11 AM to 1 PM although I've watched him right up to dark. Can't say if he's been there all summer or not, it's a little off the regular path I take near the swamp since it's very close to the park boundary. Now after a few days of watching I'm thinking he's been here all along! Your destination is the Lowell-Dracut-Tyngsborough State Forest See: http://www.mass.gov/dcr/parks/trails/lowell-dracut.gif for map. Parking is limited to about 4 vehicles at the Althea Road entrance. More vehicles can park at the main entrance on Trotting Park Road but from there it's about a 1-mile walk to the bird along tar & dirt roads. (pretty walk though ...) For handheld GPS : N 42 39.978 W 71 22.356 Or enter 42.666183, -71.372531 into maps.google.com The dead tree at the near edge of the swamp is your target. Enjoy --RockDancer Subject: eBird Report - Cackling Goose - Concord, MA , 10/31/09 From: Jeremiah Trimble <jtrimble AT oeb.harvard.edu> Date: Sat, 31 Oct 2009 19:50:23 -0400 Hello MASSBIRD, This afternoon there was a rather large group of Canada Geese in the fields at the Concord Rotary. The bird was somewhat inconspicuous amongst the much larger Canada Geese though it was still easy to pick this bird out in each scan I made of the flock. Based on the plumage and some on structure, in my initial analysis I am fairly certain that this is a different bird than the one I saw on Old Bedford Road in Concord on the 18th of October (which is not too surprising!) Images can be seen at: http://www.flickr.com/photos/jrtrimble/sets/72157622579839673/detail/ Good birding, Jeremiah Location: Concord Rotary Prison fields Observation date: 10/31/09 Number of species: 7 Cackling Goose (Richardson's) 1 ***Rare| Seen well and photographed; appeared to be typical 'hutchinsii'; Canada Goose 665 Mallard 5 Killdeer 45 **High Count| Excellent count for date; this field is in excellent shape for lingering shorebirds; Mourning Dove 2 American Crow 5 European Starling 345 This report was generated automatically by eBird v2(http://ebird.org) -- Jeremiah Trimble Curatorial Associate - Ornithology Museum of Comparative Zoology Harvard University 26 Oxford Street Cambridge, MA 02138 phone: 617-495-2471 fax: 617-495-5667 email: jtrimble AT oeb.harvard.edu Subject: Re: Fresh Pond, 3 Canvasbacks: Sad From: "Jim Barton" <redwingatfp1986 AT comcast.net> Date: Sat, 31 Oct 2009 19:21:19 -0400 Hello. A normal year for ducks now is a sad year. November 4, 1988: more than 1,000 Canvasbacks, and a female Common Pochard. Yours, Jim Barton Cambridge ----- Original Message ----- From: "Jeffrey Boone Miller" To: "Massbird" Sent: Friday, October 30, 2009 3:12 PM Subject: [MASSBIRD] Fresh Pond, 3 Canvasbacks > October 30, 2009 1:15PM - 2:30PM > Fresh Pond, Cambridge MA > > Waterbirds on the pond today included: > > 12 Canada Geese > 1 Teal sp. (95% probable F Green-Wing -- very unusual here.) > 3 Canvasbacks > 97 Ring-necked Ducks > 11 Ruddy Ducks > 9 Hooded Mergansers (Black's Nook) > 1 Double-Crested Cormorant > 8 Herring Gulls > 50 Ring-billed Gulls > > Thes end of October is the usual time for Canvasbacks to arrive at Fresh > Pond. If it's a normal year, a few dozen more will arrive by mid- to > late November. > > ----Boone > > J. Boone Miller > Belmont MA > miller AT bbri.org > Subject: Little Gull - Salisbury 10/31 From: "Bird Watcher's Supply & Gift" <birdwsg AT verizon.net> Date: Sat, 31 Oct 2009 18:06:57 -0500 (CDT) Subject: Argilla/Northgate fields & Rantoul Pond, Ipswich, 10/31/09: cackling goose From: "Jim Berry" <jim.berry3 AT verizon.net> Date: Sat, 31 Oct 2009 17:50:35 -0400 Not knowing anything about Tom Wetmore's sighting of a cackling goose leaving Plum Island this morning, I sauntered out at the crack of 1130 and checked the Ipswich farm fields. Was I getting his vibes or something? In any case I scanned the Canada geese carefully for cackling, white-fronted, barnacle, anything different. The results are below. > Location: Argilla/Northgate/Essex Road fields, Ipswich > Observation date: 10/31/09, 1130-1245 > Notes: Banner day on this muddy Northgate Rd. field with 9 species of > shorebirds; missed only AGPL and late dowitchers among expected species. > The CACKLING GOOSE and snow geese were on the pastures over toward Argilla > Rd. with a large flock of Canadas. > Number of species: 19 > > Snow Goose 5 3 ad, 2 im > Cackling Goose 1 With Canadas; half their size with a TINY bill > and noticeable narrow white band between black of upper neck and dirtier > white of breast; prob. Richardson's race and probably the same bird seen > by Tom Wetmore leaving Plum I. this morning. No photos, but this bird may > stick around; look at CAGO flocks from Argilla, Northgate, and/or Essex > Roads. Description will be submitted to the MARC. > Canada Goose ~650 > Red-tailed Hawk 1 > Black-bellied Plover 10 all probably immatures; none had a trace > of color on belly > Semipalmated Plover 12 all appeared to be immatures > Killdeer 15 > Greater Yellowlegs 1 > Hudsonian Godwit 1 molting adult found here by Rick Heil 10/25; > some reddish color still easily seen on belly > White-rumped Sandpiper 21 at least some (if not all) were > juveniles; the most white-rumps I can recall ever seeing in a muddy field > Pectoral Sandpiper 1 > Dunlin 1 > Wilson's Snipe 5 (low) > Ring-billed Gull 40 rough estimate > Blue Jay 1 > American Crow 120 rough estimate > Horned Lark 50 rough estimate; not able to count them > European Starling 1000 rough estimate; two huge balls of about 500 > each merged > American Pipit 20 rough estimate; not able to count them Location: Rantoul (Sagamore) Pond, Ipswich Observation date: 10/31/09, 1310-1400 Notes: My first visit this fall to this large waterfowl pond near the coast. The lack of Am. wigeons and gadwalls was surprising; no doubt they are on other local ponds. (Also, on a brief stop at the Crane Beach parking lot, I was surprised to find NO snow buntings.) Number of species: 10 Mute Swan 8 family of 5 and 3 other adults in separate part of pond American Black Duck 138 American Black Duck x Mallard (hybrid) 5 these were males with partly green heads and mottled brown plumage; they are numerous around here Mallard 15 Ring-necked Duck 8 Greater Scaup 5 Lesser Scaup 4 Bufflehead 1 (low) Hooded Merganser 4 Great Blue Heron 1 Great Egret 1 > These reports were generated automatically by eBird v2(http://ebird.org) Jim Berry Ipswich, Mass. jim.berry3 AT verizon.net Subject: Johnson's Pond, Groveland From: "Douglas Chickering" <dovekie AT comcast.net> Date: Sat, 31 Oct 2009 15:27:14 -0400 Massbirders: On this last day of October; which had the appearance of a typical warm November day, Lois Cooper and I decided to bird locally. We hadn't birded Johnson's Pond in Groveland for a long time so we decided, after a late start, to see what we could find at both the Central Street and Washington Street sides of that large Pond. Why it isn't a lake I'll never know. We hoped to find the usual Ring-necks probably a Kingfisher and perhaps something different like a Canvasback or Redhead. We found plenty of Ring-necks and plenty of Ruddy ducks, which was a mild surprise. We didn't find any real rarity but still came away somewhat astonished. Not only did we find our first American Coot of the year (seven of them) but we had at least nine, and probably eleven Pied-billed Grebe's. I haven't seen that many Pied-billed Grebe's in one place in Massachusetts ever before. Lois and I concluded that we have to visit this somewhat under utilized birding spot more often. Doug Chickering Groveland dovekie AT comcast.net Subject: Bear Creek walk Sunday Nov 8, 8 am From: "Soheil Zendeh" <szendeh AT rcn.com> Date: Sat, 31 Oct 2009 14:30:50 -0400 Folks, On Sunday, November 8, I'll be leading a bird walk at 8 AM at Bear Creek Sanctuary in Saugus on Salem Turnpike/Route 107. The sanctuary is largely open grassland on reclaimed landfill at the NE corner of the Rumney Marsh and is not normally open to the public. The site's owner, Wheelabrator, and caretaker, Peter Young, have graciously invited birders to explore the property this Sunday. The site is somewhat elevated and exposed so dress for wind and cold and we'll be walking a couple of miles on mostly dirt roads so wear appropriate shoes. We'll need to meet ahead of time at the Wheelabrator facility in order to be escorted onto the sanctuary so let me know if you'll be joining us to get particulars. Soheil Zendeh 42 Baker Ave Lexington, MA 02421 home phone 781-863-2392 cell phone 617-763-5637 office phone 617-528-4013 Subject: GYRFALCON Another great Allens Pond walk From: Paul Champlin <skua99 AT hotmail.com> Date: Sat, 31 Oct 2009 14:18:17 -0400 Hi folks, Quick note from today's Allens Pond walk. At about 9:45 Two falcons were seen from the road on teh beach loop trail; the falcons were just east of the fresh pond on the fresh pond trail (Ruben's Point on the map; see the link below). Initially I called out two Peregrines hunting together and passed the scope to the attendees (14 in all today). As I watched through binoculars I saw that one was riding the updraft of the SW winds hitting the trees and tended to go after the other falcon, the instigator being about 1/5 larger and bulkier than the other (which was certainly a peregrine). Looking through the scope again I saw that the bird was quite hefty with wings that were less slender than the peregrine's. Compared toe the peregrine, the bulk of the bird gave it a bit more of a dumpy appearance as it hung. As it tried chasing down a flock of Hooded Mergansers (and caught up with them but missed em) I got a good look at the wings which were blunt-tipped as it headed back to hang and as it harassed the peregrine. The large falcon kept going back to "hang" like a Red-tail on the updraft, so well that we had it in the scope several times for several folks in a row to get a look. We saw it harass two passing Turkey Vultures. I saw no coloration but white and dark slate, and saw it from many angles in different lighting (hazy sun to cloudy) and against dark forested backgrounds and sky. I tried to get a sense of facial pattern and could tell that it was not that of an adult peregrine (no contrast between the neck and face, so no separated cheek patch). After about 25 minutes with the bird we began walking to that side of the pond to see if we could get under it bird but as we went it headed east not to be seen again. With the look that I got and having seen/found several of these in the past, I'm as sure as I could be that it was a juv., Gray Gyrfalcon. Here's a link to the trail map http://www.massaudubon.org/Nature_Connection/Sanctuaries/images/maps/allenspond_trails.gif If people would like to look for the bird I'd go tomorrow morning between dawn and 10AM (I'll be in W Mass so can't). Here is a map for directions (Rt I195 to 88 south, then follow the map). List from the morning to follow on Monday. (Stilt Sandpiper, Long-billed Dowitcher, teal, wigeon, gannet etc.). Paul Champlin Westport, MA _________________________________________________________________ New Windows 7: Find the right PC for you. Learn more. http://www.microsoft.com/windows/pc-scout/default.aspx?CBID=wl&ocid=PID24727::T:WLMTAGL:ON:WL:en-US:WWL_WIN_pcscout:102009 Subject: Clear cutting and the damage it does From: "Scott Ricker" <ptbagger AT verizon.net> Date: Sat, 31 Oct 2009 12:48:10 -0400 Massbirders, The issue recently raised by Derek Brown' posting concerning clear cutting in Western Mass, is a valid concern about the massive loss of large tracks of forest in this part of the state. A trade off should not be waged against our forest in the name of restoring grassland species or management of forest, or fueling the newest energy producing initiatives. I understand the value of grassland species, but decimating the habitat of woodland species is only going to compound the problem of dwindling habitat & dwindling sightings of woodland warblers and other woodland species of birds, animals, plants and insects. When they are allowed to take an inch, often it turns into a mile or more.. Both the incinerators and the clear cutting are detrimental to the environments they occur in including the bordering towns, and, in turn our quality of life is impacted in a very negative manner. It will take decades & decades for the affected environments to recover which means our children and their children will not be able to enjoy the deep woods environments that existed back in the 60s, 70s and 80s. On 10/24/2009 the Westfield Evening News printed a small piece concerning a Western Mass limited liability corporation being fined by the Mass DEP. The fines came about after significant clear cutting by the developer on Mt Tom that has been going on for at least five years now. The article was printed as follows; Mountain Park Area Developer Issued a $15,400 Penalty, Ordered to Restore Wetland Resources in Holyoke BOSTON-The Massachusetts Environmental Protection (MassDEP) issued a $15,400 penalty to Mountain Park LLC for cutting & clearing 15,050 square feet of vegetation within a Bordering Vegetated Wetland (BVW) in violation of the Massachusetts Wetlands Protection Act. On December 9, 2008. Mountain Park, located on Mount Tom Ski Road in Holyoke, conducted a tree cutting and clearing activity without prior submission of a Notice of Intent as is required under the Wetlands Protection Act. In response to a request for assistance from the Holyoke Conservation Commission, MassDEP investigated the activities. MassDEP and the conservation commission confirmed that the violation took place and the BVW was impacted as a result. MassDEP ordered Mountain Park to fully restore all vegetation within the BVW and pay a penalty. Mountain Park will pay $9,000 of the fine; the remaining $6,000 of the penalty will be suspended contingent upon Mountain Park complying with the terms of restoring the wetlands. "The permitting process is in place to prevent detrimental impacts to important resources such as wetlands from occurring." Said Michael Gorski, director of MassDEP's Western Regional Office in Springfield. "A site survey and early planning, including contacting the local conservation commission or MassDEP, are critical first steps towards protection of these valuable resource areas for many construction projects." MassDEP is responsible for ensuring clean air and water, safe management and recycling of solid and hazardous waste, timely cleanup of hazardous waste sites and spills, and the preservation of wetlands and coastal resources. END OF ARTICLE The developer Eric Suher, is planning an outdoor concert venue on Mt Tom, which hosted a trial type event on a weekend this past August. His statement in the link below indicates to me that the punishment was not firm enough: Suher states "and during that work, we did actually, and unfortunately, we did go into the-there's a border that you're supposed to maintain, a wetlands border-and one of the vehicles did cut across that border. ..." Suher continues: "Both of those [issues]-one was completely satisfied with the National Heritage and the approval letters to move forward and the Department of Environmental Protection is in the works now where that has been, they've approved our restoration plan, because we have to restore the areas that we, you know, drove across, and so that restoration plan has been approved by both the City of Holyoke Conservation Commission and the DEP." http://www.valleyadvocate.com/article.cfm?aid=10336 This situation developed from a significant clear cutting of large tracts of trees on Mt Tom and in the area of the old Mountain Park. When 15,040 feet of vegetation are destroyed, I do not think this amount of destruction happens when one vehicle cuts across the WVB. I can only imagine how many other WVB areas, including the amount of nesting habitat for owls & wood warblers that has been destroyed by the ongoing clear cutting of thousands of acres of forest in Western Mass, that is taking place by developers and the DCR to name a few. If anyone wants to see the WEN article, I can forward it to you directly upon request. Scott Ricker Southwick, MA. ptbagger AT verizon.net