MA - Snow Goose and a good selection of other waterfowl

 

Snow Goose - (first-spring), Turner's Falls power canal, Franklin Co., MA. March 16th, 2021.

Migration appears stalled for a few days, perhaps held up by four straight days of very cold, blustery North-westerlies, certainly a shock to the system after last week's warm southerlies. Aside from a steady build up of Ring-necked Ducks (c.140 between Barton Cove and the Turner's Falls Rod and Gun club) and Buffleheads (9 Barton Cove and at least 5 at the Turner's Falls power canal), the last few days have seen several species simply 'staging' in the area presumably waiting for more favorable weather conditions to continue migrating. A combined total of at least 1400 Canada Geese has been present at Barton Cove and the Turner's Falls power canal, seemingly ripe for the discovery of a good rarity? Alas, the most unusual geese so far have been single Snow and Cackling Geese, both of which have been present at the power canal from the 14th - 16th. The power canal also produced a welcome surprise with the appearance of the long staying (but often aloof) first-winter male Barrow's Goldeneye on the 13th. Barton Cove hosted a female Lesser Scaup (11th - 13th) and a female Greater Scaup (14th - 16th) as well as up to 30 each of Common and Hooded Mergansers. Gull migration has definitely been light over the last few days but an adult Lesser Black-backed Gull was new at Barton Cove on the 13th. 

Cackling Goose -  Turner's Falls power canal, Franklin Co., MA. March 15th, 2021.

Barrow's Goldeneye - (first-spring male), Turner's Falls power canal, Franklin Co., MA. March 13th, 2021.

Mercurial, with sporadic appearances at the power canal throughout the winter since December 25th, 2020.

Ring-necked Ducks - Barton Cove, Gill, Franklin Co., MA. March 15th, 2021.

Lesser Scaup (female) - Barton Cove, Gill, Franklin Co., MA. March 13th, 2021.

Greater Scaup (center) - female, Barton Cove, Gill, Franklin Co., MA. March 15th, 2021.

Black Vultures - Turner's Falls power canal, Franklin Co., MA. March 13th, 2021.

Continued arrivals in Montague with four over the power canal on the 13th.  

MA - white-fronts, waterfowl and more crossbills

 

Greater White-fronted Geese (2) - Unity Park, Turner's Falls, Franklin Co., MA. March 10th, 2021.

Over the last couple of days immaculate weather, warm air and southern winds have produced a distinct uptick in waterfowl migrants passing through Franklin County. Small flocks of Canada Geese passed over the Montague Plains all morning on the 9th and by the evening some 800-900 had gathered in a well hidden cornfield in Bernardston. While visible migration was less evident on the 10th, a Greater White-fronted Goose was discovered at Barton Cove/Unity Park by David Sibley and by the time that I got to Unity Park at noon there were two, both of them adults! Having carefully scrutinized the geese at Unity Park the evening before I feel confident that these were brand new arrivals. Ring-necked Ducks too have increased over the last two days with 4 at Unity Park and 17 at the Turner's Falls power canal. The latter site also produced a whopping 26 Hooded Mergansers on the evening of the 10th!

Greater White-fronted Geese (2) - Unity Park, Turner's Falls, Franklin Co., MA. March 10th, 2021.

Greater White-fronted Goose - Unity Park, Turner's Falls, Franklin Co., MA. March 10th, 2021.

Ring-necked Ducks - Unity Park, Turner's Falls, Franklin Co., MA. March 9th, 2021.

Gull migration can be a more discrete event but the evening of the 10th saw an impressive surge in Ring-billed Gull numbers to almost 200 birds. A Lesser Black-backed (adult) and two Iceland Gulls (first-winters) continue amid the Herring and Great Black-backed Gulls roosting at Unity Park. 

Black Vultures - Montague Plains WMA, Franklin Co., MA. March 10th, 2021.

Turkey Vultures were already widespread by the 8th but on the 10th, a northward movement of some 12 Black Vultures over the Montague Plains was rather more impressive. 

White-winged Crossbill (male) - Montague Plains WMA, Franklin Co., MA. March 9th, 2021.

White-winged Crossbill (male) - Montague Plains WMA, Franklin Co., MA. March 10th, 2021.

Finally, the Montague Plains have been 'heaving' under the weight of some 75 - 100 Red Crossbills with these birds being well north of the more heavily watched site of Old Northfield Road. Small scattered groups of singing/calling birds have been found throughout the plains over the last two days with an especially impressive concentration of about 60 in one spot. As expected, most identified to Type have been Type 10 but, thanks to Tim Spahr's help and guidance, I've also managed to identify and record Type 2 and Type 3. Of course, the prize for scanning through all those crossbills has been the continued presence of White-winged Crossbills, all of them have been males and around 7 or 8 individuals in all, maybe more. They're not especially vocal either and finding them usually involves careful checking of each individual crossbill that just happens to show itself. 

With several more days of warmth in the forecast I think it would be reasonable to expect a few more migrants of interest before the forecast colder snap in the early part of next week. 

MA - White-winged Crossbills and other 'winter finches' this week

White-winged Crossbill (male) - Montague Plains WMA, Franklin Co., MA. March 4th, 2021.

The White-winged Crossbills first noted on Feb 25th continued into the first week of March at the Montague Plains WMA . While it's possible there may have been some turnover, after spending a couple of hours each morning following crossbill flocks, I came away with the distinct impression that the numbers of both crossbill species were about the same as they were last week, roughly 70 Red Crossbills and 3 - 5 White-winged Crossbills. The latter included two males consorting together, a duo that I first noted back on Feb 25th, plus several single males with random flocks of Red Crossbills occasionally dropping down to the road for 'gritting'. Almost all the activity has been concentrated along Old Northfield Road in the southern portion of the WMA with crossbills occurring on both sides of Old Northfield Road and sometimes actually on the road itself. New (for me) in the plains this week were a single Common Redpoll and 3 Pine Siskins, the latter in song and particularly noteworthy since they haven't occurred on the same sort of scale locally as other wither finch species. 

White-winged Crossbill (males) - Montague Plains WMA, Franklin Co., MA. March 3rd - 4th, 2021. 

Looking at White-winged Crossbills, I don't mind admitting that I'm still smitten and wanted to make the most of them while they're here. In a couple of weeks they'll almost certainly be heading back to the boreal forests and long gone from the Montague Plains.  I'm hoping/expecting that at least some pairs of Red Crossbills will remain in the plains to breed but after hours of carefully watching them this week I've yet to see any actual breeding activity such as nest building.

 Red Crossbills - Montague Plains WMA, Franklin Co., MA. March 3rd - 4th, 2021. 

Another fantastic week for this species with up to 70 exceptionally vocal birds present mid-week.

 Common Redpoll - Montague Plains WMA, Franklin Co., MA. March 3rd, 2021. 

Pine Siskin - Montague Plains WMA, Franklin Co., MA. March 4th, 2021. 

 Common Redpoll (male) - Whately, Franklin Co., MA. March 5th, 2021. 

The 'Whately Redpolls' surprised me this week both in terms of numbers (85) and the volume of song/calls coming from the thickets alongside the fields.

Hoary Redpoll - Whately, Franklin Co., MA. March 5th, 2021. 

Red-breasted Nuthatch - Montague Plains WMA, Franklin Co., MA. March 4th, 2021. 

Migration Notes; small numbers of American Crows heading north through much of the day on the 3rd occurring in flocks of 5 - 8 birds over Montague Plains, Turner's Falls and Greenfield. Also the first 'hints' of Canada Geese moving north with 6 over Turner's Falls on the 3rd and 5 over Montague Plains on the 4th, both flocks of highflyers heading purposefully north. Two first-winter Iceland Gulls joined the small gull roost at Unity Park on March 3rd-6th with an adult Lesser Black-backed Gull (new) present on the 6th. Over 100 American Robins together along Meadow Road, Montague on March 5th, and Turkey Vultures over Sunderland on the 5th (Brian Kane) and Main Road, Gill and Turner's Falls (4) on the 6th. 

Lesser Black-backed Gull (center) - adult with Herring, Great Black-backed and Iceland Gulls, Unity Park, Turner's Falls, Franklin Co., MA. March 6th, 2021.

Lesser Black-backed Gull  - adult, Unity Park, Turner's Falls, Franklin Co., MA. March 6th, 2021.

 

MA - leucistic Canada Goose, Snow Goose and more at Turner's Falls

leucistic Canada Goose - Turner's Falls power canal, Franklin Co., MA. December 16th, 2020.

Yesterday evening (Dec 15th) saw a leucistic Canada Goose at the Turner's Falls power canal. It looked and behaved like a new arrival and an indication that at least a few new parties of Canada Geese are still passing through. It was still present today and especially distinctive, looking creamy white and light brown overall with a reddish-pink bill. I checked carefully for signs of hybridization (with Graylag or Greater White-fronted Goose for example) but came away feeling pretty confident that the bird was a pure Canada Goose but with aberrant pigmentation. In fact, most of the features appeared to simply 'ghost' the natural plumage features of a typical Canada Goose. A nice looking bird for sure and one that I enjoyed watching. On the last two evenings it's departed NE with the first groups of Canada Geese to leave the canal for evening feeding. 

leucistic Canada Goose - Turner's Falls power canal, Franklin Co., MA. December 15th, 2020.

Snow Goose - Turner's Falls power canal, Franklin Co., MA. December 16th, 2020.

The long staying Barnacle Goose and Cackling Goose continue to show incredibly consistently, but this evening the brief appearance of Snow Goose was more of a surprise. It didn't appear to like the look of the power canal and, unusually for any scarce goose at Turner's Falls, departed SE entirely alone. The 60 or so gulls present included a single (first-winter) Iceland Gull. 

Barnacle Goose - Turner's Falls power canal, Franklin Co., MA. December 15th, 2020.

Cackling Goose (center) - Turner's Falls power canal, Franklin Co., MA. December 15th, 2020.

Earlier in the day, I spent some time searching for the reported Sage Thrasher in Hatfield, Hampshire County and came up empty though did enjoy some close Common Redpolls and three flyover Red Crossbills. The previous day also saw Red Crossbills at the traditional spot in the Montague Plains where I recorded 25 (Type 10) and a single Type 2 or Ponderosa Pine Red Crossbill. 

Common Redpolls - Hatfield, Hampshire Co., MA. December 16th, 2020.

Red Crossbills - Montague Sand Plains, Franklin Co., MA. December 15th, 2020.

MA - new flocks of Pine Grosbeaks plus Barnacle and Cackling Geese in Gill

Pine Grosbeak (possible first-winter male) - Montague, Franklin Co., MA. December 8th, 2020.

Another raw day with temperatures below freezing for most of it coupled by bitingly cold winds from the northern quarter. Despite the fairly tough conditions it felt totally appropriate to find yet more northern finches in Franklin County with new flocks of Pine Grosbeaks on North Cross Road, Gill (4 birds) and Meadow Road in Montague (6 birds) . Both locations also held flocks of Common Redpolls with 18 - 20 birds at each site but they were skittish and wouldn't allow a close approach to check for Hoary Redpolls, especially frustrating because the Gill flock looked to have several very pale individuals among their number. Red Crossbills, while dwindling in number, remain at North Cross Road (5) and Montague Sand Plains (2). 

Pine Grosbeak (possible first-winter male) - Montague, Franklin Co., MA. December 8th, 2020.

Pine Grosbeak (female type) - Montague, Franklin Co., MA. December 8th, 2020.

In late afternoon, Barton Cove was especially productive with a/the Barnacle Goose hanging out with just six Canada Geese. They departed SW together at 16:05 hours which would have taken them towards Deerfield versus the usual NW departure that typically takes them towards feeding spots in Greenfield. I'm assuming it has to be the same Barnacle Goose first detected by Sue and Edward Lewis on Nov 23rd at the Tuner's Falls power canal and where it's been routinely reported ever since. This evening was certainly the first time that I've seen it at Barton Cove. As if that wasn't enough, there was also a Cackling Goose with a smallish flock of 85 Canada Geese followed by a totally different, high flying Cackling Goose coming in from the NE with Canada Geese that headed towards the power canal at dusk. 

Barnacle Goose (adult) - second from right, Barton Cove, Gill, Franklin Co., MA. December 8th, 2020.

Cackling Goose - third from upper right, Barton Cove, Gill, Franklin Co., MA. December 8th, 2020.

There was also a nice gull roost at Barton Cove with at least two Iceland Gulls (first-winters) and about 16 Great Black-backed Gulls among the 60 or so Herring Gulls. Also of interest, what may have been a northern-type Herring Gull (first-winter), a very crisp, fresh looking individual with slight Glaucous-like feel about it.