Category: nature

Wednesday 9/23: Merlin over the yard.

Thursday 9/24: The nice brush pile at Farm Meadow is gone, so ran to Lindentree, which had the usual.

Friday 9/25: Got the gallinule at Great Meadows plus first of fall Savannah Sparrow and first local Yellow-rumps.

Saturday 9/26: Yellow-rump and 120 cormorants over Danehy, Rusty Blackbird and 15 Wood Duck at Alewife, Blackpolls and wigeon at Arlington Res, nothing at Hobbs Brook, and nothing at Waltham St.

Sunday 9/27: Started at Great Meadows. Virginia Rail on the path, pipit overhead, a few shorebirds and ducks, 3 coots, etc. Nothing at all in the trees though. Kaveski was quiet around noon and a quick stop at Hobbs Brook added a couple more pipits and not much else.

Monday 9/28: Two Blue-headed Vireos and not much else at BBN.

Tuesday 9/29: Only had time for a quick stop at Round Hill. Lincoln’s Sparrow in the gardens and a flyover Pileated were about it.9/

Wednesday 9/16: Rock Meadow was fairly quiet. Parula, Wilson’s, Redstart, Blackpoll, Empid, Monarch.

Thursday 9/17: Moderate selection of warblers at Forest Grove included a Pine, 2+ BT Green, 2 Parula, a Black-and-white, a Chestnut-sided, and a redstart.

Friday 9/18: Sharpie, Parula, very little else at Hayden Woods.

Saturday 9/19: Zip at Dunback and Waltham St. Black-bellied still at Hobbs Brook, which was a surprise as I hadn’t seen any reports all week.

Sunday 9/20: MBC walk to BBN and Rock Meadow. Three redstarts, 2 Red-eyed Vireos, 2 Cooper’s was about it for birds. Monarch and a mantis for insects.

Monday 9/21: Junco, Catharus sp, 2 ravens, and absolutely nothing else at Prospect Hill.

Tuesday 9/22: Black-and-white and the usual at College Pond (probably more if there wasn’t a crew working at the stump dump).

Wednesday 9/9: Duck ponds were quiet enough that I was able to see that the gardens at Rock Meadow weren’t much more active. Stopped for the BB Plover at Hobbs Brook on the way home and added the kingbird too.

Thursday 9/10: Went to Heard Farm and spent most of the time trying to get out of the mud. Managed to get myself out but not one of my boots. Absolutely nothing around before that.

Friday 9/11: Rain didn’t let up quite early enough. Heard Pond had swallows and an Osprey but that was about it.

Saturday 9/12: Indoors all day. Did attempt a stop at Hobbs Brook on the way, but fog limited visibility to just above nothing.

Sunday 9/13: Started at Dunback. Canada deep in the woods, Magnolia near the edge, Lincoln’s Sparrow near the tennis courts, and an interesting Empid or two along Bacon St. Walked over to Waltham St which had a lot of blackbirds and a Merlin. On to Hobbs Brook, where the mist picked up. Black-bellied was still there along with lots of yellowlegs and 10 species of shorebird overall plus one Blue-winged Teal with the Mallards.

Monday 9/14: Redstart, BT Green and nothing else at Prospect Hill.

Tuesday 9/15: Fairly quiet at BBN, although busier than elsewhere it appears. Four plus redstarts, 2 Red-eyed Vireos, a Parula, a BT Green and a Cape May, which was a patch tick (#165, 30th warbler).

Wednesday 9/2: Redstart, 3 orioles, lots of robins at Rock Meadow.

Thursday 9/3: More yellowlegs at Hobbs Brook but nothing terribly exciting with them (or in the trees along the road).

Friday 9/4: Absolutely dead at Purgatory and Forest Grove.

Saturday 9/5: Did a long loop of West Meadow and BBN and found 1 Ovenbird. Seven Semipalmated Plovers at Hobbs Brook among the regulars.

Sunday 9/6: Prospect Hill had 3 Gnatcatchers and not much else. PB Grebe at the res on the way home.

Monday 9/7: Before the real excitement, a flock of yellowlegs with 2 Pecs plus this:

(That’s a video, click through if needed)

Stopped at Elm Brook to get BW Teal for the year, then Kaveski to check for the sandpiper on the way to Hobbs Brook, which was about the same other than the Semipalmated Plover count reaching 11.

Tuesday 9/8: Prairie and Nashville at Dunback, plus a heard only Dickcissel and a massive swarm of some insect.

Wednesday 8/26: 1 Semipalmated Sandpiper, 40+ Least, 1 Greater Yellowlegs, not a whole lot else at Hobbs Brook.

Thursday 8/27: Nashville and not much else at Dunback.

Friday 8/28: Decided not to bother with the camera today. That sounds familiar. Returned after work but the Lark Sparrow wasn’t around. Did pick up a bunch of things I didn’t see in the morning including a nighthawk, redstart, and a Pine Warbler in the middle of the ball fields.

Saturday 8/29: Went back out to Ashby. Got a Canada Darner finally and some obvious Variables (unlike last time). Lots of warblers around, probably 12 species including an early Blackpoll and 2 Cape Mays. Stop at the Nashua on the way home was fairly quiet (couldn’t net any Stylurus) but a large flock of Hooded Mergansers was interesting.

Sunday 8/30: Joined the MBC walk at Horn Pond. Nothing too exciting, a handful of warblers, an oriole or two, lots of vireos. Stopped at Hobbs Brook on the way home. Ovenbird was new for the res area (148) and warbler #15 for the weekend. Greater Yellowlegs was still around and way, way out I found a Pec (finally) and Lesser Yellowlegs.

Monday 8/31: Dunback had 3 tanagers (with a bunch of other birds flycatching right at the entrance), a Tennessee (warbler #20 of the fall, not necessarily all migrants yet) among a couple other warblers, and 2 deer.

Tuesday 9/1: BBN had a Nashville, Chestnut-sided, a few Redstarts, and a Black-and-white. And what had to be a Yellow-bellied Flycatcher for half a second. Heading to work, an Osprey over 128 at 30 was my first on the Charles in a couple years.

Wednesday 8/19: Hobbs Brook was quiet for shorebirds but 2 Purple Martins were rather nice!

Thursday 8/20: Forest Grove was quiet, couple ravens over Brandeis were the only things of any interest.

Firday 8/21: Too wet in the morning but out of work early enough to check Hobbs Brook quickly. A couple Semipalmated Sandpipers, 250+ starlings, and decent numbers of the usual shorebirds.

Saturday 8/22: Started at Dunback which had a Veery and a ton of Rose-breasted Grosbeaks but little else. Keep saying I’m not going to Great Meadows but I ended up there next. Walking in, a flyover call appears to be a Dickcissel. Two Great Egrets and a couple shorebirds were it otherwise. Hobbs Brook on the way home had the usual shorebirds and 4 Green-winged Teal in with the Mallards.

Sunday 8/23: Looped Prospect Hill. Parula got away but there were Black-and-white Warblers in almost every chickadee flock plus a Blue-winged, a few Redstarts, a Chestnut-sided, and Pines still begging. Eagle on the res although nothing else there or at Hardy.

Monday 8/24: Redstart was about it at Rock Meadow (although I realized Tuesday the Indigo Bunting was a patch year bird).

Tuesday 8/25: Not much at BBN. Started with a redstart and Black-and-white then it clouded up and activity dropped.

Wednesday 8/12: Semipalmated Plover was about it at Hobbs Brook.

Thursday 8/13: Not much beyond catbirds at Purgatory and Forest Grove.

Friday 8/14: Chestnut-sided Warbler and Least Flycatcher at an otherwise very quiet Prospect Hill. Did catch a Black-tipped Darner at the car as I was about to leave.

Saturday 8/15: Ovenbird and Zabulon Skipper were about the most exciting at Dunback (although if the possible Olive-sided hadn’t disappeared into the sun before I got optics on it…). Too hot at Hobbs Brook but 2 Night-Herons and a Great Egret were worth the stop. Afternoon visit to the Nashua was cut short from thunder but I did get a Zebra Clubtail.

Sunday 8/16: Walked to the duck ponds. Saw very little most of the way. Just about to cross into Rock Meadow, I thought I heard a Red-shoulder but dismissed it. Five minutes later, one flew over. Did find an interesting spreadwing and my first Tawny-edged Skipper in awhile.

Monday 8/17: Not a whole lot at BBN.

Tuesday 8/18: Orioles and grosbeaks at Dunback plus a waterthrush and redstart.

Wednesday 8/5: Couple Redstarts at BBN and lots of orioles.

Thursday 8/6: More orioles at Rock Meadow. Four Broad-wings over the yard as I was walking back in.

Friday 8/7: Went to Wayland for the first time in awhile. Quick stop at the Pelham Island Rd bridge was very quiet. Heard Farm was also quiet, so I gave the bridge another pass on the way out. Solitary had dropped in but a Yellow-throated Vireo singing was nicer.

Saturday 8/8: Plum for a change. Avocet was easy, bunch of the expected yearbirds, didn’t get to the beaches at all. Nuthatch was moderately interesting (3 of those on the island compared to 3 avocets). Quick stop at Hobbs Brook on the way home had a juv night-heron and a Least Sandpiper.

Sunday 8/9: Five species of herons at Hobbs Brook including my first Snowy Egret in Lexington (and second in the county away from Great Meadows) plus a few Semipalmated Sandpipers. Quiet ode walk at the Cranberry Bog after.

Monday 8/10: Two Blue-wings but not much else at BBN.

Tuesday 8/11: Decent number of Bank Swallows but that was about it at Great Meadows.

Wednesday 7/29:  Blue-winged and mosquitos at Dunback.

Thursday 7/30: Louisiana Waterthrush and Least Sandpiper at the duck ponds.

Friday 7/31: Not a whole lot at West Meadow.

Saturday 8/1: Out west.

Sunday 8/2: Great Meadows was a waste of time. Wandering around Boston in the afternoon, an Old Wife Underwing was rather odd near Downtown Crossing.

Monday 8/3: Couple Black-and-whites at Prospect Hill (probably more if I started with the screech-owl earlier).

Tuesday 8/4: Showers kept me in more than I wanted but a quick trip to the duck ponds had a Solitary and Northern Waterthrush.