Still no travel and didn’t spend enough time on bugs but not too bad otherwise including one very long-awaited milestone.
January: Usual local stuff plus the Townsend’s Warbler. Made a Bristol county trip for the Snow Goose x Brant, which was worth it.
February: More of the same. Great Horned was a good hole to fill in Norfolk county, Canvasback, cranes, and a White-winged Crossbill in Worcester county, big flock of Pine Warblers in Weston.
March: RT Loon on the Charles was about it.
April: Big flock of ibis, Bohemians, Suffolk Blue Grosbeak, filled some Essex county gaps. Also a meadowlark and thrasher at Waltham St. Chased the kites in Rehoboth for the first state bird of the year.
May: First Marsh Wren on the Charles, Pileated at Mt. Auburn, Worm-eating at Beaver Brook North, finally a Suffolk Chestnut-sided, Kentucky in Lincoln, the presumably alive Chuck-will’s-widow was another state bird, Acadian in Carlisle, Gray-cheeked at Mt. Auburn. A trip out west had some bugs but not the elfin I wanted.
June: Olive-sided in Winthrop, Pygmy Clubtails in the Blue Hills finally, actually birded out of state with an hour in New Hampshire, Cliff Swallows in Boston. And #400 for the state with the Anhinga!
July: Sora at Great Meadows, only life bird of the year with the Brown Booby in South Boston, butterfly count was a success, Common Tern for the ‘commute’ finally.
August: Little Blue and Red-banded Hairstreak at BBN, Stilt Sandpiper at Hobbs Brook, Dusky Dancer at Spot Pond, Marbled Godwit at Belle Isle (believe that’s 300 birds found in the state).
September: Finished birding every town in the county, Whimbrel at Wachusett, Caspian and Forster’s terns in Suffolk plus Forster’s in Norfolk.
October: Plymouth trip, Golden-Plover at Great Meadows, Connecticut at Dunback, Yellow-headed Blackbird at Waltham St., longspurs at stuff at Halibut, Vesper and Grasshopper sparrows in Lincoln, RH Woodpeckers sort of in Worcester (plus a woodcock), Brant in Cambridge.
November: BT Gray at Mt. Auburn, cranes along Water Row, Snow Goose at BBN, barely missed Cave Swallow, RH Woodpecker and Cackling Goose in Boston.
December: Townsend’s and crew at Horn Pond (minus BT Gray), Lazuli in Newbury, Lark Sparrow at Drumlin, CBCs (chat for Greater Boston, nothing for Concord).
Goals for 2025 are working on county month lists and getting the remaining Middlesex town lists to 50+.