eBird Report - Rock House Reservation, 7/4/10 - Quite the variety near da Quabbin!!

It is often best for anyone to visit new places and experience new sights as often as one can, for there is just so much to thoroughly take in and enjoy here in Massachusetts! Today, on the birthday of our nation, was one of those days. I seldomly venture out to western Mass, but since my father had invited me to join him on this day while he fly-fished the Swift River near the southern end of the Quabbin, how could I refuse?! For my part, I had to come up with a local place to visit while my Dad spent hours on end fishing in the crisp and refreshing waters of the Swift River that flows out the back end of the Quabbin Reservoir. So, I perused through my Trustees of Reservations guidebook and came up with the closest piece of land they had, that being Rock House Reservation in West Brookfield.

I knew it was going to be a hot day, as all the meteorologists had forecasted for not only this weekend, but the whole next week as well. Still, since it was higher in elevation and humidity levels were still in the comfortable range, hiking Rock House was quite pleasant, despite the incessant and bothersome flies. The most striking features of Rock House are the numerous and massive glacial erratics dispersed throughout the property, as well as Carter Pond (that was man-made, but picturesque nonetheless; I was kinda hoping a Solitary Sandpiper might be around, since the environs seemed like it would be ideal for one to show up....but alas, no luck there). Highlights for birds observed were certainly a few pleasant surprises, such as a Common Raven calling and flying overhead near the back edge of Carter Pond, a male Blackburnian Warbler flitting the treetops and singing, and an absolutely striking male Indigo Bunting singing from the powerlines that bi-sect the reservation. All told, I spent 2 and a half hours traversing the approximately 3.3 miles of trails that criss-cross Rock House Reservation. Yet another fine property that is in the hands of The Trustees of Reservations. Hehehe, the only gripe I had was the fact that there were no trail brochures left for the property at the information kiosk near the main parking lot off of Route 9. Oh well, thats what exploring is for isn't it?! Happy birding to everyone and I hope ya'll had a killer Independence Day weekend!

Location:     Rock House Reservation
Observation date:     7/4/10
Number of species:     36

Mourning Dove - Zenaida macroura     1
Downy Woodpecker - Picoides pubescens     1
Hairy Woodpecker - Picoides villosus     1
Northern Flicker (Yellow-shafted) - Colaptes auratus [auratus Group]     1
Eastern Wood-Pewee - Contopus virens     2
Eastern Phoebe - Sayornis phoebe     1
Eastern Kingbird - Tyrannus tyrannus     1
Red-eyed Vireo - Vireo olivaceus     4
Blue Jay - Cyanocitta cristata     2
American Crow - Corvus brachyrhynchos     3
Common Raven - Corvus corax     1
Black-capped Chickadee - Poecile atricapillus     5
Tufted Titmouse - Baeolophus bicolor     7
Red-breasted Nuthatch - Sitta canadensis     2
White-breasted Nuthatch - Sitta carolinensis     3
House Wren - Troglodytes aedon     1
Hermit Thrush - Catharus guttatus     1
Gray Catbird - Dumetella carolinensis     3
Cedar Waxwing - Bombycilla cedrorum     4
Yellow Warbler - Dendroica petechia     3
Black-throated Blue Warbler - Dendroica caerulescens     2
Yellow-rumped Warbler (Myrtle) - Dendroica coronata coronata     1
Black-throated Green Warbler - Dendroica virens     1
Blackburnian Warbler - Dendroica fusca     1
Prairie Warbler - Dendroica discolor     1
Ovenbird - Seiurus aurocapilla     2
Common Yellowthroat - Geothlypis trichas     1
Eastern Towhee - Pipilo erythrophthalmus     5
Chipping Sparrow - Spizella passerina     3
Song Sparrow - Melospiza melodia     1
Scarlet Tanager - Piranga olivacea     2
Northern Cardinal - Cardinalis cardinalis     2
Rose-breasted Grosbeak - Pheucticus ludovicianus     1
Indigo Bunting - Passerina cyanea     1
Purple Finch - Carpodacus purpureus     1
American Goldfinch - Spinus tristis     6

This report was generated automatically by eBird v2(http://ebird.org/massaudubon/)

Here are some general directions copied and pasted directly from the Trustees website for getting to Rock House: From the Mass Turnpike (Exit 8), take Rt. 32 North toward Ware where it joins Rt. 9. Stay on combined Rt. 32/9. When the routes separate, follow Rt. 9 East for 1.1 mi. to entrance and parking (12 cars) on left.

eBird Report - Hubbardston Wildlife Management Area , 5/21/10

I decided to take up the offer and join Lydia Rogers and Dan Stimson of Sudbury Valley Trustees on a ramble through the woods and wetlands of Hubbardston Wildlife Management Area. This was my first time being there and was looking forward to the experience! While Dan and Lydia were focused on tracking animals that had been through the area (ie fox, deer, moose, raccoon, porcupine, beaver, etc.), I of course was interested to see/hear what birds could be found there! I would have to say Hubbardston is as diverse bird-wise as Bolton Flats is, though of course, there are is a much greater wooded area than the aforementioned.

Highlights of the excursion (from Noon to 4 pm) were the Black-throated Blue and Green Warblers, Eastern Wood-Pewees (though sadly, only heard....damn foliage) and my truly ultimate "Nemesis Bird", the Winter Wren (again, only heard....boooooo). I am so mesmerized and enthralled by that wee-little wren's explosive, complex and long song....just amazing....yet, sadly, no matter how many times I have heard that dastardly little bird (like the numerous Winter Wrens heard up at Pondicherry Wildlife Refuge in Jefferson, NH), I can NEVER GET ON IT!! GAAARR!!! Oh well, such is life. However, I plan on getting on one at Pondicherry....it will occur goddammit! Okay, enough ranting. Hubbardston is a wonderful area, comprised of "600 acres of hills and valleys" of "mixed hardwood and conifer forest interspersed with agricultural and brushy fields with some alder and grass hummock marshes" (State of MA Fish & Wildlife). Please note, do bring some bug spray and prepare to do a little bushwhacking (plenty of fallen trees down, probably still from the ice storm of 2008)!!

Directions: take Route 2 west to Exit 25 for Routes 2A & 140. Take 140 S/2A W briefly, then take a right onto 2A W/Main St. (at traffic light for on-ramp to Route 2 eastbound). About .75 miles on 2A, take a left onto South St. Follow this road (South St. will become New Westminster Road at Mare Meadow Reservoir) for a total of 6.4 miles. There will be a parking lot on your road just before the bridge spanning Joslin Brook. (Please note, there is a placeholder for a sign that would mention you are at Hubbardston WMA, but at present, it is not up yet.)

Location:     Hubbardston Wildlife Management Area
Observation date:     5/21/10

Notes:     Please note we only heard the following species: Pileated Woodpecker, Eastern Wood-Pewee, Brown Creeper and Winter Wren.

Number of species:     24

Great Blue Heron - Ardea herodias     1
Turkey Vulture - Cathartes aura     2
Mourning Dove - Zenaida macroura     1
Belted Kingfisher - Megaceryle alcyon     1
Hairy Woodpecker - Picoides villosus     1

Pileated Woodpecker - Dryocopus pileatus     1 (heard only)
Eastern Wood-Pewee - Contopus virens     3 (heard only, but unmistakable)

Eastern Kingbird - Tyrannus tyrannus     3
Red-eyed Vireo - Vireo olivaceus     2
Blue Jay - Cyanocitta cristata     1
Tree Swallow - Tachycineta bicolor     2
Black-capped Chickadee - Poecile atricapillus     3

Brown Creeper - Certhia americana     1 (heard only)
Winter Wren - Troglodytes troglodytes     1 (heard only.....damn you little bird!!)

Veery - Catharus fuscescens     2
Gray Catbird - Dumetella carolinensis     1
Black-throated Blue Warbler - Dendroica caerulescens     2
Black-throated Green Warbler - Dendroica virens     4
Ovenbird - Seiurus aurocapilla     5
Common Yellowthroat - Geothlypis trichas     6
Scarlet Tanager - Piranga olivacea     3
Swamp Sparrow - Melospiza georgiana     1
Red-winged Blackbird - Agelaius phoeniceus     3
Common Grackle - Quiscalus quiscula     1

This report was generated automatically by eBird v2(http://ebird.org/massaudubon/)

eBird Report - Bolton Flats WMA, 5/7/10 - Several Yellow Warblers and an Eastern Wood-Pewee

Did some birding near my neck of the woods again, this time with my good buddy Kirk Marshall, all before he had to head off around noon time to class. He got to my house in Littleton at about 6:30 am. We were going to try and make a morning of it at Assabet River NWR, but the clouds of mosquitoes were utterly horrendous, thusly scaring us off. We were there for no more than 15 minutes.

We then tried to bird SVT's Memorial Forest in Sudbury, which is rather close by to Assabet. We survived a little bit longer, lasting probably about 45 minutes, hiking from the parking lot to Heron Spur Trail and the Desert Loop, but eventually, the mosquitoes that assailed us drove us away. And yes, we did have bug spray, but trust me, these bloodsucking pests had us in their targets big-time! We did manage to come across an Eastern Towhee around Cranberry Brook on Heron Spur Trail, and a Pine Warbler along Desert Loop. Red-breasted Nuthatches were heard everywhere, as well as Common Yellowthroats, but we just could not stand the mosquitoes. We did come upon a very brightly colored Baltimore Oriole on the way out near Hop Brook when walking over the bridge that spans said waterway.

So, we then decided to check out the section of Bolton Flats WMA off of Route 117 in Bolton. It was here that we finally started to have a good morning of birding! 7 Yellow Warblers, an Eastern Wood-Pewee and a Blue-gray Gnatcatcher were the highlights. A fellow birder from Concord had also spotted a Magnolia Warbler before Kirk and I had arrived. The eBird report is added below this little narrative.

Our final stop, after having spent 45 minutes at Bolton Flats WMA (9:30 to 10:15 am) was to check out Oxbow NWR (yes, my 3rd day in a row there). Also fairly productive there, coming across a couple of American Redstarts, a couple of Common Yellowthroats, a Veery, an Eastern Kingbird and 3 Blue-gray Gnatcatchers.

Overall, a decent day of birding, in spite of the atrocious beginning with mosquitoes assailing us from all directions! Good luck to everyone, happy birding, and bring plenty of bug spray!

Location:     Bolton Flats WMA
Observation date:     5/7/10
Number of species:     17

Turkey Vulture - Cathartes aura     1
Killdeer - Charadrius vociferus     1
Greater Yellowlegs - Tringa melanoleuca     1
Lesser Yellowlegs - Tringa flavipes     6
Mourning Dove - Zenaida macroura     2
Eastern Wood-Pewee - Contopus virens     1
Warbling Vireo - Vireo gilvus     1
Tree Swallow - Tachycineta bicolor     3
Blue-gray Gnatcatcher - Polioptila caerulea     1
Gray Catbird - Dumetella carolinensis     1
Yellow Warbler - Dendroica petechia     7
Pine Warbler - Dendroica pinus     2
Common Yellowthroat - Geothlypis trichas     3
Song Sparrow - Melospiza melodia     3
Red-winged Blackbird - Agelaius phoeniceus     25
Common Grackle - Quiscalus quiscula     6
American Goldfinch - Carduelis tristis     6

This report was generated automatically by eBird v2(http://ebird.org/massaudubon/)

To get to Bolton Flats WMA from I-495, take Exit 27 for Route 117. Go west on 117. Soon enough, you will come across Route 110. At this traffic light, keep going straight, and I would say about a quarter to half-mile down on your right will be the pull-in and parking lot for this small section of Bolton Flats.