Ducks galore in Concord, MA!

Ah, a beautiful day it was to be outside today, though it would've been even nicer had it been a tad bit warmer! Beggars can't be choosers eh??! Kirk and I desperately needed to get outdoors and scare up some good birds! We were hither and yonder in Middlesex County, but mainly around the Concord area.

Our first stop was Nine-Acre Corner in Concord where we had good reports from there the past few days via Massbird. Our ultimate hope was to see a Horned Grebe in breeding plumage, but we had just missed the lone bird by about 20 minutes to our arrival (which was around 9:30 am). Nonetheless, we had plenty of ducks to look at, amongst dozens and dozens of Canada Geese. David Swain had reported 107 Green-winged Teal the day before, and there had to be at least that many there this morning. We also had about a half-dozen Northern Pintails, a number of American Black Ducks and Mallards, at least 40 Ring-necked Ducks, a small contingent of Common Goldeneye and one Pied-billed Grebe. There was also a handful of Wilson's Snipe in the mud flats bordering the flooded farm fields there. A Red-tailed Hawk and a Turkey Vulture also made an appearance, and there was also a number of Red-winged Blackbirds. We even had the good fortune of meeting Willy Hutcheson and Pam Sowizral, but most notably, the venerable David Allen Sibley himself (well, he does live in Concord afterall)!

Next up on our list was Dunback Meadows in the Waltham/Lexington area. Numerous Song Sparrows we had, as well as a few Blue Jays pestering a Red-tailed Hawk. We had aspirations of perhaps coming across Fox Sparrows there, but it seems they had already moved through (they had been reported earlier in the week at Dunback). For me, the highlight at Dunback was coming across a couple Golden-crowned Kinglets.

Onwards we stopped over at the Waltham Street Fields where there were at least 30 Canada Geese, but more notably, several (at least 7) Wilson's Snipe that we flushed out as we made our way around the fields there. What amusing calls they have with their erratic flight that is reminiscent of most shorebirds, but especially American Woodcocks.

Our last stop was Great Meadows NWR in Concord. Unfortunately, we thought the dike trail in its entirety was passable.....well, it was, that is if you don't mind getting your feet wet! Highlights there were a few Swamp Sparrows, Song Sparrows, a large contingent of Common Grackles and Red-winged Blackbirds (especially near the Concord River), a handful of Buffleheads, a small group of Common Goldeneye, a couple of Mute Swans and a very large flotilla of Ring-necked Ducks. We also saw several Muskrats, a lone Downy Woodpecker and more notably, a Northern Harrier. What was most nice to see while there, and for Kirk and I, a more significant telltale sign Spring is well at hand and that warmer temps are coming, is that we saw 2 Tree Swallows flying around the center dike trail nearest the Concord River canoe launch. Soon enough there will be hundreds of Tree Swallows at Great Meadows!

Not the most momentous day of birding, but decent enough and certainly more than worth it, for any day of birding, whether it be good or bad, is far superior than a good day of work or being at home doing absolutely nothing! Happy birding everyone!

eBird Report - Parker River NWR, 9/5/10 - 4 More Lifers---JOOOOY! Gotta love Plum!

Yeup, 4 more Lifers (White-rumped Sandpiper, Stilt Sandpiper, Baird's Sandpiper & Whimbrel), bring my Life List total to 249 species of birds seen to date!! Thanks be to my excellent buddy Kirk Marshall and fellow birder extraordinaire Eric Labato for such an awesome day of birding (though it had a wee bit of a rough start). What I mean by that is Kirk's scope he purchased earlier this spring already is having issues. The prism near the eyepiece was off-kilter, for it had lost its adhesive that kept it in place. Kirk pulled a MacGuyver and jimmy-rigged his scope, using part of a Q-Tip to wedge it in-between the prism and the inner casing. It worked, though he will try to properly amend his beloved scope later!


Anyhow, thanks to posts from Eric Labato from Plum Island (Parker River NWR) over the past couple of days, Kirk and I had our sights set on a few target species, that being the Stilt Sandpiper, Baird's Sandpiper and the Whimbrel. But this is not the only thanks we must give Eric, for we met up with him at Hellcat on the boardwalk leading to the observation blind. His expertise and observation skills were invaluable as the 3 of us proceeded to hit up the Dune Loop at Hellcat, The Pines and Bill Forward Pool Observation Platform. It was at BFP that we came upon the aforementioned Stilt and Baird's Sandpipers! They were intermingling with White-rumped Sandpipers, Semipalmated Sandpipers, and a pair of Black-bellied Plovers. A pair of Pied-billed Grebes were nearby, as well as a Belted Kingfisher of which I thought was kinda a bit out of place with all those shorebirds around! But in nearly one fell-swoop, all aforementioned shorebirds took off in flight thanks to a strafing run by a Peregrine Falcon that had been buzzing back and forth in between the Pines and Hellcat! Always a treat to see such an impressive, speedy raptor!


But the first Lifer of the day was also the best bird of the day, seeing 6 Whimbrels at the Salt Pannes before making our way down to Hellcat. What a striking, remarkable and rather large shorebird with down-curved bill, prominent black head stripes and gray legs! Simply lovely! A great day of birding that was finished off with a nice meal at the Agawam Diner in Rowley! I hope everyone else's Labor Day weekend has been good so far! Happy birding to all my friends!

Location:     Parker River NWR
Observation date:     9/5/10
Notes:     Birded with Kirk Marshall and Eric Labato. Pied-billed Grebes, Stilt Sandpiper, Baird's Sandpiper, Black-bellied Plovers, White-rumped Sandpipers, Belted Kingfisher and about half of Semipalmated Sandpipers seen at Bill Forward Pool Observation Blind at around Noon time before being strafed repeatedly by an impetuous Peregrine Falcon; Willet, other Semipalmated Sandpipers, Least Sandpipers and Whimbrels seen at Salt Pannes; Killdeers seen at Plum Island Airport while trying to find Buff-breasted Sandpiper (no luck).
Number of species:     38

Canada Goose - Branta canadensis     32
American Black Duck - Anas rubripes     10
Pied-billed Grebe - Podilymbus podiceps     2 (Bill Forward Pool)
Double-crested Cormorant - Phalacrocorax auritus     8
Great Blue Heron - Ardea herodias     4
Great Egret - Ardea alba     9
Snowy Egret - Egretta thula     6
Turkey Vulture - Cathartes aura     1
Peregrine Falcon - Falco peregrinus     1 (In between The Pines, BFP and Hellcat)
Black-bellied Plover - Pluvialis squatarola     2 (Bill Forward Pool)
Killdeer - Charadrius vociferus     4 (Plum Island Airfield)
Greater Yellowlegs - Tringa melanoleuca     8 (Salt Pannes)
Willet (Eastern) - Tringa semipalmata semipalmata     1 (Salt Pannes)
Lesser Yellowlegs - Tringa flavipes     5 (Salt Pannes)
Whimbrel - Numenius phaeopus     6 (Salt Pannes)
Semipalmated Sandpiper - Calidris pusilla     21 (BFP & Salt Pannes)
Least Sandpiper - Calidris minutilla     3 (Salt Pannes)
White-rumped Sandpiper - Calidris fuscicollis     13 (Bill Forward Pool)
Baird's Sandpiper - Calidris bairdii     1 (Bill Forward Pool)
Stilt Sandpiper - Calidris himantopus     1 (Bill Forward Pool)
Ring-billed Gull - Larus delawarensis     4
Herring Gull - Larus argentatus     6
Great Black-backed Gull - Larus marinus     1
Mourning Dove - Zenaida macroura     1
Ruby-throated Hummingbird - Archilochus colubris     1 (The Pines)
Belted Kingfisher - Megaceryle alcyon     1 (Bill Forward Pool)
Blue Jay - Cyanocitta cristata     2
American Crow - Corvus brachyrhynchos     5
Tree Swallow - Tachycineta bicolor     8 (Dune Loop at Hellcat)
Barn Swallow - Hirundo rustica     1 (The Wardens)
Black-capped Chickadee - Poecile atricapillus     5
Red-breasted Nuthatch - Sitta canadensis     1 (Dune Loop at Hellcat)
White-breasted Nuthatch - Sitta carolinensis     1
Gray Catbird - Dumetella carolinensis     2
Cedar Waxwing - Bombycilla cedrorum     1 (The Pines)
Eastern Towhee - Pipilo erythrophthalmus     1 (heard only near Lot 2)
Northern Cardinal - Cardinalis cardinalis     2
American Goldfinch - Spinus tristis     3

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