February 2002 Central Mass Bird Sightings

Sightings are listed in reverse chronological order. The email address of birders submitting reports, as well as other Central Massachusetts birding info can be found via the Central Mass Bird Update homepage.

2/28/02 -- Sterling Peat, Sterling
The Green-winged Teal have returned to Muddy Pond at Sterling Peat. There were also several Hooded Mergansers and a pair of Common Goldeneyes. The Goldeneyes have been there for about a week now. A Killdeer was checking out the mud flats. Also, I had a small flock of Field Sparrows along the bank of the Stillwater where it runs by Sterling Peat. It is hard to tell if they had spent the winter here or if they are the vanguard of spring migration. (report from Bob Ricci).

2/28/02 -- Rowley Hill, Sterling
I saw 4 bluebirds in Rowley Hills biggest pasture; also heard was 1 barred owl. (report from Richard Spedding).

2/26/02 -- Worcester/Shrewsbury/Bolton Flats
There were 20 Hooded Mergansers, 4 Mute Swan and 2 Northern Shovelers in Flint Pond (Shrewsbury). The drake Shoveler continues to hang out with a female Mallard and the female Shoveler is still separate from the drake.
At All Faiths Cemetery (Worcester) around 1:30 p.m., I also saw the pair of Northern Pintail, only 1 pair of Hooded Mergansers, 8 Green-winged Teal and a pair of American Wigeon (they may have just arrived, the drake was sleeping).
Fran McMenemy and I spent a little time at Bolton Flats at dusk. We saw 5 Hooded Mergansers, a Great Blue Heron, and 5 Northern Pintail as well as many Canada Geese, Mallards and American Black Ducks. We didn't hear or see any owls or Woodcock. The moon was quite large and bright. (report from Joan Zumpfe).

2/26/02 -- Leesville Pond (Swedish cemetary), Worcester
Today on a quick visit to Leesville Pond I had 3 pair of hooded mergansers. They were close to shore and the females' crests were really puffed up and quite beautiful. There were also several pair of green winged teal. They too offered great close views. (report from Jim Hogan).

2/25/02 -- Bolton Flats, Bolton
This evening I spent a few hours at Bolton flats; present were: Great Blue Heron 5; Canada Goose 100+; Mallard Duck many; Black Duck 10-20; Wood Duck at least 3; Hooded Merganser 5; Am. Woodcock 2; Red-tailed Hawk 3; Red-winged Blackbird many; Mourning Dove ~30; Leaky Boot 1. Thought I heard some peepers too...the wind made hearing at a distance difficult.
Also, during the morning of 2/26 in Ashburnham I saw a pair of Ravens and some Wild Turkeys (a male was displaying) in Gardner. (report from Tom Pirro).

2/25/02 -- Leesville Pond, Auburn
Today in the Auburn section of Leesville Pond Joan and I had a pair of Pintail Ducks. Strickland Wheelock reports that in the morning of 2/24/02 he had the male Tufted Duck and the female Lesser Scaup from the state boat ramp at Flint Pond. As posted yesterday Joan and I had both birds on Lake Quinsigamond near the Stringer Dam in the evening. (report from Fran McMenemy).

2/25/02 -- Oxbow NWR, Harvard
This evening, in the new meadow portion of Oxbow NWR, at least three woodcock were executing mating flight, although I didn't see or hear any of them complete the downward portion. (report from Andrea Burke).

2/24/02 -- Fort Devens area, Harvard
Two Turkey Vultures were observed in the late a.m. (report from Steve Olson)

2/24/02 -- Lake Quinsigamond, Shrewsbury
We tried to find the Tufted Duck after 5 p.m. and we were successful. It was with its favorite friend the female Lesser Scaup with whom it went behind an island, away from the 8 Ring-necked Ducks they had been with. The Great Cormorant was also seen near Sunset Beach (off Old Faiths Lane, in Shrewsbury off So. Quinsigamond Ave). We saw the drake Northern Shoveler in the company of Mallards, but farther back, the ice is gone and we saw 10 Wood Ducks, mostly males, and possibly 2 female Northern Shovelers. Twilight was descending and we were resorting to silhouettes. But this is where we definitely saw another Shoveler yesterday. (report from Joan Zumpfe).

2/24/02 -- Lincoln Woods/Olney Pond
We had the Red-headed Woodpecker in the grove of trees where its been seen at Lincoln Woods/Olney Pond. The head is still predominantly brown though some red is starting to show through the brown. (report from Simon, Lisa and Seth Hennin).

2/24/02 -- Millbury Ponds
We decided to check our local ponds as the ponds begin to open.
Dorothy Pond - 4 Mute Swans, 6 Canada Geese, 2 Mallards, 8 common Mergansers, 43 Herring Gulls, and 14 Ring-billed Gulls.
Briely Pond - 1 Great Blue Heron, 4 Mallards, 2 Black Ducks,and 7 Ring-neck Ducks.
Ramshorn Pond - 64 Canada Geese, and 30 Ring-billed Gulls.
Singeltary Lake - 45 Canada Geese, 19 Common Mergansers, 43 Ring-billed Gulls. (report from Dan / Deb Berard).

2/24/02 -- Bolton Flats, Bolton
We spent several hours before, at and just after dawn at Bolton Flats this morning. We would have covered more territory, but I slipped on an icy board while crossing the stream, fell hard and had to spend the next 4 hours in the U. Mass emmergency room. (upshot: no broken ribs, but I am in a world of pain and will be for some time). Despite that, it was a fantastic morning watching dawn happen over the flats. Great Blue Heron (2); Canada Goose (486: this group overnighted in the small oxbow of the Still River); Wood Duck (8); Mallard (84); A. Black Duck (75); Hooded Merganser (3); Red-tailed Hawk (5); A. Woodcock (only 1 so far peenting); Belted Kingfisher (1); Mourning Dove (we counted 88 leaving a small patch of corn stubble at dawn); Great Horned Owl (3 diff. calling birds); Long-eared Owl (1); Northern Shrike (1ad); A. Tree Sparrow (56); Song Sparrow (22); Icterids: nota bene: at dawn and shortly therefafter, huge flocks of Red-wings and grackles were seen flying SOUTH along the Nashua River. Some flocks would perch for a bit, but then eventually moved on. As expected, most Red-wings were males: adult or 1st yr, but there were a few females. We did attempt a serious COUNT, not just an estimate after the fact) Red-winged Blackbird (6010); C. Grackle (2100); Rusty Blackbird (7 minimal); Brown-headed Cowbird (4). (report from Mark Lynch/Sheila Carroll).

2/23/02 -- Lake Quinsigamond, Shrewsbury
Fran McMenemy and I searched in vain today for the Tufted Duck and it's Ring-necked Duck friends and the female Lesser Scaup. We saw boats all over Lake Quinsigamond. We did see the Great Cormorant. We also searched many areas of Wauchusett Reservoir and the Wauchacums which are still mostly frozen.
We stopped on So. Quinsigamond Ave. in Shrewsbury to look for the drake Northern Shoveler that Eddie Banks found on the 21st. We first searched beyond the fragmites where there were a dozen Hooded Mergansers and a pair of Wood Ducks. Nearby, Fran spotted a No. Shoveler, but it wasn't the drake, it appears to be a female. The lighting wasn't perfect and there was some distance involved. In the meantime I found the drake which was much closer to us and in beautiful plumage.
We had a total of 10 Common Loons at Wauchusett Reservoir where we also saw 15 Greater Scaup near Gate 26 and 3 drake Bufflehead near Gate 36. Another drake Bufflehead was at Sterling Peat. (report from Joan Zumpfe).

2/23/02 -- lower Blackstone Corridor
Today there was a trip for the MAS Blackstone Corridor monitors to the southern terminus of the Corridor. We visited Lincoln Woods, Lincoln (dipped on Red-headed Woodpecker that was there last weekend); Swan Point Cemetery, Providence (White-throats and juncos); Seekonk River, Providence (massive show of Bonaparte's Gulls); James Turner Reservoir, East Providence (much of the waterfowl has moved on as ponds have opened up north, but we still had great views of both scaup and Ruddy Ducks) and finally India Point (THE end of the Corridor). LINCOLN WOODS/OLNEY POND: Great Cormorant (2 ad br); Canada Goose (18); Mallard (8); Common Merganser (10); Red-bellied Woodpecker (1m); Red-wings and grackles on territory.
SWAN POINT CEMETERY: N. Flicker (3); White-throated Sparrow (20+); Dark-eyed Junco (20+)
SEEKONK RIVER: Great Comrorant (24: only 2 imm); Double-crested Cormorant (2); Mute Swan (9); Mallard (16); A. Black Duck (96); Bufflehead (141); C. Goldeneye (2); Common Merganser (32); Red-tailed Hawk (1); Bonaparte's Gull (75: great study); Black-headed Gull (2adW); Belted Kingfisher (1)
TURNER RESERVOIR: Great Cormorant (3adW); Mute Swan (17); Canada Goose (294); A. Wigeon (2); Mallard (59); A. Black Duck (1); Greater Scaup (10); Lesser Scaup (18); Ring-necked Duck (38); Bufflehead (2); Common Merganser (24); Ruddy Duck (222); Turkey Vulture (1); Cooper's Hawk (1); A. Coot (34); Fish Crow (3)
INDIA POINT: Mute Swan (3); A. Wigeon (23); Greater Scaup (4); Red-breasted Merganser (4); Red-tailed Hawk (2)
ALSO: while the crew was assembling in the Park-and-Ride off Rt. 146 and the Mass Pike, a MERLIN flew in and over the Worcester Landfill. (report from Mark Lynch).

2/22/02 -- Flint Pond, Shrewsbury
This morning I stopped at Flint Pond (Access is from Rt. 20 just across from the Edgemere Diner). At the left end of the parking lot, in a stand of birch saplings just beyond the guardrail, I observed a flock of 50-55 common redpolls. They were flitting from tree to tree but they did stay still long enough to give excellent views. I was able to observe them from about 8:30 to 8:40. (report from Jim Hogan).

2/21/02 -- Lake Quinsigamond, Shrewsbury
At the boat ramp there were 12 Hooded Mergs, 10 Common Mergs, 30 Mallards, 20 Canada Geese, 39 Common Goldeneye, and 2 Greater Black-backed Gulls. At Sunset Beach there were 1 DC Cormorant, 1 Tufted Duck, and 60 Ring-billed Gulls. (report from John Shea).

2/21/02 -- Rowley Hill, Sterling
Birds seen on a two mile walk along the base of Rowley Hill included: 2 ring-necked pheasants, 1 ruffed grouse, 6 golden-crowned kinglets, 4 brown creepers, 200 robins, 4 common grackles and 12 red-winged blackbirds. (report from Richard Spedding).

2/19/02 -- Webster Lake, Webster
From 2 vantage points at Webster Lake (a.k.a. Lake Chargoggagoggmanchaugagoggchubunagungamaug), there were 132 Common Mergansers; among them was 1 drake RED-BREASTED MERGANSER and 1 drake Common Goldeneye. They were seen near Goat Island from Bates Point Road and from Point Breeze Marina. (report from Joan Zumpfe).

2/19/02 -- Gardner
I read the sightings from the last few weeks with interest as I also had a pine warbler at my feeders from 12/25- 1/18. I've had a Carolina wren visiting the feeders since November. A flock of robins came through on 2/2-there were 20 or so after the ice storm and the usual were there- white breasted nuthatch, red breasted nuthatch, downys and hairy woodpeckers along with cardinals, titmice, chickadees, morning doves, blue jays, and the ever present house finches. I've only seen a few gold finches- last year I had huge flocks several times a day. (report from Sally Johnson).

2/18/02 -- Blackstone Corridor
We skipped around the Corridor today, spending most of our time in RI. Spring seems to be happening and birds are moving.
MANVILLE CROSSING OF BLACKSTONE, Linclon/Cumberland: Great Blue Heron 91); Mallard (4); A. Black Duck (12)
SNEETCH POND, CUMBERLAND: A. Black Duck (4); Turkey Vulture (1)
DIAMOND HILL/ARNOLD'S MILLS RESERVOIRS, CUMBERLAND: mostly ice free: Mute Swan (2); Canada Goose (2); Mallard (4); Hooded Merganser (3); Common Merganser (7); Belted Kingfisher (1)
ELSEWHERE IN CUMBERLAND: Canada Goose (17 in field); N. Flicker (1); Red-winged Blackbird (154).
SAYLESVILLE POND, LINCOLN: Mute Swan (2); Mallard (2); Ring-necked Duck (4); Hooded Merganser (8)
BARRY POND, LINCOLN: Mute Swan (2); Canada Goose (16); Mallard (54); Ring-necked Duck (4); Common Merganser (3); Plus the usual joke geese and ducks.
LONSDALE MARSHES: just a brief stop: Mute Swan (1); Gadwall (15); A. Black Duck (2); Golden-crowned Kinglet (2)
INDIA POINT: Great Cormorant (4); Mute Swan (2); Greater Scaup (10); Red-breasted Merganser (59: these seemed to be frantically feeding on schools of fish and were harassed by the Bonies); Bonaparte's Gull (29); Red-tailed Hawk (1); AND: a great new "Corridor" mammal for us: HARBOR SEAL.
TURNER RESERVOIR: Mute Swan (20); Canada Goose (239); Gadwall (2); A. Wigeon (2); Mallard (10: the numbers have really dropped here as small bodies of water have opened up and pairs are seeking nesting spots); Ring-necked Duck (38); Greater Scaup (19); Lesser Scaup (98); Canvasback (6); Bufflehead (1m); Hooded Merganser (15); Common Merganser (29); Ruddy Duck (219)
SEEKONK RIVER: Great Cormorant (15: almost all with white flank patches and white filoplumes); Mute Swan (8); Mallard (22); A. Black Duck (133); Bufflehead (59); C. Goldeneye (8); Common Merganser (3); Sharp-shinned Hawk (1); Red-tailed Hawk (1); Bonaparte's Gull (87); BLACK-HEADED GULL (3adW +1 1stW)
OLNEY POND, LINCOLN PARK: Canada Goose (2); Mallard (2); A. Black Duck (4); Ring-necked Duck (7); Common Merganser (7); RED-HEADED WOODPECKER (1imm);
LACKEY POND, UXBRIDGE: Mute Swan (2); Canada Goose (43); Wood Duck (3m+1f); Mallard (36); A. Black Duck (3); Hooded Merganser (1); Common Merganser (7)
RT. 146, MILLBURY: Turkey Vulture (4)
CITY OF WORCESTER: Red-tailed Hawk (6); Peregrine Falcon (1). (report from Mark Lynch/Sheila Carroll).

2/18/02 -- High Ridge WMA, Westminster
I took a brief ride into the Westminster end of High Ridge WMA yesterday, there was a flock of Common Redpolls close to the prison perched on the wires. Prison personel did not like the fact I was looking around so close to the facility, I was "pushing it" a bit so the reaction was to be expected. Also there were 2 Ring-necked Pheasants.
I spent some time at Bolton Flats (hilites): Red-tailed Hawk several perhaps 10; Sharp-shinned Hawk 1; Turkey Vulture 2 or 3; Northern Harrier 1 ad. female; Northern Shrike 2 (both seen well 1 Imm. and 1 adult); Red-wing Blackbird 300-400; Common Grackle ~250; BH Cowbird a few mixed in w/ other blackbirds; 1 possible Rough-legged Hawk (light morph.), initally looked good...but later down-graded to possible. Oddly I did NOT see a single sparrow.
Wachusett Res: I checked out the gull roost in South bay, the birds were heading straight out to the open water of the main body of water and not gathering near the road. I walked into gate 22 where the birds were settling down in the middle of the reservoir. One 1W Iceland Gull passed directly over head, but there was too little light and too much distance to pick much else out of the mass of Gulls. There were perhaps 4000-5000 birds mostly Ring-billed and Herring and probably 100+/- Great black-backed. (report from Tom Pirro).

2/17/02 -- Templeton/Royalston
A few hilites:
Norcross Hill Road in Templeton: Red-tailed Hawk 1; Wild Turkey ~80 ..about 30 were perched high in some mixed woods and eventually flew off...always impressive watch these behemoths fly through the woods; Carolina Wren 1; Evening Grosbeak 5 (3M and 2 F); Else where in Templeton were about 200 Am. Robins.
Orange: Am. Robin ~50; Cedar Waxwing ~40 ... very often scrutinizing flocks of Cedars will turn up a few orange tailed varients...this flock was no exception;
Royalston Center was very quiet with the only notable bird being an adult Red-wing blackbird.
The Slaughter House area on Bears den road in Athol was quiet too, other than a few hundred Starling and a White-throated Sparrow. (report from Tom Pirro).

2/17/02 -- Briely Pond, Millbury
We found a Great Blue Heron on the shoreline of Briely Pond at around noon. The pond is still 90% frozen. It was still there at 4:30PM. (report from Dan & Deb Berard).

2/17/02 -- Worcester Airport/Sterling Peat, Worcester/Sterling
Atop Worcester Airport Hill this morning was quite a large flock of frugivores: 300+ Cedar Waxwings and 150+ American Robins, all feeding mostly on bittersweet or what there was left of it. As far as we could see, there were no Bohemians. Caution: this being an airport, birders are cautioned about looking too suspicious with bins and scopes. Remember: paranoia is running high around places like airports after 9/11.
We then decided to check I-190 to see if there were other frugivores. Nothing. Almost no birds of any kind, and extremely little fruit anywhere along the road.
A quick stop at Sterling Peat yielded: Canada Goose (7); Red-tailed Hawk(pair on tree where Great Blues had nested before); Belted Kingfisher (1 hunting small open area of water by beaver lodge); A. Tree Sparrow (20+); Dark-eyed Junco (10+); Red-winged Blackbird (4m on territory); Beaver: 1
At the River Road end of the reservoir, most of the Ring-necked Ducks seemed to have moved on. Could the flock at L. Quinsigamond be part of the group that HAD been here? Canada Goose (1); Ring-necked Duck (3 f: one relentlessly pursued by a drake Hooded Merganser even though female Hoodies were right there); Hooded Merganser (8); Common Merganser (4). (report from Mark Lynch/Sheila Carroll).

2/16/02 -- Bolton Flats, Bolton
I went this morning to Bolton Flats to see if I could find some Grackles and Red-wing Blackbirds. Along Rt 110 just after Rt 117 there is a house on the left with a number of feeders. I counted 170+ Grackles and about 12 Red-wing Blackbirds. They were in a frenzy at the feeders. Later on at Gate 27 Wachusett Res, I saw 6 Field Sparrows. (report from Peter Morlock).

2/16/02 -- Northbridge
In the afternoon we made just a few stops at Northbridge ponds: MEADOW POND: Mute Swan (2); Canada Goose (506); Mallard (67); A. Black Duck (11); Ring-necked Duck (14); Hooded Merganser (4); Common Merganser (39); FISH CROW (1 calling away on the ice)
LINWOOD POND: Canada Goose (5); Green-winged Teal (3); Mallard (12); A. Black Duck (45); N. Pintail (4)
RIVERDALE CROSSING OF THE BLACKSTONE: Mute Swan (2); Canada Goose (4); Common Merganser (24); Red-tailed Hawk (2)
A quick stop at Waters Farm in Sutton yielded: E. Bluebird (8); A. Robin (20); Song Sparrow (3); Dark-eyed Junco (40). (report from Mark Lynch/Sheila Carroll).

2/16/02 -- Wachusett Reservoir, Boylston
This evening I "caught" the evening gull roost at South Bay on Wachusett Res. with Steve and Kathy Olsen of Holden. There was at least 1000 gulls present with a large percent being Ring-billed, many Herring, only a few Great Black-backed, 2 Iceland (1st winter and a 2nd winter ) and 1 Glaucous Gull (I'd call a 2nd winter type...very pale (though the light was poor) with a 2-toned bill).
Not too much more I can add to the collection of Gyr reports (Boston) but I will anyway, I spent from about 8am till noon and had the bird in the scope for all but ~15 minutes.... I just couldn't bring myself to walk away from this bird while it was still perched. It preened and preened and preened , yawned , ruffled its feathers, shook its legs like a sprinter getting ready to run the "dash", took a crap, scratched its head, Stretched its wings while balancing on one leg , chased some gulls off the near-by rooftop, flew straight toward us on the parking garage and looked us straight in the eyes just before it passed. Heck... even the French judge would've given this Canadian visitor a perfect score! One other bird of note was a distant Peregrine flying over then behind the Custom House tower. (report from Tom Pirro).

2/16/02 -- some ponds, Northboro/Westboro
FLINT POND: Mallard (40); A. Black Duck (1); C. Goldeneye (1m); Common Merganser (11)
SuAsCo, WESTBORO: Mute Swan (2); Mallard (11); Ring-necked Duck (22); C. Goldeneye (2f+1m); Hooded Merganser (8); Red-tailed Hawk (1); Belted Kingfisher (1); No sign yet of the Great Horneds nesting.
CHAUNCY POND, WESTBORO: about a bit more than half open. We were surprised to still see ice fishermen out on the remeining ice that looked not too safe. Mallard (2); Hooded Merganser (5); Common Merganser (1)
WESTBORO WMA between the 2 "Chauncy Ponds". This small area had quite a number of sparrows, almost like a fall migration day. The lack of snow seems to have attracted sparrows to these very weedy fields. Mute Swan (1 overhead) Red-tailed Hawk (1); A. Robin (1); N. Mockingbird (4); A. Tree Sparrow (33); Song Sparrow (23: many singing); SWAMP SPARROW (6: this is a great count for the County for February. To find them, we walked into fields and flushed them up from grass tangles); White-throated Sparrow (5); N. Cardinal (8)
LITTLE CHAINCY POND: nothing
BARTELETT POND, NORTHBORO: Mute Swan (2); Canada Goose (150); Mallard (70); A. Black Duck (12). (report from Mark Lynch/Sheila Carroll).

2/16/02 -- Lake Quinsigamond, Shrewsbury
Sheila and I had the drake TUFTED DUCK that Joan Zumpfe and Fran McMenemy found Friday (2/15) north of Striger Dam in Lake Quinsigamond, border of Worcester and Shrewsbury (exact directions below). The bird was with a good sized flock of Ring-necked Ducks (see below) but was particularly hanging with a female Lesser Scaup, seemingly intent on producing annoying hybrids. Excellent views. For this time of the year, there is an amazing amount of open water here, with only some sections still frozen so we counted waterbirds on Lake Quinsigamond, with the following totals: GREAT CORMORANT (1imm, rare at this time of the year in the county, always very uncommon); Mute Swan (8); Canada Goose (31); Mallard (262); A. Black Duck (18); TUFTED DUCK (1m); Lesser Scaup (1f); Ring-necked Duck (51); C. Goldeneye (3); Hooded Merganser (9); A. Coot (7); Red-winged Backbird (14 males on territory singing away).
(report from Mark Lynch/Sheila Carroll).

2/15/02 -- Tanglewood Rd., Sterling
I was fortunate enough to see an adult goshawk land in a tree not 10 yards from my house; it sat there for about 2 minutes, time enough for me to get my binocs on him. I could see the faint horizontal barring on the pearl gray breast -- best look I've ever had at a goshawk, and such a perfect specimen, such beautiful shades of gray, excellent camouflage against the gray bark of the winter forest behind him. (report from Richard Spedding).

2/14/02 -- Wachusett Reservoir, Boylston
Late this afternoon amongst the gulls at Wachusett Reservoir in South Bay were 1 first winter Iceland Gull and 1 second winter Lesser Black-backed Gull. The Iceland Gull did not appear until 5:30. (report from Bart Kamp).

2/12/02 -- Hardwick Center
This afternoon there were 10 Common Redpolls at a feeder in Hardwick center. Also, at nearby Pine Island were a Northern Flicker, a singing Carolina Wren and a male Red-winged Blackbird. (report from Chris Buelow)

2/12/02 -- Chatham St., Worcester
While waiting for a cab in front of 6 Chatham Street at 11 AM this morning, an immature Cooper's Hawk flushed the Rock Doves as it sped by low and then soared in and among the buildings that the Peregrine is usually seen around. On arriving home , there was the adult Cooper's Hawk sitting in the tree in the back yrad. This bird had become scarce in the last two weeks as the Rocks Doves had disappeared. This weekend (2) RoDos showed up. BTW: In the intervening weeks an adult Sharp-shinned has been regularly seen hunting the backyard and even perching on the feeders. This bird is so small looking it is likely a male. (report from Mark Lynch).

2/11/02 -- Rowley Hill, Sterling
The birding highlights of a 2 mile walk on Rowley Hill were: 1 barred owl (in the same wooded swamp I saw barred owls in last winter), 6 wild turkeys, 1 ruffed grouse, 4 brown creepers and 4 species of woodpeckers: downy, hairy, red-bellied and pileated (report from Richard Spedding).

-------------Forbush Bird Club Meeting
The Forbush Bird Club will hold it's monthly meeting at 7:30 p.m. on Thursday, February 21, in Room 236 at Haberlin Hall at Holy Cross College in Worcester. Joe Choiniere, director of Wachusett Meadow Wildlife Sanctuary and Doug Williams an Ecologist there, will speak on the topic, " Wachusett's Birds-Past and Present." Recently, Joe and Doug have joined together to gather information on birds and their habitats in the region, with a goal of using bird information to better manage regional habitats. Their presentation will cover historical bird sightings from the Princeton Gregory Store Owner, trends in Wachusett Meadow bird populations evidenced from the long term Forbush Bird Count, recent results of a 120 point avian count conducted at Wachusett Mountain in the spring of 2000, bird habitats and management in the region and plans for future bird censusing in the Wachusett area and how birders might help in the process. They will also highlight Wachusett bird specialties, including winter wren, yellow-bellied sapsucker, dark-eyed junco, and others. The meeting is free and open to all. (submitted by Ann Boover).

2/11/02 -- Tatnuck Square, Worcester
This morning at 8:50 I was surprised to pick up yard bird #70, a female Pileated Woodpecker working a tree in my little suburban yard! I assume it is one of the Cascades Park pair. It hacked at various parts of the tree for about five minutes, then headed off to parts unknown. (report from Howard Shainheit).

2/9/02 -- Gardner
I Didn't bird this weekend but while stepping out the front door of my apartment building saturday afternoon a bird wizzed past within a few feet on my head... I actually ducked (coulda put my eye out!!). It turned out to be a Pine Grosbeak...there were 5 imm/fem. types feeding in a crabapple tree just behind me. (report from Tom Pirro).

2/9/02 -- Wachusett Reservoir, West Boylston
I was "psshing" some Chickadees and Titmice at the Temple St gate and a Barred Owl flew in, saw me and then perched on a branch and watched me for about 20 seconds. This was the second time "psshing" has produced a Barred Owl for me. Also, I saw a Bald Eagle land on the raft and it seemed to be eating some remains ( see Bart Kamp report on 2/6). At Scarhill Road (Boylston) there were 2 Red Foxes soaking up the sun at the edge of the cemetary. (report from Peter Morlock).

2/8/02 -- Wachusett Reservoir, Boylston
In the South Bay part of Wachusett Reservoir late this afternoon amongst the gulls there was 1 adult LESSER BLACK-BLACKED GULL. (report from Bart Kamp).

2/8/02 -- 475 Pleasant Street, Worcester
While having a wisdom tooth extracted under local anaesthesia only I had the following birds out the window and across the parking lot in between all the yanking and tugging: Ring-billed Gull (6); Rock Dove (30+); European Starling (150+); English Sparrow (30+); House Finch (2). Granted not much of a list, but it kept my mind from dwelling on what was going on. Also: on 2/7, the PEREGRINE FALCON was seen in the afternoon flying all over the area around Main and Chatham, chasing gulls and eventually perching on the church across from the Performing Arts Building (6 Chatham), its apparently new favorite perch. (report from Mark Lynch).

2/6/02 -- Wachusett Reservoir, West Boylston
After 3:00 PM this afternoon I observed from under the power lines on the north side of Wachusett Reservoir in West Boylston a large bird with it's wings extended on top of the water. It was flapping it's wings. I thought it was in trouble. A closer look through the scope revealed that it was a sub-adult Bald Eagle with a Canada Goose in it's talons. The goose was no longer alive. The eagle was in the middle of the reservoir. It was swimming towards the raft which was several hundred feet away. I didn't think that the eagle with the goose would stay afloat. The eagle made it to the raft, lifted the goose onto it and proceeded to defeather and devour it. I then went to South Bay on route 140. I watched the eagle finish it's meal and take off. It was joined in the air by an immature Bald Eagle. They soared together for a while. The sub-adult disappeared and the immature flew into South Bay all the way to route 140 and back out again, flushing the gulls in the process. This was repeated two more times. The gulls returned to the ice each time. Amongst the gulls were 2 Iceland Gulls, 1 first winter and 1 second winter. (report from Bart Kamp).

2/6/02 -- Louisa Lake, Milford
I stopped in at the parking lot of Louisa Lake this afternoon at around 1:00 and found the Black-headed Gull standing among a group of Ring-bills at the edge of the grass by the spillway. (report from Chris Buelow)

2/5/02 -- Rutland Terrace, Worcester
At about 5Pm today I noticed a large flock of American Robins in my small backyard flying all about and diving into my rather spare holly bushes. When I went outside, the trees were filled with robins. More and more came from the direction of Bancroft Tower Hill and they eventually left in the direction of Salisbury Street and Pond. I counted 750+, which is certainly the largest flock of robins I have seen at my house. My guess is that the food crop is spare and these birds are desparately looking for berries. (report from Mark Lynch).

2/4/02 -- Wachusett Reservoir, West Boylston
Late this afternoon at Wachusett Reservoir in West Boylston the Tufted Duck and Scaup were back at their usual location under the power lines. From South Bay in Boylston the Great Cormorant could be seen on the raft. Amongst no more than 1,000 gulls was 1 first winter Iceland Gull and 1 ADULT Iceland Gull. (report from Bart Kamp).

2/3/02 -- Blackstone Corridor
We birded areas up and down the Corridor today. Highlights included:
DOWNTOWN WORCESTER at dawn: Peregrine Falcon (1ad on old Mechanics Bank building);
LINCOLN WOODS, LINCON RI: Canada Goose (22); Mallard (18); A. Black Duck (5); Common Merganser (10); RED-HEADED WOODPECKER (1imm in small open area of oaks just east of the beach); Red-bellied Woodpcker (1m same area); Brown Creeper (2)
SEEKONK RIVER: Mute Swan (8); Canada Goose (185); Mallard (48); A. Black Duck (63); C. Goldeneye (16); Bufflehead (82); Red-breasted Merganser (3); Common Merganser (121); Hooded Merganser (4); Red-tailed Hawk (1); Bonaparte's Gull (121); Black Headed Gull (1adW);
SWAN POINT CEMETERY: A. Robin (60+); Dark-eyed Junco (50+)
TURNER RESERVOIR, E. PROVIDENCE: an amazing concentration of waterfowl. Great Blue Heron (1); Mute Swan (4); Canada Goose (304); Gadwall (27); A. Wigeon (9); Mallard (152); A. Black Duck (2); Ring-necked Duck (142); Greater Scaup/"scaup sp." (247); Lesser Scaup (34); Canvasback (193); Hooded Merganser (18); Common Merganser (52); Ruddy Duck (259)
INDIA POINT: not many ducks Great Cormorant (8); Great Blue Heron (1); Mute Swan (4); Hooded Merganser (8); Sharp-shinned Hawk 91); Red-tailed Hawk (1); Peregrine Falcon (1ad)
SNEETCH POND, CUMBERLAND: Mute Swan (2); Canada Goose (81); Mallard (12); A. Black Duck (15)
DIAMOND HILL/ARNOLD'S MILLS RESERVOIRS, CUMBERLAND: A. Black Duck (7); Common Merganser (24); Red-tailed Hawk (1); Belted Kingfisher (1)
RT. 146, N. SMITHFIELD: Turkey Vulture (2); Red-tailed Hawk (1)
MEADOW POND, NORTHBRIDGE MA: Mute Swan (2); Canada Goose (112); Ring-necked Duck (15); Common Merganser (9)
GRAFTON (along Rt. 122) Cooper's Hawk (1); Red-tailed Hawk (3). (report from Mark Lynch/Sheila Carroll).

2/3/02 -- Wachusett Reservoir gull count
After a long day birding the Blackstone National Corridor (see above), we ended the day by counting gulls at Wachusett Reservoir. The biggest numbers of gulls flew into roost on the ice at SOUTH BAY between 3:30 and 5PM. By 4:45, it was dark enough that separating gulls species was much harder. After 5, the gulls left the ice and flew in large flocks to alight on the water much further north in the main body of the reservoir. At this time, flocks of gulls were still arriving at the reservoir. Birders wanting to check these gulls are advised to pull far off the road (Rt. 140) and be EXTREMELY careful crossing the road as speeding cars along this stretch are very frequent. There are several pull-offs and the reservoir side of the road has a break-down lane. Keep rear lights flashing on your cars. DO NOT SLOW DOWN YOUR CAR TO TAKE A LOOK WITHOUT PULLING OFF.
SOUTH BAY: Greater Black-backed Gull (39); Herring Gull (1365++); Ring-billed Gull (808++); ICELAND GULL (1 firstW, 3 second W); GLAUCOUS GULL (1 adW: we got to watch this bird bathe for quite awhile in the company of Greater Black-backs and Herrings offering a nice study, then roost with the other gulls and eventually we watched this hulking gull fly off north. We also got to share the bird with Fran McMenemy and Joan Zumpfe who were there to also do some gull watching). Nota bene: this is the most "white-winged" gulls I have seen in one location this winter in MA. Also at South Bay: Common Loon (2); Mute Swan (3); Common Merganser (10).
At 4PM, we zipped to the RIVER ROAD area to check to see if gulls were also coming in there. There were only a few gulls present: Ring-billed (29); Herring (489); Great Black-backed (117); Also at this end of the reservoir were (78) Ring-necked Ducks and (32) Hooded Merganser. Fran and Joan also had one of the Pied-billed Grebes.
RE: Tufted Duck: Fran and Joan searched thoroughly, but found no Tufted nor any scaup. There is still plenty of open water at Wachusett, and it is a big reservoir, so it is possible the Tufted is somewhere else on Wachusett. (report from Mark Lynch/Sheila Carroll).

For previous sightings, see January 2002 Archives or Archive Index