East Quabbin (Gates 44 thru 35) 5/06/07

Eight members of the Forbush Bird Club birded the Worcester County portion of the East Quabbin watershed this past Sunday 5/6/07. We are fortunate to be able to have access, once a year, to drive the back roads (bird, nature watch and sight see) of the former townships of Greenwich and Dana. While spring migration was a "bit behind" and the conditions were cool and windy, we managed a similar species total to last year's trip (68 in 2007 vs. 70 in 2006).


Yellow-bellied Sapsucker (the purplish on the back is from light reflection and not part of the bird's color)

Some of the more common species encountered where Blue-headed Vireo, Ruby-crowned Kinglet (a few were singing at nearly every stop), Pine Warbler and Chipping Sparrow (see totals below). Some notable misses included Rose-breasted Grosbeak, Scarlet Tanager and Baltimore Oriole...which were just a few days away from arriving. An adult Bald Eagle put on a nice "show" near Dana Center, we heard the calls of an agitated Cooper's Hawk (at what must have been a nest sight), and Common Loons were spotted at several "water-front" stops. A Black Vulture was seen soaring from Grave's Landing, it was a long distance out, and unfortunately I was the only one to get a decent look at it.

During our lunch stop in Dana Center some folks enjoyed their first sighting of an Eastern Kingbird for 2007, while others enjoyed the stone work of old foundations and the steel safe in the basement of what must have been the bank. meticulous stone foundation in Dana Center

Safe in an old cellar hole, perhaps the former bank (Dana Center)

At west Fever Brook, we saw a very nice school of Largemouth Bass the ranged from 15 to 20 inches in length, swimming near the stone bridge.

Forbush members scan for waterfowl (East Fever Brook)
Black and White Warbler (3/4th up the trunk)

Near the day's end we came across a nice wave of warblers which included Yellow-rumped, Black and White, Palm and American Redstarts. It was the only real concentration of wood warblers we had all day.

The List:
Canada Goose 6
Wood Duck 6
Mallard 4
Hooded Merganser 4
Common Merganser 7
Ruffed Grouse 2
Wild Turkey 1
Common Loon 14
Double-crested Cormorant 4
Great Blue Heron 2
Black Vulture 1
Turkey Vulture 12
Bald Eagle 1
Cooper's Hawk 1
Red-shouldered Hawk 1
Broad-winged Hawk 2
Red-tailed Hawk 4
Ring-billed Gull 12
Belted Kingfisher 1
Yellow-bellied Sapsucker 5
Downy Woodpecker 5
Northern Flicker 2
Pileated Woodpecker 2
Least Flycatcher 5
Eastern Phoebe 5
Eastern Kingbird 2
Blue-headed Vireo 21
Blue Jay 15
American Crow 2
Common Raven 1
Tree Swallow 64
Barn Swallow 2
Black-capped Chickadee 32
Tufted Titmouse 4
Red-breasted Nuthatch 7
White-breasted Nuthatch 6
Brown Creeper 5
House Wren 1
Winter Wren 1
Ruby-crowned Kinglet 26
Blue-gray Gnatcatcher 10
Veery 1
Hermit Thrush 5
American Robin 26
Gray Catbird 1
Cedar Waxwing 1
Yellow Warbler 1
Chestnut-sided Warbler 1
Yellow-rumped Warbler 34
Black-throated Green Warbler 12
Blackburnian Warbler 5
Pine Warbler 25
Prairie Warbler 1
Palm Warbler 8
Black-and-white Warbler 12
American Redstart 4
Ovenbird 8
Common Yellowthroat 1
Eastern Towhee 15
Chipping Sparrow 31
Song Sparrow 7
Swamp Sparrow 5
White-throated Sparrow 9
Red-winged Blackbird 8
Common Grackle 4
Brown-headed Cowbird 16
Purple Finch 8
American Goldfinch 19