Pioneer Birding

SMITH'S LONGSPUR - Hadley Honey Pot, Hampshire Co., MA. December 14th, 2022. A fabulous find for hard working local birder Scott Surner. Fifth state record and the first documented in the Pio...

http://pioneerbirding.blogspot.com/2022/12/december-not-too-shabby-at-all.html

  RUFOUS HUMMINGBIRD - Millers Falls, Franklin Co. MA. November 11th, 2022.  Found by Bruce Kanash at his home, ID ultimately verified by Master bander Anthony Hill.  November 10th wa...

http://pioneerbirding.blogspot.com/2022/11/ma-rufous-hummingbird-in-millers-falls.html

  PURPLE GALLINULE (juvenile) - Longmeadow Flats. Hampden Co., MA. October 25th, 2022. Late October often brings a really good, memorable bird to the Pioneer Valley and this year was no ex...

http://pioneerbirding.blogspot.com/2022/11/ma-purple-gallinule-in-longmeadow.html

NELSON'S SPARROW - Hadley Pump House, Hampshire Co., MA. October 17th, 2022. A long stayer and super find for Janice Jorgensen on October 11th, 2022.  Long time, no blog feature...indeed i...

http://pioneerbirding.blogspot.com/2022/10/ma-nelsons-sparrow-in-hadley.html

  MOURNING WARBLER - Deerfield Meadows, Franklin Co., MA. September 28th, 2021. The Caldwell Road fields were admittedly quiet this morning although COMMON YELLOWTHROATS were still present...

http://pioneerbirding.blogspot.com/2021/09/ma-another-mourning-warbler.html

  RED-EYED VIREO - Caldwell Road, Northfield, Franklin Co., MA. September 19th, 2021. It's late September and the last few days have seen glorious autumnal days and cool, refreshingly comf...

http://pioneerbirding.blogspot.com/2021/09/ma-little-more-from-northfield.html

  CONNECTICUT WARBLER - Caldwell Road, Northfield, Franklin Co., MA. September 16th, 2021. A high pressure system currently settled over much of the region brought cooler temperatures with...

http://pioneerbirding.blogspot.com/2021/09/ma-more-connecticut-warblers.html

  MOURNING WARBLER - Caldwell Road, Northfield, Franklin Co., MA. September 14th, 2021. The last two days have seen a distinct swing towards slightly later season migrants in Northfield wi...

http://pioneerbirding.blogspot.com/2021/09/ma-mourning-warblernorthfield.html

CONNECTICUT WARBLER - Caldwell Road, Northfield, Franklin Co., MA. September 10th, 2021. Probably first-winter.  September brings many avian riches to Massachusetts and has to be one of t...

http://pioneerbirding.blogspot.com/2021/09/ma-connecticut-warblerin-northfield.html

  NASHVILLE WARBLER. Caldwell Road, Northfield, Franklin Co., MA. September 9th, 2021. The first ten days of September saw a welcome drop in the heat and humidity of August but, certainly ...

http://pioneerbirding.blogspot.com/2021/09/ma-early-september.html

  BROWN BOOBY - Emerald Lake State Park, East Dorset, Bennington Co., VT. September 2nd, 2021. A couple of days ago I learned of a BROWN BOOBY being seen at Lake Paran near Bennington i...

http://pioneerbirding.blogspot.com/2021/09/vt-brown-booby-in-east-dorset.html

  BAIRD'S SANDPIPER (juvenile) - Caldwell Road, Northfield, Franklin Co., MA. August 30th, 2021.  On the eve of September, I was just reflecting on the months of July and August in Frankl...

http://pioneerbirding.blogspot.com/2021/08/ma-quiet-summer-or-was-it.html

  BONAPARTE'S GULL (first-summer) - Barton Cove, Gill, Franklin Co., MA. July 2nd, 2021. July is off to a pretty good start. A very welcome break from late June's heatwave brought heavy, s...

http://pioneerbirding.blogspot.com/2021/07/ma-mid-summer-bonapartes.html

GOLDEN-WINGED WARBLER - Montague, Franklin Co., MA. June 1st, 2021. For one reason or another my blog features have been a little on the light side during the spring but that's not to say th...

http://pioneerbirding.blogspot.com/2021/06/ma-catching-up-on-fine-spring.html

  WHITE-WINGED CROSSBILL - female, Montague Plains WMA, Franklin Co., MA. April 1st, 2021. The gradual warming trend experienced in the last few days of March came to an abrupt end this mo...

http://pioneerbirding.blogspot.com/2021/04/ma-white-winged-crossbills-and-early.html

  BONAPARTE'S GULLS - three of eight present, Barton Cove, Gill, Franklin Co., MA. March 26th, 2021. MARCH 26TH was one of those bigger migration days when warm conditions coupled with an...

http://pioneerbirding.blogspot.com/2021/04/ma-march-migration-and-yet-more.html

  RED CROSSBILLS - Montague Plains WMA, Franklin Co., MA. March 16th, 2021. Last Tuesday (March 16th) I ran into an embarrassment of avian riches in the Montague Plains WMA. It was was bit...

http://pioneerbirding.blogspot.com/2021/03/ma-fringillid-morning.html

  SNOW GOOSE - (first-spring), Turner's Falls power canal, Franklin Co., MA. March 16th, 2021. Migration appears stalled for a few days, perhaps held up by four straight days of very cold,...

http://pioneerbirding.blogspot.com/2021/03/ma-snow-goose-and-other-waterfowl.html

  HARLEQUIN DUCK (first-winter male) and RING-NECKED DUCK (adult male) - Barton Cove, Gill, Franklin Co., MA. March 11th, 2021.  This HARLEQUIN was first discovered by Anne Jemas on the Mi...

http://pioneerbirding.blogspot.com/2021/03/ma-harlequin-plus-white-fronted-and.html

  GREATER WHITE-FRONTED GEESE (2) - Unity Park, Turner's Falls, Franklin Co., MA. March 10th, 2021. Over the last couple of days immaculate weather, warm air and southern winds have produc...

http://pioneerbirding.blogspot.com/2021/03/ma-white-fronts-waterfowl-and-more.html

HOARY REDPOLL - Whately, Franklin Co., MA. March 8th, 2021. A contrasty image yes,  but it appeared every bit as striking in the field. Flocks of redpolls are still with us for the time be...

http://pioneerbirding.blogspot.com/2021/03/ma.html

WHITE-WINGED CROSSBILL (male) - Montague Plains WMA, Franklin Co., MA. March 4th, 2021. The WHITE-WINGED CROSSBILLS first noted on Feb 25th continued into the first week of March at the MO...

http://pioneerbirding.blogspot.com/2021/03/ma-white-winged-crossbills-and-other.html

  SAGE THRASHER - Cow Bridge Road, Hatfield, Hampshire Co., MA. March 1st, 2021. Still with us after 11 weeks, and first found by Theresa Gessing on December 13th, 2020. March. The first ...

http://pioneerbirding.blogspot.com/2021/03/ma-sage-thrasher-and-more-on-first-day.html

  COPPERY-HEADED EMERALD - Cinchona Colibri Cafe. January, 2020. The final word on our fantastic COSTA RICA BIRDING & NATURE TOUR  would have to go to the hummingbirds. We found no less t...

http://pioneerbirding.blogspot.com/2021/02/costa-rica-part-v-hummingbirds.html

  WHITE-WINGED CROSSBILL (male) - Montague Plains, Franklin Co., MA. February 25th, 2021. One of at least three males present.  Of all the winter finches during the current 2020/21 irrup...

http://pioneerbirding.blogspot.com/2021/02/ma-white-winged-crossbills.html