Migrant warblers start moving through

Common Yellowthroat, Orchard Hill, Amherst, MA, Aug 29, 2012

Common Yellowthroat, Orchard Hill, Amherst, MA, Aug 29, 2012

Yesterday I took a trip over to Orchard Hill at UMASS to see what the night of migration brought in.  Some warblers were around and I found a total of ten warbler species with the highlights being Wilson’s, Tennessee, Yellow, Nashville Warblers and at least five Northern Parula’s.  Other species seen included Black and White, Magnolia and Chestnut sided Warblers, American Redstarts and Common Yellowthroats.  The Louisiana Waterthrush that had been lingering around the house was not seen or heard yesterday or today so it may have finally started its migration south.

Louisiana Waterthrush continues at home

This morning I heard a lingering Louisiana Waterthrush here at home.  It sang just once but chipped constantly right around 5:45am.  I was able to get some audio of the chipping.

Yellow-breasted Chat in Plymouth



Yellow-breasted Chat, Manomet bird banding station, Aug 23, 2012

I took a trip down to Plymouth on Thursday to meet up with Ian Davies. We spent a few hours in the morning at Manomet Center for Conservation Sciences observing the bird banding occuring there. One of the birds caught that day was a Yellow breasted Chat. This was by far the best look from so close I have ever gotten of this species. This species is caught several times a year at this location but is quite rare inland in Massachusetts.