August 21st, 2005. East Meadows, Northampton.
| Northern Harrier Circus cyanus, juveniles and Savannah Sparrow Passerculus sandwichensis.
| Cloudy and muggy through much of the morning. Rain showers at first light. Winds in the southern quarter.
Another reasonable morning down at the East Meadows but the ‘hoped for’
shorebirds didn’t show, or at least touch down. Just one Lesser
Yellowlegs landed briefly in the fields, otherwise apart from Killdeer,
all the other shorebirds flew over without stopping. Two juvenile
Northern Harriers together looked like they must have come from the
same brood and perhaps associated the juvenile that I saw here on July
31st.
Highlights from the East Meadows (07:00 - 12:00hrs);
Turkey Vulture - 3
Red-tailed Hawk - 1
Cooper’s Hawk - 2 juveniles.
Northern Harrier - 2 juveniles together.
American Kestrel - 1
Killdeer - 7
Semi-palmated Plover - 2
Least Sandpiper - 5
Lesser Yellowlegs - 1
Greater Yellowlegs - 1
Ring-billed Gull - 7
Chimney Swift - 16
Belted Kingfisher - 1
Ruby-throated Hummingbird - 4
Willow Flycatcher - 1
Eastern Kingbird - 1
Baltimore Oriole - 4
Tree Swallow - 800
Bank Swallow - 400
Barn Swallow - 36
CLIFF SWALLOW -1 (Found by Scott Surner).
HORNED LARK - 9
Cedar Waxwing - 10
Yellow Warbler - 6
Red-winged Blackbird - 1400+.
Savannah Sparrow - 15
Vesper Sparrow - 1
Indigo Bunting - 6
Bobolink - 120+
Also of note one very weird looking passerine in the fields, images of which can be seen here.
In our yard on Baker Street - 4 Ruby-throated Hummingbirds, an American Redstart and a flyover Bobolink.
| Taken using Canon Powershot A-95 through Leica 10x42 binoculars
and Swarovski HD telescope.. |
|
