B-Mail(sm): MASSBIRD for Mon, 24 Mar 2008

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Subject: RE: massbird-digest V8 #108
From: "Palmer, Ralph" <rpalmer(AT)keene.edu>
Date: 24 Mar 2008 6:25am

Greetings -

Donna wrote:

Plus, when was the last time anyone saw an aurora in New England? I
remember seeing one as a child, but not since then.

++++++++++++++++++++

In 1971 or 1972, I saw a spectacular display in southern NH. It was in
July, and my brother was visiting. We  had gone by motorcycle from
Keene, NH, to Fitzwilliam, NH, to a contra dance. On the way home, we
watched a display almost the whole way - at least 30 to 45 minutes -
then watched in the door yard for close to another hour.

I saw another beautiful display in the early '80s in Marlow, NH, and
another, less dramatic display, in Keene, NH, around 1990.

Both of the more dramatic displays were outside urban areas. I think the
major factors in my own lack of aurora "sightings" have been that I'm up
and outside around midnight much less frequently, and there is much more
light pollution. I think the Keene display around 1990 might have been
much more impressive if I hadn't been in the middle of the city.

Ralph

+++++++++++++++++++++++++
Ralph Palmer
Keene, NH and Greenfield, MA
rpalmer(AT)keene.edu

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Subject: Drive-up woodcocks, Sunday night
From: stevensimpson(AT)comcast.net
Date: 24 Mar 2008 8:08am

 I enjoy observing Woodcocks each Spring at my favorite drive-up display grounds
 — Ipswich River Park in North Reading. It's a bit of a drive from Arl, but
watching the displays doesn't get easier! I'm getting lazy.

The park closes at dusk, but the authorities never seem to be in a hurry to kick
 me out and lock the gates. The river swells each spring and the new marshy
areas combined with areas of mowed grass and thickets strategically left
untouched makes for perfect display grounds.

I pulled in the lot, waited until 7:30, left my wife reading magazines in the
car, and stepped out to 5-6 birds "peenting" within 200 yards. I made for the
nearest bird ~40 yards away, out in the open where the parking lot lights lit
him up so that I could see him clearly — puffing out his call. He launched, and
I made a game of trying to keep my binos on him (a great neck stretch) for his
entire (twittering) flight, but never succeeded. Sometimes he's swoop overhead
20 feet up. He'd drop back down to roughly the same spot and go again.

Lots of Robins were singing their evening song, making it feel like summer. I
heard a Turkey off in the woods, 2 or 3 Killdeer, and could swear I heard a
Brown Thrasher too!!!

--
Steven A. Simpson (Arlington)
GallerySimpson.com

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Subject: Northern Waterthrush - Nantucket
From: "Ken Blackshaw" <kenandcindy1(AT)comcast.net>
Date: 24 Mar 2008 8:36am

Hi All - We've got a report here from Steve Langer of a Northern Waterthrush 
on March 23. This is certainly a month earlier than we'd expect one on 
Nantucket. I notice last year the first in Mass. was on April 6.

What does Veit and Peterson have for an early date for this species?

Thanks,

Ken Blackshaw on Nantucket

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Subject: Orange-crowned Warbler Continues
From: Mary Keleher <maryeak(AT)yahoo.com>
Date: 24 Mar 2008 8:48am

Just wanted to give an update on the Orange-crowned
Warbler that has been visiting my suet feeder since
early November. 

I saw the bird yesterday and again this morning. Other
sightings for the month of March were on the 12th and
the 16th.

Mary Keleher 
Mashpee, MA

  Cape Cod Bird Club
  www.massbird.org/ccbc

____________________________________________________________________________________
Never miss a thing.  Make Yahoo your home page. 
http://www.yahoo.com/r/hs

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Subject: Osprey - Mashpee & Black Squirrels
From: Mary Keleher <maryeak(AT)yahoo.com>
Date: 24 Mar 2008 8:54am

Just saw my first Osprey of the year flying along
Meetinghouse Road in Mashpee. 

Earlier I was watching a Black Squirrel foraging under
the feeders. For the past two months I've had
sightings of two Black Squirrels. One in my yard and
the other at my work. I had never seen a Black
Squirrel until I moved to the Cape. Since then I have
had several sightings around the upper Cape area over
the years. I know they're really a black colored
Eastern Gray Squirrel but I'm still fascinated every
time I see one. 

Mary Keleher 
Mashpee, MA

  Cape Cod Bird Club
  www.massbird.org/ccbc

____________________________________________________________________________________
Be a better friend, newshound, and 
know-it-all with Yahoo! Mobile.  Try it now.
http://mobile.yahoo.com/;_ylt=Ahu06i62sR8HDtDypao8Wcj9tAcJ

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Subject: reporting from W AZ and SE CA
From: "Fred Bouchard" <frederickbouchard(AT)gmail.com>
Date: 24 Mar 2008 9:42am

----INCLUDING text/plain MIME SECTION----

hi birders:
just back from western AZ (Yuma, Parker), SE CA (Imperial Valley, Salton
Sea) and Grand Canyon.
can supply list (respond privately) of 3-hour blitz of Salton Sea (80+
species, no Yellow-footed Gull).
lucky to see 2 California Condor at S rim of Grand Canyon for 2 minutes
during 10 hours scanning.
fred bouchard
-- 
frederickbouchard(AT)gmail.com
78 farnham st
belmont 02478 ma
617-484-6692
www.fredbouchard.com

----DELETED text/html MIME SECTION----

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Subject: Fish Crows Topsfield
From: James MacDougall <jm3(AT)mac.com>
Date: 24 Mar 2008 10:46am

A murder of Fish Crows (15) flew over at 11AM this morning in  
Topsfield headed for Willowdale State Forest.

There has been a pair hanging around the pasture for the past week or  
so. This larger group was with them this morning, we were not here  
over the weekend.

This is the 4th Easter (plus or minus a day, and not consecutive  
years) that we have had a flock of Fish Crows fly over.

Jim MacDougall
Campmeeting Road
Topsfield, Mass.
978-857-6826

http://web.mac.com/jm3/

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Subject: Exploring Arrival dates in eBird (and departure
         dates, high counts)
From: "Marshall J. Iliff" <miliff(AT)aol.com>
Date: 24 Mar 2008 11:18am

Hi all,

Be it the first Red-winged Blackbirds, the first woodcock or the first
Mourning Warbler, one of my favorite parts of spring is looking for spring
arrivals. Judging by posts over the last few weeks, I think it's safe to say
that I'm not alone. 

We've just released three NEW FEATURES to the View and Explore data tab in
eBird: arrivals and departures; all time earliest and last records; and high
counts. Each of these outputs displays the name of the species, number of
individuals reported, observer name, location and date.

So using the Arrivals and Departures, you can now go in and see who found
the first Bay-breasted Warbler last year in Massachusetts and where. Or you
can look at when the earliest date Eastern Phoebe has ever been reported and
who reported it. Or the latest Yellow Warbler of the fall. All output is
available for states, counties and "hotspots". With this new tool, we have a
new and exciting opportunity to keep closer track than ever of spring
arrivals this year.

You can also use the "All-time first/last records" to go in and see where,
when and who reported the first ever (i.e., the first-state record in the
eBird database) for any species. For example, the first Yellow-throated
Warbler reported for Massachusetts was 25 April 2004--hopefully as more
historical data are entered, dates like these will get pushed back a century
or more!  (This is also a reminder that I need to enter the one I saw in
Boston Common in Dec 1998)!

You can also click departures (with the all-time records) checked, to look
at the most recent report for any species. This could be as recent as
yesterday, or many years ago (e.g., the last Pink-footed Goose, and
Massachusetts' only record, was in 1999). This is a great way to explore the
most recent observations or to see what was seen (and reported to eBird)
over the weekend. Sort by date to see most recent reports, or sort
taxonomically (or alphabetically) to check on a particular species. Or click
on observer to see your own contributions!

Finally, the "high counts" output shows the highest counts--once again,
these are available for states, counties, and "hot spots" and are
fascinating to explore (especially with all Rick Heil's data in from the
late 1970s)!

We hope enjoy these new outputs. To look at them, just go to:
http://ebird.org. Click the "View and Explore Data" tab and then on any of
these new features. Play around a bit.

These arrival dates are getting more attention from researchers interested
at looking at patterns of arrival and departure dates and climate change.
The challenge is that many of our observations may make it to a local
birding list (like Massbird), but they don't end up where researchers access
these data. By submitting your observations into eBird, you make your data
available to the very large community of researchers, scientists, educators
and birders. But we also think that once you use eBird a little bit, it will
add to your enjoyment of birding too.

Finally, I want to mention that all eBird data are made available through
the Avian Knowledge Network: (http://www.avianknowledge.net/). While
designed for the research and conservation community, anyone may go to the
AKN and download data. All data that are submitted to eBird are also sent to
the regional editors for the Bird Observer and to regional editors of North
American Birds.

Finally, I want to thank all of you who use eBird. And those who haven't
used it in a while, I'd ask that you consider coming back and seeing what's
new.

Best,

Marshall
-- 

-------------------------------------------------
Marshall J. Iliff
West Roxbury, MA
miliff AT aol.com
-------------------------------------------------
eBird/AKN Project Leader
Cornell Lab of Ornithology
159 Sapsucker Woods Rd.
Ithaca, NY 14850
http://www.ebird.org
http://www.avianknowledge.net
-------------------------------------------------

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Subject: Forest Hills Cemetery, Boston Winter Meets Spring
From: Jake Miller <fiatlux.interport(AT)rcn.com>
Date: 24 Mar 2008 11:36am

Birders--

I took the long way home after dropping my son off at daycare this  
morning and wandered for about 90 minutes in Forest Hills Cemetery.  
I'd been wanting to check the fruit trees and birches in the newer  
section of the cemetery, but it's a bit too long a walk for most of  
my quick jaunts there.

Am glad I checked.

After striking out (again) on the Eastern Screech and watching a  
murder of crows harass a Great Horned Owl. I walked down to the newer  
section of he cemetery.

I heard waxwings calling in the trees, I thought I heard one call  
that was a bit deeper and bussier than the others. Among about a  
dozen waxwings, I picked out one that was larger, heavier and grayer,  
with white on the wingitips and reddish undertail coverts, a  
Bohemican Waxwing. The flock kept flying between a few different  
stands of trees. I counted 20 Cedars together once, and would guess  
there were 30 all together, plus the Bohemian.

I was pretty happy with that find (and with the singing Caronlina  
Wrens and robins and juncos and blackbirds (including 3 Brown Headed  
Cowbirds), and was starting to head out when I noticed another flock  
of small birds feeding on Sweetgum fruits lying on the ground. Mixed  
in with 5 Juncos was a flock of redpolls. When the birds flew up into  
one of the Sweetgums that had a few fruit left in it, I was able to  
pick out one bird that had unstreaked underparts, limited streaking  
on its breast, and a very small bill--a Hoary Redpoll. All together I  
counted 20 Common Redpolls and 1 Hoary Redpoll.

When I got to Lake Hibiscus, I was very excited to see the first  
Double Crested Cormorant of the year on the pond (complete with  
fluffy litte double crests), and for the absolute capper, a Tree  
Swallow flew in, did a few laps of the pond and then landed in one of  
the little island trees and started to sing.

Here's the complete list:

Double-crested Cormorant	1
Canada Goose	18
Mallard	2
Mourning Dove	3
Downy Woodpecker	2
Great Horned Owl	1
American Crow	32
Blue Jay	13
Killdeer	1 (flyover)
Tree Swallow	1
Carolina Wren	3
White-breasted Nuthatch	4
Tufted Titmouse	2
Black-capped Chickadee	14
Cedar Waxwing	30
Bohemian Waxwing	1
American Robin	40
European Starling	80
Northern Mockingbird	2
Dark-eyed Junco	30
Song Sparrow	8
White-throated Sparrow	1
Fox Sparrow	2
Northern Cardinal	5
Common Redpoll	20
Hoary Redpoll	1
American Goldfinch	1
Brown-headed Cowbird	3
Common Grackle	14
Red-winged Blackbird	20

Good birding!

Jake

Jake Miller
Jamaica Plain
fiatlux dot interport at rcn dot com

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Subject: 26 Snow geese--UMass-Amherst Campus Pond
         (Noon-3/24)
From: Regina Martel <rmartel(AT)library.umass.edu>
Date: 24 Mar 2008 11:30am

Hi,
  Seen between 11:30-noon Monday (3/24)on the UMass-Amherst Campus Pond:

  26 Snow geese  (There were no "blue" snow geese, mostly adults and
                   a few not-in-complete adult plumage were seen)

  200+ Canada geese (I did NOT observe a Barnacle or Greater
                      White-fronted goose in a quick scan)

I expect at any time these birds might pick up and possibly fly back to the wet
farm fields at Meadow and Russelville Sts. in Hadley where they have been seen
recently.

If visiting the Campus Pond, also look for the often present Peregrine falcon
that perches on the southeast corner of the roof of the 28-story brick UMass
Library.

           Gina Martel and Jaap van Heerden
           Amherst, MA
           rmartel(AT)library.umass.edu

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Subject: Red-Shouldered Hawk, Salem
From: Linda Pivacek <lpivacek(AT)comcast.net>
Date: 24 Mar 2008 11:26am

Red-shouldered Hawk seen this morning at Salem Woods. 

Nahant - Mourning Cloak Butterfly

Linda Pivacek
Nahant, lpivacek(AT)comcast.net

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Subject: Yellow Breasted Chat ~ Marblehead ~ 3/24/08
From: "Karen S. Haley" <fledgling3(AT)juno.com>
Date: 24 Mar 2008 1:22pm

I saw a beautiful Chat in Steer Swamp today at noon.
It was foraging along the main path near the Stony
Brook Road entrance.

Karen Haley
Marblehead
fledgling3(AT)juno.com

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Subject: RE: Exploring Arrival dates in eBird (and
         departure dates, high counts)
From: "Marshall J. Iliff" <miliff(AT)aol.com>
Date: 24 Mar 2008 2:16pm

Massbird,

One more thing...

Some states (Maryland for example) have in the past rallied the listserv
community around a group effort to see how many species the participating
birders can find in a given year. In Maryland, this was known as the 'Comp'
List (=Composite List). Sort of a group "Big Year". I think it would be
great to see how Massachusetts shapes up in 2008 if we all make sure to
report each species that one of us sees.

The way to view this is to go to the new eBird tools that I reported in my
previous message: go to www.ebird.org and click the 'View and Explore' tab
and then click the "Arrivals/departures" tool, select "Massachusetts", and
then set the years "2008 to 2008". You will see the list of 190 species
reported to eBird in MA this year; next up: Snowy Egret, Glossy Ibis,
Louisiana Waterthrush? Check it out--and if you can better some of the
dates, please get your sighting into eBird!

This could be either competitive or cooperative, depending on what motivates
you more. For the competitive-minded, try to be the first to report as many
species as possible. For those with a group-mindset, try to chip in to make
sure that the group tally is as complete as possible. Better yet, be
competi-cooperative!

You can also explore past years. Here are a few statistics (note that these
are updated whenever someone submits a new list from past years):

2007--349 (can anyone add to this?)
2006--335
2005--322
2004--310
1990--205
1979--277 (thanks to Rick Heil!)
1960--22

As you can see, eBird is always in need of data from years past!

2008 MA 'Comp' list to date (24 March):
------------------------------
Greater White-fronted Goose
Snow Goose
Brant
Barnacle Goose
Cackling Goose
Canada Goose
Mute Swan
Wood Duck
Gadwall
Eurasian Wigeon
American Wigeon
American Black Duck
Mallard
Blue-winged Teal
Northern Shoveler
Northern Pintail
Green-winged Teal
Canvasback
Redhead
Ring-necked Duck
Greater Scaup
Lesser Scaup
King Eider
Common Eider
Harlequin Duck
Surf Scoter
White-winged Scoter
Black Scoter
Long-tailed Duck
Bufflehead
Common Goldeneye
Barrow's Goldeneye
Hooded Merganser
Common Merganser
Red-breasted Merganser
Ruddy Duck
Ring-necked Pheasant
Ruffed Grouse
Wild Turkey
Northern Bobwhite
Red-throated Loon
Pacific Loon
Common Loon
Pied-billed Grebe
Horned Grebe
Red-necked Grebe
Eared Grebe
Northern Gannet
Double-crested Cormorant
Great Cormorant
American Bittern
Great Blue Heron
Great Egret
Black-crowned Night-Heron
Turkey Vulture
Osprey
Bald Eagle
Northern Harrier
Sharp-shinned Hawk
Cooper's Hawk
Northern Goshawk
Red-shouldered Hawk
Red-tailed Hawk
Rough-legged Hawk
American Kestrel
Merlin
Peregrine Falcon
Virginia Rail
American Coot
Black-bellied Plover
Piping Plover
Killdeer
American Oystercatcher
Greater Yellowlegs
Ruddy Turnstone
Red Knot
Sanderling
Purple Sandpiper
Dunlin
Wilson's Snipe
American Woodcock
Little Gull
Black-headed Gull
Bonaparte's Gull
Ring-billed Gull
California Gull
Herring Gull
Thayer's Gull
Iceland Gull
Lesser Black-backed Gull
Slaty-backed Gull
Glaucous Gull
Great Black-backed Gull
Black-legged Kittiwake
Dovekie
Common Murre
Thick-billed Murre
Razorbill
Black Guillemot
Atlantic Puffin
Rock Pigeon
Mourning Dove
Barn Owl
Eastern Screech-Owl
Great Horned Owl
Snowy Owl
Barred Owl
Long-eared Owl
Short-eared Owl
Northern Saw-whet Owl
Belted Kingfisher
Red-bellied Woodpecker
Yellow-bellied Sapsucker
Downy Woodpecker
Hairy Woodpecker
Northern Flicker
Pileated Woodpecker
Eastern Phoebe
Northern Shrike
Blue Jay
American Crow
Fish Crow
Common Raven
Horned Lark
Tree Swallow
Black-capped Chickadee
Tufted Titmouse
Red-breasted Nuthatch
White-breasted Nuthatch
Brown Creeper
Carolina Wren
Winter Wren
Marsh Wren
Golden-crowned Kinglet
Ruby-crowned Kinglet
Eastern Bluebird
Townsend's Solitaire
Hermit Thrush
American Robin
Gray Catbird
Northern Mockingbird
Brown Thrasher
European Starling
American Pipit
Bohemian Waxwing
Cedar Waxwing
Orange-crowned Warbler
Yellow-rumped Warbler
Yellow-throated Warbler
Pine Warbler
Palm Warbler
Common Yellowthroat
Wilson's Warbler
Yellow-breasted Chat
Western Tanager
Eastern Towhee
American Tree Sparrow
Chipping Sparrow
Field Sparrow
Lark Sparrow
Savannah Sparrow
Saltmarsh Sharp-tailed Sparrow
Seaside Sparrow
Fox Sparrow
Song Sparrow
Swamp Sparrow
White-throated Sparrow
White-crowned Sparrow
Dark-eyed Junco
Lapland Longspur
Snow Bunting
Northern Cardinal
Dickcissel
Red-winged Blackbird
Eastern Meadowlark
Rusty Blackbird
Common Grackle
Brown-headed Cowbird
Baltimore Oriole
Pine Grosbeak
Purple Finch
House Finch
Red Crossbill
White-winged Crossbill
Common Redpoll
Hoary Redpoll
Pine Siskin
American Goldfinch
Evening Grosbeak
House Sparrow
-- 

-------------------------------------------------
Marshall J. Iliff
West Roxbury, MA
miliff AT aol.com
-------------------------------------------------
eBird/AKN Project Leader
Cornell Lab of Ornithology
159 Sapsucker Woods Rd.
Ithaca, NY 14850
http://www.ebird.org
http://www.avianknowledge.net
-------------------------------------------------

-----Original Message-----
From: massbird-approval(AT)world.std.com
[mailto:massbird-approval(AT)world.std.com] On Behalf Of Marshall J. Iliff
Sent: Monday, March 24, 2008 12:15 PM
To: Massbird(AT)theworld.com
Subject: [MASSBIRD] Exploring Arrival dates in eBird (and departure dates,
high counts)