Trip Highlights

There were eight participants on our trip in the beautiful Tyringham valley.  Weather was pleasant - no rain as there has been the past 15 weekends, and comfortable temperatures - unlike the heat wave that was to come in a few days.  We had the “usual” species as we birded roadsides and woods, the Cobble, and part of the AT.  Highlights included a Thrasher and Bank Swallow at the end of Meadow Street, Ravens “crying”, and a Waxwing nest visited by a female Scarlet Tanager.  We had no luck with Bittern, Snipe or Cliff Swallow on Breakneck Road.  Then, a surprise on Monterey Road.  Near the bridge over Hop Brook, in a stand of larches where we have had Purple Finch in the past, we did spot a finch-like bird at the top of one of them.  We kept our eyes on it, thinking it wasn’t quite a finch.  Siobhan snapped one of her famous shots and the proof was there - a Red Crossbill!  We were thrilled, but wanted more looks.  We scanned the larch trees and saw a total of four individuals.  Unfortunately, as we walked back to our cars, we saw a fifth bird - a young crossbill dead on the side of the road.  

Soon we made our way to Post Farm, hoping for a Least Bittern that had been reported earlier this season.  The biting deerflies made us hustle through the woods to the marsh, but we did not hear the bittern.  We had Marsh Wren and a Kingbird there though.  

Chris had seen an eBird report of nesting Purple Martins in the town of Stockbridge near Tanglewood, and we decided to add a stop there.  The coordinates were misleading, but we enlisted the help of a Berkshire birder who knew how to get to the field where the nest box (and a newly added gourd array) were located.  This was in Gould Meadows, conservation land in Stock-bridge.  After a short walk through field and woods we saw the site, and very quickly we also saw a couple of Martins!  According to Hoffmann Bird Club members this is the first evidence of nesting Martins since the late 1800’s!  In the end we counted 4 or 5 individuals, both males and females.  Later it was learned that one of them was one that had been tagged in northern Connecticut in 2023.  This was a wonderful ending to a very successful Tyringham trip, adding two new species to this trip’s overall tally. Click on photo below to view complete species list.

We made some changes to the itinerary of this trip this year.  The Adirondack Birding Festival was held the previous weekend, and after consulting the festival schedule, we added some new locations to explore.  The weather was also in our favor the entire weekend, although it also proved favorable for the biting blackflies and mosquitoes!

On the first day we drove directly to Bloomingdale Bog where we walked on the rail trail there.  We soon began hearing birds we had expected including Nashville, Palm and Blackburnian warblers, White-throated Sparrow, Veery, and Purple Finch.  We had flying views of a male Harrier (“gray ghost”) and American Bittern.  We were entertained by a small family group of Canada Jays who seemed to fly in as soon as “peanuts” was mentioned, and they did gobble them up as soon as we dropped them.

We then made a couple of stops along Floodwood Pond road where we saw one lone Common Loon (no babies though).  On the way to our hotel in Long Lake we followed up on a report of a member who had attended the festival and had seen a Black-backed Woodpecker at a location near John Dillon Park, so we decided to check that out in case the woodpecker was nesting nearby.  Unfortunately, no luck, but we did stop in at the Park Headquarters and talked with staff members.  It is a totally accessible park managed by Paul Smith’s College; although we did not take time to walk the trails there, we knew it could be a future addition.

On the second day, instead of driving to the Massewepie Mire via Tupper Lake, we started on Sabbatis Circle Road.  We had more warblers here including Black-and-white, Redstart, Parula, Chestnut-sided, Canada, Magnolia, Yellow-rumped, and Black-throated Green.  One of us heard a distant call of Olive-sided Flycatcher, and with concentration, we all eventually heard it, but it stayed too distant to see.  

At the Tupper Lake pull-off we heard Snipe and saw a few Ring-necked Ducks, and at the marsh there most of us saw two Sandhill Cranes.  Then we were off to the Mire.  We had spoken with one of the guides for the birding festival and she offered some tips for birds to expect there, including a nesting loon in one of the ponds we pass to get to the Mire.  Very nice looks were had by all!  She also told us about access to a beautiful bog which is adjacent to the Mire.  A beautiful spot, and looking very similar to Ferd’s Bog, we decided this would be our new “Ferd’s,” saving the long drive to Inlet.  An added bonus was hearing Mourning Warbler nearby.  Massewepie Mire did not disappoint, once again.  On the way in we must have been near an Ovenbird nest because two scolded us as we passed.  We had nice looks at Lincoln’s Sparrow, more Nashvilles, and many Cedar Waxwings.  Two of us tried to make a woodpecker call into a Black-backed, but it turned out to be a Hairy.  We also had nice views of Golden-crowned Kinglets whose crowns, when really agitated, look more “ruby-ish”.  On the way out, one of us also heard a Yellow-bellied Flycatcher.   After our walk, we drove a little further past the entrance to the trail where the guide said she had seen four Black-billed Cuckoos on a festival walk.  We did not see or hear them, but had a very nice look at a Broad-winged Hawk, and a Ruffed Grouse (no Spruce) sand-bathing.  On the way back to Long Lake we stopped again at Tupper Lake marsh to confirm our Sandhill Cranes sighting, and again at Sabbatis where we had a nice bittern fly up, and more Canada Jays.

On our last day we made the obligatory stop at Shaw Pond near Long Lake, but it, having been drained after intense rains two years ago, was no longer a pond.  We did spot some baby ducks far out, but could not locate a parent.  We also had Great-crested Flycatcher, a calling Raven, and a Sapsucker here.  Then we were off to another new location, thanks to the festival brochure - the Railbed wetlands in Minerva - which, perfect for us, was located east.  We were happy to find it and make it an addition to the trip.  The morning was overcast, so not too hot, but we did need our bug nets.  While being serenaded by a Swainson’s Thrush, we had nice looks at Blackburnian, more Cedars, and a very close Virginia Rail. We also saw a Kingbird, Hummingbird, another bittern, and added female Common Merganser (with babies in tow) and our first Great Blue.  

After a stop at Stewart’s shop on Route 28 (99 cent ice cream on Father’s Day!), we made our way to the Northway and our exit for the Fort Edward grasslands.  Along our first stop on Townline Road, one of us had a conversation with passing motorists who asked if we were the “senior citizens birding group” which gave us all a laugh!  At the wetland near the end of Townline we heard Marsh Wren, and had a double flyover of Bittern and Green Heron.  In the large grassland we did not get Grasshopper Sparrow nor Meadowlark, but heard Bobolinks.  We noted that all the fields seemed high, undoubtedly not mowed because of the amount of rain we have experienced this spring - which is great for nesting species!  One of our last stops was lunch and a walk at the Alfred Solomon Grassland Bird Trail, the first time we could walk this trail.  Here we added a Kestrel, Willow Flycatcher, and a flyby Thrasher.  

Once again, this weekend trip was filled with memorable moments for the six of us, and we were pleased with the tweaks we made to the itinerary.  A solid 113 species was our second highest for this trip.  Click on photo below to view complete species list.

June Count 2025

The weather was less than perfect for the 22nd Little River IBA June Count.  Friday evening handed us rain and thunderstorms from 6-8 PM, but cleared from 8-9 PM. The wind was calm and the temperature was in the mid-70s, with high humidity.  Saturday morning was overcast, temps hovered around 67 degrees, winds were calm, and humidity still high.  It was a decent morning, allowing us to get some good birding in before rain began in earnest at 1:30 PM.  

Altogether, there were 8 teams and 13 observers in the field for a total of 56.5 hours.  The hours of effort were below average by 15 hours, due to heavy rain shortening our usable timeframe and one territory without coverage. The total number of species counted was 103, approximating our 21-year average of 105.  The number of individuals at 2,528 was just shy of one thousand below average.

Misses of note include Black-billed and Yellow-billed Cuckoo (last time both species were missed was 2012, and there were five Black-billed Cuckoos counted just last year), Red-tailed Hawk (1st miss in count history), White-throated Sparrow (missed for 5th year in a row), and Nashville Warbler (only 3rd miss in 22 years).

Many species were found in below average numbers and here’s the rundown, including those species with the lowest number in count history, but keep in mind the poor weather and low total hours of effort contributed heavily to these lows.  Recorded in parentheses after each species is the count for this year, followed by the 21-year average:  Ruby-throated Hummingbird (5, 11.3), Great Blue Heron (5, 9.6), Turkey Vulture - lowest (2, 12.5), Broad-winged Hawk (1, 6.5), Red-shouldered Hawk (1, 5.9), Yellow-bellied Sapsucker (19, 32), Pileated Woodpecker (4, 9.8), Northern Flicker (1, 9.6), Alder Flycatcher – lowest (5, 16.1), Eastern Phoebe (23, 41.8), Blue-headed Vireo (6, 16.3), Red-eyed Vireo – lowest (167, 287.6), Blue Jay – lowest (26, 50.7), Black-capped Chickadee – lowest (44, 85.3), Eastern Bluebird (7, 13.0), Hermit Thrush (10, 21.3), Wood Thrush (22, 43.6), Purple Finch (3, 7.1), Dark-eyed Junco (1, 14), Bobolink – lowest (13, 46.4), Baltimore Oriole (10, 18.9), the warblers, Louisiana Waterthrush – lowest (2, 6.2), Magnolia (5, 16), Blackburnian – lowest (27, 51.4), Black-throated Blue - lowest (28, 76.5), Yellow-rumped (5, 14.6), Black-throated Green - lowest (16, 48.5), Canada - lowest (3, 10.8), and finally, Rose-breasted Grosbeak – lowest (5, 16.3).

Species that were found in above average numbers, despite the conditions:  Wild Turkey (23, 19.1), Double-crested Cormorant - found in roughly half of the counts (3, 0.7), Cooper’s Hawk (3, 1.0), Willow Flycatcher (5, 3.9), Field Sparrow – matched 2007 for highest count (14, 6.3), the warblers, Blue-winged (6, 2.8), Yellow (59, 47.3), Prairie (20, 10.8), and finally, Indigo Bunting (28, 20.5).  

No new species were added to the count this year, but a few stand-out finds include, Osprey – found just one other time in the last six years, Great Horned Owl and American Kestrel - both found only occasionally, Acadian Flycatcher – last found in 2021, Orchard Oriole – only found on four other counts, and Cerulean Warbler - first found in 2024 and again this year.

All of the teams had a good find or two or more, contributing species to the count that other teams did not observe.  Kathy and Myles found Hooded Merganser, American Kestrel, and Dark-eyed Junco, Janice heard Eastern Whip-poor-will and Great Horned Owl on Friday evening and she and Gail found Double-crested Cormorant, Osprey, Acadian Flycatcher, and Bank Swallow on Saturday, Joanne and Al picked up Red-shouldered Hawk and Blue-gray Gnatcatcher, Al and Lois spotted the only Northern Flicker, Steve got Golden-crowned Kinglet, Northern Mockingbird, and Orchard Oriole, Doug located two Louisiana Waterthrushes, Bambi and April found Cerulean Warbler, and Tom got on three Canada Warblers.

Click below to view or download complete count results.

2025 June Count Results

Trip was canceled - rain.

A dozen members participated in the morning walk at the refuge and counted a total of 32 species.  See complete list below.