NH.Birds for Saturday, May 31, 2008

Messages are displayed in the order they were received.  Subject  From  Time   RFI: Long-eared Owl Call Electronic File   MResch8702(AT)aol.com   6:00am   Field Trip: Birding in Franconia Notch, June 1   Mark Suomala   9:13am   Re: Exeter YB Cuckoo and..   tbbirds(AT)comcast.net   9:15am   Exeter WWTP   Patience Chamberlin    11:09am   Dartmouth Skiway   Mark Suomala   11:16am   Sugarloaf Mountain, Benton   Mark Suomala   11:22am   Green heron - Londonderry   Sandy   12:36pm   NH Coast (Red Knot, Least Terns, Sooty & Manx Shearwaters)   Steve Mirick    3:50pm   NH Coast Additions - Pectoral and White-rumped Sandpipers   Benjamin Griffith    5:00pm   Orchard Oriole nest - Amherst   PAMELA HUNT   5:22pm   Mourning Warbler, Black-billed Cuckoo   Dan Hubbard   5:41pm   RE: Mourning Warbler, Black-billed Cuckoo   Sheila Graydon   7:09pm   NHBIRDs: Common Nighthawk-Newton, NH   Paula McFarland   8:06pm   Black tern, Odiorne   Kurk Dorsey    8:31pm   NHA Seacoast Chapter WEEKEND Field Trip - Saturday, June 7th - Pondicherry / Sunday, June 8th - Moose Bog, Ferdinand, VT   catfishanddwen   9:21pm   Fish crow question   Kurk Dorsey    9:43pm

To use email addresses replace '(AT)' with '@'. This is done to confuse the spam 'bots.

[ << | >> | ^^ ]

Subject: RFI:  Long-eared Owl Call Electronic File
From: MResch8702(AT)aol.com
Date: 31 May 2008 6:00am

NH Birders:
 
Does anyone happen to have an electronic file of Long-eared owl they could  
forward to me (though need to be careful about copyright issues and so  forth).
 
Many thanks -
 
 
Mike  Resch
Pepperell, MA

**************Get trade secrets for amazing burgers. Watch "Cooking with 
Tyler Florence" on AOL Food.      
(http://food.aol.com/tyler-florence?video=4&?NCID=aolfod00030000000002)


[ << | >> | ^^ ]

Subject: Field Trip: Birding in Franconia Notch, June 1
From: "Mark Suomala" <mrsuomala(AT)marksbirdtours.com>
Date: 31 May 2008 9:13am

Birders,

As the weather forecast has improved for tomorrow, I am going to run my 
Birding in Franconia Notch trip after all. Details below:

NH Audubon

BIRDING IN FRANCONIA NOTCH FIELD-TRIP
Sunday, June 1, 8:00 am-4:00 pm

On this day-trip, we'll explore Franconia Notch for birds, and learn a bit
about the natural history of the surrounding forest community. Weather
permitting; we'll take the first morning tram (9:00 am) to the top of Cannon 
Mountain
to search for Bicknell's Thrush, Yellow-bellied Flycatcher, Blackpoll
Warbler, Magnolia Warbler, and other high-elevation breeding birds. We'll
also explore other areas in the notch for Peregrine Falcon, Black-throated
Green Warbler, Common Merganser, and others.

Meet in the Cannon Mountain parking lot at 8:00 am. Bring a bag lunch, 
insect repellent, and
wear warm all-weather gear. Please carpool.

Instructor: Mark Suomala has conducted bird surveys and given workshops in
the White Mountains for many years

Cost: $30 M/$39 NM Payment in cash preferred.

Plus, you will have to pay your own tram fee ($12.00 regular rate)

Please contact me to let me know if you will be joining me.

Email: mrsuomala(AT)marksbirdtours.com

Phone: (603) 867-6411 (leave message if no answer)


[ << | >> | ^^ ]

Subject: Re: Exeter YB Cuckoo and..
From: tbbirds(AT)comcast.net
Date: 31 May 2008 9:15am

No Cuckoo early Saturday morning.  Did see the male Orchard
Oriole.

Also of note:
Spotted Sandpiper--1
Eastern Kingbird--4
House Wren--1
Cedar Waxwing--3
Song Sparrow--10 or more

Blue Jay--1 still on nest near powder house

--
Terry Bronson
Hampton Falls, NH
tbbirds(AT)comcast.net

 -------------- Original message ----------------------
From: Patience Chamberlin <patiencec(AT)comcast.net>
>   Good stuff at Powderhouse pond!  even at 11 am...
> 
> Orchard orioles   1 pair--copulating    the female later went into a  
> nest.  It is near the top of one of the larger aspens at the very back  
> of the field (north end).
> 
> Yellow-billed cuckoo  1 heard calling from beyond the back of the  
> field, towards the north.
> 
> Blackpoll w.  1
> 
> Willow flycatcher   2
> 
> And good numbers of the usuals.
> 
> Patience Chamberlin
> Exeter


[ << | >> | ^^ ]

Subject: Exeter WWTP
From: Patience Chamberlin <patiencec(AT)comcast.net>
Date: 31 May 2008 11:09am

The Am. Coot continues in the SW pool.  A Green heron flew in.  And  
finally got my FOY Alder flycatcher.  Otherwise, the usuals...Willow  
flycatchers and E. Kingbirds making the most commotion besides the  
blackbirds.

Patience Chamberlin
Exeter


[ << | >> | ^^ ]

Subject: Dartmouth Skiway
From: "Mark Suomala" <mrsuomala(AT)marksbirdtours.com>
Date: 31 May 2008 11:16am

Birded in Lyme Center yesterday morning, around the Dartmouth Skiway 
(5/30/08). Saw and/or heard 28 bird species.

Highlights:
Red-tailed Hawk 1
Osprey 1
Peregrine Falcon 2
Yellow-shafted Flicker 1
Yellow-bellied Sapsucker 1
Ruby-throated Hummingbird 1
Great-crested Flycatcher 1
Least Flycatcher 1
Common Raven 2
Red-eyed Vireo 19
Hermit Thrush 2
Black-and-white Warbler 4
Ovenbird 19
Chestnut-sided Warbler 1
Black-throated Blue Warbler 4
Black-throated Green Warbler 4
American Redstart 5
Scarlet Tanager 3
Rose-breasted Grosbeak 3
Baltimore Oriole 2
White-throated Sparrow 1
Purple Finch 3

Mark Suomala
www.marksbirdtours.com


[ << | >> | ^^ ]

Subject: Sugarloaf Mountain, Benton
From: "Mark Suomala" <mrsuomala(AT)marksbirdtours.com>
Date: 31 May 2008 11:22am

Birded on Sugarloaf Mountain in Benton yesterday afternoon (5/30/08).

Highlights:
Eastern Wood-Pewee 1
Common Raven 2
Red-eyed Vireo 9
Wood Thrush 2
Veery 1
Black-throated Green Warbler 3
Black-throated Blue Warbler 8
Blackburnian Warbler 6
Ovenbird 4
Magnolia Warbler 1

Mark Suomala
www.marksbirdtours.com


[ << | >> | ^^ ]

Subject: Green heron - Londonderry
From: "Sandy" <slmolloy(AT)comcast.net>
Date: 31 May 2008 12:36pm

I saw a green heron this morning in a small swampy area next to Home Depot.

 

Sandy


[ << | >> | ^^ ]

Subject: NH Coast (Red Knot, Least Terns, Sooty & Manx Shearwaters)
From: Steve Mirick <smirick(AT)comcast.net>
Date: 31 May 2008 3:50pm

Jane and I hit the coast today, joined by Ben Griffith for some seabird 
watching from Pulpit Rocks during the afternoon.  Weather was strange 
with mild and sunny early and then with slightly shifting winds becoming 
cold and raw and then some strong thunderstorms and downpours.  A few 
interesting birds highlighted by several shearwaters from Pulpit Rocks 
in Rye.

Winds - South to Southeast 10 - 25 mph.
Sunny to Cloudy with rain showers

Hampton Beach
-----------------
Feeding frenzy of terns and cormorants early in day at high tide just 
north of breakwater:
Red-breasted Merganser     3
Double-crested Cormorant     200 (most immature birds)
Ruddy Turnstone     7 on breakwater
RED KNOT     1 in breeding plumage on beach
Purple Sandpiper     4+ on close breakwater.  A distant flock of 
shorebirds on far breakwater might have been mostly Purples also.
Bonaparte's Gull     2 immatures.  Still wondering where all the 
Bonaparte's Gulls are this spring?
Roseate Tern     4 sitting on breakwater with commons.
Common Tern     200.  Lots of terns roosting on breakwater (north side) 
and spread out along  beach.

Church parking lot off Rt. 101
-------------------------------
I find this parking lot remarkably productive for such a small area.  
Today was good for diversity of late migrants:
PEREGRINE FALCON     1 immature perched on water tower.  First that I 
have seen one here in quite a while and interesting date to find one.
Willow Flycatcher     1
Northern Parula     1
Yellow Warbler     1
Black-throated Blue Warbler     1 female
Blackburnian Warbler     1
Blackpoll Warbler     1 female
American Redstart     3 including young males
Common Yellowthroat     2
Wilson's Warbler     1

Odiorne Point State Park
--------------------------
With the birds seen at the Church parking lot, I was hoping for a bit 
more, but not a whole lot in a mid-morning walk around the park.  Just a 
few American Redstarts, Red-eyed Vireos, a couple of Magnolia Warblers 
and a female Canada Warbler.  A few female Common Eiders had over a 
dozen fluff ball babies just north of the center.  Of some interest was 
a nice migration of geese and loons:
Common Loon - 23 MIGRATING  (a few more on the water).  Most seen from 
Odiorne and mostly single birds.  One group of 4.
Canada Goose - 124 MIGRATING.  Flock of 30 and flock of 94 seen moving 
north.  I guess I never thought of Canada Geese moving north this late 
in the spring.
Double-crested Cormorant - 54 MIGRATING (several small flocks moving 
north over the course of the day)

Then after Brunch at the "Golden Egg"

2 hours Seawatching at Pulpit Rocks in Rye (most of time with Ben Griffith)
---------------------------------------------------------------------------
Surf Scoter     10 off Seal Rocks just to the south.
Red-breasted Merganser     3
Red-throated Loon     1
RED-NECKED GREBE     1 in breeding plumage close to shore.
SOOTY SHEARWATER     1.  Spectacular views of EXTREMELY close bird 
moving by heading south.  Easily seen (and likely identifiable) with 
naked eye.  Nearly few over the outer rocks at Pulpit Rocks!!
MANX SHEARWATER     5.  Great show of birds.  3 single birds flying 
south, and a pair flying together heading south.  One bird observed for 
extended period as it lunge-dove for food under a flock of terns!!
Northern Gannet     1 1st year bird moving north.
Laughing Gull     4.  One adult.
LEAST TERN     2.  2 also seen earlier in the day off North Hampton, may 
have been different birds, but could have been the same birds.
Common Tern     Dozens of Common Terns moving about and feeding.  Many 
seem to head south into southerly winds.
BLACK GUILLEMOT     1 in breeding plumage seen several times.

Steve & Jane Mirick
Bradford, MA


[ << | >> | ^^ ]

Subject: NH Coast Additions - Pectoral and White-rumped Sandpipers
From: Benjamin Griffith <gobirding(AT)aol.com>
Date: 31 May 2008 5:00pm

Prior to meeting up with Steve Mirick for the seabird show at Pulpit 
Rocks, I tried a few spots in Hampton and Seabrook for shorebirds.  I 
was forced to take shelter in my car several times as short but strong 
thunderstorms passed over.  Not too much to speak of along most of the 
coast, however, there was a flock of about 60 shorebirds feeding at 
Landing Road at high tide.  I made a brief stop at Hampton Harbor on the 
way home to check the terns.

Highlights:

Semipalmated Plover - 20 at Landing Road
PECTORAL SANDPIPER - 1 at Landing Road
Semipalmated/Least Sandpiper - ~40 at Landing Road, both species 
represented, but flew before I could get an accurate count of each 
species, there were also several flocks of peeps flying over Meadow 
Pond, but I never found where they were congregating
WHITE-RUMPED SANDPIPER - 2 on Landing Road
Laughing Gull - 1 in Hampton Harbor
Roseate Tern - at least 6 in Hampton Harbor
Common Tern - Several hundred in Hampton Harbor, including many 
exhibiting courtship behavior

Ben Griffith
Merrimack, NH


[ << | >> | ^^ ]

Subject: Orchard Oriole nest - Amherst
From: "PAMELA HUNT" <biodiva(AT)verizon.net>
Date: 31 May 2008 5:22pm

Greetings all,

Given the plethora of Orchard Oriole reports from the seacoast area, I figured
it was worth noting one from a little farther inland (but not as far as recent
sightings from Hinsdale!). This morning I found a mostly-or-entirely complete
nest in a tree overhanging the Souhegan River in Amherst, just west of Route
122. I've seen Orchard Oriole in this area before, but this was a life nest
for me.  Unfortunately, it appears a Blue Jay also found it, and the fate of
its current or future contents remains uncertain.

Enjoy,
Pam Hunt
Penacook, NH


[ << | >> | ^^ ]

Subject: Mourning Warbler, Black-billed Cuckoo
From: "Dan Hubbard" <danielhubbard(AT)peoplepc.com>
Date: 31 May 2008 5:41pm

Two hours at Pickering Ponds with Ann Kimball and Everett Webber this AM
turned up 52 species including a female Mourning Warbler and a Black-billed
Cuckoo as well as good looks at a Yellow-throated Vireo and a female
Blackpoll Warbler.
Dan Hubbard, Rochester


[ << | >> | ^^ ]

Subject: RE: Mourning Warbler, Black-billed Cuckoo
From: "Sheila Graydon" <cheetah62(AT)comcast.net>
Date: 31 May 2008 7:09pm

Where are Pickering Ponds?
Sheila

-----Original Message-----
From: owner-NH.Birds(AT)lists.unh.edu [mailto:owner-NH.Birds(AT)lists.unh.edu] On
Behalf Of Dan Hubbard
Sent: Saturday, May 31, 2008 5:41 PM
To: New Hampshire Birds
Subject: Mourning Warbler, Black-billed Cuckoo

Two hours at Pickering Ponds with Ann Kimball and Everett Webber this AM
turned up 52 species including a female Mourning Warbler and a Black-billed
Cuckoo as well as good looks at a Yellow-throated Vireo and a female
Blackpoll Warbler.
Dan Hubbard, Rochester


[ << | >> | ^^ ]

Subject: NHBIRDs: Common Nighthawk-Newton, NH
From: "Paula McFarland" <saltpannes(AT)gmail.com>
Date: 31 May 2008 8:06pm

I heard "peenting" in my yard at 7:55 tonight (May31).  I thought, "Is the
Woodcock displaying?"  I looked up, and saw a Common Nighthawk cruising
overhead.  Cool.

Paula McFarland
Newton, NH
saltpannesatgmaildotcom


[ << | >> | ^^ ]

Subject: Black tern, Odiorne
From: Kurk Dorsey <kd(AT)cisunix.unh.edu>
Date: 31 May 2008 8:31pm

Birders
I can add one good bird to the previous coastal lists: Black Tern at 3:30 
south of Odiorne.

Since it was my 43rd birthday, I set out today to find 43 species.  I lost 
count right around 42 and ended up with 108.

Started at 5:15 in the yard and the marsh through our woods
Red-bellied Woodpecker
Marsh Wren
Blackburnian and Blue-winged Warblers
(but no rails today)

Then on the Lubberland Field Trip in Newmarket, where Ann A and Millie and 
Mark from Nashua joined me from 7-9:30
Right before they arrived I had a Canada Warbler up close, but I pished in 
English and he turned out to be a French-Canadian warbler, so we couldn't 
find him again.
The midges or something in the marsh were awful--maybe the worst insect 
problem I've ever had birding, so we beat a retreat after hearing a 
Nelson's Sharp-tail call once or twice
Many Bobolinks and a couple of Meadowlarks
Only 3 shorebirds

Then on to Warren Farm in Barrington
1 very cooperative Clay-colored Sparrow where Scott found him (great 
directions, Scott!)
1 Alder Flycatcher--not what I expected there
Indigo Bunting copulating
Prairie Warbler
Field Sparrow
Purple Finch--also surprising

Then on to Hampton Harbor just before noon in time to see lightning over 
the power plant (you just never know if it's going up or coming down at 
Seabrook)
--3 Dunlin in breeding plumage
--1 Dowitcher, presumably short-billed
--only 1 Roseate for sure for me out of 40+ Common terns

Over to the beach
1-2 Piping Plover, but when I went to see the frenzy at the harbor 
entrance Zeus started throwing lightning bolts, and I have this thing 
about not being electrocuted (otherwise no shorebirds on the beach

Rye, Stone Angel
2 Purple Sandpipers
1 Red-necked Grebe

Odiorne
1 Black tern mixed in with Commons (and who knows, one looked kind of 
Arcticish)
2 Snowy Egrets

Pease/ McIntire Road
1 Vesper Sparrow on the barbed wire
1-2 Grasshopper Sparrows singing
--no Uplands

Bellamy River, Dover
--no Orchard Orioles
1 Black-billed Cuckoo
1 Big Honkin' Turkey

So I missed Red-tailed Hawk, any accipiter, Virginia Rail, and the 
suddenly ubiquitous Mourning Warbler--and I'm still extracting midges from 
my ears, beard, scope, etc.  But it was still a pretty cool day!

Kurk Dorsey
Durham


[ << | >> | ^^ ]

Subject: NHA Seacoast Chapter WEEKEND Field Trip - Saturday, June 7th
          -  Pondicherry /  Sunday, June 8th - Moose Bog, Ferdinand,
         VT
From: "catfishanddwen" <catfishanddwen(AT)comcast.net>
Date: 31 May 2008 9:21pm

NHA Seacoast Chapter WEEKEND Field Trip
Saturday, June 7th -  Pondicherry /  Sunday, June 8th - Moose Bog, Ferdinand,
VT

Come join the NHA Seacoast Chapter for a weekend field trip to the north
country, stay the whole weekend or come up either day.

Both days will be led by trip leader Sam Stoddard. Dave Govatski was
originally scheduled to lead these trips but a rescheduled work commitment
will have him out of state for the weekend.

Saturdays trip to Pondicherry will meet at the Airport Marsh  at 8AM. Airport
Marsh is just due west of Mt Washington Regional Airport on Hazen Rd. in
Whitefield.
Sundays trip to Moose Bog in Ferdinand, VT (just over the NH line) will meet
at 7AM at the Martin Meadow Pond boat launch on Martin Meadow Pond Rd., just
south of Weeks State Park in Lancaster, NH.  Google Maps brings both up
pretty
good.

Lodging and meals are the responsibilty of those attending.  PLEASE CONACT ME
IF YOU THINK YOU MAY ATTEND THE WHOLE WEEKEND OR EITHER DAY. Also contact me
if you need a few lodging ideas, carpooling possibilities, or any other
question(s) that you might have.

As always,  NHA Seacoast Chapter field trips are free and open to the public.

Mark Hatfield
NHA Seacost Chapter Field Coordinator
catfishanddwen(AT)comcast.net
(603) 659-0705


[ << | >> | ^^ ]

Subject: Fish crow question
From: Kurk Dorsey <kd(AT)cisunix.unh.edu>
Date: 31 May 2008 9:43pm

Birders
Today around 1 I heard a crow in Hampton that sounded like a Fish Crow, 
but it was with two other crows--I assume it was a young American crow 
with adults, but I wonder if anyone has encountered Fish Crow there.

Kurk Dorsey
Durham