Berkshires 7/12-7/15--Ruffed Grouse

We spent a long weekend with our friends Susan & Roy at their place deep in the woods of Washington, MA. I list it on eBird as Coles Brook Farm because a while back Susan had a flower farm going there. Now she has a fairly large vegetable garden--the sugar snap peas were delicious!

We birded somewhat as an afterthought--I've found that for the most part I see the best birds either on their property or on Cross Place Road, the long dirt road that leads up to it. And that was again the case this weekend--just about the last birds we saw there were this morning on the long walk out to Cross Place--we flushed 2 Ruffed Grouse along their driveway (really a dirt road).

We hiked around Notchview, an old farm that has been preserved and is a popular cross-country skiing area; Susan skis there but had never seen it in the summer. Best bird there was an Indigo Bunting, singing at the top of a tree.

At Chesterfield Gorge, an interesting geological site along the Westfield River we were surprised to find a hen Common Merganser with 6 ducklings. Common Merganser is a winter bird down here in Jersey, as is Dark-eyed Junco, one of which we saw in a tangle of branches and uprooted bushes that  were left on the side when a trail was widened to make their driveway.

Hiking and driving around the county along with a couple of walks along Cross Place yielded 30 species for the weekend. List below. By the way, anyone interested in biking, bicycles, and/or France, would do well to check out Susan's blog SUZE, CYCLING.

Berkshire and Hampshire Counties 7/12-7/15

Species                         First Sighting

Canada Goose   6      Cross Place Road

Mallard   1      Cross Place Road

Common Merganser   7      Chesterfield Gorge

Ruffed Grouse   2      Coles Brook Farm

Wild Turkey   1      Worthington

Great Blue Heron   1      Cross Place Road

Turkey Vulture   10      Becket

Belted Kingfisher   1      Cross Place Road

Yellow-bellied Sapsucker   1      Coles Brook Farm

Northern Flicker   1      Cross Place Road

Eastern Wood-Pewee   1      Becket Quarry

Eastern Phoebe   1      Cross Place Road

Eastern Kingbird   1      Cross Place Road

Blue Jay   2      Cross Place Road

American Crow   4      Notchview Reservation

Tree Swallow   3      Notchview Reservation

Black-capped Chickadee   1      Cross Place Road

White-breasted Nuthatch   1      Cross Place Road

House Wren   2      Notchview Reservation

Veery   1      Coles Brook Farm

Wood Thrush   1      Coles Brook Farm

American Robin   1      Cross Place Road

Gray Catbird   1      Cross Place Road

Cedar Waxwing   4      Cross Place Road

Common Yellowthroat   2      Cross Place Road

Song Sparrow   2      Notchview Reservation

Dark-eyed Junco   1      Coles Brook Farm

Indigo Bunting   1      Notchview Reservation

Common Grackle   2      Cross Place Road

American Goldfinch   1      Cross Place Road