Fruitlands Museum, Harvard, 100-132 Prospect Hill Road, Worcester, Massachusetts, US
Sep 28, 2019 7:00 AM – 10:40 AM
Comments:    53 – 69F, sunny, clear and breezy.  Very quiet morning until New Meadow and fantastic display between an immature red tailed hawk and immature coopers hawk.  A joint walk for Brookline Bird Club and Boxborough Birders.  The falling colored leaves, the fully canopy and breeze made for a challenging morning for identifying moving birds in canopy.  Most noted was hearing the soft “chip” of probable song or white-throated sparrows in the dense grassy, bushy areas, but, no sightings. This was during the first hour or so when it was cold.
29 species (+3 other taxa)
Yellow-billed/Black-billed Cuckoo  1
Turkey Vulture  1
Cooper’s Hawk  2
Red-tailed Hawk  3
Barred Owl  1    We all heard it clearly from the woods while we were walking the Old Meadow towards Pergolas site.  Alas could not find it for a visual.
Yellow-bellied Sapsucker  1    2 of us had a good but short-lived look at it near the Farmhouse.
Red-bellied Woodpecker  3
Downy Woodpecker  4
Hairy Woodpecker  4
Pileated Woodpecker  1    Heard clearly twice, but, it did not allow a visual.
Northern Flicker  9    Readily present all locations most notably at New Meadow and near the Farmhouse.
Eastern Phoebe  2
Blue Jay  17    Probably a conservative count.  Very vocal and present along entire walk.
American Crow  6    Five quite annoyed with red tailed hawk over New Meadow.
Black-capped Chickadee  18
Tufted Titmouse  2    Probably more but only saw 2 clearly.
Ruby-crowned Kinglet  1
White-breasted Nuthatch  3
European Starling  30    Estimate as “murmuration” of starlings were mobbing the coopers hawk at New Meadow.
Gray Catbird  8
Eastern Bluebird  3
American Robin  12    Probably more.
Cedar Waxwing  9
American Goldfinch  2
Chipping Sparrow  2
American Tree Sparrow  1    Very clear view of one with the “burst” of sparrows near the parking lot meadow along the fruit trees and stone wall (behind the private red barn).  Had scope on it when on the barn roof line and when it flew on top of stone wall rock.
Song Sparrow  3
sparrow sp.  X    At the end of the walk while 4 of us were gathered at the cars in the meadow parking lot, Ron noted a “burst” of activity behind the private red barn with birds flying from barn area to the cluster of deciduous trees behind the red barn along the stone wall.  Could not identify all of them as they were dropping into the grass and canopy and out of sight.  Did get clear view of chipping, tree and song sparrows.
Pine Warbler  3    Heard very clearly in the woods on walk from New Meadow to Farm House.  Caught glimpses.
Northern Cardinal  1
Indigo Bunting  1    Good look at New Meadow.
passerine sp.  X    While watching the red tail hawk and cooper hawk “engagement” viewed from New Meadow, there were many small birds in the tree where both were at one point, but, could not get a good view to identify.
View this checklist online at https://ebird.org/view/checklist/S60194697

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