Parker River NWR, Essex, Massachusetts, US
Oct 12, 2021 7:20 AM – 12:04 PM
Protocol: Traveling
7.5 mile(s)
Checklist Comments:    Mostly sunny. 64-72 degrees with winds South 2 mph to WSW 5 mph. Outgoing tide with low tide at 10:42 am.  With Brookline Bird Club walk led by Dave Williams. Stops at main pans, Wardens Maintenance area, where we walked the dike to North Pool Overlook from Wardens. Also stopped at Lot 7 Emerson Rocks, Hellcat dike, and Hellcat boardwalk to old blind, finishing along road by Goodno Crossing back to Hellcat parking lot.
54 species (+4 other taxa)
Snow Goose  1    Continuing immature at Hellcat Bill Forward Pool
Canada Goose  29
Mute Swan  13    12 in main pans and another Hellcat
Blue-winged Teal  1    Bill Forward Pool Hellcat dike
Gadwall  4    North Pool from Hellcat dike
Mallard  8
American Black Duck  83
Northern Pintail  5    Hellcat Bill Forward Pool
Green-winged Teal  20    Bill Forward Pool
White-winged Scoter  50    Lot 7
Wild Turkey  4    Just outside refuge entrance when I arrived about 7:15 am.
Horned Grebe  1    Lot 7
Rock Pigeon (Feral Pigeon)  3
Mourning Dove  3
Black-bellied Plover  1    Calling several times at Lot 1 boat ramp
Killdeer  2    One in middle of Lot 1 parking lot and another on mud in pans
Semipalmated Sandpiper  2    Pans
Greater Yellowlegs  19
Lesser Yellowlegs  1    Standing next to a Greater Yellowlegs at Lot 1 boat ramp. Good comparison of body size and bill length.
Ring-billed Gull  3    Lot 7
Herring Gull  36
Great Black-backed Gull  4    Emerson Rocks Lot 7
Common Loon  1    Lot 7 Emerson Rocks
Northern Gannet  1    We were surprised to see an adult Northern Gannet on the beach at Lot 7. The Gannet was able to walk (waddle) but since it is so unusual to see on land, perhaps it was sick. No obvious injuries seen.
Double-crested Cormorant  3
Great Blue Heron  5
Great Egret  27
Northern Harrier  1
Cooper’s Hawk  2    1 large female chasing 3 crows roadside. At times it perched giving good looks at size similar to the crows. Another smaller Coopers Hawk seen perched not too far away but obviously smaller than the other Cooper’s Hawk.
Bald Eagle  1    Adult on Osprey platform  Lot 1 boat ramp
Downy Woodpecker  4
Northern Flicker (Yellow-shafted)  1
Peregrine Falcon  1    Flying over Hellcat parking lot
falcon sp.  1    A fast falcon flew over us at Hellcat parking lot but only a couple of us got a brief look. Probably a Merlin.
Blue Jay  4
American Crow  4    1 at Lot 1 and 3 being harassed by a large Cooper’s Hawk roadside
Black-capped Chickadee  6
Ruby-crowned Kinglet  2    Hellcat boardwalk marsh trail
Golden-crowned Kinglet  5    Hellcat boardwalk trail toward old blind
White-breasted Nuthatch  1
Marsh Wren  1    Scolding calls at old blind area at end of Hellcat boardwalk marsh trail
Carolina Wren  1
European Starling  25    On telephone wires outside refuge entrance
Gray Catbird  1
Northern Mockingbird  2
American Robin  9
thrush sp.  1    Seen quickly by leader Dave Williams along Hellcat marsh boardwalk trail, but we could not relocate
House Sparrow  2    By entrance to refuge
House Finch  2    Wardens
American Goldfinch  4
White-throated Sparrow  3
Savannah Sparrow  4    Wardens
Song Sparrow  10
Eastern Towhee  1
sparrow sp.  2    Possibly Saltmarsh or Nelson’s Sparrow at edge of marsh opposite Lot 1 boat ramp.
blackbird sp.  30    Flock flying at Lot 1. Probably Red Winged Blackbirds but not sure
Blackpoll Warbler  2
Yellow-rumped Warbler (Myrtle)  25
View this checklist online at https://ebird.org/checklist/S96091422

Member Webinar August 13: The Art and Craft of Shorebird Identification with Lisa Schibley

Member Webinar August 13: The Art and Craft of Shorebird Identification with Lisa Schibley Shorebirds are among the most fascinating and diverse groups of birds, but identifying them can sometimes feel overwhelming.  What key field [...]

Member Webinar September 16: Birds at Rest: The Behavior and Ecology of Avian Sleep with Roger Pasquier

Member Webinar September 16: Birds at Rest: The Behavior and Ecology of Avian Sleep with Roger Pasquier Everybody enjoys watching birds during the daytime, but what do they do at night, when they seem to [...]

Member Webinar August 13: The Art and Craft of Shorebird Identification with Lisa Schibley

Member Webinar August 13: The Art and Craft of Shorebird Identification with Lisa Schibley Shorebirds are among the most fascinating and diverse groups of birds, but identifying them can sometimes feel overwhelming.  What key field [...]

Member Webinar September 16: Birds at Rest: The Behavior and Ecology of Avian Sleep with Roger Pasquier

Member Webinar September 16: Birds at Rest: The Behavior and Ecology of Avian Sleep with Roger Pasquier Everybody enjoys watching birds during the daytime, but what do they do at night, when they seem to [...]

Member Webinar August 13: The Art and Craft of Shorebird Identification with Lisa Schibley

Member Webinar August 13: The Art and Craft of Shorebird Identification with Lisa Schibley Shorebirds are among the most fascinating and diverse groups of birds, but identifying them can sometimes feel overwhelming.  What key field [...]

Member Webinar September 16: Birds at Rest: The Behavior and Ecology of Avian Sleep with Roger Pasquier

Member Webinar September 16: Birds at Rest: The Behavior and Ecology of Avian Sleep with Roger Pasquier Everybody enjoys watching birds during the daytime, but what do they do at night, when they seem to [...]

News Categories

Upcoming Field Trips

Great Meadows NWR, Concord

Concord - Great Meadows Concord Unit, Entrance Rd, Concord, MA, United States

We will walk easy trails looking for shorebirds, ducks, wading birds, rails, and nesting songbirds. This is also a great time to look for butterflies and other interesting insects.  Note that entrance fee or pass is required. Loaner binoculars available; please email trip leader to reserve a pair!

Whale and Seabird watching trip out of Gloucester

Gloucester - 7 Seas Whale Watch 63 Rogers Street, 7 Seas Wharf, Gloucester, MA, United States

The BBC is partnering with the 7 Seas Whale Watching Tour Company to travel to Stellwagen Bank - primary feeding grounds for the Humpback Whale, the endangered Right Whale, and other marine wildlife, including seabirds. With the help of onboard naturalists, we will search for seabirds - storm petrals, shearwaters, gulls and terns, gannets, and [...]

An Oasis for Birds at Belle Isle Marsh

East Boston - Belle Isle Parking Lot 1399 Bennington Street, Boston, MA, United States

Join DCR park staff for a relaxed, one-mile bird walk through flat, easy terrain at this Massachusetts State Reservation and birding hot spot. In July, At Belle Isle and at additional nearby locations—we’ll search for osprey, flocks of egrets, piping plover, migrating shorebirds, meadow and grassland nesting birds. Participants are responsible for their own transportation [...]

Charles River Path in Waltham

Waltham - Charles River Shaws Supermarket 130 River Street, Waltham, MA, United States

Stroll along an easy to walk paved path. Possible sightings include Wood Ducks, Yellow Warbler, Warbling Vireo, and Great Blue Heron. Cosponsored with Waltham :Land Trust and Menotomy Bird Club.

Go to Top