March Wrap-up

After a whole month with no weekly updates, I realize it’s probably more realistic to keep it to monthly updates and any major highlights. It was a busy month and the 5MR has been producing some great birds including lots of great waterfowl and some of the usual early migrants. Efforts to explore areas within walking distance from the home-front has yielded some awesome displays…Here are some of the additions and highlights for March.

Plaistow Circle

The 64 species seen in my 5MR make up 41.2% of the species seen in Essex County, MA during the month of March (155). Despite the county total continuously rising I’ve been able to keep raising my % of birds seen within the county each month thus far. Additionally, 12 new species were added to the year total.

Jan – 57/147 = 38.7%
Feb – 51/129 = 39.5%
Mar – 64/155 = 41.2%

To date I have recorded 76 species in the 5MR.


The overall theme early on in the month seemed to revolve around raptors. Eagles, owls and hawks were quite abundant in my little corner of the Merrimack Valley, but as more distractions moved their way north, things shifted to early migrants and waterfowl.

Barred Owls in particular continue to be EVERYWHERE. So much so that even on a shitty rainy day, on a day that I was guaranteed not to leave the house, I look out the window and find this Barred Owl staring back at me in the backyard!

Barred owl

One day in particular showed a nice influx of waterfowl on the Merrimack River including: Northern Shoveler, American Wigeon, Barrow’s Goldeneye, hundreds of Ring-necked Duck, and 70+ Wood Ducks together among the usual suspects.

Northern shoveler

Barrow's Goldeneye

Well I finally got eastern Screech Owl in my Plaistow circle. Screeches are pretty common in both Essex County and Rockingham County but bad timing and lack of effort is probably to blame.

Eastern screech owls

One of the best highlights has been the American Woodcock show from the backyard. Since mid March I’ve gone outside every night at 7:20pm and have Seen multiple displaying birds literally over my head! Sometimes zipping by at eye-level as we stood on the back doorstep. This photo below was just outside of the 5MR at a friends house, but I had to share it!

American Woodcock

Another great backyard bird was a beautiful subadult Northern Goshawk, seen perched briefly before being chased off by a gang of crows. As is usually the case with these badasses, the bird was too quick for my camera.

One of the resident Red-shouldered Hawks has been seen most days in the wetlands next to our complex, and I was happy to see him enjoying an all-too-abundant food source (chipmunk).

The most disappointing part of the month were the lack of good gulls! Scoping out distant gulls in the rain and snow is only so rewarding when they’re all Herring Gulls…

At any rate, I’m pleasantly surprised with what I’ve been able to turn up in the 5MR so far and things should only improve from here. Bring on the migrants!

Canada Goose
Mute Swan
Wood Duck +
Northern Shoveler +
American Wigeon +
Mallard
American Black Duck
Green-winged Teal +
Canvasback
Ring-necked Duck
Greater Scaup
Lesser Scaup
Bufflehead
Common Goldeneye
Barrow’s Goldeneye
Hooded Merganser
Common Merganser
Red-breasted Merganser
Wild Turkey
Rock Pigeon
Mourning Dove
Killdeer +
American Woodcock +
Ring-billed Gull
Herring Gull
Iceland Gull
Great Black-backed Gull
Great Blue Heron +
Turkey Vulture
Northern Harrier
Sharp-shinned Hawk
Cooper’s Hawk
Northern Goshawk +
Bald Eagle
Red-shouldered Hawk
Red-tailed Hawk
Eastern Screech-Owl +
Great Horned Owl
Barred Owl

Red-bellied Woodpecker
Downy Woodpecker
Hairy Woodpecker
Pileated Woodpecker
Northern Flicker
American Kestrel
Eastern Phoebe +
Blue Jay
American Crow
Fish Crow +
Common Raven
Black-capped Chickadee
Tufted Titmouse
White-breasted Nuthatch
Brown Creeper
Winter Wren
Carolina Wren
Golden-crowned Kinglet
Eastern Bluebird
American Robin
Northern Mockingbird
European Starling
Cedar Waxwing
Evening Grosbeak
House Finch
Common Redpoll
American Goldfinch
American Tree Sparrow
Dark-eyed Junco
White-throated Sparrow
Song Sparrow
Swamp Sparrow
Red-winged Blackbird
Brown-headed Cowbird
Common Grackle +
Northern Cardinal
House Sparrow

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Contact me at kyle.wilmarth[at]gmail.com