Greenbriar/Hodges Village Dam/Wells State Park (5/13)

Mom and I spent Mother's Day exploring central MA. We started the morning at Greenbriar Park in Oxford. We chose to walk our normal route: around the pond and then a short distance up the trail towards Hodges Village Dam.

During the hike we had some nice birds. The first one attracted us with its song. We couldn't immediately find it but after some diligence we finally spotted it: a House Wren. Its amazing that a bird so small can make such a loud noise (and that it can intimidate the other birds).

We continued on around the pond. The whole area was packed with Yellow Warblers. We saw and heard them everywhere. There was also a few Common Yellowthroats and a Redstart or two. As we walked through the woods, we found a Black and White Warbler and one Brown Creeper.

We hiked deeper into the woods to the area where we've had Waterthrushes in the past but we didn't hear one on this trip. So, we started back and had one last good bird, a Blue-wing Warbler, as we were about to leave the park. Also, by this time all the Wood Anemone had fully opened making for a great photo.

From there we made a short trip over to the dam. By this time it was late morning and the sun was out. Near the parking lot we heard the song of a Dark-eyed Junco. At their usual spot, we found plenty of Rough-wing Swallows. As my Mom and I looped around in an attempt to find some butterflies, my Dad spotted a pair of Black Swallowtails in the field. Surprisingly, they were very photogenic (usually these swallowtails don't stay still for more than a half second or so). As we were leaving the field, Mom spotted a pair of Brown Thrashers in the bushes. As we crossed the bridge we got a great look at a Great Blue Heron eating a fish. He really had to struggle to swallow it but it was worth it.

After lunch we headed over to Wells State Park hoping that the Rat Snakes would be out. Unfortunately we couldn't locate them in their normal tree. So, we decided to take a hike through the park and down the power lines. The forest flowers were really popping out. I found one I recognized (Starflower) and another that I didn't (Nodding Trillium). We finished the day hiking up the power lines listening to the calls of the Prairie Warbler.