I swung around to the retention pond along Green Pond Road and noticed a Double-crested Cormorant among the Canada Geese.
While getting some photos of the cormorant, I noticed a smaller bird next to it. That smaller bird turned out to be a Red-necked Phalarope!
Soon after, it took flight and flew around the pond but thankfully landed back inside.
After the initial shock, I sent out a text to the local Rare Bird Alert. As I was texting, the Bald Eagle in the rear pond took off and sent the birds flying in all directions, including the phalarope.
After searching and realizing that the phalarope had definitely left the pond, I decided to go check the flooded field area. Adam Miller had just arrived when I refound the bird on the right side of 'the island'. Eventually, it moved over to the left side where it spent the rest of the day, allowing many birders to get to see it. It was the 5th record for Green Pond and the 12th for Northampton County.
Eventually, I headed over to the fairly new Regency Boulevard retention ponds along Route 512, south of Bath, to see if the male Ruddy Duck reported by Craig Becker the day before was still there. I walked over to the south pond and easily found the male with its chestnut body and bright blue bill. The size of these two fairly large ponds seem to have some good potential for waterfowl and shorebirds in the future.
I stopped back at Green Pond to see if the phalarope was still there and knew it was when I saw several birders looking at it through their scopes. I grabbed a few more photos of it and watched it until it was too dark to see.
