Guide

Listen forBirds

Bobolinks at the Fort River Division's accessible trail

May to July

Bobolinks fly up from South America and arrive on Massachusetts grassland breeding grounds in the first week of May. The males are black with a yellow crown and white on the wings and rump, and they sing a long, bubbly song from fenceposts or while hovering over the grass; the US Fish and Wildlife Service lists bobolink among the birds of the Fort River Division of the Silvio O. Conte National Fish and Wildlife Refuge, whose fully accessible trail passes through grassland.

Why this time of year

MassWildlife says bobolinks arrive on Massachusetts breeding grounds in the first week of May, and the main nesting period runs from late May to mid-July. The refuge lists bobolink among the birds of its Fort River Division, which runs through grassland on its way to upland forest.

How to notice it

  1. Walk the Fort River Birding and Nature Trail and stop where it passes open grassland; scan the tops of tall grass stems and any posts.
  2. Look for a black bird with a yellow crown and bright white patches on its wings and rump.
  3. Listen for a long string of bubbly notes, and watch for the male hovering above the grass as he sings.
  4. Stay on the trail. Bobolinks nest on the ground in the grass, and the nests are almost impossible to see.

Try this with kids: Close your eyes and listen. Can you hum back the bubbly song? Then try to find the bird that is singing it.

Sources

  • fws.govUSFWS (landowner), read 2026-11-10: "The 293-acre Fort River Division, located in Hadley, Massachusetts"; "A one-mile long, fully-accessible natural trail is located at the Fort River division." "The trail is open to the public from sun-up to sun down, year round." Habitat hardwood forest, floodplain forest and grasslands; birds listed include bobolink, tree swallow, American woodcock, barn swallow. Trail address 69 Moody Bridge Road.
  • fws.govUSFWS, read 2026-11-10: "The mile-long, fully accessible trail at Fort River" (listed 1.18 miles); it "provides important habitat for fish, grassland birds" and "meanders through a series of successional habitats from grasslands to upland forest." All refuge hiking areas open year-round from one half hour before sunrise to one half hour after sunset. South Maple Street intersection with Moody Bridge Road closed to through traffic; use Bay Road.
  • web.archive.orgMassWildlife Natural Heritage species page (Wayback 2025-09-02; live mass.gov 403), read 2026-11-10: "Bobolinks arrive to their grassland breeding grounds in Massachusetts during the first week of May"; female weaves a nest of dead grasses on the ground; primary nesting period "(late May-mid-July)"; male song "a long string of bubbly notes" from a bird that "perches on fenceposts or hovers above the grassland"; male black with yellow crown and white wings and rump patch; winters in the pampas of South America.
  • birdobserver.orgBird Observer (Massachusetts birding journal; SECONDARY), Joshua Rose, June 1 2025, read 2026-11-10: trail is "a fully accessible nature trail" with "sections of boardwalk raised above the floodplain and other often-wet areas"; Bobolink and Eastern Meadowlark nest in the hayfields along Moody Bridge Road.

Checked against these sources on November 10, 2026.

In the guide for May, June, July

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