It’s not very often these days that I get to say I did something completely new locally, but that was the case this morning. I went kayaking at Mongaup Falls Reservoir in Sullivan County. Last night I was flipping through the book Quiet Water New York by John Hayes & Alex Wilson, and I saw their write up for this location. I realized that in spite of how close it is, I somehow never kayaked there before.
It was a cool misty morning went I put in. The mist stopped quickly, but the morning stayed cloudy and pleasantly cool. I wouldn’t have minded a little more light for photos, but what can you do? It was a very birdy paddle; I had over 45 species, and it was really just a peaceful morning to be out. Notable species for me included Common Merganser, Red-breasted Nuthatch, and Magnolia Warbler. Merlin heard Purple Finch a couple of times, but that’s a bird I’ve never been very good at identifying by ear. Merlin also identified RED CROSSBILL several times. I kept missing it when it happened, but then I finally I heard something and looked at my phone and it said Red Crossbill. I kept listening, and even though Merlin was no longer picking it up, I was sure I was hearing a Red Crossbill doing its chipa-chipa-chipa call. I was scanning the treetops madly, but frustratingly, I never got a visual.
~A young Common Yellowthroat at Mongaup Falls Reservoir, 07/13/25.~~I was surprised to see this young Green Heron – the habitat didn’t seem quite right for it to me. I guess I was wrong about that – I saw several Green Herons during my kayak around the reservoir.~~I was less surprised to see this bird. Adult Bald Eagle at Mongaup Falls Reservoir, 07/13/25.~~More young birds. Barn Swallows at Mongaup Falls Reservoir, 07/13/25.~~I’m pretty sure this is an Eastern Wood Pewee (I thought I heard some slight vocalization which sounded Pewee-like). Mongaup Falls Reservoir, 07/13/25.~~Green Heron at Mongaup Falls Reservoir, 07/13/25.~~Another adult Bald Eagle at Mongaup Falls Reservoir, 07/13/25.~~And one final shot of the young Green Heron at Mongaup Falls Reservoir, 07/13/25.~
As we know, not much has been happening lately, so I was pretty happy to have some exciting birds to try for this morning. I went to Wallkill River National Wildlife Refuge’s Liberty Loop to try for the 2 WHITE IBISES that have been observed there in recent days. Fortunately the birds stuck around for me, and I was able to find them easily. I believe the only other time I’ve seen this species in our area was back in 2017, when Rob Stone found 5 of them at Wickham Lake.
~One of 2 young White Ibises at the Liberty Loop, 07/12/25.~~And here they are together – 2 White Ibises at the Liberty Loop, 07/12/25.~~One more ibis image. White Ibis at the Liberty Loop, 07/12/25~~This was another pleasant surprise – Peregrine Falcon at the Liberty Loop, 07/12/25. This looks like a young bird to me.~~This little dude was begging to have its photo taken. Chipmunk at the Loop, 07/12/25.~
To me, the summer doldrums of birding are in full swing right now. It was great to have a three day weekend and I got out to do a little birding each morning. And while just I enjoyed being out, there isn’t all that much to report. In fact photos were even difficult for me this weekend. Regardless, here’s some notes from the weekend, as well as the shots was able to get. .
On Friday, I followed up on a report for Ruffed Grouse at Sterling Forest first thing. I, unsurprisingly, did not have any luck with grouse, but I did pretty well with raptors for a relatively short visit, with 4 species (Broad-winged Hawk, Cooper’s Hawk, Turkey Vulture, and Bald Eagle.
Also on Friday morning, I checked on the Great Blue Heron rookery I discovered back in July of 2019 (off of route 6, just east of Woodbury Commons). Unfortunately, it looks like that rookery no longer exists.
On Saturday I walked the Liberty Loop again. Highlights include a pair of Least Sandpipers, a single Purple Martin, and a remarkable 31 Great Blue Herons in flight at one time.
On Sunday, I kayaked out at the Bashakill. My best bird was Least Bittern – I had a single bird fly across the channel in front of me, and another bird calling, deep in the vegetation. Other good birds included a Brown Thrasher flying across the Bash, and a Common Gallinule that I inadvertently flushed with my approach down the channel.
And finally, on a sad note, in spite of their best efforts, the Great Horned Owl owlet that I helped last weekend passed away at the Avian Wildlife Center. I know this is how it goes sometimes, but for some reason I was optimistic about that little dude.
~A young Red-winged Blackbird at the Bashakill, 07/06/25.~~Swamp Sparrow at the Liberty Loop, 07/05/25.~~Divebombing Song Sparrows at the Liberty Loop, 07/05/25.~~Red-winged Blackbird at the Liberty Loop, 07/05/25.~~One more young Red-winged Blackbird at the Bashakill, 07/06/25.~
At my first stop this morning, I was pleasantly surprised to find two young Barred Owls. They were being mobbed by Common Grackles, which is the only reason I found them.
For my second stop, I’d nearly forgotten about one of the best summer birding spots in Orange County: the Mongaup River Trail. It’s an easy hike that, as the name indicates, runs along the Mongaup River. I find that it’s not a great spot first thing in the morning because everything is still in dark shadows. I arrived around 9:00 am, and that seemed to be a good time to arrive. I was in some shade on the way out and mostly in sun on the way back. My first bird was a Pine Warbler, followed shortly by a high, calling Blackburnian Warbler. There were a good number Louisana Waterthrush, Ovenbirds, and Black-throated Green Warblers. I usually get Magnolia Warbler at this location, but did not today. I also had a single Northern Parula and an adult Bald Eagle.
On my way home, I took the long way and went through the Rio Dam area. I had a Red Fox cross the road in front of my car. They disappeared into the woods quicker than you can imagine! And, a little later I had a Winter Wren singing just off the road.
~Young Barred Owl in Orange County, NY 06/29/25.~~A Louisiana Waterthrush with a mouthful of insects. Mongaup River Trail, 06/29/25.~~Ovenbird at Mongaup River Trail, 06/29/25.~~Young Barred Owl in Orange County NY, 06/29/25.~~A Green Heron cuts a nice figure on a dead tree limb, 06/29/25.~
I walked Wallkill River National Wildlife Refuge’s Liberty Loop first thing this morning. It was mostly just the usuals, until I found an apparently distressed Great Horned Owl owlet perched on the ground, only about 20 feet off the trail. Last night Linda Scrima forwarded me a Facebook post where someone had found this same owlet the day before. So that meant the bird had been there for a full day already (the bird was not really on my radar – I figured it had been helped already). I let Linda know the bird was still there; she shared the contact information for The Avian Wildlife Center. I got in touch with Giselle (some readers may remember she helped me with Carson C. Waxwing back in 2020), and we made arrangements for her to come out and get the bird.
~Poor little dude. Great Horned Owl owlet at the Liberty Loop, 06/28/25.~
Linda joined me on the trail and we kept an eye on the bird until Giselle arrived. We made a quick plan to catch the bird, and it went pretty smoothly – Giselle really knows what she is doing. Upon initial examination, Giselle observed that the bird was underweight, but not emaciated. There were no obvious injuries, but Giselle did note that the bird’s eyes looked a little weird. We hustled back to Giselle’s car and she took the bird back to her place, where it will get the care that it needs. I will post an update on the bird when I hear something. For any readers who would like to donate to the Avian Wildlife Center, you can click here to do so. Thanks!
~Giselle begins her initial examination of the owlet. Liberty Loop, 06/28/25.~
So that was the excitement for the day! Otherwise, the loop was birdy and I observed over 50 species. The most interesting to me was over a dozen Great Blue Herons (it seems early for them to be congregating there already), a single Great Egret, and a single Greater Yellowlegs. Here’s a few photos from the morning. I’m also including a complete list of birds observed – I haven’t done that in a while.
~I was just telling some friends last night that sometime you can catch a glimpse of the Gray Catbird’s rufous under tail. Liberty Loop 06/28/25.~~Young Tree Swallow perched at the Liberty Loop, 06/28/25.~~Red-winged Blackbird striking a pose at the Liberty Loop, 06/28/25.~
I took my yearly hike out to Jupiter’s Boulder in Black Rock Forest to try for Ruffed Grouse. As with the last 6 years, I did not have any success with my target species . But, it was still a birdy and enjoyable hike. I hit the trail just after sunrise and covered around 5 miles. I observed a total of 35 species; all were expected species. Highlights included a low flyover of a Broad-winged Hawk while I relaxed on Jupiter’s Boulder, eating my Cliff Bar breakfast, and getting fantastic looks at an Acadian Flycatcher which was vocalizing nonstop with with its excellent call of “peeet-SAH!”.
~Looking up at an Acadian Flycatcher at Black Rock Forest, 06/21/25.~~Common Yellowthroat at Black Rock Forest, 06/21/25.~~Here I am at the waterfall near the beginning of the trail to Jupiter’s Boulder, Black Rock Forest, 06/21/25.~
This weekend I hiked out at Reservoir #3 in Port Jervis both mornings. My target bird was Ruffed Grouse, which I know is a total longshot, but I had to try. Yesterday I cut my hike short when I was just soaked through and had had enough. So I gave it another go this morning in the dry weather. Both mornings were quite birdy; I had 22 species yesterday in the rain, and 34 species this morning. Species were all expected; highlights for me included Blackburnian Warblers and an Acadian Flycatcher.
~Ovenbird at Reservoir #3, 06/08/25.~
I also spent some time at the Liberty Loop platform on Saturday. My best bird was a calling Least Bittern. I also enjoyed a couple of Green Herons which were spending some time around the platform, providing some photo ops.
~Green Heron coming right at me. Liberty Loop, 06/07/25.~~GRHE at Liberty Loop, 06/07/25.~~One more Green Heron shot from the Liberty Loop platform, 06/07/25.~~Black-and-white Warbler at Reservoir #3, 06/08/25.~
We’ve enjoyed some good and exciting birding in the area recently; my recent posts have reflected that. So this afternoon I’m just doing a little clean up and posting some of the shots which were also taken during that time. Migration is winding down now, and the exciting birding will probably be on hold for a little while; meanwhile we can change our focus to breeding birds, hiking, and just enjoying being out.
~American Goldfinch in the black dirt, o5/25/25.~~Grasshopper Sparrow in the black dirt, 05/25/25.~~Coyote in the black dirt, 06/01/25.~ ~Barn Swallow in the Black Dirt Region, 05/31/25.~~Cedar Waxwing at Port Orange Road, 05/25/25.~
I was hoping the heavy overnight rains would bring in some shorebirds to the area… little did I know what the day would have in store for us – it was truly a historic day of shorebirding in the area. My first stop in the black dirt set the tone – I had a remarkable 25 Ruddy Turnstones, 20 Dunlin, and over 100 Semipalmated Sandpipers. From there, the day just kept delivering – shorebirds seemed to be at every turn. The bird of the day was definitely RED KNOT. Bruce Nott lived up to his name and located the first of this species; eventually 7 individuals would be observed in Orange County (that I heard about: 6 in the black dirt, and one in Montgomery). In second place was a single RED-NECKED PHALAROPE, which was also located by Bruce.
~Semipalmated Sandpipers and Dunlin in flight. Black Dirt Region, 05/31/25.
I was all over the black dirt region today, and I personally tallied 12 different species of shorebirds for the day; here’s my list with approximate totals. Goodness knows how many actual individuals were in the county – I had birds that were too distant to identify as well as a couple of flocks flying over which are not included in these estimates.
Killdeer (18)
Semipalmated Plover (5)
Black-bellied Plover (9)
Least Sandpiper (4)
Semipalmated Sandpiper (600+)
Spotted Sandpiper (6)
White-rumped Sandpiper (2)
Short-billed Dowitcher (65+)
Dunlin (75+)
Ruddy Turnstone (100+)
RED KNOT (4)
RED-NECKED PHALAROPE (1)
~As we have grown to expect in our area, most shorebirds were quite distant. This was a nice close encounter with a flock of Semipalmated Sandpipers. Black Dirt Region, 05/31/25.~
Sullivan County had a great day too – I heard some reports as the day progressed. Click here for John Haas’ account of the day in Sullivan County on his blog, Bashakill Birder. These are the days we wait for and thoroughly enjoy when they do occur. What a day!
~Ruddy Turnstones, Semipalmated Sandpipers, and one Short-billed Dowitcher in flight. Black dirt region, 05/31/25.~~Who’s having fun? This guy. Here I am shorebirding in the rain, in the black dirt during an epic fallout on 05/31/25. Photo by Linda Scrima. ~ ~One of four Ruddy Turnstones that were close enough for photos. Black Dirt Region, 05/31/25.~~Semipalmated Sandpiper in the black dirt, 05/31/25.~~This is a terrible photo, but I had to include at least one RED KNOT photo. Black dirt 05/31/25.~
I was up and out early this morning. My first stop was Port Orange Road, where I enjoyed some productive birding. I took my time and birded the entire road; I had a total of 43 species, and I added three species to my Orange County year list (Acadian Flycatcher, Canada Warbler, and my target bird for the morning – MOURNING WARBLER).
Afterwards, I headed out to Wallkill River National Wildlife Refuge’s Liberty Loop, to see if I could finally catch up with the 7 BLACK-BELLIED WHISTLING DUCKS that have been reported there. Fortunately the birds continued, and not only that, they were in a good location, not too far from the trail, so I enjoyed really great looks and got some decent photos. The birds’ preferred area at the refuge is about 300 yards or so south of the NY border, just into Sussex County NJ.
~Black-bellied Whistling Ducks at the Liberty Loop, 05/25/25.~~These guys spent most of their time with their heads under water – I was happy to get some good timing and get all three with their heads up. BBWDs at the Liberty Loop, 05/25/25.~~Black-bellied Whistling Ducks at Wallkill River National Wildlife Refuge; Liberty Loop, 05/25/25.~
