Orange Birding

Sunday Shots, 11/15/26

It was a pretty productive weekend of birding for me. On Saturday morning I got out of the house a little bit late; I made a brief stop at Glenmere Lake on my way up to Mount Peter Hawkwatch. I found a single, distant loon that I just couldn’t put my finger on. It was holding its bill up to some extent (which would indicate Red-throated), but the bird’s head at that distance and in the early morning light seemed too substantial. I let Jeanne Cimorelli know and she stopped by and got better looks and was able to positively ID the bird as a Red-throated Loon.

Mount Peter was pretty good on Saturday, and I tallied nearly 70 migrating raptors. Turkey Vultures were once again the most numerous migrants, but I also had 20 Red-tailed Hawks, 10 Red-shouldered Hawks, and 6 Bald Eagles. Disappointingly, I had no luck with Golden Eagle. I’ve included my Hawkcount.org report at the bottom of this post.

~One of FIVE Red-throated Loons in the Hudson River at Cornwall Bay on 11/15/26.~

On Sunday morning, I followed up on Bruce Nott’s report of a Red-necked Grebe at Washington Lake from the day before. Fortunately, the bird stuck around overnight and I was able to see it. Alas, the bird was way too far out for photos, so I moved on to the Newburgh Waterfront. I didn’t have much action until I got to Cornwall Bay, where I found what ended up being a total of FIVE Red-throated Loons. I originally counted four, but Travis Rubio and Bruce Nott joined me and we ultimately had a high count of five.

I also went back to Mount Peter Hawkwatch early Sunday afternoon for an hour or so. It was the last official day of the season, and several other counters had also showed up in hopes of a good finale. Ken Witkowski was the official counter; he was joined by myself, Jeanne Cimorelli, Chuck Smith, Rick Hansen, and Tom Millard. When I left around 1:30, the day total for Red-tailed Hawks was over 60 and Red-shouldered Hawks had just hit 20. As of this writing, no Golden Eagle had been reported.

~There were plenty of American Robins around at Mt. Pete on Saturday, 11/14/26.~

~Always a favorite, Red-throated Loon at Cornwall Bay 11/15/26.~

Sunday Shots, 11/08/26

I had an enjoyable day at Mount Peter yesterday. It was ideal hawk watching weather in my opinion – cold and windy with heavy cloud cover. The sky was busy with plenty of songbird, geese, and local raptor action (Red-tailed hawks, Black and Turkey Vultures, and Bald Eagles). As for migrating raptors, I had a total of 39 for the day; 30 of which were Turkey Vultures. Four Bald Eagles, a Northern Harrier, a Sharpie, a couple of Red-tails, and a Peregrine Falcon made up the rest. I kept thinking that a Golden Eagle would be right around the corner, but unfortunately that wasn’t the case. Next Saturday is my last day at Mount Peter for the season; I hope I can finally pick up a Golden then. As always, I’ve included my Hawkcount.org report at the bottom of this post.

This morning I was having some car problems, so I had to cut my birding a little short. I had a couple of highlights, though – a Black Scoter at Glenmere Lake was a pleasant surprise, as was a Bonaparte’s Gull at Wickham Lake.

~Cedar Waxwing having a bad hair day at Mount Peter Hawkwatch, 11/07/26.~

~A couple of local Bald Eagles were monkeying around over the platform; it was really cool to watch and photograph. Mount Peter Hawkwatch, 11/07/26.~

~Black Scoter at Glenmere Lake, 11/08/26.~

~This was pretty crazy. I watched as a Common Raven seemed to be mimicking the moves of a Red-tailed Hawk. It started with matching kiting in the heavy winds. Mt. Peter Hawkwatch 11/07/26.~

~Followed by a matching quick descent. Mt. Peter Hawkwatch 11/07/26.~

~Coming out of the descent; Common Raven and Red-tailed Hawk at Mt. Pete 11/07/26.~

~And flying side by side. The Common Raven threw a few barrel rolls in just for kicks I think. Mount Peter Hawkwatch, 11/07/26.~

Sunday Shots, 11/01/26

It was a typical birding weekend for me – I spent Saturday up on Mount Peter counting hawks and then I hit a lot of the usual spots in southern Orange County on Sunday. I had a decent flight at Mount Peter on Saturday, with 49 migrating raptors counted. I was, of course, hoping for a Golden Eagle, but it wasn’t in the cards. You can see my Hawkcount.org report at the bottom of this post.

And then today, I enjoyed a pleasant, if unexciting, morning of birding. I didn’t have any exciting sitings, but the weather was fantastic and it was birdy enough to keep things interesting. My favorite moment was finding a Hermit Thrush in a bush along the road in the black dirt. Maybe next weekend there will be a little excitement – hopefully up on Mount Peter.

~Hermit Thrush in the black dirt, 11/02/26.~

~Cedar Waxwing at Mount Peter Hawkwatch, 10/31/26.~

~And and flock of Cedar Waxwings flying over the platform at Mount Pete, 10/31/26.~

~One lonely Canada Goose in the fog at Wickham Lake, 11/01/26.~

~Local Red-tailed Hawk at Mount Peter Hawkwatch, 10/31/26.~

Sunday Shots, 10/25/26

I tried a couple of lakes first thing this morning, hoping for some interesting waterfowl. It took a while because Wickham Lake was totally fogged in until nearly two hours after sunrise. It ultimately wasn’t worth the wait – the only waterfowl present were Mute Swans, a single Double-crested Cormorant, and a couple of Common Mergansers. While I waited for the fog to clear, I enjoyed birding the park; I had a pair of somewhat cooperative Palm Warblers and a less cooperative Ruby-crowned Kinglet.

~Palm Warbler at Wickham Lake, 10/25/26.~

The second lake I hit was Glenmere; it was a bust, so I headed to 6 1/2 Station Road Sanctuary. I took a birdy walk along the Heritage Trail, where I tallied 33 species. Highlights included a couple of Blue-winged Teals (my first of the year), a Rusty Blackbird, over a dozen Ring-billed Gulls, a bunch of Yellow-rumped Warblers, and a nice photo op with a Hooded Merganser. .

~Hooded Merganser at 6 1/2 Station Road Sanctuary, 10/25/26. I’m loving the feathers on the underwing of this bird.~

~Ruby-crowned Kinglet at Wickham Lake, 10/25/26.~

~Mute Swans during a foggy morning at Wickham Lake, 10/25/26~

~One more shot of the Hooded Merganser at 6 1/2 Station Road Sanctuary.~

Mount Peter Hawkwatch, 10/24/26

It was a very slow day at Mount Peter Hawkwatch today. The wind was from the northwest for the most part, but it was very weak, barely a breeze. I had a nice sky for it, with enough clouds to help find birds, but they just did not materialize. Some days are like that. Still, it was nice to be up on the mountain and outside all day. And, it was a decent day for smaller birds – highlights included Pine Siskins, Purple Finches, a Red-breasted Nuthatch, Yellow-rumped Warblers, and a Hermit Thrush. As usual, I’m including my Hawkcount.org report at the bottom of this post.

~Yellow-rumped Warbler with a snack. Mount Peter, 10/24/26.~

~A migrating adult Bald Eagle, Mount Peter Hawkwatch, 10/24/26.~

Sunday Shots, 10/18/26

After the great day I had yesterday, today was bound to be a bit of a letdown. In spite of a strong Birdcast report (see below), there was not all that much happening. I started with a couple of lakes – Glenmere and Wickham, but neither had any waterfowl on them outside of Canada Geese and a single Double-crested Cormorant at Wickham. I birded the black dirt briefly; there were plenty of American Pipits and the expected sparrows around, but not much else. I walked at Winding Waters; it was relatively birdy and I enjoyed sifting through sparrows (Song, Swamp, White-throated, Savannah, and a single Lincoln’s), and I also had 3 species of warbler (Palm, Blackpoll, and Yellow-rumped). Here are my images from the day.

~Yellow-rumped Warbler at Winding Waters Trail, 10/18/26.~

~Blackpoll Warbler at Winding Waters, 10/18/26.~

~White-tailed Deer at Wickham Lake, 10/18/26.~

~I’ve never seen such an angry looking Eastern Bluebird. Winding Waters Trail, 10/18/26.~

~Blackpoll Warbler at Winding Waters Trail, 10/18/26.~

Excellent Day, 10/17/26

Wow, what a day. I got out a little bit early to do some birding before heading up to Mount Peter to count hawks. My first stop was Glenmere Lake; I wasn’t there for more than 30 seconds when a GREATER WHITE-FRONTED GOOSE swam into my binocular view. I put the word out and then headed over to Wickham Lake, where I was able to locate (3) SURF SCOTERS. Again, I put the word out, but unfortunately the birds flew not long after I first saw them. Before I left to head up to the mountain, I saw an interesting bird fly in and land on the lake. It was a Brant! I was hoping for Brant to flyover at Mt. Peter today, but I wasn’t expecting to see one land.

At Mount Peter we had a fantastic flight. Kyle Knapp visited for a little while early, and then Travis Rubio and Jeanne Cimorelli joined me a little bit later and were a great help. For the day we tallied a total of 627 migrating raptors. Over 450 of them were Turkey Vultures – they just seemed to be streaming through non-stop all day long. Other highlights included good numbers for many species: we had 22 Bald Eagles, 10 Northern Harriers, 89 Sharp-shinned Hawks, and 15 Red-shouldered Hawks. Non-raptor activity was pretty exciting too. We had over 70 skeins of Canada Geese fly over; we counted over 2,300 individuals! We had a single skein of Brant, and a couple of Common Loons fly over as well. It was a long, cold, windy day up on the mountain, but it was very rewarding. As usual, I’ve included my Hawkcount.org report at the bottom of this post.

~I wish this was the kind of looks we were getting at Mt. Peter today, lol. I took this in the black dirt on Thursday after work, 10/15/26.~

~Greater White-fronted Goose at Glenmere Lake, 10/17/26.~

~Surf Scoters at Wickham Lake, 10/17/26.~

~One of 22 migrating Bald Eagles! Plus we had another 8 or so that headed north and weren’t counted! It was quite a day for Bald Eagles. Mt. Peter Hawkwatach, 10/17/26.~

Mount Peter Hawkwatch, 10/10/26

First thing this morning, I took a quick cruise through the black dirt. The highlight was a dozen plovers flying over – my Merlin app indicated both American Golden Plover and Black-bellied Plovers were calling. Afterwards, I headed up to Mount Peter for the day’s hawkwatch. Unfortunately it was a slow flight, with only 23 migrating raptors counted. Still, it was enjoyable – Kyle Knapp visited for a good while; it was good to catch up with him, and there were plenty of skeins of Canada Geese coming through to keep our attention. We kept hoping for a skein of Brant, but it was not to be. We did have a couple skeins of Double-crested Cormorants, which was nice. As usual, I’ve included my Hawkcount.org report at the bottom of this post.

~Turkey Vulture up close and personal at Mt. Peter Hawkwatch, 10/10/26.

~Savannah Sparrow in the black dirt, 10/10/26.~

~A local Red-tailed Hawk does a flyby over the platform at Mount Peter Hawkwatch, 10/10/26.~

Sunday Shots, 10/04/26

It was an enjoyable weekend of birding for me. On Saturday I counted up at Mount Peter Hawkwatch. It was a slow day for migrating raptors, but I still enjoyed the day. I had over two dozen species outside of migrating raptors, and I also had some really nice and interested/interesting visitors. I’ve included my Hawkcount.org report at the bottom of this post.

Then, this morning, I walked the full Winding Waters loop at Wallkill River National Wildlife Refuge. It was a very birdy walk where I tallied over 40 species observed. Sparrows ruled the day, with a single Field Sparrow, a handful of Dark-eyed Juncos, and plenty of Song, Swamp, Lincoln’s, White-throated, and Savannah sparrows. Other birds of note included a Sandhill Crane flyover (2 birds), a couple of Rose-breasted Grosbeaks, several Golden-crowned Kinglets, a single Ruby-crowned Kinglet, a couple of Pine Warblers, and three Palm Warblers. The Palm Warblers were species #200 in Orange County for the year; it always feels good to reach that milestone.

~Always a favorite – Lincoln’s Sparrow at Winding Waters Trail, 10/04/26.~

~Black-throated Green Warbler with some pleasant fall foliage in the background at Mount Peter Hawkwatch 10/03/26.~

~A quick stop by the Liberty Loop after Winding Waters yielded this Palm Warbler shot, 10/04/26.~

~It was pretty cool to see this Great Blue Heron standing in the white water in the Wallkill River along the north end of the trail.~

~A local Red-tailed Hawk at Mount Peter Hawkwatch, 10/03/26.~

~Blue-headed Vireo at Mount Peter Hawkwatch, 10/03/26.~

Sunday Shots, 09/27/26

This weekend’s nor’easter foiled my scheduled plans. I was supposed to go on a fishing trip with my work on Saturday and then I was going to count at Mount Peter Hawkwatch on Sunday. Both didn’t happen due to the weather. Instead, I birded the black dirt both mornings, hoping that the storm would bring in something exciting. That didn’t happen, but the birding was still pretty good. Of note, I got my first good look at an American Pipit and even had a small flock flying in the distance. I got my first Lincoln’s Sparrow of the year. I also did really well with raptors. It made me think about how lucky we are to have access to so many raptors in our area; sometimes I think I take it for granted. During my travels between the two days, I had 11 species of raptors: Black Vulture, Turkey Vulture, Cooper’s Hawk, Sharp-shinned Hawk, Northern Harrier, Bald Eagle, Red-shouldered Hawk, Red-tailed Hawk, American Kestrel, Peregrine Falcon, and Barred Owl.