Uncategorized – Orange Birding

Mt. Peter Hawkwatch, 10/12/24

Today I enjoyed a nice day at Mount Peter Hawkwatch. It was sunny and relatively warm, but winds were strong and mostly from the Northwest, which helped carry a decent flight of 65 migrating raptors. Kyle Knapp, Silas Wareham, and Mario Meier all visited and helped find birds in a mostly blue sky. Shout out to Kyle who spent a good amount of time at the watch and picked up many birds for me.

In addition to raptors, Canada Geese were moving through pretty well also. I sort of wasn’t expecting a good goose flight, so I didn’t keep count, but I had at least 15 skeins fly over. As always, I’ve included my Hawkwatch.org report at the bottom of this post.

~A Pileated Woodpecker darts over the Hawkwatch at Mount Peter, 10/12/24.~

~Topside Turkey Vulture at Mt. Peter, 10/12/24.~

~There weren’t many song bird photo ops today. Cedar Waxwing at Mount Peter Hawkwatch, 10/12/24.~

Sunday Shots, 10/06/24

As I did last Sunday, early this morning I walked Wallkill River National Wildlife Refuge’s Winding Waters Trail. It was a chilly, foggy start, but then it got beautifully cool and sunny. I have to say, that trail is extremely birdy right now. I walked the entire loop; I had a total of 41 species and who-knows-how-many individuals. There were birds present nearly every step of my walk today. Sparrows were far and away the most numerous, especially White-throated Sparrows. Additional sparrow species included Song, Swamp, Lincoln’s, and Dark-eyed Juncos. My best birds of the day included a couple of Tennessee Warblers and a single Nashville Warbler.

~Nashville Warbler at Winding Waters Trail, 10/06/24.~

~Tennessee Warbler at Winding Waters, 10/06/24.~

~Yellow-rumped Warbler at Mount Peter Hawkwatch, 10/05/24.~

~A male Northern Cardinal at Mount Peter Hawkwatch, 10/05/24.~

~Lincoln’s Sparrow at Winding Waters Trail, 10/06/24.~

Mt. Peter Hawkwatch, 10/05/24

I was optimistic going into today’s Hawkwatch; not many hawks seemed to have moved through this week, and winds were forecasted out of the north, so I was hoping for a good flight. I was feeling good after the first two hours of the watch – I had tallied 25 migrating raptors already. Unfortunately, over the next four hours I was only able to add 18 additional birds for a total of 43 migrants for the day. Not the day I’d hoped for, but still, not too bad. As always, I’ve included my Hawkcount.org report at the bottom of this post.

~Cooper’s Hawk coming in hot! Mount Peter Hawkwatch 10/05/24.~

~And when it’s possible, I alway like to include the obligatory Turkey Vulture shot, Mt. Pete 10/05/24.~

~The first bird of the day, an Osprey shot through some low cloud cover. Mount Peter Hawkwatch 10/05/24.~

Sunday Shots, 09/15/24

Outside of my day at Mount Peter Hawkwatch yesterday, I didn’t do all that much birding this weekend. I cruised the black dirt both mornings, hoping for shorebirds. I didn’t have any luck with my targets, but I was able to get some nice Savannah Sparrow and Palm Warbler shots in the early morning light.

I looked back at the last few years, and typically we would still have some shorebirds in the black dirt (American Golden and Black-bellied Plovers and Buff Breasted Sandpipers), but the only shorebirds I was able to locate this weekend were Killdeer, a single Greater Yellowlegs, a single Spotted Sandpiper, and a single Wilson’s Snipe.

Sunday Shots 06/11/23: Killdeer of All Ages

Aside from my hike at Black Rock Forest, I seemed to find Killdeer everywhere I birded this weekend. Many are working on their second clutch of the season. Meanwhile, the young Killdeer from the first clutch now have the appearance of clumsy teenagers; not quite adult size with a very pathetic looking tail, lol. Here’s a few shots from the weekend, with Killdeer ages ranging from eggs in the nest to the adult watching over.

~Ulster County Killdeer chick, 06/10/23.~

~Another puffball in Ulster County, 06/10/23.~

~Adult Killdeer with eggs on the nest. I took this shot through a fence, using my car as a blind. Orange County 06/11/23.~

~A young Killdeer in Orange County, 06/11/23. To me, at this age they look like awkward teenagers.~

Sunday Shots, 02/19/23

My best birding of the weekend came on Saturday afternoon. I finally went to the Newburgh Waterfront at the most productive time of the day, only to find it completely dead. I looked across the river to Beacon and saw that there were many gulls present there. I headed over, figuring the birds would cross the river to Newburgh while I was driving. Fortunately, they didn’t; as a matter of fact the birds stayed at the Beacon Waterfront until when I left just before sunset. I had a total of (5) gull species for the afternoon; in addition to the expected three species (Ring-billed, Herring, & Great Black-backed), I was able to locate a young Iceland Gull and a young Lesser Black-backed Gull. The LBBG was particularly satisfying for a couple of reasons: 1. It’s a bird I somehow missed in 2022, and 2. the LBBG is not the easiest bird to pick out of the crowd.

~A single Iceland Gull among a bunch of Herring Gulls. It’s the well illuminated all-white gull about 6 or 7 gulls from the right. Beacon Waterfront, 02/18/23.~

~Lesser Black-backed Gull, Beacon NY 02/18/23. It’s the bird on the far left, notice the dark mantle and its size: it is slightly smaller than the Herring Gulls.~

Other good birds on Saturday included a pair of Snow Buntings in the black dirt and my first Common Goldeneye (Wickham Lake) and Merlin (BDR) in Orange County 2023.

Sunday was mostly uneventful. First thing, I birded 6 1/2 Station Road Sanctuary for the first time in ages. It was quite birdy and I was pleased with 27 species in just under an hour of birding. Afterwards, I cruised the black dirt and it was pretty quiet. I found several larger flocks of Canada Geese; I enjoyed sorting through them, but didn’t find any additional species.

~I’m not sure I’ve ever seen a Horned Lark perch off the ground. This individual perched on this old corn stalk long enough to grab a shote. Black Dirt Region 02/18/23.~

~One of two Snow Buntings I had in the black dirt on Saturday, 0218/23.~

~House Finch in the black dirt, 02/18/23.~

~White-throated Sparrow at 6 1/2 Station Road Sanctuary, 02/19/23.~

A Good Weekend, 11/13/22

We had some weather move in this weekend, and along with it came some good birds:

WICKHAM LAKE: First thing Saturday morning, I met up with Kyle Knapp and we had 15(!) HORNED GREBES on the lake. We had a spectacular photo op as the birds came right to us… until afterwards when I went to look at my shots and the back of my camera read “NO MEMORY CARD”. Ugh! I was initially a little sick about it, but I got over it. I went back in the evening to try for them again; no magical close up opportunity, but I did document the birds. On Sunday morning, Kyle Knapp had 22(!) Bonaparte’s Gulls over the lake. I arrived a little bit later (after spending time at the Hudson River), and one Bonaparte’s remained. As did one Horned Grebe. New birds included 5 Lesser Scaup, a pile of Buffleheads, and a single Ruddy Duck. I also tried Greenwood Lake early on Saturday morning; I had one single duck, a very accommodating Bufflehead – see pic below.

~14 of the 15 Horned Grebes at Wickham Lake on Saturday, 11/13/22.~

~Female Bufflehead at Greenwood Lake, 11/12/22.~

HUDSON RIVER: I went to the river first thing this morning. My first good find was 6 Bonaparte’s Gulls. They were distant, but nice to see. The highlight, however, was a single Brant associating with a flock of Canada Geese just south of the boat launch. It was my first Brant of the year in Orange County, and the bird was close enough to get some decent photos.

~One Brant on the Hudson River near the Newburgh boat launch, 11/13/22. I was pretty darn happy to get this bird – I’m a huge fan of Brant, and I hadn’t had them in Orange County yet this year.~

~2 of the 6 very distant Bonaparte’s Gulls on the Hudson River this morning, 11/13/22.~

MOUNT PETER HAWKWATCH: The season wraps up this Tuesday, so Saturday was my last day of the year counting. I thought I had a possible Golden Eagle, but upon review of the photos and help from John Haas, the bird was an immature Bald Eagle. That said, my final day was a pretty good one. Highlights included 5 migrating Bald Eagles, 18 Red-tailed Hawks, and I was joined by Hawkwatch Leader, Judy Cinquina. I didn’t get to spend much time with Judy this season, so I really enjoyed our time. As usual, you can see my report at the bottom of this post.

BLACK DIRT: I only got out to the black dirt region one time this weekend, but it was a goody! Loads of Horned Larks have moved in. A good number of American Pipits are still around. Add about a dozen SNOW BUNTINGS and a single LAPLAND LONGSPUR, and you’ve got some darn good black dirt birding.

~Turkey Vulture at Wickham Lake, 11/13/22.~

~Ring-billed Gulls on Wickham Lake, Saturday evening 11/12/22.~

~Another shot of the Brant on the Hudson River, 11/13/22.!

Shorebirds and Sharpies, 10/15/22

I woke up early this morning and birded the black dirt before heading to Mt. Peter, where I was scheduled to be the official counter. It was a gorgeous morning, and I was happy just to be out and about and not working. I didn’t have high expectations, so I was especially happy to find another nice collection of shorebirds. In one field I had loads of Killdeer, a Wilson’s Snipe, a Pectoral Sandpiper, and a BUFF-BREASTED SANDPIPER. The birds were close, the light was nice; it was a lovely start to my Saturday.

~Ahhhh, beautiful bird. Buff-breasted Sandpiper in the black dirt, 10/15/22.~

~Buff-breasted Sandpiper with a blurry Pectoral Sandpiper in the background. Black dir, 10/15/22.~

~Pectoral Sandpiper, this time in focus. Black dirt 10/15/22.~

~Wilson’s Snipe in the black dirt, 10/15/22.~

Afterwards, I headed up to Mt. Peter to spend the day counting hawks on the mountain. It was an interesting flight today; I don’t know if it was due to the a substantial south wind we had today, but nearly all the migrating raptors I counted today were low birds, just above the treetops. I had a modest 30 migrants today, 20 of which where Sharp-shinned Hawks. As usual, I’ve included my Hawkcount report below.

~One of the 20 Sharp-shinned Hawks counted today at Mt. Peter Hawkwatch, 10/15/22.~

Maine 2022 Teaser & Hawkwatch 10/01/22

Tricia and I returned on Friday night from a week’s vacation in Maine. We spent 4 days on Monhegan Island and the rest of the week in the Rockland area. Monhegan Island is a birding experience unlike any other; I look forward to getting through my nearly 1,900 photos and putting together a post. For now, here’s a photo of arguably of the most numerous songbirds I observed on the island: Red-breasted Nuthatch.

~Red-breasted Nuthatch on Monhegan Island, 0/25/22.~

Meanwhile, I was the official counter at Mount Peter Hawkwatch today. It was raining when I headed out, and when I arrived at the mountain, it was totally fogged in. I did some local birding and enjoyed a flock of 70 or so American Pipits in the black dirt. I went back to Mt. Peter just before noon a it was still socked in. I birded Wickham Lake, and then went back to finally start the watch at 1:30.

The flight wasn’t substantial, but I was happy to get some good variety, with 8 species of migrating raptors. I’ve included my HawkCount report below.

Black Rock Forest, 03/27/22

Well, my good luck continued for another day. This morning I headed to Black Rock Forest to try for the Red Crossbills that have been reported there recently. I enjoyed the 3 mile hike to Tamarack Pond, in spite of the relatively cold and windy conditions. I didn’t have many birds until I got to the area of the pond, where there were plenty of birds, some of them really good, including a couple of Fox Sparrows, a Red-breasted Nuthatch, and a Brown Creeper.

~One of the many Dark-eyed Juncos at Black Rock Forest, near Tamarack Pond, 03/27/22.~

But, it took over two hours of looking and listening and wandering the area before finding my target birds. I heard a call that I did not immediately recognize, as I made my way towards the call, two birds popped up out of an evergreen and landed on a leafless tree. I was able to snap some shots before the birds took off; I got enough to at least document:

~Red Crossbill at Black Rock Forest, 03/27/22.~

The hike back to the car was nearly bird-free, but I was feeling pretty good about things and didn’t mind at all. I made a quick stop at the Newburgh Waterfront afterwards, but it seemed quiet there and I had only the 3 expected species of gull present (Ring-billed, Herring, and Great Black-backed).

Yard Birds 2022: (33) – no new birds since my last post.