Raptors – Orange Birding

GOLDEN EAGLE at Mt. Peter Hawkwatch, 10/18/25

It was an interesting day at Mount Peter Hawkwatch today. When I arrived, there were already two birders on the platform, Connery and John from Bergen County NJ. And, while we did not have all that many migrating raptors, we did enjoy viewing (3) adult Bald Eagles out to west of the platform; unfortunately none of the three migrated through. We were not bored, however. There were plenty of songbirds around. I was hoping for Purple Finch, and sure enough we had a small flock of Purple Finches.

~The final bird of the day! Golden Eagle at Mount Peter Hawkwatch, 10/18/25.~

By the time I got to the final hour of the watch, I had only 16 migrating raptors counted. To keep myself focused, I made it a goal to try and finish the day with 20 or more. At the end of the final hour, I’d gotten to 19. I filled out the paperwork, and packed up my gear. I had my backpack on, camera over my shoulder. I took one last scan, and would you believe, directly in front of the platform, was an immature GOLDEN EAGLE. I was floored. The bird made some lazy circles and slowly passed through just to the west of the platform. It was exhilarating! What a day, I got my 20 birds, I got a Golden, I even got Purple Finches!

~One more shot of the Golden Eagle – what a beauty! Mount Peter Hawkwatch, 10/18/25.~

~There was still a good number of Yellow-rumped Warblers around today at Mount Peter Hawkwatch, 10/18/25.~

Mount Peter Hawkwatch, 09/27/25

I enjoyed a modest flight of 43 migrating raptors today at Mount Peter Hawkwatch, but the most exciting moment of the day was not raptor related. I’d been scanning behind the view platform in the beginning of the second hour of the watch. When I turned around, I was pleasantly surprised to see a Black Bear! I grabbed my camera and was able to grab a few shots before the bear headed off into the vegetation. Fellow counters Bev and Rich joined me for a couple of hours and found A LOT of birds; I was thankful for that. See my Hawk Migration Association report at the bottom of this post.

~One of many young Cedar Waxwings at Mount Peter today, 09/27/25.~

~Sharp-shinned Hawk migrates through. Mount Peter Hawkwatch, 09/27/25.~

Great Day at Mount Peter Hawkwatch, 09/20/25

In spite of a very difficult, nearly all blue sky, it was a really great day of counting migrating raptors at Mount Peter Hawkwatch today. It was a lot of work, but but thanks to the help of many of our observers (other counters) and guests, we were able to tally over 640 birds for the day. Entering into the day, I was wondering if we would get many more Broad-winged Hawks coming through this season; I am happy to report we counted over 600 today. We also had a decent variety, with Osprey, Bald Eagle, Sharp-shinned Hawk, Cooper’s Hawk, Northern Harrier, Red-shouldered Hawk, Red-tailed Hawk, American Kestrel, and Peregrine Falcon all also getting in on the act. I’ve included my Hawk Migration Association report at the bottom of this post.

~One of the few low Broad-winged Hawks from the day. Mt. Pete Hawkwatch, 09/20/25.~

~Local Red-tailed Hawk buzzes through. Mount Peter Hawkwatch, 09/20/25. ~

Sunday Shots, 06/29/25

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.~

~A Green Heron cuts a nice figure on a dead tree limb, 06/29/25.~

Owlet Rescue, 06/28/25

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.~

Canada Goose
Wood Duck
Mallard
Mourning Dove
Yellow-billed Cuckoo
Common Gallinule
Killdeer
Greater Yellowlegs
Great Egret
Great Blue Heron
Black Vulture
Turkey Vulture
Bald Eagle
Great Horned Owl
Hairy Woodpecker
Pileated Woodpecker
Northern Flicker
Eastern Wood-Pewee
Eastern Phoebe
Great Crested Flycatcher
Eastern Kingbird
Yellow-throated Vireo
Warbling Vireo
Red-eyed Vireo
Blue Jay
Tufted Titmouse
Tree Swallow
Barn Swallow
White-breasted Nuthatch
Marsh Wren
Carolina Wren
Gray Catbird
Northern Mockingbird
Wood Thrush
American Robin
Cedar Waxwing
American Goldfinch
Chipping Sparrow
Song Sparrow
Swamp Sparrow
Eastern Towhee
Bobolink
Red-winged Blackbird
Brown-headed Blackbird
Common Grackle
Northern Parula
Yellow Warbler
Northern Cardinal
Roe-breasted Grosbeak
Indigo Bunting

Sunday Shots, 03/16/25

It was a low key weekend of birding for me. I stayed local, checking the area lakes each morning and then hitting the black dirt. I didn’t have anything too exciting, but I did add (4) new species to my Orange County 2025 list. That brought my species total to (93).

Cooper’s Hawk, My Yard 03/13/25
Horned Grebe, Round Lake 03/16/25
Rusty Blackbird, Black Dirt Region 03/16/25
American Pipit, Black Dirt Region 03/16/25

Photos were tough to come by, but I did manage to get a few raptor shots in my travels.

~Black Vulture portait. Black Dirt Region, 03/16/25.~

~Red-tailed Hawk on some farm machinery in the black dirt, 03/16/25.~

Sunday Shots, 02/23/25

There is finally enough light in the evening to do a little bit of birding after work again, which contributed to my having a heck of a week with local raptors. I added three species to my 2025 Orange County list (Sharp-shinned Hawk, Short-eared Owl, and Merlin). On Saturday morning I birded the black dirt and the raptor numbers were impressive, with 9 species and over 40 individuals. My highlight was seeing 3 Rough-legged Hawks; far and away my high count for this winter.

Black Vulture (2)
Turkey Vulture (4)
Sharp-shinned Hawk (1)
Northern Harrier (8)
Bald Eagle (3)
Red-shouldered Hawk (2)
Red-tailed Hawk (18)
Rough-legged Hawk (3)
American Kestrel (2)

~American Kestrel on Missionland Road, 02/22/25.~

~Low light conditions here; Northern Harrier hunting just before sunset on 02/21/25.~

On Sunday I had some things to do around the house, so I didn’t get out until the afternoon, when I spend a couple of hours at the Hudson River. All the gulls were on the Beacon side, so I birded from there. It was a beautiful afternoon, but unfortunately I was only able to come up with the 3 expected species of gull (Ring-billed, Am. Herring, and Great Black-backed).

~A good looking American Herring Gull makes a pass at the Beacon Waterfront, 02/23/24.~

~Ring-billed Gulls scrambling for some bread scraps that someone was throwing to them. Beacon Waterfront, 02/23/24.~

~Canada Geese in the black dirt just after sunset, 02/21/25

Sunday Shots, 02/02/25

It was a quiet birding weekend for me. Quiet and cold. The black dirt was pretty dead on Saturday morning and just a smidge bit better on Sunday morning when I was able to at least get distant looks at both a large flock of Snow Buntings and a light morph Rough-legged Hawk. I birded the Newburgh Waterfront with Bruce Nott on Saturday afternoon; it was my most productive birding from the weekend – we were able to locate (2) Iceland Gulls among five or six hundred of the usuals. And on a final note, first this morning I tried to change it up a little bit by birding the Port Jervis area, but unfortunately it was just super cold and very quiet on the birding front, with no real highlights to mention.

~At the Newburgh Waterfront, while scanning for gulls, this Red-tailed Hawk flew in with a dead Ring-billed Gull in its talons. It appeared to have scavenged the meal, rather than it being fresh kill.~

~Red-tailed Hawk with prey, Newburgh Waterfront 02/01/25.~

~One of a couple of Snow Geese that have been around the black dirt recently, associating with a large flock of Canada Geese. SNGO in the black dirt, 02/01/25.~

~Eastern Bluebird in the black dirt, 02/02/25.~

~Red-winged Blackbird in the black dirt on 02/01/25.~

~Unfortunately, this has become the norm for this species for me. This is only the second Rough-legged Hawk I’ve seen in 2025, and as usual it was just miles away. RLHA in the BDR on 02/02/25.~

Christmas Eve Birding 2024

I can’t remember if I’ve ever had the opportunity to bird on Christmas Eve since I started seriously birding over 12 years ago. But this year, circumstances were such that I was able to get out for a couple hours in the evening. I went out to the black dirt region and drove around. Slowly, an interesting and enjoyable evening of birding began to unfold. I was seeing a fair number of Red-tailed Hawks around, which is pretty normal. But then one flew over my car with what looked like a snake in its talons. I saw where the hawk perched and got closer to explore. Sure enough, the raptor had a live snake and was starting to consume it. Where does a Red-tailed Hawk find a snake in the dead of winter?

~Red-tailed Hawk enjoying a meal in the black dirt, 12/24/24.~

I started seeing more and more raptors; mostly Red-tails (~10) and Northern Harriers (~8), but I also had a Peregrine Falcon and 4 Adult Bald Eagles. The icing on the cake was finding 3 Short-eared Owls. It’s been a while since I’ve seen a shorty, so I really enjoyed it.

~Short-eared Owl in the Black Dirt Region, 12/24/24.~

I saw and heard many, many Horned Larks flying around, and I heard at least 2 Lapland Longspurs among them, but no Snow Buntings. As the sun was setting, many, many Canada Geese were flying in, looking for a place to roost for the night. I had a small flock of 7 Snow Geese with them. I had a brief moment t of excitement- in a distant field I spotted a lone swan. I figured for sure it would be either a Tundra or a Trumpeter, but unfortunately it turned out to be a Mute Swan! I don’t think I’ve ever seen a Mute Swan sitting out in a field before. I guess you just never know what you will find if you get out and go birding.

~Mute Swan in a field!?! What the heck? Black dirt region, 12/24/24.~

Sunday Shots 12/01/24

Regular readers of the blog may remember that I am a big fan of winter birding. While this weekend didn’t offer up anything too exciting, there were plenty of birds around to enjoy. My favorite moments included a decent sized flock of Snow Buntings in the black dirt on Friday afternoon (approximately 65 birds or so). On Saturday afternoon I enjoyed watching and photographing one of the tightest packed large flock of mixed blackbirds that I’ve ever seen. It was so much fun to see, and I find the photos fascinating to examine. As far as I can tell, three different species were present (mostly Red-winged Blackbirds, with some Brown-headed Cowbirds and European Starlings sprinkled throughout), and the images vary wildly depending on species present, orientation of the birds, and the light (among other variables). And finally, I had a brief but productive experience with an American Kestrel; usually a skittish species, this male was super focused on hunting something in the vegetation roadside, which allowed for some good photo ops.