Well, it’s been a stressful week regarding the blog, but the site now seems to be working more efficiently. I was having a lingering issue regarding email subscriptions, but I believe I have that figured out; this post will tell the tale.
Anyways, I wasn’t on the computer all the time, and I was out an about this weekend and last weekend as well. But, I’ve hit a little bit of a dry spell – I tried for winter finches in Port Jervis both weekends, but came up empty. Same goes for Snow Buntings and Lapland Longspurs, as well as Cackling Goose (probably the species I am mostly likely to add to my Orange County year list). Still, as always it’s just good to be out, with enough of the “usuals” around to keep me entertained, especially on a gorgeous day like today.
~It’s that time of year. Northern Harrier in the black dirt, 12/13/20.~ ~Cooper’s Hawk in Pine Island, 12/06/20.~ ~Carolina Wren at Moonbeams Sancutary, 12/05/20. This was my first visit to Moonbeams, and while it wasn’t super birdy on this day, I think it has some potential.~ ~Northern Cardinal in the black dirt, 12/05/20.~ ~I thought this was interesting – these birds were part of a large mixed flock of American and House Finches. They were actively feeding on hemp plants which were never harvested. It’s the first time I’ve seen birds feeding on hemp to any extent. Black dirt 12/05/20.~ ~This is a gorgeous bird. Rough-legged Hawk in the black dirt, 12/13/20.~
I’ve been experiencing some technical issues with the blog recently. It has taken some time, and I won’t bore you with the details, but I’ve made some changes and upgrades which will hopefully make it easier for me to create posts, and more importantly, make for a quicker and better experience for the readers. I imagine there will still be some bugs to work out; if you have any problems or would like to share any information with me, leave a comment or email me at orangebirdingdotcom@gmail.com. Thanks.
It was really, really nice to have four days off in a row. And with the pandemic still raging, we did not travel. So, that made for a good amount of birding during those four days. Noteworthy birds included more RED CROSSBILLS at Reservoir 3, the BARNACLE GOOSE continues in the area, being seen mostly at the Camel Farm, a handful of Snow Buntings at Skinners Lane, and I had my first ROUGH-LEGGED HAWK of the season. I had a good weekend with raptors, topped off by an early morning visit to the Grasslands today. It was enjoyable to be out there sitting in a blind. It sort of felt like the old days when I used to photograph many more raptors.
~Northern Harrier at the Grasslands NWR, 11/29/20.~~Northern Harrier at Grasslands NWR, 11/29/20.~~ROUGH-LEGGED HAWK at Wallkill River NWR, Thanksgiving Day 2020.~ ~Northern Harrier just after sunrise at the Grasslands, 11/29/20.~~NOHA Grasslands, 11/29/20.~~Red-tailed Hawk at Wallkill River NWR, 11/26/20.~ ~NOHA at the Grasslands this morning, 11/29/20.~~Red-shouldered Hawk at Benmarl Winery in Marlboro NY, 11/29/20.~ ~NOHA taking a dive at the Grasslands, 11/29/20.~
Yesterday was my final day of the year at Mount Peter Hawkwatch, it’s amazing how quickly the season goes by. It was a cool crisp day with a cold WNW wind. It was sunny but with enough clouds in the morning to help find birds. I finished the season on an up note, with a decent day consisting of 72 migrating raptors. Highlights included four Bald Eagles moving through; two adults and two immatures. Also noteworthy was 21 Red-tailed Hawk and seven Red-shouldered hawks; 2 adults and 5 immatures.
~A Black Vulture checks me out as it flies over the platform. Mount Peter Hawkwatch, 11/14/20.~~Dark-eyed Junco at Mount Pete, 11/07/20.~~Cooper’s Hawk at Mount Pete, 11/14/20.~~Not at Mount Peter – Turkey Vulture in my backyard, 11/04/20.~~Also not at Mount Pete – a Ring-necked Pheasant I photographed a couple weeks ago.~
I was counting at Mount Peter all day Saturday; it was a slow start with drizzly and foggy weather with a southwest wind, but at around noon the fog cleared out, the winds shifted to west northwest, and the hawks started flying. It was a day with a very good variety of migrating raptors – 11 different species. I particularly enjoyed watching five Northern Harriers fly over – I know they are very common in our area in the winter, but I just love to see them when they migrate; they look like no other raptor. Another highlight was a large skein of BRANT flying over, just as the watch was coming to an end.
~A late Black-throated Green Warbler at Mount Peter Hawkwatch, 10/24/20.~
Sunday morning I ran around locally. Wickham Lake was my first stop, where I had 13 species of waterfowl (highlights = my first Ring-neck Ducks and Buffleheads of the season, a pair of American Wigeon, and 4 Northern Shovelers). From there I went to the Liberty Loop. I wanted to check for shorebirds at the south pond, so I headed towards Owen’s Station Road. As I turned onto the road, I saw bird on the side of the road. It was a Chukar; their range is out west, but they are sometimes released here as game birds. I’m not sure how commonly they are released locally, but I’d never seen one, so game bird or not, I was sort of excited.
~Chukar literally on Owen’s Station Road, 10/25/20.~
I was only able to locate three species of shorebird in the south pond: Greater and Lesser Yellowlegs, and Pectoral Sandpipers. The walks in and out weren’t very birdy, so I was on my way relatively quickly. On my way out, I saw the Chukar again, this time in the grass, so I stopped and got a few more shots. I made one last stop on the way home, at Skinner’s Lane. I was able to locate, but not photograph a Vesper Sparrow, and there were also some American Pipits around.
~Golden-crowned Kinglet at Mount Peter Hawkwatch, 10/24/20.~ ~Chukar on the lawn. Owen’s Station Road, 10/25/20.~ ~That’s a large skein of BRANT. I made a quick count from this photo and came up with 304 birds. Mount Peter Hawkwatch, 10/24/20.~
I was not schedule to be the counter at Mt. Peter Hawkwatch today. But, the day hadn’t been filled, so I volunteered to take it. I’m glad I did, because it was an excellent day. In spite of a completely cloudless blue sky, we tallied a total of 129 migrating raptors. We had a good variety of birds today, with eleven different species of migrating raptors, but it was the eagles that stole the show.
~Two young Bald Eagles migrating over Mt. Peter Hawkwatch, 10/17/20.~
The highlight of the day came during the 4th hour of the watch, when I picked up an immature GOLDEN EAGLE north of the platform, circling up and slowly gaining altitude. The bird was distant, but in the scope the white base of the tail with dark terminal and the white patches at the “hands” were well seen. Not to be outdone, the Bald Eagles had quite a showing as well, with 14 migrating birds counted. Ten of them were immature birds.
~Ahh, the obligatory Turkey Vulture shot. Mt. Peter Hawkwatch, 10/17/20.~
I’ve included my report at the bottom of this post. Huge thanks to Tom Millard, Denise Farrell, BA McGrath, and Jeff Zahn. Without their eyes, who knows how many birds would have been lost to that all blue sky today.
~Still hoping for a decent Common Raven shot. Mt. Pete 10/17/20.~~Bald Eagles moving through! Mount Peter Hawkwatch, 10/17/20.~
QUICK POST: I had a really good weekend of birding with some interesting images to share, but here it is Sunday night after a day on the mountain and I am drained. So, here is my report from Mount Peter today; I will post more about the weekend in the next couple of days.
Mt. Pete was a really productive today with over 150 migrating raptors. Raptor highlights for me included four Northern Harriers, which I love to see in migration, and nine Red-shouldered Hawks, a good day for that species. We also had over 100 skeins of Canada Geese, consisting of approximately 4,370 individuals. I love seeing that. Anyways, more about the weekend in a future post.
~A local Red-tailed Hawk at Mt. Peter Hawkwatch, 10/11/20.~
It’s hard to believe it, but it’s already time for the start of another season at Mt. Peter Hawkwatch. Today was my first day as official counter, and as early as it is in the season, it was expectedly slow with only 10 migrating raptors. But, there were some highlights – (8) Bald Eagle sightings, four of which migrated, a quick look at a couple of Cape May Warblers, a couple of lingering Black-throated Green Warblers, and my favorite part of the day: a messy ball of 11 Double-crested Cormorants flying high south of the viewing platform. You can see my report for HawkCount at the bottom of this post.
~A local Red-tailed Hawk makes a pass over the platform at Mt. Peter Hawkwatch, 09/05/20.~
Yesterday I got out of work a little bit early, so I decided to head up the the hottest hotspot in Ulster County: Ashokan Reservoir. There has been a White Pelican present for some time, and now there is a BROWN BOOBY. I took a nice drive up to the reservoir, and with some guidance from a quick call with John Haas, I was able to locate the bird easily. It’s quite a bird to see, and I had nice looks in my scope, but unfortunately it’s preferred perch is just a bit out of range for good photos. Consolation prize (in the photography dept) was a young Bald Eagle perched close to the road. I enjoyed the booby, and I was glad to add it to my NYS list – # 310.
~ Brown Booby at Ashokan Reservoir, 09/04/20.~ ~A young Bald Eagle was unphased by all the folks walking along the road. Ashokan Reservoir, 09/04/20.~ ~Black-throated Green Warbler at Mt. Peter Hawkwatch, 09/05/20.~
As I was heading out this morning, I drove along 6 1/2 Station Road Sanctuary, and I saw in the distance a pair of Red-tailed Hawks perched in a tree. They were about 15 feet apart, and in the perfect early morning light the difference between the larger female and the smaller male was quite obvious. It was a beautiful image, and for some reason I took this as an omen that it was going to be a good day.
~ It’s still hard for me to believe that we are getting to see a GOLDEN EAGLE on a somewhat regular basis right now. GOEA in the black dirt, 02/08/20.~
Every once in a while you have a day where things fall into place. It started with a GREAT-HORNED OWL on a nice perch, sunning itself. Add to that several flocks of Snow Geese moving around the black dirt. The icing on the cake was a relatively low flyover by the GOLDEN EAGLE that has been in the area. Getting a better look and photos of this bird was my main goal today, so that was awesome. As the morning ended and crept into the afternoon, things slowed down, but still, I was happy to find a cooperative Red-tailed Hawk on a wire, a bunch of vultures on a deer carcass (not for everyone, but I love those birds and find them very photogenic), and a couple thousand Common Mergansers at Greenwood Lake. Heckuva day for sure.
~Snow Geese in the black dirt, 02/08/20.~ ~Black Vulture enjoying a meal. Warwick NY, 02/08/20.~ ~GREAT-HORNED OWL sunning itself at an undisclosed location, 02/08/20.~ ~I’m not usually a big fan of birds on a wire, but it’s been a while since I’ve taken a Red-tailed Hawk photo. Black Dirt, 02/08/20. ~Beautifully ugly bird. Turkey Vulture in Warwick, 02/08/20.~~One more shot of the GOLDEN EAGLE. I know I definitely shouldn’t complain, but the light was tough for pics of this bird. Black dirt, 02/08/20.~
My plan for the morning was to get outside and take a hike without worrying too much about getting any birds. I walked the trails near Reservoir 3 in Port Jervis. It was predictably quiet, but it was a pleasant walk in the woods on a cool, partly cloudy day. It wasn’t until I was on my way back that I started to think about getting some birds. Earlier, while I was hiking, Joyce Depew reported thousands of Snow Geese in the black dirt. On my way home, Ken McDermott followed up with another report of SNGOs in the fields off Onion Avenue. I figured I would stop by and check them out, especially because it was on my way home. Then, it got interesting: Bruce Nott reported a GOLDEN EAGLE flying over the Snow Geese, heading east.
~GOLDEN EAGLE flyover in the black dirt, photograph by Linda Scrima, 02/02/20.~
I arrived at Onion Avenue convinced that I had missed any opportunity to see the Golden Eagle. But, as I got out of the car everyone was urging me to hurry up – I jumped on Bruce’s scope and sure enough there was the Golden Eagle circling in the distance! It wasn’t great timing (see Linda’s photos in this post), but it was pretty darn good! Another minute or so, and I would have completely missed the bird. Exciting birding!
~One more shot of the GOLDEN EAGLE by Linda Scrima, 02/02/20.~ ~My documentary shot of the GOLDEN EAGLE in the black dirt this afternoon, 02/02/20.~
