Iceland Gull with Herring Gulls, Newburgh Waterfront, 12/29/14.
I decided to head up to Newburgh, NY after work tonight to look for gulls. Ken McDermott had reported an Iceland Gull there a week or so ago, so I figured I would try my luck. I tried first from where the ferry goes out. I located a distant floating “white winged gull” almost immediately, but soon lost the bird among all the other gulls while trying to switch between scope and camera. Luckily, I was able to get the above shot from that location. The gulls were also floating steadily north on the Hudson River and out of my view. I jumped in my car and moved to the parking lot near what used to be Torches Restaurant. I relocated the bird from that position, but it was getting dark and the bird was even further out. I gave Ken McDermott a call and he walked me through the ID: a white winged gull that is smaller than a Herring Gull but larger than a Ring-billed. The nearly all black bill indicates that this is likely a first winter bird. Thanks Ken for your help, it is greatly appreciated!
Here’s a better look at an Iceland Gull. I photographed this bird in January of this year at Barnegat Lighthouse State Park in New Jersey.
Cackling Goose with Canada Geese at the Camel Farm in Orange County NY, 12/28/14.
I made the rounds in southern Orange County on this gray, drizzly, Sunday morning. I was a little cranky due to the poor weather and not sleeping well, so I was pretty happy to find a single Cackling Goose among approximately 500 Canada Geese at the Camel Farm in Orange County, NY. I put the word out, and luckily both Linda Scrima and Maria Loukeris were close by and ran for the bird. It was a lifer for both of them, so that was exciting. Another highlight was 8 Snow Buntings in with a large flock of Horned Larks in the Black Dirt Region. Aside from that, I had 34 species for the morning, all birds you would expect to see.
American Tree Sparrow off of Onion Avenue, 12/28/14. A female Common Merganser in the Wallkill River in Pine Island, NY. It was funny because, although not in this photo, the merganser was hanging out with a Wood Duck. They were the only birds that I saw in this location and they were never more than a few yards from one another.
I was eating my lunch, contemplating my next move, when I I received a text from Maria -She had located a Barred Owl in Vernon NJ! I hustled down and got super looks at the bird and some photos too (in spite of large number of branches in the way). I have no idea how she located this bird, the pics don’t do justice to how well it was hidden. Huge thanks to Maria for the heads up.
Awesome bird – Barred Owl. Appalachian Trail in Vernon NJ, 12/28/14.
-BARNACLE GOOSE in Ramsey NJ, Mirror Lake Area, 12/17/14.
I got out of work a little bit late this afternoon, but I still had time to try for the BARNACLE GOOSE which had been reported in Ramsey, New Jersey on eBird. I tried for the bird yesterday without any luck, but today it worked out great. I got my lifer BAGO and it did not disappoint – what a super bird! I was able to get very good looks and my photos, while quite grainy due to the low light, still made me very happy. The Barnacle Goose has been sort of a nemesis bird for me. There have been a few Barnacle Geese that have been reported in the NY/NJ area in the past several years. There was one in Orange County back in 2012 that eluded me as did the one in the Bronx last year (which I only tried for one time). There was a Barnacle Goose reported at this same location last year and I tried for it several times but struck out each time. So, it was VERY satisfying to finally see this bird. If you are planning to go for this bird, please contact me and I will give you details.
– Another look at the BARNACLE GOOSE in Bergen County today, 12/17/14.
Cackling Goose among Canada Geese. This bird was quite distant and this photo has been heavily cropped. Blue Chip Farm, Ulster County NY, 12/13/14/.
This afternoon I was sifting through a flock of Canada Geese at Blue Chip Farms in Ulster County and I observed the above bird, which I believe is a Cackling Goose. The bird was a shade paler than the surrounding Canada Geese, with a small stubby bill, and a shorter neck. I am having a little hesitation in positively identifying this bird because although the bird was smaller than the Canada Geese, it did not appear to be as small as some Cackling Geese that I have seen in the past. According to the Crossley Guide, “Most look small and cute compared to Canada Geese, but this is not always the case”. I believe that this bird falls into the latter category. If anyone has thoughts about this bird, please comment.
I did some other running around today, particularly looking for the Snow Geese that I’d seen fly over last night. I didn’t have any luck with them, but I did get some photos along the way:
Red-tailed Hawk in Goshen NY, 12/13/14.Horned Larks in the black dirt. There was a single Snow Bunting with these birds but I was unable to get a photo. 12/13/14.
I spent the afternoon and evening at the Shawangunk Grasslands, which were a little quieter than last weekend. I still had several Rough-legged Hawks and Northern Harriers. When I left at 4:30 the Short-eared Owls were still not up. Here’s one shot I got of a young harrier:
Northern Harrier in flight. This was taking as I walked the trail rather than when I was in the blind. I was a little unlucky today, while I was in the blind I did not have any birds come close by. Shawangunk Grasslands NWR, 12/13/14.
A slightly better shot of the Cattle Egret in flight, Warwick, NY 11/1/14.
This morning before heading over to Mount Peter for the Hawk Watch, I stopped in Warwick to look for the Cattle Egret but could not locate it. I figured that the bird had certainly moved on. I continued to Mt. Pete, and just as I started to unpack my gear I got a call from Karen Miller, who had relocated the bird. I whizzed down and joined Karen, but the bird flew before I had my camera ready, so once again I only got flight shots of the bird. Karen, on the other hand, got some fabulous shots of the bird perched. Huge thanks to Karen for the heads up, and for the photos that she emailed to me for this post:
Cattle Egret in Warwick NY, 11/1/14. Photo by Karen C Miller.I think this bird has a lot of character. Cattle Egret in Warwick NY, 11/01/14. Photo by Karen C Miller.
I headed back up the mountain and counted hawks. It was cold, gray, and I did just alright with migrating raptors, with 63 for the day. Thanks to PJ Singh and Maria Loukeris for their visits, which really helped on a day like today. Here is my report for the day:
Mount Peter
Warwick, New York, USA
Daily Raptor Counts: Nov 01, 2014
——————————————————————-
Species Day’s Count / Month Total / Season Total
—————— ———– ————– ————–
Black Vulture 5 5 134
Turkey Vulture 24 24 361
Osprey 0 0 110
Bald Eagle 0 0 68
Northern Harrier 1 1 37
Sharp-shinned Hk 3 3 1079
Cooper’s Hawk 0 0 99
Northern Goshawk 0 0 0
Red-shouldered Hk 6 6 78
Broad-winged Hk 0 0 5685
Red-tailed Hawk 19 19 229
Rough-legged Hawk 0 0 0
Golden Eagle 0 0 3
American Kestrel 0 0 134
Merlin 0 0 22
Peregrine Falcon 0 0 11
Total: 63 63 8110
———————————————————————-
Observation start time: 09:00:00
Observation end time: 15:45:00
Total observation time: 6.75 hours
Official Counter: Matt Zeitler
Observers:
Visitors:
PJ Singh, Maria Loukeris
Weather:
Cloudy and cool with the temperature hovering right around 5 degrees
Celsius all day. Winds were over 10 km/hr for the duration of the watch.
Rain caused the watch to start one hour late and end fifteen minutes early.
Raptor Observations:
Four unknown Red-shouldered Hawks, one adult Red-shouldered Hawk, one
immature Red-shouldered Hawk, and one unknown Northern Harrier. The heavy
cloud cover and low light made it challenging to locate and identify
migrating raptors.
Just as I was leaving work today, I received a call from Rob Stone – a CATTLE EGRET had been located in Warwick, New York by Charlie West. I hustled out of work, but when I arrived at Wisner Road, I could not locate the bird. Eventually, I noticed a glimpse of white, distant in the field, among some cows. I needed to go back to my car for my scope, by the time I got back, I could not relocate the bird. Cattle Egrets are on the small side, only 20 inches in length (Great Egrets are twice as big), so I could not see the bird very well because of the tall grasses. The bird flew just as Ken McDermott pulled up, and landed in an area which was a little more distant, but the grass was short so the bird was more visible. John Haas showed up moments later and we all got good looks in the scope. Not too long after that, the egret, which was being chased by the cows, flew behind some trees and out of view. It made another short flight away from us and down over a hill. At this point, I thought I would not see the bird again; John and Ken left. Ten minutes later, Bruce Nott showed up and the bird made its final appearance; it was chased around for a bit by the cows and then took flight, making a couple large loops around the field before heading southeast and not stopping (that we could see).
I looked on eBird, and according to their records this is the third Cattle Egret in Orange County. There was one at Wallkill River NWR back in 2011 (I got to see that bird as well), and also in 2004.
A distant look at the Cattle Egret as it relocated from one field to another. Warwick, NY 10/31/14.These flight photos were VERY underexposed, it was very gray and dark out, but I’m not sure what I was doing. After some work this is the best I could make this look. CAEG flies overhead, Warwick, NY 10/31/14. One more of the Cattle Egret in flight – I actually did not get any perched photos. Warwick, NY 10/31/14.
This evening after work, I stopped by Glenmere Lake and located what I believe was a single distant scoter. I was not sure which scoter it could be, but after watching the bird for a while, it did some preening and flapping of the wings which exposed the white secondaries – indicative of a WHITE-WINGED SCOTER. In the above video (which I know is horrible), right at about the 5 or 6 second mark, you can catch a glimpse of white on the wing. Here’s a heavily cropped grainy photo of the bird; it was actually much darker out than the photo indicates.
With the changing of the seasons and the cooler temperatures, I don’t think I’m alone in starting to think about Snowy Owls. I feel so spoiled after last year’s historic irruption; I want more Snowies! So, what will this winter bring? Well for what it’s worth, I have found a couple of items that encourage me to thinking we may see a least a snowy or two in our area. The first is an email from Project Snowstorm, where Scott Weidensaul reported:
“…a record number of owl nests on Bylot this summer. Whether that will translate into another irruption is far from certain — much depends on weather, and Bylot is almost 900 miles (1,400 km) farther north of the region of Quebec where the breeding boom took place last summer.”
The second item is from Michael Britt’s Blog. I don’t really know much about Michael Britt, he is a New Jersey birder that also spends some time in Orange County. I mostly know his name from seeing it on eBird reports. I like what he says about Snowies, mostly because it encourages me to fantasize about another winter filled with these beautiful birds. Michael writes:
“Snowy Owls are known to regionally irrupt, every 3-5 years. Winter 2000-01 was my first taste of a Snowy Owl invasion. Thereafter, I accurately predicted invasions prior to Winter 2004-05 and Winter 2008-09. A four-year cycle was the norm, for the first eight years of the millennium. Then, in Winter 2011-12, Snowy Owls staged a large continental invasion, seemingly everywhere BUT New Jersey. We all had to crowd over (not me…I refused to go see that bird), the Merrill Creek bird. I was not optimistic for winter 2012-13, thinking we probably got shafted, the previous winter. With that said, Winter 2013-14, took us all by surprise! I CONSERVATIVELY saw 19 different birds.
While Snowy Owl invasions average out to every four years (3-5), what has been a relative constant, is what I call, a “residual flight.” I’m sure there is a more technical term for this and if so, please enlighten me. In general, I have found Snowy Owl flights to be “two years on, two years off,” much like Short-eared Owls, whose flights do not always occur in tandem. While the residual flight is always smaller, last year’s flight was of such magnitude (certainly the largest in the last 90 years) that Winter 2014-15, will likely outshine all recent incursions, barring last winter of course…”
Well, time will tell. Keep your eyes open, starting right around Thanksgiving week.
Snowy Owl on Dune Road, Long Island onDecember 27, 2013.
Baird’s Sandpiper, located by John Haas at Apollo, 9/29/14.
I received a text today from John Haas that certainly improved my Monday – he had located a BAIRD’S SANDPIPER at Apollo Plaza in Sullivan County. I headed over after work and I was not disappointed. The bird was easily located as there were only two birds present, the other being a Killdeer. I parked and took some shots of the bird and fortunately the bird kept slowly working its way towards me. This is a beautiful bird, I guess I say that often, but while I was there I couldn’t stop thinking it. Huge thanks to John for locating the bird and alerting me!
Baird’s Sandpiper at Apollo Plaza, 9/29/14.I typically do not like shots of birds head-on, but I sort of like this shot, plus it shows the interesting shape of this bird’s body. Baird’s Sandpiper at Apollo Plaza, 9/29/14.…but no – the Killdeer goes after the Baird’s Sandpiper. Only two birds present, you would think they could get along…
Black-crowned Night-Heron in flight. One of four juveniles located at the Wallkill River National Wildlife Refuge, 8/29/14.
I got out of work a little early on Friday for the holiday weekend, and I ended up having a really interesting and fun afternoon of birding. The highlight was certainly seeing four juvenile Black-crowned Night-Herons right from the viewing platform at Wallkill River National Wildlife Refuge’s Liberty Loop. The birds were very close, and relatively active, allowing for some decent photos.
I’m not sure how this bird stayed in focus. BCNH through the vegetation, Wallkill River NWR, 8/29/14.BCNH at Wallkill River NWR, 8/29/14.A Black-crowned Night-Heron shifts position at the Wallkill River NWR, 8/29/14.A fluffed up BCNH at Wallkill River NWR, 8/29/14.
I didn’t walk the loop that afternoon, I mostly stayed on the platform where I also had a Glossy Ibis in flight, a Northern Harrier and a Merlin tangling, and my first Common Nighthawk in a couple of years.
Glossy Ibis flyover, Wallkill River NWR, 8/29/14.A distant look at a Northern Harrier and what I believe is a Merlin. At first I was thinking Peregrine, but the bird seemed too small. Wallkill River NWR, 8/29/14.This was an exciting bird to see – it had been a couple of years since my last Common Nighthawk. Wallkill River NWR, 8/29/14.
Before any of the above happened, I was on my way to the Liberty Loop, passing through Warwick, NY when I saw the leucistic Red-tailed Hawk flying a little low. I found a spot to pull over and got some shots. I have posted this bird before, but any chance I have to take some photos of this bird I will take it. All in all, an interesting day of birding for me, and, of course, so much fun.
