Songbirds – Orange Birding

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.~

Winding Waters Trail, 09/29/24

I arrived at Wallkill River National Wildlife Refuge’s Winding Waters Trail this morning just after sunrise. It was a gray misty morning, but I’m happy to report that no substantial rain fell while I was on the trail. I walked the full loop and enjoyed logging nearly 40 species observed. I was happy to add a couple of birds to my Orange County 2024 list (Yellow-bellied Sapsucker and Lincoln’s Sparrow). I was hoping for maybe a Connecticut Warbler or a Mourning Warbler, but that wasn’t in the cards for me today. I was using the Merlin app to identify bird sounds; at one point it indicated that it had heard a Connecticut, but in spite of my efforts, I never heard the bird, nor did I see it. The trail is absolutely loaded with birds right now, so it made for a very pleasant and birdy walk.

~Northern Flickers must be on the move right now – my yard has been full of them all week, and then I saw several on my walk this morning. NOFL at Wallkill River NWR, Winding Waters Trail 09/29/24.~

~You hear them before you see them. Four of five Sandhill Cranes that flew through while I was on the trail. The fifth bird was trailing and didn’t fit into my field of view . SACRs at Winding Waters, 09/29/24.~

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.

Stewart State Forest, 06/15/24

Stewart State Forest is a spot in Orange County that, for no real reason, I don’t bird very often. After the enjoyable morning I had today, I think it will be a little bit more on my radar. I walked a 6 mile loop; the terrain was very flat, which made for easy walking and birding. Several of the trails were overgrown and very wet – which conversely made for some uncomfortable hiking and birding, as my hikers and pants were absolutely soaked through. One of my goals was to walk through the Great Swamp Boardwalk and Trail; it was nice out there because it opens up a bit and the gentle breeze kept the insects at bay for at least a little while.

I had a few noteworthy sightings – the first was running into a family of Barred Owls on the trail. I inadvertently flushed the birds, but one young bird was kind enough to stick around for a couple of minutes so I could get a photo. Another birding highlight was my first Alder Flycatcher of the year – this was very unexpected to me; this is a species that I don’t get every year. I first heard it calling and then located the bird up in the treetops and snapped a documentary shot.

~Not a great photo, but I was pretty happy to add this Alder Flycatcher to my 2024 Orange County list. Stewart State Forest, 06/15/24.~

Non-avian highlights include an Eastern Box Turtle, and a first for me – a crayfish walking across the trail! It was interesting, because it was quite aware of my presence and as I approached it immediately and quickly backed up off the trail. It was pretty cool. I did some Googling and watched a YouTube video, and I learned just enough to know I can’t identify the exact species. If anyone knows crayfish, please post in the comments of you know the species.

~Crayfish backing off the trail at Stewart State Forest, 06/15/24.~

I’ll mention one last observation from the morning: I SAW more birds today than I do on most hikes through the woods. As always, most birds were heard and not seen, but today I definitely got looks at way more birds than I would expect on a hike like this. I finished the day with a respectable 46 bird species.

~Field Sparrow at Stewart State Forest, 06/15/24.~

~A nice looking Yellow Warbler at Stewart State Forest, 06/15/24.~

Black Rock Forest, 06/08/24

Early June of 2018, I found my first (and only!) Ruffed Grouse in Orange County at Black Rock Forest, not far from Jupiter’s Boulder. Ever since then, I have gone back to that location at this time of the year in hopes of seeing another. Unfortunately, today’s hike did not produce any grouse, but I did have a excellent morning. It was cool and comfortable walk with plenty of birds. Highlights included my FOY (first of year) Acadian Flycatcher and Black-throated Blue Warblers. I watched a Red-tailed Hawk and a Broad-winged Hawk get into a tangle over Sutherland Pond. Ovenbird was the bird of the day – they seemed to be everywhere. My best observation, however, was not bird related. I got a fantastic look at beautiful Black Bear through some thick vegetation (which prevented photos). It was some really enjoyable summer-type birding and by the time I got back to my car, I had tallied 37 bird species.

~There were absolutely loads of Ovenbirds at Black Rock Forest this morning, 06/08/24.~

~One more Louisiana Waterthrush shot, Black Rock Forest 06/08/24.~

Sunday Shots, 05/19/24

As opposed to last weekend (when I added over 30 species to my Orange County year list), this weekend I added just a handful of new species. But! Also as unlike last week, this week I was able to get some photos of songbirds. I birded at several locations this weekend – Laurel Grove Cemetery, Elks Brox Park, 6 1/2 Station Road Sanctuary, & Sterling Forest. It was an enjoyable weekend for me; all the locations were active with many birds, the weather was good, and I was able to get some decent photos of some of the beautiful songbirds which have recently returned to our area.

~Blue-winged Warbler at Sterling Forest State Park, 05/19/24.~

~A Prairie Warbler belting it out. Sterling Forest, 05/19/24.~

~Black-capped Chickadee at Elks Brox Memorial Park, 05/18/24.~

~A female Scarlet Tanager at Elks Brox, 05/18/24.~

A Good Morning, 03/24/24

After a bleak and rainy Saturday that broke my “bad weather = good birding” rule in convincing fashion, I enjoyed a lovely, crisp, cold, and sunny Sunday morning of productive birding. I ran into Kyle Knapp at Lower Wisner Road, where we easily found my first Rusty Blackbirds of 2024; they were feeding with a small flock of American Robins out in a field. The Brown Thrasher that Kyle found skulking in some nearby hedges was an excellent bonus bird. Brown Thrasher is not a bird I see very often, so it was good to get one so early in the year.

~Brown Thrasher, Lower Wisner Road in Warwick, 03/24/24.~

~One of four Eastern Bluebirds on Lower Wisner Road, 03/24/24. I don’t know if it was the light, or what, but these birds were just spectacularly blue; just gorgeous.

Afterwards, I headed out to the black dirt to see what I could find. I was finally able to track down some Wilson’s Snipe – they were in an odd location to me – out in a field on Skinners Lane, loosely associating with nearly a dozen Killdeer. Later, at The Camel Farm, I was able to find my first American Pipits of the year; a trio of birds working around some of distant puddles out in the field.

~Three of four Wilson’s Snipe in the black dirt this morning, 03/24/24. The birds were a little bit distant, but still really good to see them.~

~Here’s a bird that I don’t see all that often, and I haven’t photographed in ages. American Tree Sparrow in the black dirt, 03/24/24.~

~One moe Eastern Bluebird shot, Lower Winsner Road 03/24/24.~

Birding Around the County, 03/16/24

I was up super early this morning, so I was able to enjoy one of my favorite things – the Black Dirt Region at sunrise. I was hoping I might catch a glimpse of a Coyote at that hour, but it wasn’t to be. I was, however, rewarded by finding and photographing three Lapland Longspurs just after sunrise. It’s been several weeks since I’ve found any LALOs, so it was good to catch up with those birds. Unfortunately, not long after seeing the longspurs, I found a recently deceased Short-eared Owl. The field where I found the bird had been recently cleared; sadly it appeared to me that the bird had been killed by a run-in with some farm machinery.

~Red-tailed Hawk perched on a limp wind sock at sunrise in the black dirt, 03/16/24.~

~One of three Lapland Longspurs in the black dirt on 03/16/24.~

Later in the morning, I checked some of the lakes in southern Orange County. I didn’t find much, but I was happy to find a Common Loon at Wickham Lake in beautiful plumage:

~Common Loon at Wickham Lake, 03/16/24.~

My final destination on this Saturday was the Hudson River near Newburgh. The big excitement for me was finding a single Lesser Black-backed Gull on the sandbar in Cornwall Bay. Also of note was a trio of Red-breasted Mergansers. Unfortunately there was no sign of the Great Cormorants which have been in the area recently.

~Lesser Black-backed Gull waaaaay out there. It’s the bird on the far right. I kind of like having the Newburgh-Beacon Bridge in the background for this shot. Cornwall Bay, 03/16/24.~

Sunday Shots, 09/17/23

Hawkwatch was the main attraction for me this weekend, but I did enjoy some of my first migrating song birds of the season as well. I had a Magnolia Warble in my backyard on Thursday afternoon. I had a brief visit from a pair of Cape May Warblers at Mt. Peter yesterday. And this morning the black dirt was loaded with Savannah Sparrows. I also had short but enjoyable flurry of songbirds in the black dirt. Highlights included several Palm Warblers, a Black-throated Green Warbler, a couple of Ruby Crowned Kinglets, and a Least Flycatcher. Shorebirds were scarce, but I did locate one American Golden Plover in the corn stubble on Onion Avenue, a spot where I’ve not had many shorebirds over the years.

~Magnolia Warbler in my backyard, 09/14/23.~

~Savannah Sparrow in the Black Dirt, 09/17/23.~

~Roadside Savannah Sparrow in the Black Dirt Region, 09/17/23.~

The Berkshires, 2023

Tricia and I spent the weekend up in The Berkshires to celebrate our anniversary. While birding was not the focus of the weekend, I did get out early both days. I chose my locations with a single target species, the elusive Ruffed Grouse. I’ll kill the suspense now and say I did not have any success with my target. But, I birded a couple of interesting spots.

On Saturday I went to Savoy Mountain State Forest, where I hiked just under 4 miles. I had mostly the usuals, but with some interesting highlights: I got excellent looks (but no photos) of a Canada Warbler, there was also a very accommodating Alder Flycatcher (a species I don’t recall ever photographing previously), and I also had a Red Crossbill fly overhead, calling as it went.

~Alder Flycatcher at Savoy Mountain State Forest, 08/05/23.~

This morning I followed up on an eBird report of a Ruffed Grouse at Bridges Pond in Williamtown, MA. The birding was uneventful, but the spot was interesting only because most of the trail ran right alongside railroad tracks, so I took the opportunity to be a little creative with my photos.