photos – Page 28 – Orange Birding

2017 Year in Review

~This Common Loon shot didn’t make my top ten photos of the year, but I did feel like it deserved honorable mention. Scroll down to see my picks for the top 10 for this year…~

Well, another year of birding is officially in the books! The end of year post has always been one of my favorites to write; it’s fun for me to look back on the year of birding and remember all the highlights.

2017 MONTH-BY-MONTH HIGHLIGHTS

JANUARY: I went on my first Winter Pelagic and it did not disappoint. I got two life birds on the trip: Dovekie and Black-legged Kittiwake. Snow Geese represented well in the black dirt and provided plenty of photo ops. And, a ROSS’S GOOSE was an easy get at Monroe-Woodbury Middle School.

~One of several Black-legged Kittiwakes seen during the Brooklyn Winter Pelagic, January 2017.~

FEBRUARY: Snow Geese continued to linger in the Black Dirt and a trip to the Jersey Shore yielded two really good birds: RAZORBILL and a Lesser Black-backed Gull.

MARCH: I got my lifer Long-eared and Northern Saw-Whet owls on a trip to Connecticut. There was a trio of Long-tailed Ducks at Glenmere Lake, and 4 Sandhill Cranes in Ulster County. I joined Kathy Ashman, Bruce Nott, and Linda Scrima out at Wickham Lake for one of the best waterfowl fallouts I’d seen in the OC; we had 17 species of waterfowl including 3 Horned Grebes and 17 Redheads (an OC life bird for me!).

~Three beautiful Sandhill Cranes in Ulster County, 03/26/17.~

APRIL: Early in the month, I went on a family vacation to Sargent, Texas, where I accumulated 12 life birds. A little later in the month I ran for a Trumpeter Swan at the Bashakill.

MAY: A lot went on in May. Good waterfowl sitings included a White-winged Scoter at Glenmere and 4 Red-necked Grebes at Wickham Lake. Linda Scrima located and documented very well a SUMMER TANAGER at Laurel Grove Cemetery. I had a 5 swallow night at the Liberty Loop (Tree, Barn, N. Rough-winged, Bank, and Cliff). I participated in the Mearns Bird Club’s Break 100 on a team with John Haas, Karen Miller, and Jeff Goulding. We located one of the best birds of the day, a LESSER BLACK-BACKED GULL. The following day, I got my Orange County lifer Yellow-breasted Chat, originally located during the Break by the team of Alan & Della Wells and Dave and Sharon Baker. At the Grasslands, I picked up 2 life birds in 2 minutes: DICKCISSEL and HENSLOW’S SPARROW. At the end of the month I had a super showing of shorebirds at the Camel Farm, including 2 RED-NECKED PHALAROPES and 6 White-rumped Sandpipers. Later in the evening, Rob Stone would add a WILSON’S PHALAROPE to the list.

~A singing Henslow’s Sparrow at the Grasslands, 05/23/17.~

JUNE: Things slowed down a bit in June; there was a Black Tern at the Liberty Loop that I missed out on. The highlight of the month for me was my yearly trip to Adirondacks; this year Kyle Dudgeon joined me and we overdosed on Common Loons (never a bad thing).

JULY: Linda Scrima located a Forster’s Tern at the Liberty Loop; I ran and was able to get some great shots of that bird. Rob Stone relocated 5 WHITE IBIS at Wickham Lake and thanks to Curt McDermott and his kayak, I was able to get some good shots of those birds too. Following up on an eBird report, Linda Scrima and I relocated a SNOWY EGRET at Citgo Pond, which was an OC lifer for both of us. I had an amazing encounter with a LEAST BITTERN with Linda and Maria at Richard W. DeKorte Park – see more about this below.

~Forster’s Tern at the Liberty Loop, 07/01/17.~

AUGUST: There was a Glossy Ibis at Citgo Pond, originally located by Bill Fiero. I located a pair of UPLAND SANDPIPERS in the black dirt.

SEPTEMBER: Hawkwatch at Mt. Peter began; we counted over 6800 Broad-winged Hawks for the month, which is slightly below average. I had my best showing of Common Nighthawks since moving to OC, with nearly a dozen sitings. I located 5 SANDERLINGS, another OC lifer for me, in the Black Dirt.

OCTOBER: Linda Scrima struck again and located a NELSON’S SPARROW at the Liberty Loop. I was lucky enough to get that bird one evening after work. Maria Loukeris made her mark, locating a SAY’S PHOEBE, also at Liberty Marsh. Unfortunately that bird did not stick around for anyone else to see it, but it was documented with a beautiful shot by Maria. I had an amazing 36 Pectoral Sandpipers later in the month, again at Liberty Marsh, as well as a very early Rough-legged Hawk in the Black Dirt.

A flock of Pectoral Sandpipers in flight at Wallkill River NWR, 10/22/17.

NOVEMBER: At Mt. Peter, early in the month, I had my first GOLDEN EAGLE of the season. I also had my first Snow Buntings and LAPLAND LONGSPURS of the season. Later in the month, thanks to a lead from John Haas, I got my first (of many) Cackling Goose of the season.

DECEMBER: I located a Red-headed Woodpecker at Glenmere Lake and then Kathy Ashman located 2 ROSS’S GEESE, also at Glenmere. I also had a pair of ICELAND GULLS at the Newburgh Waterfront, a week later Curt McDermott had 4 ICGU and a single Lesser Black-backed Gull at the same location.

BY THE NUMBERS

I almost left this section out this year because most of my numbers aren’t very pretty, but I enjoy looking at the numbers and I think they can be I had decided last year not to concentrate so much on birding in Orange County, but then I turned around and birded OC nearly exclusively, at the expense of the neighboring counties?!? I’m not sure what it is, but I guess I just enjoy getting birds in my home county more than anywhere else. Here’s my species numbers for the year:

MORE NUMBERS: I added 17 birds to my life list in 2017, putting my total at 388. I also added 12 species to my New York State life list bumping that up to 290, and I add 10 birds to my OC life list, giving me a total of 246. This is my 92nd post of the year, down 7 from last year, which I don’t think is too bad based on my birding time being limited these days.

MOST EXCITING BIRDING EXPERIENCE OF THE YEAR: LEAST BITTERN AT RICHARD W. DEKORTE PARK.

On July 30th Linda Scrima, Maria Loukeris, and I took a trip down to Richard W. DeKorte Park in Lyndhurst, New Jersey to break up the summer doldrums a bit. We left at the end of the day having had an experience that not many will have. We had an amazing encounter with a Least Bittern that was feeding right next to one of the blinds. The bird was super focused on its prey and never really reacted to us at all. To me, Least Bitterns are among the most secretive birds in our area, so I never dreamed that we could get such a close-up extended look and unbelievable photos ops. I can’t imagine that it will ever happen again for me.

TOP TEN PHOTOS OF 2017

So it’s always difficult for me to pick my top photos of the year – there are so many different criteria I could use I suppose, but basically it just comes down to the shots that I like the best and have held up in my mind over the year.

#1: Common Loon preening in the Adirondacks, June 2017.

#2: Northern Harrier hunting over the snow at Skinner’s Lane, December 2017.

#3: My lifer Long-eared Owl, Connecticut in March 2017.

#4: Golden-winged Warbler at Sterling Forest State Park, May 2017.

#5: Northern Harrier at the Grasslands, January 2017.

#6: The famous Dickcissel from the Grasslands, May 2017.

#7: Solitary Sandpiper at Morningside Park, August 2017.

#8: European Starling and mixed blackbirds, Citgo Pond, October 2017.

#9: Orange County Barred Owl with snow piling up, February 2017.

#10: Willet at the beach in Sargent, Texas in April 2017.

I’d like to thank everyone who reads the blog and especially those who comment – the comments really keep me going. And, as usual, I’d like to thank all my birding friends out there for yet another excellent year of birding, with special thanks to Rob Stone, Linda Scrima, Maria Loukeris, Kyle Dudgeon, John Haas, Karen Miller, Ken McDermott, and Judy Cinquina. Happy New Year to everyone out there, here’s to an extremely birdy 2018!

Orange County Ross’s Geese, 12/30/17

~Two very cute Ross’s Geese at Glenmere Lake just after sunrise this morning, 12/30/17.~

First thing this morning I followed up on Kathy Ashman’s report of two ROSS’S GEESE at Glenmere Lake from yesterday morning. It was a dark, cold, and snowy morning; I arrived at the lake before sunrise and immediately located the 2 Ross’s among approximately 300 Canada Geese. I put the word out and John Haas was able to join me. With the snow fall and the heavy cloud cover, it never got light enough for good photos, but we both did our best. Ross’s are always exciting, and in spite of the poor light, the birds were relatively close and we got pretty good looks. Around 9 am, the birds picked up and John and I headed our separate ways. Huge thanks to Kathy for finding and reporting the birds.

~This is a beautiful bird! Look at those gorgeous white wings! It was very exciting to get great looks and photo ops with this Iceland Gull, Newburgh Waterfront 12/30/17.~

My goal for the day was to make a last ditch effort to find some new birds for my Orange County 2017 year list. I scoured the Hudson River, starting at the Bear Bridge and eventually ending up at the Newburgh Waterfront. I was hoping for Canvasback (I’d had 75 near my work in Rockland County the day before!) or for Great Cormorant. It was a fun day exploring new spots and hoping for the best, but ultimately I did not add any birds to my list. The highlight at the Hudson came at my final stop, where I ran into John Haas once again. He had just located an Iceland Gull. The bird was super cooperative and I got some decent shots. John had put the word out, but unfortunately, before anyone else had arrived the bird picked up and flew all the way to Beacon. Curt McDermott and Rick Hansen missed the bird by moments and Curt chased it over to Beacon (he said that it would guarantee that the bird would come back to Newburgh). Kathy Ashman showed up shortly after his departure and Curt was right, the bird did come back and Kathy and Rick both got their lifer Iceland Gulls! That was a pretty exciting way to end the day. I didn’t add any birds to my OC year list, but any day with 2 Ross’s Geese and an Iceland Gull is a good day of birding.

~One more of the ICGU, Newburgh Waterfront 12/30/17.~

OC Red-headed Woodpecker, 12/26/17

~What a thrill to get such a good look at this immature Red-headed Woodpecker at Glenmere Lake, 12/26/17.~

A couple weeks ago, I incorrectly reported a couple of Red-headed Woodpeckers in an eBird checklist for Glenmere Lake. It was a data entry error on my part – I had intended on reporting the 2 Red-BELLIED Woodpeckers I’d seen there that day, but clicked on the wrong box. My error was pointed out to me by birding buds Rob Stone and Linda Scrima; they had seen the report online and followed up with me about it.

As coincidence would have it, this afternoon I was at Glenmere Lake and I was pleasantly surprised to see a young RED-HEADED WOODPECKER as I was getting back to my car. The bird was very accomadating and I was fortunate enough to get some decent photos. This is my third straight year seeing this bird in Orange County; in 2015 there was a pair at Elks Brox Park in Port Jervis, last year there were a couple birds at Fancher Davidge Park in Middletown, and earlier this year I had two young birds at Hamptonburgh Preserve just north of Goshen.

Excellent Birding in the OC, 12/10/17

~This Northern Harrier took me by surprise – I was checking out a distant flock of larks when I caught her out of the corner of my eye; Black Dirt Region 12/10/17.~

After yesterday’s snow, I knew I wanted to check out the black dirt today. One of my main goals was to try for Snow Buntings and Lapland Longspurs among the large flocks of Horned Larks. I was hoping the snow cover would push the birds closer to the roadsides, this only happened to a small extent, but I was able to get a single LAPLAND LONGSPUR out at Skinner’s Lane. The bird was only about 40 yards off the road, but I was a little slow on the draw and missed getting a shot. I did a little bit better shooting raptors; I got my first decent shot of a Norther Harrier for the season. I also watched a Merlin enjoy a snack on a telephone pole, and miraculously, when it had finished, it took off in my direction, allowing for a decent shot.

After the black dirt, I checked out Wickham Lake, where I happy to find 12 species of waterfowl! They were pretty much the usuals, but it was excellent birding. The following species were present: Canada Goose, Mute Swan, Wood Duck, Gadwall, American Wigeon, Mallard, Am. Black Duck, Ring-necked Duck, Bufflehead, Common Merganser, Pied-billed Grebe, and Am. Coot.

From there I went to Glenmere Lake and found the birds of the day: a single BLACK SCOTER and 2 LONG-TAILED DUCKS. I haven’t had any sea ducks this fall, so I was pretty happy to see these birds. All in all, it made for a really great day of birding, one that I needed. It’s rare that I post twice in a single day – click here or on the link below to see my post from this morning with the Mount Peter 2017 end of season report by Judy Cinquina.

~A Black Scoter and one of two Long-tailed Ducks out at Glenmere Lake this afternoon, 12/10/17.~

Bird(s) on a Wire

When it comes to photographing birds, one of the least desirable perches to me is on a wire. It’s always disappointing to find a good, confiding bird that happens to be perched on a wire – I would, of course prefer a more natural setting. But sometimes that’s just what you get, and looking back over recent years I’ve had number of pretty decent shots in spite of the wire perch; here are some of my favorites.

Mt. Peter Hawkwatch, 10/28/17

Today was another relatively slow day for me at Mt. Peter. I recently wrote that I have been snake bit this season, but in retrospect, I’m not sure that’s true. Instead, I think that the crazy warm temperatures have really affected the counts this year, particularly in October (which has felt more like August). We have had fewer “good” days this October. Last year, we had 10 days with over 50 migrating raptors; this year we have had only 6. We have also had more “bad” days this year, with less than 25 birds on 13 days! Last year, by comparison, had only 8 days in October with less than 25 birds.

~My first bird of the day, a migrating Cooper’s Hawk at Mt. Peter, 10/28/17.~

I was hoping for the best, but I was not overly optimistic coming into today. The continuing warm temperatures and a south wind were not a promising combination. I totaled 24 migrating raptors (see report below), which was just enough to keep me from going bonkers. An added bonus was that the majority of the migrating birds today flew over very low. This allowed for some really great looks and some photo ops too. I had additional photo ops when one of the local Red-tailed Hawks finally decided to spend some time near the viewing platform. And, I’m always hoping for something a little different to fly over the mountain, and today I was not disappointed – I had 3 skeins of BRANT fly over! I really should have gotten a good Brant photo, but I was a little slow on the draw. The Brant made my day, as they were my 216th species in Orange County this year.

~The local Red-tail scopes the area below. Mt. Peter Hawkwatch, 10/28/17.~

~I’m liking this Turkey Vulture shot, but as I’m posting it feels like I cropped it a little tight – the bird needs a little more sky on three sides. Mt. Peter Hawkwatch, 10/28/17.~

~Four BRANT fly past the platform at Mt. Peter Hawkwatch, 10/28/17.~

~I made a quick stop at the Liberty Loop before hawkwatch today. It was mostly the usuals, but I was happy to get a decent photo of a White-crowned Sparrow.~

~Friday evening, 10/27/17, an early Rough-legged Hawk in the Black Dirt.~

Beautiful Bird

~Rusty Blackbird at 6 1/2 Station Road Sanctuary, 10/16/17.~

If you had a chance to be out this evening, you know it was a gorgeous night, cool and breezy with an amazing sunset. The only thing that could make it better is a beautiful bird, and the Rusty Blackbird is the kind of bird that can just make your day with their distinctive call and fabulous coloring. I ran into several of these beauties this evening at 6 1/2 Station Road Sanctuary and I’m still smiling about it.

~A mixed flock in flight – most of these birds are European Starlings, and I see what looks like a couple of Red-winged Blackbirds and a single Rusty Blackbird. Great night to be out, 6 1/2 Station Road Sanctuary, 10/16/17.~

Foggy Saturday, 10/14/17

~One of the many young Cedar Waxwings at Mt. Peter Hawkwatch today, 10/14/17.~

Mount Peter was fogged in this morning, so I took the opportunity to bird a couple of nearby spots before the fog cleared out. My first stop was Cascade Lake, which was very birdy. The most numerous bird was definitely Ruby-crowned Kinglet; I had over a dozen easily. Among the kinglets I had a couple of warblers. One was a Black-throated Green, but the other I haven’t been able to ID. I’ve posted a couple of shots of the bird – if any one has any ideas, please comment. I was surprised to also do well with raptors while there; I had an Osprey, a Sharp-shinned Hawk, and a Cooper’s Hawk.

~Any thoughts on this bird? Cascade Lake, 10/14/17.~

Next, I went to Wickham Lake, where Yellow-rumped Warblers were the bird of the day; they were seemingly everywhere. Other birds of note included a Pied-billed Grebe and my FOS Ruddy Ducks and Gadwall.

~I wasn’t sure if I would get my weekly Turkey Vulture shot – this was the only TUVU to make a pass close to the viewing platform. Mt. Peter Hawkwatch, 10/14/17.~

I headed back up to Mt. Pete just before noon. By 12:15 the fog was thinking about clearing out and I began the day’s hawkwatch. I had 7 migrating raptors in the first 45 minutes, which had me thinking it might be a good flight. Alas, it was not to be and I had only 2 additional migrating hawks in the next 4 hours! This has not been my year for hawkwatching so far, but I’m hoping that changes starting next Saturday.

~Black-capped Chickadees were numerous at Mt. Pete today. This one is enjoying a snack. Mt. Peter Hawkwatch, 10/14/17.~

Common Nighthawk in Flight

After a spring where I didn’t see any in the county, I’ve been fortunate this fall when it comes to Common Nighthawks. I’ve had nearly a dozen sitings in Orange County, including two occasions when they flew right over our house in Goshen, NY. I was on my way home on September 4th in the evening, when I noticed this bird as it, and several others, hawked insects over the small ice cream stand on the corner of Matthews Street and West Main in Goshen. I pulled over and grabbed my camera. I was pretty excited since the birds were up early and I had good light. I enjoyed trying to track the birds as they flew erratically and hunted; it was certainly a nice end to the day.

A Small Hawk in the Rain

09/03/17: After an early morning searching unsuccessfully for shorebirds in the Black Dirt, I came across this Broad-winged Hawk on a wire near 6 1/2 Road Sanctuary. My impression is that this was a very small hawk, in fact, likely the smallest buteo I’ve ever seen; to my eye it appeared to be just a little larger than a Merlin. I’m thinking that this is a small, young, male BWHA. I’m not a fan of wires as a perch for photos, but I do like this one just because it gives a really good look at the hawk.