Swimming Waterbirds – Orange Birding

Waterfowl Weekend, 03/30/25

I enjoyed an excellent weekend of birding, with plenty of good waterfowl. The highlight was Wickham Lake this morning; Kyle Knapp and I made two visits to the lake, and we enjoyed some really excellent birds. Highlights included: (2) WHITE-WINGED SCOTERS, (7) LONG-TAILED DUCKS, (3) RED-BREASTED MERGANSERS, and (2) HORNED GREBES. Along with the more expected species, we had a total of (15) species of waterfowl. We also had (3) species of gull, Ring-billed, American Herring, and my first BONAPARTE’S GULLS of year.

~It always seems to be the case with these exciting sea ducks – always distant and in poor light~ (7) Long-tailed Ducks on the move at Wickham Lake, 03/30/25.~

~Horned Grebe at Wickham Lake, 03/30/25.

Saturday was a little less exciting, with only new species of watefowl for me; a Common Loon at Walton Lake (the bird continued into Sunday morning as well). The bird was way too distant both days for photos, but the nicer weather on Saturday morning did allow me to get some decent shots of some other waterfowl.

~Northern Pintail at the Liberty Loop, 03/29/25.~

~Pied-billed Grebe at Wickham Lake on Saturday morning, 03/29/25.~

~This one is from last weekend, when Eastern Phoebes moved back into our area. This one was at Silver Mine Lake, 03/22/25.~

Saturday

Common Goldeneyes, 02/08/25

I had an enjoyable but mostly unremarkable weekend of birding; I hit the black dirt both mornings and the Newburgh Waterfront on Saturday afternoon. I added three new species to my Orange County year list: Brown Creeper, Hairy Woodpecker, and Red-breasted Merganser. Photos were tough to come by in general, but I did score with a trio of Common Goldeneyes at the Newburgh Waterfront. It was probably comical to watch, but I waited for all three birds to dive at the same time, and then I ran and jumped into some brush on the shoreline.

Orange County Eurasian Wigeon, 01/04/25

On New Year’s Day, Diane Bliss found a EURASIAN WIGEON in the small ponds across from Warwick Town Hall. The bird was not relocated on the 2nd, but then it resurfaced on the 3rd. I couldn’t run for it because I was working, so I was hoping it would hang in there for me until today. Which it did. Huge thanks to Kyle Knapp, who was on the scene before sunrise, and not only did he let me know the bird was there, he stuck around to make sure I got it. The bird is a beautiful drake and was an Orange County lifer for me, nudging my total number of birds in the county to 278.

~Wow! EURASIAN WIGEON in Warwick, NY 01/04/25.~

~I finally ran into the Warwick leucistic Red-tailed Hawk after not seeing the bird for a good while (maybe a year or so?).~

Good Birding at Wickham Lake, 11/23/24

I started my morning of birding at Wickham Lake, where just after my arrival I found a pair of Long-tailed Ducks. Kyle Knapp joined me shortly after my arrival and we enjoyed some good birding. Kyle saw a gull in flight across the lake; I got on it with my scope and was happy to report it was a Bonaparte’s Gull! The bird moved through without stopping, and we would eventually have a second Bonie do the same thing. We found another Long-tailed Duck in the west section of the lake – we both agreed that the plumage on this bird was different than the first two.

~One of three Long-tailed Ducks at Wickham Lake, 11/23/24.~

Other good birds included an adult Bald Eagle, a Common Goldeneye, and a distant scaup that was too distant to properly identify, but I would venture to guess it was a Greater. A nice sized flock of Green-winged Teal did a couple of fly-bys which was fun to photograph.

~One of two Bonaparte’s Gulls at Wickham Lake, 11/23/24.~

~Green-winged Teals in flight at Wickham Lake, 11/23/24.~

I hit the black dirt afterwards and the winter usuals made a good showing. The Three Amigos (Horned Lark, Snow Bunting, & Lapland Longspur) were all present; there are loads of larks, I had a handful of buntings, and at least 6 longspurs. I still had about a dozen American Pipits. The Cackling Goose at Breeze Hill Pond continues. And finally, I had a single Rough-legged Hawk high over the Camel Farm.

~Lapland Longspur with a couple of Horned Larks; Black Dirt Region 11/23/24.~

Sunday Shots, 10/27/24

I birded Wickham Lake both mornings this weekend. It was birdy both mornings, but on Sunday morning there was a nice collection of mostly new waterfowl present. The highlight was a single Red-necked Grebe (too far out for photos unfortunately); that’s a bird I alway enjoy seeing. Other waterfowl species included: Canada Geese, Mallards, Northern Pintails, Ring-necked Ducks, Buffleheads, Ruddy Ducks, American Coots, and Double-crested Cormorants. Both mornings were beautiful, and really I didn’t do as well with photos as maybe I should have, but that’s how it goes sometimes.

Ruby-crowned Kinglet at Wickham Lake, 10/26/24.~

~Double-crested Cormorant in flight at Wickham Lake, 10/27/24.~

~This Belted Kingfisher was chased across the lake by a Northern Harrier, of all things. I’ve never seen anything like that before. BEKI at Wickham Lake, 10/27/24.~

OC Red-necked Grebe, 04/18/24

Question: Is it pathetic or is it awesome that a single bird can make my week? Regardless of your answer to that question, that’s what happened tonight. I’d been having a rotten week; heavy with work stress and deficient in joy. But that changed tonight when I rolled up to Greenwood Lake and found a gorgeous RED-NECKED GREBE on the water. The bird was a little bit distant at first, but it was slowly making its way towards the shore. I put the word out, and Kyle Knapp joined on the beach. We enjoyed some good looks, but the bird remained tucked in most of the time.

~Beautiful bird! Red-necked Grebe at Greenwood Lake, 04/18/24.~

The bird was drifting further out, so we decided to leave. Just before we got in our cars, Kyle took one more look – at first he didn’t see the bird, but then we found it, it was very close to shore. We slowly made our way closer; the bird stayed put and we enjoyed fantastic looks and photos ops of this beautiful bird. What a night, what a way to melt the stress away. What a great hobby.

~One more shot of the Red-necked Grebe at Greenwood Lake, 04/18/24.~

Loony Evening, 04/11/24

The old adage ‘bad weather = good birds’ held true once again this evening. I’d like to add to that and say bad weather = good birds = terrible photos. But it also makes for a very happy birder. I headed out directly after work today, and I spent a rainy evening checking out a couple of local lakes. At my first stop, Wickham Lake, I was pleased to find 9 (!) Common Loons on the water. Eight of the birds were in a tight group, with one bird that was only loosely associating with them:

~Exciting stuff – nine Common Loons at Wickham Lake, 04/11/24.~

My next stop was Glenmere Lake. At first I thought it was a bust, but then I saw 2 distant birds in my binoculars. I got the scope on them, and sure enough, it was a pair of RED-THROATED LOONS! Always a favorite and seemingly more difficult to get in the county in recent years, this sighting made my night.

~Good bird for the county – A pair of RED-THROATED LOONS on Glenmere Lake, 04/11/24.~

Ring-necked Duck, 03/17/24

Looking at field guides, and from my own personal experience, Ring-necked Ducks do not show off their namesake very often. Even today, when I photographed this drake, I didn’t take notice of it. But, when I reviewed my photos, I was pleasantly surprised with the results. I’ve never seen a maroon/brown neck-ring this distinctive. I’m not sure if this is the effect of particular lighting condition, or if this is this individual’s current plumage. Regardless, I didn’t much luck otherwise with photos today, but I definitely wanted to share a couple shots of this good-looking bird, which I photographed at 6 1/2 Station Road Sanctuary this morning.

~Male Ring-necked Duck at 6 1/2 Station Road Sanctuary, 03/17/24.~

~One more shot of the drake Ring-necked Duck at 6 1/2 Station Road Sanctuary, 03/17/24.~

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.~

12 Hour Pelagic, 02/10/24

This past Saturday, I left my house just before 3 am to board American Princess Cruise’s Special 12 Hour Pelagic Bird and Wildlife Trip at 5:30 am. It was a long and tiring day, but I felt like it was very successful. We did very well with our target Alcid species, Atlantic Puffin, Razorbill, Dovekie, and Common Murre, getting good numbers of each. I’ve included an Excel sheet below, reflective of all the species we had as recorded in (16) eBird reports compiled by the trip leaders. I think it is pretty cool, because it tells the story of the day numerically, showing the birds observed closer to shore as we left in the morning, then the species found further out, and finally the birds closer to shore again, as we returned in the evening.

As for gulls, we did pretty well, with (6) species observed, but noticeably absent was Black-legged Kittiwake, which unfortunately was probably the expected species I most wanted to see.

~This was an absolutely beautiful bird. ICELAND GULL during the American Princess Cruise 12-HR Pelagic, 02/10/24.~

Two of the more exciting gull species, Iceland and Lesser Black-backed really put on a show an provided many photo ops. The Iceland was a beautiful first cycle bird, and it followed the boat for quite some time. We had (3) Lesser Black-backed Gulls – one 1st cycle, one 2nd cycle, and one non-adult that was more advanced than the 2nd cycle.

~Lesser Blackbacked Gull APC 12-HR Pelagic, 02/10/24.~

~It’s a BIG ocean. Bonaparte’s Gull, American Princess Cruise 12-HR Pelagic, 02/10/24.~

~This sharp looking Herring Gull wasn’t going to be outdone by the more rare gulls. American Princess Cruise 12-HR Pelagic, 02/10/24.~

As I’ve seen on other pelagic trips, we got fantastic looks and plenty of photo ops of Northern Gannets.

~Northern Gannet coming right at me. American Princess Cruise 12-HR Pelagic, 02/10/24.~

~Subadult Northern Gannet, American Princess Cruise 12-HR Pelagic, 02/10/24.~

~Northern Gannet, American Princess Cruise 12-HR Pelagic, 02/10/24.~

The Alcids are super exciting to see, but they are far less photogenic. It’s hard to believe how small a Dovekie actually is; the Audubon app lists the bird at 8″, but seeing them out in the ocean they barely seem that big – they are tiny! Ironically, in regards to photos, I did best with them of all the alcids.

It was an excellent, if exhausting trip. They do a great job at American Princes Cruises and I am looking forward to the next one.