I got out on Saturday morning and briefly on Sunday morning. My focus continues to be shorebirds, of course. Shorebirds continue to be relatively sparse in the black dirt, but I got lucky with a brief, distant look at an Upland Sandpiper on Saturday morning. While I was a happy to finally catch up with an Uppy, it was frustrating to have it fly less than 30 seconds later. A little bit later, I caught up with a Baird’s Sandpiper. Linda Scrima joined me, and we enjoyed nice, relatively close-up look at the bird. Then, on Sunday morning, I had a very distant look at a bird that I was pretty sure was a Buff-breasted Sandpiper, but the bird flew before I was able to be 100% on the ID.
~Baird’s Sandpiper in the Black Dirt Region, 08/29/26. I was disappointed in all my shots of this bird – the light was a little bit harsh and I think there was some heat shimmer. At least that’s my story and I’m sticking with it.~~This is likely the same bird I photographed last week. Semipalmated Plover in the black dirt, 08/29/26.~~Sandhill Cranes in the black dirt on 08/29/26.~~This is not something you see every day. Osprey perched on a pole in the Black Dirt Region, 08/29/26.~
Well, we finally had a little bit of shorebird action in the Black Dirt Region this weekend. Emphasis on a little bit. But it’s a start, and I enjoyed myself. On Saturday morning I had my first American Golden-Plover of the year. It was in a field with many Killdeer, a Least Sandpiper, and a single Semipalmated Plover. On Sunday, those birds continued and Jeanne Cimorelli also found a pair of DISTANT Baird’s Sandpipers. When I joined her, the birds were just inside the range where the heat shimmer wasn’t too awful, allowing for decent scope views. Later in the morning, at 6 1/2 Station Road Sanctuary, I had a similar cast of characters as last weekend – a couple of Lesser Yellowlegs and smattering of Least Sandpipers.
~Semipalmated Plover in the black dirt, 08/23/26.~~Killdeer striking a pose in a puddle in the Black Dirt Region, 08/23/26.~~Killdeer taking a bath in the black dirt, 08/23/26.~~Terrible photo, but I wanted to include one shot of the American Golden-Plover in the Black Dirt Region, 08/22/26.~~I’m loving the plumage on this European Starling. BDR, 08/22/26.~~There is no shortage of Green Herons right now. This one was at the Liberty Loop, 08/22/26. I also had over half a dozen of them at 6 1/2 Station Road Sanctuary on 08/23/26.~
It’s the time of year when there are plenty of birds around, so it made for a very pleasant weekend of birding. I added (18) new species to my 2026 Orange County year list. I had a decent showing of shorebirds on Saturday, with six species observed. At the Camel Farm, Linda Scrima and I had Greater Yellowlegs, Lesser Yellowlegs, Pectoral Sandpiper, Least Sandpiper and Killdeer. I added Spotted Sandpiper at the Liberty Loop platform. I did alright with songbirds too; I added (9) new species of wood warblers to my OC year list, including my favorite new species from the weekend, a beautiful Cape May Warbler.
~Cape May Warbler at Laurel Grove Cemetery in Port Jervis, 05/03/26.~
I also spent some time in the black dirt looking for and finding Lapland Longspurs. On Saturday I was pleasantly surprised to see the flock of Horned Larks was still around and although it took a while, I was able to locate a single LALO in non-breeding plumage. Today I was able to get on a couple of LALOs pretty quickly, and one was in breeding plumage. Unfortunately, the birds are moving around a lot, and the spots they have been favoring are distant enough to make getting photos very challenging, and I failed on both days. I was still pretty excited though, as these are my first observations ever of this species in the month of May.
~The flock of Horned Larks with the Lapland Longspurs remained uncooperative, but there are plenty of of larks which are not part of the flock and are going about their business of having young. This one landed on the road right in front of me; I couldn’t resist getting a few shots. Horned Lark in the Black Dirt Region, 05/02/26.~~Sandhill Crane in flight over Liberty Marsh, 05/02/26.~~Ruby-crowned Kinglet at Laurel Grove Cemetery, 05/03/26.~~Cape May Warbler at Laurel Grove Cemetery, 05/03/26.~~And one final shot of the CMWA at Laurel Grove Cemetery, 05/03/26.~~I took this last weekend, Greater Yellowlegs on Lynch Avenue in the black dirt on 04/26/26.~
I didn’t get out this morning, so this evening I followed up on several reports of an UPLAND SANDPIPER from earlier in the day. I was hoping to get some better looks than I did a couple of weeks ago. Well, mission accomplished! I got super lucky with an Upland Sandpiper very close to the road. The bird flushed from some longer grasses as I approached in my car. It posed for a short time right in front of me, and then worked its way along the side of a turf field. It was probably the best/longest Uppy observation that I’ve had, and I was excited and thrilled.
~Upland Sandpiper in the Black Dirt Region, 08/23/25.~~Uppy in the black dirt, 08/23/25.~~Upland Sandpiper in the black dirt, 08/23/25.
QUICK POST: I played a hunch and ran out to the Black Dirt Region after work this evening. I got lucky and was able to locate a single BUFF-BREASTED SANDPIPER, along with two American Golden-Plovers. The birds were distant and mostly backlit, but still it was a thrill to see them. I put the word out and Silas Wareham and Jeanne Cimorelli both ran for the birds and got them. On a personal note, this evening put me over the 200 bird mark in Orange County for the year, with birds #200 and #201. Pics were tough, but I tried my best to document.
~Always a thrill to see this bird. BUFF-BREASTED SANDPIPER in the black dirt, 08/19/25.~~One of two American Golden-Plovers in the black dirt tonight, o8/19/25.~~Buff-breasted Sandpiper and American Golden-Plover in the BDR, 08/19/25.~
I finally got lucky and found an UPLAND SANDPIPER in the Black Dirt Region this morning. Unfortunately, the bird was absolutely miles out in a field, so pics were very tough (click here to see what an Uppy actually looks like). The bird was jumpy, and I felt like at any moment it might come closer, but, frustratingly, it kept taking short flights and getting further away instead. During one longer flight, the bird was calling while in flight, so that was pretty cool. Several folks came out for the bird; I know a few got it and a few were still trying to relocated it when I finally left.
~Terrible, distant photos, but what can you do? Upland Sandpiper in the Black Dirt Region, 08/10/25.~~Upland Sandpiper in the black dirt, 08/10/25.~
QUICK POST: I made an impromptu trip to the black dirt this evening after work, hoping for maybe an Upland Sandpiper. It was a beautiful evening with an eerie light due to the smoke in the air from the wildfires in Canada. There were loads of Killdeer to keep my interest up, and although I came up empty regarding the Uppy, I was able to locate a single BAIRD’S SANDPIPER associating with a small flock of Killdeer in a grassy field.
~Baird’s Sandpiper in the black dirt, 08/05/25.~~One more look at the BASA in the black dirt, 08/05/25.~
With the weather moving in today, I knew I wanted to check the Black Dirt Region for shorebirds after work this evening. It was mostly quiet until I found a single field with a decent sized collection of shorebirds, maybe 40 or so birds. One bird stood out immediately; I did what I could to document it before the rain came down in full force. While I sat in my car in the rain, I put the word out and sent photos. John Haas responded very quickly, identifying the bird as a SANDERLING. Sanderling was on my short list, but I certainly wasn’t sure about it. Big thanks to John and everyone that weighed in. Other species present were Least Sandpipers, Semipalmated Sandpipers, Semipalmated Plovers, and Killdeer. I’ll leave you with this reminder: BAD WEATHER = GOOD BIRDS = TERRIBLE PICS.
~Sanderling in the black dirt, 07/31/25.~~Sanderling, BDR, 07/31/25.~~Semipalmated Plover in an absolute downpour. Black Dirt Region 07/31/25.~
On Saturday morning I birded the area, hoping for some new fall shorebird arrivals. Unfortunately, I did not add any new species to my list from last week, and I had a total of only 4 shorebird species.
Black Dirt: Killdeer
Camel Farm: Killdeer and Least Sandpipers (2)
Liberty Marsh Platform: Solitary Sandpipers (2)
Beaver Pond: Killdeer and Solitary Sandpipers (5)
Bullville Pond: Killdeer, Least Sandpipers (2), Solitary Sandpipers (2), and Spotted Sandpiper (1)
6 1/2 Station Road Sanctuary: Killdeer and Least Sandpipers (2)
The highlight for me was spending some quality time with a young Killdeer foraging under a sprinkler in the black dirt, so I’ll leave you with an overdose of cuteness. All photos taken on 07/26/25 in the Black Dirt Region.
Well, it was quite a bird-filled weekend. It’s that time of year where just being out and about you will see many new birds for the year. If I include Thursday, I personally added nearly 30 birds to my Orange County year list. I’ve included a list of all my new birds at the bottom of this post.
While most of the birds were nothing out-of-the-ordinary, there were some highlights. On Saturday morning, the Camel Farm was well stocked with shorebirds. While most of the birds were Greater and Lesser Yellowlegs, I did add several new species, including a single DUNLIN in beautiful plumage. It was funny, because Linda Scrima joined me there; she was trying to get on the Dunlin and she casually asked me if it was near the GLOSSY IBIS… I was like what GLOSSY IBIS??? The ibis must have flown in while I had my head down in my scope, so that was a funny, pleasant surprise.
~This photo made my weekend. It’s been absolutely years since I’ve gotten a decent cuckoo photo, so I was thrilled to spend a little time at Winding Waters Trail with this Yellow-billed Cuckoo, 05/04/25.~
On Sunday morning, for my final stop, I took a walk out at Wallkill River National Wildlife Refuge’s Winding Waters Trail, where two excellent things happened. First, I ran into and caught up with my friends Jeff and Liz; It had been ages since I’ve seen them, and I was coincidentally just thinking about them the day before. And second, a little while after that, I ran into a relatively cooperative YELLOW-BILLED CUCKOO. It’s been absolutely ages since I’ve had a good cuckoo experience, so I really enjoyed it.
~Greater Yellowlegs at the Camel Farm, 05/04/25.~~My warbler game is right on par, lol. Here’s snazzy shot of a distant Blue-winged Wabler on an electrical tower in Sterling Forest, 05/03/25.~~There were loads of Yellow Warblers at most locations I went to over the weekend. This one was taken at Winding Waters Trail, 05/04/25.~~One more Yellow-billed Cuckoo shot. Winding Waters Trail, 05/04/25.~~Cuteness. Canada Goose goslings at Wickham Lake, 05/03/25.~
