Month: September 2012

Wallkill River NWR – Sparrows and Sparrow Hawks

At times referred to as the American Sparrow Hawk, this male was one of five American Kestrels at Wallkill River NWR.

I went out to the Wallkill River NWR on Saturday morning, planning on walking the Liberty Loop. It was a gray rainy morning, but I was still  hoping to get some flight photos of the Northern Harriers that have been cruising the loop lately and I also had 3 Pied-billed Grebes out there on Thursday evening and I wanted to see if they were still at the refuge. When I arrived I took a quick look around from the viewing platform and noticed a Red-tailed Hawk perched in a tree north of Oil City Road. I decided to walk up Liberty Lane and check it out and leave the Liberty Loop for another day. I was not disappointed, especially in the raptor department:

  • 5 (!) American Kestrels
  • 2 Northern Harriers
  • 1 Red-tail Hawk
  • 1 Sharp-shinned Hawk

A perched female American Kestrel at the Wallkill River NWR 9-29-12

There was a complete absence of shore birds, but there were 6 Great Egrets and 2 Great Blue Herons in the pond to the left of Liberty Lane. There was a good showing of songbirds – I got a nice look at a Red-bellied Woodpecker, there were many American Goldfinches, and I had a couple of Palm Warblers too. I saw many sparrows which I struggled to identify as usual. I really have to put more time into it, but I haven’t made it happen yet. I had several Song Sparrows and I believe I also had a number of Savannah Sparrows, which I identified with my photos once I got home:

A Savannah Sparrow thinks things over.
I love this Savannah Sparrow photo- check out the details on the bird’s head.
A Song Sparrow strikes a pose as usual. Wallkill River NWR 9-29-12

Basha Kill 9/15/12

I put my kayak into the water at the Basha Kill right at sunrise this morning. It was a chilly paddle at first, but as the sun made it over the mountain it warmed up quickly. There were many Wood Ducks flying over and I came across at least a half a dozen Great Blue Herons as I paddled the channel. I spotted a couple of falcons that darted behind the trees before I could get a good ID on them. Ironically the highlight of my paddle this morning came when I stopped at Haven Road and got out of my kayak to chat with fellow birder/blogger John Haas (The Bashakill Birder). We watched as a Merlin flew across Haven Road and then chased a Mourning Dove over the kill and around the corner. The Merlin was overhead again shortly after that and then perched on a tree right on Haven road, giving me a good opportunity to get a photo:

Merlin on Haven Road at the Basha Kill
Two of the many Wood Ducks that flew over as I paddled the channel.

After my paddle, I headed over to the Deli Fields to have a look around:

Eastern Phoebe at the Basha Kill Deli Fields
A sad looking American Goldfinch at the Deli Fields
Song Sparrow posing at the Deli Fields