Sunday Shots, 12/18/22

Yesterday I arrived at Black Rock Forest just after sunrise. I slogged through the snow out to Tamarack Pond, in hopes of finding Red Crossbills or any other winter finches. Unfortunately, I was not rewarded for my efforts. There were actually very few birds in the area, and no winter finches at all. It was nice to be out in the forest on such a beautiful morning, but I was really disappointed in the lack of birds.

~Iceland Gull at the Beacon Waterfront, 12/17/22.~

Afterwards, I birded the Hudson River, both from Newburgh and Beacon. In Beacon I got lucky with a first winter ICELAND GULL, always a favorite of mine. I wasn’t feeling so great, so I headed home a little early and unfortunately missed out on an adult Iceland and an adult Lesser Black-backed; both located by birding bud Bruce Nott.

~Iceland Gull with a Herring Gull at the Beacon Waterfront 12/17/22.~

I ended up fighting a bout with gallstones Saturday evening into Sunday morning. I had no idea what was going on; I had severe abdominal pain all through the nigh and I barely slept a wink. I went to Urgent Care this morning and they told me it was gallstones. Fortunately, it was not severe enough to have to have anything done at this time, but I will have to shift over to a more low fat diet moving forward. This afternoon, I was feeling well enough to cruise the black dirt, but really it was a bit half-hearted and unproductive.

Black-capped Chickadee at Black Rock Forest, 12/17/22.~
~Backyard Dark-eyed Junco from this past Friday, 12/16/22.~

10 thoughts on “Sunday Shots, 12/18/22”

  1. Oh my goodness – I hope that you feel better soon . I have family members who have dealt with that and it’s quite painful .
    Wishing you all the best -always love all of your photos , but that chickadee shot is absolutely stunning ! It is so crisp and clear , I feel like I’m right there !

    1. I was surprised at how painful it was Liz! I’ve always thought I had a high tolerance for pain, but not in this case! Glad you like the chickadee – maybe it was worth trekking through the snow. Matt

  2. Postcard-pretty chickadee shot, Matt.
    Having stones is believed to be one of the most painful…. The stones can move around, so good to have them checked.

  3. I agree with everyone about your chickadee shot. So sorry about the gallstones, please take care.
    Hope to see you out and about.

    Maryangela

  4. Sorry to hear about the gallstones Matt!! Glad you’re feeling a bit better- and as always thanks for all the great shots! Loved the shrike from last week- the pic in flight was beautiful!

    1. Thanks Tom, yeah I’m feeling okay today. I was pretty excited about the shrike – that’s a really good bird for our area! Matt

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