My goodness, it was a COLD weekend! Saturday, with the strong winds, may have been the coldest conditions I’ve ever birded in. Which is why I spent nearly every minute in the car, only getting out on a few occasions. Sunday started off pretty cold too, but did not have the same winds that we had on Saturday and was eventually borderline comfortable, as long as you were in the sun. I spent all morning Saturday in the black dirt and I got mostly the usuals. The best thing about the substantial snow cover is that it brought some of my favorite birds (Snow Buntings and Lapland Longspurs) into more accessible areas.
On Sunday I started out in the black dirt again; I made my way out to Wallkill River National Wildlife Refuge’s Winding Waters Trail. I walked out to the fork and back – it was brutally cold, but it felt good to get out of the car and take a walk. Then I headed to the Newburgh Waterfront area. I made a quick stop at Kendridge Farm, where I enjoyed the company of a large flock of American Robins, probably north of a hundred individuals. At the waterfront, it was too early in the day for much gull action, but I was luck enough to find 17 Common Goldeneyes in the only open water I could find, straight out from Blu Pointe restaurant. They were eventually flushed by a US Coast Guard boat breaking through the ice and I watched as they flew down river.
On my way home I started thinking about the TUNDRA SWAN that has been observed in the area in recent days. I’d tried for that bird on the Wallkill River on Celery Avenue four times already over the weekend, but something made me think I should try one more time. At the Celery Avenue location, I was unable to locate the bird, but I did meet Rick and MaryAnn Ronzoni. They had had similar poor luck with this bird; we commiserated and went our separate ways. I was headed home when my phone rang – it was the Ronzonis – they had found the bird in a field on Onion Avenue! I turned around and the bird was still there when I arrived – and what a beauty it was. Huge thanks to the Ronzonis, who went out of their way to make sure I got that bird.
Matt, I’m happy you got the Tundra swan! Hope to see you out there soon!
Finally caught up with that bird! See you out there soon. Matt
I’m sure the cold was brutal. The snow bunting are so sweet!!
Oh, it was brutal at times, but it’s always nice to get out on the weekends. Thanks for checking in. Matt