Saturday Birding Bonanza 4/12/14

Horned Grebe at Glenmere Lake, 4/12/14.
Horned Grebe at Glenmere Lake, 4/12/14.

Glenmere Lake, 8:00 am

I was hoping that some additional waterfowl might have been grounded by the overnight rain. This proved not to be the case, but there was still a decent showing of waterfowl, including:  Canada Goose (15), Lesser Scaup (9), Bufflehead (6), Wood Duck (4), Common Loon (1), Double-crested Cormorant (1), and the highlight of the stop, (6) Horned Grebes, two of which swam right up to me while I was looking through my scope. I was shocked because while Glenmere Lake is a great spot for birds, it is typically not very good for photos. I was pleased to have those grebes so close.

Pine Warbler, Glenmere Lake 4/12/14.
Pine Warbler, Glenmere Lake 4/12/14.

Other birds of note at the lake included a couple of Pine Warblers, my first of the year Palm Warbler, and a Yellow-bellied Sapsucker.

A Yellow-bellied Sapsucker works the shady side of a tree. Glenmere Lake, 4/12/14.
A Yellow-bellied Sapsucker works the shady side of a tree. I never did get a shot of the bird in the sun.  Glenmere Lake, 4/12/14.

Wallkill River National Wildlife Refuge – Liberty Loop, 9:45am

I found a half dozen Turkey Vultures enjoying some roadkill on Pumpkin Swamp road, on my way to Wallkill River NWR, 4/12/14.
I found a half dozen Turkey Vultures enjoying some roadkill on Pumpkin Swamp road, on my way to Wallkill River NWR, 4/12/14.

I walked the Liberty Loop next, with my main goal to see if the Eurasian Wigeon was still present. I was unable to locate the bird, or any wigeon at all, so I am thinking that maybe these birds have moved on. The wigeon may have moved on, but there were still many waterfowl present:

IMG_6308

Canada Goose
Snow Goose
Wood Duck
Mallard
Blue-winged Teal
Northern Shoveler
Northern Pintail
Green-winged Teal
Ring-necked Duck
Mute Swan
American Coot
Peregrine Falcon at Wallkill River NWR, 4/12/14.
Peregrine Falcon at Wallkill River NWR, 4/12/14.

Two Snow Geese were a pleasant surprise, as was my first Peregrine Falcon of the year. I finally located a Peregrine (it had been ages!) and the bird was not only severely backlit, but it had the fullest crop I’ve ever seen!

Bashakill Wildlife Management Area, 3:30 pm

Osprey at the Bashakill, 4/12/14.
Osprey at the Bashakill, 4/12/14.

I spent the afternoon at Haven Road in the Bashakill Wildlife Management Area. I ran into a birder from New York City, Lee, and we enjoy some really good birds. Many raptors were seen, some local and others that seemed to be moving through. We had: Turkey Vulture (12), Bald Eagle (1), Osprey (1), Red-tailed Hawk (4), Red-shouldered Hawk (1), Peregrine Falcon (1), and flying very high overhead, I believe that I had a pair of Broad-winged Hawks.

Waterfowl numbers were way down from last week when I was there. Most migrants seemed to have moved on with the exception of small flock of Ring-necked Ducks. A Pied-billed Grebe was seen on the north side of Haven Road:

Pied-billed Grebe seen from Haven Road at the Bashakill, 4/12/14.
Pied-billed Grebe seen from Haven Road at the Bashakill, 4/12/14.

Shawangunk Grasslands National Wildlife Refuge, 6:00 pm

I had a single Short-eared Owl at the grasslands tonight, 4/12/14.
I had a single Short-eared Owl at the grasslands tonight, 4/12/14.

My final stop of the day was the Shawangunk Grasslands. I recently looked back at my posts from last April and I did pretty well with a pair of American Kestrels during the first week of April last year. I didn’t have any good photo ops, but I did have 4 kestrels out there. It looks like two pairs using the nesting boxes at the refuge. I also had 3 Northern Harriers, one Short-eared Owl, and my first of the year Eastern Meadowlarks.

 

 

 

 

2 thoughts on “Saturday Birding Bonanza 4/12/14”

    1. Thanks Karen – I wish I could have captured the sapsucker in the light! Nice bird to see for sure. Matt

Comments are closed.