It was cold but very beautiful out, and I was lucky enough to locate TWO very distant Snowy Owls in Orange County after work this evening. I spent an hour and a half watching these two incredible birds interact with one another – what a privilege!
Additionally, I had two Short-eared Owls, one of which landed not very far from my car just as the sun was setting. This photo was taken at ISO 12800!
WALLKILL RIVER NATIONAL WILDLIFE REFUGE – 2/28/14
It was for some reason unexpected that I had a nice evening shooting raptors on Friday after work. But, the light was nice and I was lucky enough to have a few birds close enough for some decent shots. Also noteworthy were my first Red-winged Blackbirds for the year in Orange County.
RONDOUT RESEVOIR – 3/1/14
I had a nice outing at Rondout Resevoir on Saturday afternoon. I knew there was a good collection of waterfowl present because I read about it on John Haas’ blog, Bashakill Birder. I got all the birds John reported in his post, including three first of the year birds for me: American Wigeon (5), Redhead (7), and Killdeer (1). It was not a great outing for photos, the birds were for the most part distant and from where you view the birds, in the afternoon all the birds are backlit. I did have a Common Merganser that didn’t seem to mind my presence at all:
SOUTHERN ORANGE COUNTY – 3/2/14
This morning I made the rounds in southern Orange County without seeing much of note. I did see a single Common Grackle and a single Red-winged Blackbird, both on Celery Avenue. I sorted through MANY Canada Geese without anything out of the ordinary. American Crows rivaled the Canada Geese in numbers and seemed to be everywhere.
I had the day off from work today, so I decided to try and take advantage of it by going for the Sandhill Cranes that had been reported on eBird over the last few days. As I pulled up to the area where the birds have been seen, they were flying overhead. I jumped out of the car and managed to get a few shots.
I wasn’t sure if this was good luck or bad luck! I was happy to have gotten the birds, but they were heading north in a very determined fashion. I looked at the map for a moment and then drove around in hopes of relocating the cranes. I didn’t have any luck with that, so I headed over to River Road to look for Bald Eagles. Deborah Tracy-Kral had informed me that there was a deer carcass on the ice that the eagles were enjoying. When I arrived there was one adult Bald Eagle and two American Crows on the now bare carcass. The eagle did not stick around for long and with not much left of the deer, I left it to the crows. I drove up and down River Road, just to check it out and then headed back to try for the cranes again. On my way over I came across this Cooper’s Hawk:
I drove around for a little while and I was pleasantly surprised when I relocated the two Sandhill Cranes. They were in a small creek and could be seen easily from the road, though they were partially obscured by twigs and branches. The crane on the right only lifted its head one time while I was there:
I was thrilled to see these birds and get some photos too. I left the cranes and headed to more familiar territory. I stopped by Lippincott Road to see if the Common Goldeneyes were still present but I did not locate them. Several Ring-billed Gulls and 4 Common Mergansers were the standouts. From there I headed to the Shawangunk Grasslands. It was a bit early in the afternoon, so I figured I would not get the Short-eared Owls, but I was curious to see what was flying there. It was very cold and windy but I enjoyed seeing some decent birds, here’s my list for the grasslands:
I ended my day by doing some more local birding, heading over to New Hampton, NY. While I was there looking at a large collection of Canada Geese in the Wallkill River, I met some of the folks that live on the river. They were interested in birds too, although the Canada Geese could be a bit loud at times. They invited me into their backyard to get some photos, which I thought was very nice of them and I totally appreciate it.
On my way back to the car I met yet another neighbor that had an interest in birds (and has since visited this blog and commented!). She told me how often they see Bald Eagles, and moments after leaving them, this bird flew overhead:
What a great day of birding! Many good birds and plenty of photo opportunities as well!
I spent the bulk of my birding time this Sunday morning in New Hampton, NY. I picked up a few first of the year birds while I was out: Wood Duck (4), Ring-necked Duck (1), and Common Grackle (2). It was quite birdy out and I put together a nice list of 22 species in a relatively short period of time:
I headed up north this morning to Ulster County just for a change of pace. It was a gorgeous morning, sunny and warming up nicely. I took the back roads and had an enjoyable ride, scanning for birds all the while. My first stop was for the Red-headed Woodpeckers. I hadn’t been up to see them in a while, and never in the winter. When I arrived, the only birds present were the steady stream of crows overhead. I was beginning to think I might strike out with the RHWOs, when I finally spotted one in my binoculars. Eventually the bird worked its way closer to me and I was able to get some decent photos. Besides the crows, I did not have another bird in that swamp this morning besides the single Red-headed Woodpecker.
I finally left the Red-headed Woodpecker behind and headed to my favorite birding spot in all of Ulster County – the Shawangunk Grasslands National Wildlife Refuge. Although all the birds there were quite distant, I had an enjoyable stop there with 6 species: (6) Rough-legged Hawks, (4) Red-tailed Hawks, (1) Bald Eagle, several Turkey Vultures, a constant movement of American Crows going through, and (2) American Tree Sparrows.
My final Ulster County stop of the morning was at Lippincott Road in Wallkill. I was hoping for a new waterfowl species for the year, but it was not to be. It was still a good stop, highlighted by the presence of (15) Common Goldeneye, (5) Common Mergansers, and (2) Hooded Mergansers.
I stopped home for a quick sandwich and then headed back out, this time in Orange County. I spent the afternoon into the evening hitting some of my usual spots and then finishing up at Wallkill River National Wildlife Refuge to go for the Short-eared Owls (who came up late, a couple minutes after 6:00 and only four birds). Generally speaking the county seemed a bit quiet to me, and the birds I did see tended to be a bit distant. Here’s my list for the afternoon:
I took advantage of the foggy, misty weather by having a peaceful evening watching the Short-eared Owls out at the Wallkill River National Wildlife Refuge. The parking lot, which has been filled most evenings lately, was practically empty. The owls were up early, and plenty of other raptors could be seen from the viewing platform, including numerous Red-tailed Hawks, a couple of Rough-legged Hawks, and a single male Northern Harrier. Also noteworthy were the seven Northern Cardinals flew into a bush near the entrance to the parking area. It started to rain after a little while, but that didn’t put damper a pleasant evening.
I got out Saturday morning and again on Sunday afternoon and birded the Black Dirt and Pine Island areas. I had a decent list of 34 species, most of which are expected at this time of year. I heard my first Great Horned Owl of year just after sunrise on Saturday morning out at Wallkill River National Wildlife Refuge and I had a Common Raven out there as well. Later Saturday morning I had 3 Lapland Longspurs, so it was good to see they are still around. I struck out with photos for the weekend, so I’ve included a Short-eared Owl shot from Wednesday. Here’s my list for 2/15/14 and 2/16/14:
Canada Goose
Photographing the Short-eared Owls out at the Shawangunk Grasslands National Wildlife Refuge is for me the most enjoyable way to shoot birds. Once you are tucked away in one of the photo blinds, the birds are not even aware of your presence. On good days, like today, when the owls get up early, this can result in many good photo opportunities. I love the fact that I can spend hours shooting away and I know that I am not bothering or stressing these birds out at all. All you have to do is be patient and be willing to deal with the cold temperatures. For me it is the perfect way to photograph birds; I only wish that there were more opportunities like this out there.
For the record I counted 6 Short-eared Owls at the refuge tonight, and amazingly, I did not see one Northern Harrier. This weekend is the first time I have ever been to the refuge in the winter and not seen at least one Northern Harrier.
