Rarities – Page 16 – Orange Birding

Finally – Lifer LEAST BITTERN, 7/24/16

~Excellent, excellent bird. LEAST BITTERN at DeKorte Park in Lyndhurst, NJ 7/24/16.~

Maria Loukeris and I got an early start and headed south to Richard W. DeKorte Park in Lyndhurst, New Jersey; we were trying for the Ruff that had been reported there. We were not the only ones with that idea, as the park was absolutely loaded with birders. We met up with Marianne O., as planned, met some other birders for the first time, and also ran into Denise Farrel, who is also a hawk counter at Mount Peter Hawkwatch. Ultimately, we left and the Ruff had not been relocated. Meanwhile, we had some great birds at the park, including several LEAST BITTERNS. I was hoping when I finally got my lifer LEBI, it would not be a speck in a scope, or a fleeting glimpse of a bird, and I was not disappointed. The first one we had was only 50 feet away or so. It was in the shadows and partially hidden by phragmites reeds, but it looked absolutely incredible in the scope, and we worked hard to get some decent photos (I was not at all optimistic about these shots, so I was pleasantly surprised when I got home and saw them on the computer).

~These photos do not tell the truth. This bird was tough to see, even though it was not all that far away (50 feet?). Naked eye, you would lose the bird every time. It was even tough to locate in the camera view, I kept having to relocate with my binoculars or scope. Least Bittern at DeKorte Park, 7/24/16.~

DeKorte is absolutely loaded with shorebirds. There were too many Least and Semipalmated Sandpipers to count, the same goes for Lesser Yellowlegs and Short-billed Dowitchers. We also had a handful of Semipalmated Plovers and also several Greater Yellowlegs. A Peregrine Falcon came through a couple of times and lifted up all the shorebirds (I somehow missed it both times!?). Also of note was a Sora that was seen well by Marianne and others but would not re-emerge when Maria and I made our way back to where it was being seen.

I had always been intimidated to go to DeKorte; mostly because of the driving and traffic, but also because I didn’t know the lay of the land. I admit that we did get a little bit lost on the way in, but really the driving wasn’t a problem at all especially since it was early on a Sunday with little traffic. And the park is very inviting, you don’t really have to know anything going into it; just arrive an enjoy some good birding.

~Least Sandpiper close up at DeKorte Park, 7/24/16. You could spend all day just shooting shorebirds if you wanted to.

~This bird was a messy eater, ha ha. Semipalmated Sandpiper with a face full of mud, DeKorte Park, 7/24/16.~

~This Marsh Wren was one of the first birds of the morning. It put on a nice show and allowed for some decent shots, in fact I am posting 2 because I couldn’t decide which I liked better. Richard W. DeKorte Park, 7/24/16.~

~One final shot of another Least Bittern. This was a nice scene, too bad the bird was mostly backlit. Richard W. DeKorte Park, 7/24/16.~

Warren County, NJ BROWN BOOBY!

~Brown Booby in flight at Merrill Creek Reservoir in Warren County, NJ, 7/14/16.~

Sometimes things just seem to work out. I had a work appointment in Wilmington Delaware this morning, and Merrill Creek Reservoir in Warren County, New Jersey, where a BROWN BOOBY has been recently reported, is not very far off the route that I took home. With some directions from Linda Scrima and a little luck, I found the location easily enough, and the bird was still present and was immediately pointed out to me by the other birders present. It spent most of its time perched and partially hidden on the I/O Tower, but in time I was there it did take flight a couple of times, which allowed for some halfway decent photos. I really enjoyed this bird and with its beautiful long thin wings it was exciting to see it in flight. Plus, it’s a booby in the middle of New Jersey, that’s pretty amazing! And finally, it was life bird for me, my 367th.

~Brown Booby at Merrill Creek Reservoir, 7/14/16.~

~I liked the trees in the background of this shot – Warren County, New Jersey Brown B0oby, 7/14/16.~

~Beautiful bird – Brown Booby in flight at Merrill Creek Reservoir, 7/14/16.~

~This is where the bird spent most of its time while I was there; Brown Booby perched at Merrill Creek Reservoir 7/14/16.~

Orange County Short-billed Dowitchers, 7/5/16

~Two of the three SHORT-BILLED DOWITCHERS at Wallkill River NWR, 7/5/16.~

I met Linda Scrima out at the Wallkill River National Wildlife Refuge’s viewing platform; we were going to try for the Short-billed Dowitcher that Ken McDermott had located yesterday and Karen Miller had relocated earlier today. Shortly after arriving, Linda located a single bird straight out from the platform but just emerging from the grasses. Sure enough it was a Short-billed Dowitcher! The bird was distant, but we had decent looks in the scope. I went back to my car for a bottle of water when Linda located a second bird – we got on it with the scope and it was a second SBDO. We put the word out, but by the time Maria Loukeris joined us, the birds had disappeared behind the grasses. John Haas and Mark Spina came shortly after and still there was no sign of the birds. We changed our vantage point by walking 5o or so yards down the Liberty Loop Trail heading east, and that did the trick – the birds were back in view and were joined by a third SBDO. Everyone got good scope views and did their best to get photos. Since the birds were so distant, I ended up mostly shooting video with my phone through the scope, but took some photos too. Good birds and good birding!

Sussex County Chat, 6/21/16

~A Yellow-breasted Chat calls from a treetop perch, Canal Road in Vernon Township, NJ 6/21/16.~

I have to thank Linda Scrima for motivating me this afternoon. I had not come up with a birding plan for the afternoon, and I was feeling a bit uninspired. Earlier in the day, Linda had gone for the Yellow-breasted Chats that had been reported at the Appalachian Trail off the Canal Road bike path in Vernon Township, New Jersey. At that time, she texted a recording of one of the chats calling, but I was unable to listen to it while I was working. Once I was out for the afternoon, I listened to it and I immediately knew I had to run for the birds; it really got me excited to see a chat! When I first arrived, I could hear at least one bird calling, but distant. I stood in the shade and waited it out; the calls came closer and eventually I located the bird as it took a nice high perch and called repeatedly. The bird was a little bit distant, but in perfect light, so I was able to get decent shots (with a very heavy crop). I stayed for a little over an hour and I was only sure of having one chat. Interestingly, it is seven days shy of a year since I had a pair of chats at this same location last summer.

When Life Gives You Lemons…

~A Seaside Sparrow calling at Gardiner County Park, 6/5/16.~

…make lemonade. An embroidered version of this saying hung above the front door in our house growing up. I never really understood it as a kid, probably because at that age, I really loved lemons and would eat them straight. I can remember going to restaurants as a kid and eating the lemons from everyone’s drinks. A lot has changed since then – I don’t eat lemons anymore, and I understand the saying.

John Haas and I were scheduled to attend an overnight pelagic birding trip out of Brooklyn. We were supposed to set sail at 8:00 pm on Sunday, but the incoming bad weather was putting the trip in jeopardy. John suggested that we leave early in the day, this way we would beat the southbound traffic, and we could also do some birding on Long Island before the trip. Well, as you can guess, the trip was ultimately cancelled, but I’m glad we went down early, because at least we got in some quality birding before having to eventually head back north.

We made three stops and did pretty well at all of them. Our first stop was at Smith Point County Marina where we got very lucky; we arrived and there was already another birder on our target bird, a previously reported BLACK-NECKED STILT. The bird was distant but still we had great looks in our scopes and took some documentary photos. Our second stop was Gardiner County Park, where we saw both Seaside and Saltmarsh Sparrows. The Saltmarsh Sparrow was a life bird for me, which was exciting, but, of course they wouldn’t cooperate for photos. Meanwhile, I did get some decent shots of one of the Seaside Sparrows. Our final stop was at Jamaica Bay Wildlife Refuge, where we went to chase a White-face Ibis that had been reported earlier in the day. When we arrived at the southeast section of the East Pond the bird had just flown, but we waited and in due time, the bird came back, flying in with a group of approximately 35 Glossy Ibis. We also walked out to the West Pond where our best birds were a couple of Little Blue Herons on the ocean side of the trail.

It was disappointing to have the trip canceled; I have really been looking forward to it for a while, but on the bright side I got to do some fun birding with John, which included one life bird and several new birds for my New York State list. And, it looks like they are trying to reschedule the pelagic trip for next weekend… fingers crossed that they get enough folks and we can go.

~What a good looking bird. Black-necked Stilt at Smith Point County Marina, 6/5/16.~

~Forster’s Tern in flight at Jamaica Bay Wildlife Refuge, 6/5/16.~

~White-face Ibis (left) and Glossy Ibis (right), at Jamaica Bay Wildlife Refuge, 6/5/16. The size difference between these two birds is evident event this very distant photo.~

~A young Little Blue Heron hunts at Jamaica Bay Wildlife Refuge, 6/5/16.~

WOW! FORK-TAILED FLYCATCHER, 5/7/16

~Wow, what a bird! Fork-tailed Flycatcher in flight at Assunpink Wildlife Management Area, 5/7/16.~

Linda Scrima, Maria Loukeris, and I decided last minute to forego birding locally for migrating warblers to run for the FORK-TAILED FLYCATCHER which had been reported at Assunpink Wildlife Management Area in Trenton, NJ. What a great decision it was! Some days are luckier than others, and today was a lucky day. After a long drive, we found Assunpink WMA easily enough, and then took the trail to the dam where the bird had been reported. At the dam, we saw approximately 20 birders, and we knew the bird was present. We watched and photographed the bird as it fed just below the dam, giving us great looks. I was blown away by this bird, what an incredible creature, whose normal range is from Mexico to South America. I am thinking that this bird is likely a juvenile or a female bird because the adult male has a tail that is much longer. I am leaning towards juvenile because its yellow crown stripe seems to be undeveloped. This has to rank as the easiest/best bird I’ve ever run any distance for, what a super bird! The FTFL was a life bird for all three of us, and it brought my life list total to 360. That number would increase again momentarily as we explored Assunpink WMA…

~Love the posture on the bird in this photo. Fork-tailed Flycatcher at Assunpink WMA, 5/7/16.~

… and heard an unfamiliar call. It took a little while, but we eventually tracked down the bird, it was a WHITE-EYED VIREO! And my 361st life bird! What a day, but it wasn’t over yet…

~A bonus life bird! White-eyed Vireo at Assunpink WMA, 5/7/16.~

…we had one more pleasant surprise when we stopped by The Great Swamp on our way home and had a SANDHILL CRANE fly over! Great day of birding!

~We heard this bird well before we saw it; I could not put my finger on the call but of course knew the bird easily once it came into view. Sandhill Crane at the Great Swamp, 5/7/16.~

Rainy Sunday Birding, 5/1/16

~Black-and-white Warbler on a rainy day, Sterling Forest SP, 5/1/30. This is a bird that I wasn’t able to get any photos of for years, but for some reason this year I’m getting a little bit lucky with them.~

I got a fairly early start this morning; I was headed out to hike the Sterling Valley Loop Trail at Sterling Forest State Park. It was raining when I arrived, and it pretty much rained for the entire 7.7 mile hike. While it never came down very hard, it was just enough to make birding a little bit difficult. I wore good rain gear, so I stayed dry and so did my camera (by the way my gear included wearing a day glow vest since turkey hunting season started this morning). And I had a cover for the eyepiece of my binoculars, so I was doing my best to keep the rain off of the ocular lenses. But, I didn’t take into account a couple of things: First, I spent much of my birding time looking straight up into the tops of trees, so the objective lenses of my bins were getting soaked. Second, whenever I brought my binoculars to my eyes, the ocular lenses would fog over. Next time around, I will be sure to bring a soft absorbent towel for drying the objective lenses and clearing the condensation off the ocular lenses. I was also holding my bins away from my eyes so they wouldn’t fog over, at that worked to a certain extent.

As far as the birding went, the trail was only moderately birdy. I spent 5 hours hiking and had a modest (for this time of year) 39 species. I added 2 species to my Orange County year list: American Redstart (of which I had several), and Eastern Kingbird. I thought I was going to have to do a post with no photos (which I am always reluctant to do), but luckily when the rain let up a little bit, I had a decent opportunity with a Black-and-white Warbler. I also had a chance to photograph an Eastern Kingbird, but I was shooting through the brush and never got a clean focus on the bird.

When I had gotten home and stripped off all my wet gear, I received a call from Rob Stone. He was on a WHITE-WINGED SCOTER at Wickham Lake. Back on with the gear! I ran for the bird and it was still present when I arrived. I walked the trail on the southeast of the lake to get a little closer to the bird. I got better scope views from there and a post-able photo. WWSC is definitely what I consider a good bird for the county. Thanks once again to Rob, who never ceases to amaze.

~Yes! White-winged Scoter at Wickham Lake, 5/1/16.~

And then there was this…

~Earlier this week, on Tuesday, I walked a small part of the Sterling Loop and had hardly and birds and zero warblers. When I got back to my car, which was parked in the Visitor’s Center lot, this Pine Warbler flew out of the tree line and right at me. It did several laps around my car, very tight to the car and then landed on the windshield wiper. I tried to move to take a photo and the bird flew, taking several more laps around my car, hugging the corners, before landing on my rearview mirror which was literally only a couple feet from me. I stepped back to be able to take a photo (how often can I say that about shooting a warbler?). Then the bird took more laps and landed on the back of my car where I got this shot. It was very strange behavior and I’m not really sure what to make of it. PIWA at Sterling Forest State Park, 4/26/16.~

4/14/16 – Orange County Caspian Tern!

~Wow! Caspian Tern at Washington Lake this afternoon, 4/14/16.~

I figured it might be some good birding news when I saw that John Haas was calling me this afternoon on the way home. I was right, Ken McDermott had located a CASPIAN TERN at Washington Lake! A quick change of plans and I was on my way. When I arrived the bird was along the shore with 28 Ring-billed Gulls (which were pestering the tern from time to time). I got good looks at the bird in Ken and Bruce Nott’s scopes, and then took some photos. At one point, all the birds took flight for a short spin as a Bald Eagle flew over, but then they settled down again. It wasn’t until a fisherman walked right by the birds that they flushed and did not return to the shore. We kept our eye on the bird for a good while as it flew around the lake; the gulls kept it on the run, and then right before 6 0’clock, the bird headed northeast and did not return that we saw. I think the bird was at the lake for just under 3 hours, but many birders ran for it and were able to get a good look. Other notable birds present included: Bonaparte’s Gull, Red-breasted Merganser, and a Broad-winged Hawk that Scott Baldinger had but that I never picked up because I was trying to stay on the tern.

~Caspian Tern in flight, Washington Lake 4/14/16.~

~A young Ring-billed Gull nips at the wing of the Caspian Tern, Washington Lake 4/14/16.~

~Later on, in the black dirt, a Northern Harrier caught my eye.~

3/29/16 – Early Uppy!

~UPLAND SANDPIPER in the Black Dirt Region, 2/39/16.~

I was cruising through the Black Dirt Region this afternoon, really just sort of doing some half-hearted birding but mostly hoping for Lapland Longspurs, when I heard an Eastern Meadowlark call. I stopped the car and located one and then another meadowlark… only the second bird was not a meadowlark but an UPLAND SANDPIPER! I put the word out and I was eventually joined by Karen Miller, Maria Loukeris, Linda Scrima, and Bruce Nott, who all got good scope views of the bird. Meanwhile, the more I watched the bird, the less sure I was becoming of my initial ID, mostly because the bird was bobbing its tail often, a behavior that I didn’t know Upland Sandpipers exhibited. I spoke with Rob Stone and he found a video online showing bobbing behavior. When Karen got home, she referenced her National Geographic Complete Birds of North America, which read: “It often bobs the rear portion of its body…”. I’ve included a video of the bird at the bottom of this post. According to eBird bar charts, we are not likely to see UPSAs in Orange County until May, so this is really an early bird.

~One more shot of the UPSA, Black Dirt Region 3/29/16.~

Red-headed Woodpeckers in Orange County, 3/24/16

~An adult Red-headed Woodpecker at Fancher Davidge Park, 3/24/16.~

I received a text from Karen Miller while I was at work today; she and Bruce Nott had relocated two RED-HEADED WOODPECKERS (one adult and one juvenile) at Fancher Davidge Park in Middletown, New York. The birds were originally located by Gef Chumard, who birds the park on a regular basis. I talked to Karen on my way home and she provided details, which helped me find the park and the spot pretty easily. I parked and headed down the Nature Observation Trail, which leads to a rather large and beautiful swamp. I was there for about twenty minutes, I hadn’t had any luck, when Gef showed up. He showed me a tree where he had seen one of the birds on a couple of occasions, and while we were talking I located the juvenile Red-headed Woodpecker on a distant dead tree. Gef had someplace to be, so he left me to it. I eventually located the adult as well, and managed to get some ID photos of both birds. It was great fun to bird in a new spot, and the place was loaded with birds (I had 29 species for the afternoon).

Huge thanks to Karen for the heads up, and congratulations to Gef on a great find!

~A juvenile Red-headed Woodpecker at Fancher Davidge Park, 3/24/16. According to the Crossley ID Guide, the juvenile “molts through the winter so that by spring it is similar to adult, but often slightly duller…” ~

~Another highlight of the afternoon – a Brown Creeper which avoided having its photo taken as much as it could. Fancher Davidge Park, 2/24/16~