{"id":478,"date":"2012-08-24T20:16:47","date_gmt":"2012-08-25T00:16:47","guid":{"rendered":"https:\/\/orangebirding.com\/?p=478"},"modified":"2012-08-25T22:16:41","modified_gmt":"2012-08-26T02:16:41","slug":"wallkill-river-nwr-a-decidedly-different-feel","status":"publish","type":"post","link":"https:\/\/orangebirding.com\/?p=478","title":{"rendered":"Wallkill River NWR – A decidedly different feel"},"content":{"rendered":"
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A rather elegant looking Lesser Yellowlegs at Wallkill River NWR.<\/figcaption><\/figure>\n

I walked the Liberty Loop at Wallkill River National Wildlife Refuge on Thursday evening. I have been doing some reading and working on shorebird identification lately, so my primary goal was to see if my work would pay off. The Liberty Loop trail had a different feel on this day for sure. As soon as I got out of the car I heard birds overhead. To me they sounded like they were saying “me…me………me…me”. Karen Miller and I had heard the same call the day before out at the Shawangunk Grasslands. I managed to get some good looks and some photos and when I got home I figured out it was a flock of Bobolinks – at least 40 birds. From the viewing platform several shorebirds could be seen as well as a couple dozen Canada Geese, a Great Blue Heron and a Great Egret. A Northern Harrier cruised the marsh looking for prey. There was a conspicuous lack of Red-winged Blackbirds. Fall migration sure seemed to be underway.<\/p>\n

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One of the Bobolinks that were flocking at the Liberty Loop.<\/figcaption><\/figure>\n

I walked quickly to the southern end of the loop to look for shorebirds. There were a good many present and as usual I struggled to identify them. I took some time with it and determined that there were no out of the ordinary shorebirds present. Here’s my count:<\/p>\n