This Blue-gray Gnatcatcher is hopefully the last photo I will post using my 55-250mm lens for a long time – I got my 100-400mm lens back today. I took some test shots in the Canon parking lot and the lens seems to be working well, but I will know for sure once I take a look at the shots on the computer. This gnatcatcher was shot at Sterling Forest on Monday 5/5/14 in the afternoon. It was not very birdy out there at that time, but I am pretty sure you can do well for warblers there in the early morning.
A very cooperative American Redstart that we took many photos of. Wallkill River NWR, Winding Waters Trail, 5/4/14.
I was running a little bit early to meet Karen Miller at the Winding Waters Trail, so I decided to make a quick stop at the Pine Island Turf Nursery. There was a good collection of shorebirds present, so I called Karen and she joined me there. We had three Bald Eagles, a Gadwall and did pretty well with the shorebirds, with 12 Semipalmated Sandpipers, 3 Greater Yellowlegs, 8 Lesser Yellowlegs, and a single Pectoral Sandpiper. Our intention was to go for warblers on this morning, so we did not linger and headed over to Wallkill River National Wildlife Refuge.
Yellow Warbler at Winding Waters Trail, 5/4/14.Karen and I chased this House Wren around for a while, and I was finally able to get a shot that I like.
In spite of the windy conditions, Winding Waters Trail was full of birds. The area to the right of the trail, for the first 500 yards or so, is flooded and there are some Greater and Lesser Yellowlegs as well as Solitary Sandpipers there. As we walked the trail, we had plenty of birds to look at, and since I haven’t really gone for warblers year, I got several first of the season birds (FOS). Karen was very sharp all day and was finding many of the birds we saw. Karen headed home after we got back to the cars, and I went back to look at the shorebirds with my scope, and then went over to the viewing platform by the Liberty Loop and I walked out Liberty Lane, where the fields were flooded and I was hoping for more shorebirds. It was only somewhat productive; I had 1 Greater Yellowlegs, 1 Lesser Yellowlegs, and 3 Spotted Sandpipers. I ended the day with 45 species and 10 FOS birds. Here’s my list:
A female American Kestrel takes flight, Liberty Lane 5/4/14.
Canada Goose
Wood Duck
American Black Duck
Mallard
Green-winged Teal
Turkey Vulture
Northern Harrier
Bald Eagle
Red-tailed Hawk
Killdeer
Spotted Sandpiper
Solitary Sandpiper
Greater Yellowlegs
Lesser Yellowlegs (FOS)
Mourning Dove
Belted Kingfisher
Red-bellied Woodpecker
American Kestrel
Eastern Phoebe
Eastern Kingbird (FOS)
Warbling Vireo (FOS)
American Crow
Common Raven
Palm Warbler at Winding Waters Trail, 5/4/14.
Tree Swallow
Barn Swallow
House Wren (FOS)
Blue-gray Gnatcatcher
Ruby-crowned Kinglet
Eastern Bluebird
American Robin
Gray Catbird (FOS)
European Starling
Louisiana Waterthrush (FOS)
Common Yellowthroat (FOS)
American Redstart (FOS)
Yellow Warbler (FOS)
Palm Warbler
Yellow-rumped Warbler
Eastern Towhee (FOS)
Field Sparrow
Song Sparrow
Swamp Sparrow
Northern Cardinal
Red-winged Blackbird
Common Grackle
Solitary Sandpiper, my FOS, Pine Island NY 5/1/14.
So, I did not have a very productive week of birding; my ankle was in pretty rough shape up until Thursday, I had to run down to Jamesburg NJ on Monday after work to drop off my camera lens with Canon, and work was crazy, causing me to work late on three days. Thursday looked to be promising, so I did get out to a few spots. The best stop of the afternoon was at the Pine Island Turf Nursery, which had some substantial flooding. I had a single very distant BONAPARTE’S GULL, many Killdeer, a couple of Greater Yellowlegs, and the Solitary Sandpiper in the photo above. Keep in mind that birding at the turf nursery is by permission only – ask at the office if it’s okay.
This was taken on Sunday, the ankle is looking a feeling WAY better now.
Ankle/lens Update: The ankle is doing much better, it has been only a week and I can get around pretty well already. The swelling is mostly down and the bruising has for the most part cleared up. As for the lens, it was pretty good news. I called Canon on Friday and they let me know that it can be repaired and it’s not going to be too costly. Unfortunately, they had to order in a couple of parts so it will not be ready until later this week at the earliest.
Long-tailed Duck at Wallkill River National Wildlife Refuge, 4/26/14.
I was hoping that the birding would be good this morning because of the rain that had come through last night. I got out to the Wallkill River National Wildlife Refuge just before eight, and as I got out of the car, I saw one of the best birds of the day – a LONG TAILED DUCK. It took me a moment to figure it out because I was not expecting it. I took some pictures and put the word out. Linda Scrima came out for the bird and Karen Miller was already on her way to the refuge. The bird was located in the pool right in front of the viewing platform and was close enough for decent photos. Maria Loukeris also made it out for the bird and then joined up with the three of us as we walked the Liberty Loop.
It was a great morning of birding with many good birds. We did alright with waterfowl, with some migrants still hanging in: Blue-winged Teal, Northern Shoveler, Green-winged Teal (many!), and a handful of Ring-necked Ducks. As far as shorebirds go, we had a Spotted Sandpiper (my First Of Season) and 2 Greater Yellowlegs. About half way down the west side of the loop, we had a very cooperative group of Yellow-rumped Warblers .
Yellow-rumped Warbler at Wallkill River NWR, 4/26/14.
In that same spot we also had three types of swallows: Barn Swallow, Tree Swallow, and Northern Rough-winged Swallow. Karen Miller spotted this beautiful NRWS perched on a tree just off the trail – it was awesome!
Northern Rough-winged Swallow at Wallkill River NWR, 4/26/14.
Shortly after that, when we were at the southern end of the trail (the furthest point from the parking area!), the lowlight of the day occurred. I don’t usually include the low points in my posts because really there aren’t too many – if I’m out birding its usually all good. Well, this
Ugly Ankle
was not good, I stepped into hole in the trail and sprained my ankle. I went down hard; everything crashing to the ground, scope, camera, camera hood flying off. I knew I had injured my ankle, but what I didn’t know at the time was that I had also damaged my camera lens. I didn’t find out until I got home because the camera seemed to operating properly. When I looked at all my photos taken after the fall, every one of them is slightly blurry. I will be taking the lens in on Monday, hopefully they can fix it and it’s not too expensive.
We finished the loop, seeing an Osprey fishing and a female Northern Harrier patrolling the swamp. The Long-tailed Duck was still present and while we took more photos, I received a call from Rob Stone – he had three BONAPARTE’S GULLS as well as another Long-tailed Duck, Bank Swallows, and a Horned Grebe over at Owens Station Road. We hustled over and got the BOGU, HOGR, and LTDU for sure. I was pretty sure that I got a look at one Bank Swallow, but it was a brief look and no one else got a good enough look at the bird.
One of my highlights of the day – three distant Bonaparte’s Gulls at Owen Station Road, 4/26/14. Photo by Linda Scrima.
The camera/ankle disaster aside, it really was one of the better mornings of birding this spring!
Quick Post: I had my first significant shorebird sighting of the year: 9 Greater Yellowlegs tonight at Wallkill River National Wildlife Refuge. Thanks to Linda Scrima and Maria Constantelos Loukeris, who originally located the birds and gave me the heads up. When I saw the birds, they were located on the north side of Oil City Road, in the pool that is furthest to the west (towards Winding Waters Trail).
The birds were too distant for good photos – one of 9 Greater Yellowlegs at Wallkill River NWR, 4/25/14.
Blue-winged Teals have been a bird I’ve struggled to get photos of in the past, but this year I’ve gotten close to a few. Bashakill WMA, 4/24/14.
I went out to the Bashakill Wildlife Management Area today after work. There has not been much bird movement, so I figured I would head out there in hopes of relocating the Little Blue Heron that was seen there yesterday. I figured my chances were pretty slim of finding that bird – John Haas had scoured the Bash the day before and today as well without any luck. On Haven Road, I ran into John along with Lance Vanderame and we shot the breeze for a little while. There was not much going on there, though I did watch a young Bald Eagle fly in and perch on a muskrat hill. After that I went over to the boat launch off of Route 209 where I was pleasantly surprised by a lingering pair of Blue-winged Teals. I also was able to get some photos of a couple of Wood Ducks:
A pair of Wood Ducks at the Bashakill WMA, 4/24/14.
I, of course, struck out with the Little Blue Heron, but it was still a nice evening at the Bash.
Five of the 25 Caspian Terns we had at Montezuma NWR, 4/19/14.
If you get the chance to go to Montezuma National Wildlife Refuge, by all means go. I have never been disappointed at this refuge. This past Saturday morning, Bill Martocci and I left Baldwinsville (where Tricia’s mom lives), and arrived at Montezuma just before noon. The timing could not have been more perfect for me because most of the waterfowl had recently moved out of Orange County, and to be honest, I just hadn’t gotten enough of them. At Montezuma, there was still a super showing of waterfowl, and if you include all swimming water birds, we totaled 17 species, including nearly a dozen CANVASBACK, which was a life bird for me:
I always seem to be shooting Blue-winged Teal through the grasses. Montezuma NWR, 4/19/14.
I like this shot of an American Coot, which is not a very photogenic bird in my experience. Montezuma NWR, 4/19/14.Northern Shoveler at Montezuma NWR, 4/19/14.
It also seems to be the year of the Caspian Tern – we had 25 at the refuge, 22 of which were located perched just outside the visitor center. For the weekend, I would guess that I had close to 35 Caspian Terns in the area!
A Caspian Tern (with blown highlights) in flight. Baldwinsville, NY 4/20/14.
The highlight of the day for me, however, was locating an AMERICAN BITTERN. At the visitor center, we talked to a local birder who made us aware that he had had a bittern earlier that day. That helped, because I was certainly on the lookout. We had stopped to look at a large flock of Tree Swallows when I located the bird of the day. I really struggled taking photos; I think the camera has a difficult time focusing on this bird because of how well it is camouflaged. While looking at and shooting this bird, each time I looked down I would lose track of where the bird was.
AMERICAN BITTERN at Montezuma NWR, 4/19/14.I love this pose. AMBI at Montezuma NWR, 4/19/14.
Highlights for Bill included seeing a handful of Bald Eagles, a Belted Kingfisher, and a very brief glimpse of a female American Kestrel. We missed out on at least a couple of birds I was hoping for, including Sandhill Crane, Trumpeter Swan (both of which were reported at the refuge that day!), and Tundra Swan which have likely moved through at this point. It was a great day of birding where we totaled over 40 species.
I had to throw this photo into this post. This was taken at a small pond in Tricia’s mom’s neighborhood, typically a pond that has few birds. 4/20/14.
American Bittern, my FOS at Montezuma National Wildlife Refuge, 4/20/14.
Tricia I spent the holiday weekend up in Syracuse visiting her family, so my future brother-in-law Bill and I got out to Montezuma National Wildlife Refuge on Saturday afternoon. I’m in late on Sunday, so I don’t have time to complete the post, but suffice to say it was one of the better birding days I’ve had recently with plenty of photo opportunities – complete post to follow tomorrow.
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.
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. 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 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:
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.
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.
Shawangunk Grasslands National Wildlife Refuge, 6:00 pm
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.
My FOS Greater Yellowlegs at the small pond near Glenmere Lake, 4/10/14.
On my way out of work today, I received a text from my fellow hawk counter Carol Linguanti, telling me she had located an active Red-tailed Hawk nest in Warwick. I stopped by to check it out and it was really cool to see it:
Huge thanks to Carol for the heads up. Red-tailed Hawk on the nest, Warwick NY, 4/10/14.
Next I headed over to Glenmere Lake to see what was going on. The water was extremely choppy and there were not nearly as many waterfowl present. Of note I had a single Common Loon, 9 Lesser Scaup, a single Bufflehead, and 6 Mute Swans. There is a small pond not too far from the lake and I went there to check for waterfowl. There was small number of Green-winged Teal present, a pair of Mallards and a pair of Mute Swans. The highlight of the stop (and maybe the day) was a Greater Yellowlegs, my first of the year.
My last stop for tonight was at 6 1/2 Station Road Sanctuary. My best birds there were a pair of Blue-winged Teal that did not seem to know I was present. I shot many photos through the grasses:
One of my favorite ducks, a pair of Blue-winged Teals at 6 1/2 Station Road Sanctuary, 4/10/14.
Other notable waterfowl present included: Ring-necked Ducks (21), Green-winged Teal (18), and Pied-billed Grebe (2).
WEDNESDAY 4/9/14
Yesterday I made it back out to the Wallkill River National Wildlife Refuge to walk the Liberty Loop. I mostly wanted to check on the Eurasian Wigeon, which continued on the west side of the loop, well into Sussex County. I was finally able to get a shot that is somewhat identifiable:
Eurasian Wigeon at Wallkill River NWR, 4/10/14.
Not long after taking this shot, all the waterfowl lifted up. I looked for an eagle or perhaps a Peregrine Falcon but never found the source. I lost the EUWI in the process, but did manage an interesting shot of Green-winged Teals in flight.
Waterfowl in flight! Wallkill River NWR, 4/9/14.
I should note that there was still a good number of waterfowl present at the refuge, including: Ring-necked Duck, American Wigeon, Northern Pintail, Northern Shovelers, Mallard, Canada Goose, Pied-billed Grebe, and Blue-winged Teal.
Black-capped Chickadee at Wallkill River NWR, 4/9/14.
