Jay McGowan, Livia Santana, and I saw the two baby GREAT HORNED OWLS and their mother out of their nest in a neighboring tree at the Newman Municipal Golf Course in Ithaca on Wednesday morning. One young owl appears much bigger than the other, but I think that impression arises from retained natal down, not dense body mass.
I also paid a visit to the Goetchius Wetland Preserve, a Finger Lakes Land Trust property on Flatiron Road in Caroline. I saw at least three WILSON'S SNIPE around the flooded swale straight out from the parking area. Several SAVANNAH SPARROWS were singing on territories. At one point, four Savannah Sparrows came together in a scrum, which resolved itself into two departing males and a pair. Bobolinks and Eastern Meadowlarks both seemed absent. On Saturday, May 2, I'll lead the first of the month's Spring Bird Quest walks for the Land Trust at the Wesley Hill Nature Preserve between Canandaigua and Honeoye Lakes. This preserve is about 1 hour 50 minutes from Ithaca. The walk will begin at 8 AM from the preserve's parking area along Gulick Road. If you do make the trip, please do not confuse the Wesley Hill Nature Preserve parking lot with that of the Cumming Nature Center along the same road. Mark Chao --- This email has been checked for viruses by Avast antivirus software. http://www.avast.com -- Cayugabirds-L List Info: http://www.NortheastBirding.com/CayugabirdsWELCOME http://www.NortheastBirding.com/CayugabirdsRULES http://www.NortheastBirding.com/CayugabirdsSubscribeConfigurationLeave.htm ARCHIVES: 1) http://www.mail-archive.com/cayugabirds-l@cornell.edu/maillist.html 2) http://www.surfbirds.com/birdingmail/Group/Cayugabirds 3) http://birdingonthe.net/mailinglists/CAYU.html Please submit your observations to eBird: http://ebird.org/content/ebird/ --
