Arrived around 10am at Larue's lagoon to enjoy the least bittern show (second pool to the right), with first one then two birds hunting out in the open (albeit tending towards the far side of the pool) and at least two more calling from shuffling patches of cattails, every now and then one flying across the drive towards the main pool, and coming back. The ability to get out of the car made it much easier to notice these flights and hear the calls. At one point one of the birds was about 50 feet away, as close as one had been in the open all morning, and as three of us approached for a closer look it took off directly toward us, flew by about 5 feet in front of us, across the drive towards the main pool. I've only seen such close flybys either when being shooed off by a nest defender, or in places like the Galapagos where the birds have no fear of humans. (Of course, who's to say it isn't the cars-only policy that got these guys to not fear us?)
It was so much fun being able to stroll along the drive that I took four hours to reach the bend, trying to photograph the ubiquitously chattering but secretive marsh wrens, watching an adult bald eagle bring a fish from the main pool, waiting for kingbirds and sparrows to pose in the beautiful yellow blooms... With sightings of GBHs, green herons, great egrets, a close flyby juvenile black-crowned night-heron, and a flyover American Bittern, I ended up with a "local breeding" heron sweep. White pelican was just chillin' at Bennings when I finally drove by after 2pm. Suan _____________________ http://suan-yong.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/ --
