On Thursday, Miyoko and our kids and I headed up to Montezuma for a rare Chu/Chao family birding outing.
Within seconds after we stopped the car, Tilden found a female LEAST BITTERN in Larue's Lagoon in the strip of tall grass that runs across the mud. Another Least Bittern passed into the field of view just behind the first bird and vanished behind the vegetation. Then, both bitterns took flight in apparent response to the noise of a southbound motorboat on the Seneca River. Finally, we saw a third Least Bittern, this one a splendid black-and-gold male, flying right in front of us from the Main Pool into the same strip. He fought for balance on some bowing grasses, then walked in and out for a minute or so before disappearing for good. (These were life birds for my wife and both kids, and my first good sightings of this species since the last time the Main Pool was so rife with cattails and open water, way back in 2004.) We did not stop elsewhere on the Wildlife Drive to look for other species, but we did casually enjoy the many BLACK TERNS coursing elegantly by, as well as some COMMON GALLINULES, a family of WOOD DUCKS, many MARSH WRENS, OSPREY, EASTERN KINGBIRDS, and others. Then we stopped at the stand of dead trees along May's Point Road. We saw two adult RED-HEADED WOODPECKERS and at least one gray-headed juvenile flying around, with no activity immediately near the nest site. The brood has fledged! Mark Chao --- This email is free from viruses and malware because avast! Antivirus protection is active. 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/ --
