Took a trip up the west side of Cayuga Lake today on the way to Montezuma
with Dan Watkins. We had a what we believe was the PACIFIC LOON at
Sheldrake. This bird was close to the red channel marker and seen very well
with great lighting from the gravel driveway/turnaround.
There were several common loons around and this bird was smaller, and
thinner billed. The bill was held in a straight profile as we
watched for quite some time. The head was rounded. The bird was brown,
with a finely barred back. Sides of neck were extensively brown much more so
than the red-throated loon with a sharp contrast to white in front.
The bird had small brown spurs at the base of the neck.
>From the crown to around the eyes was dusky brown/gray becoming a more
solid brown from behind the eyes down the sides of the neck
in almost a straight line contrasting with the bright white in front. The
throat
was clean white and did not appear to have the "chin-straps". Dave Nutter's
Pacific
Loon had chin straps according to his post Nov 5th so this
would be a different bird.
We ruled out the red-throated loon given the darker brown color,
straight bill profile (bill was also thicker than what I recall of a
red-throated loon),
more rounded head, and the extent of brown on the neck. I have seen
quite a few red-throated loons and this was not one.
The common loons were very plentiful at sheldrake. We saw this bird with
commons nearby and it was easily apparent that it was smaller and thinner
billed.
This is a new bird for me. Dan has seen many in Alaska but in breeding plumage.
Other birds seen today...turning into Montezuma had a male northern harrier.
Montezuma Visitors Center ...shorebirds gone or not readily apparent. Mostly
canada geese with some pintail mixed in. The main pool continues to be loaded
with waterfowl. Most of the ducks were ring necked ducks and pintail. It was
difficult
to find other species among the loads of ring-necked, canada geese and pintail.
With
persistence, we found...lesser scaup, canvasback, redhead,
gadwall, american widgeon, 1 ruddy duck close to the road, northern shoveler,
bufflehead, mallards, black ducks, american coots and green-winged teal.
near the first bend on wildlife drive...in the willow where I had the
rough-legged
hawk last week... was a red-tailed hawk this time.
After the bend, there were several more green-winged teal and mallards.
At Tschache pool, there were still the same group of american widgeon, with
several gadwall, bufflehead, and pied-billed grebe. There was also a double
crested cormorant., immature bald eagle on the mounds, and several gulls.
At May's point, lighting was awful. there was a nice raft of american widgeon.
We also had 13 tundra swan fly over May's which was neat.
East road had thousands of canada and snow geese. several great blue herons.
no cranes this time.
Pond on the right of route 90 in Union Springs- several redhead, 1 gadwall.
Factory Street pond Union Springs, no screech owl, 2 gadwall.
Aurora boathouse- 4 HORNED GREBES, numerous common loons, flock of
scoters way out. We had 3 scoters closer in and were able to identify
1 BLACK SCOTER and 2 WHITE-WINGED SCOTER.
Long point- ~ 25 scoters way out. too far for specific id.
Myer's- lots of ringed billed and herring gulls. other usuals mallards, black
ducks,
canada geese. also 3 graylag domestic geese...where did these guys come from?
Stewart Park... 6 lesser scaup, several bufflehead, numerous american coots.
not much else other than the usuals.
Dave Nicosia
Johnson City, NY
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