I decided to pay a visit to the Lime Hollow Visitor Center this evening (17 July 2014). Given the date and time of day (7:15 pm), I didn't have high expectations, but I ended up having a nice outing. I explored quite a bit of the trail system that branches out from the Visitor Center, with my favorite trail being Fen Way, which eventually winds its way through beautiful hemlock-dominated forest. There two countersinging HERMIT THRUSHES were joined by singing BLACK-THROATED GREEN WARBLERS. The other highlight of my outing was seeing 25+ bats flying over the large open areas along the art trail and near the Visitor Center. I think this might be the most bats I've ever seen in one place, and it was especially heartening to see in light of the terrible declines in bat populations in recent years. I include my complete eBird checklist below.
Good birding, Matt Medler Ithaca ________________________________________ Lime Hollow--Visitor Center, Cortland, US-NY Jul 17, 2014 7:15 PM - 8:53 PM Protocol: Traveling 3.4 mile(s) Comments: Clear, calm, 63°F at end of walk. Visitor Center--Trail for All--Art Trail--Lehigh Valley to Gracie Rd.--Lehigh Valley--Fen Way--Mill Pond--Hermit's Way--Lehigh Valley--Art Trail--Visitor Center. 25+ bats seen flying over clearings just before dusk! 44 species Wood Duck (Aix sponsa) 1 Mallard (Anas platyrhynchos) 7 1 ad F with 6 yng Green Heron (Butorides virescens) 2 In spruces Broad-winged Hawk (Buteo platypterus) 1 Seen briefly as it flew into the forest. Spotted Sandpiper (Actitis macularius) 1 Mourning Dove (Zenaida macroura) 2 Chimney Swift (Chaetura pelagica) 2 Yellow-bellied Sapsucker (Sphyrapicus varius) 1 Downy Woodpecker (Picoides pubescens) 2 Northern Flicker (Yellow-shafted) (Colaptes auratus auratus/luteus) 1 Eastern Wood-Pewee (Contopus virens) 1 Heard just a few times near dusk Alder Flycatcher (Empidonax alnorum) 2 Soft song and calls. Great Crested Flycatcher (Myiarchus crinitus) 1 Eastern Kingbird (Tyrannus tyrannus) 1 Red-eyed Vireo (Vireo olivaceus) 6 Blue Jay (Cyanocitta cristata) 13 American Crow (Corvus brachyrhynchos) 6 Tree Swallow (Tachycineta bicolor) 1 Bank Swallow (Riparia riparia) 2 Barn Swallow (Hirundo rustica) 11 Black-capped Chickadee (Poecile atricapillus) 4 House Wren (Troglodytes aedon) 2 food for yng Veery (Catharus fuscescens) 7 Hermit Thrush (Catharus guttatus) 2 Wood Thrush (Hylocichla mustelina) 4 American Robin (Turdus migratorius) 7 Gray Catbird (Dumetella carolinensis) 7 Cedar Waxwing (Bombycilla cedrorum) 8 Ovenbird (Seiurus aurocapilla) 3 Common Yellowthroat (Geothlypis trichas) 9 Flight song heard Yellow Warbler (Setophaga petechia) 1 Chestnut-sided Warbler (Setophaga pensylvanica) 1 Black-throated Green Warbler (Setophaga virens) 3 Eastern Towhee (Pipilo erythrophthalmus) 3 Song Sparrow (Melospiza melodia) 7 Swamp Sparrow (Melospiza georgiana) 5 Dark-eyed Junco (Slate-colored) (Junco hyemalis hyemalis/carolinensis) 2 Singing in hemlock part of Fen Way. Juv seen later. Scarlet Tanager (Piranga olivacea) 4 Northern Cardinal (Cardinalis cardinalis) 7 Indigo Bunting (Passerina cyanea) 2 Extended song in flight ~40 ft above ground. Red-winged Blackbird (Agelaius phoeniceus) 7 Common Grackle (Quiscalus quiscula) 6 Brown-headed Cowbird (Molothrus ater) 1 Juv flushed from ground in forest interior American Goldfinch (Spinus tristis) 5 View this checklist online at http://ebird.org/ebird/view/checklist?subID=S19130211 This report was generated automatically by eBird v3 (http://ebird.org) -- 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/ --
