Yesterday evening (15 Aug), for the first time in about a week, I was able to confirm that there are still 2 OSPREYS at Cass Park. Previous to that week I had consistently seen 2, generally not close together but in the same vicinity and within sight of each other. Then for several days I saw at least one Osprey, and sometimes I had suspicious multiple sightings but not provably of more than one bird. An Osprey would be perched atop a pole in Union Fields, or in a tree along the Inlet, or flying over the Inlet, often carrying a small fish. One evening there were at least 2 Ospreys farther north between Treman Marina and Jetty Woods, but I assumed these were members of the family which nested on the platform in the field at Treman. And I missed a couple evenings. I wondered if the Cass female had migrated, as Candace had said is typical, that the female leaves first, when pairs have nested. But yesterday evening I briefly saw the Cass pair atop the same the same pole in Union Field and facing each other on adjacent lights, the closest together I'd seen them in a long time. This view was brief. Shortly thereafter one of them was coursing over the ball fields among the poles there and finally perching awkwardly in the thin top of a dead tree in the woods just to the west. I don't think it was trying to break off a branch but I would not have been surprised if that were the result. Anyway, the birds continue here. Sometimes non-news seems noteworthy.
During the past several days I have seen a MERLIN 3 times around Ithaca. At 1:20pm yesterday one flew west across Trumansburg Road near the Finger Lakes School of Massage. The previous evening at 6:33pm from Franklin Plaza I saw one flying north across NYS-13. And on Monday about 6:30pm one flew southeast over NYS-13 where it crosses Six-mile Creek. These were each a brief view of a fast bird, I assume based locally, but I have no idea how many individuals or territories are involved. They just cover so much ground so quickly. On Thursday morning (14 Aug) the CAROLINA WRENS fledged from the flower pot hanging from the eaves of our back porch. I did not witness the event, but saw at least 3 of the young flying quite competently between vines and trellises in my small vineyard in occasional the company of a worn adult. (Laurie peeked in the nest and counted 4 nestlings a few days earlier). The fledglings had Winter Wren-style tails but new brightly patterned Carolina Wren face patterns with odd bits of down protruding from their heads. When we picnicked on the porch during their nesting phase the adult wrens were nervous but still would eventually feed their young. Typically a bird carrying a food item would approach in the adjacent peach tree, then drop to the ground among the flowers, then flit up to the railing, then up to the eaves, then to porch roof and peer over the gutter at us from a few locations, then back to the eaves (again multiple locations), then work its way down the wires that suspend the planter. To anyone paying attention to birds, the procedure seemed designed to attract attention to them and the nest. The actual feeding was quite brief, even when combined with carrying away a fecal sac. If the bird had just gone straight to the nest, fed the young, and continued the same direction, I think it would have been far less conspicuous. --Dave Nutter -- 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/[email protected]/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/ --
