Hello, Birders. I visited Jamaica Bay Wildlife Refuge, Queens County, this morning, Monday, Nov. 2nd. The first bird of the day was a nocturnal-migrant Hermit Thrush flying over the parking lot at the refuge visitor center. Nice. Another nice bird in the parking lot was a Clay-colored Sparrow, keeping close company with a Chipping Sparrow. Together, they were both an identification challenge and an educational opportunity. The two birds were keeping company with a flock of at least 20 Slate-colored Juncos. The flock was working a stretch between 40.617387 N, 73.824862 W and 40.617664 N, 73.824698 W. Over in the East Garden (on the east side of Cross Bay Boulevard), I saw a first-cycle, probably male, Baltimore Oriole. It was at 40.618802 N, 73.824086 W. There was also a juvenile Eastern Phoebe and a flyover Eastern Bluebird there. Other birds in the East Garden included 1 Sharp-shinned Hawk, 1 Cooper's Hawk, 2 Golden-crowned Kinglets, 1 Ruby-crowned Kinglet, 1 Hermit Thrush, 2 Gray Catbirds, and 3 Cedar Waxwings. The West Pond loop hosted a few lingerers, among them 6 Snowy Egrets, 1 juvenile Little Blue Heron, 1 juvenile (probably female) Osprey, 2 adult Eastern Phoebes, and 2 Tree Swallows. There was vismig of American Pipits in the hour after sunrise, with 7 small flocks (21 birds total) all heading southeast. Other landbirds, mainly in and around the South Garden, included 2 Winter Wrens, 5 Golden-crowned Kinglets, 1 Ruby-crowned Kinglet, 2 Hermit Thrushes, 3 Gray Catbirds, 17 Cedar Waxwings, and 5 Swamp Sparrows. A few other odds and ends included 1 Horned Grebe, 12 Great Egrets, 16 American Oystercatchers, 10 Greater Yellowlegs, and 7 Dunlin. In tremendous numbers all across the refuge were Brant, American Black Duck, Greater Scaup, Bufflehead, and Ruddy Duck. -------------------------------
Ted Floyd tedfloy...@hotmail.com Lafayette, Boulder County, Colorado ------------------------------- Ted Floyd Editor, Birding ------------------------------- Check out Birding magazine on Twitter: http://twitter.com/BirdingMagazine Please support the American Birding Association: Click on http://www.goodsearch.com/?charityid=884482 to search the internet. Please visit the website of the American Birding Association: http://www.aba.org _________________________________________________________________ Windows 7: It works the way you want. http://www.microsoft.com/Windows/windows-7/default.aspx?ocid=PID24727::T:WLMTAGL:ON:WL:en-US:WWL_WIN_evergreen2:112009 -- NYSbirds-L List Info: http://www.NortheastBirding.com/NYSbirdsWELCOME http://www.NortheastBirding.com/NYSbirdsRULES Archives: 1) http://www.mail-archive.com/nysbirds-l@cornell.edu/maillist.html 2) http://birdingonthe.net/mailinglists/NYSB.html Please submit your observations to eBird: http://ebird.org/content/ebird/ --
