Worth a daily mention, in as much as people are still coming from far and
wide. I met a gentleman today who had driven from northern Florida.
Fortunately, the Hooded Crow was there to be seen. If it hasn't been
explicitly stated here, the pattern has become obvious that it's most
reliable early in the morning. After making its initial appearance in the
parking lot around 7:00, it flew over to the beach around 7:30. It stayed
there for some time, and for one span of about 15 minutes it sat still on
the high beach (maybe enjoying a peaceful time away from Mockingbirds
without having to hide), providing an excellent photo opportunity. I decided
after 200 pictures that it was enough and moved on to the next thing of
interest.
There are 6 unseasonal, immature Bonaparte's Gulls at Crooke's Point. Two of
these have partial, grayish hoods. I don't get many chances to photograph
Bonys with hoods of any sort, so that was of interest to me. After about 25
minutes of that, I returned to the parking lot. It was at this time that the
crow returned to the parking lot area (after nearly an hour and a half on
the beach). I, of course, then decided that 200 pictures wasn't enough. I
got off another 50 of the crow in a deciduous tree, many with mockingbirds
diving or sitting to the side of the crow.
I have one other note of some interest, although I wasn't going add to your
in box for this alone -- even though the subjects are cute and awesome.
Spotted Sandpipers returned to nest at Alley Pond Environmental Center in
Queens. I've been seeing one fledgling the last couple of days. Perhaps
making this especially noteworthy is that the nesting succeeded with a
boardwalk in the process of being built close to where I believe the nest
had been.
Steve Walter
Bayside, NY
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