While leading an NYC Audubon Winter Birds & Seals eco-cruise today around NY Harbor, we saw some nice birds. Several large rafts of Scaup (mostly Greater I think, but too distant for me to safely say) were sheltering along Governor's Island and the Red-hook shore, probably totalling about 400 birds. Also dozens of Bufflehead, Red-breasted Merganser, and a couple of Hooded Merganser. In Erie Basin, we saw several Gadwall, an American Wigeon, a single American Coot, and Black Ducks.
Out near Swinburne & Hoffman Islands, past the Verrazanno Narrows, we saw numerous Long-tailed Ducks, a few Common Goldeneye, a Common Loon and a Horned Grebe. Also a half-dozen Harbor Seals in the water by Swinburne, which were unusually acrobatic, splashing with their flippers and porpoising clear out of the water on several occasions. On the way back, I tried to see the Common Gull as we passed Veteran's Memorial Pier, which at that very moment Andrew et al were observing, but it was too far away (it was pretty confusing trying to explain to the folks on the tour that there were a bunch of common gulls around the pier, and one rare gull, called the Common Gull!). However, we had a great view of a Red-necked Grebe in the water off of the sewage treatment plant, which is the first I recall seeing in NY Harbor in some time. It took flight and headed west towards Staten Island. A nice (if brisk) afternoon out on the water! Stay warm, Gabriel Willow NYC Audubon -- NYSbirds-L List Info: http://www.NortheastBirding.com/NYSbirdsWELCOME http://www.NortheastBirding.com/NYSbirdsRULES http://www.NortheastBirding.com/NYSbirdsSubscribeConfigurationLeave.htm ARCHIVES: 1) http://www.mail-archive.com/nysbirds-l@cornell.edu/maillist.html 2) http://www.surfbirds.com/birdingmail/Group/NYSBirds-L 3) http://birdingonthe.net/mailinglists/NYSB.html Please submit your observations to eBird: http://ebird.org/content/ebird/ --
