The RED-HEADED WOODPECKER that wintered at Muttontown Preserve was still present today, seen well for 10 minutes or so by 4 fellow birders and myself, ~100 yards down the trail that heads southeast from the visitors center. Its head still had some retained brown juvenile feathers, mostly around the eyes, but molt has rendered it predominantly red now.
Earlier our group had birded Shu Swamp Preserve and Roosevelt Memorial Park on Oyster Bay. At the former, highlights were a very confiding WILSON'S SNIPE, ~14 RUSTY BLACKBIRDS, 1 BLUE-GRAY GNATCATCHER (heard only), ~12 Palm Warblers, 2 Pine Warblers, 1 Hermit Thrush, and an AMERICAN BITTERN briefly glimpsed by one member of our party as it flew away from the pond near the railroad tracks at the preserve's north end. At nearby Roosevelt Park we found two of the four recently seen RED-NECKED GREBES, both out on Oyster Bay ~200 yards from the base of the closed pier, and a pair of Northern Rough-winged Swallows that repeatedly flew under the boardwalk pilings, perhaps investigating a potential nest site. -- 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/ --