On this final day of January Bob McGuire, Ann Mitchell & I went birding to several places around the Cayuga Lake Basin.
In Summerhill State Forest along Hoag Avenue we enjoyed a mixed flock of PINE SISKINS and COMMON REDPOLLS feeding in Hemlocks in the swamp.
We searched unsuccessfully for yesterday's Eurasian Wigeon, both where Jim Tarolli and Dave Wheeler found it along Lower Lake Rd, Bridgeport, Town of Seneca Falls and where Ann Mitchell and Gary Kohlenberg re-found it south of Mud Lock, Town of Aurelius. In the former location it seemed we could pretty well see all the CANADA GEESE and TUNDRA SWANS (& sleeping ringers), along with a few GADWALLS, AMERICAN BLACK DUCKS, MALLARDS, AMERICAN WIGEON, COMMON GOLDENEYE, and COMMON MERGANSER, plus one sleeping female RUDDY DUCK, and plenty of GREAT BLACK-BACKED and HERRING GULLS. But at the latter location we contended with lots of heat shimmer, glare, and distance, so it may still be around.
On the backroads of Tyre we tracked down a group of 4 Sandhill Cranes which were reported by Suzanne Broderick from 2 days ago. The location today was off Gravel Rd north of NYS-318 and I-90, and east on East Tyre Rd. Although all 4 birds had red crowns, I suspect this was a family. They varied in the amount of brown in their gray plumage, but it was not obvious to me which were what generation. Oddly, one had orange bottoms of its feet, while the other 3 were slate gray there as well as the rest of their feet and legs.
Another bit of excitement was seeing a single COMMON GRACKLE (year bird for me) atop a tree in a yard along NYS-90 just north of Ledyard Rd, Town of Ledyard. When we stopped it turned out there was a flock of at least 40 of them which flew out of the trees in that yard, started to fly north, then returned to that yard. Were Common Grackles migrating north on today's extraordinarily warm south winds at the close of January??
Other interesting birds seen today included:
2 adult BALD EAGLES at nest (1 in, 1 in a tree nearby) at Mud Lock, and 2 adults and 1 immature together in a tree south of the Wells College Boathouse. From the latter location we saw 4 HORNED GREBES (and zero Eared Grebe), a substantial flocks of AMERICAN COOTS and CANADA GEESE, scattered COMMON GOLDENEYES, and a distant smear of SNOW GOOSE out on the lake
A female NORTHERN HARRIER over the Main Pool at Montezuma NWR, viewed from the tower because the Wildlife Drive was closed. The Main Pool is mostly frozen but did host a couple dozen distant MALLARDS and a handful of sleeping presumed TUNDRA SWANS.
An AMERICAN KESTREL on a utility pole... um... somewhere fairly far north along the east side of the lake. It was a long day.
When we finally got back to Stewart Park we found several other birders but did not see the Western Grebe, Glaucous Gull or Golden Eagle which cause excitement there for others this morning. However we did see a/the 3rd year LESSER BLACK-BACKED GULL which Jay McGowan mentioned - it has a cool bill, dark with a yellow tip - and the presumed hybrid SNOW x CANADA GOOSE, plus a gang of birders.
We also speculated on the spring-like weather bringing other birds over a month early in addition to the Golden Eagles and Eurasian Wigeon. Are there Wilson's Snipe around? Are there American Woodcock displaying tonight? Are there Eastern Meadowlarks? How about an Osprey? Are the Sandhill Cranes holdovers from the fall or are they 2 months early? If we do get more winter and the north end of the lake freezes up again, will we get to see the Eurasian Wigeon where Jim & Dave found it and we traditionally search for it in early March in the melting ice near the south end of Lower Lake Rd?
--Dave Nutter
PS: Bob has observed 111 species in the Cayuga Lake Basin this year, which I suspect is a record among participants in the quest for the David Cup. See results here:
http://cayugabirds.pbworks.com/w/page/6630177/FrontPage
Also for people interested in what has been found so far in the basin, those lists are now on the Cayuga Bird Club web page under resources here:
http://www.cayugabirdclub.org/Resources/cayuga-lake-basin-first-records
As far as I know there have been 132 species found so far in 2012.
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