[nysbirds-l] CRESLI Whale Watch, August 25
Dave Klauber, Bob Kurtz, Bobby Rossetti and I birded on the CRESLI whale watch out of Montauk on Tuesday August 25. The seas were calm and the birds were good. Highlights included 75 Cory's shearwaters, 3 greater shearwaters, 1 manx shearwater, 210 Wilson's storm-petrels, 4 black terns, 5 red phalaropes, and 1 phalarope sp. We also had 2 white-winged scoters off Shagwong Point on the way in. The red phalaropes gave nice views sitting on the water. The whales were spectacular. 15 fin whales and 4 minke whales were recorded. Several of the individuals gave extended looks at close range. Seth Ausubel Forest Hills, NY -- NYSbirds-L List Info: http://www.NortheastBirding.com/NYSbirdsWELCOME http://www.NortheastBirding.com/NYSbirdsRULES Temporary archive: http://birdingonthe.net/mailinglists/NYSB.html Please submit your observations to eBird: http://ebird.org/content/ebird/ --
[nysbirds-l] 8/25- Brooklyn Hudsonian Godwit, Golden Plovers + JBWR shorebirds
This morning and early afternoon I birded Plum Beach and the East Pond at Jamaica Bay. At Plum Beach the highlight was a fading adult HUDSONIAN GODWIT that I found right around 7:00 AM and fed actively for most of its stay until it suddenly flew off at 7:43 AM. It headed south and gained altitude quickly with very fast, purposeful wing beats, and I lost sight of it as it was already over Fort Tilden headed for the Ocean. Shane Blodgett was luckily able to get out there and get a look at it before it departed. After I lost sight of it I turned around to scan the rest of the shorebirds on the flats and almost immediately 2 AMERICAN GOLDEN-PLOVERS popped into view, although these also flew off (to the west, and not nearly as high) shortly afterwards. Also very notable at Plum were 423 Black Skimmers roosting, 37 of which were juveniles (these were "relocated" by an off-leash dog a couple of times). Numbers of shorebirds weren't great, but diversity was all right (12 species) for Plum. Other notables at Plum were my first of the season juveniles of Sanderling (3) and Semipalmated Plover (1). There was also a Field Sparrow in the dunes. Floyd Bennett Field was just about devoid of migrants of any kind (1 Baltimore Oriole, and 1 Eastern Kingbird at the Community Garden). I ran into Ken Feustel shortly after my arrival on the East Pond and we birded the east side from south to north and then back. Some birds have definitely moved out from the reports I saw from Sunday, but it seems that a good number of juveniles have arrived in that time. Highlights follow: Baird's Sandpiper (first seen briefly north of the Raunt, then much more cooperatively at the south end right near the entrance where it still was when we departed (in a 5 calidris species flock). American Avocet (continues on the west side between the second and third spits at the north end) Wilson's Phalarope (1 juvenile, north end, mostly on the east side about adjacent to the Island. No sign of the other two) Western Sandpiper (9+, with one adult and at least 8 juveniles with a pretty wide variation in plumage) Pectoral Sandpiper (3 adults, 2 at the north end, one on the west side of the south cove) Sanderling (Adult, south flats, Ken picked out this bird when it landed with several Semi. Plovers for a couple of seconds before the flock took off and flew out of sight. A good bird for the East Pond) Ruddy Turnstone (2, including my first juvenile of the season) Northern Pintail (3) Blue-winged Teal (75+) Stilt Sandpiper (20, only 2 juveniles) White-rumped Sandpiper (~35 adults) Good Shorebirding -Doug Gochfeld. Brooklyn, NY -- NYSbirds-L List Info: http://www.NortheastBirding.com/NYSbirdsWELCOME http://www.NortheastBirding.com/NYSbirdsRULES Temporary archive: http://birdingonthe.net/mailinglists/NYSB.html Please submit your observations to eBird: http://ebird.org/content/ebird/ --
[nysbirds-l] Jamaica Bay refuge
Hi, I am a Connecticut birder who is visiting Jamaica Bay this Friday for the first time and was looking at it on Google Maps and it is very big! I know there are lots of birds there, but I don't know where in the refuge they are. If anyone could tell me where in the refuge I could find the following birds I would be very happy: Sora American Avocet Wilson's Phalarope Whimbrel Marbled Godwit Red Knot White-rumped Sandpiper Western Sandpiper Gull-billed Tern American Golden Plover Thanks so much NY birders. James Randall Fairfield, CT -- NYSbirds-L List Info: http://www.NortheastBirding.com/NYSbirdsWELCOME http://www.NortheastBirding.com/NYSbirdsRULES Temporary archive: http://birdingonthe.net/mailinglists/NYSB.html Please submit your observations to eBird: http://ebird.org/content/ebird/ --
[nysbirds-l] Winthrop Great Egret Roost/Migration/Bats, etc.
8/25/09 Potsdam (St. Lawrence Co.) (Various times between midnight and 2 a.m.) I don't get much sleep this time of year with migration under way. Last night, (clear), I counted 10 to 11 calls per minute (more thrush calls mixed in last night). Also, bats were swooping around me - great to see them. Coyote packs howled on and off. Migration seems consistent, but no big flight-nights encountered. yet. 8/24/09 Winthrop (northern St. Lawrence Co.) (7:15 p.m. to 8:30 p.m.) Last night, Mary Beth Warburton and I made another trip to the Great Egret roost in Winthrop. As we were watching these magnificent birds whirl into the roost, a passing car stopped. The woman in the car told us, "Those big white birds are becoming a problem." We politely asked her what she meant, and she replied, "They are eating up all the frogs and fish and it has become a huge problem!" We attempted to reason with her, but it was useless. It is certainly a scary world out there. Other than that incident, we had yet another spectacular night at this wonderful birding location. Here are some of the species found (nice scope views of many): Wood Duck - many Least Bittern - 1 Great Blue Heron - several; as we headed back to the car in the dark, we spotted a Great Blue Heron a short distance from us as it nabbed a good-sized fish (good thing the car lady missed that one!). The bird took off and we watched the silhouette of the bird with the large fish in its bill fly across the wetland - beautiful. Great Egret - 145! We had a count of 144, and as we began to head back to the car, one lone bird arrived at the roost very late! Green Heron - 3 Black-crowned Night-Heron - at least 8; We were able to see 8 birds at once, but there was another group of 6 out of sight that were probably additional birds. Virginia Rail - vocalizing in the same location where we've heard it before (in the wet area where Rt. 420 and Dullea Rd. intersect) As we reached the car, three bats were swooping over us as they foraged - such a rare sighting the past couple of years. There were silhouettes of swallows high in the sky over the wetland - not as many as we've seen on prior visits, but still a good number. Potsdam: I counted about 5 migrants per minute going overhead (midnight to 1 a.m.). Coyotes howled and I saw several meteors. On a short morning walk with our dogs, I found the following species: Eastern Wood-Pewee Alder Flycatcher Gray Catbird Brown Thrasher Warblers: Black-throated Green, Black-and-white, and Common Yellowthroat Scarlet Tanager Baltimore Oriole 8/23/09 Potsdam I counted as many as 13 migrant calls per minute (12:30 to 1:30 a.m.). A Great-crested Flycatcher vocalizing outside the window woke me in the morning. In addition, an Eastern Wood-Pewee, Bobolink, and Baltimore Oriole vocalized. 8/22/09 Potsdam I counted between 5 and 9 migrant calls per minute between 12:30 and 1:30 a.m. A Barred Owl called out, and I called back - we went back and forth for a long time! 8/19/09 Potsdam On a morning walk with the dogs, I found many species including a calling Golden-winged Warbler (I really enjoy this wild vocalization) and a male Baltimore Oriole. Joan Collins Potsdam & Long Lake -- NYSbirds-L List Info: http://www.NortheastBirding.com/NYSbirdsWELCOME http://www.NortheastBirding.com/NYSbirdsRULES Temporary archive: http://birdingonthe.net/mailinglists/NYSB.html Please submit your observations to eBird: http://ebird.org/content/ebird/ --
[nysbirds-l] Hudsonian Godwit reported at Plum Beach BKLYN NY...
Doug Gochfeld just called to report seeing a Hudsonian Godwit at Plum Beach in Brooklyn. It is on the outer flats 1/2 to the East. Thanks Andrew Baksh Queens NY www.birdingdude.blogspot.com -- NYSbirds-L List Info: http://www.NortheastBirding.com/NYSbirdsWELCOME http://www.NortheastBirding.com/NYSbirdsRULES Temporary archive: http://birdingonthe.net/mailinglists/NYSB.html Please submit your observations to eBird: http://ebird.org/content/ebird/ --
