[nysbirds-l] Finch update/Massawepie Mire/Roosevelt Truck Trail
Hamilton & St. Lawrence Counties I returned to Long Lake on April 2nd after being away for nearly 3 weeks. There was 2 feet of snow when I left on March 14th. Currently, there are just a few isolated patches of snow left in sheltered areas of the woods and virtually no mud at all. My husband reported that seaplanes and boats went into Long Lake in March - certainly a new early record. Red and White-winged Crossbills are still around and the huge Pine Siskin irruption continues. I drove into Massawepie Mire yesterday, April 8 - an early record for me in spring - and there was no mud on the road! My prior early record was April 12, 2010 when David Buckley and I found the mire already full of singing Palm Warblers. Yesterday, I did not find any Palm Warblers, so I am slowly honing in on an actual arrival date for this species. (Yesterday, I did not find any Pine Warblers either.) I began the hike at 6:40 a.m. (very cold) and I hiked 6 miles round-trip (just short of the Grass River Flow). Highlights included a non-stop singing Northern Shrike - I was in ear-birding heaven! The first year bird went through a whole barrage of different vocalizations. Another highlight was the impressive numbers of White-winged Crossbills (including young) foraging on black spruce cones (mostly calling, but there was still some singing too). I was alarmed by the dry conditions at the mire. Given the lack of snow and warm temps, the vernal pools, which are normally abundant at the mire, were non-existent. There is also a lot of tree damage from the constant high-wind storms. On another negative note, there was a great deal of logging (again) over the winter, and many areas along the drive looked like a lunar landscape. (I'll post my eBird report below.) I also hiked the Mountaineer Trail around Massawepie Lake yesterday - similar species were found and there was a Common Loon on the lake. (Also a Common Loon on Catamount Pond by the entrance to Massawepie.) The first Common Loon on Long Lake was observed on April 5th. I hiked the Roosevelt Truck Trail on April 7th (eBird report below).White-winged Crossbills were found on all hikes over the past week (Northville-Placid Trail (S) in Long Lake on 4/4, Sabattis Bog on 4/6, Roosevelt Truck Trail on 4/7, and Massawepie Mire on 4/8). I also found a dead (road-killed) female White-winged Crossbill near a marsh along Route 28N in Newcomb. I observed 3 male White-winged Crossbills gritting near the Route 28N - Blue Ridge Road intersection on 4/7. A road-killed Pine Siskin was found on Route 28N near the Lindsay Marsh Trailhead. There was a group of about 10 siskins gritting and when they flew up, there was one bird left behind - the dead bird. As I sat in my car watching, a Pine Siskin kept flying down to the dead bird and hopping around it - very sad. eBird reports: Massawepie Mire, St. Lawrence, US-NY Apr 8, 2012 6:40 AM - 11:40 AM Protocol: Traveling 6.0 mile(s) 20 species Wild Turkey (Meleagris gallopavo) 1 Yellow-bellied Sapsucker (Sphyrapicus varius) 2 Hairy Woodpecker (Picoides villosus) 1 Pileated Woodpecker (Dryocopus pileatus) 1 Northern Shrike (Lanius excubitor) 1 1st year bird vocalizing! Gray Jay (Perisoreus canadensis) 2 Blue Jay (Cyanocitta cristata) 60 American Crow (Corvus brachyrhynchos) 2 Common Raven (Corvus corax) 2 Black-capped Chickadee (Poecile atricapillus) 30 Red-breasted Nuthatch (Sitta canadensis) 12 Brown Creeper (Certhia americana) 16 Many singing birds along the 3-mile hike in. Winter Wren (Troglodytes hiemalis) 8 Golden-crowned Kinglet (Regulus satrapa) 20 Song Sparrow (Melospiza melodia) 8 Dark-eyed Junco (Junco hyemalis) 60 Rusty Blackbird (Euphagus carolinus) 2 Purple Finch (Carpodacus purpureus) 18 White-winged Crossbill (Loxia leucoptera) 68 Throughout the mire and juveniles observed. Birds were flying around the mire and feeding on black spruce cones. Pine Siskin (Spinus pinus) 120 Huge irruption continues... This report was generated automatically by eBird v3 (http://ebird.org) Roosevelt Truck Trail--Southern Trailhead, Essex, US-NY Apr 7, 2012 10:00 AM - 1:00 PM Protocol: Traveling 5.0 mile(s) 15 species Ruffed Grouse (Bonasa umbellus) 2 Wild Turkey (Meleagris gallopavo) 1 Sharp-shinned Hawk (Accipiter striatus) 1 Black-backed Woodpecker (Picoides arcticus) 1 Black-capped Chickadee (Poecile atricapillus) 25 Boreal Chickadee (Poecile hudsonicus) 3 Red-breasted Nuthatch (Sitta canadensis) 9 Brown Creeper (Certhia americana) 16 Winter Wren (Troglodytes hiemalis) 4 Golden-crowned Kinglet (Regulus satrapa) 15 Dark-eyed Junco (Junco hyemalis) 40 Purple Finch (Carpodacus purpureus) 2 Red Crossbill (Loxia curvirostra) 3 White-winged Crossbill (Loxia leucoptera) 2 Pine Siskin (Spinus pinus) 60 This report was generated automatically by eBird v3 (http://ebird.org) Also yesterday (on Easter), I found
[nysbirds-l] A chance to volunteer with the NYC Audubon: Harbor Herons Foraging Survey 2012
I'm forwarding this email I received today from the NYC Audubon. I have participated in the project the last three summers and had a lot of fun. It is watching wading birds in the NYC area to find out where they are feeding. -- Forwarded message -- From: John Rowden Date: Mon, Apr 9, 2012 at 5:24 PM Subject: Harbor Herons Foraging Survey 2012 To: John Rowden , "Susan B. Elbin" Hey all, I hope you survived the winter (such as it was) relatively unscathed! You're receiving this email because you've either participated in our Harbor Heron Foraging Study as a Citizen Scientist before or have expressed an interest in doing so. For this year, you may have already seen returning egrets and we are gearing up for another year of data collection for the study starting at the beginning of May; we hope you will be able to participate again. I wanted to let you know about two upcoming orientation/training sessions we'll be having for the HHFS. If you've participated in the project before you don't need to attend (but are certainly welcome to). If you haven't participated I encourage you to attend one of them. They are: Saturday, April 21st at 9 am Tuesday, April 24th at 6:30 pm Both sessions will be held in our offices at 71 W. 23rd Street, Suite 1523 and will last approximately two hours. Please let me know if you'll be attending, so we'll know how much materials to have on hand. If you can collect data for us again and won't be at one of the training sessions, please let me know that you are available and if you would like to continue your data collection at the site you covered last year or if you would like a different site. Prior to May I'll let everyone know about the schedule and any updates to protocols. Please feel free to circulate this information around your network. We are always looking for more volunteers for this program! And please let me know if you have any thoughts or questions. Thanks, John -- John Rowden, PhD Associate Director, Citizen Science and Outreach New York City Audubon 71 West 23rd Street, Suite 1523 New York, NY 10010 Tel: 212.691.7483 Fax: 212.924.3870 NYC Audubon is a grassroots community that works for the protection of wild birds and habitat in the five boroughs, improving the quality of life for all New Yorkers. -- 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/ --
[nysbirds-l] Syracuse RBA
RBA * New York * Syracuse * April 09, 2012 * NYSY 04.09.12 Hotline: Syracuse Rare bird Alert Dates(s): april 02, 2012 - April 09, 2012 to report by e-mail: brinjoseph AT yahoo.com covering upstate NY counties: Cayuga, Montezuma National Wildlife Refuge and Montezuma Wetlands Complex (MWC) (just outside Cayuga County), Onondaga, Oswego, Lewis, Jefferson, Oneida, Herkimer, Madison & Cortland compiled:April 02 AT 5:30 p.m. (EST) compiler: Joseph Brin Onondaga Audubon Homepage: www.onondagaaudubon.org #300 -Monday April 09, 2012 Greetings! This is the Syracuse Area Rare Bird Alert for the week of April 02 , 2012 Highlights: --- RED-NECKED GREBE WESTERN GREBE (Extralimital) BLACK-CROWNED NIGHT-HERON EURASIAN WIGEON SWAINSON’S HAWK BLACK VULTURE SANDHILL CRANE SNOWY OWL NORTHERN SHRIKE FISH CROW BOHEMIAN WAXWING RUSTY BLACKBIRD Montezuma National Wildlife Refuge (MNWR) and Montezuma Wetlands Complex (MWC) 4/7: An EURASION WIGEON was found at Marten’s Tract. A SORA RAIL was also heard. At Benning Marsh DUNLIN, GREATER and LESSER YELLOWLEGS, PECTORAL SANDPIPER and WILSON’S SNIPE were seen. The same group of shorebirds was found the next day also. 4/8: A SANDHILL CRANE was seen at Marten’s Tract. A FOS PURPLE MARTEN was seen at the Audubon Center. A NORTHERN SHRIKE was seen on Carncross Road. GREEN WING and BLUE WING TEAL, GADWALL, NORTHERN SHOVELER and AMERICAN WIGEON continued throughout the week at the Visitor’s Center. Phillips Point (Oneida Lake) Lakewatch. Migrating waterfowl seen this week include WHITE-WINGED SCOTER, SURF SCOTER, LONG-TAILED DUCK, BLACK DUCK, NORTHERN PINTAIL, COMMON MERGANSER, RED-BREASTED MERGANSER, COMMON LOON, BONAPARTE’S GULL, HORNED GREBE, RED-NECKED GREBE, and GREAT BLUE HERON. A FISH CROW continues to be heard. Derby Hill Observatory A total of 5,045 raptors were counted at Derby Hill this week. Two BLACK VULTURES (reported last week) were seen on 4/2. Also seen that day were the first SWAINSON’S HAWK of the season and a SANDHILL CRANE. On 4/5 an exceptionally large number (up to 300) of RUSTY BLACKBIRDS were counted. On 4/8 came the season’s first BROAD-WINGED HAWK. Onondaga County 4/3: One SNOWY OWL was seen at Hancock Airport. 4/4: A BLACK-CROWNED NIGHT-HERON was found on the Onondaga Creek Creekwalk. The bird was spotted just north of the Bear Street overpass. Two were seen on 4/5 and one individual was seen as recently as yesterday in the same location. 4/5: 43 COMMON LOONS were seen migrating over Skaneateles Lake. 4/9: An EURASIAN WIGEON was seen in Clay Marsh. It was seen from the handicapped access duck blind on Wetzle Road. Cortland County 4/5: A RED-NECKED GREBE was spotted on Little York Lake. Oswego County 4/3: A SANDHILL CRANE was seen on Biddlecum Road just est of Rt. 254. Jefferson County 2 SANDHILL CRANES were seen on Rt.178 in Adams. Small numbers of BOHEMIAN WAXWINGS are still being seen at Robert Wehle State Park in the town of Henderson. Extralimital 4/8: The two WESTERN GREBES are still being seen from Harris Park at the south end of Cayuga lake. End Transcript -- Joseph Brin Region 5 Baldwinsville, N.Y. 13027 U.S.A. -- 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/ --
[nysbirds-l] Bryant Park Birding
This morning was the first NYC Audubon Bryant Park bird walk of the season (we'll be continuing every Monday 8-9 AM and Thursday 5-6 PM through the end of May if anyone cares to join us; it's a free, drop-in walk). Bryant Park continues to amaze with the abundance and diversity of its birdlife. The winter's White-throated Sparrows are still lingering, and singing. The grassy lawn in the center of the park is closed to foot traffic, which makes it a haven for birds (sparrows especially). We had several sparrow species out there: numerous Song Sparrows, a pair of Chipping Sparrows, and a Field Sparrow. We were later treated to the Field Sparrow singing his bright bouncing-ball song from a London Plane tree, alongside his Chipping cousin who was singing as well. We also heard a Winter Wren singing his amazing song, which I almost never hear in the city. He later popped out of the English ivy and gave us a great look. Other highlights were several Eastern Phoebes, Hermit Thrushes, Northern Flickers, a Yellow-bellied Sapsucker, and numerous Ruby-crowned Kinglets fluttering in the London plane tree twigs. I've never seen so many kinglets in the park... a flock must've arrived overnight. No warblers today, but I look forward to their arrival in the park soon... Good birding, Gabriel WillowNYC 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/ --
[nysbirds-l] American Bitterns
One showing well now at Jamaica Bay, West Pond, bay-side of Bench 12. The Dune Road/Tiana Beach bird was still present on Friday but a little West of Triton. Sent from my iPhone -- 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/ --
[nysbirds-l] American Bitterns
One showing well now at Jamaica Bay, West Pond, bay-side of Bench 12. The Dune Road/Tiana Beach bird was still present on Friday but a little West of Triton. Sent from my iPhone -- 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/ --
[nysbirds-l] Bryant Park Birding
This morning was the first NYC Audubon Bryant Park bird walk of the season (we'll be continuing every Monday 8-9 AM and Thursday 5-6 PM through the end of May if anyone cares to join us; it's a free, drop-in walk). Bryant Park continues to amaze with the abundance and diversity of its birdlife. The winter's White-throated Sparrows are still lingering, and singing. The grassy lawn in the center of the park is closed to foot traffic, which makes it a haven for birds (sparrows especially). We had several sparrow species out there: numerous Song Sparrows, a pair of Chipping Sparrows, and a Field Sparrow. We were later treated to the Field Sparrow singing his bright bouncing-ball song from a London Plane tree, alongside his Chipping cousin who was singing as well. We also heard a Winter Wren singing his amazing song, which I almost never hear in the city. He later popped out of the English ivy and gave us a great look. Other highlights were several Eastern Phoebes, Hermit Thrushes, Northern Flickers, a Yellow-bellied Sapsucker, and numerous Ruby-crowned Kinglets fluttering in the London plane tree twigs. I've never seen so many kinglets in the park... a flock must've arrived overnight. No warblers today, but I look forward to their arrival in the park soon... Good birding, Gabriel WillowNYC 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/ --
[nysbirds-l] A chance to volunteer with the NYC Audubon: Harbor Herons Foraging Survey 2012
I'm forwarding this email I received today from the NYC Audubon. I have participated in the project the last three summers and had a lot of fun. It is watching wading birds in the NYC area to find out where they are feeding. -- Forwarded message -- From: John Rowden jrow...@nycaudubon.org Date: Mon, Apr 9, 2012 at 5:24 PM Subject: Harbor Herons Foraging Survey 2012 To: John Rowden jrow...@nycaudubon.org, Susan B. Elbin sel...@nycaudubon.org Hey all, I hope you survived the winter (such as it was) relatively unscathed! You're receiving this email because you've either participated in our Harbor Heron Foraging Study as a Citizen Scientist before or have expressed an interest in doing so. For this year, you may have already seen returning egrets and we are gearing up for another year of data collection for the study starting at the beginning of May; we hope you will be able to participate again. I wanted to let you know about two upcoming orientation/training sessions we'll be having for the HHFS. If you've participated in the project before you don't need to attend (but are certainly welcome to). If you haven't participated I encourage you to attend one of them. They are: Saturday, April 21st at 9 am Tuesday, April 24th at 6:30 pm Both sessions will be held in our offices at 71 W. 23rd Street, Suite 1523 and will last approximately two hours. Please let me know if you'll be attending, so we'll know how much materials to have on hand. If you can collect data for us again and won't be at one of the training sessions, please let me know that you are available and if you would like to continue your data collection at the site you covered last year or if you would like a different site. Prior to May I'll let everyone know about the schedule and any updates to protocols. Please feel free to circulate this information around your network. We are always looking for more volunteers for this program! And please let me know if you have any thoughts or questions. Thanks, John -- John Rowden, PhD Associate Director, Citizen Science and Outreach New York City Audubon 71 West 23rd Street, Suite 1523 New York, NY 10010 Tel: 212.691.7483 Fax: 212.924.3870 NYC Audubon is a grassroots community that works for the protection of wild birds and habitat in the five boroughs, improving the quality of life for all New Yorkers. -- 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/ --
[nysbirds-l] Finch update/Massawepie Mire/Roosevelt Truck Trail
Hamilton St. Lawrence Counties I returned to Long Lake on April 2nd after being away for nearly 3 weeks. There was 2 feet of snow when I left on March 14th. Currently, there are just a few isolated patches of snow left in sheltered areas of the woods and virtually no mud at all. My husband reported that seaplanes and boats went into Long Lake in March - certainly a new early record. Red and White-winged Crossbills are still around and the huge Pine Siskin irruption continues. I drove into Massawepie Mire yesterday, April 8 - an early record for me in spring - and there was no mud on the road! My prior early record was April 12, 2010 when David Buckley and I found the mire already full of singing Palm Warblers. Yesterday, I did not find any Palm Warblers, so I am slowly honing in on an actual arrival date for this species. (Yesterday, I did not find any Pine Warblers either.) I began the hike at 6:40 a.m. (very cold) and I hiked 6 miles round-trip (just short of the Grass River Flow). Highlights included a non-stop singing Northern Shrike - I was in ear-birding heaven! The first year bird went through a whole barrage of different vocalizations. Another highlight was the impressive numbers of White-winged Crossbills (including young) foraging on black spruce cones (mostly calling, but there was still some singing too). I was alarmed by the dry conditions at the mire. Given the lack of snow and warm temps, the vernal pools, which are normally abundant at the mire, were non-existent. There is also a lot of tree damage from the constant high-wind storms. On another negative note, there was a great deal of logging (again) over the winter, and many areas along the drive looked like a lunar landscape. (I'll post my eBird report below.) I also hiked the Mountaineer Trail around Massawepie Lake yesterday - similar species were found and there was a Common Loon on the lake. (Also a Common Loon on Catamount Pond by the entrance to Massawepie.) The first Common Loon on Long Lake was observed on April 5th. I hiked the Roosevelt Truck Trail on April 7th (eBird report below).White-winged Crossbills were found on all hikes over the past week (Northville-Placid Trail (S) in Long Lake on 4/4, Sabattis Bog on 4/6, Roosevelt Truck Trail on 4/7, and Massawepie Mire on 4/8). I also found a dead (road-killed) female White-winged Crossbill near a marsh along Route 28N in Newcomb. I observed 3 male White-winged Crossbills gritting near the Route 28N - Blue Ridge Road intersection on 4/7. A road-killed Pine Siskin was found on Route 28N near the Lindsay Marsh Trailhead. There was a group of about 10 siskins gritting and when they flew up, there was one bird left behind - the dead bird. As I sat in my car watching, a Pine Siskin kept flying down to the dead bird and hopping around it - very sad. eBird reports: Massawepie Mire, St. Lawrence, US-NY Apr 8, 2012 6:40 AM - 11:40 AM Protocol: Traveling 6.0 mile(s) 20 species Wild Turkey (Meleagris gallopavo) 1 Yellow-bellied Sapsucker (Sphyrapicus varius) 2 Hairy Woodpecker (Picoides villosus) 1 Pileated Woodpecker (Dryocopus pileatus) 1 Northern Shrike (Lanius excubitor) 1 1st year bird vocalizing! Gray Jay (Perisoreus canadensis) 2 Blue Jay (Cyanocitta cristata) 60 American Crow (Corvus brachyrhynchos) 2 Common Raven (Corvus corax) 2 Black-capped Chickadee (Poecile atricapillus) 30 Red-breasted Nuthatch (Sitta canadensis) 12 Brown Creeper (Certhia americana) 16 Many singing birds along the 3-mile hike in. Winter Wren (Troglodytes hiemalis) 8 Golden-crowned Kinglet (Regulus satrapa) 20 Song Sparrow (Melospiza melodia) 8 Dark-eyed Junco (Junco hyemalis) 60 Rusty Blackbird (Euphagus carolinus) 2 Purple Finch (Carpodacus purpureus) 18 White-winged Crossbill (Loxia leucoptera) 68 Throughout the mire and juveniles observed. Birds were flying around the mire and feeding on black spruce cones. Pine Siskin (Spinus pinus) 120 Huge irruption continues... This report was generated automatically by eBird v3 (http://ebird.org) Roosevelt Truck Trail--Southern Trailhead, Essex, US-NY Apr 7, 2012 10:00 AM - 1:00 PM Protocol: Traveling 5.0 mile(s) 15 species Ruffed Grouse (Bonasa umbellus) 2 Wild Turkey (Meleagris gallopavo) 1 Sharp-shinned Hawk (Accipiter striatus) 1 Black-backed Woodpecker (Picoides arcticus) 1 Black-capped Chickadee (Poecile atricapillus) 25 Boreal Chickadee (Poecile hudsonicus) 3 Red-breasted Nuthatch (Sitta canadensis) 9 Brown Creeper (Certhia americana) 16 Winter Wren (Troglodytes hiemalis) 4 Golden-crowned Kinglet (Regulus satrapa) 15 Dark-eyed Junco (Junco hyemalis) 40 Purple Finch (Carpodacus purpureus) 2 Red Crossbill (Loxia curvirostra) 3 White-winged Crossbill (Loxia leucoptera) 2 Pine Siskin (Spinus pinus) 60 This report was generated automatically by eBird v3 (http://ebird.org) Also yesterday (on Easter), I found a
