Re: [nysbirds-l] Bank Swallows - Farmingville

2011-06-08 Thread Jim Osterlund 

A busy little colony, right where Luke said.

I'm amazed, but primarily at my own lack of thought.  I'd always  
assumed . . . but we all know where that leads.  It would seem the  
swallows choose a bank without regard to what may have formed it.  The  
fact that all the banks I've noted were formed at a water boundary had  
me jumping to conclusions.


The birds do of course need water for bathing and drinking, and the  
satellite view of the area shows that many of the homes to the north  
have substantial swimming pools.  I'll bet they have frequent visitors!



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Re: [nysbirds-l] Bank Swallows - Farmingville

2011-06-08 Thread Jim Osterlund 

A busy little colony, right where Luke said.

I'm amazed, but primarily at my own lack of thought.  I'd always  
assumed . . . but we all know where that leads.  It would seem the  
swallows choose a bank without regard to what may have formed it.  The  
fact that all the banks I've noted were formed at a water boundary had  
me jumping to conclusions.


The birds do of course need water for bathing and drinking, and the  
satellite view of the area shows that many of the homes to the north  
have substantial swimming pools.  I'll bet they have frequent visitors!



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[nysbirds-l] Bank Swallows - Farmingville

2011-06-07 Thread Luke Ormand 
John Turner and another co-worker informed me today of a colony of Breeding
Bank Swallows in - of all places - Farmingville.  Located at the top of
Lidge Dr. (N. of Horseblock Rd) a subdivision is being put in and the
construction has resulted in steep slopes and piles of soil that have been
sitting around for several years.  It's unclear if this is the first year
that these birds have nested there - but the colony was pretty robust
spanning several different cliff areas with lots of cavities and good
numbers of birds flying around.  My attempts at photographing them were
futile, but they can easily be seen from the road.  If you visit the site -
please refrain from walking anywhere but the road as the land is private
property (even though it is vacant).  While you are there, you may want to
check out the trails in the adjacent Suffolk County Park to the West which
can be entered from Horseblock Rd.  The interesting thing about this colony
of Bank Swallows is that the nearest bodies of water are Lake Ronkonkoma
which is 4 miles to the West and the Carmans River which is 5 miles to the
East - not exactly where you would expect these birds to settle in.

A trip to EPCAL yielded virtually nothing - a few Grasshopper Sparrows, Wild
Turkeys and Eastern Meadowlarks were all present but at significant
distances.  No raptors were seen.

Kayaking down Long Neck Canal I saw many Barn Swallows and an Eastern
Kingbird.  Near the point at Gooseneck Creek in Flanders Bay were Ruddy
Turnstones, Semi-palmated Sandpipers, American Oystercatchers, a lone Piping
Plover, and several Saltmarsh Sparrows.  Photos of some of the birds can be
seen here:
http://birdsoflongisland.blogspot.com/2011/06/shooting-from-kayak.html

-- 
- Luke Ormand, Flanders

www.birdsoflongisland.blogspot.com

www.wildlongisland.blogspot.com

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