>From 3:30 to 8:00 I say the lowest number of species that I can remember in >decades. Still early with many regulars not back. That's not good.
But, how can you call a day a bust when you get to see/hear: Barred Owls calling before you are out of your car at 3:40. I knew that was too easy and that I would have to pay. It was an hour before I got the second species, a screech owl. Then, of course, I only found one other species in the May Day count, which did happen to be a Snowy Owl!! (Spotted by Karen Allaben-Confer far from original, posted location!!)Too bad we got only three species of owls. Two flocks of Black Tern: Main Pool and Tschache Pond. A pair of Red-headed Woodpeckers excavating a hole in the same stand of dead trees as last year near May's Point Pond. Hole on north side of road and facing the road in single-stem, dead elm with a little piece of bark around the trunk and hole in the middle of bark. Birds appeared totally oblivious to hoards of observers. Eurasian Wigeon: opposite pole 291 as reported on Van Dyne Spoor Rd. Trumpeter Swans: seen from Carncross Rd. Prothonatory Warbler on Armitage Rd building nest about 100 m north of bridge. The best view in my life of a Bay-breasted Warbler perched in conifer tree for at least 30 seconds, with full exposure to rising sun, above a play-back of a mobbing tape. A Sora Rail, but no Virginia Rail. Who would have thought 15 years ago that you would see more Osprey and more Bald Eagles than Red-tailed Hawks and Am. Kestrel summed together? Was this a bust day with few species for the effort and time of year, or a great day? Birding is unpredictably fun John Confer -- Cayugabirds-L List Info: http://www.NortheastBirding.com/CayugabirdsWELCOME http://www.NortheastBirding.com/CayugabirdsRULES http://www.NortheastBirding.com/CayugabirdsSubscribeConfigurationLeave.htm ARCHIVES: 1) http://www.mail-archive.com/cayugabirds-l@cornell.edu/maillist.html 2) http://www.surfbirds.com/birdingmail/Group/Cayugabirds 3) http://birdingonthe.net/mailinglists/CAYU.html Please submit your observations to eBird: http://ebird.org/content/ebird/ --
