[cayugabirds-l] Peregrine hatch begins

When I arrived after 11 this morning the incubating Peregrine was casting her eyes down upon her own breast, with her head cocked to one side as if listening. Sure enough, when she stood up her first hatchling was revealed. -Geo -- (copy & paste any URL below, then modify any text "_DOT_" to a

Re: [cayugabirds-l] Taughannock Falls light show?

 Being listed as endangered or threatened isn’t really the criterion for legal protection. The Migratory Bird Treaty Act (MBTA) already protects these birds and their nests, eggs, and nestlings. -Geo -- (copy & paste any URL below, then modify any text "_DOT_" to a period ".") Cayugabirds-L

Re: [cayugabirds-l] Taughannock Falls light show?

The Peregrines’ nest is just below the Visitor’s Center building at the falls overlook, so not likely to be lighted directly, unless the technicians are planning something really extravagant! The Ravens' nest is above and  slightly north of the lip of the falls itself. It's well within the reach

Re: [cayugabirds-l] Taughannock Falls light show?

the reaction of  the incubating females.-GeoOn Apr 14, 2024, at 1:16 PM, Deb Grantham wrote: So what do we do?   Deb     From: bounce-128145578-83565...@list.cornell.edu On Behalf Of Geo Kloppel Sent: Sunday, April 14, 2024 12:07 PM To: CAYUGABIRDS-L Subject: Re: [cayugabirds-l] Taughannock Falls

Re: [cayugabirds-l] Taughannock Falls light show?

Below is the press release for the evening light shows at the great falls in Taughannock Falls State Park later this week, which have potential to disturb the Peregrine Falcons and Ravens that are currently on nests there).Note that the event is jointly hosted by NYS Parks, Visit Ithaca, and also

Re: [cayugabirds-l] Taughannock Peregrines

Yes, a few reports of LA Waterthrush around Ithaca and elsewhere in the FingerlakesOn Apr 12, 2024, at 7:13 PM, Peter Saracino wrote:Thanks Geo.Are any Louisiana waterthrush back?SarOn Fri, Apr 12, 2024, 5:35 PM Geo Kloppel <geoklop...@gmail.com> wrote:The Taughannock gorge Peregrines shou

[cayugabirds-l] Taughannock Peregrines

The Taughannock gorge Peregrines should see their eggs hatching soon. She has been lying on her nest ledge since March 14th. She has four brown eggs beneath her. He has been making food deliveries… twice while I watched today. Those are very excited, talkative events, though I guess all the

Re: [cayugabirds-l] Birds/eclipse

> Ithaca, New York (where the skies are very rarely clear during celestial > events.) The evening _before_ the eclipse the skies were quite clear. I went up to the top of my hill in West Danby with a couple of my neighbors, and we enjoyed viewing Comet 12P/Pons-Brooks through binoculars and

Re: [cayugabirds-l] Varna mystery bird song

In addition to their familiar trills, delivered all at one pace and pitch, Dark-eyed Juncos do have a two part song that can suggest Song Sparrow. You can find examples in some of the field guide apps. -Geo > On Apr 1, 2024, at 5:30 PM, Laura Stenzler wrote: > >  Pretty sure it’s a junco.

[cayugabirds-l] Taughannock Ravens

The Ravens are nesting again in the same location as last year, a ledge on the north wall close to and higher than the great falls, easily viewed from a nearby lookout on the South Rim trail. -Geo -- (copy & paste any URL below, then modify any text "_DOT_" to a period ".") Cayugabirds-L

[cayugabirds-l] Harrier courtship

A pair of Northern Harriers was keeping close company at the traditional nest site in Michigan Hollow this morning. Observing from a considerable distance, I watched the male drop into the sedges in the area of previous years’ nest(s). He immediately took flight again, and moments later the

[cayugabirds-l] Siskins

A couple of Pine Siskins have joined the Goldfinches at my feeders this morning. Encouraged, I’ve put out a second Nyjer feeder. -Geo -- (copy & paste any URL below, then modify any text "_DOT_" to a period ".") Cayugabirds-L List Info: NortheastBirding_DOT_com/CayugabirdsWELCOME_DOT_htm

[cayugabirds-l] Fox Sparrows

Two Fox Sparrows are rummaging under my feeders at the moment. We’re expecting 4” of “Wintry Mix” here in West Danby. -Geo -- (copy & paste any URL below, then modify any text "_DOT_" to a period ".") Cayugabirds-L List Info: NortheastBirding_DOT_com/CayugabirdsWELCOME_DOT_htm

Re: [cayugabirds-l] Montezeuma

My count was 26 Cranes at the MNWR visitors’ center yesterday about 3:00 PM. Mostly standing around, or strutting a bit, lightly tooting their horns. Made me think of a brass band just gathering in the assembly area before the start of a parade. Indeed at 3:15 they all went walking north

[cayugabirds-l] More Ravens building

>From the sound of things, the Tupper Rd Ravens are nest-building in my spruce >plantation again. Kevin, Jay and Anne may remember this location as the first >stop in a day of Raven-banding on the 30th of April, 2003. (No, I don’t >actually have elephant memory, but I do have the photos that

Re:[cayugabirds-l] Saw-whet

…and still at it an hour later. Pretty determined! My neighbor throws two quarts of bird seed on the ground every day, which must be a real boon for voles and deer mice. Maybe that is what’s keeping the Saw-whets around… Les campagnols et les souris sylvestres S’occupent de ses affaires

[cayugabirds-l] Saw-whet

Started tooting at 6:20 PM. Today I put up a nest box, and I will do another one tomorrow. -Geo -- (copy & paste any URL below, then modify any text "_DOT_" to a period ".") Cayugabirds-L List Info: NortheastBirding_DOT_com/CayugabirdsWELCOME_DOT_htm

[cayugabirds-l] Saw-whet Owl

5:30 AM: still tooting, 25 days now -Geo -- (copy & paste any URL below, then modify any text "_DOT_" to a period ".") Cayugabirds-L List Info: NortheastBirding_DOT_com/CayugabirdsWELCOME_DOT_htm NortheastBirding_DOT_com/CayugabirdsRULES_DOT_htm

[cayugabirds-l] Saw-whet

21 days here! -Geo -- (copy & paste any URL below, then modify any text "_DOT_" to a period ".") Cayugabirds-L List Info: NortheastBirding_DOT_com/CayugabirdsWELCOME_DOT_htm NortheastBirding_DOT_com/CayugabirdsRULES_DOT_htm

[cayugabirds-l] Influx of Purple Finches

The number of Purple Finches at my feeders has jumped quite suddenly from ten to about thirty. -Geo -- (copy & paste any URL below, then modify any text "_DOT_" to a period ".") Cayugabirds-L List Info: NortheastBirding_DOT_com/CayugabirdsWELCOME_DOT_htm

Re: [cayugabirds-l] our birds are picky, only Sunflower seeds for them

Black oil sunflower seed in the big hopper, sure, but I offer Nyjer all by itself in a dedicated finch feeder, and the Goldfinches are very happy with that. I buy 5# bags at Agway; Lizzie Mae’s Birdseed and Dry Goods Company. The bags are zip-lock, but I transfer the Nyjer to 1-qt plastic jugs

Re: [cayugabirds-l] River otters at Jennings Pond, Danby

Their home range must be at least a few square miles, so the otters at Jennings Pond may be the same ones that hang out in the big Michigan Hollow sedge marsh, about a mile south of the pond. Incidentally, beaver have recently repaired the old dam that controls the mile-long marsh, and the

Re: [cayugabirds-l] Blue jay question

I know quite a few humans who do what strikes me as much the same kind of thing: their dining tables and kitchen windowsills are decorated with trinkets and natural objects like polished stones, pine cones, crystals, snake skins, and dried flowers. On mine there are currently several bits of

Re: [cayugabirds-l] Count Week!!!

Given the open streams and the forecast, the Great Blue Heron I‘m looking at just now is not going to be needed as a “count week” addition. Confluence of Buttermilk Creek and Cayuga Inlet. -Geo > On Dec 29, 2023, at 6:12 PM, Kevin J. McGowan wrote: > > It’s actually frustrating to see

[cayugabirds-l] Eagle with fox

Driving in my West Danby / Newfield neighborhood a few days ago, I turned east from Vanbuskirk Road onto Bower Road, and came upon a second year Bald Eagle standing on a fox in the middle of the road. Although one sees a lot of road-killed foxes, the tableau strongly suggested that the Eagle

Re: [cayugabirds-l] Turkey Vulture egg(s)

The nest site is not giving off any noticeable odor now. Hal Harrison wrote that careful concealment of the nest from predators was imperative, because of the strong odor that results from feeding carrion to the young. Perhaps “careful concealment” includes eating and defecating off-site

Re: [cayugabirds-l] Turkey Vulture egg(s)

Thanks Donna, that gives me a lot to look forward to! I had undertaken a bit of slow, desultory salvage work at the abandoned shack in the woods, but after discovering the Turkey Vulture scraping in the debris on the floor there on April 29-30, I avoided the place for weeks. It does seem like a

[cayugabirds-l] Turkey Vulture egg(s)

In late April I found a Turkey Vulture scraping around in the domestic debris on the floor of one of our abandoned shacks deep in the woods. I coded it as NB (nest building). Over the next few weeks I observed several comings and goings that I interpreted hopefully as shift-changes. She’s

Re: [cayugabirds-l] More birds

… also Veery, Black-throated Blue Warbler, Blackburnian Warbler -Geo > On May 7, 2023, at 8:40 AM, Geo Kloppel wrote: > > …Baltimore Oriole, Black-throated Green Warbler, Nashville Warbler, > Black-and-white Warbler, Red-eyed Vireo, Chestnut sided Warbler > > -Geo >

Re: [cayugabirds-l] More birds

…Baltimore Oriole, Black-throated Green Warbler, Nashville Warbler, Black-and-white Warbler, Red-eyed Vireo, Chestnut sided Warbler -Geo > On May 7, 2023, at 8:15 AM, Laura Stenzler wrote: > > FOY Red-eyed vireo and scarlet tanager added to yard list! > > Laura > > Laura Stenzler >

Re: [cayugabirds-l] Lots O birds

Yup, lots around my place in West Danby too: Indigo Bunting, Scarlet Tanager, Warbling Vireo, American Redstart, Gray Catbird, Wood Thrush, Rose-breasted Grosbeak, Ovenbird, Canada Warbler, Louisiana Waterthrush, Blue-headed Vireo… -Geo > On May 7, 2023, at 7:15 AM, Laura Stenzler wrote: >

[cayugabirds-l] Hummingbird, bats

A Ruby-throated Hummingbird visited my feeder earlier this evening, and just now the big brown bats have emerged from my roof. -Geo -- Cayugabirds-L List Info: http://www.NortheastBirding.com/CayugabirdsWELCOME http://www.NortheastBirding.com/CayugabirdsRULES

Re: [cayugabirds-l] Taughannock Peregrines?

I’d guess the chicks are going on two weeks old, so four more weeks to go on the ledge…? Mom is on her favorite perch about twenty feet away, waiting for a food delivery. Oh, here comes dad… -Geo > On May 4, 2023, at 5:41 AM, Dave Nutter wrote: > Yesterday afternoon (3 May) about 5:15pm,

Re: [cayugabirds-l] Taughannock Peregrines?

The little Peregrine chicks are fine - their dense down is just the same color as the splattered ledge, so if they’re sleeping in a pile you might miss them. The adults are around too. -Geo > On May 4, 2023, at 5:41 AM, Dave Nutter wrote: > > Yesterday afternoon (3 May) about 5:15pm, Ann

Re: [cayugabirds-l] Blue Jay migration

Yesterday noon my feeders were briefly mobbed by about 15 Blue Jays, which I took to be migrants, as the local Jays are already carrying nest material. -Geo > On Apr 28, 2023, at 2:38 PM, Dave Nutter wrote: > > Yesterday in the late afternoon I saw a small quiet flock of 8 Blue Jays >

[cayugabirds-l] Feeding time

Late this afternoon I watched the Taughannock Peregrine female take delivery of an unrecognizable catch from the male, fly to the nest with it, then tear it up to carefully and patiently feed her four little eyases (nestlings). The Raven female above the great falls was also feeding her three

[cayugabirds-l] Peregrine incubating

I took my dog for a long walk at Taughannock, then did some shopping at the T-burg Shur-Save. On my way out I stopped to take some digi-scope photos of the Peregrine nest from the opposite rim of the gorge. Looks like incubation is underway. -Geo -- Cayugabirds-L List Info:

Re:[cayugabirds-l] Toads

Over the years, many people have told me that they do not see this predation by Crows at their own favorite toad ponds, which leads me to imagine that the technique for extracting the goods without the poisonous bufotoxin is a kind of traditional knowledge passed down the generations in certain

Re: [cayugabirds-l] possible Chickadee migration near Allan Treman marina

Last October there was an article in the Bangor Daily News titled “Plague Of Chickadees In Acadia Could Mean A Frigid Winter In Maine” (Paywall). Seems unlikely that the Chickadees were just anticipating cold weather. Perhaps a poor year for some food resource that’s important to Chickadees

[cayugabirds-l] Crows and toads

Speaking of migrations, the toads’ annual pool party at my pond in West Danby is in full swing, a good 2 - 3 weeks ahead of schedule. (Over the past 14 years I’ve come to expect their gathering to occur in the very last days of April / the first week of May) For years the local Crows harvested

Re: [cayugabirds-l] possible Chickadee migration near Allan Treman marina

This 2005 Chickadee Irruption post from our old friend Jeff Wells is also fun: https://www.borealbirds.org/blog/2005/09/30/chickadee-irruption -Geo -- Cayugabirds-L List Info: http://www.NortheastBirding.com/CayugabirdsWELCOME http://www.NortheastBirding.com/CayugabirdsRULES

Re: [cayugabirds-l] possible Chickadee migration near Allan Treman marina

Nice, Dave! “Irruption” seems to be the preferred term for these mass movements of young Chickadees. Andrea Patterson posted the following piece on April 18, 2013, about observations of the phenomenon over a number years at Braddock Bay Bird Observatory, where Lake Ontario poses the barrier

[cayugabirds-l] Broad-winged Hawks

Two Broad-winged Hawks are soaring low over my West Danby hillside in the mid-day sunshine. The Ravens, who have gone quiet and seem to have nestlings now, are not pleased with these new arrivals, and one of them is attempting to drive the hawks away. He has the size advantage, and he’s very

Re: [cayugabirds-l] Nyger seed

Make sure to keep it cool and dry after you buy it too, so it doesn’t get “old” prematurely in your own cupboard. I like to transfer the contents of a newly-opened bag into a jug with an air-tight screw cap. -- Cayugabirds-L List Info: http://www.NortheastBirding.com/CayugabirdsWELCOME

[cayugabirds-l] Vocal Cooper’s Hawk

A bit chilly above West Danby this morning (34° F), but when the sun rose over the distant pinnacles and lit our spruce plantation, the female Cooper’s Hawk began calling from within: “whaaa… whaaa…. whaaa”. The Crows must have been aware, but they ignored it. She went on giving these tripled

Re: [cayugabirds-l] Snow Goose

My guess (nothing more) is that this may be the same Snow Goose that was walking about on the grass at Taughannock Point on the afternoon of March 16th. That goose was pretty clearly unwilling to fly - it held one wing slightly raised as if injured, and when it became wary of the attention it

[cayugabirds-l] Bernie’s Bridge, etc

For a third time this month I really enjoyed the new deck on Bernie’s Bridge, which no longer threatens to tilt users into the creek at the north end of the Montour Falls Marina. (Last week I sent a note of thanks to the mayor for his part in the repairs.) Later this afternoon, and a bit

[cayugabirds-l] Red-tails building

I saw a pair of Red-tailed Hawks at the corner of Agard Road and Willow Creek Road at 12:30. One was carrying nest material (grape vines I think), and flew south along the road several hundred yards before turning east toward the Black Diamond Trail. -Geo -- Cayugabirds-L List Info:

[cayugabirds-l] Laden Raven

One of my local Ravens just flew by at window height carrying a rigid object, which (at a guess) looked about eight inches long. I figured the pair had eggs by now, so perhaps it was a food delivery for the incubating female - something with a bone still in it? -Geo -- Cayugabirds-L List

[cayugabirds-l] Taughannock Peregrines

There was deep slush everywhere at my house yesterday, and it was hard work for my elderly dog to struggle through, so I took her for a long leisurely walk at Taughannock Point. There was a Snow Goose at the north point that had an injured wing. It paddled north toward Frontenac, forestalling

Re: [cayugabirds-l] Snow Geese?

Hi Sandy, There are some big rafts of Snow Geese in Aurora Bay, SE of Dean’s Cove. Can’t see any at Cayuga Lake State Park where I’m now walking with my dog… -Geo > On Mar 3, 2023, at 11:12 AM, Sandy Podulka wrote: > > Anyone been to the Savannah Mucklands or by Cayuga Lake State Park the

Re: [cayugabirds-l] blue jays

Hi Deb, The Blue Jay is a “partially migratory” species. If you google “blue jay migration” you’ll get lots of hits that attempt in a few words (or a few paragraphs) to explain what this means. The persons who asked you to find out why they aren’t seeing Blue Jays this winter might get

Re: [cayugabirds-l] Purple Finches

Hi Laurie and all, I usually have a few Purple Finches at my winter feeders. About six lately. But my brother in Interlaken gets the congener House Finches instead. Guess it just depends on where you are situated! -Geo > On Feb 26, 2023, at 1:42 PM, Laurie Rubin wrote: > > Two female

Re: [cayugabirds-l] Short-eared Owls, Ithaca Airport

I had to pick up my daughter at the Ithaca Airport last night, so I went early (5:30) to see the Short-eared Owls. From Snyder Road near the western corner of the solar farm, I watched one in flight for several minutes. The snow was flying too, and when the light dimmed, I walked SE along the

[cayugabirds-l] Geese

I spite of the low cloud ceiling, numerous flights of Snow Geese and Canada Geese are entering the Cayuga Basin at West Danby this afternoon, and passing northward down the Cayuga Inlet valley -Geo -- Cayugabirds-L List Info: http://www.NortheastBirding.com/CayugabirdsWELCOME

Re: [cayugabirds-l] Any sites of large snow geese numbers?

>From Long Point State Park last Thursday afternoon I saw a distant raft of >Snow Geese near Dean’s Cove on the west shore. The distance and low viewing >angle made it look like just a line, but when all the geese re-shuffled in >their typical rolling-snowsquall manner it was clear that there

[cayugabirds-l] Early migrants

A small flock of 10-12 Grackles went over my house at dawn, headed north. Yesterday I had an Eastern Bluebird feeding on the grassy bank below my house. This morning I‘m hearing their “turalee” calls as they pass overhead, and even full songs from several scouts checking out the nest boxes.

[cayugabirds-l] Not a bird, but traveling in the sky

Last night I went to bed with a sore throat. It woke me up at 3:00, so I got up to make a soothing hot drink. That was lucky, as it turned out. A little later, and a little colder, I was writing this: 3:45 AM 13°F The moon has gone behind the hill. There are some light clouds, but the region

Re: [cayugabirds-l] Pochard?

Just received the Murray McMurray Hatchery catalog. This discussion prompted me to look there and elsewhere for the availability of Red Crested Pochard Hatchlings. Turns out they are offered by lots of hatcheries, though at $150 - $300 per pair, they’re aimed at bird fanciers rather than common

Re: [cayugabirds-l] Harlequin hunting bans

the NYS DEC Waterfowl Bag Limits, it says no >> Harlequin ducks. This is in the paragraph below the waterfowl chart >> >>> On Mon, Dec 12, 2022, 7:29 AM Geo Kloppel wrote: >>> I imagine the legal status of eastern Harlequin Ducks is regularly >>> mention

[cayugabirds-l] Harlequin hunting bans

I imagine the legal status of eastern Harlequin Ducks is regularly mentioned in hunter education courses run by the wildlife management agencies in the various states and provinces. In 1990 the Committee on the Status of Endangered Wildlife in Canada (COSEWIC) listed the entire eastern

Re: [cayugabirds-l] American Tree Sparrows

A flock of about a dozen White-throated Sparrows has been working my yard and neighborhood lately; seen as recently as this morning. No Tree Sparrows here, but several Purple Finches and Red-breasted Nuthatches appear at the feeders each day. Pileated Woodpeckers are tearing great strips of

[cayugabirds-l] Tundra Swan flight

At 6:26 am I heard a group of Tundra Swans passing over West Danby on their way south out of the Cayuga Basin. -Geo -- Cayugabirds-L List Info: http://www.NortheastBirding.com/CayugabirdsWELCOME http://www.NortheastBirding.com/CayugabirdsRULES

Re: [cayugabirds-l] Harlequin duck

At one point late this morning the Harlequin Duck moved well south of the sailing center and all the associated buoys, into the bay at the SE corner of the lake, still associating with Mallards and Bufflehead in shallow water. The view from Stewart Park or the RR tracks behind the Ithaca

Re: [cayugabirds-l] Woodpeckers wreaking havoc

Downy Woodpeckers may drill cavities in the late fall to use for winter roosting. If that’s what you’re experiencing, you might try offering them some bird houses as alternatives… -Geo > On Dec 4, 2022, at 6:30 PM, Christopher Sperry wrote: > >  > We do not see any indication of insects

Re: [cayugabirds-l] Common Loons on Seneca

NW to NNW winds are forecast for the morning of Tuesday the 29th, but the predicted velocity is quite low; don’t know if that will make for much of a loon flight… -Geo > On Nov 23, 2022, at 4:56 PM, John Gregoire > wrote: > >  > I've been to check on Loons over Seneca Lake three times so

Re:[cayugabirds-l] External mic setup suggestions

For night listening, my old iPhone outside the bedroom window does a good job, as it’s quite sensitive (after all, this is the mic that Merlin uses). Last night it treated me to crickets, a Barred Owl, and a coyote chorus. Feed the output to a second device running Merlin and detect the night

Re: [cayugabirds-l] External mic setup suggestions

Hi Karen, You can spend a lot for a high quality ambient microphone - from a few hundred to a few thousand dollars. But if you have an old Android or iPhone that’s just gathering dust, you could be listening tonight, while you research products and ideas. Just put the phone outdoors on a

Re: [cayugabirds-l] Hummingbird feeders & unwanted guests

If squirrels don’t have easy access to your roof, you might try what has worked well at my house for many years: the hummingbird feeders are suspended from the eaves troughs on long hangers of the type used for flower baskets. -Geo -- Cayugabirds-L List Info:

[cayugabirds-l] Catbird fun

I’ve got a Catbird in the yard who does imitations of Bobwhite and Whip-poor-will :-) -Geo Sent from my iPhone -- Cayugabirds-L List Info: http://www.NortheastBirding.com/CayugabirdsWELCOME http://www.NortheastBirding.com/CayugabirdsRULES

[cayugabirds-l] Olive-sided Flycatcher

I have an Olive-sided Flycatcher singing and hunting from the top of a snag at my pond this morning. -Geo Geo Kloppel, West Danby -- Cayugabirds-L List Info: http://www.NortheastBirding.com/CayugabirdsWELCOME http://www.NortheastBirding.com/CayugabirdsRULES http://www.NortheastBirding.com

[cayugabirds-l] Black-billed Cuckoo

A Black-billed Cuckoo was singing cu-cu-cu-cu over and over again in the trees just north of my garden this afternoon (Tupper Rd, West Danby). Not a harbinger of rain on this occasion, alas! But still welcome: I’m just starting to see tiny caterpillars, so I hope there will be plenty of

[cayugabirds-l] Late-building Ravens

If you thought mid-March was late, here it is the evening of March 31st, the final hours of the month, and the Ravens on Sorry Hunter Hill* are still carrying sticks (not lining material) and croaking excitedly. -Geo *1,920’ summit west of Tupper Rd, West Danby Sent from my iPhone --

[cayugabirds-l] Michigan Hollow Marsh

This morning I went over to the beaver dam that controls the water level in the big Michigan Hollow sedge marsh north of Diane’s Crossing (Finger Lakes Trail). As some readers will know, the lodge became unoccupied more than a year ago, and without maintenance the dam has deteriorated. The

[cayugabirds-l] Fox Sparrow, big brown bat

Nice warm-up around West Danby today. So much snow has melted up here on the hill that a Fox Sparrow found some bare ground to rake at the edge of my yard. This evening one of my house’s resident big brown bats is out flying about, and catching insects too, to judge by the type of flying I‘m

Re: [cayugabirds-l] purple Finches

My (mostly sunflower) feeding operation at home (West Danby) has attracted about 20 Purple Finches daily for the last week or so, along with a similar number of White-throated Sparrows, and the usual Goldfinches, Chickadees, Tufted Titmice, White and Red-breasted Nuthatches, Carolina Wrens,

Re: [cayugabirds-l] Suet question

I’m not advocating, but one can buy grass-fed organically produced beef suet through the mail. One source that I see online sells it for about $7 / lb., which is not more than one might pay for certain brands of organic peanut butter (which are typically non-hydrogenated, so no need to wonder

[cayugabirds-l] Swan flight

No loons to be seen over West Danby yesterday morning, because of the persistently falling snow. A brief but particularly heavy squall swept through between 8:00 and 8:30. Right in the thick of it, riding a tail wind out of the north, came a flight of Tundra Swans. I was indoors, but ran

Re: [cayugabirds-l] Young fledgling Cedar Waxwings

> On Sep 26, 2021, at 9:20 PM, anneb.cl...@gmail.com wrote: > > Summer isn’t over til the last fledgling flies??? > Anne I guess it’s not over, then. A just-fledged Mourning Dove popped up in my driveway this morning. Although these can appear in any season, this one was under incubation

Re: [cayugabirds-l] Wood stork at Knox Marcellus

Wood Stork continued today (Knox Marcellus), as did the Roseate Spoonbill (west of the rte 89 bridge at May’s Point). A pair of Trumpeter Swans with two cygnets rested in Guy’s Marsh mid-afternoon. -Geo > On Jul 21, 2021, at 7:08 AM, Jay McGowan wrote: > >  > The immature WOOD STORK found

Re: [cayugabirds-l] worm eating warblers at Lindsay Parsons

Yeah, gypsy moth caterpillars stripped the slopes around West Danby pretty bare. New leaves are popping now, but I guess any effect the defoliation may have had on this year’s breeding is a done deal. Still, this has happened before. Whatever the effect, I’m counting on the resilience of West

Re: [cayugabirds-l] Fields being mowed.

ew nesting areas it > took for the one farm as described. > > No not impossible but much harder than it seems. And leaving clumps with > nests as well as paths near them will increase predation. > > I am dubious as good as this sounds. > > Anne > > Sent from

Re: [cayugabirds-l] Fields being mowed.

I’ve been musing along a different line, wondering if a preemptive approach is possible. It takes time to mow the big fields that grassland nesters favor, and the hay farmer can’t mow all of them simultaneously. The work of haying season has to begin somewhere, and start early enough that the

Re: [cayugabirds-l] Fields being mowed.

I was about to say that anyone who wants to discuss the matter cogently with actual farmers and hayfield managers would do well to consult the Resources page on the Cayuga Bird Club website, where this link lives: Cornell Cooperative Extension has published a very helpful document on Hayfield

[cayugabirds-l] Around West Danby

I had a Mourning Warbler singing in my yard this AM. Both Black-billed and Yellow-billed Cuckoos. And our perennial Barred Owls. I actually had a face-to-face with one of them a couple days ago, down in the hemlock-shaded ravine. Elsewhere around my local haunts I had two grunting Virginia

[cayugabirds-l] Another Whip-poor-will

I’m outside my house watching a couple of big brown bats this evening, and suddenly a Whip-poor -will has started singing! First time here since the late ‘90s. Still going! -Geo Sent from my iPhone -- Cayugabirds-L List Info: http://www.NortheastBirding.com/CayugabirdsWELCOME

[cayugabirds-l] Toads and Cuckoos

Despite the predation by Crows, who hunted them in the tall grass at the water’s edge, lots of toads succeeded in leaving long strings of eggs in my pond, and today the jellied strings have opened to release tiny, tiny tadpoles. Even tinier (3mm long) are the just-hatched forest caterpillars

[cayugabirds-l] Toads and Crows

The toads’ annual breeding party has been running for days (and nights!) at my pond, and as usual the hapless toads are easy prey for a family of Crows that has a long tradition of exploiting this event. This year’s hunters have revised the time-honored practice of gutting the toads right on

[cayugabirds-l] More Evening Grosbeaks

Six Evening Grosbeaks just arrived at my feeders. Or I should say, they’re watching the activity at my feeders from the adjacent trees, talking it over... ah, here we go: they’re moving in! -Geo Sent from my iPhone -- Cayugabirds-L List Info: http://www.NortheastBirding.com/CayugabirdsWELCOME

[cayugabirds-l] Virginia Rail

A hidden Virginia Rail gave me a grunt display at ridiculously close range (10’?) this morning in Michigan Hollow marsh, Danby (not to be confused with the North Spencer Marsh near the south end of Michigan Hollow Road, where BTW the bridge is closed). -Geo -- Cayugabirds-L List Info:

Re: [cayugabirds-l] large dark bird

What food was being offered to attract the Crows ? -Geo Sent from my iPhone > On Apr 22, 2021, at 2:22 PM, Kevin J. McGowan wrote: > >  > Crows would not tolerate an eagle unless it was very focused on eating > something else. Vulture sounds most likely. > > Kevin > > > > From:

Re: [cayugabirds-l] question about feeder crowds

I have a bog metal hopper-type feeder with spring-loaded perching bars, and the spring tension is adjustable. At any particular setting, birds over a certain weight will depress the bars, which closes off the seed ports. During Blue Jay migration, for example, the spring loading can be adjusted

Re: [cayugabirds-l] FOY

Yep. After walking thru some thickets in Michigan Hollow yesterday, I got test-bitten in two places by a tick, and then found the presumed explorer crawling on my forehead. -Geo -- Cayugabirds-L List Info: http://www.NortheastBirding.com/CayugabirdsWELCOME

[cayugabirds-l] Multiple Fox Sparrows

Fox Sparrows are singing all around my place this morning. There are 4 Wood Ducks on the pond, several pairs of Phoebes hanging around the sheds, lots of Juncos, no more Redpolls. Turkeys are gobbling, Ruffed Grouse are drumming. -Geo Tupper Road, West Danby -- Cayugabirds-L List Info:

Re: [cayugabirds-l] Snow Geese on Cayuga Lake

West Danby: Around 1:00 pm I saw a number of flocks of Snow Geese just entering the Cayuga Basin from the south. Not sure how extensive the flight was, but that mid-day timing always suggests a dawn origin in the coastal regions to our south. So, not entirely over yet! -Geo Sent from my

[cayugabirds-l] Cranes and Short-ears

I visited a few spots in the Northern Montezuma area this afternoon, like Carncross Road and Van Dyne Spoor, hoping to see some Sandhill Cranes. On the shoulder of rte 89 a bit south of Savannah I came upon a dead owl. The head was rather damaged, but the densely feathered toes and the

Re: [cayugabirds-l] American Crow "snow-bathing"!

Chickens do this too. -Geo >  > I recently watched snow buntings do this. > Pete Sar -- Cayugabirds-L List Info: http://www.NortheastBirding.com/CayugabirdsWELCOME http://www.NortheastBirding.com/CayugabirdsRULES http://www.NortheastBirding.com/CayugabirdsSubscribeConfigurationLeave.htm

Re: [cayugabirds-l] 50 Robins

At about 2:45 pm on February 5th, I was driving south along Dubois Road. Between Perry City Road and Indian Creek Road it was continuous Robins, scattering from the road shoulders ahead of me. They must have totaled several hundred. There was one dead in the middle of the road, presumably the

Re: [cayugabirds-l] 50 Robins

There have been well over 100 around my place on Tupper Road in West Danby for several days. They’ve stripped all the sumac fruits, the privet berries and the wild grapes. One stretch of road shoulder looks like the goose-fouled lawns at lakeside parks, but the droppings are deep purple instead

[cayugabirds-l] Loon Count - West Danby

This morning between 7:15 and 9:15 I counted 113 Loons migrating south over West Danby. All appeared to be following the line of the upper Cayuga Inlet Valley. The Meade Period breakdown was: Period 3 - 8 Loons Period 4 - 7 Loons Period 5 - 1 Loon Period 6 - 10 Loons Period 7 - 61 Loons Period

  1   2   3   4   5   6   7   >