[cayugabirds-l] Sapsucker Woods, Sun 8/12 (Golden-winged Warbler)

[Mark Chao]

On Sunday morning at 8:40, I found a male GOLDEN-WINGED WARBLER in
Sapsucker Woods, just north of 91 Sapsucker Woods Road. This bird was in a
loose flock with many titmice, chickadees, nuthatches, Red-eyed Vireos and
others. Jay McGowan and Nancy Brooks responded to my RBA message in time to
refind the bird with me about 20 minutes later. We also found a juvenile
CHESTNUT-SIDED WARBLER and a BLUE-WINGED WARBLER here.

Later in the power-line corridor on the Dryden side at the north edge of
the sanctuary, we again found a young Chestnut-sided Warbler and a female
Blue-winged Warbler, plus two female-type AMERICAN REDSTARTS.

Here is my eBird checklist, including a poor but definitive photo of the
Golden-winged Warbler. Jay got much better photos, which seem to confirm
the absence of hybrid field marks.

https://ebird.org/view/checklist/S47800932

Mark Chao

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[cayugabirds-l] Sapsucker Woods, Sun 8/19

[Mark Chao]

Fantastic flock of early migrant warblers along Sapsucker Woods Road
(Sunday 9:15 AM). Bay-breasted, Cape May, Tennessee, Canada, Hooded, 5+
Blackburnian, Black-throated Green, Chestnut-sided, probable Black-throated
Blue, plus a Merlin, Chimney Swifts, et al.

Wow
Mark Chao (with Wee Hao Ng)

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[cayugabirds-l] Sapsucker Woods, Mon 8/20

[Mark Chao]

At least some of the warblers from yesterday’s impressive influx remain in
Sapsucker Woods on Monday – two BAY-BREASTED WARBLERS, at least two
BLACKBURNIAN WARBLERS, two juvenile CHESTNUT-SIDED WARBLERS, and an
AMERICAN REDSTART.  I also saw a juvenile BROAD-WINGED HAWK circling over
the main pond.



On each of my three recent visits to the sanctuary, the hotspot for
warblers has been along the road and the East Trail, between the gated
trailheads and 91 Sapsucker Woods Road.  I think that the noise of teeming
family groups of titmice, chickadees, and nuthatches might be attracting
incoming migrants.  It is definitely worthwhile to follow your ears to the
flocks here.  Be ready for swarms of voracious cloth-penetrating mosquitoes.



Yesterday’s Bay-breasted Warbler got an eBird quality-control prompt, but
today’s did not.  Still, today’s birds were actually much more surprising
to me because of their plumages, which looked plainly like those of a
spring adult male (solid black face, bay crown and throat, contrasting
cream-colored neck patch) and a spring adult female (muted black face,
trace of chestnut along throat down to sides, also with contrasting pale
neck patch).  I don’t recall previously seeing Bay-breasted Warblers
looking like this in fall – especially not the one in breeding male
plumage.  Given that yesterday’s bird had the more expected greenish face
and back, I feel certain that there have been at least three individual
Bay-breasted Warblers in this area over these two days.



By the way -- since yesterday, people have collectively found at least 18
warbler species in Sapsucker Woods – Bay-breasted (1 adult M, 1 apparent
adult F, 1 first-year), Cape May (1 adult M, 1 first-year F), Blackburnian
(multiple individuals across full range of plumages, including adult males
in near-peak brightness), Yellow, Yellow-rumped, Magnolia, Black-throated
Blue, Black-throated Green, Black-and-white, American Redstart,
Blue-winged, Tennessee (1 adult M, 1 first-year), Nashville, Northern
Parula, Ovenbird, Hooded, Canada (both sexes), and Common Yellowthroat.
What a great start to this season of songbird migration!



Mark Chao

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[cayugabirds-l] Sapsucker Woods, Fri 9/7

[Mark Chao]

Excellent warbler numbers and diversity by Sherwood Platform in Sapsucker
Woods on Friday (9:30 am). Cape May (2+), Wilson's, N. Parula,
Blackburnian, Black-throated Blue, Black-throated Green, several
Chestnut-sided, Nashville, et al. I haven't even checked the north side of
the pond yet.

Mark Chao

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[cayugabirds-l] Sapsucker Woods, Sat 9/8

[Mark Chao]

I visited Sapsucker Woods twice on Saturday.  Though I found no very
unusual species, both outings stand among the most rewarding I’ve had in
recent autumns, with much frenetic migrant activity and countless excellent
views.



On my first visit, Poppy Singer, Gary Fine, and I found rather few birds on
the Wilson Trail North at around 8 AM, but about an hour later, the three
of us and Kevin Cummings ran into an impressive mixed flock by 91 Sapsucker
Woods Road (the “frog barn”).  Then, noting not only the excellent birding
but also the relative absence of mosquitoes, I went home and persuaded my
wife Miyoko Chu to return to this spot with me.  We didn’t find much
together at 11 AM.  But I stuck around alone, met Paul Anderson and Gary
Kohlenberg, widened my search, and eventually found quite a lot of birds
again, especially in a dazzling flock along the Wilson Trail North.



My warbler tally is as follows:



CANADA (1 M at western bend in pondside branch of Wilson Trail North)

BAY-BREASTED (very abundant and conspicuous -- 3 near frog barn, 7+ along
Wilson Trail North)

BLACK-THROATED BLUE (1 F along road in late morning – no sign of a white
wing spot, but I’m sure of the ID)

BLACK-THROATED GREEN (several in each of the two main flocks)

MAGNOLIA (very abundant and conspicuous – 10+ near frog barn, 7+ along
Wilson Trail North)

CHESTNUT-SIDED (only a little less abundant than Magnolia in both main
flocks)

BLACKBURNIAN (1 M along Wilson Trail North)

BLACK-AND-WHITE (1+ M, 1 F along Wilson Trail North)

TENNESSEE (2 in Fuller Wetlands, 4+ along Wilson Trail North)

NASHVILLE (1 in Fuller Wetlands)

NORTHERN PARULA (1+ in each of the main flocks)

AMERICAN REDSTART (1 in each of the main flocks)

COMMON YELLOWTHROAT (a couple near each of the main flocks)



In addition to the Orange-crowned Warbler that Laura Stenzler mentioned
earlier (great find – looking forward to the details), I also missed a CAPE
MAY WARBLER and probable YELLOW-RUMPED WARBLER that Gary Kohlenberg found.
So there are probably at least 16 warbler species in Sapsucker Woods today,
comprising dozens and dozens of individual birds.



Other highlights include a bright PHILADELPHIA VIREO along the pondside
branch of the Wilson Trail North, a molting male SCARLET TANAGER feeding a
begging juvenile along the driveway to the frog barn, and a BARRED OWL that
Poppy, Gary Fine, and I heard hooting somewhere out along the East Trail.



Mark Chao

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[cayugabirds-l] Sapsucker Woods and Cornell Community Gardens, Tues 9/11

[Mark Chao]

On Tuesday morning, I hitched along with Gladys Birdsall and a very large
group of birders from Campus Club at Cornell on the Wilson Trail North in
Sapsucker Woods.  We found a modest scattering of warblers, including one
each of BAY-BREASTED, BLACKBURNIAN, BLACK-THROATED BLUE, BLACK-AND-WHITE,
and probable TENNESSEE, as well as COMMON YELLOWTHROAT and an OVENBIRD that
Gladys scoped but I missed.  Regrettably, these birds weren’t very
cooperative for many in the group.  Then a small subset and I proceeded
over to the road and the east side of the sanctuary, but we found no
warblers at all.



Since last week, a few eBird users have reported seeing BOBOLINKS in the
Cornell Community Gardens along Freese Road.  Last week I went looking
among the plots and found only one, but today, Kevin McGowan tipped me off
that many more Bobolinks are in the uncultivated expanse south of the
parking area.  I found at least 33 of them here today, mostly staying
undercover under the waving foxtail grasses, but sometimes taking flight,
perching up on grass heads or weeds.  By walking north very slowly in the
shallow trench that bisects this field, from the southern hedgerow back to
the parking lot, I managed to see many birds at pretty close range,
sometimes many at once in one field of view.  Great birds!  Thanks for the
tip, Kevin!



Mark Chao

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[cayugabirds-l] Common Nighthawk perched in Sapsucker Woods, Sunday 9/16

[Mark Chao]

Common Nighthawk perched above base of Sherwood Platform in Sapsucker Woods
(Sun 9/16, 9:30 AM). Also many warblers, Philadelphia Vireos, et al.

To find nighthawk, walk 1/3 boardwalk length from base, turn around and
look back to trail. Find side-by-side pair of tall trees right next to
trail, left one covered w poison ivy. 2/3 of the way up, 3 o'clock.

Mark Chao

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[cayugabirds-l] Sapsucker Woods, Tues 9/25

[Mark Chao]

On Tuesday morning, I went to Sapsucker Woods, thinking that last night’s
storm might have downed some boreal thrushes and other birds.  I found
almost nothing on the Wilson Trail, but eventually found a warbler flock by
the shelter on the East Trail, including an adult male CAPE MAY WARBLER and
a few BLACKPOLL WARBLERS.  I didn’t detect any Catharus species at all,
despite some effort.



Then, having seen on eBird that Ruth Bennett had found many warblers and
vireos at noon along the Wilson Trail North, I created an excuse to return
in mid-afternoon.  Where the trail enters the woods just past the Owens
Platform, I found a little flurry of songbirds -- at least two WILSON’S
WARBLERS, a BAY-BREASTED WARBLER, NASHVILLE WARBLER, BLACK-THROATED GREEN
WARBLER, and a BLUE-HEADED VIREO, plus a BROWN CREEPER and many chickadees.



A few quiet minutes later, I approached the Charley Harper bench.  I saw
two birds foraging on the ground.  One was a YELLOW-RUMPED WARBLER, right
on schedule, behaving just as I had seen in past Septembers and Octobers.
But the other – what a splendid surprise!  It was another CAPE MAY
WARBLER.  This bird eventually stayed long past the Yellow-rumped, offering
me about 30 minutes of close, unobscured views and very good photo ops,
right there in front of the bench.  It was much duller than the Cape May
Warbler that I saw in the morning.  I’m still not sure, however, of the age
and sex of the afternoon bird.



Here is my afternoon eBird checklist, which contains some photos.



https://ebird.org/view/checklist/S48743798



Mark Chao

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[cayugabirds-l] Sapsucker Woods, Th 9/27

[Mark Chao]

Cape May Warbler again giving tremendous open views on ground by Charley
Harper bench along Wilson Trail North in Sapsucker Woods (11:45 AM). Other
warblers around too...mostly Yellow-rumped but also N. Waterthrush, et al.

Mark Chao

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[cayugabirds-l] Cornell Community Gardens, Fri 10/5

[Mark Chao]

On Saturday and Sunday, I’ll lead Cayuga Bird Club field trips in search of
sparrows and other field birds.  We’ll start at 8 AM on both days at the
Cornell Community Gardens along Freese Road, and then head over to the
Bluegrass Lane fields if we have time.  Come prepared to walk through mud
and tall, wet grasses and weeds.



Although the weather forecast appears a little less than ideal, I expect a
lot of fine birding.  Today, Diane Morton, Ken Kemphues, and I found a very
good variety of sparrows at the community gardens, including two LINCOLN’S
SPARROWS, at least five WHITE-CROWNED SPARROWS (2+ juvenile, 3+ adult), one
or more WHITE-THROATED SPARROWS, a couple of SWAMP SPARROWS, a FIELD
SPARROW, and very many SONG SPARROWS.  Later Bob McGuire and I found
several SAVANNAH SPARROWS here too, plus what I think was probably a third
Lincoln’s Sparrow.



Earlier, Diane, Ken, and I went looking for birds, especially Nelson’s
Sparrow, in the patches of cattails and goldenrod amid the sea of grass
west of Bluegrass Lane just south of Hanshaw Road.  We didn’t find
Nelson’s, but did get a nice long sunlit view of a Lincoln’s Sparrow, plus
another of a beautiful female NORTHERN HARRIER.  We also heard an AMERICAN
PIPIT or two flying overhead.



I hope to see many of you this weekend!



Mark Chao



PS.  Another highlight of the day:  two COMMON RAVENS soaring in circles
together for 5+ minutes, very high above our home on Simsbury Drive in
northeast Ithaca.  This is probably the first time I’ve ever seen multiple
ravens here at home.

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[cayugabirds-l] CBC field trip to Cornell Garden Plots and Bluegrass Lane, Sat Oct 6 and Sun Oct 7

[Mark Chao]

On Saturday and Sunday, I led field trips for the Cayuga Bird Club at the
Cornell Garden Plots (known also as the Cornell Community Gardens) along
Freese Road.  On both days, the viewing met my high expectations, with
everyone getting good looks at LINCOLN’S, SWAMP, WHITE-CROWNED, and
WHITE-THROATED SPARROWS.  There were dozens of SONG SPARROWS too of course,
providing helpful visual and aural points of reference against which to
pick out the less-common birds.



The White-crowned Sparrows seem unusually abundant and easy to find this
year, with many sightings on each day, including a few of multiple
individuals in a single field of view.  Conversely, SAVANNAH SPARROWS
continue to seem relatively scarce at the site this year.  We barely
managed to see one on each day.  I also didn’t find any FIELD SPARROWS at
all in the gardens this weekend, though Ken Haas saw one on Saturday.



The most surprising and distinctive sparrow of the weekend was a female
EASTERN TOWHEE on Saturday, which perched up for us for about 20 seconds on
the fence of the Dyce Lab corral.  Sunday offered up its own special
touches, including a PALM WARBLER on the same spot on that fence, plus many
fine birds across the road on the Liddell Lab side – an EASTERN MEADOWLARK
resting in the grass, a BLUE-HEADED VIREO in a small tree near the
building, four WILD TURKEYS, a female NORTHERN HARRIER, and the first
OSPREY I’ve seen in weeks.  Ken Kemphues and Leigh Stivers also found a
MARSH WREN in the cattails around the pond.



On both days I ended the walks by offering a visit to the grassy field west
of Bluegrass Lane, north of the Equine Research Park, to try our luck
finding Nelson’s Sparrow in the hidden cattail patches.  Regrettably, a
giant bolt of lightning curtailed our effort just as it was beginning on
Saturday.  Fortunately, we all escaped incineration and even inundation, as
the torrents held off until we were already back in our cars.



On Sunday, we did manage to get out to the field, though fog and wind
hampered our viewing.  We didn’t find any birds of special note in the
grass, nor in the goldenrod and cattails.  But as we walked back along the
gravel road, we got two last highlights for the weekend.  The first was a
Lincoln’s Sparrow on a desiccated corn husk, offering close, wide-open
(albeit fog-shrouded) views for probably two full minutes.  Then we had the
weekend’s best views of Savannah Sparrow browsing the puddles and gravel at
the grass edge.



I got a lot of help on both days from the sharp eyes and insight of many
other club members, especially Ken, Leigh, Bob McGuire and Phil McNeil, as
well as sparrow scientist Zena Casteel.  My thanks to them, and to all who
came out for the walks!



Mark Chao

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[cayugabirds-l] Sapsucker Woods, Sun 10/14

[Mark Chao]

Extremely cooperative MERLIN perched with prey in talons for last 35+
minutes (now 11 am) right by the parking space closest to start of Wilson
Trail North and pillar marking Robert M. and Mary M. Baker Memorial
Entrance. Also singing Winter Wren at Sherwood Platform.

Mark Chao

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Re:[cayugabirds-l] Sapsucker Woods, Sun 10/14

[Mark Chao]

MERLIN still present in same tree (just past noon -- 90 minutes and
counting!), unfazed by foot traffic right below. Also BLACK-THROATED GREEN
WARBLER seen and another WINTER WREN seen and heard (jif-jif call notes)
next to base of Woodleton Boardwalk.

Mark Chao

On Oct 14, 2018 11:02 AM, "Mark Chao"  wrote:

Extremely cooperative MERLIN perched with prey in talons for last 35+
minutes (now 11 am) right by the parking space closest to start of Wilson
Trail North and pillar marking Robert M. and Mary M. Baker Memorial
Entrance. Also singing Winter Wren at Sherwood Platform.

Mark Chao

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[cayugabirds-l] Evening Grosbeaks in NE Ithaca, Wed 12/5

[Mark Chao]

On Wednesday morning, eight EVENING GROSBEAKS (1 adult male) visited our
yard in northeast Ithaca.   Besides black oil sunflower seeds in our hopper
feeder, they also ate maple seeds and maybe buds or seeds of a couple other
tree species.  Mostly, they just perched quietly in the sunshine.  This is
the first time we’ve ever seen Evening Grosbeaks in our yard in our 17+
years in Ithaca.



Also this morning (9:05 AM), Wesley Hochachka saw at least two female
Evening Grosbeaks in Sapsucker Woods in an ash tree east of the building by
the north-side feeder station, but they flew off somewhere within about a
minute.



eBird shows at least a couple dozen Evening Grosbeak records around
Tompkins County since November 2018, including more than a few this week so
far, including a county high count of 44 (13+ adult males) by Jay McGowan
along Irish Settlement Road a couple of days ago.



Mark Chao

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[cayugabirds-l] NE Ithaca, Th 1/4/19

[Mark Chao]

There is a first-winter WHITE-CROWNED SPARROW in our yard in northeast
Ithaca this morning, along with the usual array of House Finches, juncos,
jays, a CAROLINA WREN, and others.



Mark Chao

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[cayugabirds-l] Sapsucker Woods, Mon 2/4

[Mark Chao]

A Barred Owl is sleeping in the lone pine by the Wilson/Severinghaus
shelter in Sapsucker Woods (Monday 12:25 pm).

Mark Chao

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[cayugabirds-l] Sapsucker Woods, Th 2/7 (Barred Owl reported again)

[Mark Chao]

Tom Schulenberg reports that the BARRED OWL has returned to the tall pine
tree by the shelter at the Wilson/Severinghaus intersection in Sapsucker
Woods on Thursday morning.



Mark Chao

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[cayugabirds-l] Sapsucker Woods, Sun 2/10

[Mark Chao]

On Sunday at 9:45 AM, the BARRED OWL was sleeping in the tall pine next to
the shelter by the Wilson/Severinghaus intersection in Sapsucker Woods.
This is the fifth or sixth day out of the last seven that the owl has
roosted in this tree.



In my visits this week, this owl has shown a striking inclination to sleep
through human observation and songbird mobbing.  Certainly, just in terms
of roost choice from hour to hour and from day to day, this is by far the
most easily refindable Barred Owl I’ve ever known in our area.  All the
same, Chris Pelkie was right to warn against excessive intrusiveness –
especially because this owl’s fidelity to the tree might indicate incipient
breeding activity nearby.  I hope that the owl continues to find reason to
stay, and thus also to keep offering such fine viewing to so many of us.



Mark Chao

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[cayugabirds-l] Sapsucker Woods, Mon 3/18

[Mark Chao]

Barred Owl perched low in hollow of dead tree just to west of eastern
Severinghaus/Wilson Trail node.  Wonderful views.

Mark Chao

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[cayugabirds-l] Sapsucker Woods, Sun 4/7

[Mark Chao]

On Sunday morning, I had one of the better early-April birding outings I’ve
ever had in Sapsucker Woods.  Here are some highlights, which I enjoyed
with various others.



* AMERICAN WOODCOCK, found by Wee Hao Ng south of the Lab at 9:20 AM.  The
bird was foraging along the first wooded stretch of the Wilson Trail, south
of the feeder garden area, north of the Podell Boardwalk, between the trail
and the road.  We and a few passersby had very fine views of this bird
within about 20 feet from the trail and especially from the road.  It was
still there when we left at around 10:20 AM.



* At least three EASTERN MEADOWLARKS seen and heard (both fluting song and
long sparky rattling sequences, as well as electric buzzes) around the
knoll with nest boxes, and also in the airport zone east of the far parking
lot.



* NORTHERN MOCKINGBIRD atop a tree north of building near pond.



* Three FOX SPARROWS together under brush at north edge of woods, where
trail connects utility corridor and Hoyt-Pileated Trail



* Two FIELD SPARROWS together along the side of the road, with Song
Sparrows.



* Male and female EASTERN BLUEBIRDS and 2+ TREE SWALLOWS on and around the
nest boxes on the knoll.



* COMMON RAVEN perched on a utility pole, before heading north.



* GOLDEN-CROWNED KINGLETS throughout, especially along first stretch of
Wilson Trail North.



* PURPLE FINCHES singing north of Sherwood Platform; one immature confirmed
by sight.



* Six RING-NECKED DUCKS and a female HOODED MERGANSER on main pond.



* A pair of WOOD DUCKS perched in a tree near Podell Boardwalk, plus at
least one flying over.



Full eBird checklist, including some photos to be posted later, is here:
https://ebird.org/view/checklist/S54667204.



Mark Chao

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[cayugabirds-l] Woodcock update

[Mark Chao]

Still present, now farther south straight out halfway to road from 5th post
of Podell Boardwalk.

Mark

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[cayugabirds-l] Sapsucker Woods, Tues 4/9

[Mark Chao]

On Tuesday morning, a VESPER SPARROW was offering very long and close views
along the far parking lot and roadside portions of the nest-box knoll in
Sapsucker Woods.  This lot is perennially an excellent location for close
viewing of this species in the second week of April (including the gravel
portions out toward Route 13, as well as the grassy edges and small nearby
trees).



I also saw a WILSON’S SNIPE in the Fuller Wetlands.  I spent a few minutes
scanning for Sunday’s woodcock near the Podell Boardwalk, but didn’t find
it.



Mark Chao

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[cayugabirds-l] Sapsucker Woods, Tues 4/23

[Mark Chao]

Here are some highlights from Sapsucker Woods on Tuesday morning:



* NORTHERN WATERTHRUSH seen singing for a long time from a perch along
Woodleton Boardwalk

* PINE WARBLER in pines along north edge of sanctuary, along power line cut
(ground is very wet here)

* COMMON YELLOWTHROAT singing by hidden pond under power lines

* Western PALM WARBLER with YELLOW-RUMPED WARBLERS along north edge of main
pond

* 30+ RUSTY BLACKBIRDS around main pond, especially near southern end of
Podell Boardwalk

* Several PURPLE FINCHES seen singing at beginning of Wilson Trail North

* Many singing RUBY-CROWNED KINGLETS throughout

* Two GREEN HERONS flying together to Fuller Wetlands



Mark Chao

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[cayugabirds-l] Sapsucker Woods, Tues 5/7

[Mark Chao]

On Tuesday morning in Sapsucker Woods, I joined Tom Hoebbel, Holly Adams,
Diane Morton, Laurie Ray, Leigh Stivers, and several others in watching at
least one female and six male CAPE MAY WARBLERS in the flowering pear trees
at the footbridge at the western split of the Wilson Trail North.  The gray
sky and the near-constant zooming combat among the males made for
challenging viewing, but with patience, we all got extremely good looks.  I
don’t think I’d ever previously seen so many Cape May Warblers so close
together for so long.



NORTHERN PARULAS were offering excellent views here too.  Other warblers
were a bit harder to find, but collectively I think we found at least a
dozen other species, including WILSON’S, BAY-BREASTED, BLACKBURNIAN,
BLACK-THROATED BLUE, BLACK-THROATED GREEN, BLUE-WINGED, BLACK-AND-WHITE,
and NORTHERN WATERTHRUSH.



Mark Chao

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[cayugabirds-l] Finger Lakes Land Trust Spring Bird Quest -- four guided walks over May 25-27

[Mark Chao]

Hi everyone,

Please consider joining me over Memorial Day weekend for the Finger Lakes
Land Trust Spring Bird Quest (SBQ), a series of outings celebrating our
local birds and the Land Trust's work in protecting their vital habitats.
See below for a list of walks I'll be leading.  For full details,
including site descriptions and directions, see
https://www.fllt.org/events/.

As always, these SBQ events are free, but I will welcome donations in
support of the Land Trust.  If you care to make a pledge, as either a
fixed amount or an amount per species I find over the weekend on Land
Trust preserves, please contact me off-list.  I am very grateful even for
the smallest donations!  (I think that we've collectively raised about
$75K for the Land Trust through the SBQ since its inception in 2006.)

In addition, a week from tomorrow (Saturday, May 18), my son Tilden Chao
will be leading a free birding walk for kids (age 5 and up) at the Roy H.
Park Preserve (south), starting at 9:30 AM.  All kids must be accompanied
by a parent or other responsible adult.  More details at the link above.

I am looking forward to some great birding with many of you!

Mark Chao


___
Finger Lakes Land Trust Spring Bird Quest
May 25-27, 2019

Saturday, May 25
6:30 – 8:00 AM
Goetchius Wetland Preserve
Flatiron Road, Caroline

and

8:30 – 10:30 AM
Park Nature Preserve
Irish Settlement Road, Dryden

Sunday, May 26
Bock-Harvey Forest Preserve (owned by the Finger Lakes Trail Conference,
subject a conservation easement held by the Land Trust)
Rockwell Road, Enfield
Meet in the main parking lot at 8:00 AM

Monday, May 27
Lindsay-Parsons Biodiversity Preserve
Routes 34 and 96, West Danby
Meet in the main parking lot at 8:00 AM

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[cayugabirds-l] Sapsucker Woods, Fri 5/10

[Mark Chao]

This morning I visited the Wilson Trail North in Sapsucker Woods between
spells of rain.   It seemed that the mix of birds has remained essentially
unchanged since Tuesday’s influx  – a female BAY-BREASTED WARBLER along the
pond edge; five or more CAPE MAY WARBLERS around the flowering trees at the
footbridge over the pond outflow; a WILSON’S WARBLER singing between this
bridge and the Sherwood Platform; plus CHESTNUT-SIDED WARBLER,
BLACK-THROATED BLUE WARBLER, NORTHERN PARULA, BLUE-HEADED VIREO, and other
expected songbirds between the platform and the Charley Harper bench.
Also, a MARSH WREN continues to sing in the reeds out from the Ruth Davis
arbor south of the visitor center.  (To my knowledge, no one has found the
Golden-winged Warbler since Tuesday afternoon.)



Mark Chao

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[cayugabirds-l] Cerulean Warbler in Ithaca (?), Sat 5/11

[Mark Chao]

On Saturday afternoon at about 2:10 PM, from the new housing development at
400 Spencer Road in Ithaca, I heard what I think was a singing CERULEAN
WARBLER up the slope (along lower Stone Quarry Road).  I couldn’t confirm
this bird by sight (no binoculars, didn’t even try).  But I do feel that
Cerulean is the most likely ID, despite its local rarity and potential for
confusion with other singers.



Mark Chao

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[cayugabirds-l] Sapsucker Woods, Th 5/16

[Mark Chao]

I walked around much of Sapsucker Woods with visiting scientist Martin
Stervander.  It was by far the best morning of the spring for me, probably
a top-ten day for me ever in the sanctuary, all the more so because we
picked up many lifers for Martin.  The treetops from Sherwood Platform past
the Charley Harper Bench all the way to the road were teeming with great
numbers of at least 19 warbler species, including CAPE MAY (4+ M, 1 F),
BAY-BREASTED (3+), TENNESSEE (3+, one confirmed by sight), BLACKBURNIAN
(8+), NORTHERN PARULA (7+), PINE (1 M, surprising to see by Fuller
Wetlands, not near any pines – confirmed by photo), BLACK-THROATED BLUE (4
M, 1 F), BLACK-THROATED GREEN (6+), CHESTNUT-SIDED (6+), NASHVILLE (2,
heard only), BLACK-AND-WHITE (1 seen, 1+ heard only), WILSON’S (seen by
Martin, missed by me), and one HOODED (heard only, but I feel sure).
Northern Waterthrush would have made 20 warbler species for the morning,
but somehow we didn’t hear any along the Woodleton Boardwalk.  We also
found a couple of YELLOW-THROATED VIREOS and BLUE-HEADED VIREOS.



Mark Chao

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[cayugabirds-l] Goetchius Wetland Preserve and Roy H. Park Preserve (FLLT SBQ), Sat 5/25

[Mark Chao]

On Saturday morning, I led two group walks to kick off this year’s Finger
Lakes Land Trust Spring Bird Quest (SBQ).  We had many birders and many
highlights!



Goetchius Wetland Preserve

Flatiron Road

Caroline

6:30 – 8:10 AM

40+ species of birds seen and/or heard

10 participants plus me



* An AMERICAN BITTERN pumping in the large cattail patch near the parking
area, heard by most in the group but not by me

* At least two WILSON’S SNIPE flushing up from the grass upon our approach,
issuing soft vocalizations that were unfamiliar to me.  I think these were
the first snipe I’ve ever found in 14 years of the SBQ.

* One or more BLACK-BILLED CUCKOOS calling throughout the morning,
including one that Tom Hoebbel and I saw flying out of a tree at 6:10 AM,
wheeling over an open field, and finally taking cover in the shadowy crown
of a distant sapling

* The expected trifecta of grassland birds – BOBOLINKS, SAVANNAH SPARROWS,
and EASTERN MEADOWLARK.  One meadowlark perched up and sang for a long time
in the sunshine.

* Multiple WILLOW and ALDER FLYCATCHERS and one LEAST FLYCATCHER singing

* A female BALTIMORE ORIOLE deliberately picking at some buds on a tree
(not sure if she was collecting nest material or foraging)

* A female-type PURPLE FINCH repeatedly singing a short song and perching
up for some open viewing

* Many TREE SWALLOWS offering very fine views, including a pair engaged in
maybe 8 copulation attempts in about 30 seconds atop a nest box

* A male EASTERN BLUEBIRD also coming close for great views, plus a female
seen later flying with food in her bill

* A NORTHERN WATERTHRUSH singing out in the middle of the dense wetland
vegetation

* Two male BLACKPOLL WARBLERS all lit up in the branches of roadside
willows, offering outstanding views for all, plus some very good photo ops
for Tom



Roy H. Park Preserve (southern portion, aka the Baldwin Tract)

Irish Settlement Road

Dryden

8:30-11:05 AM

45+ species of birds seen and/or heard

30 participants plus me



* 12 singing warbler species, including PRAIRIE, CHESTNUT-SIDED,
BLACK-THROATED GREEN, MAGNOLIA, YELLOW-RUMPED, TENNESSEE, BLUE-WINGED,
CANADA, AMERICAN REDSTART, and OVENBIRD.  A subset of us got at least brief
views of Prairie, Magnolia, Blue-winged, and Common Yellowthroat at close
range.

* A FIELD SPARROW that sang and sang its typical rising song within earshot
of practically the whole initial straightaway and across the spruce
plantation to the orange-blazed trail

* A second Field Sparrow that twice sang an unusual two-part song whose
trill was lower in pitch than the initial notes.  This song seemed
exquisitely sad and contemplative to my ears, though I am sure it is quite
rousing for other Field Sparrows.

* A male RUBY-THROATED HUMMINGBIRD perched up on a bare branch, presumably
digesting a recent guzzle of nectar

* A presumed RED-SHOULDERED HAWK calling in the woods near the shelter

* A male YELLOW-BELLIED SAPSUCKER at a nest, seen by many in the group but
alas, not by me and others at the front of our long file



plus an Eastern Pine Elfin– a very beautiful butterfly and a life sighting
for me, and indeed a species I’d never previously noticed even in books.



Many thanks to all participants for a very fun morning!  I truly appreciate
everyone’s good spirits, patience, and mutual support, which were essential
for making the walk work with such a large group.  I especially thank Diane
Morton and Ken Kemphues for their help in guiding the group and sharing
their scope.



I hope to see many of you at tomorrow’s walk at the Bock-Harvey Forest
Preserve (8 AM start, Rockwell Road in Enfield).



Mark Chao

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[cayugabirds-l] Spring Bird Quest -- Bock-Harvey Forest Preserve (Sun 5/26) and Lindsay-Parsons Biodiversity Preserve (Mon 5/27)

[Mark Chao]

On Sunday and Monday, I led two more walks for the Finger Lakes Land Trust
Spring Bird Quest (SBQ).  Again we had essentially perfect weather,
impressively large groups of very congenial birders, and our fair share of
rewarding bird moments.





Sunday, May 26

Bock-Harvey Forest Preserve (owned by the Finger Lakes Trail Conference
subject to a conservation easement held by the Finger Lakes Land Trust)

Enfield

34 species of birds seen and/or heard

18 participants, plus me



After a surprisingly quiet walk through the old-growth woods, our patience
and persistence finally paid off when we returned to more open edge
habitat.  Here we all got fine scope views of a male SCARLET TANAGER and
male INDIGO BUNTING, plus repeated close binocular views of a
CHESTNUT-SIDED WARBLER.  Many birds sang but remained unseen, including
HOODED WARBLER, BLACKPOLL WARBLER, BLACK-BILLED CUCKOO, EASTERN TOWHEE,
WOOD THRUSH, and others.



(One special aspect of this walk was the participation of my 80-year-old
mom, Johanna Chao, who is visiting this weekend from Massachusetts.  She
was very happy that I, and now she too, could connect with so many nice
people.  Thank you!)



__



Monday, May 27

Lindsay-Parsons Biodiversity Preserve

West Danby

56 species of birds seen and/or heard

23-25 participants, plus me



The PRAIRIE WARBLERS, BLUE-WINGED WARBLERS, and CHESTNUT-SIDED WARBLERS
here were very vocal along several of the field edges, but alas, we got
only brief obscured views of them despite much effort.  We had similarly
fleeting viewing opportunities with a BLACKPOLL WARBLER and a BROWN
THRASHER, both down by the north pond.  Here we did have a reasonably long
open view of a WILLOW FLYCATCHER, which at one point was singing at the
same time as a nearby ALDER FLYCATCHER.  Other species, including
BLACK-AND-WHITE WARBLER and HOODED WARBLER, sang but stayed behind a few
too many layers of branches to see.



The viewing highlight of the morning might have been a BOBOLINK that
perched and sang for a long time atop a little shrub in the first grassy
field.  Or maybe it was the GREAT BLUE HERONS at their rookery above the
wooded pond next to the West Danby Fire Department’s facility on Sylvan
Drive.  I think that there are at least 8 nests here.  I conservatively
counted at least nine adult herons and eight begging nestlings of various
ages, but I think that the actual numbers could well be a lot higher.  Here
at this pond, we also found the morning’s biggest surprise – a
DOUBLE-CRESTED CORMORANT, a rare find for the SBQ.



(Special thanks to Suzanne Giffin for carrying her scope and tripod on both
of these walks, and sharing many great views with many people.  Thanks
again also to Ken Kemphues, who similarly carried and shared his scope on
yesterday’s walk, and to both him and Diane Morton for helping to guide our
large group.)

___



In the end (counting a LOUISIANA WATERTHRUSH that I found on a visit to the
Land Trust’s Sweedler Preserve at Lick Brook at dawn today), my species
tally for the weekend is 82.  This year’s SBQ will again yield at least a
couple thousand dollars in donations for the Land Trust.  (Contact me or
visit www.fllt.org if you too would like to make a donation.)



Thanks to all for your participation and support!  It is just so much fun
to see all of you and to share so many bird moments with you at all these
Land Trust preserves!

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[cayugabirds-l] Cayuga Bird Club sparrow walks this weekend

[Mark Chao]

On Saturday and Sunday, I’ll be leading field trips for the Cayuga Bird
Club at the Cornell Community Garden Plots and vicinity.  Each walk will
begin at 8 AM at the parking lot for the garden plots on the east side of
Freese Road between the Dyce Lab and the Liddell Lab.



The gardens are perennially an excellent spot for diversity and numbers of
migrating sparrows in the first half of October.  Today I found eight
sparrow species there (Song, Savannah, Swamp, Field, White-crowned,
White-throated, Dark-eyed Junco, and Eastern Towhee), plus a Palm Warbler.
I also flushed up a Wilson’s Snipe (probably my first ever on this side of
Freese Road) and saw an American Mink in another.



We will be walking through a lot of tall, wet weeds in chilly weather.  I
recommend waterproof clothing and footwear.



I look forward to seeing many of you this weekend!



Mark Chao

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[cayugabirds-l] Cornell community garden plots, Sat 10/12 and Sun 10/13

[Mark Chao]

On October 12 and 13, I led morning field trips for the Cayuga Bird Club at
the Cornell community garden plots on Freese Road.   We had an impressive
turnout of at least 33 people, about evenly distributed between the two
days.



Right as people were arriving on Saturday, we got distant but satisfying
scope views of a MERLIN perched on a roadside utility wire, pulling red
strands of flesh from an unidentified songbird.  We then proceeded into the
garden plots to look for sparrows.  They were more difficult to find than
usual, I’d say, but eventually we collectively turned up seven species --
SONG, SWAMP, SAVANNAH, CHIPPING, FIELD, WHITE-CROWNED (both juvenile and
adult), and WHITE-THROATED SPARROWS.  All morning long, we heard and saw a
flock of RED-WINGED BLACKBIRDS feeding on sunflower heads and reposing in
the trees, including many males bearing rusty-edged fall feathers with
obscured epaulets. We also saw many birds flying over, including seven
EASTERN BLUEBIRDS, three somewhat late TREE SWALLOWS, two PILEATED
WOODPECKERS, and probably two near-adult BALD EAGLES (one sighting to our
south, one later coming in from the north).



Toward the end of Saturday’s outing, we decided to cross over to the
Liddell Lab pond area.  Here we had a couple of fine capstones to the
morning – a BLUE-HEADED VIREO foraging in the trees near the lab, and a
presumed female COOPER’S HAWK heading south.



As we gathered on Sunday, it was still below 40 degrees with a pall of fog
over the plots.  Then just as we started out, the sun rose brilliantly over
the trees, the mist dissipated, and many birds woke up and got busy.



We started over at the Liddell Lab side this time.  Right on the edge of
the roadside copse, we saw perhaps the most intriguing bird of the weekend
-- a sparrow that appeared to have fine frontal streaks, buffy breastband,
and finely patterned mantle like a Lincoln’s Sparrow, but a stout grayish
bill with a rounded culmen and overall large size and long proportions of a
Song Sparrow.  Even with extended views, a good photograph by Raaj Bora,
and some helpful input from others, I’m still not sure what that bird was.



We advanced to the weedy pond edge, where we had some excellent sunlit
views of two WHITE-CROWNED SPARROWS and many SONG SPARROWS, plus a male
BELTED KINGFISHER that flew in with a rattle from the east and perched on a
branch hanging over the pond.



Then we crossed back to the community plots.  We found about the same mix
of sparrows as on Saturday, this time with much greater ease and
opportunity for leisurely comparison of field marks and sounds.  Our
airborne highlights were a bit different but arguably equally stirring – at
least 80 TURKEY VULTURES rising at once on the warming air to our south,
and the weekend’s only RED-TAILED HAWK, chased by two crows to the lone
tree across the road.



Leading up to both field trips, I pondered whether to take people over to
the Bluegrass Lane area, where a cattail patch in the middle of the
switchgrass field has perennially hosted sojourning Nelson’s Sparrows in
early October, including this year.  In past years, I have indeed added a
Nelson’s quest to these sparrow walks.  But alas, those repeated efforts
have led to just one fleeting sighting for one person.



I decided this year to be very direct about the low prospects for success
(and possible higher success for solo searchers or smaller groups).  On
Saturday, maybe deterred also by the light rain, we collectively decided
not to try.  But on Sunday, we had a quorum and headed over.  This time, a
few participants (not I) had a brief but definitive NELSON’S SPARROW
sighting -- and Raaj even got a good photo!



Especially at sites like the garden plots and Bluegrass Lane field, with
their narrow corridors and tall plants, birding in big groups can be a bit
of a challenge.  But not for the Cayuga Bird Club!  All weekend long,
people helped each other get onto birds, while also remaining cheerful and
optimistic even when missing birds that others saw.  I’m especially
grateful to Diane Morton and Ken Kemphues, Bob McGuire, Dave Nutter, Jody
Enck, Ann Mitchell, Ken Haas, and probably some others that I am forgetting
at the moment -- the veteran trip leaders who shared information, lugged
scopes, kept better lists than I did, and generally helped make the trips
more orderly, enlightening and fun for me and everyone.



Thanks to all for a great weekend!



Mark Chao

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[cayugabirds-l] NE Ithaca screech-owls, Mon 2/24/2020

[Mark Chao]

tl;dr version:

Two adult EASTERN SCREECH-OWLS seen together yesterday, but not today.
Also screech-owl sightings in two other spots nearby (including our yard)
since February 16.  https://photos.app.goo.gl/8scdkd6ARhFtKuxR8



Full story:

It’s late Monday afternoon in northeast Ithaca.  Together on our first
neighborhood walk since early January, Miyoko Chu and I casually check tree
cavities for screech-owls as usual.  We find none at first.  Then we
approach a dead tree.  I tell Miyoko how I’ve eyed this tree for years,
wishfully expecting to see someone in any of its several owl-sized holes,
but never cashing in.  We pause and look.  We each sense that the other
sees something, and then detect something ourselves, and exclaim pretty
much in the same moment… “And THERE IT IS!!” – a gray-morph screech-owl.



Miyoko remarks about the owl’s chosen hole.  I reply that I wouldn’t even
really call it a hole, but rather just the broken top of the snag.  Miyoko
gently insists that the owl is in a hole.  We both drop the subject and
marvel at the sight together.



I take out my phone for a photo.  As I compose the view, I finally see that
Miyoko and I are both right – there are *two* owls together in this dead
tree, one nestled in the broken-off top and one poking out from a cavity
about five feet below.  This is the first time either of us has ever seen
two adult screech-owls out in the open together.  It’s also the first time
that we’ve ever found any screech-owl in a natural cavity by sight only --
no nest box, no mobbing songbirds, no previous listserv posts.   Astounded
by such shared good luck, and bonded by the owls bonded to each other, we
agree that it’s one of the great moments of our birding life, or indeed our
whole life together.



And this is only the latest of several screech-owl encounters we’ve had in
our neighborhood since last week.



On the evening of February 16, we saw an Eastern Screech-Owl in a nest box
in our yard -- our first owl here since 2016, and the first one we’ve ever
seen in this particular box.  Before then, over more than a decade of
winters and early springs, various screech-owls had roosted in a drafty old
nest box on a willow tree in the yard.  That tree finally fell down last
year, and we retired the old box for good.



On that same February 16 evening, I went out to Siena Drive and saw a
second Eastern Screech-Owl in another natural cavity.



I had found an owl here in late 2016, just about when we ceased to see owls
in our yard.  I posted to the list back then, and many people saw the owl
during that winter and part of the next, up to December 2017.  At that
time, I witnessed a group of birders whom I know from eBird whistling at
the owl, inducing it to respond repeatedly.  I understand that they did the
same thing the following night.  These birders were rather young and I know
that they surely had no ill intent.  But after that second night, I didn’t
see the owl again all that winter, nor the following winter of 2018-19,
despite repeated visits during prime evening hours.



I finally found an owl at this spot again nearly two years later, in early
December 2019.  It’s been in view most nights I’ve looked since then, up
through last week, including Sunday, February 23.  But I decided not to
post about it anywhere because of that December 2017 incident, plus a
couple of cases of trespassing photographers that I also found out about.



Anyway, I checked both our nest box and the Siena Drive location last night
too, but found no owls there.  So it seems quite plausible that the two
owls that Miyoko and I found together are the same ones that roosted
separately in our yard and on Siena Drive last week.  (All owls I’ve seen
have been gray-brown.  Photos don’t really show enough to definitively
identify individuals.  See album link above.)



I also checked last night’s two-owl site again on Tuesday morning, but
found no birds.  Maybe they’re hunkered down somewhere else, out of the
light rain.  I’ll post again if there is any more news, and if the owl(s)
seem viewable by the whole community without too much disruption of the
owls’ breeding efforts and the privacy of human neighbors.



Mark Chao

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RE: [cayugabirds-l] Ithaca airport Meadowlarks / with a warning

[Mark Chao]

Sheriff's deputies have long been vigilant about birders and especially
photographers around the airport fence, in both tense and more relaxed
times.

Twice over the past 20 years, starting at least a few years after 9/11,
sheriff's deputies have pulled me over along Snyder Road, asked me what I
was doing, and then cheerfully sent me on my way.  Once the deputy explained
that officers were watching me from the sheriff's building along Warren
Road, then decided to send someone out when they saw me taking photos [of
Vesper Sparrows].  I recall that Deputy Anderson specifically told me to
pull my car all the way off the road when stopping to bird.  I don't
remember specific instructions about not taking photos.

Still, since then I have made a point of not taking photos through the
fence.  I figure that if I ever find a Snowy Owl or something like that, I
can always call the sheriff's office to explain first.  Also, I do make a
point of calling ahead if I lead groups along Snyder Road, as I sometimes do
for the CBC on January 1.

Anyway, after that first incident, I sent a letter with my photos to Deputy
Anderson, explaining why the Vesper Sparrows, as well as woodcocks and other
airport birds, are special.  He was glad to receive the letter.

So I have always thought that the sheriff's office is striking a reasonable
balance in ensuring airport security while still being friendly and
respectful to me as a birder.  I do see that six squad cars is a whole
different level of response.  Maybe it is somehow because the officers are
more wary in these troubled times.  But given my past experience, I would
guess that it's more likely a case of Magnus having companions, and then
maybe a backup request getting out to a few on-duty officers at once.

Mark Chao




-Original Message-
From: bounce-124477674-3493...@list.cornell.edu
 On Behalf Of Kenneth V.
Rosenberg
Sent: Thursday, March 19, 2020 7:13 PM
To: Marie P. Read ; Magnus Fiskesjo
; CAYUGABIRDS-L

Subject: Re: [cayugabirds-l] Ithaca airport Meadowlarks / with a warning

They did a similar thing right after 9/11, which might have been slightly
more justified than today. Many birding locations, such as sewage ponds in
Arizona, have remained closed to birders indefinitely -- for no good reason.
The "authorities" look for any chance to exude their paranoia and infringe
more and more on public rights. What possibly could photographing birds near
a municipal airport have to do with slowing a pandemic. I think we should
resist.

Ken Rosenberg
Applied Conservation Scientist
Cornell Lab of Ornithology
American Bird Conservancy
Fellow, Atkinson Center for a Sustainable Future k...@cornell.edu
Wk: 607-254-2412
Cell: 607-342-4594


On 3/19/20, 5:40 PM, "bounce-124477516-3493...@list.cornell.edu on behalf
of Marie P. Read"  wrote:

WH! Things are getting seriously weird.

Marie

Marie Read Wildlife Photography
452 Ringwood Road
Freeville NY  13068 USA

e-mail   m...@cornell.edu
Website: http://www.marieread.com

AUTHOR of:
Mastering Bird Photography: The Art, Craft, and Technique of
Photographing Birds and Their Behavior

https://rockynook.com/shop/photography/mastering-bird-photography/?REF=101/

From: bounce-124477508-5851...@list.cornell.edu
[bounce-124477508-5851...@list.cornell.edu] on behalf of Magnus Fiskesjo
[magnus.fiske...@cornell.edu]
Sent: Thursday, March 19, 2020 5:36 PM
To: CAYUGABIRDS-L
Subject: [cayugabirds-l] Ithaca airport Meadowlarks / with a warning

This afternoon, Thursday 19 March 2020, traveling along Snyder Rd. at
Ithaca Tompkins Airport to listen for meadowlarks singing.

We did hear two different singing birds, and saw one singing from the
airport fence.

Then, the airport police caught up with us and wanted to know what we
were doing! I told them we were out to listen for the beautiful song of the
meadowlark. In the end, 6 police cars showed up (airport and county
sheriff), writing down all my details and asking the same questions.

What a story.

In the end, the airport police said, if you give them a call beforehand
and tell them you are coming, you are allowed to birdwatch.

But NO cameras!

I suggested to them to add that, to the NO TRESPASSING signs.

--sincerely,

Magnus Fiskesjö, PhD

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[cayugabirds-l] Palmer Woods, Sat 4/11

[Mark Chao]

On Saturday at Palmer Woods (north of A Lot on Cornell's campus), Miyoko
Chu, our son Tilden Chao, and I found some recent arrivals, including a
Blue-headed Vireo (seen also with Brad Walker), a Hermit Thrush (placidly
sharing a fruiting shrub with an unusually beautiful female Eastern
Bluebird), and several of each kinglet species.

Mark Chao

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[cayugabirds-l] NE Ithaca highlights since Sat 4/11

[Mark Chao]

I've had several spirit-lifting bird moments in northeast Ithaca over the
past few days.

* HERMIT THRUSH along St. Catherine's Circle on Saturday at 7 PM.  The
very occurrence of this species in our suburban neighborhood seemed
unusual enough.  This bird delivered further surprise and entertainment
with its vocalizations (a repeated, exquisitely gentle, high-pitched
*zn*, quite unlike the "chuck" or "zhraaay" call notes I've heard from
other local Hermit Thrushes) and behavior (standing with a robin right in
the middle of the road and on an open lawn, as if pretending to be another
robin or maybe an honorary pipit, plus some more typical picturesque
perching low in the shadows).

* FOX SPARROW heard singing and RUSTY BLACKBIRDS heard and seen in the
treetops at Palmer Woods on Sunday morning.

* EASTERN SCREECH-OWL continuing along Siena Drive, unexpectedly out of
view on Saturday evening and maybe equally unexpectedly in view on both
Sunday morning and Monday early afternoon.  Today the owl was sleeping
with its chin down on its chest, face and ear tufts parallel to the
ground.  (I've had no screech-owl sightings anywhere else in our
neighborhood for more than a month, and no more sightings of two together
since the encounter I posted about in February.)

* Two sightings of an adult BROAD-WINGED HAWK migrating over St. Catherine
of Siena Church at about 1 PM on Monday.

* A pair of MERLINS has been conspicuous and very vocal around our
neighborhood for the past week, ranging over several blocks, but I don't
know where they are nesting.

Mark Chao

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[cayugabirds-l] Sapsucker Woods, Tues 4/14

[Mark Chao]

I saw a BLUE-GRAY GNATCATCHER in the Fuller Wetlands in Sapsucker Woods a
little past midday on Tuesday.  I also saw a COMMON RAVEN flying by,
eastbound.  I looked for Vesper Sparrows around the far parking lot and
roadsides, but I didn’t find any.



(Over the past couple of weeks, foot traffic around Sapsucker Woods has
been much heavier than usual, especially with a lot more joggers and
families enjoying the trails.  It’s not easy to completely avoid
overlapping airspaces unless one stays along the road and parking lots.)



Mark

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[cayugabirds-l] Finger Lakes Land Trust Spring Bird Quest update

[Mark Chao]

Every Memorial Day weekend since 2006, I’ve led the Finger Lakes Land Trust
Spring Bird Quest (SBQ) to draw attention to the Land Trust’s role in
protecting vital habitat for the birds we love.  Over the years, hundreds
of birders have joined me on dozens of walks, raising tens of thousands of
dollars to support the Land Trust’s work.



Regrettably, the pandemic will make it impossible to hold our usual SBQ
group walks this year.  Still, I will try to go out myself and with my
family throughout the month, including Memorial Day weekend.  I hope all of
you will be able to get out on your own too, and to share your reports here
(or directly with me if you are too shy to share with the whole list).



Of course the Land Trust and I understand that we are all facing profound
new challenges in meeting the needs of our families and community in these
deeply troubled times.  Still, as I carry out my modified SBQ efforts, I
will still welcome pledges and direct donations in support of the SBQ.
Feel free to reply to me if you would like to make a pledge per bird
species I find this month on Land Trust preserves, or visit the Land
Trust’s website to donate any specific amount:  https://www.fllt.org/donate/.




Thank you very much for your consideration.  I am deeply grateful to so
many of you for your loyal support of me and the Land Trust over the years,
and also for your excellent company during our walks.  This year, even as
we keep our physical distance, I hope we can still enjoy and share the
birds and these wonderful preserves with each other.  And I hope you will
join me in remembering that the birds still depend on protected land, which
in turn depends on the Land Trust, which in turn depends on us.



With my thanks and best wishes to all,

Mark Chao







PS.  In a related development, next Saturday, May 9 is Big Day for Team
Sapsucker of the Cornell Lab of Ornithology.  Starting at midnight on the
Big Day, the team finds as many bird species as possible in 24 hours to
raise funds in support of the Lab. This year, Team Sapsucker was planning
to split up across Nebraska and Argentina to highlight grassland bird
conservation. But because of the pandemic, Team Sapsucker decided to bring
Big Day home to the Finger Lakes.  The team will be focusing heavily on
Land Trust preserves.  Look to eBird next week to see what Team Sapsucker
finds.  (Already eBird is far busier than I’ve ever seen it in Tompkins
County, with lots of checklists and great birds at Land Trust properties.)



eBird recent visits to Tompkins County:
https://ebird.org/region/US-NY-109/activity?yr=all&m=

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[cayugabirds-l] Goetchius Wetland Preserve (FLLT), Tues 5/5

[Mark Chao]

On Tuesday morning, I visited the Finger Lakes Land Trust’s Goetchius
Wetland Preserve.  I found a satisfying subset of the species that others
found this past weekend (no Sedge Wren), plus one unexpected new visitor.
Here are some highlights.



* PEREGRINE FALCON overhead, speeding northbound into the wind.  An
exciting surprise, and maybe unprecedented for the Spring Bird Quest!   My
brief view and one bad photo do not show dangling jesses, but the bird’s
feet appeared to be balled up on something.  If anyone was taking a captive
falcon out for sport around Slaterville Springs this morning, would you
please let me know?



* VIRGINIA RAIL grunting spontaneously in the middle of the southernmost
cattail patch accessible by foot from the parking area.  (Others found up
to seven Virginia Rails, three American Bitterns, and a Sora here on
Saturday and Sunday.)



* Two WILSON’S SNIPE issuing rich chirps at rest from the cattails, then
rising up and wheeling spectacularly together in the blue sky



* SOLITARY SANDPIPER in the original southern portion of the preserve, in a
close mud patch surrounded mostly by open water



* BROWN THRASHER teed up and singing a loud, varied, and wonderfully
musical song in a hedgerow in the newest part of the preserve (acquired in
January 2019) on the east side of Flatiron Road, with EASTERN BLUEBIRD,
YELLOW WARBLER, and PURPLE FINCH singing nearby



* BOBOLINK, EASTERN MEADOWLARK, SAVANNAH SPARROW, and FIELD SPARROW all
singing (though not often, except the Field Sparrows) in the northern
section



The Land Trust has painstakingly pieced the preserve together over the
years.  It made the first two acquisitions in 1995, a total of 36 acres.
Since then, via three more acquisitions, the Land Trust has acquired the
wetlands and open fields to the north (2007 and 2011) and the new wet
meadows and hedgerows to the east (January 2019).  Two more pending
acquisitions will bring the preserve to more than triple its original size!



Mark Chao



PS.  The gray-morph EASTERN SCREECH-OWL has been regularly present in its
cavity along Siena Drive in northeast Ithaca, including yesterday and today.

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[cayugabirds-l] Logan Hill and Campbell Meadows (FLLT SBQ), May 9-10

[Mark Chao]

I had two excellent family outings to Finger Lakes Land Trust preserves
this past weekend -- one to the Logan Hill Preserve in Candor, and one to
Campbell Meadows in Dryden (actually the Town’s property, subject to a
simple covenant with the Land Trust).



Despite challenging weather, especially on Saturday, the birding was quite
good!  We continued to rack up species steadily for my month’s Spring Bird
Quest tally.  We also had more than our share of close, high-quality
encounters and lucky surprises (including a nest-building Bald Eagle and a
Yellow Warbler looking and acting like an American Dipper in an Andy Warhol
painting).  You can find expanded accounts and photos here:



https://www.fllt.org/spring-bird-quest-updates/



Thank you very much to everyone who has been making donations
<https://www.fllt.org/donate/> and pledges in support of the SBQ.  Your
support keeps me inspired and keeps the Land Trust hard at work protecting
and maintaining these and other wonderful habitats throughout our region.



Finally, I want to share how impressed I am at how birders worldwide and
especially here in Cayugabirds-Land showed up for the Global Big Day on May
9.  Wow, there were a lot of checklists (for the first time, more than
100,000 worldwide – hooray!) and a lot of great birds in them -- including
amazing coverage of Land Trust preserves by Team Sapsucker and others
despite the day-long cold winds and occasional snow!



(If you would like to share any moments and/or photos from your own visits
to Land Trust preserves this month, please feel free to get in touch!)



Mark Chao

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RE: [cayugabirds-l] Magical evening at Monkey Run

[Mark Chao]

Hi Sandra,



I’m so glad to read about your evening!  You had so many high-quality
moments with exciting birds!  (I was also glad to read about that
unexpected Green Heron moment you had last week!)



I hope all is well with you.  My family and I are staying productive and
happy together and well so far, with some time for birding too, as you may
have read here on the listserv.  I will miss seeing you on the Spring Bird
Quest, but I will look forward to your further reports!

I still think of that birding walk that you and my son Tilden and I had at
Hammond Hill, especially your extremely helpful and memorable advice about
various paths one can take with a law degree.  Tilden remains very
interested in policy, especially on energy and the environment.  He seems
to be settling on economics as his major.  He also has a climate-change
policy internship this summer with an NGO in California.  Beyond that, he
hasn’t yet decided on his academic and professional directions – but he
still has lots of time to decide and even to change his mind completely
(just finished first year as an undergrad).



Stay well and stay in touch,

Mark













*From:* bounce-124630240-3493...@list.cornell.edu [mailto:
bounce-124630240-3493...@list.cornell.edu] *On Behalf Of *Sandra Lynn
Babcock
*Sent:* Wednesday, May 13, 2020 10:34 PM
*To:* CAYUGABIRDS-L 
*Subject:* [cayugabirds-l] Magical evening at Monkey Run



I birdied Monkey Run tonight, May 13, from about 6-7:15 p.m.  It was a
lovely evening, and the trails were full of birds.  The highlights were a
veery pair and a flock of warblers, including yellow, yellow-rumped, and a
very cooperative black-throated blue (male). Great crested flycatcher,
sapsuckers galore, a pair of orioles, a chattering belted kingfisher, and
the usual repertoire of woodpeckers, catbirds, and red-winged blackbirds
rounded out the evening.  And a chorus of spring peepers to escort me back
to my car.



Sandra Babcock

slb...@cornell.edu



Sent from my Ipad

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[cayugabirds-l] Genung Nature Preserve, Tues/Wed May 12-13

[Mark Chao]

Someone just informed me about my reply-all gaffe just now. I apologize to
Sandra, Tilden, and everyone for my error (still not sure how that
happened).

Anyway, back on topic, I'll note that on Tuesday and Wednesday mornings at
the Genung Nature Preserve in Freeville, I had experiences similar to what
Dave and Suan posted -- a better-than-expected variety of songbirds finding
food and thermal gains on the sunny banks of Fall Creek, despite the
unseasonable cold. I found 12 species of warblers, almost all male and
often quite cooperative -- Wilson's, Chestnut-sided, Black-throated Blue,
Palm, Pine, Yellow, Yellow-rumped, Blue-winged, American Redstart,
Ovenbird, Northern Waterthrush, and Common Yellowthroat -- plus Blue-headed
Vireos, Veeries, a Spotted Sandpiper, and others.

Mark Chao

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[cayugabirds-l] Around Tompkins County (FLLT SBQ update), May 15-17

[Mark Chao]

I got out to five Finger Lakes Land Trust sites in Tompkins County from
Friday through Sunday, mostly with Miyoko Chu.



Highlights and selected photos are here at the Spring Bird Quest 2020
page:  https://www.fllt.org/spring-bird-quest-updates/ (updated through
Saturday).  My SBQ species tally is now somewhere around 105 species, with
more than a few expected species still left to find.



Mark Chao

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[cayugabirds-l] Lick Brook FLLT sites, Tues 5/19 (stream-wading Swainson's Thrush, fledgling ravens, etc.)

[Mark Chao]

Yesterday I visited two Finger Lakes Land Trust sites near the Danby/Ithaca
town line.  The non-warbler passerines took an unexpected turn on center
stage, delivering charismatic, genre-bending, intimate, and utterly
endearing performances for me, a rapt human audience of one.



* WINTER WREN singing his incomparably energetic and complex song from a
surprisingly high perch right at the entrance to the Kingsbury Woods
Conservation Area.  This was a coveted first for this year’s Spring Bird
Quest.



* Downstream from the Kingsbury Woods parking area, a SWAINSON’S THRUSH
making like a Louisiana Waterthrush or an American Dipper, standing out on
rocks in the middle of Lick Brook and even wading out into the swift
current, over at least 30 minutes.  Though I know that Swainson’s Thrushes
out west favor riparian habitats, I have never seen Swainson’s Thrushes
doing anything quite like this before.  Nor have I been able to find any
literature on such behavior, even in the Birds of the World species account.



(I saw four other Swainson’s Thrushes yesterday, all behaving typically
near the ground in the shadowy forest – three in Kingsbury Woods, and one
dazzlingly close at the Sweedler Preserve at Lick Brook.)



* Fledgling COMMON RAVENS along the Lick Brook gorge at the Sweedler
Preserve.  I saw two hulking adolescents together right next to the trail,
looking almost like adults but with little remaining patches of gray natal
down and vestiges of yellow baby-gapes still at the corners of their
mouths.  I heard and saw them begging, and heard at least one more raven
nearby (probably more), but I didn’t witness any feeding.



Photos of all these birds, plus other recent highlights, are here at the
Spring Bird Quest update page:
https://www.fllt.org/spring-bird-quest-updates/. Thank you again to all of
you who have been encouraging me and especially donating to the Land Trust
this month, on your own or in connection with this SBQ.



Mark Chao

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[cayugabirds-l] Genung, McIlroy, and Logan Hill, Sat/Sun May 23-24

[Mark Chao]

So far this weekend, my family and I have continued to get more than our
share of birding joys and surprises on Finger Lakes Land Trust preserves.

On Saturday, Miyoko and I went to the Dorothy McIlroy Bird Sanctuary in
Summerhill, stopping briefly on the way at the Genung Nature Preserve.

Our first highlight was a BLUE-WINGED WARBLER singing a four-note song like
a Golden-winged Warbler, then eventually offering dazzling sight
confirmation right along the road by the Genung Nature Preserve parking
lot.

Upon our arrival at the southern border of the McIlroy Bird Sanctuary along
Peth Road, Miyoko spotted a big brown lump in the first green field.
Though it was less than ten meters away, completely out in the open, we
couldn’t figure out what it was.  A log?  A snapping turtle?  Then, the
shape burst up from the ground and with heavy flaps revealed itself as a
female WILD TURKEY (a first for my month-long Spring Bird Quest species
tally).  We think that she might have been flattening herself down over a
nest site, though we could not figure out why she would pick somewhere so
open.  Nor could we find any eggs or chicks in a quick scan.

Saturday’s other bird drama also unfolded along Peth Road, where we found
two SAVANNAH SPARROWS countersinging for several minutes in the same tree –
one sounding normal, and the other omitting the usual sad-sounding note
after his trill, rather like a Grasshopper Sparrow, but also eventually
confirmed by sight.   I kept expecting one sparrow to chase the other off,
but it seemed that they dueled to détente – each retreating to his own
field, one to the north and one to the south, with the tree itself serving
as a DMZ between them.

Then on Sunday, our son Tilden Chao joined us on a hike at the Logan Hill
Nature Preserve in Candor.  We found the expected great variety of breeding
songbirds, including fine looks at HOODED WARBLER, Chestnut-sided Warbler,
American Redstart, Blue-headed Vireo, Indigo Bunting, and others), plus a
couple of passage migrants (SWAINSON’S THRUSH and TENNESSEE WARBLER).

But the surpassing thrills of the morning came out of the blue from five
CHIMNEY SWIFTS, which first zoomed and banked in close formation and
exhilarating synchrony over the fields and across the sky, like an avian
version of the Blue Angels, then descended to the pond to drink on the
wing, skimming the surface with their little bills, all while hardly losing
any airspeed.  For a family used to watching Chimney Swifts over downtown
Ithaca but not elsewhere, it was a revelation to witness this species’
wildness up close, and to its relationship with habitat beyond our world of
metal, concrete, and glass.

Mark Chao

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[cayugabirds-l] Invitation to virtual Finger Lakes Land Trust Spring Bird Quest celebration -- Tuesday, June 2

[Mark Chao]

The Finger Lakes Land Trust has invited me to deliver a Zoom presentation
next week on this year’s Spring Bird Quest.  I’ll present photos and
anecdotes from my many visits to Land Trust preserves during May, focusing
on the bird moments that were most curious, amazing, and enlightening for
me (and hopefully you too).



So if you have enjoyed our SBQ field trips in the past, or if you miss
community bird events, or if you need a break from Netflix, or if you just
want to show up to support the Land Trust, we warmly welcome you!



The event will take place on Tuesday, June 2 at 7:30 PM.  Pre-registration
is required.  Here is a link to more details:
https://www.fllt.org/events/photos-and-findings-from-spring-bird-quest-hosted-online/.
And here is the link to register on Zoom if you want to skip straight to
that step:
https://us02web.zoom.us/meeting/register/tZUldeusrTMiH9L0NLfqB_vVffg00SM6hwha



Of course, I get that dozens and dozens of you have also been visiting Land
Trust preserves in May, each with your own highlights.  If you have any
short notes or interesting photos, please feel free to send them to me.
I’ll see what I get and determine the best way to share your highlights
too, while still keeping the duration to about an hour.



Meanwhile, Land Trust staff have continued to help me to refresh the Spring
Bird Quest update page.  See https://www.fllt.org/spring-bird-quest-updates/
for some notes and new photos, through Sunday.



I also had two brief outings to Land Trust preserves on Memorial Day.  In
the late morning, Miyoko and I visited the Salmon Creek Bird Sanctuary in
Lansing, where we found the expected excellent variety of forest-edge and
forest-interior birds, including HOODED, BLUE-WINGED, and CHESTNUT-SIDED
WARBLERS, plus several YELLOW-THROATED VIREOS and many ROSE-BREASTED
GROSBEAKS and VEERIES.



Shortly after sunset, I decided to go to the Goetchius Wetland Preserve in
Caroline.  I found neither of those taxa, but I had a most excellent
consolation prize – at least five displaying AMERICAN WOODCOCKS.  I was a
bit surprised to find this species still courting with undiminished gusto,
in such good numbers. I'm aware of the potential for confusion with
Wilson’s Snipe or calling Common Nighthawks (actually my main target
species for the visit). But I got sight confirmation of one woodcock, which
I spotted flying right in front of me and followed as it rose on rapidly
whirring wings in its wheeling display flight.  This and all the other
woodcocks sounded typical -- nasal "peent" (less razzy than nighthawks),
twittering wings, and chirping descent.



(And speaking of surprising lingering nocturnal birds, the gray-morph
EASTERN SCREECH-OWL along Siena Drive has been continuing to roost in its
same cavity, including all three days of the long weekend.  This is the
latest in spring that I’ve ever seen a screech-owl lingering at a winter
roost site.  Still no obvious signs of a nest here, though.)



Mark Chao

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[cayugabirds-l] Spring Bird Quest presentation reminder -- Tuesday, June 2, 7:30 PM

[Mark Chao]

Just a reminder that tomorrow evening (Tuesday, June 2 at 7:30 PM), I’ll be
giving a Zoom presentation on some of the wonders and curiosities of this
year’s Spring Bird Quest.  Already response has been great, but there is
plenty of room in our virtual meeting hall for more!



The event is free of charge but re-registration is required. Here are the
key links again.



Event page:
https://www.fllt.org/events/photos-and-findings-from-spring-bird-quest-hosted-online/



Zoom registration link:
https://us02web.zoom.us/meeting/register/tZUldeusrTMiH9L0NLfqB_vVffg00SM6hwha



This weekend, I paid two more visits to the Goetchius Wetland Preserve in
Caroline, to close out my month-long SBQ efforts to find and document birds
on Finger Lakes Land Trust properties.  I didn’t find anything unexpected,
though I picked up a calling BLACK-BILLED CUCKOO and eked out an EASTERN
KINGBIRD, which I somehow missed on all my other Land Trust outings in May.



In the end, my month-long Spring Bird Quest species tally reached 118,
accumulated on 22 visits to 11 preserves.



Campbell Meadow, Dryden:  3 visits, 46 species

Etna Nature Preserve, Etna:  1 visit, 29 species

Genung Nature Preserve, Freevillle:  5 visits, 70 species

Goetchius Wetland Preserve, Caroline:  5 visits, 66 species

Kingsbury Woods Conservation Area, Danby:  1 visit, 35 species

Lindsay-Parsons Biodiversity Preserve, West Danby:  1 visit, 49 species

Logan Hill Nature Preserve, Candor:  2 visits, 65 species

Dorothy McIlroy Bird Sanctuary, Summerhill:  1 visit, 41 species

Roy H. Park Preserve, Dryden:  1 visit, 41 species

Salmon Creek Bird Sanctuary, Lansing:  1 visit, 37 species

Sweedler Preserve at Lick Brook, Ithaca:  1 visit, 19 species



Donations are still coming in (and are most welcome at
https://www.fllt.org/donate/), but already I think we can project a gift
total to the Land Trust of at least $4K, well within the usual SBQ range.
Many thanks to all who have given, who are considering a SBQ donation now,
and who have been supporting the Land Trust already.



I look forward to seeing many of you tomorrow night!



Mark Chao

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[cayugabirds-l] SBQ talk clarification -- pre-registration required, re-registration not

[Mark Chao]

I mistakenly typed "re-registration" instead of "pre-registration" in my
message below. If you registered before, you are set -- no need to do so
again. Sorry for the confusion.

Mark Chao

On Mon, Jun 1, 2020, 12:45 PM Mark Chao  wrote:

> Just a reminder that tomorrow evening (Tuesday, June 2 at 7:30 PM), I’ll
> be giving a Zoom presentation on some of the wonders and curiosities of
> this year’s Spring Bird Quest.  Already response has been great, but there
> is plenty of room in our virtual meeting hall for more!
>
>
>
> The event is free of charge but re-registration is required. Here are the
> key links again.
>
>
>
> Event page:
> https://www.fllt.org/events/photos-and-findings-from-spring-bird-quest-hosted-online/
>
>
>
> Zoom registration link:
> https://us02web.zoom.us/meeting/register/tZUldeusrTMiH9L0NLfqB_vVffg00SM6hwha
>
>
>
> This weekend, I paid two more visits to the Goetchius Wetland Preserve in
> Caroline, to close out my month-long SBQ efforts to find and document birds
> on Finger Lakes Land Trust properties.  I didn’t find anything unexpected,
> though I picked up a calling BLACK-BILLED CUCKOO and eked out an EASTERN
> KINGBIRD, which I somehow missed on all my other Land Trust outings in May.
>
>
>
> In the end, my month-long Spring Bird Quest species tally reached 118,
> accumulated on 22 visits to 11 preserves.
>
>
>
> Campbell Meadow, Dryden:  3 visits, 46 species
>
> Etna Nature Preserve, Etna:  1 visit, 29 species
>
> Genung Nature Preserve, Freevillle:  5 visits, 70 species
>
> Goetchius Wetland Preserve, Caroline:  5 visits, 66 species
>
> Kingsbury Woods Conservation Area, Danby:  1 visit, 35 species
>
> Lindsay-Parsons Biodiversity Preserve, West Danby:  1 visit, 49 species
>
> Logan Hill Nature Preserve, Candor:  2 visits, 65 species
>
> Dorothy McIlroy Bird Sanctuary, Summerhill:  1 visit, 41 species
>
> Roy H. Park Preserve, Dryden:  1 visit, 41 species
>
> Salmon Creek Bird Sanctuary, Lansing:  1 visit, 37 species
>
> Sweedler Preserve at Lick Brook, Ithaca:  1 visit, 19 species
>
>
>
> Donations are still coming in (and are most welcome at
> https://www.fllt.org/donate/), but already I think we can project a gift
> total to the Land Trust of at least $4K, well within the usual SBQ range.
> Many thanks to all who have given, who are considering a SBQ donation now,
> and who have been supporting the Land Trust already.
>
>
>
> I look forward to seeing many of you tomorrow night!
>
>
>
> Mark Chao
>
>
>
>
>

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[cayugabirds-l] Summerland Farm Preserve (FLLT) in Caroline, Sat/Sun June 13-14

[Mark Chao]

This weekend, Miyoko, Tilden, and I paid our first visit to the Finger
Lakes Land Trust’s Summerland Farm Preserve in Caroline.



Dr. Anne Boyer donated these 140 acres to the Land Trust in the summer of
2019.  The preserve comprises a vast meadow of tall grass and wildflowers,
as well as deep deciduous forest.  It connects neatly into the Emerald
Necklace greenbelt and also protects a key stretch of the Finger Lakes
Trail between Potato Hill State Forest and Robinson Hollow State Forest.
The initial stretch of trail along the meadow offers tremendous long views
on a clear day.



On Saturday, I thought I heard GRASSHOPPER SPARROWS singing in the grass (a
few ticking notes, then a rough, unmusical trill, without the sad-sounding
second ending note typical of Savannah Sparrow).  I heard no typical
Savannah Sparrow songs.  On Sunday I returned alone in mid-morning, but
heard only one distant candidate for Grasshopper Sparrow, plus one
normal-sounding Savannah Sparrow.  I also saw two Savannah Sparrows
carrying food right next to the Finger Lakes Trail.



But I still think that it’s worth listening from the trail for Grasshopper
Sparrows.  I welcome other people’s reports, especially if you can get
visual confirmation.



In any case, this is also one of the best places I’ve ever seen in this
area for watching BOBOLINKS.  On Saturday, we saw at least six of them,
both males and females, and I think that there are many more breeding pairs
in the other grassy parts of the preserve not visible from the trail.   We
watched males displaying, occasionally chasing each other around, and
accompanying mates.  At one point we also saw four males roosting
peacefully for a couple of minutes in one flowering bush.  (Close
examination of photos reveals that at least one male is already starting to
molt into his brown winter plumage.)  I’m looking forward to returning
later in the season and counting the Bobolinks, including this year’s new
generation!



In the woods, we found a fine variety of breeding birds, including a few
singing BLACK-THROATED BLUE WARBLERS, a YELLOW-BILLED CUCKOO, a COMMON
RAVEN, and what I think was a parent and fledgling BROAD-WINGED HAWK
calling to each other.  I didn’t go into the woods on Sunday.



There is no parking lot at this preserve.  The Land Trust recommends trying
to park along the southern road shoulder near where the Finger Lakes Trail
crosses Blackman Hill Road.  On the north side of the road, there’s a
gravel area that could hold multiple cars, but as I understand it, this
seems to be a turnaround for service vehicles and should not be blocked.



(Note also that the Finger Lakes Trail was closed in the preserve during
May, because of hunting season.  That’s why I didn’t visit during this
year’s Spring Bird Quest.)



https://www.fllt.org/preserves/summerland-farm-preserve/



Mark Chao

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[cayugabirds-l] SFO local trip, Sat 4/11

[Mark Chao]

About a dozen participants joined me for this morning's local walk for
Cornell's Spring Field Ornithology course.   We found a lot of birds (50
species).  A few times, it was almost too much fun to process at once.  Here
are some highlights.

 

Sapsucker Woods (7 AM-10 AM)

* Lingering AMERICAN TREE SPARROWS in the feeder garden, plus at least two
singing their high, clear songs across Sapsucker Woods Road.  We tried to
enjoy these birds as if we wouldn't get many more chances to see them for a
while.

* An AMERICAN KESTREL attacking a RED-TAILED HAWK by Kip's Barn

* One RUSTY BLACKBIRD seen singing in the low wet brush north of the Lab
building, plus another heard singing near the Sherwood Platform

* Two continuing GREAT EGRETS sporting long nuptial plumes, seen several
times along the western and southern edges of the pond

* A pair of WOOD DUCKS taking flight from high in the trees along the Wilson
Trail South

* About a dozen RING-NECKED DUCKS, plus BUFFLEHEADS, HOODED MERGANSERS, and
a pair of Wood Ducks on the pond

* One pair of CANADA GEESE and one pair of MALLARDS copulating on the water
(or maybe I should say "in" -- the females were pushed completely under the
surface) 

* Two singing PURPLE FINCHES along the Wilson Trail North, with one perching
for long, illustrative scope views

* At least four GOLDEN-CROWNED KINGLETS at the Wilson/West intersection

* One SHARP-SHINNED HAWK migrating north over the woods west of the pond

* A few BROWN CREEPERS, including one very close by along the Podell
Boardwalk

 

Newman Golf Course (10:15-11 AM)

* One adult and two bulky, down-clad GREAT HORNED OWLS on their nest

* A second-year BALD EAGLE lowering its legs like landing gear while
circling above an OSPREY, then descending to the water and pulling out a
huge fish

 

Mark Chao

 



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[cayugabirds-l] Sapsucker Woods, Mon 4/13

[Mark Chao]

I found a singing BLUE-HEADED VIREO and a HERMIT THRUSH by the shelter along
the East Trail in Sapsucker Woods on Monday morning.

 

Mark Chao 



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[cayugabirds-l] 10th annual Finger Lakes Land Trust Spring Bird Quest

[Mark Chao]

Throughout May, I’ll be conducting the 10th annual Spring Bird Quest (SBQ)
on preserves of the Finger Lakes Land Trust throughout our region.  The SBQ
has three purposes:  

 

* To give birders of all skill levels an opportunity to come together and
enjoy birds at some of the finest spots in our area, at the best time of
year

* To spread the word the Land Trust’s role in preserving vital habitat for
the birds we love

* To raise funds to support the Land Trust’s continuing work.

 

In the past, we’ve held the event only on Memorial Day weekend, but this
year, we will have SBQ activities on all five weekends in the month.  There
will be no fewer than eight public walks, including several at beautiful
sites that we Ithaca birders almost never think to visit.  See below for the
schedule.  (Some sites are far from Ithaca.  I can offer rides from
northeast Ithaca for up to three people.  Contact me if you’re interested.)

 

All the walks are free; donations on the spot are most welcome but not at
all required.  Moreover, I’ll be counting bird species found at the
preserves over the month and raising pledge money per species.  Proceeds
from the first nine SBQs have exceeded $35,000.  I have a crazy hope of
raising $10,000 for the 10th SBQ, from at least 100 donors.  In support of
this goal, a supporter of the SBQ and the Land Trust has pledged $10 per
donor up to 100 donors.  Can you help us to achieve these goals?

 

If you’re interested in pledging, please contact me.  You may also donate a
flat amount online at http://www.fllt.org/donate/.  And it would be
fantastic some of you might do your own species count and raise your own
pledges.  Let me know if you’re interested.

 

I look forward to seeing many of you out on the walks next month!

 

Mark Chao

 

 

Saturday, May 2 (Rain date May 3)

8:00 AM

Wesley Hill Nature Preserve 

Come and visit the mature forests of Wesley Hill, our westernmost preserve,
home to Briggs Gully and sweeping views of the hills surrounding Honeoye
Lake’s southern end. Directions: From Honeoye, take Rt. 20A east to East
Lake Road. Follow East Lake Rd. south for a short distance and then turn
left on County Rd. 33. Continue a short distance and turn right on Pinewood
Hill Rd. Follow Pinewood Hill, then Gulick Road south toward Cumming Nature
Center, for a total of 6.4 miles to preserve entrance, on right.

 

(This preserve is about 1 hour and 50 minutes from Ithaca.)

 

Saturday, May 9 (Rain date May 10)

8:00 AM

Bahar Nature Preserve and Carpenter Falls at 8:00 am 

This preserve includes a forested ravine alongside Bear Swamp Creek as well
as 65 feet of Skaneateles lakeshore.  After this walk, head over to the High
Vista Preserve for more birding!  Directions: From Route 38 in Moravia, take
Route 38A north for about 6.9 miles.  Turn right onto Burdock Street, and
continue for one mile after Burdock turns into New Hope Road.  Turn left
onto Rt. 41A north, then right (east) on Appletree Point Rd. and follow for
1.6 miles to parking area, on left.

 

Saturday, May 9 (Rain date May 10)

10:30 AM

High Vista Preserve 

Join us for a walk high above the eastern shore of Skaneateles Lake at this
diverse hillside forest full of songbirds. Directions: From Bahar Nature
Preserve & Carpenter Falls, head southeast on Carver Rd. toward Glen Cove
Rd., then turn left on N. Glen Haven Rd. After 5 miles, turn right onto Glen
Haven Rd./E. Lake Rd., then turn left onto Vincent Hill Rd.  The parking
area will be on the left.

 

>From Rt. 41 south of Skaneateles, turn onto Vincent Hill Road West, just
north of the Cortland/Onondaga County line. After about 1/3 mile, the road
bends to the southwest and there is a small parking area on the right-hand
side.

 

Saturday, May 16

8:00 am

VanRiper Conservation Area and Whitlock Nature Preserve, Romulus

Bird walk led by the Eaton Birding Society 

I’ll plan to join the Eaton Birding Society on this walk through the woods
to the lake shore.  Directions from the South: The preserves are
approximately 23 miles north of Ithaca; 2.6 miles north of County Rt. 138;
and 2 miles north of the Thirsty Owl winery.  The gravel parking area is on
the right side of Rt. 89.  

 

Saturday, May 23

8:00 AM

Dorothy McIlroy Bird Sanctuary, Summerhill

This preserve contains deep hemlock woods, some sunny edges, and a fen.
Directions:  From Main Street in Groton, turn east on Route 222 (E. Cortland
Street).  After 2.2 miles, turn left onto Salt Road.  Turn left onto Salt
Road, then right on Route 90 to Lake Como Rd. Turn left on Lake Como Rd. and
continue for about 2 miles until you come to Fire Lane A. Make a right onto
lane to find the parking area on the right.

 

Sunday, May 24

8:00 AM

Lindsay-Parsons Biodiversity Preserve, West Danby

This preserve, perhaps the Land Trust spot most renowned for birds,
comprises open fields, a large pond, forests, and various edge habitats.
>From Ithaca, take Rt. 13 south t

[cayugabirds-l] Newman Municipal Golf Course owls et al., Wed 4/22

[Mark Chao]

The GREAT HORNED OWL mother and her two chicks have been at their nest on
the Newman Municipal Golf course throughout this week.  On Monday, the
mother perched just off the nest.  On Tuesday, she was about 30 feet away on
a neighboring tree.  Today she was back on the nest with the owlets, maybe
to reduce everyone's exposed surface area in the cold rain.  But I think
that the young owls will step out and fly soon.  Their flight feathers look
ready.

 

I looked for birds on the east side of Sapsucker Woods this morning too.  My
lone exciting find was a female WILD TURKEY in the mossy hemlock stand past
the north end of the Woodleton Boardwalk on the right.  It was the first
turkey I've seen in the sanctuary in several years.

 

During the week after Anne Clark posted about the Merlins along Christopher
Lane in our neighborhood in northeast Ithaca, I would see one Merlin atop a
tree every time I passed.  But I haven't seen any Merlins there for more
than a week now.

 

Mark Chao

 

 

 

 



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[cayugabirds-l] Sapsucker Woods, Fri 4/24

[Mark Chao]

I saw and photographed a bright male PINE WARBLER with dozens of male
Yellow-rumped Warblers at the Wilson/West intersection in Sapsucker Woods on
Friday morning.  Two RUSTY BLACKBIRDS were nearby on the pond side.  All
these birds were foraging on the leaf litter and edges of puddles.  I'm
almost sure it was my first sighting of a Pine Warbler on the ground or even
anywhere below my eye level.  

 

I also found one MERLIN behind the houses inside the eastern corner of
Christopher Lane and Christopher Circle in northeast Ithaca.

 

Mark Chao

 

 

 

 

 

 

 

 

 

 

 



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[cayugabirds-l] Sapsucker Woods and Newman Arboretum, Sun 4/26

[Mark Chao]

Some highlights from Sunday morning:

 

Sapsucker Woods

* western PALM WARBLER south of Podell Boardwalk

* at least six loud PINE SISKINS north of Lab building

 

(On Saturday, I heard a BLUE-HEADED VIREO along the Wilson Trail South.
RUSTY BLACKBIRDS were present on both days, but easier for me to see on
Saturday.)

 

Newman Arboretum (Cornell Plantations):  

* two countersinging BROWN THRASHERS seen in separate stands of brush on
slope

* PINE WARBLER seen singing in stand of tall pines along road to the gong
overlook

* GREEN HERON in pond vegetation

* three BROAD-WINGED HAWKS circling together high overhead.

 

Mark Chao

 

 



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[cayugabirds-l] Golf course owls, etc., Wed 4/29

[Mark Chao]

Jay McGowan, Livia Santana, and I saw the two baby GREAT HORNED OWLS and
their mother out of their nest in a neighboring tree at the Newman Municipal
Golf Course in Ithaca on Wednesday morning.  One young owl appears much
bigger than the other, but I think that impression arises from retained
natal down, not dense body mass.

 

I also paid a visit to the Goetchius Wetland Preserve, a Finger Lakes Land
Trust property on Flatiron Road in Caroline.  I saw at least three WILSON'S
SNIPE around the flooded swale straight out from the parking area.  Several
SAVANNAH SPARROWS were singing on territories.  At one point, four Savannah
Sparrows came together in a scrum, which resolved itself into two departing
males and a pair.  Bobolinks and Eastern Meadowlarks both seemed absent.

 

On Saturday, May 2, I'll lead the first of the month's Spring Bird Quest
walks for the Land Trust at the Wesley Hill Nature Preserve between
Canandaigua and Honeoye Lakes.  This preserve is about 1 hour 50 minutes
from Ithaca.  The walk will begin at 8 AM from the preserve's parking area
along Gulick Road.  If you do make the trip, please do not confuse the
Wesley Hill Nature Preserve parking lot with that of the Cumming Nature
Center along the same road.

 

Mark Chao



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[cayugabirds-l] Sapsucker Woods, Th 4/30

[Mark Chao]

I found a few migrants, possibly new arrivals, in Sapsucker Woods on
Thursday morning (6:45-7:30 AM).

 

* ROSE-BREASTED GROSBEAK above the puzzling stop signs at the bend in the
road by the main building;

* BLACK-THROATED GREEN WARBLER along the Woodleton Boardwalk;

* NORTHERN WATERTHRUSH heard from the Woodleton Boardwalk, but only faintly,
as if it were very far to the west (maybe even across the road);

* SPOTTED SANDPIPER seen flying across the Fuller Wetlands and then again
across the main pond.  I would guess that these were two different
individuals.

 

Many Ruby-crowned Kinglets and Yellow-rumped Warblers, some RUSTY
BLACKBIRDS, at least one Purple Finch, and other expected birds are present
too.

 

Mark Chao



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[cayugabirds-l] Recent highlights (breeding sandpipers, Merlins, toads)

[Mark Chao]

Here are some highlights from the past few days.



Goetchius Wetland Preserve (Tuesday)

I found one GREATER YELLOWLEGS, an oxymoronic trio of SOLITARY SANDPIPERS,
and a pair of SPOTTED SANDPIPERS around the two long flooded areas in the
big field.  At one point, the male Spotted Sandpiper perched up on a rock
before his rapt mate, pushed his chest and shoulders forward, and let out a
long, complex song as musical as that of any passerine. Later I saw these
two birds flying together in a dramatic sweep across the whole back fence
of the preserve. At least three male BOBOLINKS have joined the SAVANNAH
SPARROWS and EASTERN MEADOWLARKS.  The Bobolinks sang often but seemed not
too aggressive toward each other yet.  They even spent a couple of minutes
all together in a small tree.



Christopher Lane, northeast Ithaca (Sunday)

At 5:40 PM, I saw the MERLIN pair at the edge of Northeast Elementary
School staff parking lot across Christopher Lane from the yard where they
have been since early April.  The male MERLIN circled overhead with fast
shallow wingbeats, calling loudly, then descended to copulate with the
female.  I wonder to what extent this indicates that their attempts to
breed last month have failed.



Wesley Hill Nature Preserve (Saturday)

Eleven birders joined me for a bird walk at this Finger Lakes Land Trust
preserve between Canandaigua and Honeoye Lakes.  It was the first of a
series of walks that I’ll lead this month for the Finger Lakes Land Trust
Spring Bird Quest (SBQ).  We found 39 bird species and an orgy of American
Toads.  For full details and some photos (rated PG for humans, but NC-17
for amphibians), see the SBQ blog at
http://www.fllt.org/spring-bird-quest-blog-by-mark-chao/.



The next SBQ walks will be at the Bahar Preserve and the High Vista Nature
Preserve on Skaneateles Lake on Saturday, May 9.  The Bahar Preserve walk
will begin at 8 AM at the DEC parking area along Appletree Point Road (not
the smaller Land Trust trailhead further down the road).  The High Vista
walk will begin at 10:30.  I hope to see some of you there!



Mark Chao

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[cayugabirds-l] Sapsucker Woods, Th 5/7 and sandpiper correction

[Mark Chao]

I saw Jay and Livia this morning in Sapsucker Woods, but missed almost all
of the bird species that they found. To their fine list, the only passage
migrants I can add are a BLUE-WINGED WARBLER along the road and a HERMIT
THRUSH along the Wilson Trail South.  I spent a couple of minutes trying to
see the thrush’s tail color well.  I never did, but the bird’s face, dark
frontal spots, and oft-raised tail added up to a reasonably confident ID.



I made a mistake in my post the other day, when I wrote that I saw a male
Spotted Sandpiper displaying at the Goetchius Wetland Preserve.  With this
species, the usual sex roles in courtship, territorial defense, and nesting
can be reversed.  I’ve posted further explanation on the Spring Bird Quest
blog:  http://www.fllt.org/spring-bird-quest-blog-by-mark-chao/.



(I still welcome pledges in support of this month-long fundraiser.  Please
contact me if you’d like to pledge, or donate online at the Land Trust’s
web page.  Thank you!)



Mark Chao

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[cayugabirds-l] Salmon Creek Bird Sanctuary (FLLT), Fri 5/8

[Mark Chao]

I went looking for birds on Friday morning at the Salmon Creek Bird
Sanctuary, a Finger Lakes Land Trust preserve in Lansing (6:10-7:00 AM).
This 33-acre preserve used to host as many as 48 breeding pairs of Cerulean
Warblers as recently as 1998, but today as in other recent years, the
species seemed absent.  I did find plenty of other birds on the preserve
and neighboring land along the road, including an adult BALD EAGLE flying
up the creek; at least four singing BLUE-WINGED WARBLERS; three
YELLOW-THROATED VIREOS; several BLUE-GRAY GNATCATCHERS; and lots of
ROSE-BREASTED GROSBEAKS, WOOD THRUSHES, and BALTIMORE ORIOLES.



Mark Chao

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[cayugabirds-l] Bahar and High Vista Nature Preserves (FLLT SBQ), Sat 5/9

[Mark Chao]

On Saturday, I led two walks at Finger Lakes Land Trust preserves in the
southern Skaneateles Lake watershed, both less than an hour from northeast
Ithaca.  At the Bahar Nature Preserve in Niles, our group of ten birders
found a fine mix of passage migrants and presumed summer breeders,
including one or two female CAPE MAY WARBLERS, a NORTHERN PARULA, MAGNOLIA
WARBLER, a probable PINE WARBLER, two BLACK-THROATED BLUE WARBLERS, a few
CHESTNUT-SIDED WARBLERS, and many BLACK-THROATED GREEN WARBLERS.  At the
High Vista Nature Preserve in Scott, we found a HOODED WARBLER,
BLACKBURNIAN WARBLER, and a very cooperative LOUISIANA WATERTHRUSH, among
other fine birds.  Like Bob’s group at Lindsay-Parsons (another Land Trust
preserve), we saw two male SCARLET TANAGERS battling here over a watchful
green female.



A detailed account, photos, and some further reflections on the importance
of land preservation around Skaneateles Lake are up on my Spring Bird Quest
blog:  http://www.fllt.org/spring-bird-quest-blog-by-mark-chao/.



Mark Chao

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[cayugabirds-l] VanRiper Conservation Area (FLLT), Sat 5/16

[Mark Chao]

Several Cayugabirders and I joined Lyn Jacobs and a throng of Eaton Birding
Society members on Saturday morning at the VanRiper Conservation Area, a
68-acre Finger Lakes Land Trust preserve established in 2011 on the lake in
Romulus.  We found an impressive variety of birds, including a mix of
warblers to rival the variety at much larger sanctuaries like
Lindsay-Parsons or Sapsucker Woods – HOODED, MOURNING, BAY-BREASTED,
PRAIRIE, MAGNOLIA, BLACKBURNIAN, BLACKPOLL, CHESTNUT-SIDED, TENNESSEE,
BLUE-WINGED, NORTHERN PARULA, AMERICAN REDSTART, and COMMON YELLOWTHROAT.
  From among these, despite much effort, most of us managed to see only
Common Yellowthroat and Bay-breasted Warbler (at least 2 males and 1 female
in hardwoods high above North Cayuga Lake Road).  Not surprisingly, the
Tennessee Warblers were especially vexing – very loud and right nearby in
several spots, but stubbornly, defiantly invisible.  I was extremely
surprised not even to hear any Yellow Warblers or Ovenbirds.



Still, who could complain about “merely” hearing 11 of 13 warbler species
along these beautiful trails and back roads?  And where else around here
could you find all those warblers (with Hooded and Prairie breeding, I
think) and six RED-BREASTED MERGANSERS too, all at one public site?
Probably nowhere -- only at VanRiper and the adjacent 13-acre Whitlock
Nature Preserve (also owned by the Land Trust).



After the group walk, Kathy Strickland and I went to MNWR.  We were hoping
to see Red-Headed Woodpecker along Mays Point Road and maybe a bittern
along the Wildlife Drive.  We missed both, but we did enjoy the shorebirds
and ducks in the Main Pool.  We also heard a VIRGINIA RAIL calling near
Benning Marsh.



Mark Chao



Running Spring Bird Quest (SBQ) totals:  99 bird species, 43+ donors

SBQ reports and photos:
http://www.fllt.org/spring-bird-quest-blog-by-mark-chao/

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[cayugabirds-l] 4 Finger Lakes Land Trust sites incl. McIlroy Bird Sanctuary, Sat 5/23

[Mark Chao]

I had a very gratifying morning of birding and human fellowship on
Saturday, mostly in connection with the Finger Lakes Land Trust Spring Bird
Quest (SBQ).  Here is a log of my stops with some highlights.



1.  Campbell Meadow (owned by Town of Dryden, subject to simple covenant
with Land Trust)

Pinckney and Lower Creek Roads, Dryden

6:40-7:00 AM



One GREEN HERON flying high above and attracting a fierce attack from an
icterid; two WOOD DUCKS in the wetland in the middle of the grass.



2.  Etna Nature Preserve

Route 366, Etna

7:05-7:10 AM



3.  Genung Nature Preserve (donated to Land Trust, then transferred to
Village of Freeville, subject to continuing easement held by Land Trust)

Route 38, Freeville

7:20-7:30 AM



Singing CHESTNUT-SIDED WARBLER, VEERY, and ALDER FLYCATCHER



4.  Dorothy McIlroy Bird Sanctuary

Lake Como Road, Summerhill

7:55-10:40 AM



Twenty people, including one of my daughter’s ninth-grade classmates,
joined me for the morning’s group walk.   In the woods, we missed some
expected species such as Blue-headed Vireo, Hermit Thrush, and Canada
Warbler, but we did find some mild surprises – a calling BROAD-WINGED HAWK,
and singing WHITE-THROATED SPARROW and NASHVILLE WARBLER.  It was my first
White-throated Sparrow find on the SBQ in a few years.  We also found
several BLACK-THROATED GREEN WARBLERS, OVENBIRDS, VEERIES, ALDER
FLYCATCHERS, and other breeding birds typical of the site.



We had our best viewing along the edges of the parking lot and adjacent
grassy area.  Here we saw one adult BALD EAGLE, a soaring BROAD-WINGED
HAWK, a CHESTNUT-SIDED WARBLER, an INDIGO BUNTING, a splendid BALTIMORE
ORIOLE, copulating TREE SWALLOWS, and more.  We repeatedly heard a
BLACK-BILLED CUCKOO calling from various spots spanning 120 degrees around
our vantage point.  Paul Anderson saw this cuckoo and another cuckoo
chasing each other across a gap, but despite much concerted effort, we
didn’t see these birds again.



5.  Summer Hill State Forest and vicinity

Fillmore Road, Salt Road, and Hoag Avenue, Summerhill

10:50 AM-12 noon



Then, not quite ready to quit for the morning, I proposed a non-SBQ bonus
run to Summer Hill State Forest and nearby roads.  I got eight takers.  We
found 14 warbler species, mostly along Hoag Avenue between Salt and Lick –
MOURNING (singing near intersection of Hoag and Lick after our group broke
up), BLACK-THROATED BLUE, BLACK-THROATED GREEN, BLACKBURNIAN, MAGNOLIA,
CHESTNUT-SIDED (near the Mourning Warbler), YELLOW-RUMPED, YELLOW (found by
Alicia Plotkin, not me), AMERICAN REDSTART, NASHVILLE, BLUE-WINGED,
OVENBIRD, COMMON YELLOWTHROAT, and LOUISIANA WATERTHRUSH.  We also heard
countersinging BLUE-HEADED VIREOS, a RED-BREASTED NUTHATCH, and other fine
birds.  Not bad for a mere 70 minutes close to midday.



My thanks to all for your wonderful company and support!



Mark Chao



Running SBQ tally:  110 species

Number of donors so far:  46+

Number of group walk participants so far:  70+ (including repeat customers)



http://www.fllt.org/spring-bird-quest-blog-by-mark-chao/

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[cayugabirds-l] Lindsay-Parsons Biodiversity Preserve, Sun 5/24

[Mark Chao]

Fourteen birders joined me on Sunday morning for a group walk at the
Lindsay-Parsons Biodiversity Preserve in West Danby.



The highlight of our morning – indeed, for many of us, a veritable
highlight of our birding lives so far – was an escalating sequence of
BLACK-BILLED CUCKOO encounters.  First we heard one repeatedly calling
nearby, but it refused to show itself or even to divulge its identity with
a vocalization clearly distinguishable from that of Yellow-billed.  (We did
hear a clear YELLOW-BILLED CUCKOO later, and Bruce Packard probably saw one
near the railroad tracks.)



But then we saw one Black-billed Cuckoo on a low open branch in the island
of trees at the bottom of the big slope.  This bird stayed put for fine
scope views.   Another cuckoo then streamed into view, chasing the other up
into a nearer tree.  We could see both birds together at rest.  More
commotion ensued.  A couple of our group members conclusively saw a third
cuckoo in the scuffle.  And then two Black-billed Cuckoos dashed into a
shrub right in front of us, and then into another, where at once they
provided more excellent views while also proving their incredible capacity
for concealment.



It was all just way beyond perfect, with all the rewards of birding wrapped
up together – the thrill of an unusual find, the drama of unfolding
interactions, the sheer pleasure of watching something very beautiful, and
the human bonding from sharing all of this as a group.



We had only a few brief warbler sightings (CHESTNUT-SIDED in first patch of
woods, BLUE-WINGED in open area before railroad tracks, HOODED by Celia’s
Cup), but heard many other species, including several PRAIRIE and
BLACK-AND-WHITE WARBLERS.  We had fine views of several other birds at
rest, including two BROWN THRASHERS, a couple of INDIGO BUNTINGS, a singing
ALDER FLYCATCHER, and a RUBY-THROATED HUMMINGBIRD.



Among all of our finds this morning, eBird seems to think that a
PIED-BILLED GREBE on Coleman Lake was the most exciting.  Out of 21
checklists I’ve submitted for the Finger Lakes Land Trust Spring Bird Quest
(SBQ) so far this month, this was the first bird that prompted the coveted
eBird “details” prompt.



Tomorrow I will lead two more SBQ walks – one at the Goetchius Wetland
Preserve in Caroline starting at 6:30, and one at the Roy H. Park Preserve
in Dryden starting at 8:30.  I hope to see many of you there!



Mark Chao



Running SBQ tally:  114 bird species

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[cayugabirds-l] Goetchius Wetland Preserve and Roy H. Park Preserve, Mon 5/25

[Mark Chao]

Early-morning birding at the Goetchius Wetland Preserve was excellent as
usual for our group of 12 on Memorial Day.  We saw a pair of BOBOLINKS
descending together to a presumed nesting or trysting site on the ground,
plus three other males perched up in song.   We also saw a SAVANNAH SPARROW
and one EASTERN MEADOWLARK in the grassy field by the parking area.



Around the wetland itself, we got an excellent lesson in “Traill’s”
Flycatcher songs, with several WILLOW FLYCATCHERS and ALDER FLYCATCHERS all
in full voice.  We saw about 60 CEDAR WAXWINGS foraging and streaming from
tree to tree and across the road in a few loose flocks.  And thanks to John
Confer, we got the morning’s second-biggest surprise – a SORA that
responded to playback with both its high squealing whinny and its song of
similar structure but lower, richer tone.



Most of us then went to the Baldwin Tract of the Roy H. Park Preserve in
Dryden.  Others joined us there, and soon we had an impressive group of 20,
including three very special guests – Frank and Blythe Baldwin, the former
longtime owners and protectors of the property, and Miyoko Chu, my wife and
constant supporter for the Spring Bird Quest and everything else.  An ALDER
FLYCATCHER greeted us all with many ripping songs from a low perch just
beyond the parking lot.  Soon afterward, we had our best warbler sighting
of the day – a PRAIRIE WARBLER right above the first trail fork.



For me, the defining aspect of this walk was the delightful, humbling,
sometimes vexing challenge of sound ID of atypically-vocalizing birds.
First we heard a very high-pitched song consisting of a few straight notes
and then followed by some faster tripping ones.  The notes had a pinched,
forced quality and sometimes the song would rise.  I remembered watching
and photographing a bird singing just such an unusual in-between repertoire
here eleven days ago.  So I declared it a Blackburnian Warbler.  Then
Miyoko saw a GOLDEN-CROWNED KINGLET.  Ken Kemphues played this species’
song on his mobile device.  It was an exact match.



But further along the trail, we again heard a very high two-part song, just
like the other one with straight notes and a short tripping half-trill.
Many of us visually confirmed this one.  It was a splendid male
BLACKBURNIAN WARBLER.  So, crazy as it seems, I have to conclude that we
have two species singing indistinguishable songs within earshot of each
other in the preserve.  And I think the spruces that Frank and Blythe had
planted here many years ago, when the place was just an old untended
cornfield, have now grown tall enough for Blackburnians to breed here.



Our second sound ID challenge was yet more puzzling – and it had an even
more mind-blowing resolution.  For about 20 minutes, we approached a bird
issuing a high, pure “chu-wee” call, once every 30 seconds or so.  I said I
thought it was a Yellow-bellied Flycatcher because it was too simple and
pure and short to be anything else, including a goldfinch or an Eastern
Wood-Pewee (even considering that this species’ song is sometimes
abbreviated to two syllables, especially late in the breeding season).  Ken
played the call of Yellow-bellied Flycatcher on his app – again, a perfect
match.  But I hedged because it seemed to be coming from the tops of
hardwood trees, loudly and repeatedly as if from a singing bird on a
territory.



Want to guess what it was?



Ken and another participant eventually saw the bird making that repeated,
pure, rising two-syllable sound.  It was an utterly atypical RED-EYED
VIREO.  I have found nothing remotely similar to this vocalization in any
online audio library, nor in the Birds of North America account.



Maybe some local sound recordist ought to go check this bizarro place out.



The rest of our walk seemed much more normal.  We all heard and some of us
saw a singing LOUISIANA WATERTHRUSH at the bottom of the ravine.  We heard
many other species typical of the site, including at leaste half a dozen
MAGNOLIA WARBLERS, a few BLACK-THROATED GREEN WARBLERS, SCARLET TANAGER,
INDIGO BUNTING, EASTERN TOWHEE, and others.  I added just one more species
to the month’s SBQ count – a COMMON RAVEN, also heard only.



My thanks to all participants and of course the Finger Lakes Land Trust for
another great morning!



Mark Chao



Running SBQ tally:  117 bird species

Running count of bird walk participants (counting repeat customers each
time, but not including me):   114

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[cayugabirds-l] Updated SBQ blog (great photos from Suan Yong)

[Mark Chao]

The Finger Lakes Land Trust has posted updates and new photos to the SBQ
blog.



http://www.fllt.org/spring-bird-quest-blog-by-mark-chao/



My accounts of this past weekend are essentially a reduced version of what
I’ve posted here on the listserv.  But you may still deem it worth checking
out, especially for Suan Yong’s excellent photos – a luminous landscape
worthy of Monet or Renoir, plus two images of a Black-billed Cuckoo.
Thanks, Suan!!



Mark Chao

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[cayugabirds-l] Logan Hill Nature Preserve (new Finger Lakes Land Trust site in Candor), Fri 5/29

[Mark Chao]

Today Betsy Darlington took me to the Finger Lakes Land Trust’s newest
preserve, the Logan Hill Nature Preserve in Candor.  Betsy and her husband
Dick purchased the property in 1972, then donated almost all of it to the
Land Trust in February 2015.  The preserve encompasses 285 stunningly
diverse and biologically rich acres of woods, wetlands, and meadows along
Logan Hill Road.  I think it clearly stands along with Lindsay-Parsons, the
McIlroy Bird Sanctuary, and the Roy H. Park Preserve as one of the very
best Land Trust sites for birding near Ithaca.

We found 48 bird species, including HOODED WARBLER, BLACK-AND-WHITE
WARBLER, BLUE-WINGED WARBLER, CHESTNUT-SIDED WARBLER, EASTERN BLUEBIRD,
HERMIT THRUSH, YELLOW-THROATED VIREO, and BLUE-HEADED VIREO.  The highlight
was my first AMERICAN WOODCOCK in the 10-year history of the Spring Bird
Quest (SBQ).  This bird flushed up from the leaf litter right next to us,
fanning a striking red tail with contrasting black and white terminal
bands.  It settled again about 50 meters away.  We watched it watching us
for several minutes.  It was only the second woodcock I’ve ever seen at
rest by day.

We also saw at least 10 species of butterflies – Red Admiral, White
Admiral, Mourning Cloak, Black Swallowtail, Tiger Swallowtail, Pearl
Crescent, Juvenal’s Duskywing, Little Wood-Satyr, Spring Azure, and Clouded
Sulphur.  I am looking forward to returning later in the summer to look for
butterflies again.  I think that the gravel road will be full of them,
especially when the rain leaves some puddles behind.

My thanks to Betsy for her wonderful company and guidance today, and to
both her and Dick for donating such a truly special place to the Land Trust!

Mark Chao

PS.  Tomorrow, I will lead the month’s last bird walk for the SBQ.  It will
take place at the Ellis Hollow Nature Preserve along Ellis Hollow Creek
Road in Dryden, just outside of Ithaca, starting at 8 AM.



Running SBQ tally:  121 bird species

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[cayugabirds-l] Ellis Hollow Nature Preserve, Sat 5/30

[Mark Chao]

Twenty-one birders joined me today at the Ellis Hollow Nature Preserve in
Dryden for the final group walk for this month’s 10th annual Finger Lakes
Land Trust Spring Bird Quest (SBQ).



Our best viewing, as expected, was along the power-line cut near the
parking lot.  Here we had long views of CHESTNUT-SIDED WARBLER, INDIGO
BUNTING, and RUBY-THROATED HUMMINGBIRD, plus glimpses of passing CEDAR
WAXWINGS and CHIMNEY SWIFTS.  (I had previously counted Chimney Swifts for
my SBQ species tally only because I’ve seen them at the Land Trust’s office
in downtown Ithaca. I’m glad to remove the asterisk.)



In the woods, we saw only a few birds – a singing BLACKBURNIAN WARBLER at
the top of a hemlock tree, barely visible through a gap in the canopy; a
pair of DARK-EYED JUNCOS both with caterpillars in their bills, waiting for
us to leave before returning to their nest; and a YELLOW-BELLIED SAPSUCKER
also at a nest.   We did hear many other unseen birds – a few HERMIT
THRUSHES, a couple of WOOD THRUSHES, several BLUE-HEADED VIREOS, one
YELLOW-THROATED VIREO, many RED-EYED VIREOS, BLACK-THROATED GREEN WARBLERS,
and others.  I think that the vireos provided the month’s best lesson in
the subtle distinctions in their songs.  At one point, two Red-eyed Vireos
conveniently sang at the same time as an American Robin too.



Suan Yong found the sapsucker nest with his infrared camera.  It was hugely
fun to watch Suan using this device to find warm-blooded life in the
shadowy woods.  He even found a bee, stationary on a branch.  I had
previously thought of individual insects as strictly ectothermic, but some
cursory web research indicates that I was quite wrong.  Various insect
species, especially bees, thermoregulate.  They do not maintain a high
temperature all the time, but can warm themselves up quickly when they need
to.  A bumblebee can warm up its body from an ambient air temperature of 55
degrees Fahrenheit up to 98.6 degrees Fahrenheit in just six minutes!!  See
Heinrich and Esch, American Scientist, Volume 82, page 164.  And see also
Suan’s very entertaining blog at http://infrared-birding.blogspot.com/.



Many thanks to all who joined me on today’s walk and on all the field trips
this month.  I am always honored and energized by everyone’s efforts to
attend.  Collectively, I think we have had about 90 people come to SBQ
events, or 135 if you count repeat participants each time.



I still welcome pledges in support of my month-long species tally from Land
Trust preserves (121 so far, with possibly some last-ditch solo birding to
come tomorrow).  Thanks to all who have pledged so far, and to everyone for
your patience with my recurrent pitches on behalf of the Land Trust and the
SBQ.



Mark Chao

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[cayugabirds-l] Brown Pelican SW corner Cayuga Lake

[Mark Chao]

At about 10:07 I saw the pelican flying up from the line of houses at the
SW corner of Cayuga Lake. I was and still am on the white lighthouse jetty
looking NW. I haven't yet refound the bird. Also Ruddy Turnstone on the
white lighthouse jetty.

Mark Chao

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Re:[cayugabirds-l] Brown Pelican SW corner Cayuga Lake

[Mark Chao]

Jay just informed me that Marshall Iliff talked with a fisherman who saw
the pelican flying north at 9 AM from Taughannock. So here is more info for
people assessing where to look.

I saw the bird from very far away at 10x. I plainly saw a very long bill
and slow wingbeats. It was much larger than any gulls. It had a short body,
apparently brown, with chin tucked so bill pointed down. I saw no white on
the bird.

I explicitly ruled out herons or cormorants to myself before calling Jay
and posting. I am pretty sure my ID is correct. But I have been very wrong
before and would be glad to be wrong again if others can find it.

Mark

PS. It's cold here by the lighthouse...
On Jun 6, 2015 10:19 AM, "Mark Chao"  wrote:

> At about 10:07 I saw the pelican flying up from the line of houses at the
> SW corner of Cayuga Lake. I was and still am on the white lighthouse jetty
> looking NW. I haven't yet refound the bird. Also Ruddy Turnstone on the
> white lighthouse jetty.
>
> Mark Chao
>

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[cayugabirds-l] Pelican over Cass Park

[Mark Chao]

Diane Morton, Paul Anderson, and I saw the Brown Pelican flying high above
the jetty woods and Fall Creek from Stewart Park at 11:25. The bird flew
out of view behind the jetty woods treeline. Via the RBA text service, Jay
just reported seeing it soaring above Cass Park @~ 11:35.

Mark

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[cayugabirds-l] Treman Marina, Mon 6/29

[Mark Chao]

On Monday afternoon, my wife Miyoko Chu and I walked along the Cayuga Inlet
at Allan H. Treman State Marine Park.  Near the opening closest to the red
lighthouse, we found an EASTERN KINGBIRD parent with two recent fledglings,
both with white-fringed plumage, yellow gape, and dopey and inert but
endearing demeanor.  The center of the adult’s throat was reddish-pink.  It
could be an honorary Rose-throated Becard.



Then at the northernmost point of the trail loop, we saw a mother YELLOW
WARBLER and a recent fledgling in the tall lakeside vegetation.  This young
one was still mostly covered with puffy gray down, except for its face and
a couple of patches of smooth yellow juvenal plumage.  Imagine the colors
of a female Canada Warbler, the unkempt feathered head and incongruously
flat bare yellow face of an Egyptian Vulture, and the overall fluffy
spheroidal cuteness of a Furby.  That’s what this bird looked like.



The big open field with the active Osprey platform is now full of fragrant
blooming milkweed, with dozens of Cabbage Whites, a few Red Admirals,  a
Viceroy, and many beautiful Yellow-collared Scape Moths.  I hope that it
will be full of Monarchs in late summer and fall.



Mark Chao

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RE: [cayugabirds-l] Sapsucker Woods

[Mark Chao]

On Thursday afternoon, I walked most of the trails of Sapsucker Woods and
found rather few birds, until I ran into a prodigious mixed flock at the
first split on the Wilson Trail North.  I saw CANADA WARBLER, BAY-BREASTED
WARBLER, BLACKBURNIAN WARBLER, MAGNOLIA WARBLER, NASHVILLE WARBLER,
NORTHERN PARULA, AMERICAN REDSTART, COMMON YELLOWTHROAT, PHILADELPHIA
VIREO, RED-EYED VIREO, LEAST FLYCATCHER, EASTERN WOOD-PEWEE, and others.
I also found a few more Magnolia Warblers in various locations, a
BLACK-AND-WHITE WARBLER by the Sherwood Platform, and a NORTHERN
WATERTHRUSH, a BLUE-HEADED VIREO, and a WARBLING VIREO in the power line
cut east of the road.

Also, Ron Rohrbaugh and a group of students found an ORANGE-CROWNED
WARBLER along the Fuller Wetlands pond this afternoon.

Mark Chao

-Original Message-
From: bounce-119638434-3493...@list.cornell.edu
[mailto:bounce-119638434-3493...@list.cornell.edu] On Behalf Of Rebecca
Hansen
Sent: Thursday, September 10, 2015 1:08 PM
To: CAYUGABIRDS-L
Subject: [cayugabirds-l] Sapsucker Woods

There was a nice, very active flock of warblers in the woods this morning.
Birds I managed to see included Black-throated Green, Magnolia,
Black-and-White Warblers, Northern Parula, Least Flycatcher, and Common
Yellowthroat.  There were many besides those. But the highlight for me was
two Northern Waterthrushes over by the Sherwood Platform.

Sent from my iPad
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[cayugabirds-l] Sapsucker Woods, Fri 9/11

[Mark Chao]

I found some migrants along the Wilson Trail in Sapsucker Woods on Friday,
mostly high in the canopy around the map stand south of the Podell
Boardwalk.



Tennessee Warbler (2 yellow birds together by Sherwood Platform)

Bay-breasted Warbler (1 by Sherwood, 2 at aforementioned map stand)

Black-throated Blue Warbler (1 by map stand)

Black-throated Green Warbler (1+ by map stand)

Magnolia Warbler (several scattered throughout)

Northern Parula (1 by map stand)

Wilson’s Warbler (1 by Sherwood Platform)

Northern Waterthrush (1 heard only by small pool south of Sherwood Platform)

Common Yellowthroat (Podell Boardwalk)



Yellow-throated Vireo (1 by map stand)



Mark Chao

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[cayugabirds-l] Sapsucker Woods, Sun 9/13

[Mark Chao]

During and after this morning’s rain, I found a good variety of warblers in
Sapsucker Woods, mostly around the main pond.



Bay-breasted (3+)

Blackpoll (2)

Magnolia (many throughout)

Black-throated Blue (2 M)

Chestnut-sided

Yellow-rumped

Black-throated Green

Black-and-white (2)

Tennessee (2)

Nashville

Northern Parula

Wilson’s (1 with full black cap, 1 with partial cap, 1 with no cap)

Common Yellowthroat



I also saw an adult male American Redstart here at home in northeast Ithaca.



The Cornell Community Gardens are full of Song Sparrows in every imaginable
plumage – fresh, worn, bright, muted, short-tailed, long-tailed, boldly
streaked, and nearly unstreaked.   Over the past couple of days, I’ve also
seen Savannah Sparrows, Field Sparrows, a juvenile Swamp Sparrow, and one
Indigo Bunting with a brown head but blue rump and tail.



Mark Chao

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[cayugabirds-l] Sapsucker Woods, Mon 9/21

[Mark Chao]

Sapsucker Woods was full of migrant songbirds and Wood Ducks on Monday
morning.



SWAINSON’S THRUSH (1 found by Jay McGowan at base of Sherwood Platform, 2
more along Podell Boardwalk)




CAPE MAY WARBLER (1 presumed M with bold white wing panel, first by Charley
Harper memorial bench and then by Sherwood Platform)

BAY-BREASTED WARBLER (2 at first split on Wilson Trail North, 1 by Harper
bench, 3+ by Woodleton)

BLACKBURNIAN WARBLER (2 M and 1 presumed F by Harper bench, 1 by
Woodleton.  Female was so dull that I thought it was a Blackpoll at first,
until I saw the faint cheek patch)

BLACK-THROATED BLUE WARBLER (1 M by Woodleton)

BLACK-THROATED GREEN WARBLER (first Wilson North split, Harper bench,
Woodleton)

Magnolia Warbler(at all above-listed locations)

Yellow-rumped Warbler (all above-listed locations)

OVENBIRD (1 by Woodleton Boardwalk – my first in several weeks, hopefully
not my last for several months)

TENNESSEE WARBLER (3 by Harper bench – all with green backs, yellow
throats, white bellies and vents, unlike the mostly yellow Tennessees seen
often at the Lab over the past few weeks)

BLACK-AND-WHITE WARBLER (probable by Sherwood, confirmed at Woodleton)

Common Yellowthroat (all along Wilson Trail North)



PHILADELPHIA VIREO (1 by Harper bench – convenient comparison with
yellow-throated Tennessee Warblers)

BLUE-HEADED VIREO (1+, first seen by Harper bench and then by Sherwood)



RED-BREASTED NUTHATCH (2 by Sherwood)



WOOD DUCK (30+ in small section of main pond, 6+ in Fuller Wetlands;
possibly many more throughout)



Mark Chao

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[cayugabirds-l] Cornell Community Gardens, Fri 9/25

[Mark Chao]

The Cornell Community Gardens along Freese Road are hosting an excellent
variety of sparrows and other birds, as expected at this time of year.  On
Friday morning, I found one or more LINCOLN’S SPARROWS, two SWAMP SPARROWS,
a few CHIPPING SPARROWS, three FIELD SPARROWS, many SAVANNAH SPARROWS and
SONG SPARROWS, and a DARK-EYED JUNCO, plus a green TENNESSEE WARBLER, at
least two INDIGO BUNTINGS, and a few EASTERN BLUEBIRDS apparently migrating
south.



I had four sightings of Lincoln’s Sparrow in various sections of the
northern half, but I think it’s as likely as not that I saw the same bird
each time.  The Savannah Sparrows have been issuing “jreeet” calls
reminiscent of siskins or Rough-winged Swallows much more often than I’ve
ever noticed in the past.  They are a great pleasure to watch –
conspicuous, sharp, and diverse in their details.



Mark Chao



PS.  I’m going to lead short group walks at this site for the Cayuga Bird
Club on Saturday, October 3; Saturday, October 10; and Sunday, October 11.
Each walk will begin at 8:30 AM at the parking lot for the community
gardens, accessible via Freese Road, and will last until about 10:00.  Be
ready to walk on uneven ground overgrown by tall weeds.

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[cayugabirds-l] Thrush flight Wed 7:30 PM

[Mark Chao]

Many dozens of calling thrushes are passing southbound over Ithaca at 7:30
PM.  We have been hearing mostly Swainson’s Thrushes, but also at least six
Gray-cheeked Thrushes just in the last five minutes.



Mark Chao

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[cayugabirds-l] Cornell Community Gardens, Fri 10/2

[Mark Chao]

On Friday morning at the Cornell Community Gardens on Freese Road, I saw
eight species of sparrow -- Lincoln’s (7+ sightings of probably 2 or 3
individuals), Swamp (similar frequency and estimated numbers), Song,
Savannah, Chipping, Field, White-crowned (1 or 2), and White-throated (2
together) -- plus some Indigo Buntings, Yellow-rumped Warblers, Eastern
Bluebirds, a House Wren, a Pileated Woodpecker, and a Belted Kingfisher
among others.



So the stage seems set for a fun Cayuga Bird Club group walk at the gardens
tomorrow (Saturday, October 3).  Meet me in the parking lot along Freese
Road at 8:30 AM.  Here’s a map:



https://goo.gl/maps/FUWhqwBzb172



Be ready to walk among tall, possibly wet weeds on uneven ground.



I look forward to seeing many sparrows with many of you tomorrow!  (And if
you can’t make it then, note that I’ll lead two more group walks here the
following weekend.)



Mark Chao

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[cayugabirds-l] Cornell Community Gardens, Sat 10/3

[Mark Chao]

This morning’s Cayuga Bird Club field trip delivered pretty much everything
I hoped for – a good-sized group (ten people), lots of sparrows (seven
species), and many very satisfying and enlightening encounters with these
and other birds, all under a rainless gray sky.  Here are some highlights.



* We had four or five good views of LINCOLN’S SPARROW. I thank Anne Marie
Johnson and Suan Yong for the majority of these sightings.  In understand
that the last sighting yielded some very fine photos for Suan.  Check back
later for a link.



* We had several very fine views of SWAMP SPARROWS, including one that
seemed more strongly streaked than the others – maybe a juvenile.  All of
these birds were near the eastern edge, close to the trees.



* We found more WHITE-THROATED SPARROWS than I did yesterday – I’d guess at
least five.  One of these birds bore distinct streaks on its front and
sides – evidently a juvenile, one of only a few I’ve confidently identified
around here.



* Among several FIELD SPARROWS, at least three had short tails – one
practically as short as that of a Winter Wren.  I haven’t seen these
individual birds this fall until today.   Very cute!



* All morning, we studied SAVANNAH SPARROWS in various plumages, postures,
and even apparent sizes.  I wish I knew more about clinal variability of
Savannah Sparrows, in order to determine if there is some remarkable
convergence of Savannah Sparrows here from widely separated regions.  At
one point, we saw two Savannah Sparrows perched for about a minute at close
range within a couple feet of each other – one modestly-proportioned bird,
mostly tan with a yellowish face, and the other much larger, with striking
contrast between dark streaks and white ground color.



* We also had good practice all morning in identifying Swamp Sparrows,
White-throated Sparrows, and INDIGO BUNTINGS (several in tall yellow
flowers by treeline) based on differences in their cardinal-like chip notes
– Swamp a little sweeter (somewhat like a phoebe – thanks, Tom
Schulenberg), Indigo Bunting much sharper with a spitting quality, and
White-throated plain and clear, not too hard but not too sweet.



* CHIPPING SPARROWS and SONG SPARROWS rounded out our list of emberizids
today, unless you also count an EASTERN TOWHEE that I thought I heard
calling once.   We didn’t find any White-crowned Sparrows today.



* Seconds after I was talking about how we should expect them, I actually
did see a western PALM WARBLER, looking very pearly gray in the
cloud-filtered light.  I am sorry that others missed this bird.



* And we witnessed several dramatic sweeps by raptors, including a small
falcon (probably AMERICAN KESTREL, I thought) and a juvenile COOPER’S HAWK
attacking a Red-tailed Hawk.



Thanks to Suan, Anne Marie, Diane, Bob, Joan, Debbie, Sandy, Mary, and
Nancy for sharing this great outing!



Mark

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[cayugabirds-l] Cornell Community Gardens - imminent conversion, weekend walks, M-Th recap

[Mark Chao]

Gardeners have received notice that next spring, the Cornell Community
Gardens along Freese Road will be converted to agriculture instead of
community horticulture.  I’ve heard vague speculation that the plots will
be moved elsewhere, but I have no confirmation.  So now is the time to
enjoy this remarkable site while we still can!



This weekend I’ll lead two more Cayuga Bird Club walks at the gardens, one
on Saturday and one on Sunday.  I expect a lot of turnover of sparrows and
other birds with the changing weather – including, I hope, some new
arrivals.  Both walks start at 8:30 AM in the site’s parking lot --
https://goo.gl/maps/FUWhqwBzb172.



I paid brief midday visits the gardens on Monday, Wednesday, and Thursday
this week.  The species mix was about the same each day as Suan and I
reported last weekend, with multiple INDIGO BUNTINGS and LINCOLN’S, SONG,
SWAMP, SAVANNAH, CHIPPING, FIELD, and WHITE-THROATED SPARROWS.  I saw a
western PALM WARBLER on Saturday and again yesterday, but not in between.
I haven’t seen White-crowned Sparrow since the one I reported last Friday.



On each visit this week, I kept hearing dull “thgk” notes that I thought
were from Lincoln’s Sparrow.  I confirmed the ID of these birds many times,
without any false positives.  But the calls were so frequent and
widespread, and so many remained unconfirmed, that I still can’t be sure if
I was hearing something else, like the click of grasshopper wings.  If
indeed all the dull notes were from Lincoln’s Sparrows, then I’d conclude
that there were at least half a dozen of them among the plots.



On Wednesday, I forgot my binoculars.  I was mad at myself for a few
seconds, but then remembered that Meena grew up watching wildlife with an
unaided eye, maybe becoming a better observer than she would have been with
optics.  So I stayed and birded by ear and impression and the LCD screen of
my camera.  I had limited success but good fun.  I did manage to find and
photograph two Lincoln’s Sparrows together, and to get a rewarding portrait
session with one.  Photos start at https://goo.gl/photos/1yHryZfebUGZfwJcA.




I look forward to seeing many of you this weekend!



Mark Chao

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[cayugabirds-l] Dickcissel still present at Cornell Community Gardens, Freese Road

[Mark Chao]

I’ll write more later about this weekend’s extremely enjoyable field trips,
but for now will just report that the DICKCISSEL is still present on Sunday
at the Cornell Community Gardens on Freese Road.  I plainly saw it in the
hedgerow at the southeast corner, near the Cayuga Trail entrance, with many
White-throated Sparrows.  I was a little surprised about the location, but
plainly saw the plain yellow breast, heavily striped brown wings, plain
face with distinct supercilium, and somewhat long bill.  I think that the
bird may have moved back into the plots when the White-throated Sparrow
flock gradually shifted there, but we didn’t refind it.



Mark Chao

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[cayugabirds-l] Cornell Community Gardens, Sat Oct 10 and Sun Oct 11

[Mark Chao]

Every year, I feel determined to appreciate October and especially Columbus
Day weekend – for sparrows, for fall foliage, for playoff baseball – all my
favorite things, all too briefly at their peak.  And this urge to cherish
things has become all the more acute right now, because of the news of the
big coming changes at the Cornell Community Gardens.



So I felt that this weekend’s Cayuga Bird Club walks had kind of a grand,
escalating, unifying theme.  Seize the moment.  Seize the day.  Seize the
weekend.  Seize the week.  Seize the month.  Seize the year.  (We even
managed literally to seize one bird – or, more accurately, Paul Anderson
did, gently taking one Song Sparrow in his hand to free it from
entanglement in a folded section of plastic mesh fence.)



We found all nine expected sparrow species over the two days – LINCOLN’S,
SWAMP, SONG, SAVANNAH, CHIPPING, FIELD, WHITE-CROWNED, WHITE-THROATED, and
DARK-EYED JUNCO.  Viewing of Lincoln’s was as good as I’ve ever
experienced, particularly on Sunday.  If you divided the site into a 3 x 3
grid, we had excellent views of Lincoln’s in all nine zones.



Paul saw the DICKCISSEL on Saturday in the northeast corner, but none of
the rest of us succeeded – not even after Tom Schulenberg and his friends
called us over later after having found it themselves.  Today, only two of
us saw it.  So on the whole, the glass feels about 3/4 empty with that
bird, despite how exciting it is that it’s here at all.



But we had other rewards, including today’s biggest surprise – a first-year
BALD EAGLE perched in the lone tree in the field across the road.  Both
days, we also saw a single EASTERN PHOEBE, cherishing those too as if they
might be our last for a while.



Among our 25+ participants over the two days was my mother Johanna Chao,
who saw what I believe must have been her life Lincoln’s Sparrows today.
It was a special pleasure for me to hear her expressing a fresh and
youthful wonder about these birds.   She remarked later like a pro about
the differences between them and Song Sparrows, aptly calling Lincoln’s
“the princes and princesses of the sparrows.”



In fact, she is sitting behind me right now, asleep in a sunlit armchair,
with the Crossley Guide open in her lap to the sparrow pages.  It is
gratifying and inspiring and instructive indeed to see her so game to try
and learn new things at this stage of her life.  Carpe diem, carpe annum,
carpe vitam.



Mark Chao

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[cayugabirds-l] NE Ithaca, Fri 12/4

[Mark Chao]

A gray EASTERN SCREECH-OWL has appeared in our nest box in northeast Ithaca
on Wednesday and again today, so far only by the dimmest light of early
morning or late afternoon.  These are our first sightings since March 28.



Mark Chao

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[cayugabirds-l] Equine Research Park area, Sun 12/20

[Mark Chao]

I’ve walked to Cornell’s Equine Research Park three times over the past two
weekends from Freese Road.  On my first two visits, I found several
cooperative EASTERN BLUEBIRDS around the horse corrals, but surprisingly, I
saw none today.  Maybe it was too late in the day.  Also on two visits,
I’ve found a female RING-NECKED PHEASANT at the interface of the Liddell
Lab pond vegetation and one of the open fields.  And today at around 3:15
PM, a GREAT HORNED OWL was hooting from towering conifers south of the
southeasternmost horse corral.



eBird (on my phone via the new Android app) didn’t question the owl or the
pheasant, but did give me the coveted “confirm” prompt for my count of 23
TURKEY VULTURES.  All these birds were drifting south at around 3:40 PM.
The last one had a white outer left wing.



Mark Chao

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[cayugabirds-l] Lansing Center Trail, Sun 1/3

[Mark Chao]

On Sunday at about 2:50 PM, I saw about eight big waves of SNOW GEESE
passing over the Lansing Center Trail.  I counted about 1800 birds.  Then I
called home.  About five miles south, Miyoko and Tilden got the message and
bundled up in time to see all these birds streaming overhead a couple of
minutes later.



>From the Lansing Center Trail, I also saw a calling COMMON RAVEN and three
EASTERN BLUEBIRDS.  I looked for the Rough-legged Hawk and Northern Shrike
found in Lansing on the Christmas Bird Count, but didn’t find them.



Also, on Saturday at 5 PM, I saw the barrel-chested, round-headed,
beakless, doubly pointed silhouette of a PEREGRINE FALCON flying over Route
13 from the Stewart Park area toward downtown Ithaca.



Mark Chao

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[cayugabirds-l] Recent highlights -- Newman Golf Course, lake, Plantations

[Mark Chao]

Thanks for your account, Sandy!



The other day I too saw a Sharp-shinned Hawk chasing House Sparrows and
other birds at the Newman Golf Course.  The hawk blazed in to the feeder by
the private residence along the inlet, scattering the songbirds, and
perched in a bush for a couple of minutes, heedless of my presence just
five meters away.  It was a first-winter bird, with a yellow orbital ring
and fine rufous feather edges on the back and wings.   The hawk took off
again after a House Sparrow, with both birds threading themselves through
impossibly narrow gaps in the shrubs, in and out and in and out again
within one charged split-second.  I followed the Sharp-shinned Hawk
eventually to a small bare tree along the boatyard’s parking lot.  Again
the hawk tolerated my close approach, ultimately to the spot right below
it.  This bird seemed thoroughly accustomed to people.



Other recent highlights:



* On Friday, from Route 13 descending from Cayuga Heights, a carload of
kids and I saw the Redhead flock arrayed on the lake in a neat half-circle
with a stub at the center of the convex side of the arc.   It was as if the
lake surface were a canvas for the giant oarlock logo of some rowing
group.



* Yesterday I returned to the golf course with my wife Miyoko Chu.  We
didn’t see the hawk, but did see a southbound Great Blue Heron overhead.
We also saw the Redhead flock rising from the red lighthouse area, and
pulling into two like a mitosing amoeba.  (We could not see any owl at last
year’s nest.)



* Today Miyoko joined me again, this time at the Newman Arboretum.  Amid
the laden crabapple trees on the slope, we sat among dozens of American
Robins and Cedar Waxwings, all so tame and/or intently voracious that they
too allowed us to walk right up to them.  A light-morph Rough-legged Hawk
crossed very high to our north as we were leaving.



Mark Chao











*From:* bounce-12020-3493...@list.cornell.edu [mailto:
bounce-12020-3493...@list.cornell.edu] *On Behalf Of *Sandy Wold
*Sent:* Sunday, January 31, 2016 6:24 PM
*To:* Upstate NY Birding digest
*Subject:* [cayugabirds-l] Hold on to your hats! Agressive Sharp-shinned at
Newman Golf Course?



I just had an interesting experience.  It was dusk, about 5:30pm, and I was
sprinting home on my bike from Stewart Park with a friend passing by the
Golf Course where I was dive-bombed by a falcon-shaped bird.  It was quite
thrilling as I felt it come behind me and swoop over my off-white knit
hat!  Was it checking out my fibers  Seconds before, three
sparrow-sized birds swooped close in front of me from my left and over my
right shoulder (I was pedaling fast at the time).  As the sparrow-sized
birds passed on, I heard Mourning Doves dashing all around.  It was too
dusky to identify anything other than the doves who were all around and
scuffling with each other for who was going to get which tree.  I could
hear their wing beats and see silhouettes:



We followed the predator bird into a tall dense evergreen and waited.  The
person with me, riding behind me, said she saw the predator bird scuffle
with a smaller bird as it approached my head with the smaller bird
deferring and moving to my left.  After a few minutes at the evergreen, the
predator flew out toward me (again) and behind and circled me heading away
from me and toward a deciduous tree about 100 yards away where I was able
to see a clear silhouette.  Tail pointed straight downward when perched,
almost as long as its torso, had a straight edge on its perching tail,
definitely saw a hawk-like bill shape.  When it flew, I saw falcon-points.
The person with me saw white on the underside...It flew from this last tree
to a bramble clump in the middle of the golf course.  We walked all around
the dense bramble and could not find the bird. Any ideas?  My first choice
is Sharp-shinned Hawk for tail length and silhouette, but perigrine for
flight shape.



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[cayugabirds-l] South Hill, Sat 2/20, plus Siena Drive owl update

[Mark Chao]

At around 1 PM on Saturday, I saw a female EASTERN BLUEBIRD checking out
the nest box along the South Hill Recreation Way near Ithaca College.  Then
a few minutes later, I saw two COMMON RAVENS flying together and vocalizing
over the Six Mile Creek valley, maybe courting, maybe fighting.  One bird
did a few dramatic 180-degree twists.



I saw the EASTERN SCREECH-OWL in its tree cavity along Siena Drive in
northeast Ithaca two Fridays ago, plus the subsequent Saturday, Sunday, and
Monday.  But I have not seen the owl since, despite numerous attempts,
including some during the prime hour before sunset.  Here are some more
photos (scroll to the bottom of the album, where you can see an owl in a
tree with no nest box):



https://goo.gl/photos/gqUKLmpeey7HrpVs7



Mark Chao

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[cayugabirds-l] Stewart Park, Fri 3/25

[Mark Chao]

Bonaparte's Gull on the shore by the pavilion and boardwalk platform at
Stewart Park on Friday morning.  Some visiting birders from Philadelphia
saw a second Bonaparte's before I arrived, but I haven't found it yet
myself.

Mark Chao

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[cayugabirds-l] Around Ithaca, Sun 3/27

[Mark Chao]

Some signs of spring around Ithaca on Sunday:



* Two or three FOX SPARROWS on the brushy slope in the Newman Arboretum –
two heard singing (audible clear across the pond), one seen kicking around
under dense cover



* One FOX SPARROW at Palmer Woods, singing unseen at the corner of brush
closest to the steepest sledding path



* One EASTERN TOWHEE calling at Palmer Woods



* One male PURPLE FINCH at our feeder in northeast Ithaca



* Many GOLDEN-CROWNED KINGLETS in both Palmer Woods and the hemlocks of the
Arboretum, plus more at the von Engeln Preserve in Malloryville



plus at least three Eastern Commas basking and chasing each other  in the
Malloryville preserve – the first butterflies I’ve seen this year.



Mark Chao

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[cayugabirds-l] Around Cornell, Sun 4/3

[Mark Chao]

I went looking for fallout birds around Cornell on Sunday afternoon.  Here
are some highlights:



* Two AMERICAN PIPITS along the little stream between the barns and pond
along Bluegrass Lane (great snipe spot a few years ago, but I saw none
today)



* FOX SPARROW (brush at edge of spruce grove) and VESPER SPARROW (brush and
roadside grit at edge of open field) along Dodge Road – fun to find these
two species together at one site so close to town



plus about 100 Song Sparrows along Dodge Road, three Northern Flickers and
a Yellow-bellied Sapsucker in the Newman Arboretum, a couple of flyover
Great Blue Herons, and dozens of American Robins and juncos everywhere.



Mark Chao

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[cayugabirds-l] Stewart Park, Mon 4/4

[Mark Chao]

The lake shore at Stewart Park is scattered end to end on Monday morning
with AMERICAN PIPITS.  There are also more than a few around the parking
areas.  I also saw a first-year BALD EAGLE and an OSPREY overhead, as well
as tight flocks of RING-NECKED DUCKS and BUFFLEHEADS offshore.



(Several years ago under very similar conditions in April, a Little Gull
spent the day at Stewart Park with Bonaparte’s Gulls, close to shore.  But
I found no small gulls during my brief visit today.  I think they must be
on the lake somewhere…)



Mark Chao

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[cayugabirds-l] Bluegrass Lane and Sapsucker Woods, Mon 4/4

[Mark Chao]

On Monday afternoon, I found 12+ WILSON’S SNIPE and 3 Killdeer in the
stream between the barns and the small pond near the end of the east-west
portion of Bluegrass Lane in Ithaca.  They were mostly hard to see behind
the layers and mounds of deep snow.  There could have been more.



Then I went over to Sapsucker Woods and found 8 more Wilson’s Snipe – 3 in
the ditch across the trail from the Fuller Wetlands, and 5 along the north
edge of the main pond.



Mark Chao

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[cayugabirds-l] Monkey Run South, Sun 4/10

[Mark Chao]

The seasonal birding at Monkey Run South was even a little better than I
had hoped on Sunday morning.



* Three sightings of probably four FOX SPARROWS -- two along red-blazed
trail where it runs low along Fall Creek, one by parking area, one singing
near wide grassy path where it crosses the road.  The two along the red
trail revealed their presence with subtly distinctive rising “tt?”
calls.  They remained unseen for a long time but eventually perched up,
even flying to open tree limbs 20+ feet above the trail.



* Four HERMIT THRUSHES – one deep in woods along yellow-blazed trail, one
by parking area, two calling together unseen (“zhraay”) from conifers up
the slope from grassy
path




* More than a dozen each of PINE SISKINS and GOLDEN-CROWNED KINGLETS



* A flock of about 20 CEDAR WAXWINGS feeding in bushes at eye level along
the road, often descending to the ground, sometimes occupying the same
field of view as the two roadside Fox Sparrows.



* PURPLE FINCHES singing along both the road and the trails



* COMMON RAVEN calling from the gorge.



I also saw an AMERICAN PIPIT flying north over the parking lots of Barnes &
Noble and Wegmans yesterday.



Mark Chao

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[cayugabirds-l] Finger Lakes Land Trust Spring Bird Quest -- walks at new sites over Memorial Day weekend

[Mark Chao]

I will lead walks at four Finger Lakes Land Trust preserves over Memorial
Day weekend, as part of an annual event that we call the Spring Bird Quest
(SBQ).  The destinations are mostly different from past years, showing off
some of the Land Trust’s newer major acquisitions, which are great for
birds and well within an hour’s drive of Ithaca, but still barely known
among many of our local birders.



Please see below for a list of walks.  For more information and directions
to all sites, including specific information about parking, please see
http://www.fllt.org/events/.



There is no charge for these walks, but I invite everyone to consider
making a pledge in support of my SBQ tally of bird species found on these
walks and possibly at other Land Trust preserves over the weekend.  Over
ten years, SBQ donations in support of the Land Trust’s continued
conservation efforts have exceeded $44,000.  Please contact me if you’d
like to make a pledge, or donate a flat amount at
http://www.fllt.org/donate/.  If you do donate via the website, please
specify the gift in honor of “SBQ.”



Feel free to contact me if you have any questions.  I hope to see many of
you later this month at the preserves!



Mark Chao

Ithaca



PS.  It appears that a pair of EASTERN BLUEBIRDS is trying to nest in a box
installed by my wife Miyoko Chu in our yard in northeast Ithaca.  I just
saw a female enter the box with nest material.  The male has been hanging
around too.













___

Saturday, May 28

8:00 AM

High Vista Nature Preserve

Village of Scott



Woods and streams near Skaneateles Lake.  Breeding Hooded Warbler, Mourning
Warbler, Black-throated Blue Warbler, Black-throated Green Warbler, and
Louisiana Waterthrush have all been found here in recent years.  Former
spot for Cerulean Warbler.



__

Saturday, May 28

10:00 AM

Hinchcliff Family Preserve

Town of Spafford



206 acres of fields and mixed hardwoods, with sweeping views of Skaneateles
Lake.   I’ve never birded here in spring, but I am optimistic that we will
find a lot of charismatic species.  This preserve is just a few miles up
the road from the High Vista Nature Preserve.



___

Sunday, May 29

8:00 AM

Logan Hill Nature Preserve

Town of Candor



Mixed woods and fields filled with birds and butterflies.  On May 29, 2015,
Betsy Darlington and I found Hooded and Prairie Warblers among 48 bird
species.  No promises, but this is the best place I know in the area for
finding American Woodcocks on the ground by day.





Monday, May 30

8:30 AM

VanRiper Conservation Area

Town of Romulus



A steep walk down to 1400 feet of lake shore, plus early successional
upland woods.  I think that Prairie and Blue-winged Warblers breed here,
and possibly Hooded too.

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[cayugabirds-l] Sapsucker Woods, Wed 5/4

[Mark Chao]

On Wednesday morning, Annie Wexler, Tony Gaenslen, and I saw a VEERY and a
WOOD THRUSH on the Hoyt-Pileated Trail in Sapsucker Woods, while an
OVENBIRD,  BLUE-HEADED VIREO, and BROWN CREEPER sang nearby.  We also heard
two NORTHERN WATERTHRUSHES and a BLACK-THROATED GREEN WARBLER around the
Woodleton Boardwalk.  The Wilson Trail North was pretty quiet -- one YELLOW
WARBLER, one BALTIMORE ORIOLE, a few YELLOW-RUMPED WARBLERS, and several
RUBY-CROWNED KINGLETS, but no other passage migrants or new arrivals for
me.  A couple of birders shared a report of a BLACKBURNIAN WARBLER here
earlier in the morning.



A pair of EASTERN BLUEBIRDS is continuing their unlikely nesting attempt in
our 0.2-acre backyard in northeast Ithaca.  I believe that I saw a second
female around yesterday – maybe a brief visitor, or a competitor, or a
cooperative-breeding helper.  We also saw a WHITE-CROWNED SPARROW by our
feeders today, and several PINE SISKINS on Tuesday.



Mark Chao

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[cayugabirds-l] Rumor of Golden-winged Warbler in Palmer Woods

[Mark Chao]

On Sunday morning I was told of a report, presumably originating from the
RBA text service, about a GOLDEN-WINGED WARBLER in Palmer Woods, which is
just up the slope north of the giant parking area known as A-Lot (or Lot A)
along Pleasant Grove Road, north of Jessup Road, on Cornell’s campus.  I
have no further details.



Sapsucker Woods was busy with birds too, especially away from the windy
edges.  Highlights included NORTHERN PARULA, CHESTNUT-SIDED WARBLER,
BLACK-THROATED BLUE WARBLER, BLACK-THROATED GREEN WARBLER, PALM WARBLER,
YELLOW-THROATED VIREO, several BALTIMORE ORIOLES and ROSE-BREASTED
GROSBEAKS, SOLITARY SANDPIPER, a little flock of northbound EASTERN
KINGBIRDS, and a pair of WOOD DUCKS together on a tree limb.



Mark Chao

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[cayugabirds-l] Sapsucker Woods, Wed 5/11

[Mark Chao]

The alarm calls of several Blue Jays and American Crows drew me over to the
eastern Severinghaus/Wilson nexus in Sapsucker Woods on Wednesday morning
(6:40 AM).  There I found two BARRED OWLS.  One owl fought back, especially
chasing the crows (first time I’ve seen counter-aggression from this
species), while the other owl perched quietly, apparently unseen by the
corvid mob.



On Monday, I believe that many people saw one Barred Owl along this stretch
where the two trails overlap, between the map stand (the aforementioned
eastern intersection point), and the shelter (the western intersection
point).  On Monday, Miyoko and I saw this owl north of the trail toward the
pond, but today, the owls were south of the trail.



I am mindful that these owls are presumably breeding here, and that
disturbance could stress them at a sensitive time.  But I hope that other
people might happen upon these birds as I did.  Certainly, a chorus of
alarm calls in this area is worth checking out!



I didn’t find too many other migrants on a quick circuit of the pond – a
NORTHERN PARULA, an OVENBIRD possibly newly arrived on a territory, a
SOLITARY SANDPIPER, an EASTERN KINGBIRD, and others.  I hope I was just too
early, and that some more new birds are around.  (Radar indicated
descending birds at 5 AM today.)



Mark Chao

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[cayugabirds-l] Sapsucker Woods, Fri 5/13

[Mark Chao]

At midday on Friday, I found a BAY-BREASTED WARBLER (heard and confirmed by
sight), probable BLACK-AND-WHITE WARBLER (heard but not seen), and one or
two BLACK-THROATED BLUE WARBLERS by the roadside gates in Sapsucker Woods.
There seemed to be a few more COMMON YELLOWTHROATS throughout than I’ve
noticed in past days, plus two countersinging CHESTNUT-SIDED WARBLERS in
the power-line corridor on the Dryden side.  Otherwise, I found no new or
unusual birds.



Mark Chao

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[cayugabirds-l] Sapsucker Woods, Sat 5/14

[Mark Chao]

I found some migrants scattered around Sapsucker Woods on Saturday
(6:15-8:55 AM).



CANADA WARBLER (1 singing M seen on island in Fuller Wetlands – strange
place for this species)

WILSON’S WARBLER (1 or 2 singing males, confirmed once by sight, on lower
stretch of Wilson Trail North)

BAY-BREASTED WARBLER (1 silent M by small footbridge on Wilson Trail North,
1 silent M on southern stretch of East Trail by pond near maintenance
building, and 1 F by small pond with shelter along East Trail)

BLACKBURNIAN WARBLER (2 males, one singing a few times, together by small
pond with shelter, East Trail)

BLACK-THROATED BLUE WARBLER (1 F along southern East Trail, 1 F on Wilson
Trail North)

CHESTNUT-SIDED WARBLER (2 with Blackburnians and female Bay-breasted, a
couple along Wilson Trail North)

YELLOW-RUMPED WARBLER (4+ along Wilson Trail North)

NORTHERN PARULA (1 heard only)



So including expected five breeding warbler species (Yellow, American
Redstart, Ovenbird, Northern Waterthrush, Common Yellowthroat), my warbler
tally for the morning reached a somewhat satisfying 13.  On the whole,
though, I was struck by how few migrant warblers I heard singing – probably
fewer than ten individuals.  I was very surprised not to find any Magnolia
Warblers or Black-throated Green Warblers at all.



But I did greatly enjoy just watching common breeding birds, especially
Baltimore Orioles (one male singing about three meters away, two pairs in
an apparent territorial boundary standoff, etc.), Veeries (singing
throughout the woods, also tolerating close approach), Wood Ducks, and many
more.



Mark Chao

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