On Saturday morning, Paul Anderson and Betsy Darlington joined me for the first group outing of this year's Finger Lakes Land Trust Spring Bird Quest.
We started at the big trailhead sign on Town Line Road. There we immediately we found two BLUE-HEADED VIREOS in a territorial standoff where the road crosses over Lick Brook. So intent were the birds on each other that they chased and perched quite close to us, affording some of the best views I've ever had of this species. They countersang with remarkably short pauses, sounding quite agitated compared to usual, though still smoother and more languid than other songbirds, including nearby Red-eyed Vireo. Down on the steep blue trail along the gorge, we saw silent LOUISIANA WATERTHRUSHES first above the upper falls and then again by the middle falls. Near the bottom, we saw a male and female SCARLET TANAGER together, pausing for extremely picturesque views in the shadowy hemlocks. Betsy departed at this point, while Paul and I continued to the inlet valley floor. We found a fine variety of birds, best seen along the railroad tracks, but all within earshot of the preserve and the nearby Babcock Tract also owned by the Land Trust. Highlights here included several YELLOW-THROATED VIREOS, BLUE-WINGED WARBLER, CHESTNUT-SIDED WARBLER, INDIGO BUNTINGS, BALTIMORE ORIOLES, ROSE-BREASTED GROSBEAK, and others. We looked and listened for chats, Cerulean Warblers, and Orchard Orioles, but did not find any. We climbed back to Town Line Road via the white-blazed trail along Spring Brook. Here we heard our first Louisiana Waterthrush song of the day, plus BLACK-THROATED GREEN WARBLERS and another Scarlet Tanager. We ended the morning having tallied 44 species in a little more than two hours. See below for the full list from eBird. Tomorrow Bob McGuire and I will lead a group walk at Lindsay-Parsons Biodiversity Preserve, starting from the parking lot along Routes 34 and 96 at 8:00 AM. Waterproof footwear and protection against ticks are recommended. The birding should be excellent. I hope to see some of you there! Mark Chao Location: Sweedler-Lick Brook FLLT Preserve Observation date: 5/28/11 Number of species: 44 Common Merganser 1 Turkey Vulture 1 Mourning Dove 1 Belted Kingfisher 1 Red-bellied Woodpecker 2 Downy Woodpecker 1 Hairy Woodpecker 1 Northern Flicker 1 Eastern Wood-Pewee 3 Least Flycatcher 1 Eastern Phoebe 1 Yellow-throated Vireo 4 Blue-headed Vireo 2 Warbling Vireo 1 Red-eyed Vireo 3 Blue Jay 3 American Crow 5 Black-capped Chickadee 2 Tufted Titmouse 4 Blue-gray Gnatcatcher 2 Veery 3 Wood Thrush 1 American Robin 6 Gray Catbird 2 European Starling 1 Cedar Waxwing 5 Blue-winged Warbler 1 Yellow Warbler 2 Chestnut-sided Warbler 1 Black-throated Green Warbler 2 American Redstart 3 Louisiana Waterthrush 5 Common Yellowthroat 3 Field Sparrow 1 Song Sparrow 2 Dark-eyed Junco 1 Scarlet Tanager 2 Northern Cardinal 2 Rose-breasted Grosbeak 1 Indigo Bunting 2 Red-winged Blackbird 6 Common Grackle 1 Brown-headed Cowbird 2 Baltimore Oriole 2 -- Cayugabirds-L List Info: http://www.NortheastBirding.com/CayugabirdsWELCOME http://www.NortheastBirding.com/CayugabirdsRULES http://www.NortheastBirding.com/CayugabirdsSubscribeConfigurationLeave.htm ARCHIVES: 1) http://www.mail-archive.com/cayugabirds-l@cornell.edu/maillist.html 2) http://www.surfbirds.com/birdingmail/Group/Cayugabirds 3) http://birdingonthe.net/mailinglists/CAYU.html Please submit your observations to eBird: http://ebird.org/content/ebird/ --
