[cayugabirds-l] Around the Lake Today
Diane, Ken, and I drove around the lake today looking for new arrivals. The rain held off until we were almost home. We did have a few good birds! (Aren’t they all?) The south end of the lake was surprisingly empty of most water birds. There were only a few gulls and geese off Stewart Park. The Swan Pen was quiet. We heard no peeps from Renwick Woods (no phoebe, winter wren). Likewise, there were only a few gulls off Myers Park. >From the bluff south of Aurora we scoped some 28 White-winged Scoters and over >a dozen Horned Grebes (no Eared or Red-necked). Here we had our first new bird >of the day - a trio of newly-arrived TREE SWALLOWS. At the Wells College >boathouse we got closer looks at the grebes and watched one pair in a brief >mating dance (the first I had ever seen from this bird). We stopped at Frontenac Park in Union Springs to scope the lake, hoping for Bonaparte’s Gulls and Blue-wing Teal (none). Our first OSPREY flew over as we drove north from Union Springs (the second was on a nest along Rts 5 & 20). The north end of the lake around Mud Lock was likewise almost devoid of water birds. A small flock of Ruddy Ducks remained. The Wildlife Drive remained closed (open this weekend?), but the pond at the Visitor’s Center still hosted numerous Green-winged Teal and the continuing Eurasian GW Teal (good, close looks). Tschache Pool held numerous ducks, mainly GW Teal, Pintail, Gadwall, and Shovelers. The big surprise there was the large number of Great Blue Herons. We counted at least 25 in the pool and another 25+ on nests in the rookery to the west of the tower. eBird had a problem when we tried to enter “50 Great Blue Herons"! Knox-Marcellus still holds a lot of water and many ducks, again mainly GW Teal, Pintail, Gadwall and Shovelers. The best bird there was a flyover GREATER YELLOWLEGS, calling only once (“tew-tew-tew”). I know that this “flyover, calling, yet unseen” yellowlegs sounds a bit sketchy (I had the same experience the other day at Myers). But we considered long and hard the alternatives, and nothing else really matched. There were GW Teal giving occasional “peep” calls, but none in the proper 3-note sequence with the pitch falling off slightly through the sequence. I’d still like to SEE one of those guys this year! We went as far north as Carncross Road & Marten’s Tract, hoping again for shorebirds or Blue-winged Teal (none). We did, however, hear our FOY SWAMP SPARROW singing a slow song from the distant cattails and the single bugling call of a Sand Hill Crane. On a tip from Dave Kennedy we drove Lake Road south from Cayuga Lake State Park and eventually found the three foraging BLUE-WINGED TEAL just short of Woolfy’s. Again, the lake was almost empty of ducks, and the teal stood out beautifully! Bob McGuire -- 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/ --
Re: [cayugabirds-l] Around the lake today
Interesting that the Green-winged Teal appeared for Anne Marie & Tim today but not for us yesterday. It’s always possible that we simply missed them, although I know that we did scan the overhanging shrubbery at the west side of the pond carefully. So I wonder where they might have gone. The creek that drains the Mill Pond was running free, and there was open water at the lake’s edge where the creek from Factory Pond enters. Those have often been good spots for overwintering teal and shovelers. We need to check them more carefully next time! Bob On Jan 19, 2015, at 7:36 PM, Anne Marie Johnson wrote: > Tim and I made a quick trip around the lake today, checking points north of > where we were yesterday (skipping Myers and Hog Hole). > > On the way north, we found a small group of HORNED LARKS on the farm fields a > block east of 34B in King Ferry south of 90. I forget the name of the road, > but it goes through a big dairy farm. The water was too rough and the > conditions too windy for scoping from the Aurora boathouse. We found two > GADWALL and three GREEN-WINGED TEAL on Factory Road Pond. The teal were > tucked into the shrubbery on the lake end of the pond. There was a large > group of REDHEAD, a few BUFFLEHEAD, and two AMERICAN WIGEON on Mill Spring > Pond. The lake north of Union Springs was completely frozen. > > We looked for the Snowy Owl around the Finger Lakes airport but could not > find it. We did not attempt Dean's Cove because the driveway looked icy. In > Sheldrake, we found lots of BUFFLEHEAD with a few GOLDENEYE mixed in. We > found one pair of RED-BREASTED MERGANSERS, and a very nice-looking male > WHITE-WINGED SCOTER. > > Anne Marie Johnson > > > > -- > > 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/ > > -- > -- 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/ --
[cayugabirds-l] Around the lake today
Tim and I made a quick trip around the lake today, checking points north of where we were yesterday (skipping Myers and Hog Hole). On the way north, we found a small group of HORNED LARKS on the farm fields a block east of 34B in King Ferry south of 90. I forget the name of the road, but it goes through a big dairy farm. The water was too rough and the conditions too windy for scoping from the Aurora boathouse. We found two GADWALL and three GREEN-WINGED TEAL on Factory Road Pond. The teal were tucked into the shrubbery on the lake end of the pond. There was a large group of REDHEAD, a few BUFFLEHEAD, and two AMERICAN WIGEON on Mill Spring Pond. The lake north of Union Springs was completely frozen. We looked for the Snowy Owl around the Finger Lakes airport but could not find it. We did not attempt Dean's Cove because the driveway looked icy. In Sheldrake, we found lots of BUFFLEHEAD with a few GOLDENEYE mixed in. We found one pair of RED-BREASTED MERGANSERS, and a very nice-looking male WHITE-WINGED SCOTER. Anne Marie Johnson -- 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/ --
[cayugabirds-l] Around the Lake Today
Susan, Ann, Diane, Ken, Dave, and I spend the entire day driving up and around the lake, looking for new birds to add to our 2015 year lists (silly game!!) I'm tired from all the driving and don't feel up to a full report. However, there were some real highlights, and I'd like to get them out there. Because the waterfowl hunters had pretty well cleared out the lake off Stewart & East Shore Parks, we didn't really get started until Portland Point Rd. with two Mockingbirds and a Carolina Wren. There was a Belted Kingfisher in the marina at Myers and a Horned Grebe off the spit (or was that grebe at Long Point?) . On Center Road we ran into a flock of some 100 Horned Larks, very well hidden in the low grass. We had four more Horned Grebes off the boathouse in Aurora. The rain hit us just before Union Springs but we were able to scan the ponds from the car and pull in a few new ducks for the year: Redhead, Gadwall, American Wigeon. A large flock of Robins flew over as we drove up Rt 90 towards Montezuma. Then, at the east end of the Mucklands, we picked out Northern Pintail and a juvenile Glaucous Gull in the mixed flock of several thousand Canada Geese, Tundra Swans, Mallards, and gulls. While we were there, a Peregrine Falcon made one pass, but none of the birds on the ground paid it any attention. We easily found the Snowy Owl that had been reported east of the airport on Martin Road. Dean's Cove was nearly devoid of birds: a small flock of Red-Breasted Mergansers and a couple of Great Black-backed Gulls plus Carolina Wren and Red-bellied Woodpecker calling in the background - until the resident Lesser Black-backed Gull dropped from the sky. Finally, we spent an hour driving the roads around Rock River & Wycoff Rds searching unsuccessfully for Short-eared Owls, but were rewarded with a cooperative Ring-necked Pheasant just off the road and an American Kestrel. As I re-read this, I realize how scattered it sounds! Perhaps one of the others will have the energy to post a full report. It was, in fact, a great day to be out and a wonderful start to the new year. Bob McGuire -- 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/ --
Re: [cayugabirds-l] Around the Lake Today
Bob's call this morning about the Red-necked Grebe had a delayed effect. I didn't get to Ladoga until after 1pm, but viewing was still ideal and the bird was still there (Thanks, Bob!). It was a bit disorienting as I scanned the lake to realize that the unfamiliar panorama was a crystal-clear view of Stewart Park about six miles away. The conditions inspired me to continue around the lake, but when I saw that Long Point had not been plowed, I didn't stop, then the breeze had ruffled the water by the time I got to the Wells College boathouse, so I missed the scoters and the rest of the grebes Bob mentioned. However, I can add a few bits of info: "Screechie" was out in the box at the Factory Street pond in Union Springs. In fact, this particular Eastern Screech-Owl has been out every time I've looked this year. Has anyone seen it move lately? From Union Springs north the ice appears continuous until the Village of Cayuga, where a broad opening appears well south of Harris Park and continues north all the way to Mud Lock, with the Seneca-Cayuga canal being open as well. There were plenty of Aythya by the Village of Cayuga but my scanning was interrupted by a train which put most ducks into the air. All 3 swan species were in the area, including 5 MUTE SWANS visible from Harris Park, 2 adult and 1 immature TRUMPETER SWANS along the near shore just south of Mud Lock, and hundreds of presumably mostly TUNDRA SWANS in between (I did not get a close look from north of the railroad). An adult BALD EAGLE kept vigil by the nest at Mud Lock, and I suspect the mate was hidden in the nest. On the west side the ice was continuous past Upper Lake Rd and Lower Lake Rd, Bridgeport in the Town of Seneca Falls, and continued south out of sight toward Canoga. However there were a few soft-looking spots, and when they melt it's time to look for Eurasian Wigeon, Green-winged Teal, Northern Shoveler, etc., in those polynyas. As it was getting toward dusk I decided to check out the area which Marty Schlabach & family had reported on. At 6pm as I drove west up Wycoff Rd toward Rock River Rd I saw 4 SHORT-EARED OWLS gallavanting over the fields to the north and south. --Dave Nutter On Feb 27, 2011, at 04:27 PM, bob mcguire wrote:In addition to the Red-necked Grebe at Ladoga today, Drew and I had a few other interesting sightings. The wind was calm and the lake like glass in several places. And no "heat" shimmer. Therefor, it was a good day for birds on the water. But first we encountered a flock of 100 Horned larks on the now-old manure spread across from the Triangle Diner. No buntings or longspurs, but we suspected that they might still be in the neighborhood. Aurora Bay, scoped from the parking lot above the boathouse, yielded 6 Horned Grebes, a pair of White-winged Scoters, and two Long-tailed Ducks. The scoters were in adult plumage, different, I think, from the WHWISC seen on the lake recently. There remains a tight flock of Redheads north of the boathouse, but the numbers seemed reduced from past weeks. In fact a large portion of the aythya flock now seems strung out along the ice edge just north of Union Springs. Van Dyne Spoor Road was drivable to the far end, but we found nothing of interest - no shrike, mockingbird, kestrel, rough-legged, or harrier. Van Cleef Lake was still completely frozen, and no gulls were present. Coming down the west side of the lake, we found the ice edge between Parker Road (Canoga) and Bonnie Banks Road. We noted goldeneye, a portion of the aythya flock, Tundra Swans, and a single Common Loon. Finally, along Elm Beach Road we found 11 Horned Grebes - likely different ones from those in Aurora Bay earlier. Not much of interest along Wyers Point Rd/Sheldrake. And we missed grackle at Bill & Shirley's. All in all, it was a good day, and great to be out without needing hand warmers! Bob McGuire -- Cayugabirds-L List Info: http://www.NortheastBirding.com/CayugabirdsWELCOME http://www.NortheastBirding.com/CayugabirdsRULES ARCHIVES: 1) cayugabirds-l@cornell.edu/maillist.html'>http://www.mail-archive.com/cayugabirds-l@cornell.edu/maillist.html 2) http://birdingonthe.net/mailinglists/CAYU.html 3) http://www.surfbirds.com/birdingmail/Group/Cayugabirds Please submit your observations to eBird: http://ebird.org/content/ebird/ --
Re: [cayugabirds-l] Around the Lake Today
I accompanied the students of the Birding Club at Cornell around the lake today, following in the wake of Bob and Drew. We had an excellent day, with lots of good looks at various waterfowl and a few other winter birds. And of course, moderate temperatures and no wind never hurt morale. We saw American Wigeon, Gadwall, and Northern Pintail at nearly every stop. We started at Portland Point, where Bob and Drew's much-publicized RED-NECKED GREBE was easily visible to the north (thanks for the tip, Bob.) Two HORNED GREBES and a couple of Tundra Swans were about all from the north spit. We found a handful of Horned Larks in the field directly south of the Triangle Diner, but they quickly multiplied into about 120, with a dozen SNOW BUNTINGS and 2 LAPLAND LONGSPURS in their midst. Rafferty Road was comparatively quiet, raptor-wise, with only a Rough-legged and a kestrel, but we did see several RING-NECKED PHEASANTS near the intersection with Dixon Road. Aurora Bay was exquisitely calm and full of birds, as it often it. We found one male WHITE-WINGED SCOTER that flew north shortly after being spotted. We missed Bob and Drew's Long-tailed Ducks, but I was able to pick out the EARED GREBE not far from 16 HORNED GREBES, very distant but visible thanks to the conditions. At Union Springs, the EASTERN SCREECH-OWL was sunning itself in the Factory Street Pond box, and a female NORTHERN SHOVELER was sleeping on a log to the far left of the pond. We didn't venture into the marina to scan them, but there were large numbers of ducks and geese along the ice edge visible from Union Springs. Although the Athya numbers weren't staggering at the north end of the lake, the swans were putting in a good showing. Five MUTE SWANS were on the ice with Tundras at Harris Park just south of the railroad bridge (as well as a close Horned Grebe and lots of diving and dabbling ducks), and a couple of thousand Tundra Swans were congregated out on the ice and along the open channel to the north. We found a pair of TRUMPETER SWANS on the close ice edge mixed in with the Tundras, as well as a couple more Mute. Five more TRUMPETER SWANS were fairly close to the road at Mud Lock as well. A scan from the tower at the Main Pool at Montezuma yielded three ROUGH-LEGGED HAWKS and four BALD EAGLES. We then headed back down the west side. Sheldrake was relatively quiet and the wind started to pick up slightly (marring the glassy surface of the lake), and we didn't see too much, though a COMMON LOON was visible off Sheldrake Point. Finally, after a break at the Creamery, we headed to Ovid to look for owls. Sure enough, at 5:30 on Rock River Road just north of the intersection with Wyckoff Road, we found two SHORT-EARED OWLS sitting in a large tree, another on a fence post close to the road. Two more appeared after a few minutes, and they eventually all took flight and moved about the area until we left at 6:10. Great show! No sign of Red-winged Blackbirds or other spring arrivals other than dabbling ducks, but it was great to get in a bit more winter birding before spring kicks in. Everyone seemed to have a good time, and nearly everyone got at least one life bird. I ended with 70 species for the day. Cheers, Jay McGowan Dryden, NY On Sun, Feb 27, 2011 at 7:27 PM, bob mcguire wrote: > In addition to the Red-necked Grebe at Ladoga today, Drew and I had a few > other interesting sightings. The wind was calm and the lake like glass in > several places. And no "heat" shimmer. Therefor, it was a good day for birds > on the water. > > But first we encountered a flock of 100 Horned larks on the now-old manure > spread across from the Triangle Diner. No buntings or longspurs, but we > suspected that they might still be in the neighborhood. > > Aurora Bay, scoped from the parking lot above the boathouse, yielded 6 > Horned Grebes, a pair of White-winged Scoters, and two Long-tailed Ducks. > The scoters were in adult plumage, different, I think, from the WHWISC seen > on the lake recently. There remains a tight flock of Redheads north of the > boathouse, but the numbers seemed reduced from past weeks. In fact a large > portion of the aythya flock now seems strung out along the ice edge just > north of Union Springs. > > Van Dyne Spoor Road was drivable to the far end, but we found nothing of > interest - no shrike, mockingbird, kestrel, rough-legged, or harrier. > > Van Cleef Lake was still completely frozen, and no gulls were present. > > Coming down the west side of the lake, we found the ice edge between Parker > Road (Canoga) and Bonnie Banks Road. We noted goldeneye, a portion of the > aythya flock, Tundra Swans, and a single Common Loon. > > Finally, along Elm Beach Road we found 11 Horned Grebes - likely different > ones from those in Aurora Bay earlier. Not much of interest along Wyers > Point Rd/Sheldrake. And we missed grackle at Bill & Shirley's. > > All in all, it was a good day, and great to be out without needing hand
[cayugabirds-l] Around the Lake Today
In addition to the Red-necked Grebe at Ladoga today, Drew and I had a few other interesting sightings. The wind was calm and the lake like glass in several places. And no "heat" shimmer. Therefor, it was a good day for birds on the water. But first we encountered a flock of 100 Horned larks on the now-old manure spread across from the Triangle Diner. No buntings or longspurs, but we suspected that they might still be in the neighborhood. Aurora Bay, scoped from the parking lot above the boathouse, yielded 6 Horned Grebes, a pair of White-winged Scoters, and two Long-tailed Ducks. The scoters were in adult plumage, different, I think, from the WHWISC seen on the lake recently. There remains a tight flock of Redheads north of the boathouse, but the numbers seemed reduced from past weeks. In fact a large portion of the aythya flock now seems strung out along the ice edge just north of Union Springs. Van Dyne Spoor Road was drivable to the far end, but we found nothing of interest - no shrike, mockingbird, kestrel, rough-legged, or harrier. Van Cleef Lake was still completely frozen, and no gulls were present. Coming down the west side of the lake, we found the ice edge between Parker Road (Canoga) and Bonnie Banks Road. We noted goldeneye, a portion of the aythya flock, Tundra Swans, and a single Common Loon. Finally, along Elm Beach Road we found 11 Horned Grebes - likely different ones from those in Aurora Bay earlier. Not much of interest along Wyers Point Rd/Sheldrake. And we missed grackle at Bill & Shirley's. All in all, it was a good day, and great to be out without needing hand warmers! Bob McGuire -- Cayugabirds-L List Info: http://www.NortheastBirding.com/CayugabirdsWELCOME http://www.NortheastBirding.com/CayugabirdsRULES ARCHIVES: 1) http://www.mail-archive.com/cayugabirds-l@cornell.edu/maillist.html 2) http://birdingonthe.net/mailinglists/CAYU.html 3) http://www.surfbirds.com/birdingmail/Group/Cayugabirds Please submit your observations to eBird: http://ebird.org/content/ebird/ --
