[nysbirds-l] Gilgo: Gyrfalcon
Having arrived at about 10am, I was told that just 10 minutes before the bird was seen departing the Osprey nest platform west of the Gilgo Parking Lot (yesterday's location) heading north and possibly east. I, along with a number of other observers remained at the location searching to no avail for several hours. At about 1;30 a birder showed up saying that the bird was perched on an Osprey Nest Platform about a mile west of the Cedar Beach Parking Lot. Several of the group headed east to seek our fortune. We parked on the north verge of the highway and hoped the police would not show up, as it is a ticketable offense. The Gyrfalcon was perched on a cross-beam of the platform facing north and preening. This was a distant but definitive observation. I left at about 2:00 with the bird still perched. If you don't want to risk a ticket, park at Cedar Beach and walk west. Good luck to all. -- NYSbirds-L List Info: http://www.NortheastBirding.com/NYSbirdsWELCOME http://www.NortheastBirding.com/NYSbirdsRULES http://www.NortheastBirding.com/NYSbirdsSubscribeConfigurationLeave.htm ARCHIVES: 1) http://www.mail-archive.com/nysbirds-l@cornell.edu/maillist.html 2) http://www.surfbirds.com/birdingmail/Group/NYSBirds-L 3) http://birdingonthe.net/mailinglists/NYSB.html Please submit your observations to eBird: http://ebird.org/content/ebird/ --
[nysbirds-l] Gyrfalcon-NO
Hi all, There were lots of people looking for the Gyrfalcon at Gilgo today but no one that I met had a confirmed sighting. At one point we saw three large, very distant, falcons in flight and one was obviously larger than the others. The larger bird took off from the beach of one of the distant islands that can be seen from the west end of the Gilgo Beach Inn parking lot. Apparently the Gyr perched in the same spot yesterday after killing a duck.The larger bird was being harassed by one of the smaller ones. We were leaning towards Gyr but we thought that the size difference could alternatively be attributed to a large female peregrine. The birds were so far away that we could not be sure. Bring a Celestron! The osprey platforms and channel markers east and west of the Gilgo Beach Inn parking lot seem to be good places to look, but they only hosted peregrines for us. Does anyone have a positive report to share? It would be great to get some more info out there so that people driving from far afield may have a better chance of success. Thanks, Bert Harris, Princeton, NJ -- NYSbirds-L List Info: http://www.NortheastBirding.com/NYSbirdsWELCOME http://www.NortheastBirding.com/NYSbirdsRULES http://www.NortheastBirding.com/NYSbirdsSubscribeConfigurationLeave.htm ARCHIVES: 1) http://www.mail-archive.com/nysbirds-l@cornell.edu/maillist.html 2) http://www.surfbirds.com/birdingmail/Group/NYSBirds-L 3) http://birdingonthe.net/mailinglists/NYSB.html Please submit your observations to eBird: http://ebird.org/content/ebird/ --
[nysbirds-l] Montauk Point/ Hook Pond Birds, Monday , Feb. 26th, 2013
Hello All,What a pleasure it is to have a birding day with temps in the forties with the lightest of winds. Last Sunday I had led an Audubon walk that included Montauk. The measured windchill happened to be 1 degree. The five of us exited the cars that day at Lazy Point to try for the Snowy Owl and nearly got blown over to the Walking Dunes. Today Dick Belanger and I spent some time by the Lighthouse. There were more Common Eider,[200+], than any of the Scoters around. We had a single Northern Gannet flyby and a Red Necked Grebe on the southside with 20 Horned Grebe. The wind was just strong enough to smooth the faces of the breakers that were peaking up in front of the lighthouse. Surfers were jazzed. Ditch Plains had many surfers but few waterbirds. We found the Barrows Goldeneye pair with close to 40 Common Goldeneye from the beach at South Lake Drive. Did'nt try for the Snowy. At Hook Pond in East Hampton we noticed the Common Mergansers had returned. There were 21 birds, eighteen of them males. Nice day out east.Good Late February Birding, Carl Starace -- NYSbirds-L List Info: http://www.NortheastBirding.com/NYSbirdsWELCOME http://www.NortheastBirding.com/NYSbirdsRULES http://www.NortheastBirding.com/NYSbirdsSubscribeConfigurationLeave.htm ARCHIVES: 1) http://www.mail-archive.com/nysbirds-l@cornell.edu/maillist.html 2) http://www.surfbirds.com/birdingmail/Group/NYSBirds-L 3) http://birdingonthe.net/mailinglists/NYSB.html Please submit your observations to eBird: http://ebird.org/content/ebird/ --
[nysbirds-l] Syracuse RBA
RBA * New York * Syracuse * February 25, 2013 * NYSY 02. 25. 13 Hotline: Syracuse Rare bird Alert Dates(s): February 18, 2013 - February 25, 2013 to report by e-mail: brinjoseph AT yahoo.com covering upstate NY counties: Cayuga, Montezuma National Wildlife Refuge and Montezuma Wetlands Complex (MWC) (just outside Cayuga County), Onondaga, Oswego, Lewis, Jefferson, Oneida, Herkimer, Madison & Cortland compiled:February 25 AT 5:30 p.m. (EST) compiler: Joseph Brin Onondaga Audubon Homepage: www.onondagaaudubon.org #343 -Monday February 25, 2013 Greetings. This is the Syracuse Area Rare Bird Alert for the week of February 18 , 2013 Highlights: --- TUFTED DUCK SURF SCOTER ICELAND GULL SHORT-EARED OWL NORTHERN SHRIKE AMERICAN PIPIT BOHEMIAN WAXWING LAPLAND LONGSPUR EVENING GROSBEAK HOARY REDPOLL Montezuma National Wildlife Refuge (MNWR) and Montezuma Wetlands Complex (MWC) 2/21: 2 SHORT-EARED OWLS were seen from VanDyne Spoor Road. 10 SHORT-EARED OWLS were seen from Morgan Road 2/24: 7 SHORT-EARED OWLS were seen from Morgan Road. 3 SHORT-EARED OWLS were seen from East Road. Jefferson County 40 BOHEMIAN WAXWINGS were seen at Point Peninsula. Onondaga County 2/19: At least 1 LAPLAND LONGSPUR continues with HORNED LARKS on East Sorrell Hill Road south of Connors Road. One was seen again on 2/21. 2/20: An AMERICAN PIPIT continues at the Carpenters Brook Fish Hatchery near Elbridge. It was found again on 2/22. 2/22: A NORTHERN SHRIKE was seen at the corner of Emerick and Babcock Roads near Beaver Lake Nature Center. 2/23: 15 BALD EAGLES were seen on the ice at Cross Lake from Farnham Road in Memphis. 2/24: 6 BOHEMIAN WAXWINGS were spotted along the Erie Canal in Kirkville. EVENING GROSBEAKS were seen on Shakahm Road although they may have been in Cortland County. Oswego County 2/22: 43 BOHEMIAN WAXWINGS were seen in Oswego at the north end of County Rt.57. 2/23: The female TUFTED DUCK was relocated west (south) of Oswego Harbor near the SUNY Campus. A SURF SCOTER and an ICELAND GULL were seen in the Harbor. Madison County 2/24: COMMON REDPOLLS plus a HOARY REDPOLL were seen at a feeder on Paradise Hill Road. At least 200 COMMON REDPOLLS and 30 EVENING GROSBEAKS were seen at a feeder on Carpenter Road. 2 ROUGH-LEGGED HAWKS were seen near New Woodstock. Cayuga County 2/23: A BARRED OWL was seen at Fairhaven State Park. -- end report Joseph Brin Region 5 Baldwinsville, N.Y. 13027 U.S.A. -- NYSbirds-L List Info: http://www.NortheastBirding.com/NYSbirdsWELCOME http://www.NortheastBirding.com/NYSbirdsRULES http://www.NortheastBirding.com/NYSbirdsSubscribeConfigurationLeave.htm ARCHIVES: 1) http://www.mail-archive.com/nysbirds-l@cornell.edu/maillist.html 2) http://www.surfbirds.com/birdingmail/Group/NYSBirds-L 3) http://birdingonthe.net/mailinglists/NYSB.html Please submit your observations to eBird: http://ebird.org/content/ebird/ --
[nysbirds-l] Today at Kissena Park Queens, NYC: a Common Redpoll, a Rough-legged hawk and a Great Horned Owl.
Today at Kissena Park Queens, NYC I spotted a Common Redpoll, a Rough-legged hawk and a Great Horned Owl in that order. I had a clear view of the adult female Common Redpoll. It was in the brush and small trees at the north-western corner of the pond. The Rough-legged Hawk was spotted after I noticed some blue jays were mobbing something. The Rough-legged Hawk stayed put for a few minutes until a Red-tailed Hawk swooped down at it. After that it flew away heading out of the park. Later on I heard blue jays mobbing something again. My initial thought was the Rough-legged Hawk had returned. I looked up and I saw a large and bulky bird fly away. I thought it was a Great Horned Owl, but I was not sure because I did not get a good view of it. A minute or two later the large bird came back and landed in the tree I was standing under. I had a good look at it, and I then was sure it was a Great Horned Owl. -- NYSbirds-L List Info: http://www.NortheastBirding.com/NYSbirdsWELCOME http://www.NortheastBirding.com/NYSbirdsRULES http://www.NortheastBirding.com/NYSbirdsSubscribeConfigurationLeave.htm ARCHIVES: 1) http://www.mail-archive.com/nysbirds-l@cornell.edu/maillist.html 2) http://www.surfbirds.com/birdingmail/Group/NYSBirds-L 3) http://birdingonthe.net/mailinglists/NYSB.html Please submit your observations to eBird: http://ebird.org/content/ebird/ --
Re: [nysbirds-l] Long Island: Nassau/Suffolk Tufted Duck(s) coming full circle?
Also, Both the north and south ends of Stump Pond often remain open even when the rest freezes over. The effect is a large frozen "middle" with to open ends. This is the frist time I have checked the north end of the pond since the most recent freeze-up. I never saw the Tufted Duck on the south end, but I thought there was a chance it was continuing on the north end. Lack of sightings since early February are not necessarily indicative of the bird's absence. -Peter --- On Mon, 2/25/13, Angus Wilson wrote: From: Angus Wilson Subject: [nysbirds-l] Long Island: Nassau/Suffolk Tufted Duck(s) coming full circle? To: "NYSBIRDS-L" Date: Monday, February 25, 2013, 1:07 PM I've been intrigued by the various reports of male TUFTED DUCK(S) in the Huntington, Long Island (Suffolk Co.) area this winter. The presumption is that a single bird is involved, moving from one site to another, but one or two people have thought otherwise based on their views of the birds. As you may recall, the original sightings were from Huntington Harbor and its side arm of Lloyd Neck. After being seen daily on this saltwater inlet into the New Year, the bird disappeared only to be rediscovered (presumably) a few miles away at St Johns Pond in Cold Spring Harbor, right on the Nassau/Suffolk County line. When St Johns pond froze, the bird moved a short distance on the marine inlet of Cold Spring Harbor itself (27 Jan). A few days later a drake Tufted was found some 12 miles away at Blydenburgh County Park in Hauppauge (Suffolk), where it remained for a few days at least (1-4 Feb). However on 11 Feb Cory Finger refound a Tufted Duck on St Johns Pond in Cold Spring Harbor but it seems not to have lingered (at least there have been no posted sightings). This weekend I saw a nice photo of an adult male Tufted from Heckscher Park (Suffolk) taken by Charleen Turner. The flanks appear gleaming white but the tuft is still not quite full enough for a breeding condition male but it's getting there. The bird was seen on the pond there on 19 and 22 Feb and there were similar close sightings there yesterday (24 Feb) by Sarah McGullam and Patricia Aitken. As is often the case on Long Island, the name is a little confusing and this small park is different from Heckscher State Park in East Islip down on the south shore, but is in fact in Huntington, close to the south end of Huntington Harbor where the Tufted Duck (again presumably the same bird) was originally discovered. Todays post from Peter Scully reporting the Tufted at Blydenburgh CP comes as a surprise, given that this is about 10 miles from Heckscher Park. Is the bird moving back and forth or are there in fact two similar-looking birds in this part of Long Island? One question that Peter might be able to answer is whether the Blydenburgh individual stills has any brown smudging on the flanks? It had quite a lot of brown when I saw it there on 2 Feb but this might change rapidly. Simultaneous sightings from more than one location would of course solve this little mystery. -- Angus Wilson New York City & The Springs, NY, USA http://birdingtotheend.blogspot.com/ -- NYSbirds-L List Info: Welcome and Basics Rules and Information Subscribe, Configuration and Leave Archives: The Mail Archive Surfbirds BirdingOnThe.Net Please submit your observations to eBird! -- -- NYSbirds-L List Info: http://www.NortheastBirding.com/NYSbirdsWELCOME http://www.NortheastBirding.com/NYSbirdsRULES http://www.NortheastBirding.com/NYSbirdsSubscribeConfigurationLeave.htm ARCHIVES: 1) http://www.mail-archive.com/nysbirds-l@cornell.edu/maillist.html 2) http://www.surfbirds.com/birdingmail/Group/NYSBirds-L 3) http://birdingonthe.net/mailinglists/NYSB.html Please submit your observations to eBird: http://ebird.org/content/ebird/ --
Re: [nysbirds-l] Long Island: Nassau/Suffolk Tufted Duck(s) coming full circle?
Angus, et al., The Blydenburgh Tufted Duck seen today still has considerable brown smudging on its lower flanks, though these markings were only visible when the bird rotated in the water to preen. The smudging is not readily apparent when the bird is simply resting on the water. I will post some photographs later on this evening (which do not show the smudging). I think Sam Stuart managed some good photos of this bird earlier in the month that might be helpful. Regards, Peter --- On Mon, 2/25/13, Angus Wilson wrote: From: Angus Wilson Subject: [nysbirds-l] Long Island: Nassau/Suffolk Tufted Duck(s) coming full circle? To: "NYSBIRDS-L" Date: Monday, February 25, 2013, 1:07 PM I've been intrigued by the various reports of male TUFTED DUCK(S) in the Huntington, Long Island (Suffolk Co.) area this winter. The presumption is that a single bird is involved, moving from one site to another, but one or two people have thought otherwise based on their views of the birds. As you may recall, the original sightings were from Huntington Harbor and its side arm of Lloyd Neck. After being seen daily on this saltwater inlet into the New Year, the bird disappeared only to be rediscovered (presumably) a few miles away at St Johns Pond in Cold Spring Harbor, right on the Nassau/Suffolk County line. When St Johns pond froze, the bird moved a short distance on the marine inlet of Cold Spring Harbor itself (27 Jan). A few days later a drake Tufted was found some 12 miles away at Blydenburgh County Park in Hauppauge (Suffolk), where it remained for a few days at least (1-4 Feb). However on 11 Feb Cory Finger refound a Tufted Duck on St Johns Pond in Cold Spring Harbor but it seems not to have lingered (at least there have been no posted sightings). This weekend I saw a nice photo of an adult male Tufted from Heckscher Park (Suffolk) taken by Charleen Turner. The flanks appear gleaming white but the tuft is still not quite full enough for a breeding condition male but it's getting there. The bird was seen on the pond there on 19 and 22 Feb and there were similar close sightings there yesterday (24 Feb) by Sarah McGullam and Patricia Aitken. As is often the case on Long Island, the name is a little confusing and this small park is different from Heckscher State Park in East Islip down on the south shore, but is in fact in Huntington, close to the south end of Huntington Harbor where the Tufted Duck (again presumably the same bird) was originally discovered. Todays post from Peter Scully reporting the Tufted at Blydenburgh CP comes as a surprise, given that this is about 10 miles from Heckscher Park. Is the bird moving back and forth or are there in fact two similar-looking birds in this part of Long Island? One question that Peter might be able to answer is whether the Blydenburgh individual stills has any brown smudging on the flanks? It had quite a lot of brown when I saw it there on 2 Feb but this might change rapidly. Simultaneous sightings from more than one location would of course solve this little mystery. -- Angus Wilson New York City & The Springs, NY, USA http://birdingtotheend.blogspot.com/ -- NYSbirds-L List Info: Welcome and Basics Rules and Information Subscribe, Configuration and Leave Archives: The Mail Archive Surfbirds BirdingOnThe.Net Please submit your observations to eBird! -- -- NYSbirds-L List Info: http://www.NortheastBirding.com/NYSbirdsWELCOME http://www.NortheastBirding.com/NYSbirdsRULES http://www.NortheastBirding.com/NYSbirdsSubscribeConfigurationLeave.htm ARCHIVES: 1) http://www.mail-archive.com/nysbirds-l@cornell.edu/maillist.html 2) http://www.surfbirds.com/birdingmail/Group/NYSBirds-L 3) http://birdingonthe.net/mailinglists/NYSB.html Please submit your observations to eBird: http://ebird.org/content/ebird/ --
[nysbirds-l] Long Island: Nassau/Suffolk Tufted Duck(s) coming full circle?
I've been intrigued by the various reports of male TUFTED DUCK(S) in the Huntington, Long Island (Suffolk Co.) area this winter. The presumption is that a single bird is involved, moving from one site to another, but one or two people have thought otherwise based on their views of the birds. As you may recall, the original sightings were from Huntington Harbor and its side arm of Lloyd Neck. After being seen daily on this saltwater inlet into the New Year, the bird disappeared only to be rediscovered (presumably) a few miles away at St Johns Pond in Cold Spring Harbor, right on the Nassau/Suffolk County line. When St Johns pond froze, the bird moved a short distance on the marine inlet of Cold Spring Harbor itself (27 Jan). A few days later a drake Tufted was found some 12 miles away at Blydenburgh County Park in Hauppauge (Suffolk), where it remained for a few days at least (1-4 Feb). However on 11 Feb Cory Finger refound a Tufted Duck on St Johns Pond in Cold Spring Harbor but it seems not to have lingered (at least there have been no posted sightings). This weekend I saw a nice photo of an adult male Tufted from Heckscher Park (Suffolk) taken by Charleen Turner. The flanks appear gleaming white but the tuft is still not quite full enough for a breeding condition male but it's getting there. The bird was seen on the pond there on 19 and 22 Feb and there were similar close sightings there yesterday (24 Feb) by Sarah McGullam and Patricia Aitken. As is often the case on Long Island, the name is a little confusing and this small park is different from Heckscher State Park in East Islip down on the south shore, but is in fact in Huntington, close to the south end of Huntington Harbor where the Tufted Duck (again presumably the same bird) was originally discovered. Todays post from Peter Scully reporting the Tufted at Blydenburgh CP comes as a surprise, given that this is about 10 miles from Heckscher Park. Is the bird moving back and forth or are there in fact two similar-looking birds in this part of Long Island? One question that Peter might be able to answer is whether the Blydenburgh individual stills has any brown smudging on the flanks? It had quite a lot of brown when I saw it there on 2 Feb but this might change rapidly. Simultaneous sightings from more than one location would of course solve this little mystery. -- Angus Wilson New York City & The Springs, NY, USA http://birdingtotheend.blogspot.com/ -- NYSbirds-L List Info: http://www.NortheastBirding.com/NYSbirdsWELCOME http://www.NortheastBirding.com/NYSbirdsRULES http://www.NortheastBirding.com/NYSbirdsSubscribeConfigurationLeave.htm ARCHIVES: 1) http://www.mail-archive.com/nysbirds-l@cornell.edu/maillist.html 2) http://www.surfbirds.com/birdingmail/Group/NYSBirds-L 3) http://birdingonthe.net/mailinglists/NYSB.html Please submit your observations to eBird: http://ebird.org/content/ebird/ --
[nysbirds-l] Sunday-the perfect day to have prayers answered !
Sorry for the late post, but due to a computer problem last night, I had to wait until now for "tech" support to get me going. Yesterday, Tom Moran and I raced down to Gilgo Beach in time to wait for quite awhile before seeing the Gyrfalcon. At ~ 3:30 PM the bird just seemed to appear (no one saw it approaching in flight) at one of the osprey platforms on the w/s of the p/lot, with the bird's shape and size (at that distance) making it just a "strong possibility". We were then able to get to a closer vantage point, which enabled us to feel sure of the bird's ID, because of it's overall color and body bulk and length. After the gyr left, we decided to try for the Red-necked Grebe at Captree (neither Tom nor I had yet to see this species this season) and therefore had to travel a good deal west (due to road repair) in order to swing around to head east - but this proved to be quite helpful. It put us closer to the platform and because the road level is much higher than the marsh level/view, we were able to see the platform from a much better angle. As we came to parallel said platform, we noticed it was occupied again, however, by the wrong falcon - this might have been the 3rd Peregrine of the day. Earlier, we had seen two ( 1 flying overhead, while at the same time, another was resting on the marsh) and an A.Bittern, from the p/lot. The bird we were viewing now was smaller (bulk & length), much less gray, had the head & facial features, as well as the throat, wings and tail coloring of a peregrine. I must give credit, for picking up on some of these field marks before I did, to Tom and to a birder from Huntington, Pat Palladino (sp ?), who joined us by the side of the road, after meeting him for the first time at the p/lot. For the most part, human nature seems to react positively when a situation requiring action presents itself...however, yesterday, was not without it's exceptions. To reference my point re: the 2 people who acted badly at Gilgo, I would like to go back to 2/15/'81, the date of my first Gyrfalcon sighting. It was at the Lawrence Marsh, Nassau Co., and the bird was a white morph...a real "stunner" ! Our group of Moriches Bay Auduboners, led by Gil Raynor, was very fortunate to see the bird at rest in a tree (the highlight being it's bright yellow cere seen through a Quester telescope), flying, preening on the marsh and unfortunately, as it 3X attacked a Great-horned Owl decoy, placed on top of a pole, and held by a character who had walked out to the middle of the marsh. We never found out his name or why he did it, but to this day, it ranks as the worst case of "bird stress" I've ever encountered. Now the two cases of unethical behavior I witnessed yesterday ( one by, I believe, a photographer - the other by a birder) certainly pales in comparison to the 1981 disgrace, but they do illustrate contempt for excepted rules and for other birders and photographers alike. When told,, as they started to walk on private property in order to get nearer to the bird for a better view and/or photo (bearing in mind the bird was in view without trespassing), they chose to walk on. Disregarding being told their actions could cause problems for those who hadn't seen the bird yet, they just kept walking. In fact one of them said, with what sounded like pride "I've been going on private property for 15 years and." ! Although there was no one home at this location, there was a neighbor home 2,or,3 houses down, thereby,making it a real possibility of the authorities being called. I can only hope the frustration expressed here, helps somebody make the right decision in the future ! Cheers, Bob. -- NYSbirds-L List Info: http://www.NortheastBirding.com/NYSbirdsWELCOME http://www.NortheastBirding.com/NYSbirdsRULES http://www.NortheastBirding.com/NYSbirdsSubscribeConfigurationLeave.htm ARCHIVES: 1) http://www.mail-archive.com/nysbirds-l@cornell.edu/maillist.html 2) http://www.surfbirds.com/birdingmail/Group/NYSBirds-L 3) http://birdingonthe.net/mailinglists/NYSB.html Please submit your observations to eBird: http://ebird.org/content/ebird/ --
[nysbirds-l] Tufted Duck @ Blydenburgh-Yes
The drake Tufted Duck continues at the north end of Stump Pond at Blydenburgh (Suffolk). Best access from trail at NW corner of dog run parking lot. -Peter Sent from my iPhone -- NYSbirds-L List Info: http://www.NortheastBirding.com/NYSbirdsWELCOME http://www.NortheastBirding.com/NYSbirdsRULES http://www.NortheastBirding.com/NYSbirdsSubscribeConfigurationLeave.htm ARCHIVES: 1) http://www.mail-archive.com/nysbirds-l@cornell.edu/maillist.html 2) http://www.surfbirds.com/birdingmail/Group/NYSBirds-L 3) http://birdingonthe.net/mailinglists/NYSB.html Please submit your observations to eBird: http://ebird.org/content/ebird/ --
[nysbirds-l] The New York Botanical Garden
A belated report from the Saturday morning bird walk at NYBG. Highlights; PINE SISKIN, and PURPLE FINCH We saw the usual suspects: Chickadee Tufted titmouse Cardinal Blue jay White breasted nuthatch American Robin American Goldfinch White throated sparrow Song sparrow Red tailed hawk Cooper's hawk Mallard House Finch Red bellied woodpecker Downy woodpecker The garden was quiet and wet. The Orchid Show, which starts next Saturday, hopefully will signal the beginning of spring. Good birding, Debbie Becker BirdingAroundNYC.com -- NYSbirds-L List Info: http://www.NortheastBirding.com/NYSbirdsWELCOME http://www.NortheastBirding.com/NYSbirdsRULES http://www.NortheastBirding.com/NYSbirdsSubscribeConfigurationLeave.htm ARCHIVES: 1) http://www.mail-archive.com/nysbirds-l@cornell.edu/maillist.html 2) http://www.surfbirds.com/birdingmail/Group/NYSBirds-L 3) http://birdingonthe.net/mailinglists/NYSB.html Please submit your observations to eBird: http://ebird.org/content/ebird/ --
[nysbirds-l] The New York Botanical Garden
A belated report from the Saturday morning bird walk at NYBG. Highlights; PINE SISKIN, and PURPLE FINCH We saw the usual suspects: Chickadee Tufted titmouse Cardinal Blue jay White breasted nuthatch American Robin American Goldfinch White throated sparrow Song sparrow Red tailed hawk Cooper's hawk Mallard House Finch Red bellied woodpecker Downy woodpecker The garden was quiet and wet. The Orchid Show, which starts next Saturday, hopefully will signal the beginning of spring. Good birding, Debbie Becker BirdingAroundNYC.com -- NYSbirds-L List Info: http://www.NortheastBirding.com/NYSbirdsWELCOME http://www.NortheastBirding.com/NYSbirdsRULES http://www.NortheastBirding.com/NYSbirdsSubscribeConfigurationLeave.htm ARCHIVES: 1) http://www.mail-archive.com/nysbirds-l@cornell.edu/maillist.html 2) http://www.surfbirds.com/birdingmail/Group/NYSBirds-L 3) http://birdingonthe.net/mailinglists/NYSB.html Please submit your observations to eBird: http://ebird.org/content/ebird/ --
[nysbirds-l] Tufted Duck @ Blydenburgh-Yes
The drake Tufted Duck continues at the north end of Stump Pond at Blydenburgh (Suffolk). Best access from trail at NW corner of dog run parking lot. -Peter Sent from my iPhone -- NYSbirds-L List Info: http://www.NortheastBirding.com/NYSbirdsWELCOME http://www.NortheastBirding.com/NYSbirdsRULES http://www.NortheastBirding.com/NYSbirdsSubscribeConfigurationLeave.htm ARCHIVES: 1) http://www.mail-archive.com/nysbirds-l@cornell.edu/maillist.html 2) http://www.surfbirds.com/birdingmail/Group/NYSBirds-L 3) http://birdingonthe.net/mailinglists/NYSB.html Please submit your observations to eBird: http://ebird.org/content/ebird/ --
[nysbirds-l] Sunday-the perfect day to have prayers answered !
Sorry for the late post, but due to a computer problem last night, I had to wait until now for tech support to get me going. Yesterday, Tom Moran and I raced down to Gilgo Beach in time to wait for quite awhile before seeing the Gyrfalcon. At ~ 3:30 PM the bird just seemed to appear (no one saw it approaching in flight) at one of the osprey platforms on the w/s of the p/lot, with the bird's shape and size (at that distance) making it just a strong possibility. We were then able to get to a closer vantage point, which enabled us to feel sure of the bird's ID, because of it's overall color and body bulk and length. After the gyr left, we decided to try for the Red-necked Grebe at Captree (neither Tom nor I had yet to see this species this season) and therefore had to travel a good deal west (due to road repair) in order to swing around to head east - but this proved to be quite helpful. It put us closer to the platform and because the road level is much higher than the marsh level/view, we were able to see the platform from a much better angle. As we came to parallel said platform, we noticed it was occupied again, however, by the wrong falcon - this might have been the 3rd Peregrine of the day. Earlier, we had seen two ( 1 flying overhead, while at the same time, another was resting on the marsh) and an A.Bittern, from the p/lot. The bird we were viewing now was smaller (bulk length), much less gray, had the head facial features, as well as the throat, wings and tail coloring of a peregrine. I must give credit, for picking up on some of these field marks before I did, to Tom and to a birder from Huntington, Pat Palladino (sp ?), who joined us by the side of the road, after meeting him for the first time at the p/lot. For the most part, human nature seems to react positively when a situation requiring action presents itself...however, yesterday, was not without it's exceptions. To reference my point re: the 2 people who acted badly at Gilgo, I would like to go back to 2/15/'81, the date of my first Gyrfalcon sighting. It was at the Lawrence Marsh, Nassau Co., and the bird was a white morph...a real stunner ! Our group of Moriches Bay Auduboners, led by Gil Raynor, was very fortunate to see the bird at rest in a tree (the highlight being it's bright yellow cere seen through a Quester telescope), flying, preening on the marsh and unfortunately, as it 3X attacked a Great-horned Owl decoy, placed on top of a pole, and held by a character who had walked out to the middle of the marsh. We never found out his name or why he did it, but to this day, it ranks as the worst case of bird stress I've ever encountered. Now the two cases of unethical behavior I witnessed yesterday ( one by, I believe, a photographer - the other by a birder) certainly pales in comparison to the 1981 disgrace, but they do illustrate contempt for excepted rules and for other birders and photographers alike. When told,, as they started to walk on private property in order to get nearer to the bird for a better view and/or photo (bearing in mind the bird was in view without trespassing), they chose to walk on. Disregarding being told their actions could cause problems for those who hadn't seen the bird yet, they just kept walking. In fact one of them said, with what sounded like pride I've been going on private property for 15 years and. ! Although there was no one home at this location, there was a neighbor home 2,or,3 houses down, thereby,making it a real possibility of the authorities being called. I can only hope the frustration expressed here, helps somebody make the right decision in the future ! Cheers, Bob. -- NYSbirds-L List Info: http://www.NortheastBirding.com/NYSbirdsWELCOME http://www.NortheastBirding.com/NYSbirdsRULES http://www.NortheastBirding.com/NYSbirdsSubscribeConfigurationLeave.htm ARCHIVES: 1) http://www.mail-archive.com/nysbirds-l@cornell.edu/maillist.html 2) http://www.surfbirds.com/birdingmail/Group/NYSBirds-L 3) http://birdingonthe.net/mailinglists/NYSB.html Please submit your observations to eBird: http://ebird.org/content/ebird/ --
[nysbirds-l] Long Island: Nassau/Suffolk Tufted Duck(s) coming full circle?
I've been intrigued by the various reports of male TUFTED DUCK(S) in the Huntington, Long Island (Suffolk Co.) area this winter. The presumption is that a single bird is involved, moving from one site to another, but one or two people have thought otherwise based on their views of the birds. As you may recall, the original sightings were from Huntington Harbor and its side arm of Lloyd Neck. After being seen daily on this saltwater inlet into the New Year, the bird disappeared only to be rediscovered (presumably) a few miles away at St Johns Pond in Cold Spring Harbor, right on the Nassau/Suffolk County line. When St Johns pond froze, the bird moved a short distance on the marine inlet of Cold Spring Harbor itself (27 Jan). A few days later a drake Tufted was found some 12 miles away at Blydenburgh County Park in Hauppauge (Suffolk), where it remained for a few days at least (1-4 Feb). However on 11 Feb Cory Finger refound a Tufted Duck on St Johns Pond in Cold Spring Harbor but it seems not to have lingered (at least there have been no posted sightings). This weekend I saw a nice photo of an adult male Tufted from Heckscher Park (Suffolk) taken by Charleen Turner. The flanks appear gleaming white but the tuft is still not quite full enough for a breeding condition male but it's getting there. The bird was seen on the pond there on 19 and 22 Feb and there were similar close sightings there yesterday (24 Feb) by Sarah McGullam and Patricia Aitken. As is often the case on Long Island, the name is a little confusing and this small park is different from Heckscher State Park in East Islip down on the south shore, but is in fact in Huntington, close to the south end of Huntington Harbor where the Tufted Duck (again presumably the same bird) was originally discovered. Todays post from Peter Scully reporting the Tufted at Blydenburgh CP comes as a surprise, given that this is about 10 miles from Heckscher Park. Is the bird moving back and forth or are there in fact two similar-looking birds in this part of Long Island? One question that Peter might be able to answer is whether the Blydenburgh individual stills has any brown smudging on the flanks? It had quite a lot of brown when I saw it there on 2 Feb but this might change rapidly. Simultaneous sightings from more than one location would of course solve this little mystery. -- Angus Wilson New York City The Springs, NY, USA http://birdingtotheend.blogspot.com/ -- NYSbirds-L List Info: http://www.NortheastBirding.com/NYSbirdsWELCOME http://www.NortheastBirding.com/NYSbirdsRULES http://www.NortheastBirding.com/NYSbirdsSubscribeConfigurationLeave.htm ARCHIVES: 1) http://www.mail-archive.com/nysbirds-l@cornell.edu/maillist.html 2) http://www.surfbirds.com/birdingmail/Group/NYSBirds-L 3) http://birdingonthe.net/mailinglists/NYSB.html Please submit your observations to eBird: http://ebird.org/content/ebird/ --
Re: [nysbirds-l] Long Island: Nassau/Suffolk Tufted Duck(s) coming full circle?
Angus, et al., The Blydenburgh Tufted Duck seen today still has considerable brown smudging on its lower flanks, though these markings were only visible when the bird rotated in the water to preen. The smudging is not readily apparent when the bird is simply resting on the water. I will post some photographs later on this evening (which do not show the smudging). I think Sam Stuart managed some good photos of this bird earlier in the month that might be helpful. Regards, Peter --- On Mon, 2/25/13, Angus Wilson oceanwander...@gmail.com wrote: From: Angus Wilson oceanwander...@gmail.com Subject: [nysbirds-l] Long Island: Nassau/Suffolk Tufted Duck(s) coming full circle? To: NYSBIRDS-L NYSBIRDS-L@cornell.edu Date: Monday, February 25, 2013, 1:07 PM I've been intrigued by the various reports of male TUFTED DUCK(S) in the Huntington, Long Island (Suffolk Co.) area this winter. The presumption is that a single bird is involved, moving from one site to another, but one or two people have thought otherwise based on their views of the birds. As you may recall, the original sightings were from Huntington Harbor and its side arm of Lloyd Neck. After being seen daily on this saltwater inlet into the New Year, the bird disappeared only to be rediscovered (presumably) a few miles away at St Johns Pond in Cold Spring Harbor, right on the Nassau/Suffolk County line. When St Johns pond froze, the bird moved a short distance on the marine inlet of Cold Spring Harbor itself (27 Jan). A few days later a drake Tufted was found some 12 miles away at Blydenburgh County Park in Hauppauge (Suffolk), where it remained for a few days at least (1-4 Feb). However on 11 Feb Cory Finger refound a Tufted Duck on St Johns Pond in Cold Spring Harbor but it seems not to have lingered (at least there have been no posted sightings). This weekend I saw a nice photo of an adult male Tufted from Heckscher Park (Suffolk) taken by Charleen Turner. The flanks appear gleaming white but the tuft is still not quite full enough for a breeding condition male but it's getting there. The bird was seen on the pond there on 19 and 22 Feb and there were similar close sightings there yesterday (24 Feb) by Sarah McGullam and Patricia Aitken. As is often the case on Long Island, the name is a little confusing and this small park is different from Heckscher State Park in East Islip down on the south shore, but is in fact in Huntington, close to the south end of Huntington Harbor where the Tufted Duck (again presumably the same bird) was originally discovered. Todays post from Peter Scully reporting the Tufted at Blydenburgh CP comes as a surprise, given that this is about 10 miles from Heckscher Park. Is the bird moving back and forth or are there in fact two similar-looking birds in this part of Long Island? One question that Peter might be able to answer is whether the Blydenburgh individual stills has any brown smudging on the flanks? It had quite a lot of brown when I saw it there on 2 Feb but this might change rapidly. Simultaneous sightings from more than one location would of course solve this little mystery. -- Angus Wilson New York City The Springs, NY, USA http://birdingtotheend.blogspot.com/ -- NYSbirds-L List Info: Welcome and Basics Rules and Information Subscribe, Configuration and Leave Archives: The Mail Archive Surfbirds BirdingOnThe.Net Please submit your observations to eBird! -- -- NYSbirds-L List Info: http://www.NortheastBirding.com/NYSbirdsWELCOME http://www.NortheastBirding.com/NYSbirdsRULES http://www.NortheastBirding.com/NYSbirdsSubscribeConfigurationLeave.htm ARCHIVES: 1) http://www.mail-archive.com/nysbirds-l@cornell.edu/maillist.html 2) http://www.surfbirds.com/birdingmail/Group/NYSBirds-L 3) http://birdingonthe.net/mailinglists/NYSB.html Please submit your observations to eBird: http://ebird.org/content/ebird/ --
[nysbirds-l] Today at Kissena Park Queens, NYC: a Common Redpoll, a Rough-legged hawk and a Great Horned Owl.
Today at Kissena Park Queens, NYC I spotted a Common Redpoll, a Rough-legged hawk and a Great Horned Owl in that order. I had a clear view of the adult female Common Redpoll. It was in the brush and small trees at the north-western corner of the pond. The Rough-legged Hawk was spotted after I noticed some blue jays were mobbing something. The Rough-legged Hawk stayed put for a few minutes until a Red-tailed Hawk swooped down at it. After that it flew away heading out of the park. Later on I heard blue jays mobbing something again. My initial thought was the Rough-legged Hawk had returned. I looked up and I saw a large and bulky bird fly away. I thought it was a Great Horned Owl, but I was not sure because I did not get a good view of it. A minute or two later the large bird came back and landed in the tree I was standing under. I had a good look at it, and I then was sure it was a Great Horned Owl. -- NYSbirds-L List Info: http://www.NortheastBirding.com/NYSbirdsWELCOME http://www.NortheastBirding.com/NYSbirdsRULES http://www.NortheastBirding.com/NYSbirdsSubscribeConfigurationLeave.htm ARCHIVES: 1) http://www.mail-archive.com/nysbirds-l@cornell.edu/maillist.html 2) http://www.surfbirds.com/birdingmail/Group/NYSBirds-L 3) http://birdingonthe.net/mailinglists/NYSB.html Please submit your observations to eBird: http://ebird.org/content/ebird/ --
[nysbirds-l] Syracuse RBA
RBA * New York * Syracuse * February 25, 2013 * NYSY 02. 25. 13 Hotline: Syracuse Rare bird Alert Dates(s): February 18, 2013 - February 25, 2013 to report by e-mail: brinjoseph AT yahoo.com covering upstate NY counties: Cayuga, Montezuma National Wildlife Refuge and Montezuma Wetlands Complex (MWC) (just outside Cayuga County), Onondaga, Oswego, Lewis, Jefferson, Oneida, Herkimer, Madison Cortland compiled:February 25 AT 5:30 p.m. (EST) compiler: Joseph Brin Onondaga Audubon Homepage: www.onondagaaudubon.org #343 -Monday February 25, 2013 Greetings. This is the Syracuse Area Rare Bird Alert for the week of February 18 , 2013 Highlights: --- TUFTED DUCK SURF SCOTER ICELAND GULL SHORT-EARED OWL NORTHERN SHRIKE AMERICAN PIPIT BOHEMIAN WAXWING LAPLAND LONGSPUR EVENING GROSBEAK HOARY REDPOLL Montezuma National Wildlife Refuge (MNWR) and Montezuma Wetlands Complex (MWC) 2/21: 2 SHORT-EARED OWLS were seen from VanDyne Spoor Road. 10 SHORT-EARED OWLS were seen from Morgan Road 2/24: 7 SHORT-EARED OWLS were seen from Morgan Road. 3 SHORT-EARED OWLS were seen from East Road. Jefferson County 40 BOHEMIAN WAXWINGS were seen at Point Peninsula. Onondaga County 2/19: At least 1 LAPLAND LONGSPUR continues with HORNED LARKS on East Sorrell Hill Road south of Connors Road. One was seen again on 2/21. 2/20: An AMERICAN PIPIT continues at the Carpenters Brook Fish Hatchery near Elbridge. It was found again on 2/22. 2/22: A NORTHERN SHRIKE was seen at the corner of Emerick and Babcock Roads near Beaver Lake Nature Center. 2/23: 15 BALD EAGLES were seen on the ice at Cross Lake from Farnham Road in Memphis. 2/24: 6 BOHEMIAN WAXWINGS were spotted along the Erie Canal in Kirkville. EVENING GROSBEAKS were seen on Shakahm Road although they may have been in Cortland County. Oswego County 2/22: 43 BOHEMIAN WAXWINGS were seen in Oswego at the north end of County Rt.57. 2/23: The female TUFTED DUCK was relocated west (south) of Oswego Harbor near the SUNY Campus. A SURF SCOTER and an ICELAND GULL were seen in the Harbor. Madison County 2/24: COMMON REDPOLLS plus a HOARY REDPOLL were seen at a feeder on Paradise Hill Road. At least 200 COMMON REDPOLLS and 30 EVENING GROSBEAKS were seen at a feeder on Carpenter Road. 2 ROUGH-LEGGED HAWKS were seen near New Woodstock. Cayuga County 2/23: A BARRED OWL was seen at Fairhaven State Park. -- end report Joseph Brin Region 5 Baldwinsville, N.Y. 13027 U.S.A. -- NYSbirds-L List Info: http://www.NortheastBirding.com/NYSbirdsWELCOME http://www.NortheastBirding.com/NYSbirdsRULES http://www.NortheastBirding.com/NYSbirdsSubscribeConfigurationLeave.htm ARCHIVES: 1) http://www.mail-archive.com/nysbirds-l@cornell.edu/maillist.html 2) http://www.surfbirds.com/birdingmail/Group/NYSBirds-L 3) http://birdingonthe.net/mailinglists/NYSB.html Please submit your observations to eBird: http://ebird.org/content/ebird/ --
[nysbirds-l] Montauk Point/ Hook Pond Birds, Monday , Feb. 26th, 2013
Hello All,What a pleasure it is to have a birding day with temps in the forties with the lightest of winds. Last Sunday I had led an Audubon walk that included Montauk. The measured windchill happened to be 1 degree. The five of us exited the cars that day at Lazy Point to try for the Snowy Owl and nearly got blown over to the Walking Dunes. Today Dick Belanger and I spent some time by the Lighthouse. There were more Common Eider,[200+], than any of the Scoters around. We had a single Northern Gannet flyby and a Red Necked Grebe on the southside with 20 Horned Grebe. The wind was just strong enough to smooth the faces of the breakers that were peaking up in front of the lighthouse. Surfers were jazzed. Ditch Plains had many surfers but few waterbirds. We found the Barrows Goldeneye pair with close to 40 Common Goldeneye from the beach at South Lake Drive. Did'nt try for the Snowy. At Hook Pond in East Hampton we noticed the Common Mergansers had returned. There were 21 birds, eighteen of them males. Nice day out east.Good Late February Birding, Carl Starace -- NYSbirds-L List Info: http://www.NortheastBirding.com/NYSbirdsWELCOME http://www.NortheastBirding.com/NYSbirdsRULES http://www.NortheastBirding.com/NYSbirdsSubscribeConfigurationLeave.htm ARCHIVES: 1) http://www.mail-archive.com/nysbirds-l@cornell.edu/maillist.html 2) http://www.surfbirds.com/birdingmail/Group/NYSBirds-L 3) http://birdingonthe.net/mailinglists/NYSB.html Please submit your observations to eBird: http://ebird.org/content/ebird/ --
[nysbirds-l] Gyrfalcon-NO
Hi all, There were lots of people looking for the Gyrfalcon at Gilgo today but no one that I met had a confirmed sighting. At one point we saw three large, very distant, falcons in flight and one was obviously larger than the others. The larger bird took off from the beach of one of the distant islands that can be seen from the west end of the Gilgo Beach Inn parking lot. Apparently the Gyr perched in the same spot yesterday after killing a duck.The larger bird was being harassed by one of the smaller ones. We were leaning towards Gyr but we thought that the size difference could alternatively be attributed to a large female peregrine. The birds were so far away that we could not be sure. Bring a Celestron! The osprey platforms and channel markers east and west of the Gilgo Beach Inn parking lot seem to be good places to look, but they only hosted peregrines for us. Does anyone have a positive report to share? It would be great to get some more info out there so that people driving from far afield may have a better chance of success. Thanks, Bert Harris, Princeton, NJ -- NYSbirds-L List Info: http://www.NortheastBirding.com/NYSbirdsWELCOME http://www.NortheastBirding.com/NYSbirdsRULES http://www.NortheastBirding.com/NYSbirdsSubscribeConfigurationLeave.htm ARCHIVES: 1) http://www.mail-archive.com/nysbirds-l@cornell.edu/maillist.html 2) http://www.surfbirds.com/birdingmail/Group/NYSBirds-L 3) http://birdingonthe.net/mailinglists/NYSB.html Please submit your observations to eBird: http://ebird.org/content/ebird/ --
[nysbirds-l] Gilgo: Gyrfalcon
Having arrived at about 10am, I was told that just 10 minutes before the bird was seen departing the Osprey nest platform west of the Gilgo Parking Lot (yesterday's location) heading north and possibly east. I, along with a number of other observers remained at the location searching to no avail for several hours. At about 1;30 a birder showed up saying that the bird was perched on an Osprey Nest Platform about a mile west of the Cedar Beach Parking Lot. Several of the group headed east to seek our fortune. We parked on the north verge of the highway and hoped the police would not show up, as it is a ticketable offense. The Gyrfalcon was perched on a cross-beam of the platform facing north and preening. This was a distant but definitive observation. I left at about 2:00 with the bird still perched. If you don't want to risk a ticket, park at Cedar Beach and walk west. Good luck to all. -- NYSbirds-L List Info: http://www.NortheastBirding.com/NYSbirdsWELCOME http://www.NortheastBirding.com/NYSbirdsRULES http://www.NortheastBirding.com/NYSbirdsSubscribeConfigurationLeave.htm ARCHIVES: 1) http://www.mail-archive.com/nysbirds-l@cornell.edu/maillist.html 2) http://www.surfbirds.com/birdingmail/Group/NYSBirds-L 3) http://birdingonthe.net/mailinglists/NYSB.html Please submit your observations to eBird: http://ebird.org/content/ebird/ --
