The Great Backyard Bird Count 2023

    Last Friday through today was the Great Backyard Bird Count (GBBC) and I always get excited for it every year. It's the time of year where the birds are starting to feel more or less the same as they have been for the last few weeks, so a little community science event always reinvigorates me. It's a good excuse to lead an outing or just look at your local birds.

    I did a little bit of it all, I co-led a bird walk with the Feminist bird club, did a quick visit and chowder run at Sheepshead Bay, and did a quick work break down at Marine Park.

On Saturday I co-led a bird outing to celebrate the bird count. Around 20 or so people walked around Prospect Park with us where we saw 40 different types of birds.
Canada geese greeted us at our meeting location at the Dog Beach.

At the feeders, some of the most common birds dazzled us, like this common grackle.

When the light hits them just right, they are like those cool oil stickers you had in the 90's.

On the Peninsula, a pair of downy woodpecker came down to the reeds, at a very comfortable viewing level, they posed unobstructed so we could observe them while they did their thing.

While the walk ended at 11, a few hung about and thanks to the other lead, they caught us a great look at this female purple finch! Isn't she gorgeous?

We went back to the feeders which were still plenty busy. This black-capped chickadee was working open a seed right next to us.

Also, very very VERY happy to see fox sparrows at the feeders. They are my favorite sparrow and I love a great unobstructed look at these gorgeous, ginger, chonks.

Nearing where we began our birding adventure a beacon of bright shined from the tree, closer inspection revealed a merlin all floofed up.
And it then revealed, it was not alone.

There were not one... not two... but three merlin right in the same area, all perched yard apart from each other along the neathermead.

Love me a floofy little murder bird.

Yesterday I was really tired. Mostly because every weekend is more of less the same. Saturday we all have energy and can take on the world. Then our child refuses to nap, becomes over tired and also.... yes. over annoying. By Sunday morning our over tired kid still wakes up at 5am. Wriggles around in our bed for an hour and a half.... and is continuing her overtiredness. Then she finally gives in for a 5pm nap. So yeah, I found it hard to do anything more than make birding an excuse to get us some lunch too.

So it was a Sheepshead Bay and Chowder Afternoon.
This Ring-billed gull got none of my lunch.

Fish crows littered the piers, contrasting the gulls they were mixing it up with.

This fish crow perched itself close to me, and gave it's funny little caws as it sat. I enjoyed getting some pictures of them in the lighting that works best for them, overcast.

While I didn't get to see the iceland gull or razorbills, I enjoyed the regulars, like this female red-breasted merganser who gave a close pass.

 

A lesser scaup sitting right below the walkway, getting ready to do a little preening and scritching.
Soon I got cold and more and more hungry. Gave in, got our chowder, and headed home.

A quick break out in the sun today was local, at Marine Park. Spied a few sneaky swamp sparrows.

A very cute white breasted nuthatch caught my eye with its movement, as it was a pretty quiet one.

This young red-tail was doing its best impression of a kestrel, attempting to hover and stall in the wing, kiting over the fields.

When it had no luck, it would soar around to reposition.

And kite again.

Unfortunately there wasn't much here on the menu for the red tail, so they headed off in due time to the north, which is where there is the part of the park that is simply put, a squirrel buffet.

Closed out the visit with some dabbling ducks, like this American wigeon.
Over the last 3 days, I managed to add 9 year birds to my year list. I am so far at 99! Looking forward to more!

Marine Park Bookends

     I started my day with a pre-work walk in Marine Park and ended my day, taking my daughter to Marine Park.

    With the sun shining and the temperatures already mild, I wasn't really out for anything. Although I was keen on seeing the red-headed woodpecker who continues to hang tight on the Stuart and Avenue T section of the Park.

    For the last week, my daughter has been saying "No school, Kestrel see birds!" It's a really good excuse to skip school, but it was just not happening. Today with temperatures soaring close to the mid-60's I thought damn, we should go see some birds. So I picked her up a touch early to get her some outdoor time. I packed her little camera and off we went.

It has truly been a winter chock full of titmice. They are literally everywhere. And I'm not complaining.

The red headed woodpecker is still holdin' down the fort at it's little corner of the park. I loved seeing it in the morning light, could appreciate that slight iridescence on its shoulders.

I hope this bird sticks around, would love to see its red head come in.
I also love how very prominent its tail feathers have those stiff projections to help brace itself on the bark of the trees.

There is for sure a look of disappointment in dropping that sumac berry.
Northern mockingbirds kinda look disappointed always though.

But don't worry, there are plenty more!

For this afternoon, I returned to a much lower tide and many more ducks.
A pair of hooded mergansers evading a gull dive bombing them. 

While this was happening, my daughter scolded and laughed, "naughty seagull!"
The mergansers prevailed.

On our bike ride over the see the birds, Kestrel said she wanted to see ducks. To which I expalined well, ducks are birds.
I quickly learned this argument of logic is not worth the time with a 2.5 year old.
Good thing there were a shit ton of ducks out there, I would have been in trouble!

This female mallard walked right up to where we were standing to dabble in the mud.

As we were leaving we became distracted by a gang of tufted titmice. 

The titmice were joined by this "naughty" mockingbird.
This bird is naughty because it is standing on a table, and my daughter knows that you don't stand on tables.... even though she attempts to often.
This bird was living her wildest dreams.

While my daughter was soon distracted by the gravel which she loves to pick up by the handful and let fell through her fingers, I got a few pictures of one of the titmice who dared to come near.

Glad we got to see some birds together and enjoy some daylight.

Ten Year Blogiversary

     Somehow a photo memory came up and made me realize, I've kept this silly blog up and running for 10 years. Where was I 10 years ago... I thought about this today on my way out to bird, while riding my bike down Flatbush Avenue. 

    Ten years ago I wasn't even 30, I was at the very start of my education career, working as an educator at the Central Park Zoo. In my daily commute the Manhattan and even in little walks through Prospect Park I realized there was a decent amount of wildlife to see here. Of course, primarily in the avian form. And so I began this little personal endeavor of keeping this blog mostly for myself, but also anyone who happened upon it. Also, ten years ago, I was sharing a snowy owl view, alone with my husband and no one else. A rare occurrence these days, to share a snowy without any other observers.

    In that time I've had many a life changes, both big and small. A near-death accident, a number of changes in my career, challenging myself in a number of ways for my own personal growth, home ownership, and of course, motherhood. Wildlife and birds especially have always been a constant throughout it all. 

    Today I went down to Floyd Bennett Field, rode my bike down as the temperatures today were tropical in comparison to the two days prior. There also was a bird or two to be seen...

Lucky to see it, and get a subpar shot, a Lapland Longspur was out at Floyd today among the Horned Larks.

It was a handsome one too, looks to be a non-breeding male with those flashes of chestnut on its neck.

Felt lucky to get a look, this is my second Lapland Longspur, but my first in Brooklyn! While these birds are not uncommon to open spaces in the winter, they are not regulars around here. These birds will migrate to the tundra to breed in the Arctic.

Floyd was pretty quiet, but after a walk through Ecology Village, I decided to stop at a puddle that is ever present fed by some water source. I sat and decided to let the birds come to me. And that they did!

This puddle brings bird in as the place is surrounded by salty water, so a freshwater puddle that is always there is gold. A bird needs to drink!
Mostly yellow-rumped warblers, like this one, came in with little to no care about me being there too.

Once the warblers signaled all was clear, the robins spilled in.

And rightfully so on high alert. While standing here a red-tailed hawk, a merlin, and a Cooper's hawk flushed up all the birds with some close swoops.
Since the water is seemingly always flowing, it probably didn't fully ice over even with the cold.

I also hoped this would happen, because it happened here once before...

A pair of red-breasted nuthatch came down to quench their thirst.

The water source also makes it nice to see these tree top birds at or below your regular line of sight.

The water source also helps you find the odd bird out. A few catbirds always hang around and overwinter. So this gray catbird is probably one in a handful overwintering at Floyd Bennett Field. It came down, took a bath and then found a perch to floof up and dry off on.