I love to get out and view the natural world whenever I can, I use my blog to document any captured moments and to discuss the things I enjoy. Most of my adventures happen within New York City, and within that, mostly Brooklyn. I am always amazed at what I find, even within the populations of common species! Enjoy!
Winter finally decided to drop in, with high temperatures in the 30's, but feeling like far less. I picked a great day to bird and have my friend, the infamous, Jeffrey of Bronx and twitter Birding fame, join me for the never ending 20mph+ gusting wind on the beach!
We first made a stop to nab a year bird that isn't always easy to grab, in Valley Stream at Arthur J. Hendrickson Park, a cackling goose. After that we hot Jones Beach State Park and Point Lookout, and a gas station, before going back to the city for a STEM Women's event. The themes of the day were wind, layers, and granola bars.
Took this picture for comparison.
Cackling geese are like smart cars among Canada Geese. They are super compact and get all those parking spots that are just a touch too small for your Honda Civic.
Cackling geese are probably safer to drive than smart cars...
Cackling geese also have a faint to very visible white collar (depending on the individual) where that grey/taupe chest meets the black neck.
Also. They cute.
Like a fat loaf of bread.
We saw this. So did a lot of others.
As always, this is cropped, taken with a 500mm zoom and we didn't linger for too long. I would say the photographers were well behaved today. And honestly this bird must have looked on as if saying, "foolish, fur-less, mal-adapted mammals."
Always important to remember when observing sensitive species is to, especially in parks and preserved to stay on trail and not trample the dunes-- as the dunes themselves are special and sensitive to foot traffic.
This is probably a female, not just able to tell from the large size of this bird, but also the heavy barring. As we were leaving a Northern Harrier was tediously scanning the dunes and maneuvering as best as it could in the very high winds. I bet the interaction if that bird came upon the snowy, would be pretty crazy. I wonder if the harrier would just not bother a snowy since it is in general, larger in size and not worth the scuffle.
I took a lot of crappy photos just to try and make some ID's. Nature threw me a hint for the duck (female surf scoter) on the water.
Ever feel like someone is watching you? This seal followed us a bit along he shoreline. Probably a good day to stay in the water, considering the salt water was freezing on the rocks of the jetties.
We saw a few Norther Gannets-- but unable to photograph as I just enjoyed the moment in my bins- we spotted a flying black and white football-- a razorbill! While not a lifer, it is my first in New York State!
Found some birds taking refuge in the parking lot... a group of black-bellied plover had a look of absolute disgust with this weather on their little birdie faces.
In the car, Jeffrey noticed this bird. A solo snow goose among some Canada's. They didn't seem to want to really hang out together, with the Canada's landing on a median to graze and the snow opting for the frozen puddles in the dunes.
At point lookout the wind was harsh, and the jetties were filled with shorebirds and gulls. A few brave dunlin (pictured) and sanderling foraged in the surf. How do little birds that weigh well under 1 pound not get blown away?! It blows my freaking mind.
After Point Lookout and getting through the day on a diet strictly comprised of granola bars, it was time to head back to NYC to Pre-game our Brains and support a number of organizations supporting Women in STEM.
At the event I attended last night, my friend Molly gave us first looks at the 2019 Feminist Bird Club Patches. They are pretty fab- keep an eye on her website for purchasing information. Funds this year will support Pueblo Sin Fronteras, many others and myself always look forward to helping support an amazing organization through birding.
While I hate winter, the birds keep it exciting. In the new year, my list starts anew, so it's time to rack up numbers and I want to put a touch more effort into chasing notable birds, without ruining my social and family life.
Last Friday I didn't want to miss out on some special birds- a big miss for last year was a common merganser, so when I heard there was one on the lake in Prospect Park, I wanted to pay a visit and plan it out with also catching a life bird, an Evening Grosbeak in Riverside Park in Manhattan.
It was a good day, despite missing the canvasback that was reported by the state park just north of Riverside Park.
Common mergansers are slick looking birds. This drake is bold and striking- the females are just as beautiful with softer browns and greys.
He went into a bit of a preening session, shaking out his wings.
Rolling over to clean up those feathers on the belly. You can see those legs, set back, further than the average duck. Giving them advantage when they dive and all that propulsion coming from the back end.
Very happy to catch this bird out on the lake-- while I would have liked to roam Prospect Park, I next headed up to the upper limits of Manhattan.
And my travels paid off.
In overcast conditions, in the thicket of vines and shrubs, was this chunky, glowing male Evening Grosbeak. I did the best that I could with photos, and also felt I captured the essence of viewing this bird in terms of obstructions in viewing.
Why do people flip their s--t when these birds show up? These are the winter finches and this is a good winter to spot one as their food sources up north were not as plentiful as usual, so they move onward to where they can find some grub. More information about this winter finch irruption explained by Cornell Lab of Ornithology: https://www.allaboutbirds.org/this-could-be-the-winter-you-get-evening-grosbeaks-at-your-feeder/
These birds, while not endangered are in decline, due to loss of habitat, among other factors. They rely on the northern forests for their breeding.
Always something in the way... These dried up berries seemed to be a huge favorite for this bird.
Showing how that beak is good for crushing ad mashing up fruits. At feeders they love black oil sunflower seeds.
So much nom.
That heavy, thick bill is so neat!
Totally wasted an hour and a half watching this bird and it was 100% worth it.
2018 was an insane year, the fact that I saw 257 species of birds while taking on a new role at work and putting a hell of a lot of effort and love into that new role, buying a home and moving across Brooklyn with Tim, and then putting a lot of love and care into our new home... I'm amazed I had any time!
2019 was rung in last night at a bar with good friends and then this morning with a mild hangover. So, I napped and realizing how WARM it was outside, decided to go for a ride and short walks at Floyd Bennett Field to get some of our first birds in our neighborhood! Going out in just a sweatshirt was all I needed to enjoy some birds in the afternoon sun.
First bird we encountered was a bathing Long-tailed Duck. With a bill so perfect for plucking shellfish off the surfaces they are on, these are amazing little divers!
I love capturing them just acting naturally.
A nice find, a trio of ring-neck duck drakes.
all my ducks in a row for 2019, that's always a good sign.
A funny vantage... I spotted a harbor seal on the launch for the NYPD helicopter fields. Looks like a mini seal on a pier...
Harbor Seals are a common sign swimming into Jamaica Bay to hunt-- or grab a sunny place to bask on a 60 degree day.
A ring-billed gull washes away 2018...
Another thing I am excited to really continue doing into the new year is feeding the birds. I have created a feeder station in our front yard with suet, tube feeders, and other types of feeders I vary in and out of use. We mainly have attracted in house sparrows, but have a trio of regular mourning doves, have had a few dark-eyed juncos, and a white-throated sparrow. By feeding the birds I have also noticed some small hawks, a sharp-shinned I have spotted twice within the last month and a Cooper's hawk seen once. I also had a double Merlin flyover last week which was really awesome.
My favorite and newest regular visitor is a white-breasted nuthatch who I just am tickled by every time they come to feed. Today was very windy so it even sat on the side blocked by the wind just to relax and watch the world.
By Spring I hope to add native plants to the lawn to support insects and birds in the warmer months, only providing food in the colder months. And I joined Project Feeder Watch and am doing feeder watches on my weekend. I love drinking my morning coffee and watching birds!
Here is some iphone video I shot of this (what I presume to always be the same individual) bird grabbing a snack before it left.
I spent the day yesterday out on Long Island looking for birds. It was well worth the trip, the ducks, the seals, the gulls, and the scenes. It was just a whole day outdoors, which is my favorite. I think the beach is the just as good in the winter as it is in the summer.
Despite the duck hunters out in the bay, it's very peaceful watching the birds come in from the ocean and others leaving the bay. Combing the waters offshore for birds bobbing in the waves, a seal sneaking into your field of view, and flocks of scoter moving about make for a good outing.
A beautiful male common eider was swimming right next to the breakwater I was walking on.
And then this fat head popped up. There were lots of them, actually, and I loved seeing them.
This harbor seal seems to be doing well on the fooding front...
Love these water puppies!
A lovely surprise, a trip of harlequin ducks flew right over to the area I was walking.
They dove together and swam together, would resurface and find a new place to dive.
And just like these sweet ducks grabbed my attention, I saw white wings over the dunes.
A glaucous gull!
Appears to be a first winter bird.
I was very happy to see this bird, I very badly needed one for the year.
And another white bird. (500mm zoom, cropped, and said white bird was on private property so I was a good ways away)
A passing, loudly cawing crow set it on guard for a moment.
Once passed it went back to its original configuration.
