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12 Mar Red-winged blackbirds and grackles [Ber Carr ] 11 Mar HSR: Derby Hill Bird Observatory (11 Mar 2010) 122 Raptors [] 11 Mar Erieville Bald Eagle [Kevin Pace ] 11 Mar Re: Great Horned Owls ["Kyle Buelow" ] 11 Mar Erroneous Franklin Mountain report [Tom Salo ] 10 Mar HSR: Derby Hill Bird Observatory (10 Mar 2010) 38 Raptors [] 10 Mar HSR: Franklin Mt. (10 Mar 2010) 11 Raptors [] 10 Mar Lakeport ["fiveshrimps" ] 10 Mar Audubon Meeting, TONITE, 3/10/10 7 PM Beaver Lake [Judith Thurber ] 10 Mar Spring birds [] 10 Mar Wrens ["brinjoseph" ] 10 Mar Tully, Killdeer ["gwren70" ] 9 Mar todays sightings ["Kevin McGann" ] 09 Mar HSR: Derby Hill Bird Observatory (09 Mar 2010) 16 Raptors [] 08 Mar HSR: Derby Hill Bird Observatory (08 Mar 2010) 22 Raptors [] 09 Mar Highlights from the Tully Area. ["gwren70" ] 8 Mar Am. Woodcock [Judy Wright ] 8 Mar Syracuse RBA [Joseph Brin ] 8 Mar Fox sparrow here [Betty Armbruster ] 07 Mar HSR: Derby Hill Bird Observatory (07 Mar 2010) 26 Raptors [] 7 Mar Derby Hill Parking [Bill Purcell ] 07 Mar Baldwinsville and Onondaga Lake [Ken & Rose Burdick ] 07 Mar Brewerton - FOS killdeer ["Nature Chris" ] 7 Mar Grackles [Thomas J McKay ] 6 Mar Re: HSR: Derby Hill Bird Observatory (06 Mar 2010) 12 Raptors ["Gerry Smith" ] 06 Mar HSR: Derby Hill Bird Observatory (06 Mar 2010) 12 Raptors [] 06 Mar HSR: Derby Hill Bird Observatory (05 Mar 2010) 3 Raptors [] 06 Mar HSR: Derby Hill Bird Observatory (04 Mar 2010) Raptors [] 06 Mar HSR: Derby Hill Bird Observatory (02 Mar 2010) 5 Raptors [] 5 Mar Beaver Lake Screech Owl; Carolina Wren near Seneca River as in past years [Judith Thurber ] 5 Mar Waxwings and Capniidae [Kevin Pace ] 04 Mar Van Buren - Rusty Blackbird [Ken & Rose Burdick ] 04 Mar Baldwinsville Gulls ["jnnbrin" ] 04 Mar 100: Hawk-art-science... ["Tom Carrolan" ] 3 Mar Waxwings on snow [Kevin Pace ] 3 Mar FW: Figura wants to know --have you seen a bald eagle lately? ["Salter, Linda" ] 3 Mar Re: City Peregrines Link to Cam [] 03 Mar Baldwinsville Gulls ["brinjoseph" ] 3 Mar City Peregrines [] 2 Mar Canvasback & Wigeon [Bill Purcell ] 02 Mar Larks, gulls, Shovelers [Ken & Rose Burdick ] 2 Mar Derby Hill Parking [Bill Purcell ] 02 Mar Baldwinsville Gulls ["brinjoseph" ] 01 Mar Call for field trips ["Paul Richardson" ] 1 Mar Syracuse RBA [Joseph Brin ] 01 Mar Another Glaucous Gull ["brinjoseph" ] 01 Mar Route 80 and 281 Horned Larks ["LisaW" ] 28 Feb Baldwinsville Gulls ["brinjoseph" ] 28 Feb Robins [Thomas J McKay ] 27 Feb Snowy Owl [Sue March ] 27 Feb Fox Sparrow [Betty Armbruster ] 26 Feb Re: Robins ["Tim Whitens" ] 26 Feb Lapland Longspur, Cortland Co. ["gwren70" ] 26 Feb Robins ["mrbirder" ] 26 Feb Baldwinsville Gulls ["brinjoseph" ] 26 Feb Cooper's hawk ["ccspagnoli" ] 24 Feb Fw: Tree and Shrub Sale Fundraiser [Joseph Brin ] 24 Feb Kestral [Judy Wright ] 23 Feb Fox Sparrow [Betty Armbruster ] 23 Feb Peregrine Falcone ["Tressa" ] 22 Feb Shrikes [Bill Purcell ] 23 Feb Cedar Waxwings, Tully; Rough-legged Hawk & Horned Larks ["gwren70" ] 22 Feb Glaucous Gulls ["brinjoseph" ] 22 Feb Syracuse RBA [Joseph Brin ] 22 Feb Bald Eagle - Tug Hill Plateau ["Nature Chris" ] 22 Feb Oakwood Cemetery, Monday AM [Lewis Grove ] 21 Feb Gulls & Raptors [Bill Purcell ] 21 Feb Madison County Barred Owl ["LisaW" ] 20 Feb Oswego [Bill Purcell ] 20 Feb Robins in New Hartford [Sheila Smith ] 20 Feb Split Rock - N. Shrike ["Paul Richardson" ] 20 Feb Regional Market Raptors ["brinjoseph" ] 18 Feb City birds: COHAs, PIWO, AMROs [Lewis Grove ] 18 Feb More robin ["ccspagnoli" ] 17 Feb Lapland Longspur ["brinjoseph" ] 17 Feb Robin [Kevin Pace ] Subject: Red-winged blackbirds and grackles From: Ber Carr <mycocarex AT hotmail.com> Date: Fri, 12 Mar 2010 01:34:21 +0000 I had 4-5 early red-wing blackbirds on February 28 in the Town of DeWitt. Last night, there were two large mixed flocks of red-wing blackbirds and grackles in Phoenix and Clay Marsh ( estimated to be 50 and 250). This morning on Rte 481 - returning red-winged males were singing and establishing territory. Bernie Carr mycocarexathotmailcom [Non-text portions of this message have been removed] Subject: HSR: Derby Hill Bird Observatory (11 Mar 2010) 122 Raptors From: reports AT hawkcount.org Date: 11 Mar 2010 19:03:50 -0400 Derby Hill Bird Observatory Mexico, New York, USA Daily Raptor Counts: Mar 11, 2010 ------------------------------------------------------------------- Species Day's Count Month Total Season Total ------------------ ----------- -------------- -------------- Black Vulture 0 0 0 Turkey Vulture 10 19 19 Osprey 0 0 0 Bald Eagle 2 8 8 Northern Harrier 8 13 13 Sharp-shinned Hawk 1 1 1 Cooper's Hawk 12 16 16 Northern Goshawk 1 4 4 Red-shouldered Hawk 8 11 11 Broad-winged Hawk 0 0 0 Red-tailed Hawk 65 153 153 Rough-legged Hawk 14 18 18 Golden Eagle 0 0 0 American Kestrel 1 1 1 Merlin 0 0 0 Peregrine Falcon 0 0 0 Unknown Accipiter 0 0 0 Unknown Buteo 0 0 0 Unknown Falcon 0 0 0 Unknown Eagle 0 0 0 Unknown Raptor 0 0 0 Total: 122 244 244 ---------------------------------------------------------------------- Observation start time: 09:30:00 Observation end time: 16:00:00 Total observation time: 6.5 hours Official Counter: Seth Cutright Observers: Visitors: Around 10 people came out today. Weather: Warm with temps, in the 60's. Cloud cover went from around 75% down to about 30%, then back up late to 75% again. Visibility was good. Winds were ESE, SE, back to ESE, and then lastly E. Raptor Observations: This was the best day so far. 122 total were counted. Had 65 Red-tailed Hawks. 14 Rough-legged Hawks, and another Northern Goshawk. Also the first American Kestrel and Sharp-shinned Hawk went over today. Non-raptor Observations: Lots of American Crows were going by all day. Then many American Robins, Red-winged Blackbirds, and Common Grackles were also around. A few Tree Swallows also went by. A total of 47 Snow Geese were seen too, with one flock of 32 going South, and then later a mixed Canada, Snow Geese flock went over. Predictions: It might rain, most likely not much going on then. There might be a small window early from about 9-12 with no rain so movement might happen. Check the weather tonight and then again tomorrow to see what's going on. If not raining it should still be ESE winds and maybe OK. ======================================================================== Report submitted by Seth Cutright (seth.cutright AT gmail.com) Derby Hill Bird Observatory information may be found at: www.derbyhill.org [Non-text portions of this message have been removed] Subject: Erieville Bald Eagle From: Kevin Pace <krpace AT hotmail.com> Date: Thu, 11 Mar 2010 17:03:14 -0500 A mature Bald Eagle has been feeding for about an hour on a deer carcass in one of our fields. Four Ravens showed up recently and are hopping around on the snow nearby but not getting much to eat. A light morph Rough-legged Hawk continues, most days, to hunt from various trees near the intersection of Eaton Brook Rd and Eden Hollow Rd. (was there this morning). Absent this week is a Pine Siskin that has been a regular at our feeder this winter. Kevin PaceErieville _________________________________________________________________ Your E-mail and More On-the-Go. Get Windows Live Hotmail Free. http://clk.atdmt.com/GBL/go/201469229/direct/01/ [Non-text portions of this message have been removed] Subject: Re: Great Horned Owls From: "Kyle Buelow" <BuelowKW AT obg.com> Date: Thu, 11 Mar 2010 08:14:31 -0500 Heard two owls calling to one another on Oran Station Road in Pompey last night. >>> 3/10/2010 4:42 PM >>> At 3:30 p.m. today I observed a flock of 300+ Canada Geese headed northwest near LaFayette. At 4:10 p.m. I observed two Killdeer in my neighbor's yard on Makyes Road. At 4:15 pm. I saw and heard five (male) red-winged blackbirds in maple trees near the radio tower on Makyes Road. Daniel Leete South Onondaga [Non-text portions of this message have been removed] _______________________________________________________ This email, including any attachment(s) to it, is confidential and intended solely for the use of the individual or entity to which it is addressed. If you have received this email in error, please notify the sender. Note that any views or opinions presented in this email are solely those of the author and do not represent those of O'Brien & Gere. O'Brien & Gere does not accept liability for any damage caused by any virus transmitted by this email. The recipient should check this email and any attachments for the presence of viruses. ______________________________________________________ Subject: Erroneous Franklin Mountain report From: Tom Salo <tomsalo AT localnet.com> Date: Thu, 11 Mar 2010 07:44:16 -0500 Any reports from Franklin Mountain in March are data entry mistakes. Our counters are counting a transect NE of that site. The default site on hawkcount for our counters is Franklin Mountain. Sometimes they forget to change to the site they are covering. Sorry Anyone interested in the results from that counting can go to hawkcount.org and look at the active DOAS sites this season: All Road, Davis State Park and Fish Road. All are prefaced with DOAS. -- Tom Salo 5145 St Hwy 51 West Burlington, NY 13482 Subject: HSR: Derby Hill Bird Observatory (10 Mar 2010) 38 Raptors From: reports AT hawkcount.org Date: 10 Mar 2010 21:03:23 -0400 Derby Hill Bird Observatory Mexico, New York, USA Daily Raptor Counts: Mar 10, 2010 ------------------------------------------------------------------- Species Day's Count Month Total Season Total ------------------ ----------- -------------- -------------- Black Vulture 0 0 0 Turkey Vulture 3 9 9 Osprey 0 0 0 Bald Eagle 1 6 6 Northern Harrier 2 5 5 Sharp-shinned Hawk 0 0 0 Cooper's Hawk 2 4 4 Northern Goshawk 0 3 3 Red-shouldered Hawk 3 3 3 Broad-winged Hawk 0 0 0 Red-tailed Hawk 25 88 88 Rough-legged Hawk 2 4 4 Golden Eagle 0 0 0 American Kestrel 0 0 0 Merlin 0 0 0 Peregrine Falcon 0 0 0 Unknown Accipiter 0 0 0 Unknown Buteo 0 0 0 Unknown Falcon 0 0 0 Unknown Eagle 0 0 0 Unknown Raptor 0 0 0 Total: 38 122 122 ---------------------------------------------------------------------- Observation start time: 10:00:00 Observation end time: 14:30:00 Total observation time: 4.5 hours Official Counter: Seth Cutright Observers: Bill Purcell Visitors: 6 Weather: Wind started out as South at the North count location. It was light all day with it being 0-5mph. After about 2 hours it mostly stopped or changed to the North just a little. Then at the South look out it was still North and around 0-5mph. Visibility was very good, and cloud cover was 50-70% all day. Raptor Observations: It was the best day so far. Rain to the South and West most likely made the flight stop in early afternoon. A few Red-Shouldered Hawks came by and were first of the season for that species. Non-raptor Observations: With a South wind a lot of the ice on the lake was out and open. Because of that at least 14 species of ducks could be found on the lake. Many more Red-winged Blackbirds were around and going over, along with first of the spring/year Common Grackles. Also my first of the year and spring Killdeer were flying around and over along with calling. Several in fact could be heard or seen at each count location. I did not see it, but at the South location a Tree Swallow was also seen flying past. Predictions: Should be maybe a little better then today if no rain is to the South or West of here. Should be more ESE winds at least for a while. ======================================================================== Report submitted by Seth Cutright (seth.cutright AT gmail.com) Derby Hill Bird Observatory information may be found at: www.derbyhill.org [Non-text portions of this message have been removed] Subject: HSR: Franklin Mt. (10 Mar 2010) 11 Raptors From: reports AT hawkcount.org Date: 10 Mar 2010 20:03:03 -0400 Franklin Mt. Oneonta, New York, USA Daily Raptor Counts: Mar 10, 2010 ------------------------------------------------------------------- Species Day's Count Month Total Season Total ------------------ ----------- -------------- -------------- Black Vulture 0 0 0 Turkey Vulture 4 4 4 Osprey 0 0 0 Bald Eagle 0 0 0 Northern Harrier 0 0 0 Sharp-shinned Hawk 0 0 0 Cooper's Hawk 0 0 0 Northern Goshawk 0 0 0 Red-shouldered Hawk 0 0 0 Broad-winged Hawk 0 0 0 Red-tailed Hawk 7 8 10 Rough-legged Hawk 0 1 1 Golden Eagle 0 9 9 American Kestrel 0 0 0 Merlin 0 0 0 Peregrine Falcon 0 0 0 Unknown Accipiter 0 0 0 Unknown Buteo 0 0 0 Unknown Falcon 0 0 0 Unknown Eagle 0 0 0 Unknown Raptor 0 0 0 Total: 11 22 24 ---------------------------------------------------------------------- Observation start time: 08:45:00 Observation end time: 15:15:00 Total observation time: 6.5 hours Official Counter: Larry Dake Observers: Visitors: I would like to thank Sue Whitney very much for her excellent spotting all day. Thanks to John Davis for the planks over the road ditch and for visiting the watch twice. Weather: W winds; 1-6 km/h; cloud cover 10-60%. Raptor Observations: Local RTs. Non-raptor Observations: Canada and Snow Geese, Ravens, Red-wings, Goldfinch ======================================================================== Report submitted by Larry Dake () Franklin Mt. Hawkwatch information may be found at: www.FranklinMt.org [Non-text portions of this message have been removed] Subject: Lakeport From: "fiveshrimps" <fiveshrimps AT yahoo.com> Date: Wed, 10 Mar 2010 22:14:04 -0000 150 Snow Geese 100's Canada Geese Green winged Teal Am Bl Duck Mallard N Pintail Am Wigeon Ring-n Duck G Scaup C Goldeneye Bufflehead Killdeer, C Grackle and Canada Geese widespread through N Madison county Good birding Tony Shrimpton Fayetteville, NY Subject: Audubon Meeting, TONITE, 3/10/10 7 PM Beaver Lake From: Judith Thurber <jathurber AT yahoo.com> Date: Wed, 10 Mar 2010 13:42:49 -0800 (PST) Audubon Meeting 7 PM, Beaver Lake Nature Center, Baldwinsville, NY tonight. Topic: the monitoring of toxins in bird species sampling in/around Onondaga Lake. All invited. Free admission -- get "exit pass" at front desk when leaving. Judy Thurber Liverpool, NY [Non-text portions of this message have been removed] Subject: Spring birds From: DCLeete AT aol.com Date: Wed, 10 Mar 2010 16:42:44 EST At 3:30 p.m. today I observed a flock of 300+ Canada Geese headed northwest near LaFayette. At 4:10 p.m. I observed two Killdeer in my neighbor's yard on Makyes Road. At 4:15 pm. I saw and heard five (male) red-winged blackbirds in maple trees near the radio tower on Makyes Road. Daniel Leete South Onondaga [Non-text portions of this message have been removed] Subject: Wrens From: "brinjoseph" <brinjoseph AT yahoo.com> Date: Wed, 10 Mar 2010 20:27:37 -0000 I went on a Wren expedition today and succeeded in finding both CAROLINA and WINTER WREN in the same location. The location was the Erie Canal hiking path in Fayetteville, specifically a spur of the path that starts on Brooklea Drive and joins the main path east of Burdick Street. This is in my Syracuse Christmas Count area and I found both of them in December also. Joseph Brin brinjoseph AT yahoo.com Baldwinsville, N.Y. Subject: Tully, Killdeer From: "gwren70" <gwren70 AT yahoo.com> Date: Wed, 10 Mar 2010 16:32:58 -0000 A Killdeer arrived at my home in Tully this morning at 9:30am. only to find snow covering the ground. Good Birding, Gene Huggins, Tully, N.Y. Subject: todays sightings From: "Kevin McGann" <pmcgann1 AT twcny.rr.com> Date: Tue, 9 Mar 2010 19:25:56 -0500 A scan of Onondaga Lake this morning from the far side found many birds still at the Nine Mile Creek outlet, I could ID most except the Canvasbacks I was looking for most. This afternoon I stopped on the other side for a closer look, most of the birds Ken had on Sunday were still there except the Swans and only 4 Canvasbacks were found, a dozen or so Pintails from this morning were also gone, new to Ken's findings were 4 Wigeon a few Ringnecks and Gadwall. At Elvic Farms there was a single Killdeer at the 'pond', further up the road was a single Common Grackle and 5 R-W Blackbirds in a tree with a flock of Starlings. North of Peter Scott Swamp at a feeder were 2 more Grackles an about 50 Cowbirds Kevin McGann Baldwinsville, NY pmcgann1 AT twcny.rr.com http://jaeger.bravehost.com [Non-text portions of this message have been removed] Subject: HSR: Derby Hill Bird Observatory (09 Mar 2010) 16 Raptors From: reports AT hawkcount.org Date: 09 Mar 2010 18:03:03 -0400 Derby Hill Bird Observatory Mexico, New York, USA Daily Raptor Counts: Mar 09, 2010 ------------------------------------------------------------------- Species Day's Count Month Total Season Total ------------------ ----------- -------------- -------------- Black Vulture 0 0 0 Turkey Vulture 1 6 6 Osprey 0 0 0 Bald Eagle 1 5 5 Northern Harrier 2 3 3 Sharp-shinned Hawk 0 0 0 Cooper's Hawk 1 2 2 Northern Goshawk 1 3 3 Red-shouldered Hawk 0 0 0 Broad-winged Hawk 0 0 0 Red-tailed Hawk 8 63 63 Rough-legged Hawk 2 2 2 Golden Eagle 0 0 0 American Kestrel 0 0 0 Merlin 0 0 0 Peregrine Falcon 0 0 0 Unknown Accipiter 0 0 0 Unknown Buteo 0 0 0 Unknown Falcon 0 0 0 Unknown Eagle 0 0 0 Unknown Raptor 0 0 0 Total: 16 84 84 ---------------------------------------------------------------------- Observation start time: 10:00:00 Observation end time: 15:15:00 Total observation time: 5 hours Official Counter: Seth Cutright Observers: Visitors: Around 5 came today. Weather: Hardly any wind. It was only around 0-5mph and from the North. Visibility was really good, and cloud cover went from around 20% down to only 5%. Raptor Observations: Another Northern Goshawk went over today. The first of the count and season Rough-legged Hawks went by in the afternoon. They were going by at the same time from the South count location. Both were Dark Phase birds. Non-raptor Observations: The first Red-winged Blackbirds of the year/season were around. Predictions: Might be kind of odd but slow, with lighter East winds likely. ======================================================================== Report submitted by Seth Cutright (seth.cutright AT gmail.com) Derby Hill Bird Observatory information may be found at: www.derbyhill.org [Non-text portions of this message have been removed] Subject: HSR: Derby Hill Bird Observatory (08 Mar 2010) 22 Raptors From: reports AT hawkcount.org Date: 08 Mar 2010 22:03:50 -0400 Derby Hill Bird Observatory Mexico, New York, USA Daily Raptor Counts: Mar 08, 2010 ------------------------------------------------------------------- Species Day's Count Month Total Season Total ------------------ ----------- -------------- -------------- Black Vulture 0 0 0 Turkey Vulture 2 5 5 Osprey 0 0 0 Bald Eagle 4 4 4 Northern Harrier 1 1 1 Sharp-shinned Hawk 0 0 0 Cooper's Hawk 1 1 1 Northern Goshawk 0 2 2 Red-shouldered Hawk 0 0 0 Broad-winged Hawk 0 0 0 Red-tailed Hawk 14 55 55 Rough-legged Hawk 0 0 0 Golden Eagle 0 0 0 American Kestrel 0 0 0 Merlin 0 0 0 Peregrine Falcon 0 0 0 Unknown Accipiter 0 0 0 Unknown Buteo 0 0 0 Unknown Falcon 0 0 0 Unknown Eagle 0 0 0 Unknown Raptor 0 0 0 Total: 22 68 68 ---------------------------------------------------------------------- Observation start time: 10:00:00 Observation end time: 14:30:00 Total observation time: 4.5 hours Official Counter: Seth Cutright Observers: Bill Purcell Visitors: 3 Weather: At the North count location visibility was only OK, as it was kind of foggy or gray in the background. At the South location it was good. Cloud cover went from 20% up to 50% and then down to 5% and then lastly 0%. Wind at the North site was from the West at around 10-15mph. Then at the South site it was West-Northwest for an hour, and then changed back to just West. It was around 5-10mph there. Raptor Observations: The 11-12 hour was OK with 5 total for the hour, then the 12-1 hour was the best with a total of 12. The first of the season and count, Cooper's Hawk, Northern Harrier, and Bald Eagles went by today. Non-raptor Observations: A few Great Black-backed Gulls flew past the North look out. The largest number of Canada Geese also went by with about 50 in a few different flocks. Some Eastern Bluebirds were down by the South count location. A few Killdeer flew past and were seen by a few people. Predictions: Should be about like today..maybe a little slower with winds from the Northwest. ======================================================================== Report submitted by Seth Cutright (seth.cutright AT gmail.com) Derby Hill Bird Observatory information may be found at: www.derbyhill.org [Non-text portions of this message have been removed] Subject: Highlights from the Tully Area. From: "gwren70" <gwren70 AT yahoo.com> Date: Tue, 09 Mar 2010 00:51:00 -0000 Tully Valley: Tully Farms Road Black Duck-18 Turkey Vulture-1,soaring above the western slopes near Tully Farms Road, one mile south of Rt.20 at 10:12am. Horned Lark-12 Golden-crowned Kinglet-1 Eastern Bluebird-9 Purple Finch-5 Rt.11A and Banner Road: Common Grackle-2 Notes: Two separate flocks of migrating Canada Geese, 60 at 12:54pm and 67 at 1:02pm. over the Tully Valley. Good Birding, Gene Huggins, Tully, N.Y. Subject: Am. Woodcock From: Judy Wright <wryt-on AT twcny.rr.com> Date: Mon, 8 Mar 2010 19:17:46 -0500 This evening there were Am. Woodcock peenting (sp?) and flying along Kellogg Rd. in the 3 Rivers WMA, just east of Smokey Hollow Rd. in Lysander. Judy Wright wryt-on AT twcny.rr.com Baldwinsville, NY Subject: Syracuse RBA From: Joseph Brin <brinjoseph AT yahoo.com> Date: Mon, 8 Mar 2010 15:46:32 -0800 (PST) RBA * New York * Syracuse * March 08, 2010 * NYSY 0803.10 Hotline: Syracuse Rare bird Alert Dates(s): March 01, 2009 - March 08, 2010 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:March 08 AT 6:00 p.m. (EST) compiler: Joseph Brin Onondaga Audubon Homepage: www.onondagaaudubon.org #195 -Monday March 08, 2010 Greetings! This is the Syracuse Area Rare Bird Alert for the week of March 01 , 2009 Highlights: ----------- NORTHERN SHOVELER CANVASBACK NORTHERN GOSHAWK PEREGRINE FALCON KILLDEER ICELAND GULL LESSER BLACK-BACKED GULL GLAUCOUS GULL NORTHERN HAWK OWL (Extralimital) NORTHERN SHRIKE COMMON RAVEN CAROLINA WREN FOX SPARROW Montezuma National Wildlife Refuge (MNWR) and Montezuma Wetlands Complex (MWC) ------------ No reports this week. Migrants seen this week ------------------- TURKEY VULTURE NORTHERN GOSHAWK RED-TAILED HAWK NORTHERN SHOVELER RUSTY BLACKBIRD COMMON GRACKLE KILLDEER Onondaga County ------------ At Baldwinsville on the Seneca River GLAUCOUS GULL, ICELAND GULL, and LESSER BLACK-BACKED GULL were seen up to 3/7. None of these species were found today 3/1: A NORTHERN SHRIKE was seen on Rt.80 east of Fabius. 3/2: The Beaver Lake Nature Center was seen this day and on 3/5. 3/3: 2 NORTHERN SHOVELERS were seen alon the Erie Canal Trail On Shapp Road near the Peru Bridge. PEREGRINE FALCON activity was seen on the webcam. 3/5: A RUSTY BLACKBIRD was seen along the Erie anal Trail near the Peru bridge. 3/7: 12 species of waterfowl were seen on Onondaga Lake from the Nine Mile Creek inlet. Highlights were CANVASBACK, REDHEAD, both SCAUP species and SWAN species. Oswego County ------------ 3/3: A CANVASBACK and an ICELAND GULL were seen on Oneida Lake in Brewerton. A COMMON RAVEN was seen at Selkirk Shores State Park. A NORTHERN SHRIKE Awas seen on Halsey Road in Mexico. Madison County ------------ 3/3: A PINE SISKIN continues to come to a feeder in Erieville. Herkimer County ------------ 3/8: A FOX SPARROW is still frequenting a feeder near Cedar Lake. Derby Hill ------------ This is the first week of official Hawk counting at Derby Hill. Only three species, TURKEY VULTURE, NORTHERN GOSHAWK, and RED-TAILED HAWK were deemed to be true migrants. The new Hawk counter is Seth Cutright. Stop up and say hi. Extralimital ------------- The IVORY GULL discovered at Rouse’s Point on Lake Champlain in Clinton County has not been seen since 3/2. The NORTHERN HAWK OWL being seen in Champlain, also Clinton County, was last reported on 3/6. --end transcript -- Joseph Brin Region 5 Baldwinsville, N.Y. 13027 U.S.A. [Non-text portions of this message have been removed] Subject: Fox sparrow here From: Betty Armbruster <barm17 AT windstream.net> Date: Mon, 8 Mar 2010 09:22:40 -0500 The Fox Sparrow is out under my feeders and looks fine. It was probably here other days but I could not get to the feeders outside of my computer room til yesterday. I've been tossing the seed into the evergreens near my carport and I can't see the birds clearly out there. The Ruffed grouse have been here most days too. Betty Subject: HSR: Derby Hill Bird Observatory (07 Mar 2010) 26 Raptors From: reports AT hawkcount.org Date: 07 Mar 2010 19:03:45 -0400 Derby Hill Bird Observatory Mexico, New York, USA Daily Raptor Counts: Mar 07, 2010 ------------------------------------------------------------------- Species Day's Count Month Total Season Total ------------------ ----------- -------------- -------------- Black Vulture 0 0 0 Turkey Vulture 2 3 3 Osprey 0 0 0 Bald Eagle 0 0 0 Northern Harrier 0 0 0 Sharp-shinned Hawk 0 0 0 Cooper's Hawk 0 0 0 Northern Goshawk 1 2 2 Red-shouldered Hawk 0 0 0 Broad-winged Hawk 0 0 0 Red-tailed Hawk 23 41 41 Rough-legged Hawk 0 0 0 Golden Eagle 0 0 0 American Kestrel 0 0 0 Merlin 0 0 0 Peregrine Falcon 0 0 0 Unknown Accipiter 0 0 0 Unknown Buteo 0 0 0 Unknown Falcon 0 0 0 Unknown Eagle 0 0 0 Unknown Raptor 0 0 0 Total: 26 46 46 ---------------------------------------------------------------------- Observation start time: 10:30:00 Observation end time: 15:30:00 Total observation time: 5 hours Official Counter: Seth Cutright Observers: Visitors: At least 5 people came by today. Weather: Visibility was just OK today. It was kind of gray and darker in the background areas. Cloud cover was at or near 100% all day. Wind started for a few hours at around 8-12mph then picked up to around 10-20mph later. Raptor Observations: This was the best day so far. In all 23 Red-tailed Hawks got counted, along with 1 Northern Goshawk and 2 more Turkey Vultures. Non-raptor Observations: A Pileated Woodpecker could be hear calling/ "talking" from the large woods to the West across the road and marsh area. A few Common Mergansers few past, but not much else is around yet. Predictions: Should be warm with more West wind around 8-12mph. Flight should be about the same as today. ======================================================================== Report submitted by Seth Cutright (seth.cutright AT gmail.com) Derby Hill Bird Observatory information may be found at: www.derbyhill.org [Non-text portions of this message have been removed] Subject: Derby Hill Parking From: Bill Purcell <wpurcell AT twcny.rr.com> Date: Sun, 7 Mar 2010 18:43:03 -0500 Since there's still snow on top of Derby Hill and it will take a few days to dry when it finally does melt birders are requested to park on the road below and walk up the hill until Monday, March 15. Thanks, Bill Purcell Hastings NY 13076 Subject: Baldwinsville and Onondaga Lake From: Ken & Rose Burdick <kenburdick AT ieee.org> Date: Sun, 07 Mar 2010 18:23:27 -0500 There were a couple hundreds gulls still at Baldwinsville on Sunday, with only a bit of ice shelf left above the dam. A non-breeding adult Lesser Black-backed Gull and Adult Glaucous were found. Onondaga Lake is still mostly iced in at the north end, and only a few gulls were found there. At the Ninemile Creek inlet there was a large reach of water with lots of waterfowl : Canada Goose, Mallard Trumpeter/Tundra Swan 3 Canvasback 16 Redhead Counted at least 110. Greater Scaup 4 Lesser Scaup 8 Bufflehead 10 Common Goldeneye 110 Common Merganser 40 Pied-billed Grebe 2 American Coot 1 3 common gulls It was very quiet Saturday at Carpenter's Brook Fish Hatchery, but a bat was feeding over the water, and there was a Ringed-neck Pheasant under the net that protects the fish from raptors. This bird has learned to let himself in to eat the fish food. Good birding, Ken & Rose Burdick Skaneateles, NY KenBurdick AT ieee.org Subject: Brewerton - FOS killdeer From: "Nature Chris" <lajewskic AT yahoo.com> Date: Sun, 07 Mar 2010 22:50:46 -0000 Sunday - Out for a morning jog, I heard and saw my first of the season KILLDEER heading west away from Oneida Lake. Also, a pair of bluebirds have been checking out our backyard bird box and defending their territory over the last week. Chris Lajewski Northern NY Field Representative The Nature Conservancy www.nature.org/cwny Subject: Grackles From: Thomas J McKay <tjmckay AT syr.edu> Date: Sun, 7 Mar 2010 16:11:04 -0500 The first grackles of just arrived. Spring in the city. Tom Subject: Re: HSR: Derby Hill Bird Observatory (06 Mar 2010) 12 Raptors From: "Gerry Smith" <goshawk AT gisco.net> Date: Sat, 6 Mar 2010 19:08:43 -0500 Had a northbound Turkey Vulture over Watertown New York at 6 PM today Same Bird ? Gerry Smith Barnes Corners NY From: reports AT hawkcount.org Sent: Saturday, March 06, 2010 6:03 PM To: oneidabirds AT yahoogroups.com Subject: [OneidaBirds] HSR: Derby Hill Bird Observatory (06 Mar 2010) 12 Raptors Derby Hill Bird Observatory Mexico, New York, USA Daily Raptor Counts: Mar 06, 2010 ---------------------------------------------------------- Species Day's Count Month Total Season Total ------------------ ----------- -------------- -------------- Black Vulture 0 0 0 Turkey Vulture 1 1 1 Osprey 0 0 0 Bald Eagle 0 0 0 Northern Harrier 0 0 0 Sharp-shinned Hawk 0 0 0 Cooper's Hawk 0 0 0 Northern Goshawk 1 1 1 Red-shouldered Hawk 0 0 0 Broad-winged Hawk 0 0 0 Red-tailed Hawk 10 18 18 Rough-legged Hawk 0 0 0 Golden Eagle 0 0 0 American Kestrel 0 0 0 Merlin 0 0 0 Peregrine Falcon 0 0 0 Unknown Accipiter 0 0 0 Unknown Buteo 0 0 0 Unknown Falcon 0 0 0 Unknown Eagle 0 0 0 Unknown Raptor 0 0 0 Total: 12 20 20 ---------------------------------------------------------- Observation start time: 09:30:00 Observation end time: 15:00:00 Total observation time: 5.5 hours Official Counter: Seth Cutright Observers: Visitors: 9 people came by today. Weather: Visibility was good, and cloud cover went from around 25% down to only 5%. Wind was from the West mostly, but changed to West-Northwest late in the day. It was around 0-5mph early, then went to 5-10 in the middle part of the day, and then back down to 0-5 for the second last hour, and then back up to 5-10 for the last hour. Raptor Observations: First Raptor of the day was a Red-tailed Hawk. It went over at 10:12am. Later in the day two Juvenile Northern Goshawks landed in the same tree near by. I was able to get some distant photos from the count location. They left as one chased the other one. Then later one Northern Goshawk, (also a juvenile) migrated past the count location. Next at around 2:00pm a juvenile, most likely one of the two from before, was back hunting. It at one point was chasing a Morning Dove. Just before that Goshawk came by, at 1:40pm I looked to the South, and saw the seasons first Turkey Vulture. Non-raptor Observations: Not much around. Predictions: Weather should be about the same as today. The winds might be a little stronger then today but also from the West. The flight should be about the same, still kind of slow but with a few birds. ======================================================================== Report submitted by Seth Cutright (seth.cutright AT gmail.com) Derby Hill Bird Observatory information may be found at: www.derbyhill.org [Non-text portions of this message have been removed] __________ Information from ESET NOD32 Antivirus, version of virus signature database 4921 (20100306) __________ The message was checked by ESET NOD32 Antivirus. http://www.eset.com __________ Information from ESET NOD32 Antivirus, version of virus signature database 4921 (20100306) __________ The message was checked by ESET NOD32 Antivirus. http://www.eset.com [Non-text portions of this message have been removed] Subject: HSR: Derby Hill Bird Observatory (06 Mar 2010) 12 Raptors From: reports AT hawkcount.org Date: 06 Mar 2010 19:03:48 -0400 Derby Hill Bird Observatory Mexico, New York, USA Daily Raptor Counts: Mar 06, 2010 ------------------------------------------------------------------- Species Day's Count Month Total Season Total ------------------ ----------- -------------- -------------- Black Vulture 0 0 0 Turkey Vulture 1 1 1 Osprey 0 0 0 Bald Eagle 0 0 0 Northern Harrier 0 0 0 Sharp-shinned Hawk 0 0 0 Cooper's Hawk 0 0 0 Northern Goshawk 1 1 1 Red-shouldered Hawk 0 0 0 Broad-winged Hawk 0 0 0 Red-tailed Hawk 10 18 18 Rough-legged Hawk 0 0 0 Golden Eagle 0 0 0 American Kestrel 0 0 0 Merlin 0 0 0 Peregrine Falcon 0 0 0 Unknown Accipiter 0 0 0 Unknown Buteo 0 0 0 Unknown Falcon 0 0 0 Unknown Eagle 0 0 0 Unknown Raptor 0 0 0 Total: 12 20 20 ---------------------------------------------------------------------- Observation start time: 09:30:00 Observation end time: 15:00:00 Total observation time: 5.5 hours Official Counter: Seth Cutright Observers: Visitors: 9 people came by today. Weather: Visibility was good, and cloud cover went from around 25% down to only 5%. Wind was from the West mostly, but changed to West-Northwest late in the day. It was around 0-5mph early, then went to 5-10 in the middle part of the day, and then back down to 0-5 for the second last hour, and then back up to 5-10 for the last hour. Raptor Observations: First Raptor of the day was a Red-tailed Hawk. It went over at 10:12am. Later in the day two Juvenile Northern Goshawks landed in the same tree near by. I was able to get some distant photos from the count location. They left as one chased the other one. Then later one Northern Goshawk, (also a juvenile) migrated past the count location. Next at around 2:00pm a juvenile, most likely one of the two from before, was back hunting. It at one point was chasing a Morning Dove. Just before that Goshawk came by, at 1:40pm I looked to the South, and saw the seasons first Turkey Vulture. Non-raptor Observations: Not much around. Predictions: Weather should be about the same as today. The winds might be a little stronger then today but also from the West. The flight should be about the same, still kind of slow but with a few birds. ======================================================================== Report submitted by Seth Cutright (seth.cutright AT gmail.com) Derby Hill Bird Observatory information may be found at: www.derbyhill.org [Non-text portions of this message have been removed] Subject: HSR: Derby Hill Bird Observatory (05 Mar 2010) 3 Raptors From: reports AT hawkcount.org Date: 06 Mar 2010 18:03:33 -0400 Derby Hill Bird Observatory Mexico, New York, USA Daily Raptor Counts: Mar 05, 2010 ------------------------------------------------------------------- Species Day's Count Month Total Season Total ------------------ ----------- -------------- -------------- Black Vulture 0 0 0 Turkey Vulture 0 0 0 Osprey 0 0 0 Bald Eagle 0 0 0 Northern Harrier 0 0 0 Sharp-shinned Hawk 0 0 0 Cooper's Hawk 0 0 0 Northern Goshawk 0 0 0 Red-shouldered Hawk 0 0 0 Broad-winged Hawk 0 0 0 Red-tailed Hawk 3 8 8 Rough-legged Hawk 0 0 0 Golden Eagle 0 0 0 American Kestrel 0 0 0 Merlin 0 0 0 Peregrine Falcon 0 0 0 Unknown Accipiter 0 0 0 Unknown Buteo 0 0 0 Unknown Falcon 0 0 0 Unknown Eagle 0 0 0 Unknown Raptor 0 0 0 Total: 3 8 8 ---------------------------------------------------------------------- Observation start time: 11:00:00 Observation end time: 13:00:00 Total observation time: 2 hours Official Counter: Seth Cutright Observers: Weather: North wind at around 10mph. Only 10% cloud cover. Good visibility. Raptor Observations: Only 3 Red-tailed Hawks. One fly over, most likely local Cooper's Hawks, and also a non-migratory ~4th/5th Year Bald Eagle. Non-raptor Observations: ======================================================================== Report submitted by Seth Cutright (seth.cutright AT gmail.com) Derby Hill Bird Observatory information may be found at: www.derbyhill.org [Non-text portions of this message have been removed] Subject: HSR: Derby Hill Bird Observatory (04 Mar 2010) Raptors From: reports AT hawkcount.org Date: 06 Mar 2010 18:03:59 -0400 Derby Hill Bird Observatory Mexico, New York, USA Daily Raptor Counts: Mar 04, 2010 ------------------------------------------------------------------- Species Day's Count Month Total Season Total ------------------ ----------- -------------- -------------- Black Vulture 0 0 0 Turkey Vulture 0 0 0 Osprey 0 0 0 Bald Eagle 0 0 0 Northern Harrier 0 0 0 Sharp-shinned Hawk 0 0 0 Cooper's Hawk 0 0 0 Northern Goshawk 0 0 0 Red-shouldered Hawk 0 0 0 Broad-winged Hawk 0 0 0 Red-tailed Hawk 0 5 5 Rough-legged Hawk 0 0 0 Golden Eagle 0 0 0 American Kestrel 0 0 0 Merlin 0 0 0 Peregrine Falcon 0 0 0 Unknown Accipiter 0 0 0 Unknown Buteo 0 0 0 Unknown Falcon 0 0 0 Unknown Eagle 0 0 0 Unknown Raptor 0 0 0 Total: 0 5 5 ---------------------------------------------------------------------- Observation start time: 10:30:00 Observation end time: 12:30:00 Total observation time: 2 hours Official Counter: Seth Cutright Observers: Weather: North-East-North wind changing to North. It was about 8-12mph. Cloud cover went from 50% up to 90%. Raptor Observations: None Non-raptor Observations: Not much around now. ======================================================================== Report submitted by Seth Cutright (seth.cutright AT gmail.com) Derby Hill Bird Observatory information may be found at: www.derbyhill.org [Non-text portions of this message have been removed] Subject: HSR: Derby Hill Bird Observatory (02 Mar 2010) 5 Raptors From: reports AT hawkcount.org Date: 06 Mar 2010 18:03:27 -0400 Derby Hill Bird Observatory Mexico, New York, USA Daily Raptor Counts: Mar 02, 2010 ------------------------------------------------------------------- Species Day's Count Month Total Season Total ------------------ ----------- -------------- -------------- Black Vulture 0 0 0 Turkey Vulture 0 0 0 Osprey 0 0 0 Bald Eagle 0 0 0 Northern Harrier 0 0 0 Sharp-shinned Hawk 0 0 0 Cooper's Hawk 0 0 0 Northern Goshawk 0 0 0 Red-shouldered Hawk 0 0 0 Broad-winged Hawk 0 0 0 Red-tailed Hawk 5 5 5 Rough-legged Hawk 0 0 0 Golden Eagle 0 0 0 American Kestrel 0 0 0 Merlin 0 0 0 Peregrine Falcon 0 0 0 Unknown Accipiter 0 0 0 Unknown Buteo 0 0 0 Unknown Falcon 0 0 0 Unknown Eagle 0 0 0 Unknown Raptor 0 0 0 Total: 5 5 5 ---------------------------------------------------------------------- Observation start time: 10:00:00 Observation end time: 14:00:00 Total observation time: 4 hours Official Counter: Seth Cutright Observers: Visitors: John Moore and Bill Purcell stopped by. Weather: Hardly any wind at all, but with wind it was 0-3mph and from the North mostly. Started out with 100% cloud cover, changed to 50% for two hours, then back to 90% for the last hour. Visibility was clear and good. Raptor Observations: Five Red-tailed Hawks were the first raptors of the count season. The first one went by at 12:24pm. Non-raptor Observations: ~200-300 American Crows went by. An adult male Eastern Bluebird was sitting and singing on a nest box near the count site. An American Robin was also around. ======================================================================== Report submitted by Seth Cutright (seth.cutright AT gmail.com) Derby Hill Bird Observatory information may be found at: www.derbyhill.org Directions to site: Directions from Syracuse... Take I-81 north to exit 34, which is Route 104. (From North Syracuse, where 481 joins 81, the distance is 22 miles). Turn west on 104. Drive 6 miles to the village of Mexico. Turn north at the traffic light onto Route 3. Drive north on Rt.3 for 4 miles to the intersection with Route 104b. Turn left (west) on Rt.104b and drive a 1/2 a mile to Sage Creek Drive. Turn right (north) on Sage Creek Drive. DHBO is clearly signed in both directions on Rt 104b just before the Sage Creek turn off. [Non-text portions of this message have been removed] Subject: Beaver Lake Screech Owl; Carolina Wren near Seneca River as in past years From: Judith Thurber <jathurber AT yahoo.com> Date: Fri, 5 Mar 2010 12:39:26 -0800 (PST) I stopped by Beaver Lake briefly Wednesday morning and dashed in to see if the E Screech Owl was roosting in the tree stump visible from the viewing area and sure enough, it was.  This is the bird that is written up in the most recent Beaver Tales that many of you may have already heard about. Carolina Wren in Shoreview vicinity off Route 57 in Town of Clay this week as well. Judy Thurber Liverpool, NY [Non-text portions of this message have been removed] Subject: Waxwings and Capniidae From: Kevin Pace <krpace AT hotmail.com> Date: Fri, 5 Mar 2010 08:33:27 -0500 Referring to the insects that Cedar Waxwings have recently been eating here as snowflies was ambiguous. Being a farmer, not a scientist, I generally use common names. Here it led to confusion because I might have meant snow fleas or been referring to one of a few other insects also called snowflies. The ones the waxwings were eating are of the family Capniidae (Winter Stoneflies) and are associated with streams. Fascinating, as are any cold blooded animals that can function at or below freezing temperatures. Kevin Pace _________________________________________________________________ Your E-mail and More On-the-Go. Get Windows Live Hotmail Free. http://clk.atdmt.com/GBL/go/201469229/direct/01/ [Non-text portions of this message have been removed] Subject: Van Buren - Rusty Blackbird From: Ken & Rose Burdick <kenburdick AT ieee.org> Date: Thu, 04 Mar 2010 20:24:29 -0500 Today, I walked the section of the Old Erie Canal between Peru and Memphis. A bird near the canal was making quite a variety of sounds, and I almost passed it off as a starling. But, a visual check indicated that it was a female Rusty Blackbird, about a week early for down here. There were also Canadas, Mallards, Blacks and a flyover Bald Eagle. Ken & Rose Burdick Skaneateles, NY KenBurdick AT ieee.org Subject: Baldwinsville Gulls From: "jnnbrin" <jnnbrin AT hotmail.com> Date: Thu, 04 Mar 2010 15:37:44 -0000 This morning in Baldwinsville at Mercer Park Tony Shrimpton and I with 2 ESF students, Lewis and Joey, were able to locate GLAUCOUS, ICELAND, and LESSER BLACK-BACKED GULL. There was just a single Lesser Black-backed but multiples of the other two. Joseph Brin brinjoseph AT yahoo.com Baldwinsville, N.Y. Subject: 100: Hawk-art-science... From: "Tom Carrolan" <TLC AT hawksaloft.com> Date: Thu, 04 Mar 2010 00:04:24 -0000 They've got the urge for going, and they've got the wings so they can go. -— Joni Mitchell Today, March 3rd: Marks the one-hundredth blog entry all about hawks, hawk migration, the art and science of hawkwatching, plus a few other diversions. All related, I think: entertaining is not informative... that's my motto. http://www.hawksaloft.com Today's post is a look back at the first 99 in terms of their arrangement in topical archives that sort the posts from the oldest to the newest ones within a topic, like "weather and climate" or "fun with accipiters." In addition to me and Joni Mitchell, you'll hear from Einstein, Thoreau, and Rachel Carson, but mostly me. Jerry Seinfeld drops in on occasion, too. Tomorrow: The Annual Ithaca Redtail Fest is still underway. Where else can you see forty Red-tailed Hawks perched, nearly shoulder-to-shoulder at times, on just a few acres... but why? You might think Cornell is cultivating the beasts for science, but these are free-ranging RTs. Check it out. Tom Carrolan Liverpool NY www.hawksaloft.com .................................................. Not everything that counts can be counted and not everything that can be counted counts. -— Albert Einstein .................................................. Subject: Waxwings on snow From: Kevin Pace <krpace AT hotmail.com> Date: Wed, 3 Mar 2010 17:56:33 -0500 Yesterday and today we've had a flock of about 30 Cedar Waxwings picking little insects (snowflies ) off the surface of the snow. They swoop down and spread out across the snow, pick the snowflies in the area, rise up and drop again somewhere else. Fun to watch. At noon today a Great Horned Owl called from the woods across from our house, in response to a noisy flock of crows. There might be a nest there but I haven't been able to locate it. A Pine Siskin was at our feeders with a flock of goldfinches again today. It spends less time at the feeders than it did a few weeks ago but still appears almost daily. Yesterday two Red-tail Hawks, three Ravens and about twenty American Crows were feeding on some animal remains in one of our fields. A recently coyote killed deer in a different field might attract the same birds until the coyotes clean up the remains. Kevin PaceErieville _________________________________________________________________ Hotmail: Trusted email with Microsoft’s powerful SPAM protection. http://clk.atdmt.com/GBL/go/201469226/direct/01/ [Non-text portions of this message have been removed] ------------------------------------ Yahoo! Groups Links <*> To visit your group on the web, go to: http://groups.yahoo.com/group/oneidabirds/ <*> Your email settings: Individual Email | Traditional <*> To change settings online go to: http://groups.yahoo.com/group/oneidabirds/join (Yahoo! ID required) <*> To change settings via email: oneidabirds-digest AT yahoogroups.com oneidabirds-fullfeatured AT yahoogroups.com <*> To unsubscribe from this group, send an email to: oneidabirds-unsubscribe AT yahoogroups.com <*> Your use of Yahoo! Groups is subject to: http://docs.yahoo.com/info/terms/ Subject: FW: Figura wants to know --have you seen a bald eagle lately? From: "Salter, Linda" <lsalter AT mph.net> Date: Wed, 3 Mar 2010 14:10:01 -0500 This gentleman writes the "Outdoors" column for the Post-Standard. I know there's quite a bit of activity... any contributors? Good birding, Linda Salter ________________________________ From: David Figura [mailto:dfigura AT Syracuse.com] Sent: Wednesday, March 03, 2010 1:04 PM Subject: Figura wants to know --have you seen a bald eagle lately? I'm doing a story for tomorrow's paper about a DEC report that just came out noting the state's bald eagle population is at an all-time high since the state's repopulation efforts for the bird began some 30 years ago. In Friday's Outdoors page, I'm following up with a story about where to go in Central New York if you want to see a bald eagle. I need you help on this one. Any locations or anecdotes you could supply would help. .. and please include your full name, where you live and daytime phone number if I need to get back to you for a followup question.. Thanks. - David Figura, Outdoors Editor, The Post-Standard . [Non-text portions of this message have been removed] Subject: Re: City Peregrines Link to Cam From: <wryt-on AT twcny.rr.com> Date: Wed, 3 Mar 2010 14:20:32 -0500 Here you go Sue: http://www.wvtc.com/index.php?option=com_wrapper&Itemid=555 Judy Wright ---- Sue March wrote: > Could you please post the webcam address?/ > > Thank you, > Sue March > > ---- wryt-on AT twcny.rr.com wrote: > > ============= > Just took a quick check of the webcam for the State Tower Bldg. (Syracuse) nest box and there's a Peregrine in it moving rocks around. > > Judy Wright > Baldwinsville, NY > wryt-on AT twcny.rr.com > Subject: Baldwinsville Gulls From: "brinjoseph" <brinjoseph AT yahoo.com> Date: Wed, 03 Mar 2010 18:37:14 -0000 White winged gulls are still lingering in Baldwinsville. Today there were 4 ICELAND GULLS and 1 GLAUCOUS GULL. All except for 1 Iceland were seen from Mercer Park. No sign of the Lesser Black-backs today. Joseph Brin brinjoseph AT yahoo.com Baldwinsville, N.Y. Subject: City Peregrines From: <wryt-on AT twcny.rr.com> Date: Wed, 3 Mar 2010 9:37:39 -0500 Just took a quick check of the webcam for the State Tower Bldg. (Syracuse) nest box and there's a Peregrine in it moving rocks around. Judy Wright Baldwinsville, NY wryt-on AT twcny.rr.com Subject: Canvasback & Wigeon From: Bill Purcell <wpurcell AT twcny.rr.com> Date: Tue, 2 Mar 2010 20:33:19 -0500 Some selected birds from my travels on Tuesday: Brewerton - 1 Canvasback, 3 Ring-necked Ducks, 7 Lesser Scaup and 1 Iceland Gull Salmon River at Selkirk Shores SP - 1 American Wigeon, 1 Bald Eagle, 1 territorial Common Raven Derby Hill - a few Red-tailed Hawks plus a Common Raven Halsey Road, town of Mexico - 1 Northern Shrike Bill Purcell Hastings NY 13076 Subject: Larks, gulls, Shovelers From: Ken & Rose Burdick <kenburdick AT ieee.org> Date: Tue, 02 Mar 2010 19:47:28 -0500 Hi all, A robin moved into the back yard, setting up territory just before the huge snowfall. He has managed to hang on, and is still singing each day. This morning, we heard the first White-throated Sparrow adding its song to the chorus of cardinals and titmice. In the Town of Elbridge at corner of Jordan, Jordan, Gorham and Vinegar Hill Roads there is a large manure spread that has had big numbers of HORNED LARKS and SNOW BUNTINGS. On the weekend, larks dominated (over 200). Today, there were more buntings and fewer larks. In Bville on Sunday, I was only able to find one 3rd cycle GLAUCOUS GULL along with the 3 common species. Other points downstream to Fulton had essentially none. The gull situation seems to be very dynamic this week. Today, there was a strong smell of Spring in the air. After work, I went to the Old Erie Canal near Peru between MacDonald Rd and Schapp Rd. almost expecting to find a shorebird. Instead, there were two male NORTHERN SHOVELERS on the canal near Schapp Rd. Good birding, Ken & Rose Burdick Skaneateles, NY KenBurdick AT ieee.org Subject: Derby Hill Parking From: Bill Purcell <wpurcell AT twcny.rr.com> Date: Tue, 2 Mar 2010 17:30:20 -0500 For the time being it's requested that all visitors to Derby Hill park along Sage Creek Road and walk up the hill. Grandview Drive, the one lane dirt road, is very wet and soft right now and there is no room to park on top of the hill. The warming trend through this weekend should take care of the snow and might dry things out enough by next week. Bill Purcell Hastings NY 13076 Subject: Baldwinsville Gulls From: "brinjoseph" <brinjoseph AT yahoo.com> Date: Tue, 02 Mar 2010 18:38:30 -0000 Today there were 2 LESSER BLACK-BACKED GULLS and 3 ICELAND GULLS in Baldwinsville. On my flickr site - http://www.flickr.com/photos/jbrin/ - is a picture of an Iceland and a Lesser Black-backed Gull in the same pic. The Lesser Black-backed Gull is the preening bird two birds left of the Iceland Gull. Joseph Brin brinjoseph AT yahoo.com Baldwinsville, N.Y. Subject: Call for field trips From: "Paul Richardson" <vireo2 AT verizon.net> Date: Mon, 01 Mar 2010 14:35:25 -0500 Hello all, I am making a call for field trips for the April, May and June months for the Kestrel. If you are interested in leading a field trips please send me an email with dates, times and a brief description of the trip. My goal is to get at least two trips for each month if possible. Deadline for submissions is Saturday, March 13th. Thanks, Paul Richardson OAS Field Trip Chair Vireo2 AT verizon.net [Non-text portions of this message have been removed] Subject: Syracuse RBA From: Joseph Brin <brinjoseph AT yahoo.com> Date: Mon, 1 Mar 2010 10:12:20 -0800 (PST) RBA * New York * Syracuse * March 01, 2010 * NYSY 0103.10 Hotline: Syracuse Rare bird Alert Dates(s): February 22, 2009 - March 01, 2010 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:March 01 AT 1:00 p.m. (EST) compiler: Joseph Brin Onondaga Audubon Homepage: www.onondagaaudubon.org #194 -Monday March 01, 2010 Greetings! This is the Syracuse Area Rare Bird Alert for the week of February 22 , 2009 Highlights: ----------- PEREGRINE FALCON IVORY GULL (Extralimital) ICELAND GULL LESSER BLACK-BACKED GULL GLAUCOUS GULL SNOWY OWL NORTHERN HAWK OWL (Extralimital) NORTHERN SHRIKE LAPLAND LONGSPUR FOX SPARROW Montezuma National Wildlife Refuge (MNWR) and Montezuma Wetlands Complex (MWC) ------------ 2/27: A SNOWY OWL was spotted from the Thruway at the eastern end of the Montezuma Complex. Onondaga County ------------ 2/22: 2 third year GLAUCOUS GULLS and a juvenile ICELAND GULL were seen in the Seneca River at Baldwinsville. Throughout the week up to 4 GLAUCOUS and 4 ICELAND GULLS were seen, most in adult plumage. On the 26th. and the 27th. an adult LESSER BLACK-BACKED GULL was seen. Today, 3/01, a fourth year GLAUCOUS GULL was seen. The gulls are being seen from Cooper’s Marina well above the dam to spots below the dam. 2/23: A PEREGRINE FALCON was seen from Rt. 81 near Adams Street. Oswego County ------------ 2/23: 3 NORTHERN SHRIKES were seen in Hastings. 2 adult birds were spotted on Cornell Road and an immature bird was seen on Baum Road. Herkimer County ------------ 2/27: A FOX SPARROW continues to overwinter at a feeder near Cedar Lake. Cortland County ------------ 2/26: A LAPLAND LONGSPUR was seen with Horned Larks and Snow Buntings on a manure spread near the intersection of Rt.81 and Rt.281. Extralimital ------------ 2/28: The NORTHERN HAWK OWL and IVORY GULL continue to be seen in Clinton County. The Owl is being seen on Prospect Street in the village of Champlain. The Gull is being seen at Rouse’s Point on Lake Champlain a few miles to the east. --end transcript -- Joseph Brin Region 5 Baldwinsville, N.Y. 13027 U.S.A. [Non-text portions of this message have been removed] Subject: Another Glaucous Gull From: "brinjoseph" <brinjoseph AT yahoo.com> Date: Mon, 01 Mar 2010 16:29:30 -0000 I found a GLAUCOUS GULL this morning in Baldwinsville which I believe is a different bird from the three or so seen earlier this week. All previous birds were ID'd as third year birds having adult plumage but with a black ring around the bill. The bird I saw this morning looked to be a fourth year bird, adult plumage with yellow bill and red gonys spot. The bird was seen feeding below the dam. Joseph Brin brinjoseph AT yahoo.com Baldwinsville, N.Y. Subject: Route 80 and 281 Horned Larks From: "LisaW" <welch_m_lisa AT yahoo.com> Date: Mon, 01 Mar 2010 02:52:25 -0000 Viewed three flocks of Horned Larks on Saturday and Sunday: Vincent Corners Road (8) - Thanks Fano and Fay'ville couple with the scope! Venture Farms, Route 80 (20) - Thanks Fano Route 281 and Route 11 near Song Lake Crossing Road (10 and 40) - Thanks previous Oneida Post Didn't see any Snow Buntings or Lapland Longspurs. Subject: Baldwinsville Gulls From: "brinjoseph" <brinjoseph AT yahoo.com> Date: Sun, 28 Feb 2010 18:43:16 -0000 There were still some Gulls in Baldwinsville this morning. An ICELAND and a GLAUCOUS GULL were seen above the dam at Mercer Park. Another ICELAND GULL was seen below the falls. All birds were in near adult plumage. Joseph Brin brinjoseph AT yahoo.com Baldwinsville, N.Y. Subject: Robins From: Thomas J McKay <tjmckay AT syr.edu> Date: Sun, 28 Feb 2010 11:47:28 -0500 We have had flocks of robins around our neighborhood all winter. (Syracuse East side, near Nottingham High School.) But all this past week individual robins and smaller groups (2-4) have been everywhere. Either the flocks have broken up or new robins have come in. Tom Subject: Snowy Owl From: Sue March <SMARCH1 AT twcny.rr.com> Date: Sat, 27 Feb 2010 18:19:03 -0500 About 10:30 this morning we were on the Thruway just east of Montezuma when a snowy owl flew at car height across the highway while being mobbed by crows. I had a great look at them-and enjoyed the sight thoroughly!! Sue March Marcellus smarch1 AT twcny.rr.com Subject: Fox Sparrow From: Betty Armbruster <barm17 AT windstream.net> Date: Sat, 27 Feb 2010 15:47:37 -0500 The Fox Sparrow was here in my yard . It made through the storm. Looks fine also. The White throated sparrow was singing its song today. Hope spring comes soon. Betty Subject: Re: Robins From: "Tim Whitens" <willowcreek00 AT windstream.net> Date: Fri, 26 Feb 2010 19:14:48 -0500 I also had a group vocalizing in my sugarbush on Farnam Rd., Cato (Ira). I hope they are still northern birds, as I'm not quite ready for locals to return, heralding spring! Tim Tim & Nancy Whitens Fulton, NY willowcreek00 AT windstream.net ----- Original Message ----- From: "mrbirder" To: Sent: Friday, February 26, 2010 4:10 PM Subject: [OneidaBirds] Robins > Just saw large group of Robins under my Bird feeders, in Lilac bush and in > my neighbor's driveway. > > > > ------------------------------------ Subject: Lapland Longspur, Cortland Co. From: "gwren70" <gwren70 AT yahoo.com> Date: Fri, 26 Feb 2010 22:17:05 -0000 A Lapland Longspur was seen this afternoon in the same location in which I had the nine Horned Larks on Monday. It was located next to Song Lake Crossing between Rt.281 and near the bridge over Rt.81. There were also 43 Snow Buntings and this time eight Horned Larks. A nearby farmer had cleared a small plot of cornfield exposing bare ground, corn stubble and kernels of corn. It was now a mecca for these ground feeders. Further south, next to Rt.11, I counted 20 Common Mergansers, 1 American Black Duck and 11 Mallards on Goodale Lake. They were taking advantage of the open water where the west branch of the Tioughnioga River comes in. Good Birding. Gene Huggins, Tully, N.Y. Subject: Robins From: "mrbirder" <awood_2 AT hotmail.com> Date: Fri, 26 Feb 2010 21:10:01 -0000 Just saw large group of Robins under my Bird feeders, in Lilac bush and in my neighbor's driveway. Subject: Baldwinsville Gulls From: "brinjoseph" <brinjoseph AT yahoo.com> Date: Fri, 26 Feb 2010 19:00:08 -0000 Two and perhaps three third year GLAUCOUS GULLS continue to be seen in Baldwinsville. I saw one today from Mercer Park above the dam, another sitting on the bridge, and a third? from Cooper's Marina west of the village. A first year very dark ICELAND GULL seen Tuesday was not seen today but this bird is hard to ID unless it sits. I also found an adult LESSER BLACK-BACKED GULL at Cooper's Marina today. Joseph Brin brinjoseph AT yahoo.com Baldwinsville, N.Y. Subject: Cooper's hawk From: "ccspagnoli" <ccspagnoli AT hotmail.com> Date: Fri, 26 Feb 2010 15:27:44 -0000 Had what I've finally decided was a juvenile Cooper's hawk perched in a distant tree on my property this morning. It had its back to me and was backlit in the falling snow, and it was such a big bird that for a while I was trying to turn it into a goshawk, but at the end of the day I just couldn't support that id - especially when it fanned its tail feathers and the light coming through showed the tail bands weren't wavy. I guess it was just a big female. What surprised me was how "squarish" the head looked when it turned. Raptors sure are easier to identify in flight than when they're perched. Good birding. Chris Spagnoli Town of Pompey Subject: Fw: Tree and Shrub Sale Fundraiser From: Joseph Brin <brinjoseph AT yahoo.com> Date: Wed, 24 Feb 2010 15:46:57 -0800 (PST) Forwarded with List Administrator approval. ----- Forwarded Message ---- From: Lee Gechas To: brinjoseph AT yahoo.com Sent: Sun, February 21, 2010 10:30:23 PM Subject: Tree and Shrub Sale Fundraiser Hi, I hope you don't mind, but I thought you might be interested in the Onondaga County Soil & Water Conservation District annual Tree and Shrub Sale. Below is a brief description of the event. I am working at this wonderful agency part-time and this is a major fundraiser for the organization, as well as a great way to get more trees planted in CNY. You can order by going to the the OCSWCD web site at http://www.ocswcd.org/ and clicking on Tree Sale. I would greatly appreciate any help you can give me with spreading the word about this tree and shrub sale. It is our annual fundraiser and helps to raise awareness about the value of trees. Thank you so much. Lee Gechas Native Trees Featured In Onondaga County Soil & Water Conservation District Annual Tree and Shrub Sale The Onondaga County Soil & Water Conservation District (OCSWCD) is now accepting orders for its annual Tree and Shrub Sale, featuring a variety of evergreens, deciduous trees and shrubs, as well as blackberry, blueberry and raspberry bushes. Plants are bare-root stock. Native plant species for sale include red and white oak, sugar maple, birch, white pine, balsam fir and more. Prices range from $13 to $27 for bundles of ten plants. Fertilizer tablets and marking flags will also be available. Call 315-677-3851 to have an order form mailed or e-mailed to you. Order forms can also be downloaded from the OCSWCD web site at http://www.ocswcd.org/. Order deadline is March 5, and we accept checks or credit cards. Payment is due with your order. Pick-up of tree orders will take place at the Poultry Building at the State Fairgrounds on Thursday, April 22 (Earth Day) from 8:30 a.m. to 6 p.m. Planting a tree – or ten – is one of the best things you can do for the environment. And it’s good for your personal bottom line as well. Trees absorb carbon dioxide, reduce soil erosion and provide food and habitat for wildlife. They provide shade and reduce air conditioning costs in summer, and they serve as a windbreak to reduce heating costs in winter. Studies have also shown that trees add to the value of residential properties. Onondaga County Soil & Water Conservation District 2571 U.S. Route 11, Suite #1, LaFayette, NY 13084 Phone: (315) 677-3851 Fax: (315) 677-3971 E-mail: info AT ocswcd.org Web site: http://www.ocswcd.org/ Contact Maggie Connelly at 315-677-3851 for more information. The Onondaga County Soil & Water Conservation District is a local governmental subdivision established in 1944 under state law to carry out programs for the conservation, use and development of soil, water, forest and related resources in Onondaga County. OCSWCD provides assessment, technical assistance, planning and design services on a variety of water quality and natural resource issues to municipalities, government agencies, farmers, and urban and rural landowners. [Non-text portions of this message have been removed] Subject: Kestral From: Judy Wright <wryt-on AT twcny.rr.com> Date: Wed, 24 Feb 2010 17:37:38 -0500 A Kestral was perched on a street light on Carrier Circle in Dewitt at about 3:15 today. Judy Wright wryt-on AT twcny.rr.com Baldwinsville, NY Subject: Fox Sparrow From: Betty Armbruster <barm17 AT windstream.net> Date: Tue, 23 Feb 2010 16:27:30 -0500 I just saw the Fox Sparrow under one of the feeders just now. I hope it is going to spend the winter here. There's enough food. A creek just down the road is not frozen. Maybe there will be an early spring. Betty Subject: Peregrine Falcone From: "Tressa" <tessy1970 AT gmail.com> Date: Tue, 23 Feb 2010 21:07:38 -0000 I spotted a peregrine falcone perched on a light pole when I was driving home on Rte 81 South between Adams St. and Brighton Ave. in Syracuse yesterday just before 5:00 pm. Tressa Krenzer Marcellus, NY http://www.pbase.com/theepicme Subject: Shrikes From: Bill Purcell <wpurcell AT twcny.rr.com> Date: Mon, 22 Feb 2010 21:44:59 -0500 Three Northern Shrikes today in Hastings, the adult birds on Cornell Road and in Mallory continue and there was an immature bird on the treeline north of the house. In Brewerton there was a Pied-billed Grebe and 2 Ring-necked Ducks along with the Mallards, Blacks, Common Goldeneyes and Common Mergansers. Bill Purcell Hastings NY 13076 Subject: Cedar Waxwings, Tully; Rough-legged Hawk & Horned Larks From: "gwren70" <gwren70 AT yahoo.com> Date: Tue, 23 Feb 2010 01:21:51 -0000 Late this afternoon, I counted 65 Cedar Waxwings perched in a tree next to Lake Rd. The location is several hundred feet west of Lake Rd's intersection with Gatehouse Rd., west of Tully. Cortland County: A light-phase Rough-legged Hawk was seen in the open fields west of the city of Cortland between Blue Creek Rd. and Kinney Gulf Rd. Nine Horned Larks were located on the side of the Song Lake Crossing Rd. just east of Rt.81 in the Twn. of Preble. Good Birding. Gene Huggins, Tully. Subject: Glaucous Gulls From: "brinjoseph" <brinjoseph AT yahoo.com> Date: Mon, 22 Feb 2010 20:22:44 -0000 After striking out on gulls this morning in Oswego I returned home to Baldwinsville and immediately noticed a big increase in gull activity in the river. Below the dam I quickly spotted a third year GLAUCOUS GULL flying with food and being harassed by Greater Black-backed Gulls. Above the dam from Mercer Park there were a good number of gulls on the ice. I was able to spot 2 more third year GLAUCOUS GULLS on the ice although one of them may have been the bird I saw flying below the dam. A pair of photos of one of the gulls can be seen on my FLICKR site at http://www.flickr.com/photos/jbrin/ Joseph Brin brinjoseph AT yahoo.com Baldwinsville, N.Y. Subject: Syracuse RBA From: Joseph Brin <brinjoseph AT yahoo.com> Date: Mon, 22 Feb 2010 10:19:05 -0800 (PST) RBA * New York * Syracuse * February 22, 2010 * NYSY 2202.10 Hotline: Syracuse Rare bird Alert Dates(s): February 15, 2009 - February 22, 2010 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 22 AT 1:00 p.m. (EST) compiler: Joseph Brin Onondaga Audubon Homepage: www.onondagaaudubon.org #193 -Monday February 22, 2010 Greetings! This is the Syracuse Area Rare Bird Alert for the week of February 15 , 2009 Highlights: ----------- NORTHERN HARRIER ROUGH-LEGGED HAWK MERLIN IVORY GULL (Extralimital) ICELAND GULL LESSER BLACK-BACKED GULL GLAUCOUS GULL SHORT-EARED OWL BARRED OWL SCREECH OWL HAWK OWL (Extralimital) YELLOW-BELLIED SAPSUCKER NORTHERN SHRIKE FISH CROW LAPLAND LONGSPUR Montezuma National Wildlife Refuge (MNWR) and Montezuma Wetlands Complex (MWC) ------------ 2/20: A SHORT-EARED OWL was seen from the mucklands along Rt. 31. Also seen were ROUGH-LEGGED HAWK and NORTHERN HARRIER 2/21: A NORTHERN SHRIKE was seen along Van Dyne Spoor Road. Also seen were ROUGH-LEGGED HAWK and NORTHERN HARRIER. Onondaga County ------------ 2/16: A FISH CROW was seen near Shiller Park in Syracuse. 2/20: A MERLIN was seen at the Syracuse Regional Market near Carousel Mall. A NORTHERN SHRIKE was found at Split Rock near Fairmount. 2/22: A SCREECH OWL was found at Oakwood cemetart near Syracuse University. Also seen were YELLOW-BELLIED SAPSUCKER, MOCKINGBIRD and RED-BREASTED NUTHATCH. Cayuga County ------------ 2/17: A LAPLAND LONGSPUR was seen with Snow Buntings and Horned Larks along Rt.34 about one and one half miles south of Cato. Oswego County ------------- 2/21: Seen in Oswego Harbor were GLAUCOUS GULL, ICELAND GULL, and LESSER BLACK-BACKED GULL. Waterfowl seen were Long-tailed Duck, Greater Scaup, Redhead, and White-winged Scoter. Madison County ------------ 2/21: A BARRED OWL was seen on Hall Road in the Town of Nelson. Extralimital ------------ The Champlain (Clinton County) NORTHERN HAWK OWL is still being seen. A positive report came in today. Not more than five miles from this bird is a report of an IVORY GULL at Rouses Point on Lake Champlain. It was first reported on 2/19 and has been reported positively already today (2/22). --end transcript -- Joseph Brin Region 5 Baldwinsville, N.Y. 13027 U.S.A. [Non-text portions of this message have been removed] Subject: Bald Eagle - Tug Hill Plateau From: "Nature Chris" <lajewskic AT yahoo.com> Date: Mon, 22 Feb 2010 18:01:29 -0000 Driving up to the Amboy 4-H Environmental Education Center (route 183 in Amboy) Sunday afternoon with my first assistant to lead a public snowshoe program, we spotted an adult bald eagle soaring right over the Center. Once the program began, participants were treated to a couple dozen chickadees and white-breasted nuthatches feeding around the feeders and high in the sugar maples and white pine. Many creatures, great and small, were stretching their legs and wings. We found a very small spider crawling across the trail and some spring tails hopping around. Hope you enjoyed the sun today! Chris Lajewski Northern NY Field Representative The Nature Conservancy www.nature.org/cwny Subject: Oakwood Cemetery, Monday AM From: Lewis Grove <zugunlew AT gmail.com> Date: Mon, 22 Feb 2010 10:23:51 -0500 Hey everyone, Our crew of 5 ESF grad students had a pretty good hour and a half of birding in Oakwood Cemetery, adjacent to ESF's campus this morning. Highlights: 1 E. Screech-owl, grey phase 1 Yellow-bellied Sapsucker 1 Northern Mockingbird 1 Tufted Titmouse 1 Red-breasted Nuthatch + all of the usuals in small numbers (BLJA, BCCH, HAWO, DOWO, RBWO, WBNU, AMRO, HOFI, etc.) Good birding, Lewis -- Lewis Grove MS Candidate, Ecology State University of New York College of Environmental Science & Forestry Department of Environmental and Forest Biology 244 Illick Hall, 1 Forestry Drive, Syracuse, NY 13210 (814) 880-5667 [Non-text portions of this message have been removed] Subject: Gulls & Raptors From: Bill Purcell <wpurcell AT twcny.rr.com> Date: Sun, 21 Feb 2010 18:41:16 -0500 Kevin McGann called me on Sunday morning to say that the the Oswego Harbor gulls were much closer to the International Pier than on Saturday and that there was a Lesser Black-backed Gull with them. Between the two of us we picked out a total of 2 Lesser Black-backed Gulls (adult & 3d cycle) and 4 Iceland Gulls. The Icelands consisted of a distant adult with a very streaked head and little gray in the wings, a 3d cycle seen flying with a white head and darkish primaries and 2 first-cycle birds, one dark and one pale. In mid-afternoon I checked the fields in the area around Sherman Road, the town line between Richland & Mexico, with these results: Sherman Road - 4 Rough-legged Hawks (including the only dark-morph), 4 Red-tails and 1 Am. Kestrel. Manwaring Road - 1 Rough-leg. Atkinson Road - 1 Red-tail, 3 Eastern Bluebirds and 30 Cedar Waxwings. CR 41 - 3 Red-tails. Dewey's Corners (Spath, Tubbs & Frasier Rds) - 3 Rough-legs and 3 Red-tails. Along my road around 4 PM I saw flocks of 13 and 25 Cedar Waxwings sitting in deciduous trees as they prepared to go to roost for the night. BTW, Kevin says that Little Sodus Bay and Fair Haven area is nearly completely iced in with almost no waterfowl. Bill Purcell Hastings NY 13076 [Non-text portions of this message have been removed] Subject: Madison County Barred Owl From: "LisaW" <welch_m_lisa AT yahoo.com> Date: Sun, 21 Feb 2010 03:03:23 -0000 Took a drive around Madison County this afternoon. Nothing interesting to report in Cazenovia and Fenner. Trees were covered with ice. Finally came across a BARRED OWL perched on the side of Hall Road in the Town of Nelson, on the way back from snowshoeing at Stoney Pond. Subject: Oswego From: Bill Purcell <wpurcell AT twcny.rr.com> Date: Sat, 20 Feb 2010 18:40:53 -0500 Made a visit to Oswego Harbor today and was pleased to find that it had opened a bit since I was there a week ago. Lots of gulls sitting low in the ice extending out in the harbor and I could only find one first-cycle Glaucous Gull along with: Ring-billed Gull 1300 Herring Gull 6000 Great Black-backed Gull 25 Waterfowl numbers & variety were hardly eye-popping but better than the past few weeks: Canada Goose 12 American Black Duck 8 Mallard 270 Greater Scaup 84 Lesser Scaup 2 White-winged Scoter 9 Long-tailed Duck 18 Bufflehead 15 Common Goldeneye 27 Common Merganser 16 Red-breasted Merganser 9 Pied-billed Grebe 1 Bill Purcell Hastings NY 13076 Subject: Robins in New Hartford From: Sheila Smith <sheilas1 AT roadrunner.com> Date: Sat, 20 Feb 2010 20:53:20 -0500 In the woods off of Graffenburg Road in New Hartford there were about 60 robins this morning. A quick look on Ashrick Road off of Graffenburg Rd there were a few dozen robins but none in the orchard on Wadsworth Lane East. Sheila Smith 1354 Graffenburg Road New Hartford, NY 13413 sheilas1 AT roadrunner.com [Non-text portions of this message have been removed] Subject: Split Rock - N. Shrike From: "Paul Richardson" <vireo2 AT verizon.net> Date: Sat, 20 Feb 2010 14:04:20 -0500 Hello all, I went up to Split Rock this morning. There was a Northern Shrike along the road at the end of Onondaga Blvd. that goes up to the rock crusher area. Other highlights were a Golden-crowned Kinglet and a Brown Creeper in the glenn. Good birding, Paul Richardson Camillus, NY vireo2 AT verizon.net [Non-text portions of this message have been removed] Subject: Regional Market Raptors From: "brinjoseph" <brinjoseph AT yahoo.com> Date: Sat, 20 Feb 2010 16:48:03 -0000 I saw 2 unlikely raptors at the Regional Market in Syracuse this morning. First, as I walked to my car, I saw a large hawk flying and eventually landing on a telephone pole. RED-TAILED HAWK: The bird took no notice of the crowd at all. Looking around I noticed another suspicious looking bird atop one of the buildings. MERLIN: Again with a crowd right under the bird she (big bird) just sat and watched. I walked right up to her with my binoculars. Joseph Brin brinjoseph AT yahoo.com Baldwinsville, N.Y. Subject: City birds: COHAs, PIWO, AMROs From: Lewis Grove <zugunlew AT gmail.com> Date: Thu, 18 Feb 2010 12:59:26 -0500 Hey all, I've had a few good birds this week in the campus/Westcott St area of Syracuse. The best has been 3 Cooper's Hawks; one adult female (very large) in Barry Park on Monday, a 1st yr bird flying over Westcott & Euclid on Tuesday, and then another 1st yr bird chasing starlings above Marshall St around lunchtime today. Wednesday evening, I had a Pileated Woodpecker fly over Westcott St, a bit of a surprise since there are precious few blocks of contiguous forest around. Barry Park has also had a roving flock of ~25 American Robins, in addition to the regular winter residents. Good birding, Lewis Grove MS Candidate, SUNY-ESF http://picasaweb.google.com/zugunlew [Non-text portions of this message have been removed] Subject: More robin From: "ccspagnoli" <ccspagnoli AT hotmail.com> Date: Thu, 18 Feb 2010 14:02:06 -0000 Had a robin call a couple of times and even sing a few phrases in my back yard this morning. Chris Spagnoli Town of Pompey Subject: Lapland Longspur From: "brinjoseph" <brinjoseph AT yahoo.com> Date: Wed, 17 Feb 2010 19:21:30 -0000 Acting on a tip from Kevin McGann who saw one a week ago I went looking for a LAPLAND LONGSPUR this morning. The location is about one and one half miles south of Cato on Rt.34 at the intersection with Chase Road. There is a manure spread on the west side of Rt.34 and I could see birds moving about when I got there. It only took a few minutes to locate a Longspur among the Snow Buntings and Horned Larks. Thanks Kevin. Joseph Brin brinjoseph AT yahoo.com Baldwinsville, N.Y. Subject: Robin From: Kevin Pace <krpace AT hotmail.com> Date: Wed, 17 Feb 2010 13:13:27 -0500 Yesterday morning we had a robin eating sumac fruit in our backyard. Robins leave our area for most of the winter but return in small numbers if there is a break in the weather. So, though maybe not technically a migrant, I'll take this first (here) robin of the year as an early sign of spring! Some other recent observations: At 10:30 AM yesterday a mob of crows provoked a call from a Great Horned Owl roosted in woods across from our house. At about the same time a light morph Rough-legged Hawk flew over the fields between our house and the woods. Feeder highlights are a Pine Siskin which has been here daily since mid January, a Cooper's Hawk (frequent visitor this winter, and as recently as yesterday), two Tufted Titmice, and one male Red-bellied Woodpecker. The titmice and Red-bellied woodpecker are notable because this is the first time either species has persisted here this late into the winter. Last Friday, at noon, I spotted the Cooper's Hawk on the ground under some low branches of a blue spruce. It was almost motionless and holding what appeared to be a starling. Chickadees continued to come to a feeder about ten feet away. They could have used a more distant feeder but seemed little concerned by the Cooper's. They also continued to use the spruce as a resting / eating spot. Periodically one would work its way down to within two feet of the hawk for a closer look. A few juncos and tree sparrows returned to feed, but other than the red-bellied wood pecker at a more distant feeder, the larger birds stayed away. About an hour after I first spotted it, the Cooper's started to pluck and eat its prey. This did not disrupt chickadee feeding. The hawk worked on the carcass for about fifteen minutes before carrying it away. For me, the interesting parts of this observation are how long the hawk waited before eating, and how little time chickadees waste before returning to feeding. Kevin PaceErieville _________________________________________________________________ Your E-mail and More On-the-Go. Get Windows Live Hotmail Free. http://clk.atdmt.com/GBL/go/201469229/direct/01/ [Non-text portions of this message have been removed]