Chipmonk
By: Pat Coate
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Spring Warblers
Prairie Warbler
By: Pat Coate
Great time of year for birding. Lots of warblers are moving through the area. Nine species so far, hoping to add some more this week.
Tree Swallows
Tree Swallow
By: Pat Coate
Cornell Lab of Ornithology’s AllAboutBirds.com gives a good description of tree swallows and their typical behavior, which I have observed often:
“Handsome aerialists with deep-blue iridescent backs and clean white fronts, Tree Swallows are a familiar sight in summer fields and wetlands across northern North America. They chase after flying insects with acrobatic twists and turns, their steely blue-green feathers flashing in the sunlight.”
But recently I watched about twenty tree swallows repeatedly fly along a small stream and seemingly dip down to the water. I figured they were feeding on insects, but this next photo made me wonder if they might instead be getting a drink.
Osprey Back and Building (again)
Osprey
By: Pat Coate
There are now two ospreys hanging out together on the nesting platforms at the Birch Run DEC ponds. I presume one is male and the other female. However, I did not see the “dark necklace” that usually identifies the female on either bird. They have been busy adding new sticks to the nest.
Waterfowl 1 – Northern Shovelers
Male Northern Shoveler
By: Pat Coate
This has been a very good spring for waterfowl. There has been good quality and quantity locally as well as in birding spots near Buffalo and Rochester. The pictures shown here were taken at Iroquois National Wildlife Refuge and Montezuma Wildlife Refuge.
The Northern Shoveler is easy to identify due to its large, spoon-shaped bill. Its bill has over 100 small, comb-like structures that are used as a sieve to filter small invertebrates from the water. Marshes are its preferred habitat.
Elk of the Pennsylvania Wilds – Part 2
Pennsylvania Elk
By: Pat Coate
Here are a few more pictures taken in the Benezette area of the Pennsylvania Wilds, which is considered the heart of Pennsylvania’s elk country. Between a trip in mid-March and one this past weekend I ran into two herds totaling over 50 elk. One herd seemed very acclimated to people as the elk were grazing right on the lawns in the village, while the other herd was south of town in a more “wild” setting.
Eastern Phoebe
You know its spring when you have 68F degree temperatures and your nesting Eastern Phoebe returns to your barn!!!
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Mallards
Mallard (male)
By: Pat Coate
Based on how common mallards are, I think birders (me included) take them a bit for granted. But they are really quite beautiful birds, the male in particular displaying an impressive palette of colors.
Field marks for the male include:
• Shiny green head
• Bright yellow bill with black mark on tip
• Brown breast
• White ring around neck
• Silver on sides
• Blue speculum patch on wing (not always visible)
• Black and white in rear with a black tail curl
• Bright orange feet
All these field marks can be seen in the above or following pictures.
Saw-whet Success
Northern Saw-whet Owl
By: Pat Coate
Took advantage of my daughter flying into the Rochester airport to visit several birding spots in the area prior to her arrival. One stop was Owl Woods (part of Braddock Bay Fish & Wildlife Management/Braddock Bay Park) to search for migrating northern saw-whet owls. Success!
These owls are always a joy to see. They are only 7-8 inches tall and weigh in at a whopping 2-5 ounces.
Hurricane Sandy Relief Continues
By: Pat Coate St. Bonaventure University has a wonderful service group called BonaResponds (http://bonaresponds.org/) that recently spent their spring break helping with Hurricane Sandy relief on Long Island and at the Jersey shore. The group is headed by a finance professor, was started shortly after Hurricane Katrina and has assisted at most national disasters since – as well as doing a lot of good work locally. I had the opportunity to join the group for the week. I had been to Long Island with the Red Cross back in December. Though progress has been made there is still a tremendously long way to go. I was especially surprised by the amount of work to be done along the Jersey shore. We were in the Manasquan-Ortley Beach area and a good portion of this area looked largely untouched. There was a significant police presence and some utilities were not yet fully restored. We also noted that there were lots of billboards for lawyers offering their services to challenge insurance claim denials.
Oceanfront home for sale in the Rockaways (NY)
