Do you moo?
Been busy with committee meetings, working on a power point slideshow and don’t forget the Kenn Kaufman talk tomorrow night at the Roger Tory Peterson Institute. I promise to catch up with everyone’s photostream and blogs here soon.
After our Committee Meeting this eveing; I heard an Eastern Screech Owl out in the parking lot and called everyone over. I was able to get the owl to do a fly by in the overhead lights and then return vocalizing so that everyone could hear it. Was fun hearing/seeing the Screech Owls again.
More good news:
Yeah!! Got my Moo Cards in the mail today!! If you have no idea what I am talking about, go to: http://www.moo.com/flickr/.
Early night in bed!! Yeah!!
Grebe Update
Picture taken two days ago at the released
Yesterday, while heading into town; I checked two times and didn’t see the Red-necked Grebe anywhere along the Allegheny River. Although I did see many ducks swimming around like the Common Merganser, Black Duck, Mallard, Canada Goose, Common Goldeneye and a Long-tailed Ducks. It was very possible that the Red-necked Grebe was down stream (where I didn’t have access to look). (more…)
Grounded with no where to go!!
This morning a fellow employee came into the office saying “Tom, we have an injured bird in the snow!!” He told me how “a bird watcher found this bird and asked if he would go get some help”. I agreed to help out and while looking for a box; I started asking questions like “how big was it?”, “what was it doing” etc.. I quickly realized that the bird being described was probably a grebe species. I went down the hall and asked “Randy” a fellow naturalist to give me a hand with the bird. (more…)
-2.9° to 42.4°F in 36 hours
Over the past 36 hours we have had a temperature change 45.3° degrees! To put that into perspective, if we had a low temperature of 55°F and had the same temperature change within 36 hours; we would be looking at it being 100°F outside!! Isn’t that crazy?
Here is my GOOD / BAD thoughts regarding this temperature changes.
| Spring is getting closer | Very muddy and ugly outside |
| Things are finally starting to melt | Soon will have flooding |
| More time outside | Treadmill gets dusty |
| Take more pictures | Less time to watch Ellen |
| Furnace doesn’t run as long | House in generally colder |
| Cats don’t lay on furnace vents as much | Cats are laying on me more |
| No more shoveling | Will probably snow again |
This evening I went for a quick walk around Red House Lake. I hoped to try and capture a bunch of pictures but the rain just made it too dark (and kinglets were too high up in the trees). Although taken with high ISO, there were 3 American Robins feeding on some berries. This was my only opportunity for a photo.
HAPPY FAT TUESDAY EVERYONE!
Presidents Day Along the River
Ducks have finally arrived on the Allegheny River after the freezing of Lake Erie. In most areas where the river was open you could find some species of duck swimming. Some of these species included:
Canada Goose
Mallard
American Black Duck
Common Merganser
Hooded Merganser
Bufflehead
and….
…. these Common Goldeneye.
Mums Cardinals
These Cardinals teased me at my parent’s house and I just had to grab my camera from the truck. (more…)
Bird Feeders and Sleeping Birds
Yesterday I started feeding the birds again after the feral cat took the cardinal a few weeks ago. Rumors have it that the cat was seen about a mile + away from my house. I hope it lost some interested with my empty feeder and gets lost in the deep woods. I will keep my eye open for any cat tracks and if found again, I will stop feeding for a second time. I enjoyed seeing my feathered friends again during my lunch break. I was amazed that chickadees returned within minutes of placing the feeder back in its spot on the tree.
Bear Safty Education
Recently the park obtained a large, male, black bear from the Department of Environmental Conservation. The bear was killed out of season by a deer hunter who clamed that it attacked him. It was donated to the park for educational purposes. A taxidermist mounted the head and front paws, and prepared the skull. These are materials the park naturalists will use for the Bear Safety program. Bear Safety was added to the list of program offerings in an effort to educate campers to the dangers of feeding and getting close to bears. Bears in the park are used to people, and they seem tame. Even so, they are still potentially dangerous wild animals.
The right side of the skull of a big male black bear. The canine teeth (fangs) are normal. (more…)
Can-Am Dog Sled Race in Allegany State Park
Today the Canadian-American Dog Sledders had one of their annual dog sled races here in Allegany State Park, NY. It is so much fun watching the team of dogs work together in reaching the finish line. Below are some photos from the day and then a video clip as requested.
Skiing and Snowboarding
Today we had a heat wave with temperatures in the 20’s F and an additional 3-4 inches of powder on the ground. Something just gave me the urge to head out and have some fun this evening! After work I quickly fed the kitties, watched Ellen and pulled out my skiing equipment. I was successful in making it out on the hill within an hour’s time. The tracks were perfect in every way and quickly changed into my skiing boots!! This is the first I have gone cross country skiing since the 2005 season!! Last year we never had enough snow for good tracks and this years conditions became good once it was extremely cold (and I became a wimp and didn’t go)!!
The sounds of the two skis clapping against the snow are true sounds of happiness! I always love an adventure so 75% of the time I do this in the pitch dark!! Lucky I had my headlamp with me and know the trails extremely well!! Did I mention how nice it was getting out on the trails again?? I headed home after being tired from the wonderful workout. Lucky there was a little milk left in my fridge so that I could make some hot chocolate and relax with my laptop to write this posting.
I also wanted to include this video clip from last weekends snowboarding adventure with my banding assistants!! Young naturalist J (snowboarder) and his father (skier) were in this clip while young naturalist C took this 5 minute clip with their new camera!! Yep, I said 5 minute clip but I did edited it down to only be 30 seconds long (where you can also see the nature nerd in the gray jacket hogging the camera time)!!
It should be a great post tomorrow because I am heading over to watch the Can-Am Dog-sled Races over on the Quaker Side of Allegany State Park!!
Red-tailed Hawk Feeding on its Prey
I get calls all the time about a hawk that just visited someone’s feeder and they would like to know what kind of hawk is it?? Majority of the time the visitor is an Accipiter species like the Sharp-shinned Hawk or even the Cooper’s Hawk. The Accipiters have longer-tails and shorter-wings which allow them to chase the little birdies through the trees and shrubs. On occasions I have heard about Red-tailed Hawk stalking a feeder. Unlike the Accipiters who hunt by surprise, the Red-tailed Hawks will wait for their prey to come out in the open. The Buteos (which is the genus of the Red-tailed Hawk) have a shorter-tail and longer-wings which will allow them to soaring high up in the sky. They are also known to sit tight on a branch looking for any kind of movement and quickly swoop down on their prey when they are not looking.
Today one of my co-workers yelled down the hall that a Red-tailed Hawk just caught something at the feeder! Quickly I grabbed my camera and ran down the hall to see what happened. I captured a few shots (was a good distance away, sorry about the quality of the photos) and I was amazed how quickly it devoured this small critter. I feel confident that this hawk captured a small mammal due to not finding any feathers (most birds pluck the feathers away) and then closely examination the prey in the photographs. These small mammals could include meadow voles, mice, or even squirrels that might be hiding around the feeder. I have heard stories about how they witnessed a Red-tailed Hawk chasing a squirrel around a tree and then came within inches of actually catching it.
Obviously when a Red-tailed Hawk captures that squirrel the hawk needs to kill its prey as quickly as possible. If they fail to do so, the squirrel could bite the hawks toes and try to force it to let it go. This picture above shows a dead Red-tailed Hawk that was recently brought into the office. After closely inspecting it, we realized that it had numerous bite marks on its feet. Although this bird probably passed away from a vehicle strike, there was always a chance that it could have gotten an infection in its toes and then increased it chances of dieing from starvation (for not being able to use its feet properly).
Fun Day With Naturalist Buddy
I spent a lovely day with Jamestown Audubon Naturalist and Nature Photographer Jen S. here in Allegany State Park today. I am so glad that she suggested that I take some time off from work to enjoy some needed fresh air!! We didn’t go cross-country skiing as planned (I know that I keep on getting out of skiing) but we did hike along some of our snowmobile trails which gave us some great photographic opportunities. The temperatures didn’t feel bad with the sun out but we did still dressed in layers.
Jen captured a photo of me checking out this moth chrysalis. Jen – thanks for giving me permission to use this picture of me!
Jen photographing the texture of this Birch
We also enjoyed checking out the frozen Bridal Falls
Groundhogs Day
To all my Flickr and Blogging friends; I Allegany Tom on the 2nd of February 2007 predict that spring will come early this year! Sorry everyone, I had to get that out of me!! BTW: I heard on the morning news that Punxsutawney Phil did not see his shadow this morning and also predicting an early spring. I have also heard by the weatherman that this summer is expected to be very hot and muggy one. I can only hope that we don’t get as much rain as we did last year (never seemed to end).
You might wonder why Groundhogs Day is so special to so many people! It started from an old German superstition that if a hibernating animal can cast its shadow on February 2nd that winter will last another six weeks. But, if no shadow is seen, the legend says spring will be early that year. You might ask why is this holiday so special to me?? Well, I consider this extraordinary day to be my official first day of spring! This is when we really start to notice more birds singing, displaying and pairs beginning to connecting together. I find this years Groundhogs Day to be extra unique because it falls on a full moon. After I get my taxes done, maybe I can get out doing some night time cross-country skiing this evening! I will do my best to take some pictures for everyone!!
PS: if you missed it, Allegany Toms prediction was accurate after see his shadow last year!
Where do birds sleep at night?
On numerous occasions I have always wondered where all of my favorite birdies end up roosting at night? I can remember a few occasions which I have actually found such birds trying to spend their evening sleeping! Of course I always seem to agitate them and then find myself feeling bad that I somehow had to inconvenience them. For example; you have those nesting birds like the American Robin who always seem to settle on that perfect location right next to the main door. During the day they will flush the nest with any attempt to approaching the door but at night they will lay very low and only flush when approached too close.
During the winter months some species will obviously make their wintering roost site noticeable by roosting together in one large group (but rarely do we see them actually sleeping). The most typical example is when the American Crows flying many miles from their wintering territories to this one specific tree in someone’s backyard. It is absolutely breathtaking to see so many crows filing to these specific trees and then together move over to their roosting trees. These roosts have been known to scare neighborhoods by their strange grouping behavior. I can also remember those sounds made by thousands of European Starlings congregating together in that one particular bridge that I walked across each day. Then on that one precise second near sunset; every starling will instantly stopped vocalizing and you hear absolute silence.
Then you have those cavity species that will spend their evening roosting in trees like the Eastern Screech Owl or Eastern Bluebird. These birds are trying to avoid the elements of the weather and there are some individuals who might use these same holes for nesting sites during the summer months. I am sad to say that I have found numerous tree swallows smothered on the bottom of bluebird box after a cold spell approached. These birds were over stacked in the box while trying to use their body heat to stay warm. Those individuals on the bottom of the box had too many birds stacked on top of them and lost their life. Lucky this doesn’t happen on a regular basis.
This weekend I happen to come across an unusual encounter that I never expected to uncover. I saw this goldfinch flying towards the house while picking up my kitties food plates. This goldfinch was climbing in-between a 3 inch gap around the foundation of the house and some melted snow. It then climbed out of this crack and into an area that I couldn’t see from the window. I had just assumed this little fluff ball was searching for some food just before dusk (but something wasn’t right). I then decided to put on my boots and go investigate what this bird was getting into! I thought maybe it had found some stone flies or something else that was hidden in there. But, I never expected to find this goldfinch with its head tucked under its wing trying to sleep. It was cold so I assume this little birdie was trying to find a safe sheltered spot to keep out of the elements of the weather. I probably should have tried to photograph it but it was dark and some times we need to focus on the birdies best interest!!
This evening we are expecting this to be our coldest night of the year with the wind-chills being anywhere from -10° to -20°F. I wonder where my many birdie friends will be hiding this evening with such cold temperatures approaching. I do anticipate them making an early rise and starting to fatten up with my sunflower seeds.
Update: In Feb I found where a songbird had roosted for the night and I captured a photo of it!
time for work or time for play?
This weekend I spent numerous hours working on my end-of-the-year reports and can you believe that I am still behind on my PowerPoint slide show? This tardiness is partially due to parking myself next to the window entering my endless data into the computer. Of course I was watching the bird activity at the feeder’s more than typing. I was amazed at the nonstop lake effect dumping on us and I have decided that it is officially the start of winter (which finally brought out the birds). Although winter arrived late this year; I am just starting to see true signs of spring with numerous species of birds beginning to behave differently.
The entire day I watched two pairs of Northern Cardinals showing continuously agonistic behavior between each other. I still think that they only had a few opportunities to eat a few seeds before another cardinal would chase it away. It appears that the territories of the Cardinal have already been established and I think my feeder is the no fly zone between these two pairs.
I also noticed that the Dark-eyed Junco’s were more frequently singing and could this be the start of pair bonding? It is still quite a few months until they begin sitting on eggs but it is wonderful to hear those junco trills again after a long quiet fall/winter. I plan on continuing to watch all the birds at my feeders and smile every time those cute little chickadee’s tell the females “cheeeeese….burg..ger”
I will continue working on my PowerPoint slide show and then start working on more year end reports for 2006 (ugg). Just someday I can get back to schedule on updating my blog on a daily basis and spend more time taking pictures of our favorite fluff balls. Sunday you can expect me taking advantage of this fresh snow going snowboarding at one of the resorts for the first time this season. I hope to try to do some cross country skiing tomorrow evening after work.
Do turkeys smile?
I might be a Tom but I am no Turkey!
Here is looking at you my blogging and flickr friends.
Winter Beaver Activity
Typically this time of the year the water is covered over with a thick layer of ice and snow. Little work is done by the beavers while the females are preparing to give birth. I noticed with the above average temperatures this year that the beavers have been putting in some overtime doing what they do best. I noticed since my last visit last fall that they have been enlarging their dams, adding to their food storage and improving their lodge.
It is so hard to believe that these dams are built entirely by the beavers. The picture on the left shows their main dams that’s just over 6 feet in height. Since the fall these guys have added an additional 2 feet to this dam and it is unbelievable how much water they are currently backing up. The second picture shows one of their reservoirs just down stream that they built to give the beavers more access to their food. They need to back up the water with these dams to providing protection from predators, ability to float logs back to their lodge and soften up the mud which helps them build everything up better.
During the fall months the beavers are very busy adding sticks to their food storage stacks to feed on during the winter months. I was shocked to find this food storage larger than I normally find this time of the year. If you look at this picture above you will see their typical way the beaver store the family’s food storage piles. This gives the beaver access to their food when the water is frozen over and limited to just their pond. Then they can swim under the ice to their food storage and bring the sticks back to the lodge to eat.
As the water level rises by increasing the height of the dam these beaver will continue to work on the lodge. They will add more mud and sticks to the outside of the lodge but then inside the lodge remove sticks from the top to add it to the lodge’s floor. It is a perfect way of building the lodge up to the needed size for the family living in it.
These beaver dazzle me every time that I visit them with their ability to do amazing work with sticks and mud.
Can birds learn?
Now you can officially accuse me of bring my nature studies into the office!! It started two summers ago when I placed a hummingbird feeder just outside my office window. Quickly these little green birdies started dazzling everyone by there charm and beauty. You never knew when someone was just outside my window taking pictures or video taping the 10 or so hummingbirds fighting for that perfect perch. Ultimately good things always come to an end and this happened when the hummingbirds decided to make their migration south for the winter. 
I found myself with a desire to bring nature back to the office again. Sunflower seeds were an excellent tool for inviting these birds back to my office and keeping me entertained. Birds like the Black-capped Chickadee, American Goldfinch, White-breasted Nuthatch, Red-breasted Nuthatch, Tufted Titmouse and Dark Eyed Junco are now regular visitors of mine. But, who would have expected birds like the Pine Siskin, Downy Woodpecker or even the Purple Finch to make numerous occurrences in my office window! Last year I even had friends from Buffalo make the hour trip south for the “possibility” of seeing an Evening Grosbeaks in my office window!!
You wonder how these unusual visitors are able to learn where I have placed a small pile of sunflower seeds in an unusual location like a window frame on the 2nd floor? Well, those nosy chickadees arrived within the first day and probably were investigating the disappearance of the hummingbird feeders (they must have known that this was a bird friendly window). Other species started visiting the window after learning that somewhere these chickadees were getting sunflower seeds. The learning process didn’t stop here; believe me when I tell you it continues.
Towards the end of the season last year I started to hear some knocking sounds. I turned around and found this White-breasted Nuthatch doing something that I have never seen before.
The nuthatch would grab a seed and bring it over to the edge of the window. Then it would place it between the metal frame and wooded base of the window and …..
put its full body into cracking open the seed!!
After a few hits the nuthatch would pull the seed out and continue the process all over again (or until the bird got sick of having my face 2 feet from the window watching)! If the seed fell out, the nuthatch would drop instantly down (see its position) to catch the seed in mid air!!
Now, I would call this very clever of this nuthatch to have figured out how to crack open these seeds. Quickly those nosy chickadees learned that this nuthatch would leave leftovers in the frame which were already shelled from the seed. Soon those curious chickadee were also giving the window thing a try.
This year for the first time the Downy Woodpeckers started visiting the window!! Not one but I have identified three different individuals coming to my window (how do I know three?? One female was banded by me, another female is bandless and there is a bandless male coming around)!!
As you probably expected, these Downy Woodpeckers have also learned how to crack open their seeds from their “birding” piers!! I can’t help but visualizing that these birds had to sit in a class room (taught by the ovenbird) on “how to crack open a seed in Tom’s window”!! So, learning is something done by not only humans but by birds also! I would love to hear how others have noticed birds learning!!
Goofy Weather Goofy Animals
This year the El Niño weather in New York State has made this the most unusual winter than I can ever remember. It almost feels like a roller coaster with temperatures last week above average, this week average and then soon to be above average again next week. I have never experienced anything like this before and have started to wonder what effects this could have on our local animals?
You wouldn’t think that warm temperatures in January could affect our local butterfly communities this summer. Take a caterpillar that hatches from an egg in the early spring and takes advantage of the spring wildflowers, tree buds or even early leaf development. After constant warm temperatures in January the caterpillars could emerge extra early and now starve from not finding enough food. Numbers for that population could drop drastically overnight and take it numerous years before the population returns back to normal. Looking one step further, this could affect the migrant birds searching for food on their journey north, etc….
The Little Brown Bat (Myotis lucifugus) will winter in underground caves, sometimes hundreds of miles away from their nursery colonies. These nursery colonies are typically in buildings, hollow trees or even in bat boxes (which we have placed here in Allegany). While hibernating they will wake up every few weeks and fly around when warm near their wintering cave. So, how is this weather affecting Little Brown Bats?? Last Thursday I was asked to move this Little Brown who found itself in an unwanted location. We rarely find them in this area of the park until March at the earliest and I never expected to find this species here in January. They should be further south in Pennsylvania, but with warmer temperatures this year; they are able to survive closer to their nursery locations than they could in previous years. This could benefit the bats if temperatures stay good but if we get a cold spell it might make it harder for them to survive?? At this point it is hard to tell!
Photo by flickr friend annkelliott so please be sure to visit her photostream! Thanks for permission to use this picture!
In the northern latitudes the Long-tailed Weasel will go through a color change from its basic brown with (whitish – yellow) on its belly to its alternate color phase of all white except a little black tip on its tail. Annkelliott told me this interesting fact when I emailed her for permission to use her picture. She said “I found it interesting to read that the reason the Long-tailed Weasel has a black tip on its tail is so that for example, a hawk, would see the dark tip and grab that instead of the body, allowing the Weasel to escape”. With that in mind, you have these bright white weasels running around with no snow on the ground!! Predators like hawks, owls or even the fox can now easily see this prey from a good distance and reduce its chances for survival.
Good or bad the El Niño year is part of the life cycle and animals have survived years like this before! While some species are benefiting from the warmer temperatures; some could have their cycle disrupted and lose their life. Currently we are under a snow advisory with 6 inches of snow expected tonight. I can’t believe that just last week the average low temperature was 33°F and the average high was 49.6°F.
Sunday Birding
Today I forced myself to get outside and do a little birding for a few hours. I only wished that the sun was around longer!! But, I did enjoy myself and had some great birds show up.
I started off tottering around Wolf Run trying to explore the work done by the beavers this winter. With a lack of birds I figured it was time to head over to the Allegheny River and try to locate some Bald Eagles. Quickly 5 Bald Eagles were located gathering around something dead on the waters edge. Trying to focus the spotting scope better, I felt the hair on the back of my neck start to raise …. then turned around with a juvenal Bald Eagle flying over me. Lighting made it difficult but I was able to get in a few shots in before the bird disappeared into the trees. While getting back into my truck I was dazzled by 4 American Robins taking turns feeding on some sumac. I have been wondering were all my orange bellied friends have been hiding this winter. It is amazing how you have no birds all day and then surprise!
Once I made it back to Allegany, I spend some time searching Quaker Lake for some waterfowl. I only located a small raft of Hooded Mergansers and unsuccessfully searched the 100+ starlings for other blackbird species. Birds continued to be very quite in the France Brook area and then I finally hit a jackpot. There was a stunning pair of Common Mergansers and a Great Blue Heron hanging out at one of the Beaver ponds. Might not have been the best birding day but I just enjoyed getting out hiking around (and away from the computer for a little while).
BIRDS – My 2006 Nature Checklist
I decided to split up my 2006 Nature Checklist into 5 different categories; Butterflies & Skippers, Amphibians, Reptiles, Mammals and Birds! The birds are the next family of critters which I will be reporting on my findings here in 2006 in Western New York State. Since the list has 159 birds listed and so large, I decided to break it down to the 69 non-passerines and 90 passerines.
This has been such a fun year with the birds, I have NO idea where start and decided to leave everything up to the numerous pictures that I have taken! But, I would like to thank all of my volunteers and banding assistants who helped make this another successful year at the banding station.
Here is my list of non-passerines which I have listed in taxonomic order by common name (I would be happy to send you their Latin name for any species in question):
| 1. Canada Goose | 36. Red-shouldered Hawk |
| 2. Tundra Swan | 37. Broad-winged Hawk |
| 3. Woodduck | 38. Red-tailed Hawk |
| 4. Gadwall | 39. Rough-legged Hawk |
| 5. American Wigeon | 40. American Kestrel |
| 6. American Black Duck | 41. Merlin |
| 7. Mallard | 42. Peregrine Falcon |
| 8. Blue-winged Teal | 43. American Coot |
| 9. Northern Shoveler | 44. Killdeer |
| 10. Northern Pintail | 45. Greater Yellowlegs |
| 11. Green-winged Teal | 46. Spotted Sandpiper |
| 12. Ring-necked Duck | 47. Wilson’s Snipe |
| 13. Lesser Scaup | 48. American Woodcock |
| 14. Long-tailed Duck | 49. Bonaparte’s Gull |
| 15. Bufflehead | 50. Ring-billed Gull |
| 16. Common Goldeneye | 51. Herring Gull |
| 17. Hooded Merganser | 52. Great Black-backed Gull |
| 18. Common Merganser | 53. Rock Pigeon |
| 19. Red-breasted Merganser | 54. Mourning Dove |
| 20. Ring-necked Pheasant | 55. Black-billed Cuckoo |
| 21. Ruffed Grouse | 56. Yellow-billed Cuckoo |
| 22. Wild Turkey | 57. Eastern Screech Owl |
| 23. Common Loon | 58. Great Horned Owl |
| 24. Pied-billed Grebe | 59. Barred Owl |
| 25. Horned Grebe | 60. Northern Saw-whet Owl |
| 26. Red-necked Grebe | 61. Chimney Swift |
| 27. Double-creasted Cormorant | 62. Ruby-throated Hummingbird |
| 28. Great Blue Heron | 63. Belted Kingfisher |
| 29. Green Heron | 64. Red-bellied Woodpecker |
| 30. Turkey Vulture | 65. Yellow-bellied Sapsucker |
| 31. Osprey | 66. Downy Woodpecker |
| 32. Bald Eagle | 67. Hairy Woodpecker |
| 33. Sharp-shinned Hawk | 68. Northern Flicker |
| 34. Cooper’s Hawk | 69. Pileated Woodpecker |
| 35. Northern Goshawk | |
| . |
Here is my list of passerines which I have listed in taxonomic order by common name (I would be happy to send you their Latin name for any species in question):
| 70. Eastern Wood-pewee | 115. Magnolia Warbler |
| 71. Acadian Flycatcher | 116. Black-throated Blue Warbler |
| 72. Alder Flycatcher | 117. Yellow-rumped Warbler |
| 73. Willow Flycatcher | 118. Blackthroated Green Warbler |
| 74. Least Flycatcher | 119. Blackburnian Warbler |
| 75. Eastern Phoebe | 120. Yellow-throated Warbler |
| 76. Great Crested Flycatcher | 121. Pine Warbler |
| 77. Eastern Kingbird | 122. Prairie Warbler |
| 78. Northern Shrike | 123. Palm Warbler |
| 79. Blue-headed Vireo | 124. Blackpoll Warbler |
| 80. Red-eyed Vireo | 125. Cerulean Warbler |
| 81. Blue Jay | 126. Black-and-white Warbler |
| 82. American Crow | 127. American Redstart |
| 83. Common Raven | 128. Ovenbird |
| 84. Horned Lark | 129. Northern Waterthrush |
| 85. Tree Swallow | 130. Mourning Warbler |
| 86. Northern Rough-winged Swallow | 131. Common Yellowthroat |
| 87. Cliff Swallow | 132. Hooded Warbler |
| 88. Barn Swallow | 133. Canada Warbler |
| 89. Black-capped Chickadee | 134. Scarlet Tanager |
| 90. Tufted Titmouse | 135. Eastern Towhee |
| 91. Red-breasted Nuthatch | 136. American Tree Sparrow |
| 92. White-breasted Nuthatch | 137. Chipping Sparrow |
| 93. Brown Creeper | 138. Field Sparrow |
| 94. Carolina Wren | 139. Fox Sparrow |
| 95. House Wren | 140. Song Sparrow |
| 96. Winter Wren | 141. Swamp Sparrow |
| 97. Golden-crowned Kinglet | 142. White-throated Sparrow |
| 98. Ruby-crowned Kinglet | 143. White-crowned Sparrow |
| 99. Blue-gray Gnatcatcher | 144. Dark-eyed Junco |
| 100. Eastern Bluebird | 145. Northern Cardianl |
| 101. Veery | 146. Rose-breasted Grosbeak |
| 102. Gray-cheeked Thrush | 147. Indigo Bunting |
| 103. Swainson’s Thrush | 148. Bobolink |
| 104. Hermit Thrush | 149. Red-winged Blackbird |
| 105. Wood Thrush | 150. Eastern Meadowlark |
| 106. American Robin | 151. Common Grackle |
| 107. Gray Catbird | 152. Brown-headed Cowbird |
| 108. European Starling | 153. Baltimore Oriole |
| 109. Cedar Waxwing | 154. Purple Finch |
| 110. Blue-winged Warbler | 155. House Finch |
| 111. Nashville Warbler | 156. Pine Siskin |
| 112. Northern Parula | 157. American Goldfinch |
| 113. Yellow Warbler | 158. Evening Grosbeak |
| 114. Chestnut-sided Warbler | 159. House Sparrow |
| . |
I can’t wait to see what birds in 2007 will bring me.
REPTILES – My 2006 Nature Checklist
I decided to split up my 2006 Nature Checklist into 5 different categories; Butterflies & Skippers, Amphibians, Reptiles, Mammals and Birds! Reptiles are the next family in my series of species that I have kept track of within Western New York State. I have also taken the Reptiles and split them up between Turtles (4) and Snakes (6).
Some turtle species like the Eastern Painted Turtle can be consistently found in the same area day after day. Then if you’re lucky you could find turtles which are more secretive and it then becomes blog worthy. Last spring I had one of these experiences with a snapping turtle that approached me while I was out in the water searching by flashlight for spring peepers. Suddenly I felt something hit my rubber boots and this large snapping turtle climbing over my foot. I quickly tried to grab it but within a blink of an eye it crawled under a clump of grass. I did my best to grab it but was out of reach and I did not want to loose any fingers. We had so much fun that night.
The next exciting day was on the 1st of June 2006 where I didn’t find one but two unusual turtle encounters. Earlier in the day we had a male Wood Turtle crossing one of the dirt roads here in Allegany. Each year I sometimes come across one or maybe two Wood Turtle here in Allegany. What was so exciting about this find was that this guy was in an area which I had never seen them in this area before. That wasn’t the highlight of the day, it came later heading into town to get some pizza. I found this female Snapper looking for a place to lay her eggs in the gravel. This Snapping Turtle was very laid back and surprisingly it allowed me to get very close for a few pictures! I quickly took a few shots and let her do her thing. I did return later in the evening to find that she had successfully crossed back across the road without any harm.
Then you have those unusual encounters where you find this strange thing stuck in the middle of the road (or bridge). In late July this happened to an Eastern Spiny Softshell and luckily a concerned individual safely removed it from being run over by passing vehicles. It happened to have gotten stuck in the middle of the bridge and couldn’t figure out how to get over the edge. You might wonder how I ended up getting involved; well this person placed this turtle into a bag and brought it to my office for me to identify for him (people bring me unusual presents all the time). Shocked by this unique find, I quickly knew what this funny looking turtle was a Softshell and that we needed to return it back to the lake. I found it amazing how quickly it dashed into the water once we released it.
Here is my list of Turtles which I have listed in taxonomic order by common name (I would be happy to send you their Latin name for any species in question):
| 1. Common Snapping Turtle | 3. Eastern Spiny Softshell |
| 2. Eastern Painted Turtle | 4. Wood Turtle |
| . |
This year I didn’t spent too much time looking for snakes and only really missed out on seeing the Eastern Milk Snake from my previous years checklist. The highlights this year had to have been seeing three Smooth Green Snakes. Typically I only find green’s squished on the road and rarely lucky enough to find them alive! While at the Audubon Nature Pilgrimage this year, Rex had two live ones that he had found (and let me hold one). Then in late June while leading a group of people into the Old Growth Forest we happen to find a Smooth Green in some of the vegetation. I think we also found a Garter that day and the walk quickly turned into a reptile talk. We released the snakes where we found them and continued back talking about forest ecology. It was one of those few times that I didn’t have my camera with me.
Regarding other species of snakes, the Northern Ring-neck Snake truly put on a show for me year. I found some tiny ones around the admin building and even found one while it was snowing out in October. I was successful this year in photographing a Northern Water Snake after numerous unsuccessful attempts throughout the summer. Common Garter snakes were just as common as always and can’t wait believe where they were being seen.
Here is my list of Snakes which I have listed in taxonomic order by common name (I would be happy to send you their Latin name for any species in question):
| 1. Northern Water Snake | 4. Eastern Garter Snake |
| 2. Brown Snake | 5. Northern Ring-neck Snake |
| 3. Red-bellied Snake | 6. E. Smooth Green Snake |
| . |
I can’t wait to see what reptiles in 2007 will bring me. Maybe even a Timber Rattlesnake??
BUTTERFLIES – My 2006 Nature Checklist
I decided to split up my 2006 Nature Checklist into 5 different categories; Butterflies & Skippers, Amphibians, Reptiles, Mammals and Birds! I would like to start this series with my 45 Butterfly & Skipper species found within Western New York State. There is no doubt that my 2006 numbers are slightly lower than previous years and this is primarily due to it raining every weekend from Late July through Columbus weekend in October. The rain kept me from getting out in the field each weekend and shortened the amount of time which adults were able to be located flying around during the late summer/fall months.
Here is my list of Butterflies and Skippers which I have listed in taxonomic order by common name (I would be happy to send you their Latin name for any species in question):
|
1. Black Swallowtail |
16. Meadow Fritillary |
31. Common Ringlet |
|
2. E. Tiger Swallowtail |
17. Pearl Crescent |
32. Comm Wood-Nymph |
|
3. West Virginia White |
18. Baltimore Checkerspot |
33. Monarch |
|
4. Cabbage White |
19. Question Mark |
34. Silver-spotted Skipper |
|
5. Clouded Sulphur |
20. Eastern Comma |
35. Dreamy Duskywing |
|
6. Orange Sulphur |
21. Gray Comma |
36. Juvenal Duskywing |
|
7. American Copper |
22. Mourning Cloak |
37. C. Checkered Skipper |
|
8. Striped Hairstreak |
23. American Lady |
38. Least Skipper |
|
9. Eastern Tailed Blue |
24. Red Admiral |
39. European Skipper |
|
10. Spring Azure |
25. White Admiral |
40. Indian Skipper |
|
11. Summer Azure |
26. Red-spotted Purple |
41. Peck’s Skipper |
|
12. G. Spangled Fritillary |
27. Viceroy |
42. Long Dash |
|
13. Aphrodite Fritillary |
28. Northern Pearly-eye |
43. Hobomok Skipper |
|
14. Atlantis Fritillary |
29. Eyed Brown |
44. Dun Skipper |
|
15. Silver-bordered Fritillary |
30. Little Wood-Satyr |
45. Pepper n Salt Skipper |
My first butterflies were located on the 11th of April with 4 Eastern Comma’s and 1 Mourning Cloak along Bay State Road. My peak of butterflies observed was 22 species within 3 hours on the 21st of July 2006. In past years I have broken 30 species within a day’s time.
Even with this strange weather, there were a few butterfly highlights which I could not forget to report! The first had to be relocating a Baltimore Checkerspot on the 13th of July. This is the first which I have seen these guys flying around since 2002. I also enjoyed photographing the Common Checkered Skipper over at the Jamestown Audubon on the 10th of September 2006. The Silver-bordered Fritillary’s were wonderful while spending the day with Jeremy Martin on a flickr get-together at the Zaepfel Nature Sanctuary. My last memory was raising and releasing so many Monarch Butterflies this year for their migration south!
I can’t wait to see what butterflies in 2007 will bring me.
Mon@rch's Nature Blog 