The past week has been all about realizing how great it is to live less than an hour from one of New York's birding treasures, Montezuma.
I added five new birds to my life list this week, and that was in just 3 days.
Song Sparrow fledgling at Montezuma Audubon.
More beneath the squiggle.
The birding week started off on Wednesday June 16th with a sunrise walk at the Montezuma Audubon Center in Savannah, NY. Audubon provides a nice variety of habitats on 198 acres. There are 2 one mile trails. The one I took takes you past a wooded swamp and around two restored marshes. The grass on this trail is long and there was a heavy morning dew, so my feet got just a little wet...
There were many birds that I didn't get a photo of including a Belted Kingfisher. I did get to see him hovering above one of the marshes though.
Marsh Wren Swamp Sparrow
Baltimore Oriole
Sometimes you don't need to see the head to identify a bird. Great Crested Flycatcher
My first life bird of the week. Warbling Vireo
Female Yellow Warbler
Caspian Tern
Song Sparrow
American Goldfinches
Despite having wet feet, I found myself driving through the Montezuma National Wildlife Refuge.
Green Heron
Great Blue Heron
Bald Eagle & Black Terns
Not a bird...
Another Bald Eagle
More Great Blue Herons
Common Gallinule
American Coots
FOY Yellowlegs. Pretty sure it's a Greater.
Lots of chicks everywhere. Gallinule, Coots, Ducks...
I was looking a eBird on the night of the 16th and noticed that a Least Bittern had been reported at Larue's Lagoon at Montezuma. Finding a Least has been something of an obsession since I got an American Bittern earlier in the month. So Thursday saw me make two trips to the refuge. I did see a Least during the morning trip, but I didn't know that was what I saw at the time.
Green Heron
Bald Eagle
The second life bird of the week. Snow Goose. I don't know why it was a lifer, but it was.
Savannah Sparrow
American Bittern
Immature Green Heron. This one fooled me into thinking it was a Least Bittern until I saw the photos...
Juvenile Tree Swallow. So fluffy...
Mallard Hen & chick
Someone reported the Teal as Green-winged. I didn't see the wing patch, but I think they are Blue-winged...male & female.
I think this one is going to get printed...
Since I didn't see, or at least I didn't know I had seen, the Least Bittern on Thursday, It was back to the refuge on Friday morning. I did finally see the Least fly back and forth from Larue's Lagoon to the main pool, and realized that I had seen it flying on Thursday morning as well.
American Bittern
On Thursday evening I had gotten the briefest glimpse of a Virginia Rail, my second life bird of the day. On Friday morning I was able to call it out of hiding.
While I was sitting there with my 500mm lens sticking out the window, the bird was just about to cross the road from the main pool to Larue's Lagoon. The guy behind me in a big pickup truck decided he didn't want to wait while I took pictures, so he just drove around me...
Eastern Kingbird
Common Gallinule
Song Sparrow
Yellow Warbler
Empidonax flycatcher. Leaning towards Alder based on habitat.
Alder Flycatcher. This one is a no doubter...
The fifth life bird of the week was a Bank Swallow. No picture of that one either.