10/03 5-RIVERS

Not only was it a foggy morning up here on the hill, but it was the first official weekend of small game hunting on the state land. So I made a pre-dawn drive down to Five Rivers E.E.C. to see if any new migrants had arrived. It was worth the trip.


There was a lot of bird activity along the paths and trails. Most noticeable were the numbers of sparrows in many of the hedgerows. Two White-crowned Sparrows were spotted in with a lot of White-throated Sparrows and Song Sparrows.


A Lincoln's Sparrow was also spotted along a gravel road. Nice to see one out in the open for once.

Lots of Yellow-rumped Warblers were also flitting about. Very resourceful birds. They're not fussy eaters and will eat berries, insects, seeds and anything else they can find.

Still some Palm Warblers mixed in with the yellow-rumps. Only 5 were spotted today compared to last weekends abundance.

"Chipping" and wagging their tails. That's what they do best. They always seem to be in such an upbeat mood.

I couldn't quite figure out what this one was doing. I don't know whether it was trying to catch some kind of insects that were on the branch or actually trying to eat some of the lichen.

I heard some Purple Finches flying over earlier in the morning and finally caught up with one. Not unusual for them to stop by in the fall as they look for wintering areas. This was a very distant picture.

A Black-throated Blue Warbler was checking out some of the local berries. Migration is the only time these birds can be found at lower elevations.

A Nashville Warbler foraged in some of the lower vegetation.

Nashville Warblers also mainly nest at some of the more northern latitudes such as the boreal forests in Canada. In our immediate area small numbers do nest at the higher elevations.

Blue-headed Vireos are always good company on a cloudy, damp day. As is the case with most of them, this bird was singing along like it was the middle of summer. They seem at times oblivious to the weather.

A Green Heron was intently looking for something to eat at the Research Ponds. Getting late for them to be around.


An Eastern Meadowlark was spotted on the way home in Rensselaerville.

This young Turkey Vulture was spotted in a field a little further down the road. Vultures are somewhat of an anomaly in the bird world due to the fact that they actually have a sense of smell. I like the way you can actually see through this birds nostrils.


A Ruby-crowned Kinglet was foraging along on of the forest roads near home.

When I finally got home this Northern Flicker was on the lawn looking for ants and other insects. It flew up on a branch and posed.

NOW WE'RE COOKING

Went out at dawn to see if migration had really kicked into gear yet. The weather has been very favorable for the migrants so I figured I would stay close to home in Partridge Run WMA.


This Bay-breasted Warbler was found in an alder thicket just after dawn. I was actually trying to get a picture of a Northern Waterthrush that was lurking in the dense cover below.

Sure makes it easy to identify them when they still have that much "bay" on them.

Found this Northern Parula in a clearing a little further down the road.


This Magnolia Warbler is the first of many to pass through the area this fall. Judging by the numbers we see here, they must be a very common bird in the boreal forest of Canada.

A Black-and-white Warbler checking out a dead snag.

During fall migration, Black-throated Green Warblers are one of the most prevalent birds one can expect to see while in the field. Plenty more of these birds to come.

Even from below American Redstarts are easily recognizable due to their unique tail pattern.

Found another Bay-breasted Warbler basking in the early morning sunshine.

It will be interesting to see how many are spotted this fall as there has been spruce budworm outbreak for the last few years in Canada.

A first fall female Black-throated Blue Warbler hanging out in the shade.

Spotted two birds hanging out on a broken branch laying on the side of the road. I was surprised to see a Palm Warbler here this early. The Yellow-rumped Warbler may or may not be a migrant. One thing is for sure, migration is definitely underway.

NOT BAD FOR AUGUST

I went out early this morning to see what was going on in the neighborhood. When you live in the middle of a 5000 acre state forest, there are plenty of birds around this time of year.

This Blue-winged Warbler was actively foraging at first light. They have stopped singing now and are some of the first to start heading south.

I couldn't quite figure out at first what this Ruby-throated Hummingbird was up to. It kept trying to fly while holding on to the stems of some of the leaves.

Then I realized that it was taking a bath by using its wings to splash some of the water droplets onto it's body.

This is a great time of year to get some nice looks at Nashville Warblers. They forage a lot closer to the ground now and can be very inquisitive.


They also have gone silent and are trying to fatten up for the long journey ahead.

If your an adult Chestnut-sided Warbler and it's August, it's time for your prebasic molt. This one had already lost it's tail feathers and was busy preening and trying to dry out a bit. The don't loose their flight feathers at this time, so they are still able to fly. Within a week or two this bird will look quite different. It will lose the yellow crown and black mask in exchange for a more drab appearance.

There are usually a few pair of Yellow-rumped Warblers that nest in the area. This year was no exception and this is one of the juveniles that were produced.

This first fall Magnolia Warbler was out and about looking for some tasty arthropod to munch on.

This is probably one of the locally hatched birds. An endless stream of these birds will pass through the area in September and October.

Ovenbirds are a lot of fun this time of year. They finally go silent, but they seem much more curious and don't spend as much time foraging on the ground.

During breeding season they rarely leave the dark shadows of the forest floor. That sun must feel great.

This adult female Black-throated Blue Warbler was busily looking for some food for it's nestlings. They are some of the last warblers in the area to actually finish nesting.

5/2 PARTRIDGE RUN WMA

May is one of my favorite months of the year. For a birder in this part of the country it is a very exciting time of the year. Birds that are going to nest in the area begin to arrive and set up territories. Some birds simply migrate through the area and others are year round residents. There's something for everybody.

The local Raven nestlings are doing just fine. Their feathers continue to grow in and their vision seems to be improving as their eyes develop.

Blue-headed Vireos have been here a while now. It's not unusual to spot them up here when there are still patches of snow on the ground. The first one that I found this year was on April 10 and their numbers have been increasing since then as 6 of them were spotted today.

An Osprey was spotted migrating through the area.

We are fortunate to have a lot of flowing water up here on the state land. This Louisiana Waterthrush was spotted looking for aquatic insects in a stream. Sometimes they can be hard to get a decent look at so I was fortunate to find this one right out in the open.

This Chestnut-sided Warbler seems to be finding plenty to eat. These are probably one of the most numerous species of warblers found here in Partridge Run.

A Spotted Sandpiper was found on one of the water control structures that the DEC built years ago to create one of the ponds. They normally don't stick around in this area so we'll call this one a migrant also.

Solitary Sandpipers are also migrating through the area. This one was breaking tradition as it was joined by another one. Not that unusual.

Another Louisiana Waterthrush was found in a rocky creek. This bird has been in this area for a couple of weeks now singing away. Nothing says spring like the song of a waterthrush.

Always a crowd pleaser, this Black-throated Blue Warbler was singing and setting up territory in an area that they nest every year.

This bird here is a classic example of "if you build it, they will come". Those chestnut streaks on it's back give away it's identity.

A few years ago the DEC cleared an area and left some rows of underbrush behind. They mow between the rows each year and it has created exactly the habitat that these birds are looking for. This Prairie Warbler has set up a territory right in the middle of it.

This is one of the few that I have ever seen on the state land and I really enjoyed hearing it's unique song.

My own nickname for the Prairie Warbler is "the turbo bird". When I worked down at the quarry I realized that it's song sounds exactly like the sound that the turbochargers on a Caterpillar 992G loader make when it is put under full load. I'm sure you all have heard that sound... Right? O.K. maybe I was reaching a bit on that one.