First of all I would like to thank Marty Schlabach for his hospitality today! Thanks!!!! Renee DePrato and I stopped at Marty's on the way to Montezuma and we did as Marty suggested...go in the backyard and wait by the picnic table. So we arrived and before I was able to set up my scope and camera the RUFOUS HUMMINGBIRD showed up! I got some decent photos. What a great bird. Another lifer for me and also Renee. This has been the year of western vagrants!
My 4 best photos are here... http://www.flickr.com/photos/davenicosia/sets/72157631832436766/ Then we went to Towpath Road and among the thousands of canada geese we finally found 3 GREATER WHITE FRONTED GEESE in Knox-Marcellus Marsh way in the back. We had only 1 SNOW GOOSE. There were also 11 SANDHILL CRANES. Some were vocalizing which was cool. There were no unusual gulls that we found. We did have many fly over AMERICAN PIPITS. Over at Puddler's marsh there were more CANADA GEESE and in addition we had 17 DUNLIN, 1 SEMIPALMATED PLOVER and 2 AMERICAN GOLDEN PLOVERS. These guys had very thin bills and a clear white line over their eyes and much more white on their foreheads and face. Their heads were also smaller. Next stop after lunch was the Montezuma Visitor's center. We had one PECTORAL SANDPIPER and again there were many CANADA GEESE. I believe I found one CACKLING GOOSE. I posted this picture...I have trouble with these guys so let me know if I am wrong on this... http://www.flickr.com/photos/davenicosia/8114081385/in/set-72157631832439392 Then along wildlife drive the highlight was a raft of Aythya ducks of all normal species that we see.... most of the birds were GREATER/LESSER SCAUP, next most common were REDHEADS, then there were just a few CANVASBACK and a few RING-NECKED DUCKS. I estimated about 350 ducks. The Lesser Yellowlegs Unit had KILLDEER, 3 PECTORAL SANDPIPERS, BLUE-WINGED and GREEN-WINGED TEALs, NORTHERN SHOVELERS and NORTHERN PINTAILS. There were many many CANADA GEESE at the new shorebird area but we were running short on time and we did not see any different shorebirds. At Benning Marsh...we had more of the same birds we had seen plus a WILSON'S SNIPE. Select photos of the trip can be found here... http://www.flickr.com/photos/davenicosia/sets/72157631832439392/with/8114081385/ Dave Nicosia Johnson City, NY -- Cayugabirds-L List Info: http://www.NortheastBirding.com/CayugabirdsWELCOME http://www.NortheastBirding.com/CayugabirdsRULES http://www.NortheastBirding.com/CayugabirdsSubscribeConfigurationLeave.htm ARCHIVES: 1) http://www.mail-archive.com/cayugabirds-l@cornell.edu/maillist.html 2) http://www.surfbirds.com/birdingmail/Group/Cayugabirds 3) http://birdingonthe.net/mailinglists/CAYU.html Please submit your observations to eBird: http://ebird.org/content/ebird/ --
