The John Burroughs Natural History Society Ulster County segmentof the annual NYSOA New York State January Waterfowl Count was conducted thispast Saturday, January 13, 2024. Thirteenparticipants in eight field parties encountered 4,789individuals representing 16species of waterfowl. Aboveaverage diversity, but relatively low abundance due in large part to an atypicallysmall number of Canada Geese and Mallards that greatly influence our totalabundance from year-to-year. Last yearwe tallied 8,727 individuals and 19 species. Our most recent ten-year average for this countywide effort is 14 species and 6,638 individuals/year.
Similar to last year, several weeks ofmild weather prior to count day resulted in an abundance of open water with littleice, and exposed fields and pastures with no snow cover. Count day conditions were more challenging again this year,with dense fog and light rain through mid-morning, followed by cloudy skies andintermittent rain showers throughout the remainder of the day. High water levels with rapid flows createdinhospitable conditions on most of the larger creeks and rivers. Air temperatures were mild for a mid-Januarycensus, ranging from 44-54° F with relatively calm winds inland, moderate tostrong on the Hudson River and Ashokan Reservoir, creating whitecaps on the surface. Two distinct female Barrow’s Goldeneyes were observed in the Hudson River, one from Freer Beach in Port Ewen, and one from a River Road pull-off in the Town of Esopus, representing our second all-time count record following last year’s inaugural sighting of one hen. Both birds have persisted in the same general area of the river since the first of the year. A Greater White-fronted Goose was observed and photographed in a large flock of 600 Canada Geese, along with two Cackling Geese and two Green-winged teal, in a flooded farm field and pond on Denniston Road in Gardiner. The Greater White-fronted Goose was our third count record over the past twenty years, previously recorded in 2016 and 2010. Cackling Goose has become more regular in recent years (typically one to three individuals), appearing on six of our last ten counts. Green-winged Teal were previously encountered in small numbers two of the last ten years, and four of the past twenty years. Gadwall established a new high count with a total of 43 individuals in two locations, 32 on Stone Ridge Pond and 11 in the Sawyer Kill at HITS in Saugerties, more than double our previous high count of 16 in 2016 and well-above our ten-year average of four/year. Ring-necked Ducks were also encountered in record high numbers, 14 on Binnewater Lake, 3 on Williams Lake, and an impressive raft of 145 in the upper basin of Ashokan Reservoir, eclipsing our previous high count of 55 in 2022. A large raft of 40 Horned Grebes was also observed on Ashokan Reservoir, fueling speculation this migrant unit might be comprised of members of last year’s raft of 47. A total of nine Mute Swans were observed in three locations, a good showing for this past decade, but far fewer than the 33, 48, 20, and 53 that we recorded from 2005-2008, prior to state-wide eradication efforts. Typical for this census, Canada Geese were the most abundant species, accounting for 3,729 individuals (78%), down from last year’s 7,688 and our ten-year average of 5,049. Mallards are typically our second-most abundant species on this count, encountered this year in significantly fewer number, with a total of 283 compared to our previous low count of 277 in 2013 and a 1,018 ten-year average. Additional water-dependent birds observed during the waterfowl count include 23 Bald Eagles (twenty adults), three Great Blue Herons, and two Belted Kingfishers. There were also several noteworthy observations of bird species utilizing open fields. An Iceland Gull and a Lesser Black-backed Gull were seen and photographed on the flats south of Rte. 299 in New Paltz, a remarkable six Killdeer were observed off Denniston Road, an American Kestrel was out on the Rte. 209 flats, and a single flock of twenty Northern Flickers were observed foraging on the ground at Bristol Beach State Park. Two species of waterfowl present in the county just prior to the census were missed on count day. A Double-crested Cormorant loyal to Sturgeon Pool for several weeks and seen three days before the count, and a Wood Duck in the Beaverkill a week earlier, but not found on count day. An additional Cackling Goose on Stone Ridge Pond two days before the count was also missing on Saturday. Appended below is the species list. A complete report with a table summarizing the 2024 Ulster County effort by area will be published by the John Burroughs Natural History Society at a later date. Thanks to Alan Beebe, Allan Bowdery, Lynn Bowdery, Mark Damian, Patrick Dechon, Mark DeDea, Jessica Prockup, Loren Quinby, Peter Schoenberger, Dan Spencer, Wendy Tocci, and Michelle Valiante for providing extensive coverage of the county. Next year’s Ulster County segment of the NYSOA NYS January Waterfowl Count is scheduled for Saturday, January 18, 2025. Steve M. Chorvas – compiler 2024 January Waterfowl Count – Ulster County Greater White-fronted Goose – 1Canada Goose – 3,729Cackling Goose – 3Mute Swan – 9Gadwall – 43American Black Duck – 85Mallard – 283Green-winged Teal – 2Ring-necked Duck – 162Bufflehead – 11Common Goldeneye – 229Barrow's Goldeneye – 2Hooded Merganser – 22Common Merganser – 167Common Loon – 1 Horned Grebe – 40 -- (copy & paste any URL below, then modify any text "_DOT_" to a period ".") NYSbirds-L List Info: NortheastBirding_DOT_com/NYSbirdsWELCOME_DOT_htm NortheastBirding_DOT_com/NYSbirdsRULES_DOT_htm NortheastBirding_DOT_com/NYSbirdsSubscribeConfigurationLeave_DOT_htm ARCHIVES: 1) mail-archive_DOT_com/nysbirds-l@cornell_DOT_edu/maillist_DOT_html 2) surfbirds_DOT_com/birdingmail/Group/NYSBirds-L 3) birding_DOT_aba_DOT_org/maillist/NY01 Please submit your observations to eBird: ebird_DOT_org/content/ebird/ --