The West Pond Trail will open again (after a very frustrating delay in funding) next week. The Visitor Center will reopen to seven days a week when the summer season begins. All of this information is public and available on the NPS website. You should always check before going out.
Sent from my iPhone On May 2, 2017, at 2:50 PM, syschiff <[email protected]<mailto:[email protected]>> wrote: Hempstead Lake SP 2 May Joe Giunta and I (Sy Schiff) met there prior to heading for Jamaica Bay. A quick check before leaving turned up a SOLITARY SANDPIPER, WARBLING and RED-EYED VIREO, NORTHERN WATERTHRUSH (heard only), a few Warblers and a BALTIMORE ORIOLE. Jamaica Bay Wildlife Refuge Although the facility is open (they have to be kidding--more later), the buildings, now, are only manned 5 days a week with Monday and Tuesday closed. (the bathrooms were open today). The trails are closed for construction a significant distance before the now closed breach. So, effectively you can't bird except in the gardens. Both West and East Ponds are not just filled, but appear to be overflowing. No margins of any kind and NO shorebirds except for a flyby calling WILLET. The South Marsh held 1 GREAT EGRET, and later 15 GLOSSY IBIS flew over. There was a BLACK-CROWNED NIGHT-HERON in Big Johns Pond along with a male WOOD DUCK. No Owl visible. The East Pond had a lone pair of GADWALL in a huge expanse of water.. The short walk to just before bench 3 and the STOP FOR CONSTRUCTION sign produced almost a dozen each of HOUSE WREN and YELLOW WARBLERS. A CLAPPER RAIL was calling loudly, but we could not find it in the dense reeds. Other birds also are all local breeders. Until what ever they're doing is finished, if you want to see water fowl and shorebirds, you have to go elsewhere. Sy -- NYSbirds-L List Info: Welcome and Basics<http://www.northeastbirding.com/NYSbirdsWELCOME.htm> Rules and Information<http://www.northeastbirding.com/NYSbirdsRULES.htm> Subscribe, Configuration and Leave<http://www.northeastbirding.com/NYSbirdsSubscribeConfigurationLeave.htm> Archives: The Mail Archive<http://www.mail-archive.com/[email protected]/maillist.html> Surfbirds<http://www.surfbirds.com/birdingmail/Group/NYSBirds-L> ABA<http://birding.aba.org/maillist/NY01> Please submit your observations to eBird<http://ebird.org/content/ebird/>! -- -- NYSbirds-L List Info: http://www.NortheastBirding.com/NYSbirdsWELCOME.htm http://www.NortheastBirding.com/NYSbirdsRULES.htm http://www.NortheastBirding.com/NYSbirdsSubscribeConfigurationLeave.htm ARCHIVES: 1) http://www.mail-archive.com/[email protected]/maillist.html 2) http://www.surfbirds.com/birdingmail/Group/NYSBirds-L 3) http://birding.aba.org/maillist/NY01 Please submit your observations to eBird: http://ebird.org/content/ebird/ --
