I took an early morning walk at the central Lindsay-Parsons Preserve, looking for ducklings. There were none to be seen in the big beaver pond beside the West Danby Fire Station (the Great Blue Heron nestlings are growing fast; an adult Eagle was standing on a log out on the island; Grackles were feeding nestlings).
At Coleman Lake were two broods of Mallards and one of Canada Geese. A foraging Green Heron soon flew off with something in its beak. Kingfishers were busy too. On the mud flats in the washed-out beaver pond just below the dike was a family group of Killdeer. Slightly to the north in the beaver pond that's sandwiched between the Norfolk Southern tracks and the long abandoned Ithaca & Athens RR grade, I found a brood of Wood Ducklings just out of the nest. A couple of Hooded Mergansers were in a little pond farther downstream along Brown Road. On my way back I noted a lot of ducks were in the flooded woods at the northern edge of the preserve, but I didn't have time to scan carefully for ducklings there... If you're tick-shy, let me add that I whacked enough bushes and tall grass to pick up plenty of ticks that should have been waiting for me in this famously tick-infested area, but I didn't get a single one! -Geo -- 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/ --
