GSBAS - P.O. Box 267 · Sayville, NY 11782 · 631-563-7716
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NATURE WALKS / EVENT REPORTS - 2012

Saturday, January 21, 2012 - Breakfast and Birding

Recap by Ken Thompson, Edith Wilson, and Judy Davis

This morning was our winter birding and breakfast at Connetquot River State Park Preserve. It was also our first snow fall of the season. Surprisingly eighteen people showed up including two kids who also brought their parents. These Birding & Breakfast programs usually draw large numbers of people; it seems the collaboration of Great South Bay Audubon Society, Friends of Connetquot, and the NY State Park’s Environmental Office is working well. Annie McIntyre from the Environmental Office presented an informative PowerPoint introduction to birding while we enjoyed the breakfast sponsored by the Friends of Connetquot and supplied by Pamela Hunter, Lauren Schnal, and Emily Efstration, all part of the Environmental Office staff. The bagels, cake and donuts with coffee, tea, hot chocolate and juice were delicious. Volunteer Christine Hartmann braved the snow as well in order to bring three Northern Bobwhite quails Cathy Wilvert has kept—from her quail reintroduction program at Connetquot Preserve—for educational purposes such as this. Everyone enjoyed the opportunity to view these elusive birds up close.

After breakfast we went out to look at some birds. Everyone absolutely enjoyed walking around and looking at the birds while it was snowing. I am amazed that everyone appreciated and enjoyed the woodland park environment and the fresh falling snow. Nevertheless, falling snow did hamper looking at the ducks on the lake so we just set the scopes up on the bird feeders and the folks were ecstatic with the good looks they were able to get through a scope at woodpeckers, chickadees and other typical feeder birds. A great park, a great crew and a great crowd made for a great winter morning.

Click the photos to enlarge

Photos Courtesy of Judy Davis

Species spotted:

  1. American Coot
  2. American Goldfinch
  3. Black-capped Chickadee
  4. Canada Goose
  5. Carolina wren
  6. Dark-eyed Junco
  7. Downy Woodpecker
  8. Gadwall
  1. Hooded Merganser
  2. House Sparrow
  3. Lesser Scaup
  4. Mallard
  5. Northern Cardinal
  6. Red-bellied Woodpecker
  7. Red-winged Blackbird
  8. Ring-billed Gull
  1. Ring-necked Duck
  2. Song Sparrow
  3. Tufted Titmouse
  4. Whistling Swan
  5. White-breasted Nuthatch
  6. White-throated Sparrow

Saturday, January 7, 2012 - Montauk Point

Species List provided by Steve D'Amato

  1. American Bittern
  2. American Black Duck
  3. American Coot
  4. American Crow
  5. American Robin
  6. American Wigeon
  7. Belted Kingfisher
  8. Black Scoter
  9. Black-bellied Plover
  10. Black-capped Chickadee
  11. Black-legged Kittiwake
  12. Blue-winged Teal
  13. Brant
  14. Brown-headed Cowbird
  15. Bufflehead
  16. Cackling Goose
  17. Canada Goose
  18. Carolina wren
  19. Common Eider
  20. Common Goldeneye
  21. Common Loon
  22. Common Merganser
  23. Double-crested Cormorant
  24. Dunlin
  25. Eastern Towhee
  1. European Starling
  2. Gadwall
  3. Gray Catbird
  4. Great Black-backed Gull
  5. Great Blue Heron
  6. Great Cormorant
  7. Great Egret
  8. Greater Scaup
  9. Green-winged Teal
  10. Herring Gull
  11. Hooded Merganser
  12. Horned Grebe
  13. House Finch
  14. House Sparrow
  15. Lesser Black-backed Gull
  16. Long-tailed Duck
  17. Mallard
  18. Marsh Wren
  19. Merlin
  20. Mourning Dove
  21. Mute Swan
  22. Northern Cardinal
  23. Northern Gannet
  24. Northern Harrier
  25. Northern Mockingbird
  1. Northern Shoveler
  2. Pied-billed Grebe
  3. Purple Sandpiper
  4. Razorbill
  5. Red-breasted Merganser
  6. Red-necked Grebe
  7. Red-tailed Hawk
  8. Red-throated Loon
  9. Red-winged Blackbird
  10. Ring-billed Gull
  11. Rock Pigeon
  12. Ruddy Duck
  13. Rusty Blackbird
  14. Snowy Owl
  15. Song Sparrow
  16. Surf Scoter
  17. Swamp Sparrow
  18. Turkey Vulture
  19. White-fronted Goose
  20. White-throated Sparrow
  21. White-winged Scoter
  22. Winter Wren
  23. Yellow-rumped Warbler
  24. and possibly note a #74. – one dead Dovekie

Michael McBrien also had Northern Flicker, Blue Jay, and Brown Thrasher in Sagaponack before the group trip started.

*saw pod of ~15 dolphins in Fort Pond Bay plus Michael McBrien and Mike Cooper (and I don't know how many others) saw the spouting of a whale off Montauk Point.

**carcass of smooth dogfish shark found washed up on Ditch Plains Beach

GSBAS - P.O. Box 267, Sayville, NY 11782 · 631-563-7716
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