raptor on a wire

I had just delivered our car to the car doctor on Montauk Highway and was walking back home when Eileen Schwinn came by in her Jeep and asked me if I'd like to go down to Dune Road. I accepted immediately and we cruised on down to the Quogue Bridge and then east on Dune Road all the way to Shinnecock Inlet. It was not a particularly birdy day (more details below) but as we were coming back from the Inlet and about to take the Ponquogue Bridge back to the mainland we were literally stopped by a large raptor sitting on a wire right above the road. This was a trim, slender bird with long wings, a long tail, brown-backed with a brown-streaked breast; it did not have the facial markings of a falcon and seemed too slim to be a Goshawk. It didn't look like any Cooper's Hawk that I had ever seen (I often see them perched) but I was going to ID it as one anyway when suddenly it took off. White rump! It was a Northern Harrier, the first one that I have ever seen perched above (their usual perch is on the ground; I've also seen them soaring high above in migration when they are equally difficult to identify).

In fact, we ended up seeing four Harriers in all.

We have had Red-tailed Hawks at the property but there were no other raptors seen on Dune Road.

Fair numbers of Brant, a few Red-breasted Mergansers, Black Duck and Mallards (Bufflehead were reported but we didn't seem them).

A few sparrows: Chipping, Savannah, Song, White-throated and Dark-eyed Juncos (first I've seen this season). Also a scattering of Great Egrets, Yellow-rumped Warblers, Black-capped Chickadees, House Finch. 

Eric Salzman