more on Little Egrets

These are Ellen Frank's photos of the two (yes, two, not just one) birds which she believes are Little Egrets and not Snowy Egrets. Both were photographed on an island in Three Mile Harbor where Ellen and her husband Steve Dickman live. Although neither photo was taken close enough to show some key features, the left-hand bird in the lower, larger picture does appear to have dark lores which makes it a good candidate for Little Egret. Ellen, who is a superb, award-winning artist, has an artist's eye and says that she noticed the birds for the first time by the color of his feet, which she describes as having been bright orange rather than the Snowy's yellow. She also notes that the bird had two plumes on its head, a notable feature of the Little Egret but not always a disqualifier for a Snowy (some Snowies -- perhaps hybrids -- have the two plumes rather than the overall fuzzy breeding plumage that is the usual Snowy look in season).

I have to add that the lores of the right-hand bird look yellowish to me. Finally, Ellen says that since she first spotted the bird, the foot color has changed from bright orange to a dirty orange-yellow -- a not unlikely event if the bird was changing out of breeding plumage.

Eric Salzman

signs of fall

There are three birds whose arrival tells me that fall migration is beginning. Two of them -- Royal Tern and Spotted Sandpiper -- have already shown up. Now the third one has appeared. This is the Northern Waterthrush which does not breed on Long Island (as far as I know) but comes here in late July and August for some R&R before undertaking its long trip to Latin America. This charming bird's arrival is easily discovered by (1) hearing its distinctive 'chink', (2) pishing until it pops up to see what's going on, and (3) look for a stripy little bird with a bobbing tail (like many shore birds, the waterthrush looks like one of those bobbing water toys).

Woodpeckers have been out in force on our standing dead wood. At one point I had all three local breeders in my field of vision in a spot particularly badly hit by the hurricane..

Jim Ash tells me that there was an active breeding colony of Double-crested Cormorants on Gardiners Island, that it is probably still going strong and that it is the likely source for all the birds on the East End of LI (cormorants -- especially young ones -- are great roamers and could easily move around a larger area).

Eric Salzman

more nesting birds

In addition to the lists of birds that currently breed on our property or in the immediate area (outlined in a post a few days ago), there are a good number of species that nest or probably nest in a wider area: on the ocean side of Shinnecock Bay to the south (in the marshes or dunes), in the pine/oak woodlands north of us and/or in the increasingly rare pastures or grasslands. Some of these birds visit us from time to time; others are very rarely or never seen here!

--Shinnecock bayside marshes and dunes -- mostly barrier beach marshes (Dune Road) -- and/or the dune areas themselves. Some of these species nest on both sides of the        bay; some formerly nested but no longer do so.
--Pine/Oak Barrens -- mainly north of East Quogue
--Grasslands -- including a few surviving open pastures plus the grasslands at EPCAL (ex-Grumman).

Mute Swan -- a few pairs nest on both sides of the bay (the Weesuck Creek pair has not produced any offspring in two or three years)
Black Duck -- a few pairs nest along with the Mallards in the Shinnecock marshes
[Mute Swans, Canada Geese & Mallards -- all introduced -- nest on both sides of the bay]
[Double-crested Cormorant -- a mystery; these birds are common on our waterways but where do they nest?]
[American Bittern -- formerly nested in Shinnecock marshes]
Great Egret -- in colonies on bay islands
Snowy Egret -- in colonies on bay islands
Little Blue Heron -- a couple of pairs nest on the bay islands in the egret colonies (Little Blue Heron is actually an egret!)
Green Heron -- formerly nested on our property and also in the Shinnecock Bay heron colonies; current status not known but has seemingly declined
Black-crowned Night Heron -- in colonies on bay islands
Yellow-crowned Night Heron -- isolated nests somewhere in the Quogue/East Quogue area
Glossy Ibis -- a few pairs nesting in egret colonies on islands in bay
Osprey -- nests on both sides of the bay
Northern Harrier -- formerly nested on Shinnecock marshes; now just a visitor
American Kestrel -- declining species; now found only in a few grassland areas
Clapper Rail -- nests in marshes on both sides of the bay
Piping Plover -- nests in dunes
Killdeer -- nests sporadically on Dune Road and in area
American Oystercatcher -- islands in bay
Willet -- nests in upper marshes on both sides of the bay
[Spotted Sandpiper -- current status unknown; has bred sporadically on the bay in the past]
American Woodcock -- upland 'shore bird' that breeds in early spring; needs open fields with scattered young trees and nearby marshy areas; has bred in E. Quogue area
American Herring Gull -- breeds in colonies on islands in bay
Great Black-backed Gull -- breeds in colonies on islands in bay
Common Tern -- breeds in colonies on islands in bay
Forster's Tern -- may nest at Cupsogue (Moriches Bay) but Shinnecock status not clear
Least Tern -- nests colonially in dunes
Black Skimmer -- may nest at Cupsogue; used to breed on Shinnecock islands but current status not clear
Short-eared Owl -- used to breed on Shinnecock marshes
Common Nighthawk -- formerly bred in area
Chuck-will's-widow -- a few pairs breed in wooded areas in Quogue and East Quogue
Whip-poor-will -- breeds in Pine Barrens north of Quogue and East Quogue
Chimney Swift -- a few pairs still breed in local chimneys
Ruby-throated Hummingbird -- has bred on property and may still do so
Belted Kingfisher -- formerly bred in E. Coast Sand Mines; also in Peconic Bay cliffs with Bank Swallows
Hairy Woodpecker -- bred and may still breed on Pine Neck
Eastern Wood-pewee -- breeds in pine/oak woods north of E. Quogue
Willow Flycatcher -- breeds in dune vegetation
Eastern Kingbird -- formerly bred on property; still breeds in area
Warbling Vireo -- breeds in area woodlands
Red-eyed Vireo -- common breeder in Pine Barrens oak woods
Fish Crow -- has bred in area and undoubtedly still does
Common Raven -- recently colonized area; has bred on Hampton Bays Water Tower
Tree Swallow -- common breeder in nest boxes on Dune Road and elsewhere
Bank Swallow -- formerly bred in East Coast Sand Mines; also in Peconic Bay cliffs
Blue-gray Gnatcatcher -- breeds near fresh water in Pine Barrens
Eastern Bluebird -- breeds in nest boxes in a few areas
Veery -- breeds in wet areas of Pine Barrens
Hermit Thrush -- a few pairs breed in Pine Barrens
Wood Thrush -- a declining woodland species; now hard to find
Blue-winged Warbler -- edge species in Pine Barrens woodlands
Prairie Warbler -- breeds in Dwarf Pine Plains; also in Peconic Bay shore vegetation
Black-and-white Warbler -- declining woodland species
Ovenbird -- common woodland species
Scarlet Tanager -- breeds in oak woodlands
Field Sparrow -- breeds on open field edge near woodlands
Vesper Sparrow -- uncommon to rare breeder in upland grasslands
Grasshopper Sparrow -- grasslands
Saltmarsh Sparrow -- Shinnecock marshes
Seaside Sparrow -- Shinnecock marshes
Swamp Sparrow -- uncommon breeder in fresh wetlands
Blue Grosbeak -- breeds in a narrow area near EPCAL grasslands
Indigo Bunting -- grassland edge species; very uncommon breeder
Eastern Meadowlark -- grassland species; declining
Boat-tailed Grackle -- Shinnecock/Dune Road area (probably breeds mainly on islands)
Orchard Oriole -- has bred in E. Quogue area

Eric Salzman

chirping Osprey and Indian Pipes

What is all the evening and morning loud whistling and chirping all about? Every day at dusk and in the early morning two or three Osprey appear on our side carrying on in the tree tops. Are they young birds from one or the other of the Pine Neck nests sociolising or otherwise looking to begin the process of finding a mate or a possible nest site? Or are they a mixture of adult birds trying to teach their offspring something? Because of the location and relative darkness, they are relatively invisible and I can't even tell if they are young or adult birds. Something serious is going on but I'm not sure what it is!

Yellow-crowned Night Heron adult flying over the marsh and dropping down into the pond. Spotted Sandpiper also in the open area of the marsh; the same bird or another working the edge of the pond. Both sandpipers were spotless indicating that they were young birds, possibly of the year.

Feeding flocks are beginning to form. One today was led by Tufted Titmice and also included B-c Chickadees, Downy Woodpecker, Eastern Phoebe, and at least one Yellow Warbler (also a Common Yellowthroat male but this bird was probably just a resident that only briefly joined the passing flock).

indian Pipes -- also called Ghost Plant -- have started to emerge. Monotropa uniflora is a white plant that grows in the shady understory of the woods, sometimes singly but often in groups. Because of their lack of chlorophyll, many people think of them as a fungus of some sort. They are, in fact, a flowering plant in the heath family but one that lacks that lacks chlorophyll and hence gets its nutrition by being parasitic (on tree roots and/or on some kind of actual fungi on these roots). The flower heads are nodding -- presumably to prevent them from getting doused by the rain -- which makes them look like an old-fashioned Dutchman's pipe or Native American peace pipe; after they are fertilized, they tend to straighten up and turn pinkish. Another monotropa, Pinesap or Monotropa hypopitys, also turns up but is much rarer.

Eric Salzman

used to nest

I didn't want to pretend that my list of 2017 breeding birds is 100% scientific but I think it is accurate to say that most of these birds would fit the Probable and/or Confirmed categories of a Breeding Bird Atlas with only a few downlisted to just 'Possible'. Again, let me emphasize that many of these birds are breeding in the vicinity but not necessary directly on the property.

Here is a much shorter list (16 species) of birds that have nested here in past years but no longer do so:

Ring-necked Pheasant -- on Pine Neck but probably no longer there
Northern Bobwhite -- virtually gone from ELI, alas
Green Heron -- formerly a regular nester; virtually vanished this year (why?)
Virginia Rail -- raised one chick on the marsh a number of years ago
Eastern Screech Owl -- used to nest in the old abandoned Randall house; dead owl found in wreckage after the house was knocked down
Ruby-throated Hummingbird -- raised 2 chicks by our pond in 2016; video on YouTube; may still nest but whereabouts of nest unknown
Belted Kingfisher -- used to nest in E. Quogue sand mines along with Bank Swallows; nest apparently destroyed by mining operations
Hairy Woodpecker -- possible nester in past years; has nested on Pine Neck (at least two nest holes seen)
Eastern Kingbird -- used to nest regularly in pines overlooking the marsh; now just a sometime visitor
Fish Crow -- nested in area but not seemingly this year
Rough-winged Swallow -- apparently attempted to nest in area a number of years ago; now just an occasional visitor
Bank Swallow -- nested in E. Quogue sand mines (along with Belted Kingfisher); nesting site mostly destroyed by mining operations but a few may still nest
Wood Thrush -- singing males throughout spring for a number of years; now disappearing everywhere
Brown Thrasher -- several successful nestings over the years
Eastern Towhee -- has bred on property in past years
Orchard Oriole -- once bred in the same Pitch Pine as a Baltimore Oriole pair

Eric Salzman

whistle from overhead

A series of long high-pitched overhead whistles heard overhead and then afterwards over Shinnecock Bay were intriguing. I never could get a glimpse of the bird in a still dark and overcast sky but the sound made me think of one of the larger shorebirds in migration. I don't seem to be able find anything comparable on-line (the Upland Sandpiper was the closest).

It was definitely distinct from the Osprey's distinctive whistles; is there another whistling raptor? The Osprey's loud whistling on our side -- especially very lat in the evening and also early on a cloud-covered morning -- may be young birds from the one or other of the Pine Neck nests perhaps looking to establish breeding territories or find mates on our side of the creek.  

Clapper Rail sitting silently (he hasn't called for several days now) on a grass-and mud hummock in the open-water pool in the middle of the marsh along with a Snowy Egret and a juvenile Night Heron (hunched like a Black-crowned but with small spots on the back plumage like a Yellow-crowned). Most of the birds that are still singing are year-rounders trying to establish a late brood.

Common and Royal Terns fishing on the creek. Fish are jumping suggesting that the baby blues (Blue Snappers) are already here.

A reader asks if my East Quogue breeding bird list refers to 2017 only or all the years up to and including 2017. He also wants to know how it is possible to obtain such a list. Here is my reply: "A reasonable question. I just meant this year 2017 but I have many years of observations behind it. We have 10 1/2 acres including frontage on Weesuck Creek and Shinnecock Bay as well as salt marsh, two tidal ponds, shrub habitat and oak/pine/hickory woodlands; I have been out for a walk around the place almost every morning since the beginning of May (I do this circuit every year from the beginning of May to the end of October. Secondly, I know the local bird songs and when birds sing or call from the same place every morning, I get pretty familiar with the layout of the land. Singing or calling males are the first clue. The presence of females is a second clue. Adult birds carrying food (i.e. not gulping it down themselves) means that they are feeding nestlings. Finally, I see young birds with the adults, often being fed by them. So this list is not based on nests but on the territorial presence of breeding adults which then produce young. As I specified, not all these birds will be breeding on the actual property (although many are) but in the area."

Eric Salzman

nesting birds

Didn't get out this morning (heavy rain) so I thought I would make a list of our breeding birds as of 2017. This list covers our property and East Quogue environs: except as noted, most of these birds were seen with young.

Canada Goose
[Mute Swan -- apparently unsuccessful for the last couple of years]
Mallard
Wild Turkey
Yellow-crowned Night Heron -- common on property; adults seen with young; must breed somewhere in the area
Osprey -- two nests on Pine Neck
Clapper Rail -- no actual evidence of breeding but calling male all through the spring up on our marsh until a few days ago; breeds on Pine Neck
Rock Dove (Pigeon)
Mourning Dove
Chimney Swift -- likely pair in some E. Quogue chimney
Red-bellied Woodpecker
Downy Woodpecker
Northern Flicker
Eastern Phoebe
Great Crested Flycatcher
[Red-eyed Vireo -- regular spring visitor but nearest nesting birds undetermined]
Blue Jay
American Crow
Purple Martin
Barn Swallow
Black-capped Chickadee
Tufted Titmouse
White-breasted Nuthatch
Carolina Wren
House Wren
American Robin
Gray Catbird
Northern Mockingbird
European Starling
Cedar Waxwing -- no young yet seen
Yellow Warbler
Pine Warbler
Common Yellowthroat
Chipping Sparrow
Song Sparrow
Saltmarsh Sparrow (breeds on Pine Neck Marsh)
Northern Cardinal
Red-winged Blackbird
Common Grackle
Brown-headed Cowbird
Baltimore Oriole
[Orchard Oriole -- seen mating but no further breeding evidence]
House Finch
American Goldfinch
House Sparrow

42 species + 3 possible

Eric Salzman

a tale of two egrets

Ellen Frank tells me about a small egret that she saw a couple of days ago that had two long plumes down the back and bright orange (not yellow) feet. Unfortunately she didn't note the color of the lores (the area around the eyes) and there is no photo. I say 'unfortunately' because there is a good chance that this was a Little Egret and not a Snowy. Little Egret is the equivalent of the closely-related Snowy Egret throughout Eurasia and the Littles also breed on Barbados and Antigua. It's not easy to separate the two species as they overlap in many details. I've had two Snowy Egrets with the double plumes (one was photographed); both had yellow lores and yellow feet and the consensus was that they were aberrant Snowies (or, as I tend to think, hybrids). A favorite sport of the on-line bird community is shooting down reports of Little Egrets on Long Island and, I believe that, although there a number of reports, there is still no accepted record for New York State (although there are accepted records for all the other Atlantic states). While it is possible that there are local Snowy Egrets whose feet turn orange in high breeding plumage, that is not likely to last very long and we are now well out of breeding season. I have the idea (not sure of the source) that the Little Egrets in the Caribbean have a longer breeding season which would suggest that there might be birds from that location that are still in breeding plumage.

Eric Salzman

sunset on Weesuck Creek

Watched the sunset last night. Actually, that's not strictly true as our front deck (the observation platform) faces east and is great for watching sunrises, not sunsets. The back of the house (the kitchen entrance and the car park) faces west but the view is obscured by a screen of woodland trees. But from the front deck, it was possible to see the pink reflection of the setting sun over Pine Neck and then watch it gradually creep across Weesuck Creek until the whole place was bathed in pinkish glow, accentuated and made vivid by the humid atmosphere -- the pink seemed to penetrate the moisture in the atmosphere lending a surreal air to the scene. As the shadows finally enveloped everything, the fireflies began to glow, the evening cicadas gradualy reported the day-time cicadas, and a juvenile night heron came into the pond and perched on the dead Red Cedar (judging by the silhouette, I think it was a Black-crowned).  As real darkness closed in, the sky was stilll  light enough to see a bat making several fast fluttering passes overhead (Lorna is convinced that it is a Little Brown Bat, a likely ID).

An interesting side observation: the local Osprey kept whistling and flying until almost complete darkness. The Osprey's late habits may be an adaptation to their fishing style as many fish spend the daytime hours deep in the water but will come to the surface at night. Which is why many fishermen go out at night; there were perhaps as many as half a dozen fishing boats with lights parked just outside the creek in Shinnecock Bay.

But has anyone seen an Osprey catch fish at night?

The bird of the morning (this morning) was an accipiter that came streaking out of the woods across the marsh, putting up the entire colony of Purple Martins -- or at least every one that could fly. The hawk was horizontally streaked red underneath so it was an adult. It was intermediate in size so it was either a male Cooper's (most likely) or a female Sharp-shinned.
 
Eric Salzman

bitter bolete but not Bitter Boletus

Found a big gorgeous bolete with a brownish-purple top, white pores (Boletes have pores not gills) and a white stem heavily streaked with purple. It looks not a little like Boletus edulls -- cep or porcini -- one of the finest of edible mushrooms. But, alas, this scrumptious looking mushroom is completely inedible; it is as super ultra-bitter as anything I know. It can be quite common but the specimens are always perfect looking; even the bugs won't touch it!

We always called this mushroom Bitter Boletus, Tylopilus felleus, a Europen species which is also said to be found in northeastern N. America. However I think the correct ID is Tyloplus plumbeoviolaceus, an equally bitter bolete.

Numbers of Common Terns at the mouth of the creek this morning; this species has not been as common as its name suggests and I wonder how its island colonies on the other side of the bay are doing.

In my post about insects the other day, I neglected to mention that the day-time cicadas have also started up, although somewhat fitfully. This is the Dog-day Cicada, Neotibicen canicularis, which has a different song from the Northern Dusk-singing Cicada (Neotribicen auletes). This is an annual cicada (that is, it emerges every year) and its buzz-saw song is fairly steady, beginning with a crescendo and ending with a small descrescendo before cutting out. Little by little, I'm beginning to be able to identify singing insects by their song and time of day.  

Eric Salzman

hatchlings

The hot weather has brought out a lot of insects as well as the flycatchers (daytime) and the bats (nighttime) that feed on them. The bats are now a regular evening feature here although I cannot identify the species. Butterflies are seemingly everywhere, inside and on the edge of the woods; alas, most of them are actually not butterflies at all but Gypsy Moths; in this heat, they seem to have the energy to keep up their darting, looping, flutter flight and they never seem to perch (so I never get a good look). My guess is that these short-lived daytime moths are trying to find the floating pheromones that the flightless females emit from their tree truck perches; the scent trail leads them right to reproduction.

There are some actual butterflies around and I did see a Summer Azure (Celestina neglecta) on our old right-of-way -- now considered a separate species from the more common Spring Azure. Numbers of dragonflies are also active right now, particularly over the pond and marsh. I saw a Pennant -- possibly the Halloween Pennant -- and a clear-winged smallish specimen with a dark stigma and a brown and yellow thorax. I'm guessing female Blue Dasher but the truth is I have a lot of work to do on the local dragonflies!

Found a 'new' Box Turtle. This good-sized fellow had a dirty yellow plastron with rather thin black lines running through separating the large yellow patches. I'm sure I've never seen this pattern before.

There are now three very young chicks in the American Robin nest that I've been following and I suspect that the three sizes may correspond to the oder of hatching. The femsle remans much less timid abot coming in to feed her chicks. This morning, I saw her feed the hatchlings while the the male -- with a beakful of scrumptious caterpillars
-- would not come in at all; I eventually left the site to give him a clear path.

Eric Salzman

return of the Kingfisher and Robins feeding young

A species that has been decidedly missing from the local avifauna reappeared today. Belted Kingfishers used to nest in a Bank Swallow colony in the East Quogue Sand Mines and come down to Weesuck Creek on a regular route. I suspect that that cliff was dug out a couple of years ago and the kingfishers disappeared as local breeding birds. However they still turn up as migrants and today's bird might be classified as one of the early migrants.

Two other visitors: Eastern Kingbird (used to breed on the property but not in recent years) and a female Hairy Woodpecker (with a cream-colored -- almost yellowish -- tuft of feathers on its lores). All four summer woodpeckers were seen or heard (including young) and three of the larger flycatchers (Kingbird, Phoebe and Great Crested).

Bob Adamo asks how I knew the male Robin was offering insects to eggs in the nest if the nest was right over my head. Well, I couldn't see into the nest but the male flew in with a beakful of insects, offered them to the occupants and then flew out again with the same insects when they did not respond. A few moments later, the female came in without food and settled down into the nest to brood. It's possible that she was brooding hatchlings that were too weak or too young to take food but, if so, there was no sign or sound that any young had hatched and, on a hot sunny day, there didn't seem much need for serious, extensive brooding of hatchlings. Yesterday, one chick popped his head above the edge of the nest and today, there were two chicks visible; both were clearly begging for food, and both adults were coming in with food in their beaks. The female was much less timid and, although she snuck in from the back of the tree, she made it to the next and her babies and fed them. The male, also with a beakful of food, was again very wary of my presence and unlike Monday, he eventually decided not to try and come in but flew away with his insects, landed on the ground some distance away and  devoured his entire babyfood catch. A little unhappy with this result, I snuck away leaving them to their family affairs.

Eric Salzman

fall migration already?

Does fall migration really begin in early to mid-July? The informed answer would seem to be 'yes'. As we saw on Sunday, some shorebirds are already on the move (Short-billed Dowitchers arrive in these parts as early as late June). And the Tree Swallows that we saw in considerable numbers are the advance guard of a huge migration; hundreds of thousands will pass by along the barrier beach in late August and early September (on their way to Florida, Cuba, Mexico & Central America).

But wait a second; the situation may be more complicated than we think. We usually think of fall migration as a north-to-south movement from breeding grounds to winter hangouts. But the Royal Terns that are arriving here in mid July come from breeding grounds to the south and they usually arrive with newly fledged young of the year which they are either still feeding or at least teaching how to find their food. Some of the July arrivals heading south -- not only terns and shorebirds but also passerines -- may stay here for a period of weeks, fattening up or fattening their offspring as they get ready for the greater rigors of moving to their southern wintering grounds. This is an interesting summer interlude where these birds look for a rich summer habitat -- richer perhaps than their northern breeding grounds -- as an intermediate step on the way south. I've always thought that this summer visitation ought to have a liitle more recognition on its own (I even wrote about it in BIRDING Magazine a number of years ago).

And now the news. Clapper Rail was preening in the open area of the marsh before disappearing into the Spartina and Phragmites and uttering his signature call. And a Ruby-throated Hummingbird appeared on a high perch at te head of the marsh, an area where it might breed (but still not showing at our new hummingbird feeders). I looked for yesterday's mystery bird but didn't find it. The Am Robin nest, where the male tried to feed the eggs, now has at least one active chick being fed by its parents.   

Eric Salzman

Royal Terns and more Sunday migrants

Another bird that reappears around here in the middle of July is the Royal Tern and, sure enough there were Royal Terns on the creek this morning and this afternoon,  all easily detectable by their unique grating call.

There was a mystery bird: good size, light brown with no visible markings but with a longish tail which it kept up-cocking like a wren; couldn't get a good look at the face or bill (bird was far away and seen mostly in flight). A female Indigo Bunting? Tail seemed too long -- more like that of a towhee or thrasher. I'll look for it tomorrow.

Two important observations from Sunday's ELIAS trip that I neglected to mention in yesterday's post:

There was a notable movement of Tree Swallows along the barrier beach for much of the morning. This seems early (the peak would be at the end of August into early September). But these birds were definitely on the move in a northeast-to-southwest direction.

And, even more exciting, there were some numbers of Monarch Butterflies, also definitely on the move down the barrier beach and, in the same direction, out on the bay.

Eric Salzman

not a Stilt but a Stilt Sandpiper

"...I did note shorebirds...(h)ighlighted by..STILT SANDPIPER....feeding in a mixed flock consisting of Short-billed Dowitchers, Greater and Lesser Yellowlegs and Peeps. The latter hugging the Phragmites as they sought any open shoreline...there were the usual suspects including a few Least Sandpipers....Glossy Ibis was (a) highlight as well as a marauding young Peregrine Falcon that was nicely harassed by a few...(t)erns who did not put up with its presence."

This slightly edited quote from Andrew Baksh's post from Jamaica Bay this morning could apply almost exactly to the well-attended E.L.I.A.S. walk led by Eileen Schwinn this morning on Dune Road, Shinnecock Bay. The Stilt Sandpiper is a rare to uncommon bird on Eastern Long Island; this one was identified by its small size (smaller than the nearby dowitchers), dowitcher-like feeding style, slight drooping curve of its bill, longish yellowish legs, barring on the breast and distinct eye stripe (the rufous cheek -- if there was one -- was not visible with the light mostly behind).

It was a cloudless, sunny, dry warm day with light breezes. The Stilt Sandpiper was working a small pond on a rising tide just west of the Old Ponquogue Bridge Road with a group of Willets, dowitchers (Short-billed presumably), both yellowlegs, peeps (Least and Semipalmated Sandpipers), and Glossy Ibis. There were a few Common Terns in the vicinity but numbers of Least Terns, presumably breeding on the nearby outer beach. Also in the area: both egrets, Great Blue Heron, Black-crowned Night Heron, Canada Geese, Sanderling, Willow Flycatcher, Eastern Phoebe, Northern Mockingbird, Common Yellowthroat, Red-winged Blackbird, Common Grackle, Boat-tailed Grackle, Saltmarsh Sparrow, Seaside Sparrow (? I didn't see it), Song Sparrow, American Goldfinch. At least two Northern Harriers came by putting up great clouds of shorebirds; the local
Osprey chicks looked about ready to fledge.

Nice yellow flowers in the area: Prickly Pear Cactus still with its beautiful flowers; Coreopsis (Beggar Ticks); Common St. John's Wort. Also Chicory (Blue Sailors) and Yucca.

Did I forget something? If so, surely someone will catch me up on the list!

Eric Salzman

Clapper rapper

It wasn't yet raining when I went out yesterday morning and made it out to the middle of the marsh where, all of a sudden, an almost ear-splitting rapper Clapper sounded right in front of me. The tide was on the low side so I was able to watch the Rail pad about in the open area of the salt marsh as he trotted along the muddy edges, waded out into the open water, swam around a bit, caught a crab, killed and devoured it and then proceeded to splash and bathe in the deepest part of the pool, finally retreating to the side to do his toilette before vanishing into the reeds and resuming his trademark kek-kek-keking.

This morning the Rail was back out in the open -- the open water in the middle of the marsh -- mostly stationary but turning his head from side to side as he broadcast his calls; occasionally he would turn 45 degees, presumably to let his kek-keking ring out over a still wider area. A little bit later, he turned up in the main pond where he splashed and bathed, virtually ignoring me as I came back round from the other side. I still call him 'he' as he gave more rounds of rapping/clapping. I assume it was the same bird even though there is a considerable distance between these two open water areas.   

Today is July 15, the day that the Spotted Sandpiper reappears on the pond every year and, sure enough, there it was, bobbing its way along the low-tide mud edge, right across from the Rail. A Great Blue Heron on the opposite shore of Weesuck Creek was perhaps slightly overdue; I suspect there'll be a couple of more arriving from the breeding grounds up north any day now.

The Wild Turkeys came around again. Three hens and 14 fast-growing chicks made their customary transit through the open area around the house and then into the woods. I don't know what they're eating but apparently it's nutritious enough to power this entire flock and help the poults to grow up.

More rain, more mushrooms. We're getting russulas, various amanitas (definitely not edible), more Lactarius volemus (definitely edible) and more chanterelles (ditto). Caught a Box Turtle eating a mushroom (they like the mushrooms and also the damp mushroom weather). I've also seen a Gray Squirrel munching on a mushroom.

Eric Salzman

surprises

One surprise:

At the edge of the marsh -- near the spot where the trail turns up to the head of the marsh -- I noticed some leaf movement at the edge of the tree line that was clearly not due to birds or to the wind. Must be a couple of squirrels, I say to myself but lift up my binoculars anyway. Surprise! It's four raccoons about ten feet up in a jumble of tree branches, a bigger one staring straight out at me without moving and three smaller ones moving around restlessly on the adjacent branches. Mom Raccoon, glaring and watching me to see what I might do next, and her kits in broad daylight!

Second surprise:

This one was at a resting spot further inland where I have seen a pair of Robins (yes, you can tell male from female) behaving as though they had a nest nearby. Try as I might I could never find the nest. Today I watched the male with a  beak-full of insects acting as though he wanted to come in to the nest but constantly backng off, seemingly because of my presence -- he didn't want to give the nest location away. I decided to sit down and remain absolutely still, hoping to make a less threatening figure, And sure enough, after a couple of false starts, he came into some leafy branches and then quietly slipped through the leaves to the nest. Like last year's hummingbird nest, it was right over my head and just a few feet up! No wonder I couldn't find it. After he left -- virtually swooping over my head -- Mme Migratorius came in as well by the same sneaky route but she settled on the nest. There are a couple of possible explanations for this. My guess is that the male was jumping the gun and there were no chicks to feed (I didn't hear any peeping from the nest which was close and right overhead). I'm not positive but I think there are records of an overeager male offering food to the eggs! 

Eric Salzman

droning cicadas & drone photos

Heard the first cicadas of the year yesterday evening. Since it sang only at dusk (and stopped singing when it got dark), I am guessing that it was the Northern Dusk-singing Cicada (Neotibicen auletes). The song is loud and buzzing/pulsing, starting out crescendo and accelerando and then, after hitting loud full volume, trails off at the end before stopping abruptly. It made a nice accompaniment to the flashing fireflies which were moderately numerous.

Another feature of the evening's entertainment was the appearance of a small, fluttering, fast-flying bat above the tree-tops and intermittently visible from the front deck, flying above the open area in front of the deck. Don't know what species it might have been: Little Brown Bat? a Pipistrelle?

We had a recent visitor who is a professor of planning and environment and he brought along a drone which he uses in his work. In the process of showing how it works, he/it took some aerial photos of our place, reproduced below. The first shows (l. to r.) a view looking north, showing Weesuck Creek, Little Weesuck, the Aldrich Boat Yard and a neighbor's house and dock; the other shot shows part of Pine Neck across Weesuck Creek (Shinnecock Bay and Dune Road in the distance). The next photo shows our house with its adjacent porch and cottage (barn) in the middle of an oak/hickory woodland; the next picture in the second row is looking south toward Bay Avenue and the Town Dock but showing a part of our Clapper Rail marsh with its open water area in the middle and, again, Shinnecock Bay and Dune Road in the background. The final shot is of our eastern edge including our tidal pond, another part of the marsh and our thin dune line on Weesuck Creek.

Eric Salzman.

Clapper in the sunshine

The Clapper Rail was out in the sunshine this morning perched on a bit of debris in the open pond in the middle of the marsh. He (if it was a he) was preening and generally doing his (or her) toilette while drying off on a very heavily dewy morning. Is this the same bird that has been calling all these weeks? Maybe. But it looked somewhat different from the bird I saw a couple of times earlier this year which I would describe as very grayish and pale. This morning's bird, seen only with his back towards me, seemed more colorful. It looked gray only on the head with a brilliant yellow/orange beak, a white throat and chocolate brown wings and back. Judging by this impression, I would say there are two birds with somewhat different coloration but, unless I see the two birds together, I would not be 100% sure. Since this bird is so well colored, I would call it the male and guess that the other rail seen earlier was the female.

Two Bank Swallows hunting over the marsh with Barn Swallows and Purple Martins.

Both adult Red-bellied Woodpeckers appeared with three young near the head of the marsh. Also, a fledgling Yellow Warbler with the adult male hovering somewhere in the vicinity holding food in his beak. Surprisingly, that's the first time I have had any real proof of Yellow Warbler breeding on the place.

My daughter and granddaughter decided to put up hummingbird feeders in front of the house -- a red one just in front of the deck, a green one a little further off to the side. At least one hummingbird appeared and appeared to be investigating but did not land on the feeder to drink. Maybe it takes a few visits to determine what this new, strange object is.

Eric Salzman

young 'uns and more on Poxabogue

Two young Red-bellied Woodpeckers were out and about with their father. This would explain why this species has been so relatively quiet these days; papa was busy baby-sitting! The young are slightly miniaturized versions of the adults but without the markings. Since these birds can have as many as six young, the couple probably splits up with each adult taking some of the young with them to show them the ropes -- where to find food, etc. 

At least one recently fledged Baltimore Oriole was calling with its very distinctive two-note or three-note call. But where are the others? This looked to be a good year for Baltimores but few young have appeared hereabouts.

Clapper Rail continues its kek-ing though most of the morning. The only other truly persistent singer is the House Wren which appears to be having a good year.

In my post about our walk at Poxabogue Pond on Friday, I neglected to mention the three Tom Turkeys that were roosting in on a tree branch not far from the big pond. When the first one took off, I thought it was a Turkey Vulture but, no, it was Turkey not vulture (both have bare redskin heads which explains the vulture's name and my confusion). Wild Turkeys normally spend the night in trees but it is unusual to see them still treed at 9 in the morning; apparently, the rainstorms which struck at dawn kept them in the their nighttime roost until our arrival. The question is how do the chicks manage to fly up into the trees? Or do they have to spend the night on the ground until they reach a certain age?

Eric Salzman

Poxabogue

Poxabogue Pond -- actually two ponds (Poxabogue and Little Poxabogue) that are connected when the ground water level is high) -- is part of the chain of ponds that extends from Sag Harbor to Sagaponack and forms the heart of the Greenbelt. Most of the north shore of these ponds is protected as part of a Suffolk County Park which includes grassland, shrub and woodland habitat. The trails here and on the other side of the LIRR tracks are part of the Bay to Ocean Trail currently under construction by the Friends of the Long Island Greenbelt, the same folks who invited me to do a walk there yesterday. I was happy to oblige as I hadn't been to Poxabogue Pond in many years and I remembered it as one of the most beautiful spots on the South Fork.

It didn't disappoint but what we didn't count on was the weather; I had to drive out east from East Quogue at Friday morning rush hour in the middle of some of the worst torrential downpours I can recall. When I finally reached the entrance to the park (at least a quarter of an hour late) only three people had been willing to brave the weather and one of them was Dai Dayton who had organized the expedition. Nevertheless, it was a pleasant company, the rains let up shortly after we hit the trail and we were able to compile a fairly good list of birds, other animals, flowering plants and even mushrooms. Most notably, the Red Cedars (in the dry areas) were covered with wax berries and the Tupelos (around the pond) were developing their berries as well.

The outstanding discovery of the morning took place, not in the County Park but on the stretch of trail north of the tracks and leading north to Vineyard Field (and eventually through the Greenbelt). This particular spot was open and sandy and a female Box Turtle had dug in and was laying her eggs, not a sight you get to see every day! We didn't linger long for fear of disturbing her or giving away the location to predators (there are many that regard turtle eggs as top of the menu).

Not surprisingly, there were deer all over the place and enough bird activity to get a picture of avian life around the pond. The dominant species was American Robin but there were Catbirds, House Wrens, Common Yellowthroat, Chipping Sparrow, swallows and martins etc. The outstanding sightings were Eastern Bluebird flying over the grassland opening and Eastern Kingbirds hovering -- helicoptering -- over the lily pads on Big Poxagogue. From time to time, the Kingbirds would actually land on the lilypad pads. Presumably they were gathering up insects from the pads to bring back to their nest which was probably in the close vicinity; Kingbirds love to build their nests next to or even over water.

A little earlier in the season and with a break from the weather and I'm sure we would have been able to find more than a handful of other species. There's always next year!

Eric Salzman

Willets remain united

Contrary to what I posted recently, the Eastern and Western Willets remain united as a single species. The AOU (or AOS -- American Ornithological Society -- as it is now known) declined to split the Willets. They also turned down several other proposed splits including Myrtle and Audubon's Warbler (together they make Yellow-rumped Warbler) which I think should have been split as it was years ago.

They did lump the ever difficult and controversial Thayer's Gull as a subspecies of Iceland Gull. So take it off your species list if you already have it down and, if not, you can quit looking for this phantom. Whew!

But they refused to vanish the Hoary Redpoll into a mere version of the Common Redpoll -- another mix-and-match that has been discussed for a long time.

However I did get two 'armchair' species for my life list -- both splits between North American species and Eurasians where I have seen both: Northern Harrier (now Circus hudsonicus) from Hen Harrier (C. cyaneus) and our Northern Shrike (now Lanius borealis) from Great Grey Shrike (L. excubitor). Lose one, gain two! 

They also split something called the Cassia Crossbill (which exists only in Idaho!) from the Red Crossbill. Some people thought the crossbills might be split into as many as seven species! At least that didn't happen. Since I've never seen a crossbill in Idaho and wouldn't know how to tell it from all the other crossbills, I don't get a bonus with that one! Anyway, to any birders in Idaho who might see this, congratulations!

Lots of other changes but they all involve renaming and reordering the scientific classifications and I'm not going to go into that labyrinth. I will only mention one: the puzzling Yellow-breasted Chat is no longer a warbler but is now in its own family, the Icteriidae, confusingly similar to the (presumably) closely related Icteridae (orioles, meadowlarks, blackbirds, etc.), and both now followed by the Wood Warblers (Parulidae -- where the chat used to sit)! Confusing? Better not to worry about it too much.

The Clapper Rail is still calling from our marsh but only occasionally. Heard other sounds coming from the marsh which may or may not have something to do with the Clapper. I'm still hoping for evidence of breeding.

Eric Salzman

more offspring, less song

As more and more birds appear, there is less and less song. The adult birds, papa included, are too busy with their emerging young and generally one or both adults start a feeding route accompanied by some of their offspring. The kids, although fledged and flying, still beg for food but, little by little, they learn how to find nourishment for themselves. Seeing the fluttering young being fed by their parents is pretty good evidence of nesting in the area. The birds that are still singing -- mainly Robins and House Wrens at this point -- are either renesting or simply didn't make it the first time around.

Heard all four local woodpeckers calling this morning. The Northern Flickers seem to be most active right now. It has been suggested that earlier in the spring they are in competition with the Red-bellied Woodpeckers but it is equally likely that various species of ants -- the Flicker's favorite food -- are proliferating right now.

There was a big uproar of jays in the woods and I fearlessly plunged into the shrubbery hoping to find the object of their derision. Oddly enough, it was a crow sitting on the ground -- probably trying to sneak up on a jay's nest to grab the eggs or chicks. The jays didn't succeed in chasing it off but it took off when I approached.

The male Ruby-throated Hummingbird was on his dead branch this morning at the head of the marsh. This spot is near the cottages on Randall Lane and they mostly have flower gardens so he is either guarding his extended patch against intruders or looking for available females; his high perch gives a good view of the whole neighborhood.

The first Lactarius volemus (or Lactifluus volemus) -- sometimes called the Tawny Milkcap for its cap color and white droplets -- appeared in the woods this morning; this is one of my favorite local edibles. Another of my local favorites, the Chanterelle (Cantharellus cibarius, also known as the girolle) is starting to appear but just a few small ones at a time. It all needs more rain!
  
Eric Salzman

4th-of-July Turkeys

What could be more appropriate on the 4th of July than a rafter or muster of turkeys (or perhaps just a flock) ? This year's turkey crowd consists of three hens and 15  chicks that are growing up fast! I saw them twice this morning in two different places but I have no doubt that it was the same flock. Why are Wild Turkeys appropriate for the 4th of July? Well Benjamin Franklin famously thought that Meleagris gallopavo should be our national symbol rather than the Bald Eagle which is an aggressive and piratical bird!

Some other notes of recent vintage:

A strange repeated squawk caught my attention a couple of days ago and as been repeated since. It turned out to be a Yellow-crowned Night Heron, perched fairly high in a leafy tree and afterwards on a dead branch near the pond.

A male Ruby-throated Hummingbird has been hanging around the head of the marsh. He perches high on dead branches possibly looking for females. I haven't discovered a nest this year although I have seen females.

A furious circular dance by the pond of two American Copper butterflies caught my eye early yesterday morning (before taking off for Cupsogue -- me not the butterflies -- with Eileen Schwinn). After a rather extended bout of circular chasing, the two butterflies separated and posed prettily on a couple of lowdown sunlit leaves enabling me to be sure of the ID. After a few minutes, the chase resumed and, as I had to leave, I didn't see the outcome. Was it love or war? Probably the former but it was hard to be sure.

Saw my first Little Wood-Satyr of the season this morning on the old right-of-way. (When I tell visitors that we have Nymphs and Satyrs on the place, they nod their heads and say, 'Sure. sure'). Yesterday, there were a number of fairly large dark-winged butterflies flying from the south over Moriches Bay and crossing right in front of our path along the bayshore; I thought they might have been migrants (yes, butterflies besides Monarchs do migrate and in both directions).

A couple of birds to add to yesterday's Cupsogue report: Least Sandpipers flying over and into the marsh (identified by their stiff-winged flight). Also Laughing Gulls in summer plumage (i.e. black-headed; this is not a common bird here in the spring and early summer). And a Willet that was distinctly larger than all the others was almost certainly a Western, a regular visitor here. (Andrew Baksh, who was also there, reported Western Willet in his post this morning.) Eastern and Western Willets have been split into two different species so, if you have seen a large, pale Willet on the East End or in a western wetland, you can add an 'armchair' species to your list! More splits -- and thus more armchair species -- are coming down the pike!

On Friday, July 7th, at 8 am, I'm doing a walk for the Friends of the Long Island Greenbelt starting at Poxabogue Pond and ending up at the Vineyard Field. The meeting place is the entrance to Poxaboue County Park just south of the LIRR tracks on Old Pond Road, Sagaponack. For more information go to Friends Of The Long Pond Greenbelt or, better yet, contact Dai Dayton by phone at 631 745-0689. I haven't been to this beautiful pond fo many years and, among other things, I'm very curious to know what birds are now breeding there.

Eric Salzman

Terns at Cupsogue

Went down to Cupsogue with Eileen Schwinn and walked down from the dune to the shore then all the way east to look through the tern roosts. The weather was sunny with light breezes and some thin cloud cover to mitigate the head. The last time I was in the area, I had a group from the Linnaean Society at the Museum of Natural History in NYC and there simply wasn't time to include Cupsogue. I was right about the time issue. Eileen and I spent three hours down there this morning. We finally left, not only because lunch was calling but also because the Fourth of July crowds (boats, campers, cars, people) had grown considerably during the morning and were still increasing.

The tide was low and still going out so we hardly got wet as we trudged across the sand and mud flats. Among the many Common Terns and increasingly common Forster's Terns was a first-year plumaged Black Tern -- see Eileen's photo attached. Among the preening Commons there were also at least two Roseate Terns (one of them might be in Eileen's picture but, alas, it was actively preening and its black bill was hidden in its back plumage).

The list of interesting birds was substantial. When we first drove into the parking lot, we went through the reeds on a 'trail' that leads to the head of the marsh where there was an agitated Seaside Sparrow with food in its beak, another Seaside (possibly its mate) and a couple of Saltmarsh Sparrows; this was my first Seaside of the year! A Willow Flycatcher perched on the top of a dead tree welcomed us down the path which was criss-crossed by both Barn and Tree Swallows, Common Yellowthroat and Red-winged Blackbirds. At the bottom and all throughout our walk along the shore, there were different flavors of Boat-tailed Grackles (big males, young males, females) flying up and back between the marsh and the spoil islands in the bay. There were quite a few Glossy Ibis both in the marsh and flying past and there was a small group of Black Skimmers in the water opposite the flats. There were few shorebirds but we did see Short-billed Dowitchers (almost inevitably the first southward migrant of its tribe), a few non-breeding-plumaged Black-bellied Plovers and a lonesome Dunlin. Clapper Rail calls accompanied us almost all the way out and back.

Two terns that we did not see were Gull-billed and Sandwich, both reported from here in recent days. But, just as we started to turn back, a Royal Tern came flying in low and virtually across our path, making a large flying punctuation mark to end the morning.

Eric Salzman

Vineyard Field again

Wanna see a Monarch Butterfly?

Vineyard Field, back of the South Fork Natural History Museum, is the place. Monarch Butterfly populations have dropped drastically in recent years to the point where our once spectacular migrations have diminished or disappeared. Mike Bottini asked me earlier this month if I had seen any Monarchs and I had to answer no. But I saw three or four of them this morning on Vineyard Field.

Vineyard Field has masses of milkweed (mostly Common Milkweed but also Butterfly Weed), the Monarch larva's favorite food plant. The milkweeds contain steroid poisons which transfer to the caterpillar and then to the butterfly. Monarch Butterflies are said to be 'aposematic', meaning that their colorful display is a warning to predators that they are poisonous! There are even other butterflies that imitate or 'mimic' the Monarch to take advantage of that warning signal!

Vineyard Field is covered with flowers right now and flowers mean butterflies -- not to mention all sort of other insects. Among the butterflies seen this morning -- besides the Monarchs -- were many Wood-Nymphs (dark brown with yellow-orange patch and an eyespot on the wing), Buckeye (white wingbar, eyespots in diminishing size place), American Copper (orange forewings with dark edges and squarish spots; dark hindwings with spotted orange band on the lower edge). The flower list included Deptford Pink, Common Toadflax, Venus' Looking-glass, St.-John's Wort, Common and Orange (or Butterfly) Milkweed, American Elderberry, various members of the aster family (Daisies, Daisy Fleabane, some hawkweeds, etc.), Common Nightshade, Birdfoot Trefoil, Yarrow, Wild Rose (Carolina, Field or Swamp, I'm never sure), Common Mullein, one or more of the cinquefoils, etc.

We probably could have found a great many more butterflies and wildflowers but our main objective -- on a walk labelled Birding by Ear -- was the birds. As always, Vineyard Field was the place to find Indigo Buntings. Although many birds have stopped singing (Orchard Oriole, Blue-winged Warbler, Brown Thrasher, Eastern Towhee), the buntings were still at it, often perching out in the open to sing their jingly song and show off their glittering blue plumage. Among the other birds still active and vocal were Purple Martin (big active colony in gourds near the museum), Tree Swallows (in most of the nest boxes), Gray Catbird (everywhere), Northern Mockingbird, House Wren (singing on top of some of the nest boxes), Common Yellowthroat, Yellow Warbler (heard but not seen), Northern Flicker (ditto), Tufted Titmouse and Red-winged Blackbird. Also Field Sparrow, a bird that used to be very common but has recently been in decline. And a pair of Eastern Bluebirds which seems to have retained control of one of the boxes intended for them!

Eric Salzman

turkeys, a noisy rail and a scheduled walk at SOFO

Had another visit from the turkey-lurkeys yesterday afternoon, this time passing right outside my porch window: three fresh hens and a dozen-and-a-half even fresher turkeylets (but already noticeably grown from the other day).

The rail is still kek-ing away somewhere near the pond; I'm really beginning to wonder if he doesn't have a family hidden somewhere in the marsh. He's been around and calling for at least six weeks (close to two months now). Surely a lone male looking for love would have given up long before now.

Tide is still low in the morning with the usual visitors: both night herons (Block-crowned and Yellow-crowned), an unidentified young night heron in first year plumage and a pair if Eastern Willets. The night herons all take off when I approach the pond but the Willets simply fly up to the top of the dead Red Cedar opposite and, after securing a precarious perch, wait for me to leave so they can continue to forage in the pond without my overlooking them..

The Red-eyed Vireo reappeared, evidenced by his signature Q&A song.

A few more Chanterelles and a few boletus-type mushrooms (the latter not yet specifically identified but definitely edible and tasty).  

Here's a repeat of my message of the other day. I'm doing another official walk in the Vineyard Field in back of the South Fork Natural History Museum (SOFO) tommorow, Sunday, July 2nd. We'll meet at 8 am directly in back of SOFO and do a circuit around the field, listening and looking for birds. As many of you know, I'm a composer and do a lot of my Birding By Ear which is, in fact, the name of the program/walk. If you plan to come, please contact SOFO by phone (631-537-9735) or by e-mail (sofo@hamptons.com). If you want a little more information, go to the SOFO web site and check the calendar of events.

Hope to see you there!

Eric Salzman