Mopping-Up the Geese

A January Ritual - Getting all 8 Species of New York Geese on the Year List

Saturday, January 21 - Nassau and Suffolk Counties

Haven't really had a lot of free time and anyone could tell that just by looking at my year-list which is trailing way behind the top birders on this year's eBird "Hot 100" for New York.  I had a few hours in the middle of the day on Saturday though so decided to get out and try and grab some of the Winter species that might not stick around until I had more time to bird.

First stop was a 'gimme'; the PINK-FOOTED GOOSE in Valley Stream has been simple and reliable all Winter (although it's the first one ever seen in Nassau County) and was a quick and easy add to the year list along with a Cackling Goose that has also been at the site for weeks.

Pink-footed Goose

With that being so easy I decided to venture further East, and headed an hour of so to the Farmingdale area which had recent reports of Barnacle, Cackling and Ross's Geese ..... and after two hours of searching ... I saw none of them.  Oh well ...

Feeling a little frustrated, I decided to go another hour or so further East again to search for a Sandhill Crane in Wainscott.  Not sure why I did that to be honest as Sandhill Crane wouldn't have been a County Bird for Suffolk County, and it's not a bird I'm ever likely to miss in New York in any given year.  As a species, they really aren't all that uncommon in New York but they are quite rare on Long Island and they certainly don't show up here every year ... and I like cranes.  The debate was academic though as I managed to dip that bird too, and also struck out on a search for Short-eared Owl and American Bittern along Dune Road.  Some days you don't have good karma I guess, but at least I managed to connect with some Ross's Geese for the year.  Seven of New York's eight goose species accounted for, one to go ....

Sunday, January 22 - (mostly) Richmond County

Awoke to a city shrouded in fog but decided to head out anyway and try to add a few more of the interesting lingering birds around New York.  First stop was on Staten Island (a borough I visit rarely even though it's quite close) and a stake-out for a PAINTED BUNTING that had been hanging out for a couple of weeks in some beach-side scrub.  Despite all the hoopla about the celebrity Painted Bunting in Brooklyn last Winter, the species shows up most years in New York State, although they are often found at feeders with limited access, and more usually 'little green jobs' rather than showy adult males.  This bird was billed an an immature male, but basically a (mostly) 'little green job'.

Painted Bunting and Lesser Black-backed Gull
Terrible photos on a dark foggy morning

The bunting turned out to be quite easy to find so I moved on to try for a Red Crossbill that had been hanging out nearby.  I'm always fascinated by Crossbills and love to see them but, after two hours of carefully scanning pine trees and pine cones, I had to admit defeat with this particular bird.  This bird was reputed to be difficult to see, feeding quietly in the pines and not moving much or calling.  I had expert directions from Michael Shanley and Isaac Grant, but still couldn't managed to winkle her out.  I did however add a total of 9 species to my (albeit tiny - 106) Richmond County list though, and made a mental note to get over there again in the Spring to work on that county list total.

With a few hours to spare before a commitment in the City I worked out that I could run back out to Suffolk County and have a quick second shot at the BARNACLE GOOSE.  This time the 'twitch' turned out to be incredibly easy and quick.  Pulled up to the site ... saw the goose and shot a few distant record shots through a metal fence and an orange wooden fence that separated the geese from the road ... watched as another birder/photographer walked up towards the geese ... and flushed them all.  Oh well, didn't have much time to spare anyway.

Barnacle and Canada Geese shot through two fences ....

So mission (sort of, mostly) accomplished.  My NYS year list is still just 120 species, 20+ species behind the early leaders, and 30 species behind my Big Year pace.  Still 2017 is going to be a year of birding travel, not a local big year, so I can't get too obsessed about any of that (I promise I won't get obsessed .. honestly ...).  Plus I did get all 8 New York goose species, something that has now become a January ritual, and added a few county birds to one of the counties I want to build up list-wise.  Not a bad weekend considering how little time I had.

All Eight New York Goose Species Accounted For

Getting the last of the eight New York Goose species on the year list

Sunday, January 10th - Rockland and Suffolk Counties

So the forecast for today was 'showers' at least according to my iPhone.  I'd planned to run North to Rockland County to try to catch up with a Western Grebe that many New York birders had seen on Saturday.  After that I intended to run East, drop off some stuff at the house then head to Cutchogue on the North Fork of Long Island to see if I could catch up with the BARNACLE GOOSE that Tom Burke and Gail Benson had seen on Saturday afternoon.

So off I went into the 'showers' a half-hour before it got light and I have to admit I was a little confused, because these 'showers' seemed to involve gusting winds and torrential rain.  Still, I assumed it would pass so I pushed up the Palisades Parkway, hoping to be at Piermont not long after it got light, if it ever got light that is - the weather did not seem to be improving at all.  In fact, as I got to Piermont Pier the weather was downright awful and the wind seemed to be pushing the Hudson River right up into town, flooding the entrance road (maybe 7 inches of water) and making birding all but impossible.  The pier itself is long, thin, and juts straight out into the Hudson.  Despite the various signs, I figured it would be OK to drive out onto it and, when a police SUV came by later and didn't stop me, I'm guessing that was alright.  Still, the visibility was limited, the rain was sheeting down, and the wind was howling ... not the most auspicious start to the day.

I'm stubborn though, so I persevered and did some car birding, picking up an assortment of ducks and even adding 6 species to my Rockland County list (which consists almost entirely of land birds seen at Doodletown Road and Hawk Mountain).  When I finally gave up the ghost and headed back to the mainland, it was obvious that the water along the entrance road was now much deeper than when I'd arrived (and had waves crossing it!), and I started to wonder if I'd made a stupid mistake by heading out onto the pier during the storm.  Still, in Range Rovers we trust, so I pushed ahead and, apart for some very white knuckles when the water briefly washed over the hood and onto the windscreen, the car got me out of another scrape.  Cheated Death once again ... but no Grebe ...

The drive to East Hampton was not much better, with torrential rain most of the way.  I took advantage of a brief lull to stop in a Seatuck Creek to check the waterfowl, but the numbers and variety were greatly reduced from last month.  A brief attempt to run along Dune Road was also abandoned when I lost my nerve after driving for a mile or so with no pavement in sight (probably shouldn't have driven around that "Road Flooded" sign).  East Hampton itself was also getting soaked, with Steven Hand's Path basically a turbulent brown river for much of it's length and the locals were having to get their Range Rovers dirty for once.  A long driving morning but I eventually made it to the house just fine.

While I was filling the bird feeders though I looked at the phone and saw that Ethan Goodman had just reported a BARNACLE GOOSE from Babylon, which being on my way back to the city, led to a change of plan.  So back in the car, back through the flooded streets and an hour or so later, I pulled into the parking lot of North Babylon High School where a group of birders were standing around looking exactly like the kind of birders who had already seen the rare bird.

Barnacle Goose - Babylon, Suffolk County, NY

 Not only was the Barnacle Goose there, but there was also a bonus Greater White-fronted Goose among several hundred Canada Geese.  Only my 6th Barnacle Goose for New York (and for the ABA for that matter, although I have seen this species in Europe).  It also meant that I'd completed the 'goose-sweep' getting all eight on New York's goose species for the year.  No more goosing for me!

Not really having much more in terms of plans, I headed to Captree State Park and picked up five Boat-tailed Grackles, another year-bird.

Boat-tailed Grackle - Captree State Park, Suffolk County, NY

Then with no better idea I headed to Jones Beach to see if I could come up with some shorebirds, or passerines.  As I drove along the barrier beach though the fog started getting thicker and thicker, so by the time I arrived at the Jones Beach Coastguards Station, I couldn't see the beach from the parking lot.  Oh, well, some things are not meant to be I guess.  I felt like I fought the elements all day, so I was happy to come away with five year-birds and an ABA rarity. Plenty more Winter weekends ahead.

Eight (8!) Species of Goose on Long Island

An amazing weekend of Winter birding on Eastern Long Island ...


So February was "urban" with a lot of time in New York City and long-weekend trips to Miami and New Orleans.  Great restaurants, good company, and lots of fun, but by the end of the month I was having what I call a 'biophylia attack" and really needed to be outside a city for a few days.  Drove out to East Hampton on Thursday morning and did work conference calls from the house in Northwest Harbor so I could be totally free and unscheduled (and outside the City) by dawn on Friday morning.  The plan was to go birding all day Friday, Saturday, and perhaps part of Sunday.  I had no other plans, and I was very excited for some totally uncluttered "outdoor time" ...

FRIDAY ...

Well, Friday dawned .... cold ... and windy ... but mostly cold.  I let the dogs out for a run, re-filled the feeders in the yard, and drank coffee on the deck.  After ten minutes I was wondering if this outdoor thing was such a smart idea and whether it might not have been a lot smarter to fly down to Florida for the weekend.  But I'd made my choice, and I was already Out East, so I layered-up, jumped in the car, and headed off to Shinecock to start the weekend.

Shinecock (pronounced Shin-eh-cock, after the local Native American tribe - just thought I'd clarify that) has been very birdy this Winter and Derek Rogers had reported that there was sand-replenishment activity going on near the jetty earlier in the week; almost always a magnet for interesting gulls looking to have their lunch pumped up onto the beach for them.  I got there early and set up to scope the gulls but quickly realized that my time there would be short as I was shivering within minutes of getting out of the car.  Still, there were lots of gulls to be seen and even a quick scan turned up two Iceland Gulls, an adult Lesser Black-backed Gull, and a Glaucous Gull along with a good mix of commoner gulls, Brant (Goose Species #1) and sea-duck.

Glaucous Gull - Shinecock Inlet, Suffolk County, NY (March 2014) - two shots
Saw this bird on February 28th and March 1st.

Admitting that I'm basically wimp, or at least wasn't prepared for the weather, I gave up on scoping the sea and decided to do some car-birding along Dune Road.  I found two Snowy Owls fairly easily - the stragglers from this year's incredible invasion (I'd had three there earlier in the year) but couldn't turn up a Bittern or a Rough-legged Hawk from the car, and given the cold and the wind-chill, decided to head inland where I could actually do some real birding.
 

Snowy Owl - Ponquogue Bridge, Suffolk County, NY (January 2014)
Took this photo in January but saw the same bird this day in February.

My next stop was the Riverhead area and particularly the fields around Roanoke Avenue where three good birds had been sighted earlier in the year (Yellow-headed Blackbird, Black Vulture, and Pink-footed Goose).  I'd looked for all three on several previous occasions and seen none, but I figured I'd give them another chance.

Arriving at the Reeve's Avenue Buffalo Farm (yes, real Buffalo, or Bison I guess) I actually found a big flock of Canada Geese (Goose species #2) and jumped out to scope it.  I quickly found a Cackling Goose (Goose species #3) but once again couldn't find the Pink-footed Goose and, given the cold, soon gave up to go and look for the blackbird at the buffalo farm.  While I was scanning the buffalo field though (blackbirds like buffalo "chips" it turns out) I heard more Canada Geese flying in and then a loud squeaky call leapt out from among the honks of the Canadas.  Spinning around I got bins on the flock and there, among them, was a Pink-footed Goose!  (Goose species #4).  Only my second ever Pink-footed Goose in the ABA Area, and so I was feeling pretty proud of myself (and cold) and gave up for the day, returning home in the early afternoon.

SATURDAY ...

My original plan for the day was to work Montauk but given the lack of interesting sightings there recently, and the fact that many New York City birders were coming out to look for geese, I decided to re-route to the same area as the day before.  First stop was to confirm that the two Tundra Swans were still present on Hook Pond (Corey Finger has asked me to scout them for him) and then I checked several of the local ponds, finding some Redheads on Cooper's Neck pond for a welcome year bird among ponds that were mostly iced-over.

Shinecock had basically the same species as the day before (but many more birders including the Brooklyn Bird Club group), although I did manage to add an Ipswich Sparrow and a (probable) Seaside Sparrow after "flogging" some sparrow habitat in the much warmer weather.   By the time I got to Reeve's Avenue I though the excitement was done or the day and I pulled up to a group of birders including Derek "Goose Man" Rogers expecting to chat rather than add more species.  We soon had some excitement though when Derek found a second Pink-footed Goose in the assembled flock of 5,000 Canada Geese (there had been rumors, but this was conformation) and re-energized we picked out two Cackling Geese, and a Greater White-fronted Goose (Goose species #5) in the minutes that followed.

Just then we got word that Ken Feustel had found a Barnacle Goose over in Sagaponack (about 45 minutes East of us) and several of us got the sense that this was shaping up as an historic goose weekend on the East End.

I decided to try for the Barnacle, even though I was nervous about leaving the main goose flock (turns out I was right to be nervous), and so I headed off East, stopping briefly to pick up a Snow Goose (Goose species #6) on the way.  Arriving at the Daniel's Lane goose field I set up to scan but it was quickly obvious that the Barnacle Goose wasn't there at the time.   I did see another Greater White-fronted Goose, and so felt optimistic, especially given that there were lots of geese flying into the field.  Opting, for once, to be patient, I set up to wait/scan, and about 20 minutes later was rewarded when the Barnacle (Goose species #7) flew in from the West in a group of Canadas.  Seven species of goose in one day, how could it get any better?  I felt pretty good when I headed home right after ... that is right up until I got home and checked my email only to find out that Shia Mitra and Pat Lindsay had just found a Ross's Goose back at the Buffalo Farm.  Oh well ....

Barnacle Goose - Sagaponack, Suffolk County, NY (March 2014)

SUNDAY ....

Now I had to get that Ross's Goose, so I headed back over to the Riverhead area at first light and started working goose flocks.  The first two flocks I saw just had Canada Geese, but as I got to the Roanoke Vineyard area I saw Ari Gilbert and Bob Adamo scoping something South of Sound Avenue and, pulling a "legal" U-turn, I was soon looking at the Ross's Goose (Goose species #8).  For a while I thought about trying to see all eight species in a day but after scanning the area for a while, and seeing both Pink-footed Geese, and a White-fronted goose, but failing to find a Cackling Goose, my time ran out and I had to run home to get back to the City for a dinner reservation.

Ross's Goose - Riverhead, Suffolk County, NY (March 2014)
Record Shot (a mile away at 70x and an iPhone with no adaptor)

Still, eight species of goose in a weekend was a really neat experience and I was very happy with my haul of waterfowl for the trip.  Twenty-eight species of waterfowl, including eight species of goose.  And maybe I will go to Florida next weekend ....

Geese and Gulls in the Cold

So it's been a while, frankly after the big year in 2012 I was burned out (and "phased" as we say in the UK - I don't know why we say it, but we do).  But recently the birding thing has felt right again and I've been venturing out a little more, even despite the less than birder friendly temperatures this Winter in New York.

I did look at birds in Rio De Janeiro over New Years, and actually saw my first bird of 2014 at midnight when a Masked Water-Tyrant was flushed by the explosive din of the New Year's fireworks.  I've also started to do eBird reports (I love eBird) and have been pottering a little out in East Hampton.

On Monday, the urge to bird was strong after two days locked up in the office over the weekend so I took a 'mental health day' and jumped in the car to do some New York City birding.  First stop was Randall's Island to chase a previously reported Barnacle Goose.  I'm not (never) sure on the provenance of these Winter geese in New York but a couple of Barnacle, the odd Pink-footed and a few Greater White-fronted Geese show up annually in the Winter in the state.  This bird was interesting mostly because it showed up in New York County (think Manhattan and it's smaller 'off-shore' islands) and a vagrant goose in the most densely populated county in the US, one that would be  considered densely populated by any global standards, sounded like a good add.  So at 9am I slogged my way across 42nd Street, through Times Square and up the FDR highway to the RFK Bridge and Randall's Island.

The goose as it turns out was relatively easy to find, largely due to good directions from Richard Fried.  I worked my way over the the baseball fields in the NorthEast corner of the island and soon saw a flock of about 200 Atlantic Brant with some Canada Geese mixed in.  A binocular scan quickly turned up the Barnacle Goose in the mix and I was able to get a few record shots without getting too far from the car.  Not getting too far from the car being a major priority in birding in New York in the Winter.  Barnacle Geese really are a very cool looking bird though, so crisp well marked, a treat to see one up close.

Some folks have speculated (probably correctly) that this is the same bird that spent last Winter in Van Cortland Park in Bronx.  The same and other folks have also speculated that the bird's choice of urban parks casts a lot of doubt on it's provenance.  Honestly, I'm never sure about vagrant geese, but these days I try not to worry about it too much.  I'm sure some are adaptable former escapees from collections, but we've all also heard the story of Barnacle Geese deemed escapes by local experts on the basis of the fact that they were banded, right up until someone photographed the band, send it in, and discovered that they had been banded as wild birds in Scotland (!).  We'll probably never know for sure, but it was a neat bird, and a nice add to my New York County list.  Good start to the day.

Feeling emboldened I decided to try for another recently reported New York City rarity so crawled down the BQE (a New York City highway which actually has an interstate designation but which has never seen cars move at interstate speeds) to the Veteran's Memorial Pier in Brooklyn.  The pier had hosted a Common Gull for the past two days and so I figured I'd just drop by and pick up the gull before maybe heading out to Riverhead to look for the Pink-footed Goose that I'd missed twice so far this year.  Well best laid plans .... birding just doesn't work that way.

Four hours in the freezing cold on the pier, constantly scanning the hundred of Ring-billed Gulls failed to turn up the Common Gull.  I even went to a local deli and bought a bunch of bread rolls, having a lot of fun feeding the Ring-billed Gulls (what is it about feeding birds that's so much fun?) but failing to attract the vagrant.

I did see an Iceland Gull, a Eurasian Wigeon, and some Purple Sandpipers (all nice), and I also got to watch a Peregrine trying to make a meal of the local Rock Pigeons.  But as for the Common Gull, four hours and no luck.  At the point that I started shivering I knew I had to call it a day and so wound my way back to Manhattan and a hot meal.  A nice day out, with some good birds and plenty of fresh air, but perhaps my not year-listing has taken the edge off my hunger for chasing things.  In 2012 I would have stood there on that pier for days on end looking for that gull, but then again, I'm not sure that was any more fun.  Enjoying what I see, and not too upset about what I don't ..... seems like a good balance ...

Goosin' Around Long Island - Winter Waterfowl

So having survived January 1st with no obvious urges to run North for Slaty-backed Gulls and Common Pochard - and boy am I glad I didn't run up to the land of minus 20-degrees for a plastic pochard - I figured it was safe to do some local birding.  The world seemed to have pretty much taken the week off so I spent a pleasant five days just birding Suffolk County, my home county, on Long Island.

Greater White-fronted Goose like the very finest lawns in East Hampton.
This one was on Further Lane, a very choice address where people can afford
lawns large enough to host decent sized goose flocks, but don't mind them being
there.  Well to be honest they probably don't know the geese are there because they're
spending the season in Aspen.  Works out well for the geese though.

I suppose, to the rest of the US, Long Island is famous for it's geese - the result of a famous double a few years back where a Barnacle Goose and a Pink-footed Goose shared a field for a number of weeks and were seen by many traveling birders.  While we don't get the huge flocks of Snow Geese that some spots get I suppose we do get some good variety of geese and of Winter ducks.  That, coupled with the heavy birding coverage, probably means that many a birder has seen one or other life geese here.  It also means that during the first couple of weeks of the year the locals rush around year-listing all the waterfowl species that were found in December in case the weather changes as we lose the birds we have.

There are usually at least a few Cackling Geese around the East End if you
look.  This one was at Deep Hollow Ranch in Montauk, just before year-end
but I've seen two so far this year in East Hampton/Southampton.

Watching Canada Geese is fun but for most people the star birds are the annual Barnacle and Pink-footed Geese and the challenge is teasing one of these good Eurasian species out of the Canadas.  While we haven't had a Pink-footed Goose so far this Winter (3 records last winter), and have been overshadowed by a very cooperative Barnacle Goose in Van Cortland Part in Bronx County, there was a Barnacle Goose out there on Long Island somewhere and so I needed to track it down.  Trouble was that the bird wasn't really pinned down as yet, but folks were out looking so it was only a matter or time before someone bumped into it.  So, not really knowing the birds habits, or the locations where it tended to show up, I just went about my business and waited for the call.  I chased the Tufted Duck at Huntington Harbor, saw two Barrow's Goldeneye at Montauk and tracked down one of the Eurasian Wigeon that have been hanging around the island.

Eurasian Wigeon have been pretty regular this Winter for perhaps 4 or 5 drakes
seen at various sites on Long Island.

Then on Friday, as I was stomping around in the freezing Winter winds at Hecksher State Park looking for Longspurs, I got a text from Derek Rogers that said simply 'Barnacle Goose (Yes)'.  Luckily I was close by so I could zip over to the site and got decent scope views of the Barnacle before it headed out to feed for the day.  In total, I had 33 species of wildfowl in Suffolk County this week; not a bad haul of for the first week of January.  I could also have added a few more if I'd crossed over into Nassau County, but I think I'll wait for the Harlequin Ducks to come to me.

Barnacle Geese do stand out, even among hundreds of Canada Geese.  Photo -
Derek Rogers (used with permission)

Away from the ducks and geese there has been plenty to see this week.  From scarce wintering birds like Lapland Longspur, American Bittern and Red-necked Grebe to exotic goodies like Black-headed Gull, there always seems to be something going on in Suffolk County.  I've also really enjoyed just pottering around tracking down half-hardy passerines like Yellow-breasted Chat and Common Yellowthroat.  This morning when I woke up I was serenaded by my local pair of Great Horned Owls and, rather than rush off in search some critical year bird,  I decided to take my coffee on the back deck so I could listen to them for a while (and they obliged me by duetting from 7am through to a little after 8am).  It's nice to be listening and not listing.

American Bittern is a scarce, but regular, wintering species in Eastern Suffolk
County, NY.  This one was on Dune Road in Hampton Bays.

So my time is up tomorrow and I have 'grown-up' things to do for the rest of the week, then house guests next weekend.  Won't be able to do any birding this week but I'm happy with my haul.  I saw 120-species in Suffolk this week (Jan 1st - 5th) and had a lot of fun doing it.  Who knows, maybe a Suffolk County Big year is on the cards ..... nah.