Red-headed Woodpecker

A couple of weeks ago Stephen and I had the tremendous privilege of a brief morning visit by a Red-headed Woodpecker! I was looking out the kitchen window and I saw a woodpecker on the far side of one of our hanging feeders. All I could see was the lower part of the bird's belly, a bit of tail where it was pressed against the bottom of the feeder, and a very faint glimpse of red, before he (or she) moved his head behind the feeder. But something about the amount of white I saw and something about the shade of red, even in the very dim morning light, caught my attention. I grabbed my binoculars and hoped the bird would show more of himself before flying away... And he did... A Red-headed Woodpecker! A first for both Stephen's and my life lists and a first for our yard.

Red-headed Woodpecker

Red-headed Woodpecker

Pine Siskin

In the winter the Goldfinches mob our feeders, devouring nyjer seeds and sunflower hearts, often outnumbering all the other birds on the deck. Sometimes when we look out, we see birds that look like Goldfinches but not quite. When I look more closely I see streaks where Goldfinches have clear breasts and backs, and I see a hint of bright yellow in the wings. Pine Siskins-- closely related to Goldfinches but only here in winter, and not every winter at that.

Click on the photo to see it large enough to read more information.

Pine Siskin

Gyrfalcon!

Area birders have been flocking to Wallkill for the past ten days, hoping for a glimpse of a rare visitor to New York-- a Gyrfalcon, normally only seen in the Arctic. Stephen and I went yesterday and were privileged to see, photograph, and sketch this new bird for us, along with many other enthusiastic birders.

You can click on the images to see them big enough to read my notes about our visit to this bird and facts about Gyrfalcons in general.

Gyrfalcon in Wallkill

I did quick sketches in the field, then added to them later from Stephen's photos.

Wallkill Gyrfalcon

Common Redpoll

Yesterday I saw a Common Redpoll at our feeders, a bird I've been watching for for several weeks now. We haven't seen them often, but a bit over two years ago we had several here over a period of a few days. People in the Waterman Bird Club have been watching for them, and yesterday several of us all had them visiting our feeders for the first time this year. It must be their week to arrive in Dutchess County.

Redpolls live in the arctic and only migrate south irregularly. They are well adapted for cold weather and even tunnel into the snow to stay warm! The bird yesterday was only here briefly, but when we had our Redpoll visitors two years ago, they stuck around long enough for me to sketch them.

You can click on the images to see them large enough to read the notes.

Green Heron

Nesting Birds and Morels

I had a delightful and peaceful afternoon today meandering in our woods and sitting on a bridge dangling my feet in our stream, all the time watching bird families. A pair of Hairy Woodpeckers were feeding their young in a nest cavity in a tree, up about 35 feet from the ground. The youngsters would squawk loudly when a parent arrived and for a little while after the parent departed, then quiet down until a parent appeared again. I think one of the young may have left the nest while another stayed behind, because I saw what appeared to be a juvenile male squawking on a branch nearby after leaving the nest cavity, while another was still being fed in the nest.

While I was watching the Hairy Woodpeckers, a raucous family of House Wrens were perching and fluttering nearby-- at least four young and one parents were clustered in a shrub and adjoining stump, while the other parents called and occasionally scolded a few yards away. The young wrens were tiny-- they looked about the size of golf balls, with two clinging to one stump and two others fluttering in a bush right next to the stump.

I turned around from watching the Hairy Woodpeckers to see a male Bluebird perched in a tree looking toward a stump with a hole in it. I stood still watching, and after a while I saw a female bluebird go into the hole, which is about eight feet above the ground. I saw the female leaving the stump and sitting on a branch nearby a couple of times, but I never saw the male enter the nest.

While I was watching the Bluebirds, a family a Carolina Wrens flew, perched, flew, perched, and flew again-- at least two young and two parents. They gradually worked their way across my field of view and over the stream, then out of sight behind shrubs. They seemed to be making more progress, or at least were covering more ground, than the House Wrens. It seems that today was Leave-the-Nest-Day for wrens on our land.

I also found two morels on our land today. Both were growing beside fairly small (4"-6" diameter dead trees) in grassy, leafy patches. They made a delicious addition to our dinner!

American Avocets!

After watching the wind whip up the river and a cloudburst obscure the downriver view for a while,  Stephen and I were strolling along the Newburgh waterfront on August 7th, when I stopped to sketch a friendly duck, who was following people along the sidewalk. While I was sketching her, Stephen asked me what some birds were down by the water's edge. I turned to see two striking black and white birds of a kind I had never seen before perched on rocks on the river's edge.

The name "Avocet" immediately came to mind, but having never seen an Avocet or even a suspicion of one, I really wasn't familiar with them. I did a couple of quick sketches, along with some notes to help with identification, then ran to the car where I keep a field guide and checked-- they were indeed American Avocets! We went back to watch them for a few more minutes, until they flew off low over the water, headed down river, in the direction of Beacon or Cold Spring.

The American Avocet is not typically seen this far north along the east coast, so this is considered a rare bird sighting for our area, all the more special for us, as we were out on a dinner date for our anniversary. American Avocet Species Range Map