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November 29, 2007 - A winter afternoon's delight12A • The Suffolk Times • November 29, 2007 A winter afternoon's delight We were invited out to lunch by our son on a clear cold Sunday afternoon, and what a lunch it was: oysters on the half shell and oysters Rockefeller, fol- lowed by an oyster plate. It brought back memories of when I was a kid and oysters helped us get through those difficult times of the Great Depression. To get oysters then, all you had to do was pull them from the banks of the creek, and in no time you could take home a mess of these delicious shellfish. At the restaurant, the cook did a great job on my oysters. It all reminded me of how important oysters were to our wellbeing, particu- FOCU S larly in those lean years. What you could glean from the sea at O N no cost showed up often on our NATURE dinner able. After our great oyster feast by Paul and dessert of cheesecake, bread pudding or chocolate Stoutenburgh mousse, we were ready to head home, but it was such a spar- kling day, with clouds like cotton candy, it seemed too nice to go straight home. So I suggested we "turn here and go to the bottom of the hill, then turn right again and go until we reach the Sound." The reason I wanted to go to the Sound was that I was hoping it might hold something special I wanted to share with our friends. My son knew exactly what I was up to. Most are familiar with Mattituck Inlet, but few re- alize how the area has changed since the jetties were put in. The ever - moving sand has built up on the west side of the inlet, waking it an ideal place to see some extra - special winter birds. No sooner had we turned into the parking lot, when my son said, "There they are I "What he was referring to were snow buntings, birds from the far, far North. As a matter of fact, some people say they're the true harbingers of ice and snow. They'll be our guests for the winter. Of all North American birds. these little snow buntings nest the farthest north of any other land birds They can withstand below -zero weather and escape the killing winds by finding shel- ter amongst the crevices of rocks and debris If those quarters aren't available, they will burrow into snow- drifts to spend the night. As my son got out of the car to see if there were any other winter visitors amongst them, the snow buntings rose up in front of him. They are about the size of a sparrow and belong to the finch family. In all there were about 32 snow buntings. As they flew overhead, their white bellies and white wing patches flashed. They reminded one of giant snowflakes, an- other name they are known by. Their flight is undu- lating, and as they flew by we could hear them calling softly amongst themselves. I marvel at the endurance and survival ability of these rugged ground feeders. Take, for instance, their nesting range. We're talking about an area in the near Arctic, roughly from southern Greenland extending along the top of Canada, Alaska and on into Siberia in Russia. In the spring the male snow bunting arrives in the North early to claim a nesting site. Then three to five weeks later the female arrives Somehow they are able to find bits of fur from lemmings, Arctic hares, caribou, fox, dogs and feathers from ravens and ptar- migans to make a thermal lining for their nest. The area is so cold the female stays on the nest through- out incubation, relying on the male to feed her. She must stay on the nest, for the eggs would quickly freeze if she left. Someone asked how I knew there aright be snow buntings on the beach in Mattituck. The truth of the matter is I didn't know for sure, but of all the feeding areas, this was one of the best places to look for them, that is, "if' — and that's a pretty big "if' — they were around. Some years it's hard to find any. If snow is on the ground, you might find snow bun- tings feeding along the edge of the road where the snowplow has cleared it down to the bare ground. It's here they find weed seeds to hold them over. An- other good place to look for these winter visitors is at Cedar Beach in Southold. Usually you can find them somewhere amongst the stones and lowly plant life sutfdk Times photos by P-1 Stwtenhwgh This little snow bunting visits us during the winter. It's a bird that outshines all land birds in that it nests the farthest north. They feed in loose groups on weeds and grass seeds, no matter the weather. In the good old days, you could gather a mess of oysters along the banks of most of our creeks. Here, my dad and a friend open oysters for one of my mom's best - tasting oyster stews. there. It's a wonderful place to stretch your legs. You will also find these winter birds at Orient State Park. Here is an area that has changed little with time, and its shore edges make an ideal winter habitat for birds Barbara and I rank the snow bunting near the top of our list of favorite birds, for it has so many things going for it. We love its colors of ginger, white and black and its ability to eke out a living, no matter what the weather. Its small pink bill is designed to crush weed and grass seeds. Imagine finding enough seeds the size of a grain of sand with the wind blow- ing and the temperature below zero — but then that's part of their daily routine. If you happen to come across some of these light - colored snow buntings on your next winter walk, take time to look them over carefully, for you Wright be lucky enough to even find in amongst them a few oth- er interesting winter visitors to our area, the Lapland longsptus and homed larks Good luck. We see this beautiful white owl here during the winter months, particularly when there is a short- age of lemmings (small shrews) where they live. The varied colors of white, ginger and black of the snow bunting camouflage the bird in hopes of hid- ing it from the Arctic fox or the ever - watchful eyes of the snowy owl. e Suffolk Times • November 29, 2007 =A winter afternoon's delight We were invited out to lunch by our son on a clear cold Sunday afternoon, and what a lunch it was: oysters on the half shell and oysters Rockefeller, fol- lowed by an oyster plate. It brought back memories of when I was a kid and oysters helped us gdt through those difficult times of the Great Depression. To get oysters then, all you had to do was pull them from the banks of the creek, and in no time you could take home a mess of these delicious shellfish. At the restaurant, the cook did a great job on my oysters. It all reminded me of how important oysters were to our wellbeing, particu- FOC U S larly in those lean years. What you could glean from the sea at O N • no cost showed up often on our dinner table. N AT U R After our great oyster feast by Paul and dessert of cheesecake, bread pudding or chocolate Stoutenburgh mousse, we were ready to head home, but it was such a spar- kling day, with clouds like cotton candy, it seemed too nice to go straight home. So I suggested we "turn here and go to the bottom of the hill, then turn right again and go until we reach the Sound." The reason I wanted to go to the Sound was that I was hoping it might hold something special I wanted to share with our friends. My son knew exactly what I was up to. Most are familiar with Mattituck Inlet, but few re- alize how the area has changed since the jetties were put in. The ever - moving sand has built up on the west side of the inlet, making it an ideal place to see some extra- special winter birds. No sooner had we turned into the parking lot, when my son said, "There they are!" What he was referring to were snow buntings, birds from the far, far North. As a matter of fact, some people say they're the true harbingers of ice and snow. They'll be our guests for the winter. Of all North American birds, these little snow buntings nest the farthest north of any other land birds. They can withstand below -zero weather and escape the killing winds by finding shel- ter amongst the crevices of rocks and debris. If those quarters aren't available, they will burrow into snow- drifts to spend the night. As my son got out of the car to see if there were any other winter visitors amongst them, the snow buntings rose up in front of him. They are about the size of a sparrow and belong to the finch family. In all there were about 32 snow buntings. As they flew overhead, their white bellies and white wing patches flashed. They reminded one of giant snowflakes, an- other name they are known by. Their flight is undu- lating, and as they flew by we could hear them calling softiv amongst themselves. 1 marvel at the endurance and survival ability of these rugged ground feeders. Take, for instance, their nesting range. We're talking about an area in the near Arctic, roughly from southern Greenland extending along the top of Canada, Alaska and on into Siberia in Russia. In the spring the male snow bunting arrives in the North early to claim a nesting site. Then three to five weeks later the female arrives. Somehow they are able to find bits of fur from lemmings, Arctic hares, caribou, fox, dogs and feathers from ravens and ptar- migans to make a thermal lining for their nest. The area is so cold the female stays on the nest through- out incubation, relying on the male to feed her. She must stay on the nest, for the eggs would quickly freeze if she left. Someone asked how I knew there might be snow buntings on the beach in Mattituck. The truth of the matter is I didn't know for sure, but of all the feeding We see this beautiful white owl here during the winter months, particularly when there is a short- age of lemmings (small shrews) where they live. The varied colors of white, ginger and black of the snow bunting camouflage the bird in hopes of hid- ing it from the Arctic fox or the ever - watchful eyes of the snowy owl. Jrllw rl�Nll /�1���� , rrr, i r r 11/% ��rBl r rrr ✓ r ��lN brhi��) r r wr, � rf " Ph r�l r r NJ n' �Nr �rr� lr r rra �Ai rN rrr � ✓UgAr r r u l N"I� r r �rlN ' � Nilr '. a r" �rrtilf y ll� "A�lli YNu rl P l r "r ! 'nlb , � '� '✓ M NNW' "'�a9i��M�� � I ���rhrN /�V��� (� � �l lr' r r tix rNir�'�NrA�r�i t�r>Nu�>'��l�l�I r rN t r "� rr � r� �i�Ny4yi�Yj�NI' "rlyr � r �rrr /rk' m r rl rrr tiirr l lr I S r �rrl ru y' �r�ahlr) l � l {i rr r l rl�rrl� " I r � rnrrr�p�rrlj e� rllrl Arp rr ri�rl rrlil r" r r rl r�r �r rl Ilrlrlll irr p i� 11 l,,�u��llrlilr �llrG lrN 'r rr rN��r�l rl) �j r ( "irli ( r r u rl/jy,llrr, ul rlkl Nll l�Nh��luibrtiyNilr�i���l{����r4/ � r ,� Irill,,IVhl l' � hI' 1�111r. ,R V'vl V I J�!'I'�ibr JyilllVlr, °V'I1� Suffolk Times photos by Paul Stoutenburgh This little snow bunting visits us during the winter. It's a bird that outshines all land birds In that it nests the farthest north. They feed in loose groups on weeds and grass seeds, no matter the weather. I areas, this was one of the best places to look for them that is, "if' — and that's a pretty big "if" — they were around. Some years it's hard to find any. If snow is on the ground, you might find snow bun - tings feeding along the edge of the road where the snowplow has cleared it down to the bare ground. It's here they find weed seeds to hold them over. An- other good place to look for these winter visitors is at Cedar Beach in Southold. Usually you can find them somewhere amongst the stones and lowly plant life there. It's a wonderful place to stretch your legs. You will also find these winter birds at Orient State Park. Here is an area that has changed little with time, and its shore edges make an ideal winter habitat for birds .y Barbara and I rank the snow bunting near Meo of our list of favorite birds, for it has so many things going for 4. We love its colors of ginger, white and black and its ability to eke out a living, no matter what the weather. Its small pink bill is designed to crush weed and grass seeds. Imagine finding enough seeds the size of a grain of sand with the wind blow- ing and the temperature below zero = but then that's part.of their daily routine. If you happen to come across some of these light - colored snow buntings on your next winter walk, take time to look them over carefully, for you might be lucky enough to even find in amongst them a few oth- er interesting winter visitors to our area, the Lapland longspurs and horned larks. Good luck. i the good old days, you could gather a mess ysters along the banks of most of our creel ere, my dad and a friend open oysters for one ly mom's best - tasting oyster stews.