Loading...
January 7, 1988 - Annual Bird Count 'Bags' 103 SpeciesPage 10A /The Suffolk Times /January 7, 1988 Annual Bird Count `Bags' 103 Species By PAUL STOUTENBURGH Our fingers were crossed, as far as the weather went, for the previous week we had temperatures ranging from 0 to 60 degrees and rain and snow to balmy days. What would it hold for us on Saturday when we were to conduct our annual Christ- mas bird count? So far the Montauk count and the Central Suffolk count had medium to fair weather. That is to say, it wasn't too cold nor did it blow or rain. Having taken part in both of the other counts I was ap- prehensive about our own count. Would I have to call the 35 or so par- ticipants and tell them to hold off until the following day because of bad weather? I listened to the fore- cast 'til 11 p.m. and then went to bed. The predictions were for clear and overcast weather. Five - thirty is not my usual time for rising but I had to be ready to meet our group here at the house and send them off to their assigned areas. Of course, the cows and chickens had to be fed first and lunch and binocu- lars had to be packed. We already had two parties on the south shore covering Sag Harbor and the area to the west. Three parties would work Shelter Island and four parties would cover Southold on the North Fork from Peconic Lane to Orient Point. All went well and by 6:45 a.m., after coffee, we were all on our way. My group would cover Orient from the point to the bridge on the cause- way. We watched a full moon set in the west and as the dawn in the east brightened the skies we headed for this all -day annual event. Focus on Nature would have stayed in this frozen land. There was an opening in the ice to the east and I could see what appeared to be black ducks. Some seemed smaller and lighter- colored than the others, meaning they most likely would be gadwall. It's interest- ing that we always find these look - alike ducks here. Sure enough, as we moved eastward the birds bolted into the air. They seemed almost jet -prop- elled. Now we could see the differ- ence clearly. We counted 30 gadwall and about 63 black ducks. They vee- red to the south, taking advantage of the wind and landed out in the bay. As I plodded along I thought how fortunate the people of Orient are in having the sense and fortitude to put these great marshes in a wildlife sanctuary or park. It says something special for the people of Orient. At the end of the creek where it empties out into the bay I picked up two horned grebes with my binocu- lars. These helldivers, my Dad used to call them, were up for a few sec- onds and then down again to forage on the bottom in their deep and dreary pastures. Further out were some goldeneyes. How handsome these ducks from the north are. The white spot on their cheek showed clearly in my glasses against what appeared to be a black head. On a bright day this black is a deep irides- cent purplish -green. Photo by Paul Stoutenburgh PURPLE SANDPIPER - -These rugged little birds somehow eke out a living amongst the rocks and spray of our winter coast. They are our only true winter sandpiper. numbers being recorded. Now we moved inland to the north. It was here we were to raise a covey of bob- white quail and see our first chic- kadees, cardinals, mockingbirds, white - throats, juncos, woodpeckers and we hoped some of the late stayov- ers like robins, catbirds, towhees and such. I headed into the thickets and was sorry to see the red flags of survey markers throughout the area. Would this too be built on? If there was ever a sign of our develo in world ft's and help; then to the point where the big find was purple sandpipers, those rugged little birds that feed all winter long amongst the surf and rocks. At a grove of evergreens we were able to add a long -eared owl to our list. It seems we are always running out of time on these counts. A hazy sun was just about lost in the horizon as we started back home. Barbara would have a hot drink, home -baked beans, kielbasa and sauerkraut plus all h th d' Ice, Cold, No Birds We turned the heaters off in the Bird Counts Tallied p g , when you cover the same area each er o er goo les awaiting us. After we ate we would tally up our cars as everyone was dressed for the Back in the car we rendezvoused Year on these counts and see the lists. As each species was called out outdoors and we didn't want to get with others at Latham's farm stand changes. It doesn't matter if it's the our hopes would be that this would overheated on the trip. One of the and tallied our counts. One party had Center Moriches area with condos re- be a banner year. With all records in cars would scan the bay from the seen a sharp- shinned hawk pass placing the old duck farms or the but one party our species totaled 103 causeway looking for scoters, gol- through. Others had added the more heights of Montauk or the shopping (this record only beaten six times in deneyes, mergansers, oldsquaw, common birds, each species and their centers of Southold. It's the same the 21 years we have been compiling) scaup, loons, grebes and gulls, while story. Will there be any open space as follows: the rest of us would check the broad left? Common loon, red - throated loon, horned marsh just before you enter Orient Narrow River Road is always a Y grebe, pied -bill grebe, gr great cormorant, dou- proper. Its here we hoped to flush a pp Y p mud hen or clapper rail but m hopes Total topped good birding area. There is still a lot of open space and cover. One group ble- crested cormorant, great blue heron, black- crowned night heron, yellow- crowned night heron, mute swan, Canada g picked up two white - crowned spar- dimmed as I looked over the frozen water and icy conditions of the only 6 times rows with a group of white - throats. gr p We worked thicket trees in snow goose, mallard, black duck, g gadwall, blue- winged teal, American wigeon, wood marsh. It's out here on the marsh in a of cedar duck, canvasback, greater scaup, goldeneye, 0 the early morning that 28 degrees 21 hopes of pushing out an owl but we found We two tailed bufflehead, oldsquaw, white- winged scoter, surf scoter, black scoter, hooded merganser, and a northwest wind can really In years none. saw red - breasted hawks working over the fields along red - merganser, sharp- shinned make the water run from your eyes with three marsh hawks that were hawk, Cooper's hawk, red - tailed hawk, and chill you through and through. reported by another group. The list rough- legged hawk, Northern harrier, mer- lin, American kestrel. Back and forth we combed but no avail. No self - respecting rail l started to grow. By the end of the day Bobwhite, ring- necked pheasant, clapper we'd have over 70 species for our rail, Virginia rail, ruddy turnstone, com- group alone. mon snipe, purple sandpiper, sanderling, Marsh hawks are easy to identify black-backed gull, gull, ring - with their long wings and white bled t gull, laughing rock dove, mourning dove, screech owl, rump, usually flying low over the great horned owl, long- earned owl, belted r3 "' Kafrena'� stubble. Before leaving we decided to try one more place for a clapper rail kingfisher, Northern flicker, red - bellied wood pecker, hairy woodpecker, downy just over the dike where there al- woodpecker, horned lark, bluejay, American Hair are ways seems to be open water. It crow, black - capped chickadee, tufted tit- mouse, white- breasted would be here a rail would come nuthatch, red - breasted nuthatch, brown creeper, winter F O R M E N A N D W O M E N a,.a:.. . rather than the great frozen ex- wren, Carolina wren, marsh wren, North - Youngs Avenue, Southold panses of Pete's Neck. But before our ern mockingbird, grey catbird, brown \ 765-1120 group would go 10 feet into the thrasher, American robin, hermit thrush, a.. marsh the keen eyes of Jim found our Eastern bluebird, ruby- crowned kinglet, �a Full-Service clapper rail frozen solid. It was one cedar waxwing, European starling, yellow- rumped Salon of the many untold tragedies of winters cold. We all looked it over warbler. Common yellowthroat, house sparrow, Eastern meadowlark, red - winged blackbird, "a closely as we passed it gently from common grackle, northern cardinal, house Paula, Kathleen, Maureen hand to hand. There was reverence finch, common red 11, American goldfinch, p° g Linda. in the air. rufous -sided towhee, Savannah sparrow, New Happy ew Year! More to Cover sharp-tailed parrow, dark -e ed s y junco, American tree sparrow, chipping sparrow, We had much territory to cover: field sparrow, white - crowned sparrow, the State Park where once again the white - throated sparrow, fox sparrow, swamp sparrow, song sparrow, snow bunt - persgnnel- showed �us true �hospitnhty a$ e ' 3//'�A I�,l, 11" L I 1 aa �+ ; /7{tiF,G`!yX"7hi'Nl3�.iic�I �s• {a1�P.f .�'.y �F 11 j) COP p'.b ,$,45a4ft4tsYAoei'i +M Mii��►A.•e?t�iili ?iuMfisaaiiF �N:i�+w�l:ra'!�r:4ai,a's '�d_Ic.s.:,::..,.::':.�:., - °_•. :: S: lt3+.• l+ ilriF3" LZ' L�= �. x.+ ����f 4., "'.. i�' i�1�"!' fl f.. T�f'9`ll1.�EtT.tID�i�i�t�_i_ts !'