December 29 - End of the Year

White-breasted nuthatch

     The year 2018 is quickly drawing to a close.  It's been a very good year for our family.  While not the most productive birding year with a lack of major birding trips to any unusual haunts, I've still managed to find some wonderful birds in wonderful settings.  One of our favorite spots in the northeast is Bent of the River Audubon Center in South Britain, CT.  My son's family as well as good college buddies live in that neck of the woods, so it is quite convenient to stop by and take a stroll or simply check out the feeders from the observation deck.  Although feeders are obviously wonderful for attracting birds and providing good photo-ops, pictures of wild birds on the feeders are not the most sought after shots.  A place like Bent of the River, however, offers a great deal of nearby cover and natural perches for the birds which makes for a much more natural setting and thus a more desirable photograph.  And so today, I managed to photograph many of the common winter "feeder birds" sans feeder.  A representative group follows.

American goldfinch

Black-capped chickadee

Northern cardinal

December 27 - Shawangunk Grasslands

       We've ventured north into Ulster County, NY to the Shawangunk Grasslands National Wildlife Reserve in the hopes of finding and photographing Short-eared owls and my personal favorite bird, the Northern Harrier.  No need to rush up here for these two birds since the harriers will be active pretty much throughout most of the day and the owls will generally start to hunt late in the afternoon.  It's fortunate for those of us who have made the trip up to this wonderful spot that the owls will often start their forays much earlier in the day than most other species of owls.  On top of that, the short-ears will hunt in open fields and are therefore much easier to spot.

       No sooner did we arrive than we spotted our first harrier.  The most dominant sex generally found in the field is the female. While the sex of many birds is difficult to tell, especially from a distance, the harriers are easy.  The females are a rich chestnut brown while the males are a light pale gray - hence the nickname, "Gray ghosts".  As might be expected, this first sighting is of the female.  With bright blue skies and the sun at our backs, photographing opportunities are pretty much perfect.
The harriers are masters of the air and can hover, cruise, drop down on a dime and take off in an almost vertical leap.  This bird was simply cruising along at a relatively higher altitude, just checking out the land below for small mammals or insects.  

        We have at least a dozen harriers skirting over the meadow and have to keep looking in all directions as the birds are flying just above the height of the grass to get a better vantage point at potential prey.  Another female was captured by the camera as it prepared to drop down for its next tasty morsel.  Much of the time, it is difficult to get decent shots of the harrier because it is flying so low that it is obscured by the grasses.  A little patience, however, and you can find one in close enough range and high enough to get a good photograph with good context.


     Eventually, one of the photographers on site notices a beautiful male behind us.  While the lighting is not as ideal as we like, anytime a Gray ghost is close enough to photograph, we seize the moment.
     The male continues to fly back and forth and his pale gray shading against a background of fading sunlight make getting good contrast almost impossible. But as in basketball, you'll never make the shot you don't take.  And so, shutters are furiously clicking away as we all make an attempt with higher and higher sensor sensitivities (known as ISO's to photographers) and unfortunately slower and slower shutter speeds.  Eventually, one of these shots will work and it then becomes worth all the effort.

     As luck would have it, one of the two males eventually lands on a post in the field and although he is backlit, the fact that is is stationary means that we will have the chance to get a nice sharp image of this handsome bird.

     The bird eventually grows anxious and takes off in pursuit of more prey.  As he does so, he flies into a more fortuitous lighting situation for us and we are able to get several decent shots of him in action.  My primary reason for choosing this bird as my all-time favorite is his ability to be a true master-of-the-wind.  When in flight, he is in complete control and watching his aerobatics is more entertaining than any ballet (well, that's my humble opinion).

     Well, the light is fading and the owls have decided to wait until it is almost dark to come out and play today.  Far off in the distance, I can see the owls clearly through my spotting scope, but the opportunities to get a decent photo are few and far between.  I take a few shots from way too far away realizing that this is an exercise in futility.  The results of my efforts prove me to be unfortunately prescient and the image below is only for documentary purposes to prove that the owls do in fact dwell in the grasslands during the winter months.

     It's about that time when not only is the prospect of photographing any of these wonderful birds no more than a  wish, but the reality is that we can barely even see them any longer.  As we pack up the gear and get ready to jump back into the relative warmth of the RAV4, a parting shot is just too good to pass up.  Another great day in the field has come to an end, but it's always a joy to be out here enjoying what Mother Nature has to offer.

 

December 26 - Piermont Pier

   One of my favorite species of waterfowl in the winter is the Canvasback.  These birds have migrated from the marshes of the prairies and will now winter in the brackish and saltwater embayments and rivers of the eastern and southeastern coasts.  Its Latin name is Aythya valisineria.  Valisineria is the Latin name of wild celery which is among this duck's favorite food.  On several occasions this winter, we've travelled up to the waterfront at Newburgh, NY where several of these ducks have been seen, but up until today we were batting .000.  Always a joy to be able to spot this handsome species swimming along the surface of the Hudson in winter.

Christmas Day

    Just a very brief entry today as it is Christmas Day and we have a full day ahead of us.  Still, it seems there is always time to check out the feeders if only for a few minutes.  The most abundant visitor to the feeders this morning was the European starling. Indeed, first introduced into the United States in 1890, this species is now found throughout most of the country and amasses in large flocks during the winter months.   At this time of year, the starling is sporting its white spotted dark plumage which will change over to a more iridescent greenish black as the breeding season approaches.  The change is not caused by molting, but rather by wear as the white tips of this present plumage easily seen on this photo get worn away.

     The second bird of this Christmas Day is the House finch.  Obligingly, this individual has perched on a feeder which is a small replica of a house.  A quick shot, and now it's off to friends and relatives to a different house for celebrations of the wonderful holiday.  Merry Christmas!

December 24 - "Winter Birds" on Christmas Eve

     While we often think of the fall migration as the phenomenon of warblers and other small birds heading for the warm environs of Central and South America, we also reap the benefit of the movement south with the advent of birds from the north setting up winter quarters here in SE New York.  Yesterday, I found several of our seasonal guests as I cruised along the Hudson.  The first seen above are a dozen or so Great cormorants.  We generally see Double-crested cormorants here along the river during the warmer months, but the Greats don't generally appear until the temperatures begin to fall as can be seen on the range map to the left.

     My next visitor who has come home for the holidays is the Black-capped chickadee.  While it's true that this little guy is seen throughout the year here in the Hudson Highlands, it is winter when he arrives in the greatest numbers and is most visible at our feeders.

     Finally, another bird which remains on these grounds throughout the year is the Carolina wren.  While as the name implies these birds are most common in the southeast, their range has been slowly creeping northward and remains so as long as the winters do not become too severe.  The wrens generally pair up with a single mate and remain on their territory throughout their lives.  Hence, I can officially call this visitor to our feeder this morning as one of "Our wrens",  and a most welcome member of our extended family it is to be sure.

December 23 - The Colors of Winter

       While some folks look at the colors of winter as drab and lacking luster, I've always loved the umber hues with the contrasting shades of the evergreens.  As I drove around looking for interesting subjects to photograph, I was reminded of a song called the "The Colors of Winter".  Below, you'll find the first stanza along with a few photos which will serve as my illustrations to go along with the lyrics.  

The Colors of Winter by Lois Brownsey & Marti Lunn Lantz

The colors of winter appear all around.

The colors of winter, blue sky, trees of brown. 

Shades of green, shades of gray.Growing deeper ev’ry day.

The colors of winter, these colors abound.

Purple sunsets casting shadows, Evergreen trees are bending low

 Hues of white reflect the light

Upon the glist’ning snow.

December 22 - Checking for Wintering Eagles

     It's a chilly day, the first full day of winter.  We decide to take an early look to see if any of our favorite eagle haunts will yield any Bald eagles which come into the Hudson Valley at this time of year.  Granted, it is a bit early - we normally expect to see them arriving in early January.  But it has been a pretty cold December, so we figure what the heck.

      Our first spot is the Route 6 overlook across the Hudson from Iona Island.  What a difference from yesterday!  The temperature has dropped more than 20 degrees and with it the winds have blown into the valley with a vengeance.  Not only are there no eagles braving the gusts, but very few other birds can be found as well.  After checking out the canoe launch at Annsville Circle in Peekskill, we start to realize that our eagle hunt may be a bust.  We'll just head down to Croton Train Station and Croton Point Park to check out the bay for wintering waterfowl.

     The  winds and the high tide have all the gulls hauled out onto dry land and the ducks I found here last week and in hiding as well.  We figure a quick ride up onto the old landfill at Croton Point Park may be our only chance at raptors today.  We quickly find a wise Red-tailed hawk which has perched downwind on the leeward side of the landfill where the wind is still strong but relatively calm considering what we felt up on the overlook.  He makes a number of short forays in search of prey but quickly returns to his perch.  He is fairly close to the roadway and makes for some interesting opportunities for photos.

     Finally, we decide to take a look up at Croton Dam, another roosting site for wintering eagles.  When we arrive and scan the shoreline we find once again that the combination of heavy winds and early timing on our part equal zero sightings of eagles.  We loop back around to get a look at the spillway and find that yesterday's prolonged period of heavy rains have turned the normally placid falls into a raging torrent.  While the eagle plan was not productive, we certainly did get some nice views suitable for capturing on our day's outing.  You'll never see what you don't get out to look at!

Winter Solstice 2018

     Not exactly your most typical image of the Winter Solstice in New York State, but eerily beautiful all the same.  With the very cold weather we've experienced this past month, the river has reached near freezing temperatures.  In fact, most of the ponds and lakes are frozen making our search for waterfowl a real challenge.  But today, the air is warm (near 60) and wet with a humidity of near 100%.  With a warm wet layer of air laying directly upon the cold sink of the Hudson, fog was prevalent throughout the day making for some interesting photo ops.

     I've learned over the years, that these days are the absolute best for Black and White photography and took advantage of the situation.  While photographing the scene above, I noticed that I was not the only photographer intent on capturing the high contrast images presented to us.  In the center of that shot, you may notice someone seizing the moment along with his lady companion.  Interestingly, the girl was standing in front of a pipe at the precise angle as the photographer's reach and made for yet another interesting photo.  Again, not the typical first day of winter, but an opportunity for some unique opportunities all the same.