Forster's Tern on the Carmans River

This morning I kayaked the the lower portion of the Carmans River (from Montauk Hwy [~ Hards Dam] to Squassex Creek in Brookhaven Hamlet and was disappointed in the few birds that made themselves present (though we are in the doldrums of Summer as far as birds are concerned on the island).  There were many Purple Martin's near the north end of this stretch and an Osprey managed to nab a fish (out of view) which it promptly brought back to its calling children.  A glossy Ibis was briefly spotted flying over the extensive cattail marshes (oddly enough it was alone and not in a flock as would be expected) and Great Egrets seemed to appear around every curve of the river (and there are a lot of curves!).  But the further south my girlfriend and I paddled, the more we heard and saw Terns.  They were almost exclusively Common Terns but I thought I spotted one or two Forster's - well, by the time we reached the "marina" at Sqaussex I had the confirmation I needed as this first year (a locally born bird perhaps?) Forster's Tern mysteriously plopped down in the river for a few moments.  Though I wish I could have gotten more photos of this species I was happy with this addition to my growing collection.

If you would like to learn more about the Carmans River and Brookhaven Hamlet, check out this cool history book, entitled: Bellport Village and Brookhaven Hamlet (NY) (Images of America)

Wertheim National Wildlife Refuge

I've been spending quite a bit of time at Wertheim National Wildlife Refuge lately because of a fox den that is located in an area of grasslands that's easily accessible.  I'd never photographed a fox until this week so it's quite exciting for me.  As an added bonus, I've been able to photograph some birds in a new setting (since this area is not a place I've frequented much in the past).  As you can see above, I was lucky enough to photograph a Peregrine Falcon this past thursday (a female, based on size) at the mouth of the Carmans river via boat.  Today I spent a little time waiting for the fox (only 1 kit showed) so I spent the rest of the time photographing the birds that were hanging around.  Enjoy.

Osprey (part of a nesting pair):

A Snowy Egret flew over against the overcast sky:

Lastly, a Tree Swallow sat patiently near a nesting box:

To learn more about the birds and mammals you can find on Long IslandI highly recommend John Turner's Exploring the Other Island: A seasonal guide to nature on Long Island

Early arrivals are fueling up

Nikon D300s 300 f4 + 1.7X TC, f/8, 1/1600s, ISO 400, -.33 EC

The early spring arrivals were busy today eating all the fish they could catch.  The Great Egret of course going for much smaller sized meals than the big osprey - but with talons like those it makes catching fish much easier!

NIkon D300s 300 f4 + 1.7X TC, f/8, 1/1600s, ISO 400, -.33 EC

There were about 5 Great Egrets along Dune Rd. stalking the marshes and I look forward to seeing more wading birds, including Snowy Egrets and Yellow-Crowned Night Herons in the months to come.

If you want to learn more about these birds or where to find them on Long Island, order a copy of John Turner's Exploring the Other Island: A seasonal guide to nature on Long Island

Juvenile Bald Eagle

A Bald Eagle shows off it's massive wings in flight

This morning as I turned onto Rt. 104 at the intersection of Pleasure Drive (just North of Sunrise Highway) in Flanders I saw a large raptor perched upon a telephone pole.  I turned north onto Rt. 104 and pulled over to get a better look and take my camera out - unfortunately the bird flushed after I had sat there for a minute or so but was rather lazily flying and I was able to photograph it.  In the image directly below you can see a fish in its talons that it had been eating.  This is only the second Bald Eagle I've seen on Long Island in the past 3 years (both juveniles) so it was a nice start to my morning.  While I was almost positive it was  Bald Eagle - I never see them and wanted to be sure I wasn't mistaking it for something else.  Fortunately I just received my copy of Jerry Liguori's Hawks at a Distance: Identification of Migrant Raptors which provided me visual evidence I needed to be positive that's what I had seen and photographed.  This book is a great resource and different than any other raptor ID book - plus it's a ridiculous value.

If you look close you can see the fish in the talons

I was pleasantly surprised to find a Wood Duck pair on a small pond in East Quogue on the North side of Montauk Hwy.  But, wood ducks being wood ducks, they didn't want to get too close even though I remained in my car.

Always a nice sight to see

Dune Rd. was very slow despite having a low tide.  Two Killdeer were seen feeding and on my return trip West I also found 2 Great Egrets.

I usually find these birds in fields - not along the water

This bird is ready to breed with those long plumes and green facial patch

EPCAL was full of Kestrels but not much else - I'm looking forward to when the Bluebirds and Swallows are breeding so there is a little more activity up there since you can't get anywhere near Kestrels most of the time.

One of a dozen Kestrels at EPCAL

Morning Migrants

An American Kestrel waits for the sun to peak back out

This morning I set out at sunrise to see what was around on the day before Spring.  I started at EPCAL since Low Tide wasn't due at Dune Rd. until the afternoon.  When I got on the runways a little after 7 I saw two bright white birds flying overhead and the photo below confirmed my suspicions that they were Great Egrets (moving northwest) which are the first of the season that I've seen.  I was hoping to spot some Eastern Bluebirds but was shut out - the same can't be said for Eastern Meadowlarks which were busy calling for mates and a couple of Horned Larks that are still hanging around.  On the Eastern runway a Savannah Sparrow was signing atop a small shrub.

A welcome sight to see the day before Spring

Turkeys are always a nice species to note at EPCAL:

It's amazing how skittish this species remains

This is easily the closest I've been to a Horned Lark and it gave me a pretty clear shot:

Horned Lark scavenging for food

A Savannah Sparrow was seen singing

On the raptor front were at least 7 American Kestrels busy hunting and hanging out.  I did not see a "pair" like I did in my previous post, but females and males were both present.  A few Northern harriers were lazily hunting over the grasses and a Red-tailed Hawk was also spotted - but Rough-legged hawks were unfortunately absent.

Just hanging out on a Rose bush along the Eastern runway

When I got to Dune Rd. I was disappointed to not spot any wading birds but after waiting around for a bit these American Oystercatchers showed up just east of the Ponquogue Bridge.  Aside from that things were very slow.  My backyard, however, has played host to American Goldfinches all morning which is always a nice treat - too bad they are so camera shy.

A pair of Oystercatchers hunting along their new territory

If you're like me and have a real love of raptors big and small - then you'll want to pick up a copy of Jerry Liguori's latest title Hawks at a Distance: Identification of Migrant Raptors which features one of my Gyrfalcon photos.

More Archives

Between the weather, work and the prospect of moving this week I haven't been able to get out and create any new images, so we are diving back into the archives.  Enjoy.  (Above/Below: Barn Swallow)

A Brown Thrasher was a few dozen feet away:

The end of June brought these images of a Belted Kingfisher and Great Egret at Weesuck Creek in East Quogue:

A meal the Kingfisher above would have loved to have gotten:

Mornings can often coincide with large numbers of egrets feeding along Dune Rd. in the marshlands after a long nights sleep.  Here is a Snowy that was quite difficult to properly expose but I'm thrilled the bill stands out against the dark background.

And lastly here is a Double Crested Cormorant in flight - which is not an easy task.  Taken at the Shinnecock Inlet.