Peregrine Falcon

It was a cold morning at Jones Beach and the birds were few and far between. The "hedgerow" at the Coast Guard Station was all but dead when the sun rose but after a while some birds moved in - though mostly junco's as seen below. I moved on to try and photograph raptors in this favorable wind though I only expected Sharpies and Cooper's Hawks because of how late in the season it is. A couple sharpies went by quickly but didn't hang around long enough for photos then out of nowhere (well, from the West anyway which is unexpected) this Peregrine Falcon came within feet of me. My reflexes weren't fast enough to get "the ultimate shot" but I came away with some good ones none-the-less.  (Note the blood that can be seen on the underside and the talon)

And here is the junco that a Peregrine would love to have as a snack:

If you like raptors as much as I do check out this book by Jerry Ligouri: Hawks from Every Angle: How to Identify Raptors In Flight

Law Abiding Birds

For those of you who missed it - Newsday reported on a juvenile Peregrine Falcon which was injured during a fall at the Federal Courthouse in Islip recently.  The bird had only minor injuries and is being rehabbed - more importantly though is that this proves the existence of a Peregrine nest on the top of the Courthouse (some 80 feet high).  According to the article, there are only two other spots on the island that have active nesting Peregrines (the Robert Moses Bridge and Nassau University Medical Center).  Let's hope that in the near future there are many more - perhaps at the big Coast Guard tower in Hampton Bays or the adjacent Ponquogue Bridge where I've seen multiple Peregrine's? (see photo above and below).

Anyway, here is the full article, via Newsday:
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A female baby peregrine falcon injured itself and had to be trapped and taken to a veterinarian Wednesday, after one of her first attempts to fly from a nest atop the federal courthouse in Central Islip, officials said.

The presence of a baby falcon, or an eyas as it is called, surprised court officials, though they knew a female and male falcon had taken up residence near the top of the courthouse's nine-story entrance rotunda and scared away the flocks of pigeons that had been roosting on the building's many ledges.

The pigeons' droppings, encrusting the ledges, had become a headache for building managers, costing "thousands of dollars" annually to clean up, according to William Schrader, the courthouse manager for the federal General Service's Administration.

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More: newsday.com/centralislip
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"They solved our pigeon problem and helped the taxpayers," Schrader said Wednesday, adding he was delighted now by the presence of one or more baby falcons.

Bird experts had told GSA officials that it was likely that the male and female peregrine falcons might be caring for young because the ground under the nesting sight was occasionally littered with the heads of small birds such as starlings and sparrows, GSA Long Island manager, Enrico Caruso, said.

While the adult falcons could be seen perching on the courthouse, their nest, if any, was in an area of the rotunda that was very difficult to access, behind a high wall, the only path to which is a precarious journey between the skylights that provide light for the rotunda.

And when the rotunda recently began to leak, maintenance workers were divebombed by the falcons, apparently guarding the nest and babies, and had to retreat for their safety, Schrader said.

Wildlife officials also said that the falcons are a protected species in New York State and should be treated with care, GSA officials said.

"But we're happy to learn to live with them and will work something out with the leaks," Schrader said.

The licensed wildlife trapper called in by officials Wednesday, Bobby Horvath of Massapequa, said it was likely that the young female peregrine falcon was making one of her first flights and banged into the courthouse, and then fell to the ground.

She was hopping around on the ground unable to fly when he caught her in a net, said Horvath, a New York City firefighter who operates Wildlife in Need of Rescue and Rehabilitation in Massapequain his spare time.

He said it appeared that the baby falcon had a minor injury to her left wing and her chances for complete recovery were very good.

Horvath said that he identified one other uninjured baby peregrine resting on the eighth-floor ledge of the courthouse and speculated there may be others that the parents are still guarding in the rotunda nest.

Horvath said thatperegrines are among the world's fastest creatures, able to dive at 200 miles per hour, live on catching smaller birds, and like to nest in high cliffs or on tall manmade structures.

He said there have been two other publicly identified peregrine nests on Long Island, one on theRobert Moses bridge and the other on the Nassau County Medical Center.

Early yesterday evening the injured baby falcon waited for a veterinarian to X-ray her while she contentedly munched on a thawed frozen quail, Horvath said.

For more on Falcons, purchase this awesome book:  Hawks at a Distance: Identification of Migrant Raptors

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

Winter Snipe

This afternoon after leaving a Dr. appointment I headed to Dune Rd. in hopes of utilizing the fresh snow.  Not spotting any Bitterns I was ready to leave when a Wilson's Snipe flew into a little watering hole (the same location I photographed the previous Wilson's Snipe).  I would have preferred it to have been a little closer or had a better angle but was pleased to get it with the snow and ice.

 Trying a new spot:

 Moving around:

Great Blue Heron's beautiful birds and can be quite elegant - but they are so ubiquitous (as heron's go) that they have been photographed to death and I almost always pass on photographing them (especially because their prey around here consist almost exclusively of small fish which doesn't make for a terribly interesting photo).  But, when the conditions are right like this afternoon, I'll happily shoot away!  

Searching for a fish:

In hot pursuit:

This is just a throw-in shot obviously a massive crop.  I saw this Peregrine blazing from West to East until it perched on this pole.  Another Peregrine was in the immediate area and continued East with this bird following.

Spring is here

I meant to do this blog post on Sunday but mother nature had other plans, knocking out my power for a few days, so here we are and it will be brief in words and heavy in photos.

Last week an acquaintance of mine photographed a Snowy Owl (2 days after I had photographed "mine") on the North Fork.  It wasn't too far away and the next morning was supposed to be gorgeous so I thought it would be worth a shot.  Well, no Snowy Owl, but I found a beautiful Sharp-Shinned Hawk along Pier Ave. in Jamesport and a Northern Mockingbird at a small pond:

When I arrived at work a Mockingbird was being loud as usual and posed for me:

Here is a Red-Winged Blackbird from last week which I didn't get around to posting.  They are quite difficult to expose, but I liked the X made by the 2 pieces of phragmites and the nice lighting/colors:

This evening after work yielded the first Osprey of the season.  It was the first Osprey that I spotted last season as well and was munching away on a fish.  I'm a bit concerned about the nesting platform as this weeks storm caused the metal base to curl up which certainly will inhibit building a nest.  These are big birds and it's amazing how large the platform is:

As the sun was setting I spotted some mergansers on the West side of Ponquogue Bridge and this one had an odd habit of scurrying across the surface instead of swimming or flying, the lighting made for a beautiful scene:

Almost immediately after this photo I turned around and saw 2 birds flying off the huge wireless tower at the Coast Guard Station in Hampton Bays and snapped some photos.  At first I thought Mourning Dove based on shape and popularity, but a quick look at the LCD showed me something far better:

The pair of Peregrine Falcons flew south toward the ocean and I briefly thought about going back to that side to locate them but the sun was getting low and I still needed to run over the bridge and back.  After I returned from my run, I got in my car and was about to pull onto the road when I saw a dark bird shoot down toward the water then loop back up and down again before flying right over my head and landing on the big tower next to me.  One of the peregrines had returned.  Hopefully this means it is a nesting pair and they will set up on the Tower or the Bridge which is oddly their preferred habitat.  I'm not sure on this - but I'm venturing it will be the first nesting pair in Southampton Town in a very very long time.  I hope I'm not getting ahead of myself.

Peregrine Surprise

The Peregrine Falcon is the fastest species on the planet, with the ability to top out at 200 MPH during a dive (or  stoop) using gravity to aid its speed.  During straight flight (pursuit or otherwise) it can reach speeds as high as 70 MPH, and regularly cruises above 25 MPH.  The Peregrine, like all falcons, is built for speed and its diminutive size, sleek pointy wings and light frame make it the king of all flyers.  While in pursuit of the Clapper Rail seen in the previous post, I came across this beautiful Peregrine (males and females are virtually indistinguishable other than size) just south of where I had spotted the rail.  This was only my third definitive encounter with this species, with both prior occasions occurring on Dune Rd., and with my best look at this species taking place about 100 yards West of this bird, perched on a lightpost in February of last year.  It took a bit of stalking and careful walking on the frozen marsh to get in a good position (in regards to background/sunlight) to get the photos I wanted, but it was well worth it.  Unfortunately with the bird so out in the open there was no way of getting closer, and as such these are about 50% or greater crops.  The bird was seen again today, so I can only hope it will be a more common sighting along Dune Rd. this winter.

I did see 1 of the 2 Clapper Rail, however I didn't stop because it wasn't where I'd seen the other one and was hoping for a better photo-op, which is when I stumbled upon the Peregrine.  When I went back for the Clapper Rail I couldn't locate it (i.e. couldn't remember where I saw it. . . ).  Not wanting to pass up a chance to go to the Inlet in the hopes of seeing something unusual, I headed down there with a about 45 minutes left of sunlight but all that was willing to be photographed was this Cormorant, which is truly the best look I've gotten.