Harlequin Ducks!

I started the morning out with hopes of seeing the Snowy Owl again but knowing that was unlikely as it probably continued to move North once the sun rose.  There also had been a report of 2 Harlequin Ducks right along the jetty and some Purple Sandpipers which I had only seen in Montauk.  After hopelessly searching the dunes and the beach for the Snowy Owl I arrived at the inlet hoping the Ducks wouldn't be all the way on the West side.  As I approached the rocks, I spotted a Harlequin right in front of me - I couldn't believe how close it was.  The challenge in the morning, however, was the light was in the West so I had to get the right angle on the birds to get good exposure and detail which proved quite difficult but I still got some good shots:

  

After running some errands and spending some time at home I was back out at the inlet hoping the Harlequins would be in the same place which would allow for the beautiful late afternoon light to really show the birds off well and as soon as I arrived the ducks were there putting on a great show.  It's my hypothesis that they have little to no fear of humans because they spend their summers in Mountain streams in Canada and never experience humans.  If these ducks were mergansers or scoters or eiders they would never come within 100 feet of me - let alone the 10 feet that these birds ventured to.  I think their days are numbered as its starting to get warm and they are probably itching to get back to Canada but I'm happy to have experienced them so close today.  

Snowy Surprise

Kinglet
On Saturday I met up at Quogue Wildlife Refuge with Charlie VanTassel who was in town visiting relatives.  He is an accomplished and talented photographer residing in San Diego and a real nice guy.  A gallery of his more recent photography can be seen here: Charlie VanTassel Photography  Even though the temps were hitting the low 50s for the first time since November, the birds were few and far between.  Charlie did spot some Golden Crowned Kinglets (below) that I would have walked right past.  He didn't believe me on the ID, but I was 90% sure due to the very small size and of course, the golden crown.  I guess they look and behave a bit more different on the West coast.

Harriers
The next stop was Dune Rd. in pursuit of Harlequin Ducks and Northern Harriers and anything else we could stumble upon.  The inlet was quiet with some expected pelagics hanging out (Loons, Mergansers, Eiders).  I thought I had spotted 2 Harlequin Ducks across the inlet but I couldn't get a positive ID so we moved on.  After stopping for a Great Blue Heron we looked up and noticed a Northern Harrier.  I was able to move to a parking lot and get the bird banking but neither of us could pull off a good shot.  Further down the road we spotted another Harrier and again played the waiting game.  Charlie was right in that the bird was going to make a big loop, but it sneaked up on us and moved south before we could get a photo.  I was able to get this habitat shot after it had moved to the South side of the bay:

We made a stop in Quogue along the bay but it only provided some views of a Yellow-Rumped Warbler.  After Charlie treated me to lunch we parted ways and I gave Dune Rd. one more shot on my way home and it certainly paid off.  I was getting ready to write the afternoon off when I spotted something light and raptor shaped - it was just a glimpse and for all I knew it could have been a plastic bag.  I parked and climbed the dune slowly knowing that if it were a harrier it would probably flush right away but once I got the bird in my sight, its piercing yellow eyes made it apparent that it was the rare and elusive Snowy Owl.  This photo is what I first saw:

I've only seen a Snowy Owl once before, about 2 miles East of the location I found this one at, in December of 2008.  I knew (or assumed) from that experience that Snowy Owls don't flush easily and are rather tolerable of human presence, so I knew I could get fairly close if I could find away around the heavy vegetation.  Just to the west there was a small deer path through the thick bayberry shrubs and as I came around the dune, the Snowy turned its head and locked its big eyes on me.  It actually was a bit of a challenge to get good shots with the eyes as it spent most of its time ignoring me, tucking its head into its feathers and trying to get some rest.

I texted one of my bosses who has a great appreciation for birds as there was still more than an hour left of sunshine and thought he would be interested in seeing it.  Turns out he was out on Dune Rd. for a drive with his family and 10 minutes later we were all admiring the beauty of this bird - even his 2 year old son got in on the action.  After an hour I had to get going, which was unfortunate as the light was only going to get better, but I was thrilled to have gotten so close to this species and to have seen one at all.  So far as I understand this was only the 4th or 5th Snowy Owl seen on Long Island this season (a very low number) and based on the date and weather conditions it is likely this was a bird moving back to Canada from New Jersey or somewhere similar.  It's a shame that Charlie wasn't able to experience this, as Snowy Owls don't exactly hang out in San Diego, but (fortunately) he wasn't too broken up about it.

Coots, Ducks, Kingfishers and Dueling Hawks

Coots and a Gull to Boot:
Lake Agawan was free of Northern Shovelers, but the 3 Coots from last weekend were still hanging out along the western side.  I was able to sit down on some concrete along the Lakes edge and waited until the Coots swam by.  Since they seem to come quite close to me, I'll try the 105mm Macro + 1.7X TC next time around to try and eke out a little more detail.  One advantage to overcast skies is it really can bring out details that otherwise wouldn't be seen because of the strong glare of the sun.

The Gulls were fighting over bread that people were feeding them.  This one had lost the fight and was flying back to where the action was happening, lucky for me it was right in front of my camera:   

Lots of Ducks:
A stop Mecox Bay produced Canvasback Ducks, Greater Scaup and Hooded Mergansers, all of which were quite shy and scared easily.  The Canvasback Duck is similar to the Redheaded Duck, and at a distance it is tough to distinguish the two.  Redheads are smaller with a shorter bill and a golden eye, whereas the Canvasback Duck has a red eye.  Additionally, the male Canvasback Duck has a mostly white body, compared to the grey body of a Redhead.

The Greater Scaup is also another species which can be tough to ID at first.  It looks nearly identical to the Lesser Scaup as well as the Ring-Necked Duck and if you're really far away it could be confused with a Goldeneye.  The easiest way to tell the difference between the Greater and Lesser Scaup is by looking at the iridescence on the head which is purple in the Lesser and Green in the Greater.

Shinnecock Canal:
I've never stopped at the Shinnecock Canal to photograph birds before, but as I drove over Montauk Hwy. I noticed a lot of gulls, many of which were feeding and thought perhaps there would be an unusual species (not liek I could pick it out as they all look so similar).  Well, none of the gulls stood out to me, however I did find this female Red-breasted Merganser fighting the ripping current in the canal.

Dune Rd. produces again:
The Shinnecock Inlet seemed to have less action than the canal, however it DID have 8 surfers and body borders hoping to catch some of the wild incoming waves that poured into Shinnecock Bay.  While this isn't unheard of, it's pretty unusual to see and by the looks of it they weren't too successful.  On the other hand, it was a much easier go than surfing the ocean which was a mess from this latest storm.  (sorry for no photos of the surfers, but this is a bird photography blog!)

ALMOST the 2nd Best Photos I've Ever Taken:
As I continued along Dune Rd. though, I found a kingfisher and the sun was trying to peak out so I parked the car and tried to take some shots when it took off and landed on this log.  I was hoping for a photo akin to the female kingfisher shot I had back in early January that was calling out in the foggy air - but my autofocus  was off a little and none of the shots came out as sharp as I would have liked.  The Kingfisher eventually took off and started flying west which is where I was headed anyway so I drove along the flooded Dune Rd. keeping my eyes peeled for Harriers.  I saw one on the south side of the road and stopped as it landed on the ground.  As I took my camera out it flew into the air and I heard the kingfisher calling.

At first I thought the kingfisher had flown to the south side of the road and caught the interest of the Harrier when I saw a 2nd Hawk (which I presumed to be a harrier as well) take off and attempt to spar with the first.  I kept my finger on the trigger hoping for the best, when the first Harrier broke off and started flying west which I then put myself into a position to photography.  It's not unusual to see Northern Harriers get into these types of arguments, particularly along Dune Rd. where 3 or 4 of them spend their winter.  When I got home and looked at the shots (aside from being disappointed at the quality, deleting most of them) I realized it was not TWO Norther Harriers, but a Cooper's Hawk and a Northern Harrier.  What's more is the Cooper's Hawk was chasing off the Harrier!  Talk about unusual.  Cooper's Hawks generally hangout in the woods (or along the fringe of the woods) and are a rare sighting along the ocean like this.  Also the hawks are both about the same size (the Harrier has a slight size advantage), but I would speculate the Harrier is the better flier and certainly it was THERE territory, not the Cooper's.  Either way, an interesting interaction that I was happy to witness and photograph.  

I had to delete all but these 2 shots, which aren't that spectacular from a technical standpoint, as my focus and shutter speed were both inadequate.  This is NOT the same problem I had experienced last week, and in fact was a result of the poor lighting conditions, fast action and wrong settings (as I didn't anticipate needing a SS of 1/2500+).  Last weeks problem seems to have been solved as it appears the connection between the lenses was a little loose - hopefully it won't rear its ugly head again.  I continued to photograph the Harrier which gave me a few close ups and these are by far the sharpest photos I've gotten of this Hawk.  I can't wait to see what Dune Rd. produces next time.