Friday update: The past weekend gave me an uptick of 2 birds to put me at 89. I spent Saturday afternoon birding around the Long Point Winery area of Cayuga Lake. I first went in search of longspurs but only found Snow Buntings and Horned Larks. This is when I really wish I had a scope to scan with!
Down by Cayuga Lake I found the usual suspects including Redheads, Common Mergansers, and even two Tundra Swans.
As the sun was setting and deer came out to feed I had a calling Common Raven overhead which was bird #88. It was heading for the trees, perhaps to roost for the evening.
Next came the Northern Harrier over the vineyards and surround fields. Year bird number #89! I stayed around in the single digits to wait to glimpse the Short-eared Owl again. It came as the sun was setting and the light almost too dim to take a photo. The best show I managed was the one above of the Short-eared hunting over the vineyard. A few minutes after this it hit the ground with prey in foot. A great way to end the day and head home to warm up.
On Sunday I tried for an Eastern Screech-owl that's roosting nearby but it was a no-go after an hour of waiting and searching. I'll be back little owl if the weather improves! Until then, I hope to go on a Cayuga Bird Club outing this coming weekend and pick up a few more birds. There are some winter birds around I'd love to pick up like Redpoll, Pine Sisken, and Snowy Owl. Wish me luck!
No comments:
Post a Comment