PINE
GROSBEAKS were finally found within a day trip's
driving distance of Dutchess County on January
14 by John Askildsen of Westchester. With John's
excellent driving directions in hand, two RTWBC members
were able to relocate the birds on January
15 and observed them for at least 30 minutes.
Most of the birds were females or first year males, but
one adult male was viewed in full rosy-red splendor. Pine
Grosbeaks were last reported at this location January 20,
when 5 were seen around 10:15am but were not found by a
number of other birders the same day. However, a flock
of about 20 was spotted (after two hours of searching)
on January 20 and 22 along
Rte. 22 at the south end of the Chuckleberry Trailer Park
a few miles south of Cherry Plain.
Directions: Take
Rte 22 north into Rensselaer County, enter Cherry Plain and
turn right on Derby Lane. Proceed to its terminus and turn
left. After passing the the Cherry Plain Post Office on the
right, turn right onto Mattson Hollow Road. Take this road
to a driveway marked number 107 on the left side of the road.
Begin to look for the Pine Grosbeaks here. The birds were most
frequently seen in the ash trees, often feeding on their seeds.
