| February
2008 Records
White Fronted Goose: 2/8 Boston Cor Rd, 19th with
Canada’s Willowbrook Fm Marsh CV.
Canada Goose: reported all over the county, most 10’s & 100’s;
1000/15 Stissing Lk CV.
Mute Swan: 9 reports & 1 field trip of 1-3 by
TM, BAM, CV.
Wood Duck: 1/10 White Schoolhouse Rd, Rhinebeck RJ.
American Black Duck: 22/2 Shekomeko Cr CV; 2-6 in 6 other
reports from WS & CV.
Mallard: 40/2 Chelsea Cv Bkmn CP/HT; 4 other reports of
8 to 25 by BJM, CP/HT, WS.
Northern Pintail: 10/8 Randalls Rd, Millerton DF;
Green-winged Teal: 2/2 The Fly CV.
Ring-neck Duck: 8 Sylvan Lk, 2 Stringham Rd, 16 Red Wing
Gravel/26 CV.
Common Goldeneye: a few/23 Rhinecliff RJ.
Hooded Merganser: 3 reports of prs by EA, RJ; 11 other reports
of 1-6 from RJ, BJM, CP/HT, CV.
Common Merganser: 15 reports by EA, BB, DP, TM, BJM, AJM,
CP/HT, WS, CV; 16/20 Norrie Pt FT.
Wild Turkey: several sites with 2 to 28; BAM, BJM; 65/14
Rombout Rd, 33/12 Old Post Rd Staatsburg CV.
Great Blue Heron: 1/27 over Rt.82 so. Hopewell Jct AJM;
1/2 Chelsea Cove Beekman CP/HT.
Black Vulture: four reports of 1-2 from DF, DK, AJM, CV;
4/28 Poughquag CP.
Turkey Vulture: mostly single reports but up to 3 seen by
7 observers.
Bald Eagle: 7 reports, 1-2 (a pr, ad & juv) from RJ,
DK, BaM, TM, AJM, CP/HT, CV; 6/20 Norrie Pt FT.
Northern Harrier: 7 mostly lone m or f; 2/21 Thompson Pd;
DK; EBR; 2 ad m/27 Reagan Rd CV.
Sharp-shinned Hawk: 1 imm/15 near feeders BB; 2/20 City
Pok RJ; 1f/10 feeder BAM; 3 others CV.
Cooper’s Hawk: 2/20 City Pok RJ; seven other reports
of single sightings DK, BAM, MP, CP/HT, CV.
Red-tailed Hawk: extremely well reported 1-4 by observers & FT;
kettling BB; 13/16 Clove Rd CV.
Golden Eagle: 1/25 Old Troy & New Hamburg Rds TM.
American Kestrel: 1/16 IES WS.
Merlin: 1/7 juv or f 1 bird seen at Vassar Fm & campus
could be same bird, 2 hr between sightings CV.
Peregrine Falcon: 1/12 Mid-Hudson Bridge CV.
American Coot: 2/2 Chelsea Cove Bkmn CP/HT; 5 Chelsea
Apt & 22 Red Wing Green Haven/26 CV.
American Woodcock: heard/23 Hilltop Rd, Rhinebeck
RJ.
Ring-billed Gull: 300 - 400 Riverside Pk Beacon
TM; 200/2 Sylvan L, 400/2 Redwing Bkmn CP/HT.
Herring Gull: 5/1 Westage pond BAM; 10/8 Webatuck Ck Reagan
Rd CV; 1/20 Norrie Pt FT.
Great Black-backed Gull: 14/7 Vanderburg Cove RJ;
30/17 Riverside Pk TM; 2 other reports, 1 FT.
Rock Pigeon: 4/27 Millbrook Sch FT.
Mourning Dove: well reported, on both FT; 26/9 & 30/10
Salisbury Tpk MP; 20-30/all yd CP/HT.
Great Horned Owl: 1/3 Tymor calling 1pm BB; heard/23
Hilltop Rd RJ; 2/25, 1/28 Ludlow Woods DK.
Barred Owl: 1/22, 29 h Ludlow Woods DK; 1/26
h AJM; 1/10 near YWCA MHB; 1/15 h Pond Gut CV.
Belted Kingfisher: 6 reports of single sighting HRA,
MML, TM, CV; 2/2 Buttercup Fm Sanctuary WS.
Red-headed Woodpecker: 1/11 suet feeder, off Spackenkill
Rd MHB.
Red-bellied Woodpecker: many reports of 1-2, at suet feeders;
5/3, 4/14, 3/25 Rombout Rd CV.
Yellow-bellied Sapsucker: 1 occ at suet DK; 1/17 Millbrook
WS; 2/25 Rombout Rd CV; 1/20 FT.
Downy Woodpecker: well reported, 1-5 seen by most; 4/20
Norrie Pt FT; 6/27 Millbrook Sch FT.
Hairy Woodpecker: 1-2 in reports, at suet DK, BAM,
MP, CP/HT, EBR, CV; 2/20 Norrie Pt FT.
Northern Flicker: 1 occ in most reports BAM, CP/HT, CV,
FT; 4/3 Rombout Rd CV; 4/9 IES WS.
Pileated Woodpecker: 1-2 occ in reports, 1 calling
BB, DK, CP/HT, DR, CV; 2/20 Norrie Pt FT.
Northern Shrike: 1/7 Vassar Fm SB; 1/9, 16 IES western part
WS; 1/17 Vassar Fm CV.
Blue Jay: well reported, 1-8 at most feeders; 20/all feeder
BB; 10-14/all yd Poughquag CP/HT.
American Crow: well reported in large numbers; 10,000/14
City Pok roost CV.
Fish Crow: 1/3 Wal Mart Fishkill, 1/12 Norrie Pt CV.
Common Raven: 1/21 Woods DK; 4/16 Hilltop Rd RJ;
1/8 HVRT; 2/28 Stissing CV; 1/20 Norrie Pt FT.
Horned Lark: 50-55/14 Plankenhorn Fm, 2/26 Stringham Rd
soccer lot, 33/27 Perotti Rd CV.
Black-capped Chickadee: 15/all feeder BB; 1-12 in all other
reports and Field Trips.
Tufted Titmouse: 1-5 in all reports, at feeders; 7/20 Norrie
Pt FT; 4/27 Millbrook Sch FT.
Red-breasted Nuthatch: 1/5-12 feeder MML; 1/17 Millbrook
WS; 1/7 Vassar College CV.
White-breasted Nuthatch: 1-3 reported at feeders by most;
4/27 Millbrook Sch FT; Gimpy Nuthatch.
Brown Creeper: 1/15 yd Poughquag CP/HT; 1/23 IES WS;
2/5 1daily @ suet tree Alvin Ct CV.
Carolina Wren: 1-4 at feeders in reports
by JA/KJ, BB, BAM, EBR, WS, CV; 1/20 Norrie Pt FT.
Winter Wren: 1/8 HVRT CV.
Golden-crowned Kinglet: 2/24 Buttercup Farm Sanctuary WS;
3/3 Rombout Rd CV.
Eastern Bluebird: 1-6 in most reports; 10/9 IES WS;
10/29 Rombout Rd, 10/7 Vassar Fm CV.
Hermit Thrush: 2/20 Norrie Pt FT.
American Robin: well reported in high numbers; 40/occ yd
Po’quag CP/HT; 50/19 Smithfield Rd CV.
Gray Catbird: 1/17 Millbrook WS.
Northern Mockingbird: 1/3 Tymor Pk BB; 1/9 IES WS;
5/3, 14, 4/25 Rombout Rd, 4/7 & 3/17 Vassar Fm CV.
European Starling: 6-25 in several reports; 45/27 Millbrook
Sch FT.
Cedar Waxwing: 15/19 yd BB; 15/28 yd BJM; 60-65/29 2 flocks
30+ Rombout Rd CV.
Yellow-rumped Warbler: 1/14 & 25, 2/16 south end of
Rombout Rd CV.
American Tree Sparrow: 1-10 reported at feeders JA/KJ, BB,
RG/BJM, MP, WS, CV.
Field Sparrow: 4/10 around Rhinebeck RJ.
Song Sparrow: 1/29 singing yd BJM; 1 reported MP, CP/HT,
WS; 5/14, 4/25 Rombout Rd CV.
Swamp Sparrow: 1/15 Thompson Pd CV.
White-throated Sparrow: 1-20 on all reports JA/KJ, BB, BAM,
BJM, MP, CP/HT, EBR, WS, CV.
Dark-eyed Junco: very well reported in good numbers by observers; 12/27
Millbrook Sch FT.
Snow Bunting: 1/12 chased by a crow twice Vassar Crew lot
CV.
Northern Cardinal: up to 11 reported by most & FTs;
2/1 singing often last 2 wks CV.
Red-winged Blackbird: most reports of 1-24; 3 reports of
100-500; singing after 19th CV.
Common Grackle: up to 100 in reports, numbers increased
over month JA/KJ, BB, MP, CV.
Brown-headed Cowbird: 5 reports of 2-30 in yds & at
feeders.
Purple Finch: 1-7 f & m at feeders all month
JA/KJ, BB, RG, BJM, CP/HT, CV.
House Finch: 1-6 reported at feeders all month.
Common Redpoll: 1-18 at feeders in reports RJ, AJ, DK, BaM,
CP/HT, WS, CV.
Pine Siskin: 4/11 & 1/2,14 & 27 w/goldfinch
@ feeder yd BAM.
American Goldfinch: good numbers in reports & FT; 60/1,
30-40 rest of mo yd Po’quag CP/HT.
Edith & Barry Rosen reported a special bird not on the county list - The
Gimpy Nuthatch, present at their feeders in Stormville 1/21-29. “The
suet feeder has a wire mesh bottom birds must peck up thru to get the suet. This
is no problem for woodpeckers and agile small birds like white-breasted nuthatches. One
day we looked out and saw a WBN with something dangling. Binoculars
confirmed the bird had a broken leg and was hanging on with the foot of the
one good leg. "Gimpy" returned every day for the rest of
February. Gimpy uses our seed feeder, but the unusual geometry of our
suet feeder is more handicapped-accessible for him or her.”
Other Observations:
Chipmunk in yard on snow on 17th and often after that - Alvin Ct & one
under a feeder on 14th Camby Rd
3 Cotton tail Rabbits run by dogs 27th Millbrook Sch FT; grey
squirrels: peak 19/18 Salisbury Tpk
Observers:
EA - Elaine Andersen; JA/KJ - Judy Atwood & Karen Jaquith; SB
- Sean Beckett; BB - Barbara Butler; DF - Dot Fleury; RG - Ruth Greenwood;
RJ - Rodney Johnson; AJ - Art Jones; DK - Debi Kral; MML - Maury & Miriam
Lacher; TM - Tully McElrath; BMa - Barb Mansell; AJM - Allan Michelin; BJM
- Barb Michelin; BAM - Barb & Allan Michelin; MP - Mona Payton; CP/HT
- Carena Pooth & Herb Thompson; EBR – Edith & Barry Rosen;
DR - Dora Russell; WS - William Schlesinger; CV- Chet Vincent;
Field Trips: 20th -
Norrie Pt; 27th - Millbrook School; all other Field Trips
rained or snowed out
Abbreviations: ad = adult;
Bkmn - Beekman; Cv = Cove; Fm = Farm; f = female; h = heard; HRA = Hudson
River Almanac; IES = Institute of Ecosystem Studies; juv = juvenile;
Lk = Lake; m = male; MHB - MidHudsonBirds; Mt = Mountain; occ = occasional; pr
= pair; Pk = Park; Pt = Point; Pd = Pond; Pok = Poughkeepsie;
Rd = Road; yd = yard. Also see our Key
to Notation.
Compiled by Judy Atwood |
