American Kestrel
I went to Governors Island for the afternoon, and did the typical tourist stuff. But I did get some great view of an American Kestrel. The ferry to the island is only $2 and runs through the last weekend in September.
Category: Eagles, Falcons, Hawks and Osprey
Darien Osprey, A Month Later
The Osprey nest in Darien, CT no longer has two little ones, but two large fledglings flying on and off the nest. They’re doing great and it was fun to watch then for an afternoon. Highlights included a number of “food fights” over fish the father brought, and watching the mother go wading and then bathing in the ocean.
The birds with rows of small dots on the wings and yellow on the back of their necks are the fledglings, and the mother has markings on her upper breast, which are much fainter on the male.
Long Island Sound Osprey
Over the July 4th weekend, I got to watch a pair of Opsrey and their two young ones on a tiny island in Long Island Sound. So, much more fun than fireworks!
Riverside Church
I took a look at Riverside Church to see if the young Peregrine Falcons were visible. There was no sign of them. I was probably a week or two early, but did get to see one of the parents visit the scrape and then leave.
Inwood Hill Park Bald Eagles
When the Hudson River is frozen upstate and ice floes form, wintering Bald Eagles ride the ice up and down the lower Hudson. With the cold weather we’ve been having, conditions are near perfect to see eagles from the Dyckman Fishing Pier in the southwest corner of Inwood Hill Park in Manhattan. Today, we saw three adults and five juveniles drift by the pier. Locals say the best times to watch are early in the morning from 8 to 10 a.m.
Gyrfalcon and Short-eared Owl
I went up to Ulster County, NY to see the Gyrfalcon that has around for a few weeks. The bird, which depending on the day has been easy to find or hard to find, was very cooperative today.
In addition to the Gyrfalcon, I was able to photograph a Short-eared Owl. Definitely worth driving for four hours!
