Jamaica Bay Wildlife Refuge

By D. Bruce YoltonEagles, Falcons, Hawks and Osprey, Other Birds

On Saturday, I took a NYC Audbon trip to the Jamaica Bay Wildlife Refuge.  The trip was led by Don Riepe, who did a wonderful job.  Audubon provided a bus, so the trip was easy.  After leaving the Manhattan Audubon office, our first stop was the Jamaica Bay Wildlife Refuge’s West Pond, followed by the East Pond and then a visit to Fort Tilden before returning to Manhattan.

An easy walk from the visitor’s center is an Osprey nest on the West Pond.  The 2007 kids had already left.  These are the adults.
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This is a second nest on the other side of the West Pond.
A tree filled with both Snowy and Great Egrets.
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Great Egret
Northern Mockingbird
Glossy Ibis
Glossy Ibis
An assortment of Sandpipers.
Immature Yellow-crowned Night-Heron
Immature Yellow-crowned Night-Heron
Yellow-crowned Night-Heron
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We then visited the East Pond, stopping first at a blind.  There we saw a Black-crowned Night-Heron and…
… a Little Blue Heron
Then it was off to the East Pond.  Here’s a Gull.  (Still learning how to I.D. them.)
Great Blue Heron (left) and Black-crowned Night-Heron (right)
Immature Peregrine Falcon.  This is the first time I’ve seen one on the ground!
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A bridge near Fort Tilden, where the center gun turret was converted into a Peregrine Falcon nest site.  It might have been the birthplace of the Peregrine Falcon seen on the East Pond.
Barn Swallows at Fort Tilden.
Sanderlings on the right.

It was a fun day.  The trip had a full range of birders, from the beginner to the advanced.  Don Riepe, did a great job of keeping everyone interested and kept us out of the Poison Ivy too!  NYC Audubon has a full calender of events throughout the year.  The current schedule can be found on their website, www.nycaudubon.org.