Dateline: 31 December 2021 – 1 January 2022

Wishing everyone a happy New Year and a great/healthy 2022!

In the “late Christmas miracle” category, had an hour of sunny weather in Erie yesterday. (Enough to launch another glorious expedition out to Gull Point – report to follow.) Otherwise, the weather continues its streak of seasonable gloom coupled with unseasonable warmth. Rain overnight, heavy fog today, no snow; other than the short days, feels like spring.

Anyway, enough about the weather! What better way to kick off 2022 than with Pileated Woodpeckers!!! Pairs were spotted in Millcreek Township (“Gateway to Presque Isle State Park”) both Friday and Saturday in different, but nearby locations.

No pictures from Saturday since it was foggy and overcast, but here’s an audio clip (captured using iPhone ChirpOMatic app) of a Pileated Woodpecker call (Millcreek Twp, 1 Jan 2022)(you’ll have to turn the volume way up):

Dateline: 24-27 December, 2021

Long weekend at BirdingPI.com, with Friday and Monday as official holidays. Friday’s covered in the Christmas post, Christmas day was rained out, Sunday’s the subject of the forthcoming Gull Point survey, which leaves Monday, 27 December 2021. Weather: overcast with periodic rain.

First, a road closure to report at Presque Isle State Park. As of mid-day Monday, the main road (aka ‘loop road,’ Peninsula Dr, or Thompson Dr) was closed between the south turnoff to the Coast Guard Station/North Pier and the turnaround just past the bay-side Sidewalk Trail trailhead, traveling counter-clockwise. Past the former, crews were spotted working on the sewer/water line installation project.

Not a great day, weather-wise, for birding or bird photography, but the rain let up long enough for a few snapshots:

Tuesday dawned partially clear and cold, turning to overcast later in the day and light snow early evening. Nevertheless, lots of interesting bird activity, e.g., a quick morning reconnoiter in Millcreek Twp included confirmed sightings of Mourning Dove, Crow, Cedar Waxwing, Pileated Woodpecker, Robin, Dark-eyed Junco, Downy Woodpecker, Blue Jay, Black-capped Chickadee, Northern Cardinal, and Red-tailed Hawk.

Sunday (26 December 2021) was the BirdingPI.com “annual around New Year’s Gull Point informal survey if conditions permit,” and boy, there was a lot of excitement out at Gull Point. Some of which even involved birds. Still trying to process the information overload; in the meantime, as promised, it’s time for Swans and more!

Dabbling (noun). Re. waterfowl. Water surface feeding, or feeding by tipping headfirst into water to graze on aquatic edibles. [Source: BirdingPI.com]

(Don’t worry, just a birding joke.)

Later, between the Pine Tree Trail west trailhead and Beach No. 9, Wild Turkeys partook of fresh hay recently applied over the water/sewer line installation corridor along the road. (Pictures taken from vehicle. Photos were somewhat fuzzy due to gear acting up – temp changes? Camera settings issue?)

Back on Lake Erie, spotted what appears to be our lovely Mallard/Pekin couple, near Presque Isle Lighthouse. Glad they’re hanging in there through hunting season!

Later, on a sunnier day:

Let’s take a moment to acknowledge the cuteness/artistic symmetry of the previous picture. The management thanks you for your cooperation.

Still later, back at HQ at sunset:

Still later again, on an unsunny day:

No better way to end such a wide-ranging post than with a Brown Creeper, spotted 22 December 2021 near Beach No. 9 (Pine Tree)(for the record, along with a White-breasted Nuthatch and various Sparrows):

Wishing everyone a Merry Christmas from Erie, PA. Weather conditions: heavy rain overnight, easing up by late morning, turning foggy; unseasonably warm. Confirmed local sightings included Robin and European Starling.

Meanwhile, a much nicer day Christmas Eve (Friday): initially overcast, turning clear, then light overcast/hazy sunshine; unseasonably warm. From Friday:

Are Red-bellied Woodpeckers our most festive of birds? No. However, best we can do on short notice.

Mild conditions meant lots of folks out at Presque Isle State Park, at least on the paved trails. Hiking trails, where applicable, were still extremely wet/flooded and muddy. BirdingPI.com dispatched an expeditionary team to survey the Long Pond Trail. This included a very wet traversal of the flooded portion on the east/bay-side end. Muddy, wet, lots of downed trees and storm damage – quite a mess. Recommend avoiding.

Overall, light avian activity – Woodpeckers, Mallards, Geese, Buffleheads, GBH, various Sparrows, etc.

Nikon D850 with a Tamron 150-600mm lens

Dateline: 18-20 December 2021

Saturday: rain, rain, and more rain; for birding, a total wash. Sunday: overcast, light wind, cold, occasional snow flakes. Not great for photography (bad lighting), but great for birding (ducks, ducks, and more ducks!) Monday: cool, eventually turned mostly sunny; nice day.

Meanwhile, Presque Isle State Park was back to 100% open, although with traffic control (one-way road + stop lights) between the Thompson Circle area and the Budny Beach area. Roads mostly in fine shape, trails muddy and very flooded where applicable. (E.g., Pine Tree Trail east trailhead: totally flooded; Long Pond Trail: totally flooded; Sidewalk Trail bay-side end: totally flooded.)

While the BirdingPI.com editorial staff continues pouring over Sunday’s pictures, here’s a few snapshots from a sunnier Monday.

Still plenty of Canadian Geese migrating:

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Seems like it’d be easier to take the beach, but who are we to judge? This trio of deer was spotted swimming/wading towards the Gull Point area:

Guess the deer are lucky shotgun deer season is over. For ducks, not out of the woods yet:

Ok, credit where credit’s due, the above’s a nice picture.

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Stayed tuned for Weekend Update Redux, aka “Swan Lake.” Spoiler alert: there’s swans.

Dateline: 16 December 2021

Although reopened past the turn for West Pier, Presque Isle State Park remained partially closed Thursday, with road closures eastbound (clockwise around the outer loop road) at Beach No. 9 (by the A-Trail) and westbound (counterclockwise) just after the second turn for the Coast Guard Station, by Thompson Circle. Crews were spotted actively working near the latter, on cleanup and/or the ongoing sewer/water pipe installation project. Generally, park visitors seemed confused with the closures, responding with erratic driving and speeding. Can’t be stymied on the loop drive!

Meanwhile, although road flooding conditions had subsided since Monday, all observed low-lying trails were under water. A brief survey confirmed poor conditions at the east end of the Sidewalk Trail, and similar conditions on both ends of the Long Pond Trail.

Casual bird sightings included Canadian Geese, Mallard, American Wigeon, Gulls, Hooded Merganser, Common Merganser, and Hairy Woodpecker.

With Presque Isle State Park mostly closed Sunday, it was time to dust off the BirdingPI.com “to do” list. First up, checking in on State Game Lands 314 aka the David M. Roderick Wildlife Reserve.

No. 314’s located in the very northwestern-most corner of Pennsylvania bordering Lake Erie and Ohio. Vast, flat forest and scrub land; accessible by dirt road only. Rather bleak (and waterlogged) this time of year, but fascinating habitat. Bonus points: lake views from the bluff.

Expectations were low for bird activity, but confirmed sightings included Kinglet, various Gulls, Crows, and the ‘bird of the weekend,’ a pair of mature Bald Eagles. Eagles are great.

Eagles in a tree = birding gold. These were perched at the edge of the bluff, near the parking area by “The Rock.” Noticed them first from the road, quickly parked and got in a few shots. As with other local Bald Eagles, skittish, though, with a quick departure. On the flip side, Eagles in flight over Lake Erie = more birding gold.

On the way back to Erie, it was time for a brief survey of lower Elk Creek, by the west bank fishing access (Erie Bluffs State Park). Extremely overgrown and muddy conditions. Sightings included Mourning Doves, Dark-eyed Junco, a female Common Merganser (note the white chest and white chin) on the creek itself, and various human fly fisherfolk.

Dateline: 13 December 2021

As of Monday afternoon, the bulk of Presque Isle State Park remained closed due to flooding and damage from the storm the previous Saturday. Despite sunny weather on Sunday, BirdingPI.com management decided against dispatching a team, “for the sake of public safety.” Venturing forth today, our reporters witnessed localized but widespread flooding, plus several downed trees (e.g., by the bike rental place), which crews were actively working on clearing. The road and bike trail were closed at the turn for West Pier/marina.

From the parking lot by West Pier, numerous ’emergency’ vehicles (e.g., OTV’s, semi’s, front-end loaders) were witnessed along the road across the bay. (Although it could have been related to the ongoing sewer/water supply line installation project.)

Meanwhile, there’s always room for bird photography. Avian sightings on Marina Lake (i.e., by West Pier) included Ring-billed Gulls, Mallards, Mergansers, GBH, Buffleheads, etc. The highlight: a flock of Buffleheads first landing on Marina Lake and, being spooked (source undetermined), immediately departing.

Let’s hope that the park is fully re-opened soon!

Dateline: 10 December 2021

Taking advantage of the brief spell of good weather before the big storm, BirdingPI.com dispatched a team to Presque Isle State Park for an hour or two on Friday, pre-sunset. Relatively light avian activity, but conditions were pleasant and mild – a good afternoon to be outdoors, even if only briefly.

After driving past these Buffleheads initially, pulled a quick (ahem, illegal) U-turn to backtrack to approximately where the light and birds might align nicely. Timing is everything.

If you’re wondering about the ID, enlarging/cropping any of these pictures plus cranking up the brightness to max clearly shows Bufflehead markings, e.g., white cheek patches, and ‘wrap around’ white on the heads of males. Also diving behavior, and later shots against a different background:

Dateline 10 December 2021

(Erie, PA) The Pennsylvania Department of Conservation & Natural Resources (DCNR), in charge of state parks, today announced the possible early closure of Presque Isle State Park on Saturday, 11 December 2021, due to forecast rain followed by extreme (60+ MPH) gusts of high wind Saturday afternoon.

Whereas the ‘digital traffic sign’ by the entrance to Presque Isle normally announces “Welcome to your park,” visitors today were instead greeted with a repositioned sign conveying a dire, albeit misspelled warning of severe weather and a possible early park shutdown.

Due to the number of large trees on Presque Isle and their propensity to topple over in high wind, Birding, PI.com encourages everyone in Erie to “stay safe, stay sane, and stay home,” as conditions warrant. The birds will be fine.

Recent tree damage across the Pine Tree Trail shows the impending danger. This is no joke, folks!

Meanwhile, Friday turned from overcast to generally lovely, mostly sunny, and ‘warm’ (mid-50’s deg F). Bird sightings on Presque Isle, hampered by duck season/hunters, included Ducks, Gulls, and Golden-crowned Kinglet. Report to follow.