Weekend Update (Sunday)

Dateline: 5 March 2023

Feather in shrub @ Pine Tree Trail

Another cold/cloudy day in Erie, PA on Sunday; high temp around 4 deg C. Very subdued bird activity at Presque Isle State Park. More on Saturday to follow – geese, ducks, etc. Here, what there was of Sunday in the mostly non-waterfowl category.

Song Sparrow @ Pine Tree Trail
American Tree Sparrow @ Pine Tree Trail
Sparrow/flight

Following – juvenile Bald Eagle over Thompson Bay:

Song Sparrow off Thompson Bay

Misc gulls @ Beach No. 11:

Guarding the road to North Pier

After the substantial rain Friday night, all trails in fairly damp condition, some flooded. Flooded trails: Long Pond (west); Sidewalk (east); Marsh; B Trail; Dead Pond (portions, east end). Some Thompson Bay access points flooded on Saturday but back to normal Sunday.

    Mucho Cardinal

    Cloudy and cold in the greater Erie, PA area Saturday – rather unpleasant day for birding – but stay tuned for full report later in the week. Featuring – wait for it – waterfowl!

    Here, even more Northern Cardinal, all recent shots from Erie County. Mucho (lots of) Northern Cardinal activity this time of year!

    Female with piece of dried corn from feeder

    Weekend Update (Pt 2)

    Back over to Thompson Bay, Presque Isle State Park, on Sunday. Swans and ducks. Bonus post of GBH at this same spot, coming up soon.

    View north (Lake Erie in background) from Beach No. 11, Tundra Swan @ Osprey platform (far right):

    Closer view from the beach access by the Thompson Bay swamp/pond:

    Then it was time to ‘sneak’ over to the Osprey platform via the Gull Point trail. The Common Mergansers startled, then the Canvasbacks startled, then the Tundra Swans (most of them) startled. So much for stealth.

    Tundra Swan/sparkly background
    Common Merganser (m) in flight
    Canvasback + Common Merganser

    Tundra Swans fighting through the wind:

    Canvasbacks returning for landing @ Thompson Bay:

    Tundra Swans on Thompson Bay

    Mostly clear in Erie Thursday night, with a hard frost. Cold, with localized fog Friday morning; rain forecast to begin in the afternoon, possibility of light snow. Rain/unsettled weather on Saturday, but supposedly sunny later on Sunday. ‘Fingers crossed’ for good birding/nature weather (eventually)!

    Rough Time

    Dateline: 26 February 2023

    Bonus post on an interesting sighting from Sunday, high above Long Pond, Presque Isle State Park: a light adult Rough-legged Hawk.

    Uncropped @ 500mm

    Thank goodness for a long lens + cropping/enlargement. Also for a decent shot of its underside:

    Enlargement

    Note the strong demarcation between a dark wing lining and white on the primaries/secondaries, plus a dark trailing edge and wingtips; also a white tail with very dark/slightly banded tailtip.

    Rear view
    Another uncropped view

    Rainy Days & Mondays

    Rainy days: good for bird activity. Mondays: just another day for enjoying birds and nature. Rainy Mondays: double win! (Sorry, Carpenters.)

    All shots Millcreek Twp (“Gateway to Presque Isle”) this past (rainy) Monday.

    Wet Dark-eyed Junco
    Junco flight/white side tail feathers

    Wet European Starling:

    Wet American Robin:

    With the rain, a surprising number of Common Grackle, at least six or seven. Here, four Common Grackle at a “deer feeding station” + one Red-winged Blackbird (lower lefthand corner):

    Weekend Update (Pt 1)

    Dateline: 24-26 February 2023

    Erie, PA weekend weather: highly variable, with clouds, cold, wind, sun, rain, snow, hail, etc. All Presque Isle State Park trails in typical condition, e.g., mostly decent except where typically flooded, e.g., B Trail. BirdingPI.com expedition to Gull Point on Sunday curtailed due to heavy wind; these shots from the ‘interior’ Friday-Sunday.

    In bird news, first Killdeer of the year spotted off Feather Platform (Leo’s Landing)(!):

    Killdeer
    Killdeer x2 with duck season detritus
    Killdeer @ landing
    Mass gulls flight I/Leo’s Landing
    Mass gulls flight II
    N/S piers; back bay egress
    Mallards off Long Pond
    Cute Mallard video 1
    Cute Mallard video 2
    Ring-necked Ducks @ Long Pond

    Ring-necked Ducks in takeoff + flight:

    On the beach @ Thompson Bay

    Huge flock of American Crow (40+) passing over Gull Point Trailhead (this is just the tail end):

    Budny Beach @ Sunday:

    Finally, Gull activity at Beach No. 11.

    Coming up soon, more GBH! More Northern Cardinal! More weekend content featuring Tundra Swan, etc.!

    Birds Of Millcreek Twp

    Dateline: February 2023

    A selection of recent, nice shots from Millcreek Twp (“Gateway to Presque Isle”):

    Bird ID: 1, 3, 5, 7, 9, 11: Northern Cardinal (m); 2, 4, 6: European Starling; 8: American Robin in Staghorn Sumac; 10: Bald Eagle