Somewhat unusual to see a Golden-crowned Kinglet foraging on the ground for so long (5+ minutes). A bit shady, but still a good chance for relatively close shots – at times, even too close to focus. All shots along the Long Pond Trail, Presque Isle State Park. Bonus pics #fall_colour

---

In Erie, colder temps overnight into Friday; perhaps a bit of frost. Some sun/haze – should be an ok day. Weekend forecast: Saturday – mild, mostly sunny; Sunday – mild, somewhat cloudy; no rain either day. It’s “go time” for nature!

Dateline: 22 October 2022

Finally, BirdingPI.com’s shots of Black-capped Chickadee and Red-breasted Nuthatch from this past Saturday at Presque Isle State Park, on the east end of the Dead Pond Trail. Amazing amount of activity for both, plus sparrows, jays, even a thrush or two.

---

Next time: more Kinglet! More bird! Also, fall colour.

Special guest contributor shots from occasional BirdingPI.com commenter “Paul + Remark.” Amazing Long-billed Curlew on Moonstone Beach in Cambria, California, from earlier this month. Not quite as exciting as Ring-billed Gull on Lake Erie :), but still very cool!

A crop from the above shot, note the super-long bill and ‘cinnamon-washed’ underparts:

Great to see these amazing birds, even if not in person.

Looks like Erie’s spell of nice weather is over for now, with rain moving in Wednesday. … Waiting on editorial review of the chickadee/nuthatch shots. In the meantime, some reasonably ok, recent shots of Blue Jay/BIF with acorn!

Dateline: 22-23 October 2022

Beautiful weekend at Presque Isle State Park. Saturday, light wind, sunny, warm (high temps of around 20 deg C?); Sunday, light wind, sunny, slightly cooler but still very pleasant. Beautiful fall colour. Lake level surprising low; all BirdingPI.com teams report trails in good/dry condition.

Birds: lots of birds. Lots of Yellow-rumped Warbler (flocks of them), Dark-eyed Junco; Golden-crowned Kinglet, European Starling, sparrows, gulls, nuthatch, Black-capped Chickadee, and Double-crested Cormorant. Very little goose or duck activity.

Following shots mostly from Long Pond, boat landing #4, on Saturday:

Belted Kingfisher:

More lovely Golden-crowned Kinglet:

---

Tomorrow, nuthatch and chickadee along the Dead Pond Trail!

Dateline: 22 October 2022

No, not everyone’s favorite TV mechanic. Rather, from Saturday, beautiful American Coot at Thompson Circle swamp/pond north, Presque Isle State Park.

---

Another beautiful fall day Sunday. Stay tuned for an update on Gull Point; spoiler alert: cormorants, cormorants, and more cormorants! And gulls.

Beautiful day yesterday (Saturday, 22 October 2022) at Presque Isle State Park; looks like another beautiful day today. The BirdingPI.com team is getting geared up for heading back out (Gull Point perhaps?), so only time for a quick post of cute Semipalmated Plover from the Gull Point beach trail the other weekend. More plover! More bird!

Dateline: 16 October 2022

---

---

As previously reported, beautiful day last Sunday at Presque Isle State Park. A special photo report from BirdingPI.com’s team stationed around the Marsh Trail/Ridge Trail/Dead Pond Trail junction. Part II to follow next week.

Marsh Trail = good, open spot for sometimes seeing fly-by birds. Here, lovely Red-tailed Hawk:

Plenty of Yellow-rumped Warbler, kinglet, woodpecker, and sparrow activity. Here, the former:

Stars of the Marsh Trail, Chipping Sparrow and amazing White-crowned Sparrow:

White-crowned Sparrow in the shade:

And in the sunlight:

Another Yellow-rumped Warbler:

Downy Woodpecker (m) in the shrubbery:

Cute White-throated Sparrow:

On the Dead Pond Trail, a slightly blurry shot of Brown Creeper; interesting for showing wing coloration/pattern:

Dateline: 15 October 2022, Presque Isle State Park

Partially cloudy, windy, and cool on Saturday. Amazing number of Yellow-rumped Warbler passing through. Also Kinglet. Despite the wind, loads of bird activity generally. Here, all shots on or near the Pine Tree Trail.

Two shots of cute Golden-crowned Kinglet:

Several more Kinglet:

More Warbler!

Several shots of what appear to be Magnolia Warbler (female or immature):

Note the gray-ish neck band and hints of chest streaking in this shot:

---

The beach nearby:

---

Friday, 21 October 2022: looks like windy but sunny weather. Forecast for the weekend is clear and mild. “Fingers crossed” for great birding/nature weather – BirdingPI.com teams are on call and ready to deploy!

Wishing everyone a great weekend!

After several days of clouds and cold/frozen rain in Erie, PA, time to revisit a nicer, sunnier day from last week. Several shots of Red-bellied Woodpecker + one of American Robin + general foliage, all Millcreek Twp (“Gateway to Presque Isle”).

On Wednesday, a short break in the rain: