What with all the Earth Day activities going on, the beginning of garage sale season and everyone being out of town (Pittsburgh, southern Maryland, Costa Rico!) and the very cold early temperatures (around 25 degrees before the sun got above the yardarm), turnout for the weekly Saturday bird walk at Hills Creek State Park was pretty light--as in just five of us with one having to leave early to go to work.
No matter. Those of us who were there had a good time and spotted some great birds! There were the Ruddy Duck and and Horned Grebe as well as several Common Loons on the lake, the several (!) pairs of Ospreys, a Barred Owl in the woods, and what we believe to be a Lincoln's Sparrow on the edge of one of the fields. The last is a real rarity in the area and will probably lead to some questions from eBird. But we got a pretty good look at it, got to hear it sing a couple of times and, between my Merlin App and Sibley's guidebook, I'm fairly confident with the ID.
From: ebird-checklist@cornell.edu
To: joated@aol.com
Sent: 4/21/2018 12:41:54 PM Eastern Standard Time
Subject: eBird Report - Hills Creek SP, Apr 21, 2018
Hills Creek SP, Tioga, Pennsylvania, US
Apr 21, 2018 8:00 AM - 11:00 AM
Protocol: Traveling
1.5 mile(s)
Comments: Beautiful morning, but started a bit chilly at around 25 degrees. [It was in the upper 40's when we finished.] Walked the usual route for a Park bird walk.
46 species
Canada Goose
Wood Duck
Mallard
Ring-necked Duck
Lesser Scaup
Bufflehead
Common Merganser
Ruddy Duck
Common Loon
Pied-billed Grebe
Horned Grebe
Double-crested Cormorant
Great Blue Heron
Osprey
Bald Eagle
Barred Owl: In the woods along the Mid-State Trail between the campground and the lake.
Belted Kingfisher
Yellow-bellied Sapsucker
Downy Woodpecker
Northern Flicker
Eastern Phoebe
Blue Jay
American Crow
Common Raven
Tree Swallow
Barn Swallow
Black-capped Chickadee
Tufted Titmouse
Ruby-crowned Kinglet
Eastern Bluebird
Hermit Thrush
American Robin
Gray Catbird
Brown Thrasher
European Starling
Dark-eyed Junco
White-throated Sparrow
Song Sparrow
Lincoln's Sparrow: One bird. Viewed out in the open. Distinctive song, yellowish mutton-chop whisker markings, thinnish bill. No yellow above the eye visible as in a Savannah Sparrow.
Eastern Towhee
Northern Cardinal
Red-winged Blackbird
Brown-headed Cowbird
Common Grackle
Purple Finch
American Goldfinch
Showing posts with label Hills Creek State Park. Show all posts
Showing posts with label Hills Creek State Park. Show all posts
Saturday, April 21, 2018
Saturday, April 14, 2018
Active Morning in Tioga County, PA
I had an interesting morning. It started with an early wake-up at 5 AM because today is Saturday and there was birding to be done at Hills Creek SP.
As I was feeding the cats, I heard a suspicious "thump!" out on the deck. Flicking on the outside lights my thoughts were confirmed. There were two bears out there raiding the feeders. The smaller was about my size (a shade over 200 pounds) while the larger was half again as big. I rapped on the windows and the large bear high-tailed it over the gate and into the woods. The smaller was too busy eating sunflower seeds and even ignored my second attempt to scare it away. It wasn't until I opened the front door and shouted at it that it reluctantly gave up its post and headed off after its partner in crime.
I decided NOT to feed the outdoor cats at that time...just in case.
******
After a brief stop at the McDonald's in Mansfield for a couple of sausage egg McMuffins a cup of coffee, I headed to HCSP to eat breakfast and listen to the birds wake up. I didn't start counting species until 7 AM. (The bird walks start at 8 AM, but by then I had already listed 15 species just around the park headquarters. We were to see/hear all of them during the walk.)
We started our walk shortly after 8 AM with 15 participants, several of whom are expert birders and photographers. We had a young girl with us--with her grandmother, a science teacher from Wellsboro, several members of the Methodist Church of Wellsboro (Rich Hanlon is the pastor there and was a leader of the walk this week), seven were members of the Tiadaghton Audubon Society, and a few other folks dropped by for the birding. Being as such a large group tends to move more slowly, not everyone could stay for the entire hike, but I believe everyone had a good time.
Three of us were keeping the (more or less) official count and, while we didn't quite agree at the end, we were all pretty close to the 48 species I recorded.
Canada Goose
Wood Duck
Mallard
Ring-necked Duck
Bufflehead
Hooded Merganser
Common Merganser
Pied-billed Grebe
Double-crested Cormorant
Great Blue Heron
Osprey
Bald Eagle
Spotted Sandpiper
Bonaparte's Gull
Ring-billed Gull
Belted Kingfisher
Red-bellied Woodpecker
Yellow-bellied Sapsucker
Downy Woodpecker
Northern Flicker
Eastern Phoebe
Blue-headed Vireo
Blue Jay
American Crow
Tree Swallow
Black-capped Chickadee
Tufted Titmouse
Red-breasted Nuthatch
White-breasted Nuthatch
Brown Creeper
Golden-crowned Kinglet
Ruby-crowned Kinglet
Eastern Bluebird
American Robin
Pine Warbler
Yellow-rumped Warbler
Chipping Sparrow
Dark-eyed Junco
White-throated Sparrow
Song Sparrow
Eastern Towhee
Northern Cardinal
Eastern Meadowlark
Red-winged Blackbird
Brown-headed Cowbird
Common Grackle
Pine Siskin
American Goldfinch
All in all, not a bad day. This may have been the best morning I've had at HCSP in a long time.
PS: The outdoor cats did get fed when I got home at noon. The three of them were present.
As I was feeding the cats, I heard a suspicious "thump!" out on the deck. Flicking on the outside lights my thoughts were confirmed. There were two bears out there raiding the feeders. The smaller was about my size (a shade over 200 pounds) while the larger was half again as big. I rapped on the windows and the large bear high-tailed it over the gate and into the woods. The smaller was too busy eating sunflower seeds and even ignored my second attempt to scare it away. It wasn't until I opened the front door and shouted at it that it reluctantly gave up its post and headed off after its partner in crime.
I decided NOT to feed the outdoor cats at that time...just in case.
******
After a brief stop at the McDonald's in Mansfield for a couple of sausage egg McMuffins a cup of coffee, I headed to HCSP to eat breakfast and listen to the birds wake up. I didn't start counting species until 7 AM. (The bird walks start at 8 AM, but by then I had already listed 15 species just around the park headquarters. We were to see/hear all of them during the walk.)
We started our walk shortly after 8 AM with 15 participants, several of whom are expert birders and photographers. We had a young girl with us--with her grandmother, a science teacher from Wellsboro, several members of the Methodist Church of Wellsboro (Rich Hanlon is the pastor there and was a leader of the walk this week), seven were members of the Tiadaghton Audubon Society, and a few other folks dropped by for the birding. Being as such a large group tends to move more slowly, not everyone could stay for the entire hike, but I believe everyone had a good time.
Three of us were keeping the (more or less) official count and, while we didn't quite agree at the end, we were all pretty close to the 48 species I recorded.
Canada Goose
Wood Duck
Mallard
Ring-necked Duck
Bufflehead
Hooded Merganser
Common Merganser
Pied-billed Grebe
Double-crested Cormorant
Great Blue Heron
Osprey
Bald Eagle
Spotted Sandpiper
Bonaparte's Gull
Ring-billed Gull
Belted Kingfisher
Red-bellied Woodpecker
Yellow-bellied Sapsucker
Downy Woodpecker
Northern Flicker
Eastern Phoebe
Blue-headed Vireo
Blue Jay
American Crow
Tree Swallow
Black-capped Chickadee
Tufted Titmouse
Red-breasted Nuthatch
White-breasted Nuthatch
Brown Creeper
Golden-crowned Kinglet
Ruby-crowned Kinglet
Eastern Bluebird
American Robin
Pine Warbler
Yellow-rumped Warbler
Chipping Sparrow
Dark-eyed Junco
White-throated Sparrow
Song Sparrow
Eastern Towhee
Northern Cardinal
Eastern Meadowlark
Red-winged Blackbird
Brown-headed Cowbird
Common Grackle
Pine Siskin
American Goldfinch
All in all, not a bad day. This may have been the best morning I've had at HCSP in a long time.
PS: The outdoor cats did get fed when I got home at noon. The three of them were present.
Tuesday, May 09, 2017
More Birding Today
I made stops at Hills Creek State Park, The Muck and Darling Run on the Pine Creek Rails-to-Trails path today. It was a pretty good day when taken together though things certainly slowed down in the midday when I reached Darling Run.
Hills Creek yielded the largest number of species--and I only covered a small part of what we do on our Saturday walks. I primarily stayed in the day use/beach area walking the shoreline. I did go to the northern end at the Beaver Dam boat launch and picked up a Tundra Swan (very late in the year!), Double-crested Cormorant, and a Barred Owl there.
Canada Goose
Tundra Swan* (Large white swan with all black bill.)
Wood Duck
Mallard
Common Merganser
Double-crested Cormorant
Osprey
Bald Eagle
Spotted Sandpiper
Mourning Dove
Barred Owl
Eastern Phoebe
Blue Jay
American Crow
Northern Rough-winged Swallow
Tree Swallow
Barn Swallow
Black-capped Chickadee
White-breasted Nuthatch
House Wren
American Robin
Gray Catbird
Common Yellowthroat
Palm Warbler
White-throated Sparrow
Song Sparrow
Northern Cardinal
Red-winged Blackbird
* First of the year
There was another oddity: A male Wood Duck seemed to be hanging with a female Common Merganser. Now, I know that they both will lay eggs in the same nest boxes, but these two looked and behaved like a mated pair. A real odd couple.
The pictures (I apologize for the poor quality. The subjects were backlit and made getting them in focus difficult.) :
******
The Muck was my second stop and it too produced some "new" birds. The trail out to the blind was partially underwater just before reaching the boardwalk. The recent rains have really raised water levels! Nonetheless, I waded through the 2-3 inches of water and am glad I did! I was not in the blind long when a Common Gallinule showed up. And far out in the water there was a Canvasback. Both were "new" for the year.
The Muck list:
Canada Goose
Wood Duck
Mallard
Canvasback* (Listed as "rare for this time and place by eBird)
Ring-necked Duck (Listed as "rare for this time and place by eBird)
Great Blue Heron
Red-tailed Hawk
Common Gallinule* (Listed as "rare for this time and place by eBird)
Mourning Dove
American Crow
Northern Rough-winged Swallow
Tree Swallow
Barn Swallow
Marsh Wren (Listed as "rare for this time and place by eBird)
American Robin
Gray Catbird
European Starling
Yellow Warbler*
Song Sparrow
Swamp Sparrow
Red-winged Blackbird
The pictures:
******
It was nearly noon when I reached Darling Run and with the lateness of the day, I wasn't surprised that things were very, very slow. After checking out the eagles' nest across the creek, I walked from the parking area south along the bike trail to mile marker 9 (about 1/2 mile) and back.
The meager list form that mile walk:
Belted Kingfisher
Downy Woodpecker
Northern Flicker
Eastern Phoebe
American Crow
Fish Crow
Tree Swallow
Gray Catbird
Common Yellowthroat
Song Sparrow
Red-winged Blackbird
Only one bird "posed" for a photo:
It's been a couple of beautiful days weatherwise and in the field. I think I'm going to stay home tomorrow even if the weather is nice and spend some time around the house. We've a team together for the Global Big Day coming up on Saturday and, with the Hills Creek bird walk kicking things off, it's going to be a long day of birding.
Hills Creek yielded the largest number of species--and I only covered a small part of what we do on our Saturday walks. I primarily stayed in the day use/beach area walking the shoreline. I did go to the northern end at the Beaver Dam boat launch and picked up a Tundra Swan (very late in the year!), Double-crested Cormorant, and a Barred Owl there.
Canada Goose
Tundra Swan* (Large white swan with all black bill.)
Wood Duck
Mallard
Common Merganser
Double-crested Cormorant
Osprey
Bald Eagle
Spotted Sandpiper
Mourning Dove
Barred Owl
Eastern Phoebe
Blue Jay
American Crow
Northern Rough-winged Swallow
Tree Swallow
Barn Swallow
Black-capped Chickadee
White-breasted Nuthatch
House Wren
American Robin
Gray Catbird
Common Yellowthroat
Palm Warbler
White-throated Sparrow
Song Sparrow
Northern Cardinal
Red-winged Blackbird
* First of the year
There was another oddity: A male Wood Duck seemed to be hanging with a female Common Merganser. Now, I know that they both will lay eggs in the same nest boxes, but these two looked and behaved like a mated pair. A real odd couple.
The pictures (I apologize for the poor quality. The subjects were backlit and made getting them in focus difficult.) :
 |
| Tundra Swan |
 |
| Spotted Sandpiper |
 |
| The Odd Couple: Female Common Merganser and male Wood Duck |
******
The Muck was my second stop and it too produced some "new" birds. The trail out to the blind was partially underwater just before reaching the boardwalk. The recent rains have really raised water levels! Nonetheless, I waded through the 2-3 inches of water and am glad I did! I was not in the blind long when a Common Gallinule showed up. And far out in the water there was a Canvasback. Both were "new" for the year.
The Muck list:
Canada Goose
Wood Duck
Mallard
Canvasback* (Listed as "rare for this time and place by eBird)
Ring-necked Duck (Listed as "rare for this time and place by eBird)
Great Blue Heron
Red-tailed Hawk
Common Gallinule* (Listed as "rare for this time and place by eBird)
Mourning Dove
American Crow
Northern Rough-winged Swallow
Tree Swallow
Barn Swallow
Marsh Wren (Listed as "rare for this time and place by eBird)
American Robin
Gray Catbird
European Starling
Yellow Warbler*
Song Sparrow
Swamp Sparrow
Red-winged Blackbird
The pictures:
 |
| Common Gallinule |
 |
| Ring-necked Duck |
 |
| Canvasback |
******
It was nearly noon when I reached Darling Run and with the lateness of the day, I wasn't surprised that things were very, very slow. After checking out the eagles' nest across the creek, I walked from the parking area south along the bike trail to mile marker 9 (about 1/2 mile) and back.
The meager list form that mile walk:
Belted Kingfisher
Downy Woodpecker
Northern Flicker
Eastern Phoebe
American Crow
Fish Crow
Tree Swallow
Gray Catbird
Common Yellowthroat
Song Sparrow
Red-winged Blackbird
Only one bird "posed" for a photo:
 |
| Female Downy Woodpecker |
 |
| Female Downy Woodpecker |
It's been a couple of beautiful days weatherwise and in the field. I think I'm going to stay home tomorrow even if the weather is nice and spend some time around the house. We've a team together for the Global Big Day coming up on Saturday and, with the Hills Creek bird walk kicking things off, it's going to be a long day of birding.
Saturday, May 06, 2017
Saturday Birding in the Rain
Those of you living in the North East do not have to be told about how wet it's been lately. Those horrendous storms from southern Missouri have made their way here and are likely to stay around for a good long while. While we haven't had the flooding the southern folks have experienced, we have had some tornadoes and wind storms that have produced damage. (Last Monday there were six tornadoes recorded in Pennsylvania--three were EF0 and three were EF1 in strength. Tuesday we had gusting gale force winds.) There's been a goodly number of power outages as a result. Here in Tioga County, both Wellsboro and Mansfield have gone without power for hours on end.Even today (Saturday) Wellsboro lost power for a couple of hours as trees continue to fall and power grids get overwhelmed with recirculating the flow.
That said, the Tiadaghton Audubon Society held its regular Saturday morning bird walk at Hills Creek State Park today. With members absent to go to a birding festival in Erie and to band shore birds in Delaware, only Gary and I showed up to lead the walk--which started at 8 AM with just Gary and me. Two campers staying at the park did join us shortly after we started but we had to end the walk early when the rain returned.
I recorded 15 species in the HQ parking lot between 7 and 8 AM and another dozen or so in our brief walk around the beach area.
Canada Goose
Mallard
Ruddy Duck
Great Blue Heron
Osprey
Bald Eagle
Spotted Sandpiper
Hairy Woodpecker
Eastern Phoebe
Blue Jay
American Crow
Northern Rough-winged Swallow
Tree Swallow
Barn Swallow
Black-capped Chickadee
Red-breasted Nuthatch
Eastern Bluebird
American Robin
European Starling
Ovenbird
Chipping Sparrow
Song Sparrow
Eastern Towhee
Northern Cardinal
Red-winged Blackbird
Common Grackle
Brown-headed Cowbird
There may have been other waterfowl on the lake near the northern end but they were too distant for a good ID. Some looked to be Double-crested Cormorants. And we didn't get into the best warbler zones on our brief walk and none of the little buggers bothered to come to visit us.
On the way home, I spotted 4 or more Wood Duck on a small beaver pond along Shaw road but didn't stop to look for more. Then I saw a Ruffed Grouse cross the road and meander into the woods. Not the brightest of birds, grouse depend upon camouflage and surprise to make good their escape. (Anyone who has unexpectedly had a grouse explode from cover at their feet will tell you how heart-stopping the experience can be!) This particular bird went for the camo.
That said, the Tiadaghton Audubon Society held its regular Saturday morning bird walk at Hills Creek State Park today. With members absent to go to a birding festival in Erie and to band shore birds in Delaware, only Gary and I showed up to lead the walk--which started at 8 AM with just Gary and me. Two campers staying at the park did join us shortly after we started but we had to end the walk early when the rain returned.
I recorded 15 species in the HQ parking lot between 7 and 8 AM and another dozen or so in our brief walk around the beach area.
Canada Goose
Mallard
Ruddy Duck
Great Blue Heron
Osprey
Bald Eagle
Spotted Sandpiper
Hairy Woodpecker
Eastern Phoebe
Blue Jay
American Crow
Northern Rough-winged Swallow
Tree Swallow
Barn Swallow
Black-capped Chickadee
Red-breasted Nuthatch
Eastern Bluebird
American Robin
European Starling
Ovenbird
Chipping Sparrow
Song Sparrow
Eastern Towhee
Northern Cardinal
Red-winged Blackbird
Common Grackle
Brown-headed Cowbird
There may have been other waterfowl on the lake near the northern end but they were too distant for a good ID. Some looked to be Double-crested Cormorants. And we didn't get into the best warbler zones on our brief walk and none of the little buggers bothered to come to visit us.
On the way home, I spotted 4 or more Wood Duck on a small beaver pond along Shaw road but didn't stop to look for more. Then I saw a Ruffed Grouse cross the road and meander into the woods. Not the brightest of birds, grouse depend upon camouflage and surprise to make good their escape. (Anyone who has unexpectedly had a grouse explode from cover at their feet will tell you how heart-stopping the experience can be!) This particular bird went for the camo.
 |
| Ruffed Grouse |
Saturday, May 09, 2015
Birding on May 9th, 2015
A decent morning birding with the Tiadaghton Audubon Society at Hills Creek State Park and then a pretty nice picnic afterward. In between, I did a short walk of my own over on Pine Creek at Darling Run that yielded a few additional species including a First of the Year Baltimore Oriole.(Of course one also showed up at the picnic a few hours later so everybody got to see it.)
I tend to simply list species without trying to come up with a number of individuals. I know it's less helpful for scientific purposes but how can you be sure it's not the same bird fluttering ahead of you along the trail? Or, if you walk back the same way that you came, that it's not a different bird singing in the bushes? Besides, I keep the species list for my own curiosity.
Anyway, here's the list(s) I came up with today.
I tend to simply list species without trying to come up with a number of individuals. I know it's less helpful for scientific purposes but how can you be sure it's not the same bird fluttering ahead of you along the trail? Or, if you walk back the same way that you came, that it's not a different bird singing in the bushes? Besides, I keep the species list for my own curiosity.
Anyway, here's the list(s) I came up with today.
Hills Creek SP, Tioga, US-PA
May 9, 2015 7:45 AM - 10:15 AM
Protocol: Traveling
2.0 mile(s)
36 species
Canada Goose
Mallard
Great Blue Heron
Turkey Vulture
Bald Eagle
Spotted Sandpiper
Ring-billed Gull
Pileated Woodpecker
Eastern Phoebe
Warbling Vireo [FOY]
May 9, 2015 7:45 AM - 10:15 AM
Protocol: Traveling
2.0 mile(s)
36 species
Canada Goose
Mallard
Great Blue Heron
Turkey Vulture
Bald Eagle
Spotted Sandpiper
Ring-billed Gull
Pileated Woodpecker
Eastern Phoebe
Warbling Vireo [FOY]
Red-eyed Vireo
Blue Jay
American Crow
Fish Crow [FOY]
Tree Swallow
Barn Swallow
Black-capped Chickadee
Tufted Titmouse
Red-breasted Nuthatch
White-breasted Nuthatch
Eastern Bluebird
Wood Thrush
American Robin
Gray Catbird
Ovenbird
Common Yellowthroat
Yellow Warbler
Chestnut-sided Warbler
[FOY] Yellow-rumped Warbler
Black-throated Green Warbler
Eastern Towhee
Chipping Sparrow
Dark-eyed Junco
Northern Cardinal
Red-winged Blackbird
American Goldfinch
View this checklist online at http://ebird.org/ebird/view/checklist?subID=S23329809
This report was generated automatically by eBird v3 (http://ebird.org)
Blue Jay
American Crow
Fish Crow [FOY]
Tree Swallow
Barn Swallow
Black-capped Chickadee
Tufted Titmouse
Red-breasted Nuthatch
White-breasted Nuthatch
Eastern Bluebird
Wood Thrush
American Robin
Gray Catbird
Ovenbird
Common Yellowthroat
Yellow Warbler
Chestnut-sided Warbler
[FOY] Yellow-rumped Warbler
Black-throated Green Warbler
Eastern Towhee
Chipping Sparrow
Dark-eyed Junco
Northern Cardinal
Red-winged Blackbird
American Goldfinch
View this checklist online at http://ebird.org/ebird/view/checklist?subID=S23329809
This report was generated automatically by eBird v3 (http://ebird.org)
Pine Creek/Darling Run, Tioga, US-PA
May 9, 2015 10:50 AM - 11:30 AM
Protocol: Traveling
1.0 mile(s)
17 species
May 9, 2015 10:50 AM - 11:30 AM
Protocol: Traveling
1.0 mile(s)
17 species
[This list contains numbers because 1-it was an easy one to compile, and 2-it was submitted for the Migratory Bird Count,]
Canada Goose 14
Common Merganser 2
Belted Kingfisher 1
Red-eyed Vireo 2
Blue Jay 2
American Crow 3
Tree Swallow 2
American Robin 3
Gray Catbird 2
Ovenbird 1
Common Yellowthroat 3
Black-throated Green Warbler 2
Chipping Sparrow 4
Song Sparrow 6
Red-winged Blackbird 2
Common Grackle 1
Baltimore Oriole 1 [FOY]
View this checklist online at http://ebird.org/ebird/view/checklist?subID=S23329666
This report was generated automatically by eBird v3 (http://ebird.org)
Canada Goose 14
Common Merganser 2
Belted Kingfisher 1
Red-eyed Vireo 2
Blue Jay 2
American Crow 3
Tree Swallow 2
American Robin 3
Gray Catbird 2
Ovenbird 1
Common Yellowthroat 3
Black-throated Green Warbler 2
Chipping Sparrow 4
Song Sparrow 6
Red-winged Blackbird 2
Common Grackle 1
Baltimore Oriole 1 [FOY]
View this checklist online at http://ebird.org/ebird/view/checklist?subID=S23329666
This report was generated automatically by eBird v3 (http://ebird.org)
Subscribe to:
Posts (Atom)