Hudson River Almanac 1/25/16 - 1/31/16
The New York State Department of Environmental Conservation sent this bulletin on 02/05/2016 03:29 PM EST |
| DEC Delivers - Information to keep you connected and informed from the NYS Department of Environmental Conservation |
| Share or view as a web page || Update preferences or unsubscribe |
|
|
OVERVIEW Last week’s blizzard spared the Hudson Valley north of Dutchess and Ulster Counties, but Old Man Winter finally surfaced in this region as ice spread over parts of the river. However, with plenty of open water still available, we continued to receive word of many waterfowl sightings, and keen-eyed observers found three species of owls. HIGHLIGHT OF THE WEEK
NATURAL HISTORY NOTES 1/25 - Albany County: There had been persistent but decreasing open water on Alcove Reservoir over the last week, concentrating some nice waterfowl, including a drake canvasback, a redhead duck, several lingering American wigeons, and five other species along with a raft of almost 300 ring-necked ducks. Today the reservoir had more open water but waterfowl numbers were much reduced. However, there was a nice surprise to offset the lack of ducks: a barred owl was perched on the side of the road in full afternoon sunlight. 1/25 - Crugers, HRM 39: We stopped at Ogilvie’s Pond this morning and found the resident great blue heron hunkered down on the corner of the cement wall that abuts the pond. There was only a small area of open water; the rest of the pond was coated with ice. We enjoyed watching the heron, especially since we hadn't seen it in quite some time. 1/25 - Oscawana, HRM 38.5: In addition to an adult bald eagle perched on the point, we were entertained by the antics of more than a dozen hooded mergansers frantically diving and swimming around the inlet to Furnace Brook. It was hard to count them since they were so active. The mouth of this tidal brook has been a favorite winter hangout for hooded mergansers in recent years. 1/25 - Furnace Woods, HRM 38.5: Our snowdrops continued to thrive on these warm days. They first appeared ten days ago - probably a new “early bloom” record for snowdrops. They will be fine. It is the other spring bulbs, some of them eight to ten inches out of the ground, that I worry about should real winter come. 1/26 - Saratoga County, HRM 182: The only open water I could find today on Saratoga Lake was just offshore at Manning Cove. The waterfowl – black ducks, mallards, and Canada geese – were going in and out, sharing the open water. Out on the ice I spotted an immature bald eagle feeding on some prey. 1/26 - Saratoga Springs, HRM 182: With Saratoga Lake almost completed iced-over, I checked the nearby Lake Lonely outlet. Among the notables were 16 Canada geese, six wood ducks (four drakes, two hens), four greater scaup (three drakes, one hen), two hen hooded mergansers, and at least two dozen mallards and black ducks. 1/26 - Austerlitz, HRM 124: I had a good long look at a golden eagle in my field today. It was checking out some scraps of white-tailed deer heads and hides left by hunters. I must have inadvertently spooked it, as the eagle flew away into the woods. 1/26 - Selkirk, HRM 135: A lone drake redhead duck was sleeping with about 500 Canada geese in a Bethlehem water treatment pond today.
[Bald eagle nests are accretional, in that they grow in overall size each year with the circumference expanding and the sides rising. This pair’s first nest (2001), in a white pine about three miles away, eventually grew too much for the limbs that held it. Fortunately, the collapse occurred in the fall and the pair had time to build a new nest nearby for the following season. Tom Lake.] 1/27 - Town of Poughkeepsie, HRM 68: We counted eight or more bald eagles out on the ice offshore of Bowdoin Park this afternoon. With the advent of cold nights upriver, the long-awaited ice, albeit loose floes, was covering nearly half of the river now. 1/27 - New Hamburg, HRM 67.5: While the winter season remained warmer than usual, ice from upriver was being drawn down river by the tides. We watched a pair of adult bald eagles sitting together out on the ice as their floe raced upriver on the flood current. The strong ice flow heading north played against the inshore ice, anchored by the shallows, providing a sounding board for a symphony of winter music. 1/27 - Nantucket Island, Massachusetts: This was Day 48 at sea for Charlie the Gray Seal, rescued from the Hudson River in Saratoga County and released back into the ocean from Long Island on December 10. According to satellite data, Charlie has been spending time around Nantucket Island as well as Little Gull Island, off the north fork of Long Island, known hangouts for gray seals in winter. It appears that Charlie suffered no ill effects from being marooned for 133 days away from tidewater in the upper Hudson. 1/28 - Kingston, HRM 92: We spotted a snowy owl flying across the Lowe’s parking lot where it landed on a light standard. It stayed there for about a minute before it flew off into the darkness. This is at least the third time in recent years this location has hosted a snowy owl. 1/28 - Town of Poughkeepsie: This morning was another day of nest renovation. Both adults in eagle nest NY62 left and returned with various sized twigs and branches. Mom’s contribution was an evergreen (probably a white pine) branch. [While we frequently chronicle the exploits of bald eagle nest NY62, this is only one of perhaps three-dozen that are along the river, or within a few minutes flight time, from the Adirondacks to the sea. The activities described at NY62 are largely true for all of these nests as mated pairs go through an instinctive series of steps leading to the laying and incubation of eggs. Tom Lake.] 1/28 - Inwood Hill Park, HRM 13.5: With six to eight inches of snow on the ground, the park was almost as empty of birds as of people. No birds came to the seed I spread in a usual feeding spot. With the evergreen ground-cover plants snowed in, the only color was the few white pines and hollies. In an hour’s walk up onto the ridge, I saw two very small red-bellied woodpeckers (and heard them call and drum briefly), a cardinal, two blue jays, a white-throated sparrow, and a pair of black-capped chickadees. I glimpsed what I took to be a trio of mockingbirds flying among the trees and heard a cry that sounded like a red-tailed hawk. This has been a very different season from the last couple of winters here. 1/29 - Green Island, HRM 154: Our Thursday Birders had a quiet morning. At the head of tide, despite the dazzling sun glare, we identified two hen lesser scaup. Later, we found four bald eagles on the ice above the federal dam. 1/29 - Norrie Point, HRM 85: Last week's cold weather finally brought river ice to our Mid-Hudson reach. The daily U.S. Coast Guard ice report indicated that the ice pack peaked four days ago at around 90%. This morning, the outgoing ice had thinned to about 50%, but eagles were out in force at Norrie Point. My final tally was six adults and three immatures. [Aerial photo of Hudson River at Esopus Meadows - just north of Norrie Point - courtesy U.S. Coast Guard.]
1/29 - Town of Wappinger, HRM 67: There are some sounds that tend to draw you awake no matter how deep you sleep. Along with owls, coyote yips are one of those sounds. Two hours before dawn the call of several coyotes had me awake and looking out the door into the woods. Coyotes are one of a handful of iconic species in our watershed whose presence authenticates remnants of wildness. Along with eagles, loons, ravens, moose, bobcats, and black bears, a chorus of coyotes rekindles remembrances of times long ago. 1/30 - Northumberland, HRM 190: There was not much going on along the roads through the Northumberland farmland. With no snow cover, birds were hard to find. I did come upon a northern harrier and about 75 Canada geese in one field. In a stand of sumac, there were no fewer than 800 starlings. 1/30 - Saratoga County, HRM 169: The resident Ballston Lake bald eagles have not yet had to migrate in search of consistently open water, as evident by their flyover today. With weather forecasted to be above freezing in the week ahead, the few areas of open water on the lake should increase. Perhaps they will stay for the winter. 1/30 - Saratoga County, HRM 166: I walked over the bridge today and – on the island on which Lock 2 of the Champlain Canal resides – as far up as I could. The river was mostly free of ice and I estimated 75 Canada geese were present. Two bald eagles, one adult, one immature, flew past the lock while I was there. 1/30 - Verplanck, HRM 40.5: While visiting the Veterans’ Park in hopes of seeing eagles, we were surprised to see a “murmuration” (now that we’ve learned a new word) of starlings – several hundred at least – foraging on the lawn. We didn’t spot any eagles but saw four double-crested cormorants on the channel marker. 1/30 - Dogan Point to Croton Point, HRM 39.5-34: The Hackensack River Canoe and Kayak Club made their annual pilgrimage upriver to look for eagles. The final tally on bald eagles was just ten birds - far fewer than we ordinarily see in late January - a reflection of the warm winter and lack of river ice. We did find a huge assemblage of drake common mergansers off Dogan Point. Through our spotting scope, even at a distance, we could see their red bills. A gray catbird at Croton Point was a surprise as well. 1/31 - Town of Poughkeepsie, HRM 75: The air temperature reached 62 degrees Fahrenheit today, tying the record high for the date. 1/31 - New Hamburg, HRM 67.5: For the first time this season I watched two adult bald eagles, probably a mated pair, perform a ritual that can only be described as a ballet in the air. Flying close to each other, they exchanged soft body bumps and wing-touches, almost caresses, before heading across the river to perch at Cedarcliff. These performances are a prelude to their mating season. By the end of February, Mom may be on eggs. 1/31 - East Fishkill, HRM 66 This past week we've had two red foxes in our yard every day. The larger of the two, probably the male, has gorgeous long black front legs. They stay for hours, just sitting on a stone wall or running around playing. Our crows and ravens scream as loud as they can, either from annoyance or just being crows and ravens. We have seen these foxes many times before but they've never stayed in the yard for hours at a time. [At this time of the year, especially with the unusual warm winter, these are likely a mated pair (red foxes form lifetime attachments). Diane may see some kits come May. Tom Lake.] WINTER 2016 NATURAL HISTORY PROGRAMS Saturday, February 6: 9:00 a.m. - 4:00 p.m.(bad weather date February 7) Saturday, February 13: 2:00 p.m. HUDSON RIVER MILES The Hudson is measured north from Hudson River Mile 0 at the Battery at the southern tip of Manhattan. The George Washington Bridge is at HRM 12, the Tappan Zee 28, Bear Mountain 47, Beacon-Newburgh 62, Mid-Hudson 75, Kingston-Rhinecliff 95, Rip Van Winkle 114, and the Federal Dam at Troy, the head of tidewater, at 153. The tidal section of the Hudson constitutes a bit less than half the total distance – 315 miles – from Lake Tear of the Clouds to the Battery. Entries from points east and west in the watershed reference the corresponding river mile on the mainstem. TO CONTRIBUTE YOUR OBSERVATIONS OR TO SUBSCRIBE Smartphone app available for New York outdoor enthusiasts! Copies of past issues of the Hudson River Almanac, Volumes II-VIII, are available for purchase from the publisher, Purple Mountain Press, (800) 325-2665, or email purple@catskill.net
|
1/25 - Stanfordville, HRM 84: I have a habit of always looking in tree cavities to see if an owl is in there. I stopped along a road today thinking that I was photographing a lump of wood that resembled an owl, an image to post on the very funny Facebook Bird Misidentification Page. (I have a collection of wood-lump owl photos.) Was I ever surprised when I looked at the camera screen and saw an owl looking back! It was not a lump of wood, but an amazingly camouflaged screech owl, a purely accidental find. [Photo of red-phase screech owl courtesy of Deborah Tracy-Kral.]
1/26 - Town of Poughkeepsie: This morning Mom brought back a nice little stick to eagle nest NY62. Dad came in later with what looked to be a “tree,” easily as long at the eagle’s wing span. [Photo of adult bald eagle carrying stick to nest courtesy of Bob Rightmyer.]
|
The New York State Department of Environmental Conservation respects your right to privacy and welcomes your feedback. | Update preferences or unsubscribe. | Learn more about DEC Delivers. |
|
Connect with DEC:   
|
 |