April 22, 2012

Iroquois and Montezuma NWR's...

I swung through the Iroquois and Montezuma NWR's again on my latest foray to conduct Northern Harrier and Short-eared Owl surveys in NY.  While both visits fell during a poor time of day, there were still some feathered friends kind enough to allow for viewing pleasure.  It was still very much spring and not yet summer, but the Tree Swallows were out and about, looking perfectly coiffed in all their sapphire glory...


 
This little guy obviously meant business and was likely to pull a Monty Python's Holy Grail-style rabbit-attack if anyone dared to not obey the sign...




Though my digi-scoping skills clearly have gone to rust, I was very excited to see my only-second-ever Caspian Tern on it's migratory pit-stop at Iroquois.  I think it may have been asking that American Wigeon for directions...






Since my last visit, Iroquois staff have been busy setting up nesting tubes for the ducks...






And the fowl, in turn, have been busy occupying them...




I finally got a photo of a militant Red-winged Blackbird (RWBL).  The word for that red-shoulder - 'epaulet', must be related somehow to the term for military uniform shoulder boards - 'epaulette', which is french for "little shoulder"...how perfect.  But I prefer to think that the RWBL's came first - inspiring military, runway, and rock-star fashions alike...




I saw more American Coots than I've ever seen in Maine and was delighted to actually hear them as well.  They made a sound I can only liken to a squeaky bicycle horn crossed with a kazoo...




Then at Montezuma there were these distant swans adorned with sassy green wing tags.  I think they were Tundras, but admit I was too hurried to bust out my scope and window mount.  The tractor trailer trucks on I-90 made for such a lovely background...






American Kestrels were seemingly everywhere and Turkey Vultures kept materializing out of nowhere...





Scoobs eventually tired of all the roadside birding, signaling it was time to head out...



Overall it was fun, fun, fun - and I look forward to once again stopping by these magnificent examples of habitat conservation and management during my next trip to NY.
  

6 comments:

  1. Nice post Lauren. Those are some dynamite Swallow shots.

    I think you are dead on the mark with your description of the Coot call. I've never had the right words to describe it, but you reached deep down into the soul and found the expressive description to finally make the Coot noise translatable to us mortals--preciate it : )

    I love the comment with the Caspian Tern and the Wigeon. What do you suppose happened to the Tern in that second image? It looks like he just face-planted, or like the Wigeon responded, "Sorry buddy you're wayyyy of course) and then he banged his head in incredulous frustration.

    Cheers!

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    1. Ha! Thank you! I think you're spot on with the tern! I was surprised to see them hanging out so close together. Glad you can relate to my coot call describers - there was really just no other way to put it...

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  2. Lauren: I enjoyed your narrative. Coots are such cool birds!

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    1. Thanks Josh! Coots sure are crazy birds, how could something with lobed toes not be awesome?!

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  3. Lauren: I too enjoyed your narrative. Sorry, I'm a copycat. Coots do make some crazy sounds sometimes. Those nest tube things are fascinating- I don't recall ever seeing anything like that out here. What birds use them? Just any waterfowl?

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    1. I frustratingly couldn't get an ID on the hen in that one, she was too tucked in and in the dark! I think that most any duck would take advantage of such a sweet, dry, safe and over-the-water nesting spot. Sure would save energy on nest building! I just like to say the words "nest tube", sounds like a medical instrument or something...

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