Tree Hollow
I always walk past this decaying dogwood tree hoping to find something in here – a roosting owl, the beginning of a nest, some small mammal crammed in there for a nap. It is probably in too open of an area for anything, but my hope remains. Someday, something…always keep an eye open for shelters like this one, and one day you may end up with a little gift. Once again, this is why we should leave our dying or dead woody vegetation in place. At least it serves as a place to grab a meal. Scott Kruitbosch Conservation & Outreach Coordinator
Read MoreChuck-will’s-widow (Antrostomus carolinensis)
This Chuck-will’s-widow (Antrostomus carolinensis), a female, was captured and banded in Costa Rica by RTPI Affiliate Sean Graesser, a first for the site list at Cabo Blanco, Costa Rica’s first national park. What makes the species special to us is a great birding memory from the spring of 2012. One early May morning I was walking the property at Stratford Point in Stratford, Connecticut, conducting an avian site survey. It was a temperate but cloudy, drizzly and foggy morning, with some confused migrant birds overshooting their likely targets, pushing into Long Island Sound and...
Read MoreLong-eared Owl (Asio otus)
Here’s an old photo from one of my point and shoot cameras, zoomed in quite far about 30 times and further cropped, of a Long-eared Owl (Asio otus) roosting in a tree. Taking such a photo during the daylight hours, in the bright winter sun, of such a sensitive bird species should only be done from far away. You do not want to risk disturbing or flushing them from their location as Long-eared Owls are especially sensitive to human intrusion. They will be alarmed easily and fly from the location, exposing them to attacks from other predators and mobbing by songbirds. They will also often...
Read MoreSnowy Egret in December
I photographed this Snowy Egret last weekend in Stratford, Connecticut, as part of a Christmas Bird Count. It is one of only several recorded anywhere in the state in the last few decades during a CBC period. Climate change certainly has helped many new species pop up on these late autumn/early winter December days when they would normally be long gone to our south. I cannot blame the climate fully when accounting for this long-legged wader because while it appears to be perched at the edge of a coastal river or stream any waterbird would love, the water here is actually the outflow from a...
Read MoreSnowy Owl in Dunkirk, New York
This tremendous photo of a Snowy Owl at Wright Park Beach in Dunkirk, New York was taken this morning by our friend Gale VerHague. She used a basic point and shoot camera showing how easily we can safely photograph these birds from a distance thanks to a good zoom, especially if you have a scope. Giving them space is important so that they can rest during the day and hunt at night – in this case, likely waterfowl on Lake Erie. It is all the more necessary when, as Gale told me, birds like American Crows have honed in on the raptor as they were harassing this individual. Please try to...
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