Greater Yellowlegs and continuing Connecticut surveys
Are you a Connecticut birder? Do you use eBird? Are you passing through Roger Tory Peterson’s former home in the Nutmeg state at some point and planning on enjoying some of the fine coastal waterbirds it features? Please remember to share your eBird checklists with us via the share function at ctwaterbirds@gmail.com and your contribution to the Audubon Alliance for Coastal Waterbirds will be readily accepted and heartily appreciated! Nesting season may have ended months ago and will not start for several more but we have a great mix of wintering long-legged waders and shorebirds, like...
Read MoreDark-eyed Junco (Junco hyemalis)
Have “your” Dark-eyed Juncos (Junco hyemalis) returned yet? While many of us in the Chautauqua-Allegheny region have them year-round there are millions upon millions more pouring into our yards now, readying to dine at your place all winter. Juncos can be so variable in pattern and are always a lot of fun to study on a frigid, snowy day. In the past I have particularly enjoyed seeing some with eye rings and others with wing bars! Scott Kruitbosch Conservation & Outreach Coordinator
Read MoreChestnut-sided Warbler close-ups
Today while conducting field work for several hours at a few sites in Pennsylvania I enjoyed numerous great looks at Chestnut-sided Warblers. These birds of shrub/scrub habitat and secondary growth are distinctive and beautiful in appearance and song. Whenever I see them now I am reminded of Twan and Sean and RTPI’s work in the tropics. In Costa Rica in the Chestnut-sided wintering range they enjoy watching the birds turn into little “meatballs” as they fatten up for the flight north. In fact a Chestnut-sided Warbler banded in Rara Avis was recaptured twice over a four year...
Read MoreTennessee Warbler sightings and numbers
The Tennessee Warbler (Oreothlypis peregrina) is probably one of those migrants you’re glad to find in either the spring or the fall. It is most often an uncommon treat for the U.S. or Canadian birder as a species that breeds in the boreal forest and can readily blend into the background. Looking at my last five years of eBirding I see only 14 records and half of those came from the last fall season here in and around Chautauqua County, New York. All of the records were of one or two individuals. Suffice it to say it is a tough spot here but this is currently not the case in Costa...
Read MoreRecaptured Northern Waterthrush
RTPI Affiliate Sean Graesser discusses a recaptured Northern Waterthrush (Parkesia noveboracensis) that has been spending multiple winters in Costa Rica’s Curu Wildlife Reserve. He talks about the importance of such a finding and the goals of this tropical research as well as why the birds of our backyards need our help. Video by RTPI President Twan Leenders in December 2013.
Read More
