BIRD NOTES Nov. 17, 2006

Bird Notes

Birding with New Yorkers on the Coast

Wind out of the south at 15, sunny, temperature in the high 60s, the ocean with 10-12 foot ground swells. Sounds like a description of a day at the Outer Banks of North Carolina. Actually it took place on the 11^th of November along the rocky coast of Boston’s North Shore. We have lead many trips at this time of year for the Mearns Club of Orange Co., NY, but weather-wise this one took the cake. The birds weren’t too bad either and the participant turnout was a record breaker when 18 gathered at the Gloucester Fishermen’s Monument meeting place. Highlights included Purple Sandpiper, Common Eider, Old Squaw, Surf, White-winged and Black Scoters, 2 Black-headed Gulls, Red-necked Grebe, Red-throated Loon, 8 Black Guillemots, Peregrine Falcon, Northern Gannets and about 50 elegant Harlequin Ducks.

Sunday morning brought with it wind and showers. So our day at Plum Island was less than perfect. But who would remember that after seeing the Snowy Owl perched atop a Tree Swallow nest box at the Salt Pannes and the looks everyone had at the RBAs Green-tailed Towhee.

New England Welcomes New Wilderness Areas

On Wednesday, two of the Northeast's largest unprotected roadless areas were permanently protected as Wilderness. Glastenbury Mountain and Wild River Basin are two of the areas that became Wilderness when the U.S. House of Representatives approved the New England Wilderness Act of 2006. The Act now awaits the President's signature.

The New England Wilderness Act of 2006 adds 76,500 acres of Vermont's Green Mountain National Forest and New Hampshire's White Mountain National Forest to the National Wilderness Preservation System. The bill also creates Moosalamoo - a 17,000 acre National Recreation Area - in the Green Mountain National Forest. ---The Wilderness Society

S I G H T I N G S

Yesterday around 1:00 pm I had two Red-throated Loons sitting on the retreat meadows. I saw the birds from the Rt 30 vantage point. Hector Galbraith saw them later that afternoon as well. There were also 12 Green-winged Teal in the newly forming beaver pond at the back of the Marina field.

---Taj Schottland, Putney, VT

Thursday at Dead Creek in Addison, Vt we found a flock of 500+ Snow Geese in back of the viewing area. They appeared very restless, taking to the air in groups of 50 or so and then landing again sometimes closer to us and other times farther away. We finally saw the reason. A Peregrine Falcon was quite busy dipping and diving nearby in the company of a couple of Northern Harriers that were tipping low over the cornstalks. –Al & Barb Merritt, W. Brattleboro, VT

Thanksgiving Proclamation

After the first Thanksgiving in 1621, it took over 200 years before Thanksgiving Day was officially proclaimed as a national day of thanksgiving, praise and prayer, in 1863.

Happy Thanksgiving!