Birdnotes: September 2013

Tuesday, September 10, 2013

{BIRD NOTES} ~ September 10, 2013

Bird Notes

Warbler Fallout (9/05)

A nice little wave of warblers in Dummerston today with B&W, Parula, Chestnut-sided, Black-throated Green, Redstart - the usual suspects. Also with them was one nice Philly Vireo.
---Hector Galbraith, Dummerston, VT

Bats Anyone?

I've had 3 bats for a few nights in Guilford. I wonder if bats have been seen by others recently?

---Susan James, Guilford, VT

Nighthawks at Westminster Station (8/31)

80 birds. Also, a large swallow movement in the hundreds. Mostly Barn & Tree.

---Don Clark, Grafton, VT

West Brattleboro Birds

Mostly the usual suspects, but I’ll list them anyway:

Tufted Titmouse, Black-capped Chickadee, Cardinal, White-breasted Nuthatch, Morning Dove, Robin, Redstart, Chestnut-sided Warbler, Raven, Turkey Vulture, Blue Jay, Sharp-shinned Hawk, Red-tailed Hawk, Catbird, Song Sparrow. The last of the Barn Swallows on the wires at the Gateway Farm on Abbott Road were seen a week ago.

Avian Haven, Maine

My friends at, Avian Haven a bird rehabilitation facility in Maine
(http://www.avianhaven.org/ ), are planning a trip to New Jersey later
this week. They need to release a Chimney Swift and 2 Barn Swallows that
have been rehabilitated, but too late to join their respective species,
which have already fully migrated from upper New England. They'll also
be transporting 1 or 2 owls to The Raptor Trust facility in NJ.
The swift is to be released at the Ridgewood, NJ migration staging roost
that I annually monitor and where Avian Haven have often released Swifts
in the past. Currently about 600 swifts are entering their middle school
chimney.
As to the Barn Swallows, I've been asked to try to identify sites in
Bergen and nearby NY/NJ counties where they are still being seen, the
more the better. I've checked eBird reports and noted that the biggest
group in our area as of last Fri was at the Pine Island Turf Farm, 20
birds as reported by John Haas that day. So I thought it would be a good
idea to ask the Mearns community to let me know of Barn Swallow
sightings in Orange and Rockland Counties and if someone is near the
Turf Farm, whether there's still Barn Swallow activity there.

Please email such info to me (elkumu@aceweb.com). I'll continue to
monitor eBird, but sometimes that source is delayed, so would appreciate
an email even if you post there.

Thanks for any help you can provide.
---Kurt Muenz, Glen Rock, NJ

2013 Vermont Migratory Bird Hunting Season

I thought these species, locations and dates might be of interest to birders who are out in the field birding this Fall. There is nothing like stepping out on the edge of a body of water or field and having a barrage of gunfire go off from camouflaged hunters that are interested in shooting the birds that you are seeking or even looking at. Please note that the season on Canada Geese is already in effect. ---Vermont Fish & Wildlife Department

Ducks, Coots, and Mergansers

Lake Champlain Zone 1: Oct. 9 – 13 Oct. 26 – Dec. 19
Interior Vermont Zone 2: Oct. 9 – Dec. 7

Connecticut River Zone 3: Oct. 2 – Nov. 3 Nov. 19 – Dec. 15

Canada Geese

Zone 1: Sept. 3 – Sept. 25 Oct. 10 – Nov. 28

Zone 2: Sept. 3 – Sept. 25

Zone 3: Sept. 3 – Sept. 25 Oct. 2 – Nov. 3 Nov. 19 – Dec. 15

Snow Geese (Inc. Blue Geese)

Zone 1: Oct. 1 – Dec. 29

Zone 2: Oct. 1 – Dec. 29

Zone 3: Oct. 2 – Oct. 31

Brant

Zone 1: Oct. 9 – Nov. 7

Zone 2: Oct. 9 – Nov. 7

Zone 3: Oct. 2 – Oct. 31

Woodcock

Statewide: Oct. 1 – Nov. 14

Common Snipe

Statewide: Oct. – Nov. 14

Common Goldeneye painting chosen for the 2012 Federal Duck Stamp

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Please share your birding news with us.

Any new migrants?

Hawks?

Warblers?

What have you seen while on a trip?

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Al Merritt

chpmnkx@sover.net

SVAS www.sevtaudubon.org

Sunday, September 01, 2013

{BIRD NOTES} ~ September 01, 2013

Bird Notes

A spectacular first year Goshawk at the Retreat Meadows this morning (9/1)
---Hector Galbraith, Dummerston, VT

Teeny Hummer

While visiting my sister in Windham this past week we were entertained by busy humming birds at her feeders. I asked a question about their nests. She then showed me a small glass bottle containing a humming bird nest in which lay a perfect baby humming bird skeleton. She had found it beneath a nearby shrub. I shed a few tears.

---Maggie Newton, W. Brattleboro, 8/28/13

Nighthawks

8/27 60 over Saxtons River, 42 in Dummerston.

8/28 Another great night at Westminster Station with 779 birds tallied by 6 observers.

8/29 A cool & overcast evening produced 249 birds bringing the total for the season to 3,203.

8/30 A slow night with only 42 birds.
---Don Clark, Grafton, VT

PUTNEY MOUNTAIN HAWK WATCH

2013-08-30 Observation Start Time: 10:00 End Time: 14:00 Observer Hours: 4

Day's Raptor Counts	BV	TV	OS	BE	NH	SS	CH	NG	RS	BW	RT	RL	GE	AK	ML	PG	UA	UB	UF	UE	UR	Day's Total
Day's Raptor Counts	0	0	1	0	0	0	0	0	0	1	0	0	0	0	0	0	0	0	0	0	0	2

Official Counter	John Anderson
Observers
Weather	Cool and foggy in the valley this am. Hot on the mt. Just a hint of a west breeze. Green Mountains hazed to a seried blues. Winds from SW and failing by 2 pm.
Non-raptor Notes	The hardhack and goldenrods were abuzz with insects, among them a bumblebee size tachinid fly with a white face and yellow bands and spiny hairs on its abdomen. 3 Common Loons

Robin Twins

Photo by Tom Prunier

“Earthflight” A Nature Special on Vermont Public Television

What would it be like to see the world from a bird’s perspective? To experience riding on the backs of bald eagles and snow geese or flying alongside a flock of brown pelicans as they scan and dive for fish in the ocean below. State-of-the-art technology and sophisticated camera techniques have now made it possible to do just that and more as EARTHFLIGHT, A Nature Special Presentation takes viewers on a breathtaking aerial adventure over six continents. It took EARTHFLIGHT series producer John Downer and his team four years to film more than 100 bird species in 40 different countries. Using strategically placed cameras, including tiny HD cameras placed on the backs of trained birds, this six-part series captures amazing viewpoints that have never been seen before.

Episode One: North America (airs Wednesday, September 4 at 8 p.m.)
Snow geese, pelicans, and bald eagles fly over the Great Plains, the Grand Canyon, Alaska, New York City and the Golden Gate Bridge as they encounter and engage with bears, dolphins, bison, and spawning fish.