Today I got the bright idea to take a mid-morning bike ride. I’ve been wanting to check out a big wetland complex that I have been eyeing on google earth. But given that the loop trail around the complex is 10.5 miles (the “Levee Trail”), I wanted to have time to take my bike. The Ocklawaha Prairie Restoriation Area is a 2,500 … Read More
Blizzard Raptors – Houtzdale WRS
Earlier today I ran the Houtzdale Winter Raptor Survey in Clearfield County. This 110 mile route meanders through pockets of grasslands, stripmines, agricultural fields, and forests from Tyrone to Curwensville and then up to Clearfield. When we left State College to drive down there this morning it was sunny and calm. About halfway, in Blair County, we spotted an immature … Read More
Rufous Hummingbird – Somerset County, PA
Somerset County birder Jeff Payne has been hosting a beautiful immature female Rufous Hummingbird that was captured and banded by Bob Mulvihill to confirm the ID. On November 3rd, my friends and I were able to stop by and watch the hummer off-and-on for almost an hour before heading up to the Allegheny Front Hawk Watch for a PSO field … Read More
Hoary Redpoll and WRS Part 2
Due to a closed bridge, I was only able to access the western two-thirds of my Winter Raptor Survey (link to Part 1), so today Josh Lefever and I ran the last third as its own survey. The weather was great, with a bright sun and blue skies accentuating the snow-covered stripmines of northern Centre County, Pennsylvania. Within the first … Read More
Winter Raptor Survey – Snow Shoe, PA 2013
Winter Raptor Surveys are very popular in Pennsylvania, and I am always excited for this time of the year to finally get out and see what raptors and other winter birds are around the northern portion of Centre County, PA. Last year was the first year that I ran a WRS route in Centre County, and we tried to plan … Read More
Frustrating Goose Chase
On January 18th Justin Bosler, Chuck Berthoud, Josh Lefever, and I literally went on a wild goose chase. There were reliable reports of a Pink-footed Goose and at least 2 Barnacle Geese just over the border in New Jersey, and that’s not to mention the incredible mini-flock of 3 Northern Lapwings nearby! There were a few other notable birds in … Read More
Lighthouse Point Park, CT – Shrike, Snow Buntings, and a Red-shoulder
After our good luck at East Shore Park (link to photos), we drove over to nearby Lighthouse Point Park. Our primary target here was a continuing immature Northern Shrike plus we wanted to find as many Connecticut birds as we could since we knew this was our last stop of our entire 5 day trip through New England. On the … Read More
PSO Field Trip – Allegheny Front Hawk Watch, 11 Nov 2012
Nemesisbird’s Mike Lanzone and Alex Lamoreaux along with Chad Kaufman helped lead a field trip offered by The Pennsylvania Society for Ornithology to the  Allegheny Front Hawk Watch, Sunday Nov 11. The wind forecast was for south-east, light to moderate, and hopes for a day packed full of Golden Eagles filled the participants heads! Although some of the group went directly to … Read More
October 12 Hawk Watching at Jo Hays Vista
On Friday, I joined Chuck Widman, Josh Lefever, and Alex Lamoreaux for a day of hawk watching at Jo Hays Vista. Winds were gusty out of the northwest, which brought in a high number of migrant Red-tailed hawks (96 for the day!). At one point we had five in the sky at the same time! Â Sharp-shinned hawks were also … Read More
Winter Raptor Survey – Snow Shoe, PA 2012
In Pennsylvania, the birding is pretty slow this time of the year but raptors can help add some excitement. Winter Raptor Surveys are an excellent way to get out on a cold winter day and do some birding. Drew Weber, two of our friends, and I conducted our own Winter Raptor Survey in the strip-mined areas north of Snow Shoe, … Read More
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