It’s finally May, and May means migration! There is no single month that can top the action and excitement of peak spring birding here in New York. This mad dash to the breeding grounds is the most intense time of the year for many species. As much as I adore fall migration, the southbound movement of birds is a more … Read More
The Satisfaction of Discovery
The excitement of a rarity chase is one of my favorite aspects of birding, but it’s nothing compared to the thrill of finding something unusual yourself. For me, the feeling of accomplishment that comes with turning up even a minor regional oddity often rivals the triumphant joy of a successful twitch or long-distance trip. That finder’s high is a hell … Read More
Chat heaven
This morning I decided to run down to Rock Springs Nature Preserve, a wonderfully interesting area of scrubby habitat in southern Lancaster County. I had no more than opened my car door than I heard the harsh chatter of a distant Yellow-breasted Chat. When I walked out about 100 yards into the preserve I realized that there were at least … Read More
Yellow-breasted Chat – Bald Eagle SP
On June 10th, Joe Verica found a singing male Yellow-breasted Chat near the Frog Pond at Bald Eagle State Park. Chats are fairly uncommon in Centre County, with rarely more than 2 or 3 reported per year. I was lucky enough to get my first Centre County chat on September 3rd, 2010 when we captured one while bird banding in … Read More
Rarity Round-Up: A Four Day Birding Adventure
Click on links throughout this post to see our full eBird checklists and more photos for the locations mentioned! Last week I was sitting around campus with my friends Mark Mizak and Josh Lefever, thinking about the upcoming Martin Luther King Jr. holiday weekend. We knew we would have four days free and we knew we wanted to go birding. … Read More