Today, I decided to venture out on a hike along the beach at Breezy Point. The site, is a neighborhood in Queens, located on the westward end of the Rockaway Peninsula, between Rockaway Inlet/Jamaica Bay and the Atlantic Ocean.
Along the way, I stopped off at Floyd Bennett Field and birded for a bit in the hopes of finding the Lapland Longspur that was reported in the Brooklyn CBC. I did not find the Longspur, but did see a nice flock of Horned Larks...about 40 as well as a couple of Song and Tree Sparrows. After about half an hour, I left and continued on to Breezy Point, but decided that I would take the drive through Fort Tilden, so that I could take a peek and see if there was any action there. Fort Tilden, was relatively quiet, and I only had looks at Yellow-rumped Warblers and a couple of Black-capped Chickadees. This was probably because I was in the car and not walking. After making the circle, I headed back onto beach drive to Breezy Point. Once there, I parked in the fisherman's parking lot got my gear together and headed out to the beach.
It was a nice day for December and immediately as I got to the beach I noticed a number of Red-breasted Mergasners in the water and close to the shore. I got really good looks with the scope and enjoyed watching these ducks, which were scattered and could have numbered around 20 and more. Further scanning the water revealed Old Squaw or Long-tailed Ducks...they were just too far out for a decent photo, but I was content to view them in the scope and here again was a real good opportunity to take in these ducks and enjoy the good looks.
As I proceeded further down the beach I heard the unmistakable calls of Snow Buntings and so tracked the sound down. Given their color, Snow Buntings are not the easiest to locate on the sand, but with some patience I was able to find them. Just as I was getting settled in to watch them, a beach goer with their dog made an untimely appearance and the Buntings took off. I got my bins up and tracked them hoping that they would not get too far. I was in luck, the Buntings circled back and came even closer to where I was. I settled into the sand and watched these birds as they went about their business getting food.
It was a treat as the Snow Buntings did not seem to mind my presence and I was able to really take in their behavior and get some decent photos. I was reluctant to leave them because they are so cool to watch, but leave I did and headed on towards the tip of Breezy Point. Unfortunately, I was running out of time and so I cut short my walk and headed back. Along the way, I did see the Snow Buntings again, but I made a wide berth so as not to disturb them and continued out. It was not a bad day at Breezy Point; Red-breasted Mergansers, Common Loons and Snow Buntings were some of the highlights, but my trip was too short and I will have to return soon to do a more thorough visit.
Along the way, I stopped off at Floyd Bennett Field and birded for a bit in the hopes of finding the Lapland Longspur that was reported in the Brooklyn CBC. I did not find the Longspur, but did see a nice flock of Horned Larks...about 40 as well as a couple of Song and Tree Sparrows. After about half an hour, I left and continued on to Breezy Point, but decided that I would take the drive through Fort Tilden, so that I could take a peek and see if there was any action there. Fort Tilden, was relatively quiet, and I only had looks at Yellow-rumped Warblers and a couple of Black-capped Chickadees. This was probably because I was in the car and not walking. After making the circle, I headed back onto beach drive to Breezy Point. Once there, I parked in the fisherman's parking lot got my gear together and headed out to the beach. 
It was a nice day for December and immediately as I got to the beach I noticed a number of Red-breasted Mergasners in the water and close to the shore. I got really good looks with the scope and enjoyed watching these ducks, which were scattered and could have numbered around 20 and more. Further scanning the water revealed Old Squaw or Long-tailed Ducks...they were just too far out for a decent photo, but I was content to view them in the scope and here again was a real good opportunity to take in these ducks and enjoy the good looks. 
As I proceeded further down the beach I heard the unmistakable calls of Snow Buntings and so tracked the sound down. Given their color, Snow Buntings are not the easiest to locate on the sand, but with some patience I was able to find them. Just as I was getting settled in to watch them, a beach goer with their dog made an untimely appearance and the Buntings took off. I got my bins up and tracked them hoping that they would not get too far. I was in luck, the Buntings circled back and came even closer to where I was. I settled into the sand and watched these birds as they went about their business getting food. 
It was a treat as the Snow Buntings did not seem to mind my presence and I was able to really take in their behavior and get some decent photos. I was reluctant to leave them because they are so cool to watch, but leave I did and headed on towards the tip of Breezy Point. Unfortunately, I was running out of time and so I cut short my walk and headed back. Along the way, I did see the Snow Buntings again, but I made a wide berth so as not to disturb them and continued out. It was not a bad day at Breezy Point; Red-breasted Mergansers, Common Loons and Snow Buntings were some of the highlights, but my trip was too short and I will have to return soon to do a more thorough visit.
0 comments:
Post a Comment