Last month New York City lost a important person in the New York City conservation/environment community. "Mickey" Maxwell Cohen passed away on December 28, 2021 at age 94. The Rockaway Wave has a really nice piece on him here. Of the many things he accomplished I remember him most for helping our community organization save and permanently protect the Ridgewood Reservoir. New York City needs more people like him.
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| Mickey and Barbara Cohen, photo by Don Riepe |
From the Newtown Historical Society:
Newtown Historical Society Tour
Nature and history tour of the Ridgewood Reservoir Sunday 8/17
On Sunday, August 17, we will be offering a special nature and history tour of the Ridgewood Reservoir starting at 9am in the main parking lot on Vermont Place at Highland Park. We will view the historic structures in the recently renovated park, observe the natural world and discuss its future.
You can take public transportation to Highland Park. The B13 bus stops along Cypress Hills Street and the Q56 stops along Jamaica Avenue. The Cleveland Street stop on the J train is 3 blocks from the park. Or, you can drive or bike.
This tour will be led by special guest Rob Jett, author of The City Birder.
This tour is 100% FREE and will be a great experience for children and adults alike. For more info or to RSVP, write to NewtownHistory@gmail.com or call 718-366-3715.
Thanks, and we look forward to seeing you on the 17th. Please watch the video below for more information about the historical and environmental importance of the Ridgewood Reservoir.
Tomorrow morning, June 13th, Charles Monaco and I will lead a walk through Ridgewood and Highland Park. The walk will highlight both the rich American history and natural history of this area. Meet at the "J" train station on the corner of Cleveland Street and Fulton Street at 11am.
Charles, an area historian, will focus on the area's importance during the Battle for Brooklyn, its settlement, the creation of the neighborhood of Highland Park and the building of the Ridgewood Reservoir. I will point out the plants, insects and birds while describing the area's unique location along the Harbor Hill terminal moraine. The walk will last for approximately 2 hours and gradually work its way through some historic sites in Ridgewood, up to Highland Park, then around the Ridgewood Reservoir. Wear comfortable shoes.
View Ridgewood in a larger map
...Read more
On Thursday, June 11, 2009 at 7:00pm the Highland Park/Ridgewood Reservoir Alliance will be hosting a slide presentation of the wildlife of the Ridgewood Reservoir. Nature photographer, Steve Nanz, will share his photographs of the birds, insects and other animal life that he has observed at the reservoir.
The meeting is free and opened to the public. Refreshments will be served.
The show will be followed by our regular monthly meeting.
Highland Park/Ridgewood Reservoir Alliance
Ridgewood Democratic Club
6070 Putnam Street
View Larger Map
Directions to The Ridgewood Democratic Club at 6070 Putnam Street. The
entrance is the first door on Stier Place
From Brooklyn:
Take Eastern Parkway until it ends at Bushwick Avenue.
Make a right turn onto Bushwick Avenue and move to the left lane.
Bear left onto the Jackie Robinson Parkway (formerly Interboro)
Exit at Cypress Hills Street (2nd exit)
At the top of the exit, make a left onto Cyrpress Hills Street
At the bottom of the hill make a left onto Cooper Avenue
Make a right at the 5th block (62nd Street)
62nd street ends in 2 blocks at Myrtle Ave
Make a left turn onto Myrtle and the make a right turn (about 50 feet) onto Fresh Pond Road (just at the end of the underpass; Fresh Pond starts at Myrtle and there is a carpet store on the right)
About 1/4 mile, 1 block after the M train station, Putnam Street is on the left.
It’s one block after the train station
From Manhattan:
Take the LIE
Exit to The Grand Central Parkway East (towards LI)
Stay in the right lane and exit onto the Jackie Robinson Parkway (formerly
Interboro)
Exit at Cypress Hills Street
At the top of the exit, make a right onto Cypress Hills Street
At the bottom of the hill make a left onto Cooper Avenue
Make a right at the 5th block (62nd Street)
62nd street ends in 2 blocks at Myrtle Ave
Make a left turn onto Myrtle and the make a right turn (about 50 feet) onto Fresh Pond Road (just at the end of the underpass; Fresh Pond starts at Myrtle and there is a carpet store on the right)
About 1/4 mile, 1 block after the M train station, Putnam Street is on the left.
It’s one block after the train station
From The Bronx:
Take the Triborough to the Grand Central Parkway and follow directions above
Parking can be sometimes be difficult in the area
By Subway:
Take the M train to the Fresh Pond Station or the L train to Myrtle Avenue and
then go upstairs and take the M to the Fresh Pond Station
Walk one block to Putnam and then left onto Putnam.
...Read more
Thanks for your comments about the Ridgewood Reservoir hawk. There were a few good guesses, and the answer was alluded to by Alex (thanks for not spoiling my fun).
Matthew nailed it with Red-shouldered Hawk. In this photo you can even see a little bit of red in the coverts on the left wing. Also, look for the dark malars and pale supercillium. Had the bird not taken flight, I would never have seen the wings and would still be wondering what it was. It's a tough call when you can't see the whole hawk. Here are some identification tips that you might find helpful.
Here's a link to a good illustration of bird topography.
...Read more
I've always been fascinated by nature and the environment, but it wasn't until I moved to Brooklyn that I became interested in birds. A Red-tailed Hawk that I observed in Prospect Park was the beast that started me down that challenging road called "birding".
Shortly after I became aware of urban Red-tailed Hawks, I started to notice other birds of prey in my local park. Identifying them seemed like an exercise in futility as they would disappear over the hills or into the woods moments after I got them in my bins. Naively, I remember thinking, "If I could only find one perched in a tree, it would be really easy to determine the species". Fourteen years (and many misidentified raptors) later, I've learned that, in most cases, a hawk in flight is actually much easier to identify than one that is perched in a tree. Yesterday I had an experience that was a clear reminder of that lesson.
I had spent several hours wrestling with a frustrating computer problem and decided I needed to clear my head. Cycling sometimes helps to give me a fresh perspective, so I hopped on my bike and pedaled to the Ridgewood Reservoir. When I got to Highland Park I rode around the bike path that surrounds the three basins. During my last lap, a hawk flew out of a small patch of woods adjacent to Highland Boulevard. It headed straight towards me, only a few feet above the pathway, then over the fence and into the forested 3rd basin. I had assumed by the general shape and brown streaks, that it was a juvenile Red-tailed Hawk. I glanced over my left shoulder and saw that it perched fairly close and it wasn't a red-tail. Rather than a belt of vertical streaks across the belly, this bird was streaked from the chin to the belly. The raptor stayed on his perch when I walked back to get a better look.
The reservoir basins are approximated 40 feet below the level of the bike path. A forest growing up from the floor gives one an unusual perspective for viewing birds in the trees; almost like a canopy walkway. So, when I stuck my bins into the openings in the cyclone fence to look at the hawk, we were actually eye-to-eye. He had an usually long tail, but I was fairly certain he wasn't an accipiter. He faced me so I couldn't see the pattern on his back or wings. I started to run down in my head all the likely brown, streaky raptors; goshawk, sharp-shinned, cooper's, harrier, red-shouldered, broad-winged. I had all the time in the world to examine this hawk, but still couldn't be 100% certain of its identity. I even had enough time to shoot a short video through my binoculars. After what seemed like an eternity in birding terms, the hawk spun around and took off, down into the interior of the wet forest. For a brief second, I had the rare viewpoint of looking down on the bird's back and upper wings. He had pale panels near the ends of his wings.
The habitat, alone, should have given me a hint to the bird's ID, but had he not flown, I might still be scratching my head. What do you think it is?
I though that the following would be of interest to my regular readers:
Bugs Plus 3000%
Nature program scheduled for the Ridgewood Reservoir
This coming Friday, September 26th at 6:30pm, scouts from Ridgewood will look at bugs 3000 times their actual size thanks to insect expert Steve Nanz.
Mr. Nanz will photograph the insects and the images will immediately be displayed on a large laptop computer screen. Kids of all ages will get to see a surprising array of our local critters as never before. For the purpose of this program, the insects are lured to a large white sheet by a portable black light. An example of the process can be seen here. Mr. Nanz will talk about the color and shape of the various insects and their importance to the diversity of the local environment.
This scout program is the first nature program to be held this year in conjunction with the Highland Park-Ridgewood Reservoir Alliance. HPRRA is a group of concerned citizens trying to preserve the reservoir from development and, instead, create a protected urban nature preserve and education center. The Ridgewood Reservoir has been called the "Jewel of Brooklyn and Queens."
All are invited and the event is free to the public. For more information contact Tom Dowd: tomcdowd2 [AT] aol.com
On Friday afternoon, at around 5pm, I did a little birding at the Ridgewood Reservoir. While scanning the lake in the central basin I spotted a pair of Pied-billed Grebes. I did not see any of chicks, but their presence during the breeding season could be a positive sign. The pair stayed close to each other much of the time. Several times, they appeared to be pointing their heads into the air or turning their heads from side to side. This could have just been their way of looking out for predators. I found the following information about their courtship displays:
"Like other grebes, P. podiceps is monogamous on a seasonal or multi-seasonal basis. However, unlike other grebes, it has no intricate courtship display. Courtship has five different stages: Advertising, the Pirouette Ceremony, Ripple Dive, Circle Display, and Triumph Ceremony.
Advertising marks the beginning of courtship, swimming around with sleek feathers and elongated neck allow the single bird to let birds of opposite sex take notice of his or her availability. In the pirouette ceremony, each bird approaches the other and then takes an upright posture and may give a greeting call followed by a series of head turning jerks. The Ripple Dance involves dives and races underwater to show the other bird his or her swimming prowess. The Circle Display is self explanatory and can be initiated by either sex; during the Circle Display the pair are several meters apart on the water surface. The Triumph Ceremony, which takes place after mates have been established, consists of each mate circling around the other in a stooped position." (Palmer, R. 1962. Handbook of North American birds. New Haven, CT: Yale University Press)
-Friday night was going to be a full moon, so I decided to go back over to the Ridgewood Reservoir at the end of the day. The weather forecast called for clear sky and I thought the moonshine would make a nice backdrop for observing the woodcock courtship.
I arrived about an hour before sunset and strolled around the running path for about 20 minutes. Red-winged Blackbirds have just returned and the reeds that surround basin #2's lake were ringing with choruses of "conk-a-ree, conk-a-ree". American Robins have also returned and invaded the reservoir in astonishing numbers. There were so many
vocalizing birds present that I heard them well before I saw them. Along the grass hillside parallel to Highland Boulevard, at the edges of the running path, in the parking lot on Vermont Place and perched in nearly every tree, there were robins. Some were singing the familiar "cheerily, cheerio, cheerily" Spring anthem, but most were making nervous "whinnies" and "tut, tut, tuts". Maybe they weren't in the cheery Spring spirit yet because of the cold wind blowing across the top of the ridge.
Much of basin #3's understory is dominated by weedy plants, but there are a few scattered damp, grassy meadows. Before it was too dark, I headed for one near the basin's north half. As I approached the opening a woodcock flew ahead of me. I found a spot at the edge of the grass that wouldn't disrupt the birds display routines. In retrospect, since I've never been a woodcock, I might have unknowingly sat down in center stage.
While I was waiting to hear the first nasal "peent", several dozen panicked robins began scattering through the woods. A Sharp-shinned Hawk had snuck in from the east side of the basin and was cruising through the trees looking for dinner. She made a tight right turn in front of me and continued flying towards the north end of the basin.
At around 6:30PM I heard the first male woodcock calling from an area about 50 yards to my right. There was a curtain of dried mugwort plants between us, so I couldn't see him or the object of his affection. A moment later something landed in the grass a couple of yards from my outstretched legs. It was a woodcock. She glanced over at me a few times, but just went about her business probing the soil for worms. As the forest descended into darkness I caught a glimpse of two or three more silhouettes fluttering to the ground on my left.
The moon didn't rise early enough that it created much illumination within the basin. Even if it did, I wouldn't have been able to see much of the display's climax. The wind had been gusting from the west across the top of the basins. The woodcock's normally vertical flights had been replaced by an improvised horizontal choreography. Several times I saw them rocketing past my seat at the edge of the meadow. I'm surprised that they didn't collide with any trees.
On my way back to the subway I stopped to stare at the brilliant orange-pink moon reflecting off of basin #2's lake. At 7:08PM the Red-winged Blackbirds were still singing and it reminded me of summer's long days.
American Woodcock are early migrants around New York and the males begin competing for mates by mid-March. Last Sunday I went over to Ridgewood Reservoir with Scott hoping to find signs of their arrival. Lou, who lives close to the reservoir, met us there.
Woodcocks are medium-sized, plump birds with a long, slender bill that they use to probe the soil for insects and worms. Their feathers are a cryptic blend of browns, rust and other earth tones that enables them to virtually disappear into a forest floor's leaf litter. These nocturnal creatures are rarely observed unless unintentionally flushed when strolling through the woods; even then, it is just a fleeting glimpse of their rear end before they drop back to the ground and vanish. Once a year, however, they make an exception to their reticence and announce their presence to anyone interested in watching and listening.
Scott, Lou and I arrived at the reservoir at 6PM. Sunset would be at 6:56PM. We walked up the stairway from Vermont Place to the running path at the edge of the reservoir basins. Basin #3 is the south-most and largest of the three empoundments. Within basin #1 and #3's forested habitats include some small wet meadows. Wet meadows are the preferred staging ground for the woodcock's conspicuous activities. We stood at the edge of the chainlink fence that surrounds basin #3 and waited for the show to begin.
Scott was setting up his camera, I was talking softly and Lou was quietly facing into the basin. It was getting dark, but there was still enough light that we could see the floor of the basin. Something flashed through the edge of my peripheral vision and I pointed my binoculars down into the artificial valley a few yards away from the base of the retaining wall. A woodcock had just flown out of his daytime roost and was slowly walking back and forth, probing the forest floor for worms. It was pure luck on my part, but I was able to get both Scott and Lou on the bird. He eventually wandered out of view and into the darkness of the young forest.
Shortly after the sun went down, I heard the first woodcock's call.
I suppose the reason that it is referred to as a "call" and not a "song" is because it's not very melodic (at least not to us humans). It is a single, nasal note, usually described as "peent". The sound is similar to blowing into the business end of a double-reed instrument, such as an oboe, without the instrument attached. The woodcock's peenting notes are separated by pauses that can range from a few seconds to several minutes. When the suitor is confident that he has gained a female's attention, he'll take off like a rocket, heading skyward and making wide spiraling arcs. Near the apex of the flight, his wings begin making a high, twittering sound. Chirping and chattering, he will return to earth in a twisting, bat-like flight. If a female is present near the stage, he will start "peenting" and resume the nocturnal choreography
On Sunday, a strong wind was blowing towards the basin. The woodcocks launched themselves into the wind and directly over our heads. About twenty minutes after the sun had set we heard males peenting from three different locations within basin #3. Scott struggled with his video camera, trying to anticipate where the next twittering woodcock would appear over the running track. I couldn't decide whether to stand in once place or follow the peenting calls to the north end of the basin. After about 30 minutes of peenting, twittering and spiraling woodcocks, we decided to call it a day. Unfortunately, the future for this unique city habitat and American Woodcock display ground is in question as the department of parks wants to remove the forest and turn it into baseball fields. See the Ridgewood Reservoir blog for more information.
I've been neglecting my blog for the last two weeks. It hasn't been so much that I haven't been getting out or even taking pictures. Between work, my Ridgewood Reservoir project and spending time with my wife, things have just been getting pushed to the bottom of the pile. I had even created a new post, uploaded several photos and my day lists, but just never managed to finish writing the words.
At the Ridgewood Reservoir I noticed that the Department of Parks had 
cleaned up the edge of Basin #1 (the bog) where people from the neighborhood had created an illegal paintball course. They had dragged all sorts of garbage into the basin to use as barricades and forts. I was surprised to see that park workers had taken the clean-up job to an unnatural level of tidiness. They had gone so far as to collect branches, logs and other elements of a normal forest understory and neatly stacked everything in little piles. I found it not so much weird, but from a habitat standpoint, completely unnecessary.
The cold snap had rapidly frozen the saturated soil within the bog and 
created tiny crystallized columns that lifted up sections of moss, grass and earth.
While I was walking the path around the south end of the basins I spotted a Woolly Bear caterpillar crossing the path. Their fuzzy covering is usually an arrangement of orange and black bands. The one I spotted appeared to be completely black. When I moved it off of the path so that it would get squashed, it curled up revealing extremely fine orange bands. Folk legend says that the amount of orange banding is an indication of the coming winter's severity. They say it is only a myth, so I 
think I'll just continue to rely on the television meteorologists.
My wife and I took a walk through the Green-Wood Cemetery recently. I had found a document on the Internet that described a history walk through the cemetery so we decided to check it out. We spent about an hour walking the areas near Battle Pass before heading back to the main entrance.
The Monk Parakeets that nest on the stone spires above the entrance are always noisy, but when we approached they seemed louder than normal. About two dozen of the bright green birds had flown from the red, stone towers and perched out in the 
open. I scanned the adjacent trees briefly and spotted Big Mama. She had a freshly killed pigeon clutched in her talons. I thought it was odd that, rather than fleeing, the loud birds chose to perch out in the open. Maybe they understood that the relatively slow Red-tailed Hawk relies on the element of surprise to catch prey. Watching her from a safe distance probably increased their chance of survival. Had there been a Peregrine Falcon perched nearby, they might have chosen to hide inside of their huge nests.
I spent a few hours over a couple of different days searching for the Red-tailed Hawks in Prospect Park. By March they should be working on the old nest or preparing a new one for the spring.
As I was walking through the Ravine, a hawk flew over my head and perched in a tree near the Nethermead Arches. I walked up the stairway to Center Drive to get a better view of the bird. It was a juvenile Red-tailed Hawk that
seemed smallish. Perhaps it was a male bird. I looked for a band on its leg to see if it was one of the rehabilitated hawks that was released. It didn't have one, so it could have been one of Alice and Ralph's offspring. It had a very noticeable white patch on its forehead.
I watched him for about 15 minutes then he took off into the Ravine. He was heading towards the ground, so I hurried back down the stairs hoping to find him with a fresh kill. Instead, when I got to the path adjacent to the stream, an adult Red-tailed Hawk flew out of the woods and perched above me. I immediately thought, "Ralph!" It has been a while since the last time I saw the small, pale-headed hawk. He was quickly followed by his darker mate, Alice. She was chasing the young red-tail out of their section of woods. The juvenile hawk flew under the bridge, while his pursuer flew above. A jogger on the roadway stopped in his tracks on the bridge, startled by the huge bird. A moment later, Ralph flew across the road and perched near the top of a large sweetgum tree. They clearly did not want the young Red-tailed Hawk in their territory, but they stopped chasing him as he flew off towards the boathouse. The two adult Red-tailed Hawks then took off flying towards the woods of Quaker Ridge.
I caught up with them near the bridle path a short distance from the Quaker Cemetery. I had never seen them perched side by side for any length of time and the comparison of their features was dramatic. Alice's head is very dark and, in the late day sun, looked bronze. The feathers around her eyes are nearly black. Her thick belly band has a lot of dark contrasting streaks and, in profile, seems to extend the entire length of her body. Her flight feathers are a rich, chocolate brown and she has very few pale splotches on her back. Ralph was preening his feathers for most of the 20 minutes that I was observing the pair. Unlike his larger mate, his pale, finely streaked head plumes have a silvery quality. His belly band is so faint that, from the side, it is nearly non-existent. He has extensive white splotches on his back and hazel-colored flight feathers. Most Red-tailed Hawks in flight have a hooded appearance from a distance. Ralph's overall paleness, on the other hand, makes him look almost as if his head is white. In Green-Wood Cemetery, Big Mama and her mate, Junior are much more similar and I'm still looking for unique characteristics in each bird so that I can easily tell them apart. I've been told that hawk's patterns change slightly when they molt each year, so it may not be possible.
A couple of days after I saw Alice and Ralph chase the young hawk, I located him perched in a tree next to the Tennis House. At first, I wasn't certain who I was looking at, but then I noticed the large white patch on his forehead. He appeared to be stalking pigeons that were roosting on the Spanish-style terracotta roof of the Tennis House. Several times he landed on the curved, ceramic tiles, but seemed ungainly and confused when standing on the hard surface. He eventually gave up and flew off towards the maintenance garage near Prospect Park West.
Later in the morning I came across another juvenile Red-tailed Hawk next to the boathouse. He was perched in a Pagoda Tree next to the Camperdown Elm. Rangers Tom and Tony were standing below the hawk, waiting to lead a birding trip in the park. Tom told me that the young hawk had attempted to grab a duck from the water near the Boathouse Bridge. Apparently, she only succeeded in getting soaked and spent the next 45 minutes drying off in the tree. As I was watching, a careless squirrel was 
climbing up and down the branches dangerously close to the wet raptor. The rodent was missing most of his bushy tail. From the looks of it he probably has had one close brush with death and, if he continued his foolish ways, it wouldn't be his last. Fortunately for him, the Red-tailed Hawk showed only a brief interest in the squirrel and made no attempt to catch it.
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Ridgewood Reservoir, 2/2/2008
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Ruddy Duck
Red-tailed Hawk
Ring-billed Gull
Red-bellied Woodpecker
Downy Woodpecker
Hairy Woodpecker
Black-capped Chickadee
Carolina Wren
Golden-crowned Kinglet
Gray Catbird
Northern Mockingbird
*American Tree Sparrow (new for species list)
Fox Sparrow
Swamp Sparrow
White-throated Sparrow
Dark-eyed Junco
Other common species seen (or heard):
American Black Duck, Mallard, Rock Pigeon, Mourning Dove, Blue Jay, American Robin, Northern Cardinal, European Starling, Song Sparrow
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Prospect Park, 2/7/2008
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Canada Goose
American Black Duck
Mallard
Bufflehead
Ruddy Duck
Cooper's Hawk
Red-tailed Hawk (3.)
Yellow-bellied Sapsucker
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Prospect Park, 2/9/2008
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Pied-billed Grebe
Double-crested Cormorant
Northern Shoveler
Northern Pintail
Ring-necked Duck
Bufflehead
Ruddy Duck
Cooper's Hawk
Red-tailed Hawk (2.)
American Coot
Ring-billed Gull
Great Black-backed Gull
Red-bellied Woodpecker
Yellow-bellied Sapsucker
Hairy Woodpecker
American Crow
Black-capped Chickadee
Tufted Titmouse
Red-breasted Nuthatch
White-breasted Nuthatch
Brown Creeper
Carolina Wren
Golden-crowned Kinglet
Hermit Thrush
Fox Sparrow
White-throated Sparrow
Dark-eyed Junco
Red-winged Blackbird
American Goldfinch
Other common species seen (or heard):
Canada Goose, Mute Swan, American Black Duck, Mallard, Herring Gull, Rock Pigeon, Mourning Dove, Downy Woodpecker, Blue Jay, American Robin, European Starling, Northern Cardinal, Song Sparrow, House Sparrow
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Prospect Park, 2/10/2008
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Ring-necked Duck
Bufflehead
Cooper's Hawk
Red-bellied Woodpecker
Hairy Woodpecker
American Crow
Black-capped Chickadee
Tufted Titmouse
Red-breasted Nuthatch
White-breasted Nuthatch
Brown Creeper
Carolina Wren
Golden-crowned Kinglet
Ruby-crowned Kinglet
Fox Sparrow
White-throated Sparrow
Dark-eyed Junco
American Goldfinch
Other common species seen (or heard):
Canada Goose, American Black Duck, Mallard, Rock Pigeon, Mourning Dove, Downy Woodpecker, Blue Jay, American Robin, European Starling, Northern Cardinal, Song Sparrow, House Sparrow
There was a scheduled tour of the reservoir on Sunday. Christina had contacted Councilman Tony Avella's office to invite him to see the place first hand. She would be leading a group for him and a few other people. I wasn't scheduled to lead any groups, but decided to trail along and answer any nature questions.
My wife and I headed over to the reservoir early because I wanted to set-up my BirdCam in a discrete location. It would be left there for a week. I chose a location that looked like it would be "birdy". There was a small, grassy opening in the woods that looked good. As I approached I flushed a woodcock. My wife asked why its wings made a whistling noise when it took flight. Hmmm, because it's a woodcock? I'll have to look that one up.
As we were walking back to the meeting place in the parking lot, I noticed a small group of people already on the running path. I asked a gentleman at the head of the group if they were there for the tour. It turned out that he was Tony Avella and that he had another commitment later on and wanted to get started. So I gave them the nickel tour.
He was impressed, of course, and who wouldn't be? It's a dense forest in New York City. At an opening along the edge of the lake I pointed out a small flock of Ruddy Ducks and a single Bufflehead. I explained that to some waterfowl who head south in the winter, New York City is south. Some of the ducks, I said, would likely stay on the lake until early spring.
There were lots of Golden-crowned Kinglets calling and I spotted several Hermit Thrushes on the paths ahead of us. A Red-tailed Hawk made a brief appearance and two Sharp-shinned Hawks blasted by, helped by strong winds. I wanted to stop and bird, but the councilman was bolting through the area like he was preparing for next week's marathon. Before departing he said the he would do everything possible to prevent the city from cutting down any trees (see my other blog).
When I returned home I checked my email and read that there was a Eurasian Wigeon in Prospect Park. As much as I would have wanted to see this beautiful duck, I didn't have the time or energy. Yesterday, my friend Mary walked through the park and reported that it was still present on the Upper Pool. I had about an hour to run up to the park a take a look.
I've seen Eurasian Wigeon in Prospect Park a few times, but they were always on Prospect Lake. The Upper Pool is a very small pond and affords a much closer view. When I arrived, I quickly spotted him within a small flock of American Wigeon on the east side of the pond. To get a better view, I walked around to the wooden bridge near the outflow of the waterfall. The wigeons were feeding with their chins on the water and "vacuuming" back and forth through the duckweed. I'm not sure if they were actually eating the duckweed or insects on top of the water. It looked pretty funny.
When I began birding in Prospect
Park, about 12 years ago, American Wigeons were a common overwintering duck on Prospect Lake. Ruddy Ducks were present, but in small numbers. Over time that has shifted to the point where ruddies dominate the lake and wigeons are rarely seen. I don't know why it occurred as Ruddy Ducks aren't particularly aggressive, in fact, they are just the opposite. Maybe a food source that they relied on is no longer present. I miss being able to walk down to the lake during the cold months and hear their "squeaky toy" calls.
Saturday was the last day of our autumn bird survey, although I suspect some of us will be over
at the reservoir a few more times before winter officially starts.
The leaves on the birches, sweetgums and cottonwoods in basin #1 have turned various shades of burnt orange to fiery red. Sparrows have arrived in force. All of the low grass and scrubby habitat surrounding the basins were loaded with Song Sparrows, Swamp Sparrows and White-throated Sparrows. The make up of the sparrow flocks were similar to what I had observed in the “Sparrow Bowl” in Prospect Park.
As usual, we divided into two groups to cover separate areas within the
reservoir’s boundaries. The highlight for Steve’s group was locating a Vesper Sparrow in a small, grassy meadow. I was slightly jealous as it is one of my favorite sparrows and seen infrequently around the city. Shortly after we began our survey, the wind started to pick up and by 10:00AM it was blowing hard. The flock of Wood Ducks that had been hanging out on the lake had taken shelter within the dense reeds that ring the basin. We didn’t see the Pied-billed Grebes, but the could have also been hidden in the phragmites.
Despite the strong wind, several raptors were seen hunting in the area. A Northern Harrier spotted by Gerry was the first one we’d recorded at the reservoir. Also, with winter just around the corner, I guess I shouldn’t have been surprised by the presence of Purple Finches. They were another “first” for our survey.
I took my group to the habitats around basin #1. Our first “good” bird of the day was a Nashville Warbler. By noon we had recorded five species of warbler. I’m beginning to think that American Woodcock are residents of the 
Ridgewood Reservoir as I flushed three with my group. I’ll have to check, but I think, we’ve recorded woodcock every month. Golden-crowned Kinglets are moving through the city in good numbers and several were seen at the reservoir. I expect to find small pockets of them throughout the winter. For such tiny birds, they are amazingly hardy. Of the winter arrivals, we should see Yellow-bellied Sapsucker, Red-breasted Nuthatch, Golden-crowned Kinglet, White-throated Sparrow and Purple Finch through to next spring. It will be interesting to learn all the other species that call the reservoir home during the cold months.
Ridgewood Reservoir, 10/20/2007
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Common Loon
Double-crested Cormorant
Wood Duck
Northern Harrier
Sharp-shinned Hawk
Cooper's Hawk
Merlin
American Woodcock
Red-bellied Woodpecker
Yellow-bellied Sapsucker
Northern Flicker
Eastern Phoebe
Blue-headed Vireo
Black-capped Chickadee
Red-breasted Nuthatch
White-breasted Nuthatch
Carolina Wren
Winter Wren
Golden-crowned Kinglet
Ruby-crowned Kinglet
Hermit Thrush
Wood Thrush
Gray Catbird
Nashville Warbler
Northern Parula
Yellow-rumped Warbler
American Redstart
Common Yellowthroat
Eastern Towhee
Chipping Sparrow
Field Sparrow
Vesper Sparrow
Song Sparrow
Swamp Sparrow
White-throated Sparrow
White-crowned Sparrow
Common Grackle
Purple Finch
House Finch
Other common species seen (or heard):
Ring-billed Gull, Herring Gull, Rock Pigeon, Mourning Dove, Downy Woodpecker, Blue Jay, American Crow, American Robin, European Starling, Northern Cardinal, Red-winged Blackbird, House Sparrow
Before I get to my post, I want to give major props to Jose Reyes of Time-Warner cable. Three field technicians couldn't fix my month-long Internet problems so they dispatched Jose, who is an engineer. One of the first things he told me was, "I'll make sure that, when I leave here, your service will be back on." He kept his word.
Unlike last year, when most of my birding and nature exploring was recreational, 2007 has taken me outdoors for specific goals. In February, I began making regular
visits to the Ridgewood Reservoir as part of the ongoing bird/nature survey. Once I became sucked up into that project, I spent a good bit of my free time creating a short video about the reservoir. In addition, during the month of September I spent about 4 hours during each of several early mornings helping biologists with a migratory bird research project. I've had less time to post, but some new streamlining of my workflow should help speed future updates.
On Saturday, September 29, I went back to Ridgewood Reservoir with Heidi, Steve and several other birders to continue the fall migration survey. We were all optimistic that there would be a big southbound push of migrant songbirds as there was a brief overnight cold front in the area.
When everyone arrived, we split into two group. Steve lead a group around basin 1 and the northern habitats. I took a group around basin 3 and the south end.
I've just begun scrutinizing the northern end of basin 3 which, for the most part, is dry. The end closest to Vermont Avenue seems to be on a slight decline and there are some signs that it is flooded seasonally. The understory is dominated by assorted grasses and there are few woody plants. Also, there is a clear, and very surreal border between the locust and grey birch woodlands. It looks almost as if an invisible fence was constructed to prevent the two trees from commingling.
From the start of our walk there were signs that the cold front had made a difference in the bird movement. Several sharpies were seen hunting among the reservoirs woodlands. Broad-winged Hawks soared overhead along with Osprey, Cooper's Hawk, Red-tailed Hawk and kestrel. Magnolia Warblers were suddenly seen in fairly high numbers, followed closely by an increased presence of Common Yellowthroats. I was pleasantly surprised to find small groups of Blue-headed Vireo. There was a flock of 4 feeding close together in the locust trees. Their "old" common name was Solitary Vireo. Maybe somewhere along the line someone decided that they weren't very solitary.
Much of the understory at the north end of basin 3 is blanketed with dense stretches of mugwort and japanese knotweed. Where the invasives haven't taken hold we found a nice assortment of goldenrod and aster species. We also found the remains of some old homeless encampments. Plants have grown up through makeshift living quarters indicating that they had been abandoned for a long time. 
A collection of baby strollers might have been humorous in another context, but juxtaposed with the basin's isolation and wildness it felt like the setting for a scene in an Alfred Hitchcock film. Years of rain water running into the basin had pushed sediment up around the stroller's wheels. I imagine that, given enough time, they would eventually disappear into the soil. A single White Snakeroot plant was growing in one overturned stroller's sunshade. I walked through the center of the stroller formation and, for reasons I can't explain, made a conscious effort not to move any of them.
A small flock of Wood Ducks continue on the lake of basin 2 but has increased by one bird. 
The Pied-billed Grebes that have been present for a month have increased from 3 to 5 individuals. We started to wrap up the morning at 10:30AM, by which time we had tallied 51 species of birds, 11 of which were warblers.
At 5:30PM I rushed down to 5th Avenue to catch the bus to Green-Wood Cemetery. Historian Jeff Richman was leading another night tour of the cemetery. Dressed in a top hat and trailed by a pair of musicians playing 18th and 19th century music on accordion, he always puts on a great show. The weather forecast called for a cool and clear evening, perfect for the harvest moon. I planned on taking some night photos, so I brought along my tripod and spotting scope.
When I arrived at the cemetery's ornate, Gothic Revival entrance, I was met by Joe Borker. I noticed that he had something small and brown in his hand. Apparently, a Swainson's Thrush
had crashed into a window and was still stunned. Joe, who has done a lot of bird banding, knew how to handle birds and carried it away from the crowds arriving for the tour. It would have probably been stepped on. Marge was there with her son, Jean Luc. Jean Luc loves birding and nature, so Joe patiently showed him how to hold the thrush. When he released the bird it decided to stayed perched on his hand for a moment, then flew off towards the safety of a planting of shrubs and flowers.
There were about 50 people in the tour, a little too many for my taste 
(especially when they are all playing with flashlights), so I walked slowly and remained at the back of the crowd. Joe has lead the historic tour many times, so he gave me a synopsis at each landmark. There were several stops along the route where I noticed bats flying low over our heads. I only had one battery for my camera, so I couldn't waste power trying to catch a bat in flight. I also noticed that there were still some active fireflies. It seemed late in the season to see them flashing, but then again it has been feeling more like the dog days of summer than October. After dark, I shot some very long exposures of the tour group. In one photo the green, luminous trail from a firefly can clearly be seen.
At the end of the tour, I set up my scope and focused on the moon. I had read that, during migration, birds can sometimes be seen flying passed the moon's illumination. Sure enough, within seconds I spotted a few birds. Some were actually circling around in one spot. They weren't bats, but they were fluttering around, acting as if they were catching insects. Maybe some birds that don't normally feed at night are able to grab insects when they are migrating over a bright urban center such as New York. I tried to take some photos through my scope. I thought it would be interesting to see the trails of the birds in front of the moon, but a breeze was making the tripod move too much. I'll have to try it again sometime when there's no wind.
Ridgewood Reservoir, 9/29/2007
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Osprey
Sharp-shinned Hawk
Cooper's Hawk
Broad-winged Hawk
Red-tailed Hawk
American Kestral
Laughing Gull
Pied-billed Grebe
Wood Duck
Chimney Swift
Red-Bellied Woodpecker
Yellow-bellied Sapsucker
Northern Flicker
Eastern Phoebe
Blue-headed Vireo
Black-capped Chickadee
Tufted Titmouse
Red Breasted Nuthatch
White-breasted Nuthatch
Carolina Wren
House Wren
Veery
Gray-cheeked Thrush
Wood Thrush
Gray Catbird
Cedar Waxwing
Northern Parula
Magnolia Warbler
Black-throated Blue Warbler
Yellow-rumped Warbler
Black-throated Green Warbler
Pine Warbler
Black-and-white Warbler
American Redstart
Ovenbird
Northern Waterthrush
Common Yellowthroat
Scarlet Tanager
Lincoln's Sparrow
Rose-breasted Grosbeak
Indigo Bunting
Common Grackle
Other common species seen (or heard):
Canada Goose, Herring Gull, Rock Pigeon, Mourning Dove, Downy Woodpecker, American Robin, Northern Cardinal, American Goldfinch, House Sparrow
Had an excellent tour at the Ridgewood Reservoir yesterday. I wish I could be as upbeat about my ISP. Service has been out again for 24 hours. I'll post a more complete follow up within the next 24 hours. For the folks from QCB5, here's a quick link to the Ridgewood Reservoir blog.
A few weeks back, someone from the Brooklyn Children's Museum scheduled an hour or so to videotape a group of us at work surveying birds at the Ridgewood Reservoir. They are producing a short video piece about "citizen science" that will be viewed in a kiosk at the soon-to-be-renovated museum. I didn't think that the date would be optimal timing for migrating birds (the nesting season is already over), but sometimes production and migration schedules are tough to coordinate. Peter Dorosh, the president of the Brooklyn Bird Club, had also been contacted and would be surveying the birds around the reservoir with a few club members.
It wasn't all bad, though. My early morning aggravation was quickly erased by the sighting of several migrating species and some new seasonal discoveries.
growth made some spots in and around the reservoirs virtually impassible. Janet, Suzanne and I pushed our way through the vegetation at the southeast corner of the bog to the first clearing where we could scan for birds and listen for chip notes. We had only been there a few minutes when I heard a sharp, metallic call that I didn't recognize; not that I recognize a large number of fall chip notes, this one just sounded different. After a brief search, I located a Cape May Warbler foraging low in a birch tree. During the spring migration, they spend most of their time at the tops of the trees and are heard more often then seen. The three of us were very pleased to, not only, have added a new species to the reservoir's growing list, but also to have such long, clear looks at a normally elusive bird. It stayed in the area long enough that when Peter and Kelly joined us we were able to relocate him by his metallic chip.
still carpeted with various bright green mosses. In addition, on this trip I noticed an abundance of freshly emerged fungi. I know only a little bit about mushrooms, but I did note several areas of small puffballs clusters, scattered pockets of delicate inky-cap type mushrooms and a few beefy boletes. The most distinctive change was a ubiquitous bracket-like fungus that looked almost like it was dripping out from under the thin bark of birch trees. Some were bell shaped, others looked like marshmallows that had been squeezed between ones thumb and forefinger. At a few small, wet meadows young phragmites where sporting purple, feathery seed heads. An abundant sedgegrass that I previously couldn't identify was now topped with tiny, beige, cottony balls. The appearance of the tufts at the tops of the grass helped me to identify it as woolgrass.
I thought that it was a good idea to wear shorts and sandals, because a hot, humid day was forecast. It didn't occur to me that the areas we had been surveying since April were rife with multiflora rose, wineberry and blackberry vines. By the time we finished our morning work my ankles and legs looked like a pair of well worn cat scratching post. I went home feeling good, though, because our day list contained 8 species of warblers, 2 new species for the reservoir list, and we observed a very young Red-bellied Woodpecker, confirming that they nest in the area.
I went back to the reservoir on Friday with Marge. Our primary objective was to shoot some video and document the reservoirs and surrounding habitats. I've been editing the material and will have something posted online soon.
Gray Catbird
Ridgewood Reservoir, 8/31/2007I never thought I’d ever get this posted as my Internet connection has been going down 5 to 10 times a day since Monday.
Tuesday I gave a tour of the Ridgewood Reservoir and surrounding habitats to Glenn Philips, the Executive Director of The New York City Audubon Society, and Erin Woodard, their new Natural Areas Initiative Program Manager. I was only able to spend about an hour with them as Glenn and Erin had prior commitments, plus I was meeting Shane for a trip out to Montauk Point in the afternoon.
The area was fairly quiet with respect to the local breeding birds, although we did see a family of Carolina Wrens chattering and flitting about in the understory adjacent to basin three. There was also a White-eyed Vireo prattling on with his impatient demand, “Quick give me the beer check”. As I expected, Glenn and Erin seemed very impressed by the three basin’s varied habitats. Glenn seemed especially intrigued by some of the flora and took a lot of photographs. As we reached the forest floor of basin #1, Glenn pointed out a freshly emerged Red-spotted Purple butterfly drying in a pool of sunshine. I tried to entice the lazy insect with an outstretched finger tip, but he wasn’t interested and flew to a pokeweed leaf a few feet away.
The old pump house has had its windows bricked up and the doors are secured with thick, steel plates. I stuck my camera lens through a small hole in one of the steel plates and guessed at an exposure. My experiment worked and I had my first look at the interior. I noticed a stairway that descends to a lower level. That’s most likely where the pumps machinery resides, or used to reside.
Much of the forested areas in the basins are too dense and overgrown for a short survey, so I lead them on a route close to the edge of the impoundment, where the scattered saplings and understory is relatively sparse. In several areas away from the edges, where the ground is perpetually damp, I showed them large areas matted in emerald mosses. A few weeks ago I had a dream that I went to the reservoirs and found bulldozers working in that basin. Most of the trees had been cleared and, like an area carpet in one’s home, a single rectangular patch of green remained, exposed to the sun at the center of the clearing. I called Heidi on my cellphone and told her that I could see the moss turning to brown as it baked in the sun. Hopefully, that image will remain only as a bad dream.
On our way back to the access point, I spotted a pile of feathers on the ground. It appeared to be the remains of a raptor kill. Spotted rust, black and white flight feathers and a single, yellow foot were all that remained of the prey. The rusty color made me think that it might have been from a woodcock. I picked up three primary feathers to examine at home. Later that day, I received an email from Erin. In it she suggested that the remains we found could have been a kestrel. I looked through some field guides and online images and, unfortunately, I think she is correct. Would a Red-tailed Hawk kill and eat a kestrel? I’ve seen kestrels harassing the larger predators on a number of occasions and believed that they were too maneuverable to ever be caught. Then it occurred to me that another species of predator could have killed the falcon. My friend Carrie used to work at the airport for an organization that used birds of prey to chase potentially hazardous flocks of birds from the runways. Among her arsenal of raptors was a very feisty American Kestrel. One day, while working along side one of the runways, the small falcon perched on top of a small stand of shrubs. Before Carrie had a chance to react, she watched in horror as a feral cat sprung from the shrubs, grabbed the kestrel and killed it. I have seen feral cats at the reservoir, so that is one other possibility.
I would have like to have stayed another hour, but had some packing to do at home. Shane, Sean and I had registered for a two and a half day whale watching trip that was leaving from Montauk Point that evening. That story and lots of photos will be posted tomorrow (provided my Internet service isn’t interrupted...again).
Ridgewood Reservoir, 8/14/2007
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Wood Duck (5 males, 1 female.)
Mallard
Laughing Gull
Herring Gull
Rock Pigeon
Mourning Dove
Chimney Swift
Eastern Kingbird
White-eyed Vireo
Blue Jay
American Crow
Black-capped Chickadee
Carolina Wren (2 adults and 2 juveniles.)
American Robin
Gray Catbird
European Starling
Cedar Waxwing
Yellow Warbler
Black-and-white Warbler (1.)
American Redstart
Northern Cardinal
Chipping Sparrow (1 juvenile.)
Red-winged Blackbird
Common Grackle
American Goldfinch
House Sparrow
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