End of the Doldrums

As we make our way through August, shorebirds are finding their way down south and things are picking up.  I set out to Cupsogue this morning in search of Marbled Godwits which have been reported but didn't find them.  I did, however, find a slew of other fun to photo species (Above/Below: Black Skimmer)

I had an awesome experience with some sharp-tailed sparrows (I believe these are the "saltmarsh" variety).  This species of Sparrow is very shy and I'd only seen it on one previous occasion but they put on a nice show this morning.

A habitat shot just as the sun was rising:

A Roseate Tern made a surprise fly by which I didn't realize until after I got home and looked at the files.  There's a good chance this breeding adult is from one of the two colonies about 2 miles to the West where I had done Tern restoration work in conjunction with the State and Federal Government.

Edit: After speaking with John Turner, it has been pointed out that this is almost certainly a Common Tern and not a Roseate - based mostly on the short tail as opposed to the Roseate's deeply forked tail.  What through me off was the bill coloration as Roseate's do get a black/red bill, but generally they are more black than this, so with that, thank you John for setting me straight (as usual).

And later on, another Roseate (possibly the same one) made a surprise appearance with a meal in its mouth:

As long as we are on the topic of Terns, here are some shots of a Common Tern:

Above: Adult.  Below: Juvenile.

I'll round things out with 2 species that are a bit more commonly seen, the Double-Crested Cormorant and the Osprey.

Here is an adult Osprey with a fish (a juvenile is also in the nest)

Tern Island!

On Friday, I was fortunate enough to go to 'Tern Island' (aka New Made Island) in Moriches Bay.  It is an approximately 2 acre dredge spoil island (i.e. man made) just north of Fire Island National Seashore and a few miles West of Moriches Inlet in Moriches Bay.  I first visited the property at the end of March with several co-workers and two employees from the USFW Service.  At the time, we were working on clearing some of the vegetation that has grown on the island in order to create suitable habitat for Common and Roseate Terns (both Federally listed species) as there current nesting location is barely above the water line and has suffered serious flooding in recent years - destroying thousands of eggs and drowning chicks.

With the aid of the USFW Service equipment and money and a permit from the NYS DEC we cleared about an acre of land using a float-able excavator (a really cool looking machine that was towed through the bay from the Carman's River in Shirley - see blow).  In order to reduce the potential threat of raptors (such as Peregrine Falcons) from perching on the island and having a vantage point to glean chicks from, the only two trees (Eastern Red Cedars) were removed as well as a large bayberry bush.  The land was graded and raked in hopes of creating the perfect habitat for the Terns.  Additionally, right when the birds were beginning to show up at the end of their migration, a "caller" was installed, along with wooden decoys.  The caller plays a loop of a Common Tern colony which attracts the birds and is powered by a solar panel - within minutes of the caller being activated, Terns began to show up overhead.  It was still unknown if we would be successful in getting Terns to come to the island and nest but when we arrived on Friday, there was no doubt.  There were at least 200 Common Terns, and at least 1 pair of Roseate Terns on the island with many nests and plenty of courtship behavior.  It is amazing to have such success the first year and more land will likely be cleared next year in order to allow more Terns to colonize the island.  A special thanks to USFW Service for their time and equipment, and Anthony Graves who spearheaded the plan.  (Above: Roseate Tern in flight)

Excavator removing trees:

The Colony on Friday.  Note the solar panel and black box containing the CD player:

Now for the fun part... the birds.  A Common Tern in flight:

Common Terns fighting mid-air:

A Common Tern returning to its mate with a Sand Lance:

Vocalizing:

A banded Common Tern (likely banded as a chick by USFW Service):

Common Tern Courtship Behavior - notice the "decoy" in the background (the food is a grass shrimp):

A Common Tern Nest with 3 eggs (the usual amount):

A Roseate Tern with its all black bill:

And the most exciting site, a pair of Roseate Terns: