Hooded Crane at Hiwassee Wildlife Refuge, Tennessee ~ January 5-7, 2012

Devich Farbotnik and I left Thursday night and drove to the Hiwassee Wildlife Refuge in Tennessee, getting there before first light Friday morning. We spent all day Friday looking for the Hooded Crane that had been seen there since mid-December among about 10,000 Sandhill Cranes, but it never came into view.

Sandhill Cranes at the Hiwassee Wildlife Refuge.

Despite not seeing the Hooded Crane all day Friday, we did see a young Whooping Crane.

A long-distance photo of a Whooping Crane at the Hiwassee Wildlife Refuge. Note the rusty coloration on the head and neck and some near the rump.

Several Bald Eagles were present most of the day, occasionally stirring up the cranes as they flew overhead. A cooperative Eastern Phoebe flew around the viewing platform.

Eastern Phoebe at the Hiwassee Wildlife Refuge.

We stayed overnight in nearby Cleveland and returned Saturday morning. At around 8:45, the Hooded Crane flew in and landed in a field. It was only in view for about five minutes when a Sandhill Crane chased it behind some trees, so I wasn't able to get a documentation photo of it, but Devich was able to get an identifiable photo of it with his phone through his scope.

Devich Farbotnik's photo of the Hooded Crane (center, facing left) at the Hiwassee Wildlife Refuge. Note the dark forehead and light bill on the white head and the charcoal-colored body.

We left around noon and got back home around 11:00 Saturday night. The trip encompassed 1537 miles.

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Common Chaffinch in Hunterdon County, New Jersey ~ January 3, 2012

Just three days into the new year, I got news of a potential 'lifer' less than thirty minutes from my house! So I headed across the Delaware River to Hunterdon County, New Jersey where, after about a half-hour wait, I got to see a male Common Chaffinch that was visiting a private feeder.

Common Chaffinch in Hunterdon County, New Jersey.

The bird's plumage looked pristine and there were no leg bands of any kind. If this bird is accepted by the New Jersey records committee, it would be my 750th ABA bird!

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Bethlehem - Easton - Hellertown CBC ~ December 31, 2011

Andy Cuttic, Stephen Kloiber, and I were at the Nazareth Quarry at first light to try and get a fairly accurate count of the Snow Geese before they started heading out to feed in the nearby fields. We conservatively estimated 20,000 birds stretching across the entire quarry.

Many of the Snow Geese rising out of the Nazareth Quarry, Northampton County and heading to their preferred feeding areas.

Among the mass of white, we found 4 Cackling Geese, a Hooded Merganser, 3 Pied-billed Grebes, a Horned Grebe, and a 1st-winter Iceland Gull in addition to 14 American Black Ducks, 19 Ring-necked Ducks, 14 Buffleheads, 21 Common Mergansers, 16 Ruddy Ducks, 3 Great Blue Herons, 2 Black Vultures, 8 American Coots, 9 Herring Gulls, and a nice count of 56 Lesser Black-backed Gulls.

The surrounding ponds and woods produced a Sharp-shinned Hawk, a Belted Kingfisher, a Yellow-bellied Sapsucker, a Winter Wren, a Golden-crowned Kinglet, 18 Eastern Bluebirds, 15 American Robins, a Yellow-rumped Warbler, an American Tree Sparrow, and a Swamp Sparrow.

While checking the quarry out once more before leaving there, an immature Bald Eagle came soaring in from the east.

An immature Bald Eagle over the Nazareth Quarry, Northampton County.

As the eagle approached, a thunderous sound erupted as the Snows launched into the air.

Thousands of Snow Geese at the Nazareth Quarry, Northampton County.

A stop at the flooded fields by Green Pond produced a female Wood Duck, two Green-winged Teal, and this unexpected Northern Shoveler.

A Northern Shoveler at the flooded fields by Green Pond, Northampton County.

After a fairly quiet afternoon along the Lehigh River, we headed back up towards Nazareth and spotted a nice adult Peregrine Falcon that landed on one of the high-tension towers near the Hecktown Road exit of Route 33. We ended the day with 57 species!

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