Another Ponds Run in the Rain ~ March 27, 2024

It was drizzling when I stopped at Green Pond. Two Hooded Mergansers and 2 Eastern Phoebes were at the pond along Farmersville Road, a Common Merganser and a Great Blue Heron were at Green Pond, 3 Green-winged Teal and a Snow Geese were in the flooded field area, and the Blue-winged Teal continued in the little pond next to the house on the corner.

Blue-winged Teal

It was raining pretty hard when I got to the Silver Crest Road pond, which only held 9 Ruddy Ducks and 2 Ring-necked Ducks.

The Regency Boulevard ponds produced 34 Buffleheads, 14 Ring-necked Ducks, and a Killdeer.

I was surprised to find a Belted Kingfisher flying around the Newburg Road retention pond by the hospital.

Belted Kingfisher

An adult Bald Eagle also flew by, which was my second one of the day after seeing one fly by earlier at home. Two Killdeer were at the east end of the pond.

Over at the Hollo Road retention pond area, I found 2 adult White-crowned Sparrows among 13 White-throated Sparrows and 3 Song Sparrows. The head pattern on the adults make it one of the better-looking sparrows.

White-crowned Sparrow

Two Brown-headed Cowbirds and a Carolina Wren were also there.

Brown-headed Cowbird

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Birding Right After the Rain ~ March 23, 2024

As soon as the rain wound down, I drove up to the Nazareth Quarry. There, I found 52 Ruddy Ducks, 11 Buffleheads, 22 American Coots, 2 Pied-billed Grebes, an Osprey, and a Double-crested Cormorant.

Osprey

Double-crested Cormorant

I headed towards Bath, stopped at the Silver Crest Road pond, and saw 7 Ruddy Ducks and 5 Ring-necked Ducks.

Ruddy Duck

Nearby at the Regency Boulevard ponds, there were 22 Buffleheads, 14 Ring-necked Ducks, 3 Killdeer, and 4 Eastern Bluebirds at the north pond.

Male and female Ring-necked Ducks

Eastern Bluebird

I didn't get to Green Pond until around sunset. There were 5 Snow Geese at the flooded field area, a Common Merganser on Green Pond, and a Blue-winged Teal in the little pond next to the house on the corner. I took photos of the teal, but it was near dusk, so all of the photos came out blurry. This was the best one of the bunch.

Blue-winged Teal

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Home, the Regency Ponds, and Green Pond ~ March 20, 2024

At home, I got a great opportunity to photograph a Golden-crowned Kinglet when one flew in to drink and bathe at my little waterfall.

Golden-crowned Kinglet

I had an appointment near Bethlehem, so I made a short detour over to the Regency Boulevard ponds. There, I found 34 Buffleheads, 9 Ring-necked Ducks, 3 Green-winged Teal, and a Killdeer in the north pond.

Male and female Buffleheads

A spot along Township Line Road held 18 Killdeer, 20 American Robins, and 12 Brown-headed Cowbirds among around 150 European Starlings.

At Green Pond, I saw 5 Green-winged Teal, a Gadwall, and 5 Killdeer in the flooded field area.

Gadwall

A Cooper's Hawk sent a group of about 50 European Starlings scrambling for cover.

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Green Pond and the Bethlehem Boat Club Area ~ March 18, 2024

I stopped at Green Pond and found 4 American Black Ducks, 3 Hooded Mergansers, a Gadwall, and 4 Killdeer.

My other stop was at the Bethlehem Boat Club area. I walked about a half-mile east on the trail and back and saw almost nothing. When I got back to the car, I walked over to the Boat Club entrance gate and 'spished' a little. That's when a loose group of small birds flew up out of the underbrush towards me. I worked through them and ended up counting an impressive total of 13 Yellow-rumped Warblers! I got a photo of this one after it grabbed a tick.

A Yellow-rumped Warbler with a tick in its bill.

Yellow-rumped Warblers

I was surprised to see so many together this early in the year. I can only assume that the unusually warm weather of last week might have pushed them northward earlier than expected.

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An Afternoon Run Around Northampton County ~ March 13, 2024

After a trip to the dentist in the early afternoon, I hit a few areas before going home. I stopped at the Nazareth Quarry and saw 43 Ruddy Ducks, 17 American Coots, 14 Buffleheads, 5 Ring-necked Ducks, 2 Gadwall, and a Pied-billed Grebe.

At the Christian Springs Road pond, there were 11 Snow Geese, 6 Northern Shovelers, and 2 American Black Ducks.

Northern Shovelers

Over at the Regency Boulevard's north pond, there were 25 Buffleheads, 9 Ring-necked Ducks, and 4 Killdeer, plus my first 5 Tree Swallows of the year.

Tree Swallows

The male Canvasback continued in the south pond, and a kettle of 12 Black Vultures were seen circling nearby.

Canvasback

My last stop was at Green Pond. The southeast retention pond held a pair of Hooded Mergansers and a Ruddy Duck.

Hooded Merganser

Ruddy Duck

Six Killdeer were in the flooded field on the north side of Green Pond Road.

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Upper and Lower Mount Bethel Townships ~ March 11, 2024

A Long-tailed Duck had been reported from Lake Minsi on the 6th and again on the 10th, so I decided to take a ride up there to see if it was still around even though winds were gusting to 35 miles per hour. When I got there, I scanned the east side of the lake, which was full of 'white caps' from the wind, but didn't find the bird. Over at the west side, the Purple Martin gourds were being put up for the upcoming breeding season. While there, I saw a Pied-billed Grebe and a Great Blue Heron among around 50 Ring-necked Ducks. Two Common Ravens and a Red-shouldered Hawk were also seen overhead.

I headed over to Echo Lake and saw the four Tundra Swans spotted yesterday. Eventually, 4 Mute Swans swam into the same area, allowing me to get comparison photos of the two species together.

Adult Tundra Swans

An adult Tundra Swan (left) with two younger Tundra Swans.

Two adult Tundra Swans bracketing a younger bird.

All four Tundra Swans, adults on the left and the younger birds on the right.

All four Tundra Swans.

Note the larger size, longer neck, and knob at the base of the mostly light-colored bill of the Mute Swan (front) compared to the smaller size, shorter neck, and the knobless, all-dark bill of the Tundra Swan (rear).

A Mute Swan in front of two Tundra Swans.

Also there were 83 Ring-necked Ducks, 13 Gadwall, 9 American Wigeon, 6 Green-winged Teal, 5 Common Mergansers, 3 Buffleheads, and 5 Ring-billed Gulls.

My next stop was at the Martins Creek PPL power plant area in Lower Mount Bethel Township. There, I found around 50 Buffleheads, 3 Ruddy Ducks, and 2 American Coots.

American Coots

Also there were the two American Kestrels that are often present on the wires near the intersection.

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Green Pond, Regency Ponds, and Silver Crest Road ~ March 3, 2024

A stop at Green Pond produced 3 Green-winged Teal, 2 American Black Ducks, 6 Killdeer, 3 Yellow-bellied Sapsuckers, and 4 Eastern Bluebirds.

Green-winged Teal

Yellow-bellied Sapsucker

Over at the Regency Boulevard ponds, the male Canvasback continued in the north pond along with 11 Buffleheads and 8 Ring-necked Ducks. Two Killdeer were on the bank of the south pond, and an adult Bald Eagle was seen circling nearby.

At the Silver Crest Road pond, there were 8 Ruddy Ducks, 2 Ring-necked Ducks, a Great Blue Heron, and a Cackling Goose among about 1200 Canada Geese.

Cackling Goose

A Cackling Goose between two Canada Geese for comparison.

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