Crested Caracara in Pennsylvania! ~ November 14, 2024

On Wednesday the 13th, Sam Perloff found a Crested Caracara at the Pine Run Reservoir in Bucks County! I found out about it right before I had to go to an appointment, so there was no way I could try for it. He found it perched in a tree along the reservor around 11 AM, but it took off a little while later and flew off to the northwest. Other birders searched there and the surrounding area. At around 4 PM, the bird was refound in the same tree it was seen in earlier. Again, it stayed there for a short time before flying off to the west and disappearing in the vicinity of a vulture roost out beyond the dam.

At 5 AM, I picked up Rick Wiltraut at the nearby Park & Ride and we drove down to Pine Run. We got there just before sunrise and walked out the paved trail towards the dam. The water level of the reservoir was extremely low due to the drought. I was surprised that vultures started lifting off of the roost right at sunrise. Normally, they don't tend to lift off until around mid-morning. We checked out the group, which was comprised of both Turkey and Black Vultures. Ross Gallardy decided to station himself at the roost. About an hour later at 7:42 AM, Ross spotted the bird among a group of vultures and called to let us know that it was flying somewhat in our direction. We quickly searched through the group and found the Crested Caracara! The fairly narrow and long wings with white outer wing patches, long white head with a dark cap, and long tail were all noted. Unfortunately, the bird was very distant and never came close enough for a good photograph. It flew off to the northeast and dropped behind the ridge to the north.

We spent the rest of the day there, hoping that it would come back for better views, but that never happened. While there, a couple Bald Eagles flew in and perched in a tree across the reservoir.

Bald Eagles

The Crested Caracara represents my 400th species for Pennsylvania. It was the second time I had reached 400 species for the state after seeing Kirtland's Warbler and then losing Hoary Redpoll after it was 'lumped' with Common Redpoll. Both are now considered subspecies and are simply called "Redpoll".

---