Black-crowned Night-Heron at Green Pond ~ April 20, 2022

Joe Zajacek found a Black-crowned Night-Heron at Green Pond in the morning. I got over there a little later and saw Jeff Vinosky there. He spotted the bird sitting in the deadwood near the northside parking area. By the time I returned from the car with my camera, it had moved farther back along the north edge of the pond, which is where I got these documentation photos.

Black-crowned Night-Heron

Two immature Bald Eagles circled overhead soon afterward.

Two immature Bald Eagles

Other birds seen there included two Wilson's Snipe, three Greater Yellowlegs, one Lesser Yellowlegs, two Ruby-crowned Kinglets, two Palm Warblers, and several Yellow-rumped Warblers.

Ruby-crowned Kinglet

Yellow-rumped Warbler

I left Green Pond and stopped at the Newburg Road retention ponds where I found four Horned Larks and an impressive number of Savannah Sparrows.

Horned Lark

I conservatively estimated that there were thirteen Savannah Sparrows in the field and perched in the surrounding trees but wouldn't be surprised if there were even more than that.

Savannah Sparrows

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Rusty Blackbirds at Green Pond ~ April 18, 2022

With the storm approaching late in the afternoon, I parked at Green Pond where I could watch the flooded fields. In addition to two Greater Yellowlegs, one male and two female Rusty Blackbirds fed with Red-winged Blackbirds and American Robins along the muddy edges of the field on the north side of Green Pond Road.

Female Rusty Blackbirds (left and center) and a male Rusty Blackbird (right)

Male Rusty Blackbird

Female Rusty Blackbird

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American Mink at East Bangor Dam ~ April 15, 2022

On Friday morning while birding East Bangor Dam, I had this Mink come to within 10 feet of me before realizing that I was there. It got so close that I could not totally keep it in the camera frame. It's interesting that I had one, possibly the same one, back on April 23, 2020 at nearly the same spot.

American Mink

Birds seen there included Wood Duck, Blue-winged Teal, Double-crested Cormorant, Common Raven, Ruby-crowned Kinglet, Blue-gray Gnatcatcher, Brown Thrasher, Swamp Sparrow, and Yellow-rumped Warbler.

Blue-winged Teal

Double-crested Cormorant

Brown Thrasher

Swamp Sparrow

Yellow-rumped Warbler

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Woodland Hills Preserve ~ April 14, 2022

I spent the morning at the Woodland Hills Preserve. Some of the birds seen there included Osprey, Pileated Woodpecker, Common Raven, Ruby-crowned Kinglet, Brown Thrasher, Hermit Thrush, Field Sparrow, and Palm Warbler.

Field sparrow

Brown Thrasher

A Northern Flicker and a Red-bellied Woodpecker were having a quarrel over a tree cavity. Eventually, the Flicker won the fight.

A Northern Flicker and Red-bellied Woodpecker quarrel

Northern Flicker

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Yellow-throated and other early warblers ~ April 13, 2022

Since I was leading a bird walk at Housenick Park on Saturday, I decided to scout the area since I hadn't been there since last Fall. Notables included Green-winged Teal, Hooded Merganser, many Northern Flickers, Golden-crowned Kinglet, Brown Thrasher, Eastern Bluebird, and a few Pine and Palm Warblers.

Eastern Bluebird

Pine Warbler

I drove down to the Wilson Avenue area of the Lehigh River and walked the towpath hoping for a Yellow-throated Warbler. My hope turned into reality when I heard one singing and found it, as usual, near the top of a sycamore tree.

Yellow-throated Warbler

Nearby, an adult Cooper's Hawk was feeding on its prey.

Cooper's Hawk

I also checked the Bethlehem Boat Club area for Yellow-throated. I didn't hear any there, but I did have some luck spotting raptors, finding a Broad-winged Hawk, a Red-tailed Hawk, and a pair of Ospreys.

Broad-winged Hawk

Red-tailed Hawk

Osprey

My next stop was Green Pond where I found 3 Palm Warblers, 3 Pectoral Sandpipers, and 3 Wilson's Snipe.

Palm Warbler

Wilson's Snipe

The Hollo Road retention pond held five lingering Snow Geese, two Wood Ducks, a Killdeer, and a Greater Yellowlegs.

Greater Yellowlegs

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Green Pond ~ April 11, 2022

A search around Green Pond only yielded 22 species, but the flooded field area held a Wilson's Snipe and a Greater Yellowlegs.

Wilson's Snipe

Greater Yellowlegs

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Northampton County birding ~ April 4, 2022

A stop at Green Pond produced 38 Green-winged Teal, 4 Ring-necked Ducks, a Killdeer, a Great Blue Heron, 11 Eastern Phoebes, 8 Tree Swallows, 2 Golden-crowned Kinglets, and 2 Eastern Bluebirds.

Killdeer

Great Blue Heron

Golden-crowned Kinglet

From there, I went over to the Newburg Road retention pond where a male American Kestrel flew past me.

American Kestrel

The Long-tailed Duck was still present at the Silver Crest Road retention pond and was joined by a nice male Ruddy Duck.

Long-tailed Duck

Ruddy Duck

As I pulled down the driveway, I spotted a Hermit Thrush at the edge of the backyard. It was a nice end to the day.

Hermit Thrush

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