Plainfield Recreation Trail and Upper Mount Bethel ~ May 14, 2023

I led a Lehigh Valley Audubon Society bird walk at the Knitters Hill Road section of the Plainfield Recreation Trail. The plan was to head south and turn around at the creek crossing below Rasleytown Road. The walk started off well when a first-year male Orchard Oriole was spotted in a tree next to the parking lot. Also there were Yellow Warbler, Warbling Vireo, Barn Swallow, and the obvious Gray Catbird. Soon after we crossed the road and headed down the trail, two male Baltimore Orioles sparred with each other right above us.

Baltimore Oriole

When we reached the area of cattails where the large power lines cross over, we found Willow Flycatcher, numbers of the expected Red-winged Blackbirds, and a Great Blue Heron. It was odd to see the Great Blue Heron perched all the way at the top of a high-tension tower.

Great Blue Heron

In the woods along the stream, we had Cooper's Hawk, Belted Kingfisher, Pileated Woodpecker, Eastern Wood-Pewee, Red-eyed Vireo, Ovenbird, Common Yellowthroat, and Scarlet Tanager, but it was becoming obvious that warblers were almost non-existent.

The section of the trail near Rasleytown Road produced Ruby-throated Hummingbird, Great Crested Flycatcher, Eastern Kingbird, House Wren, Carolina Wren, Swainson's Thrush, and American Goldfinch.

A pair of Eastern Phoebes were apparently nesting under the bridge at the creek crossing just below Rasleytown Road. A Northern Waterthrush was also heard there. On the return walk, we added Blue-gray Gnatcatcher, Brown Thrasher, Veery, and American Redstart.

When we got back to the parking lot, the Willow Flycatcher was calling from one of the wires over the cattail patch. Also from the parking lot, we saw Chimney Swift, Red-tailed Hawk, and a circling Osprey.

Osprey

While I was on the walk, I saw a report of a Mourning Warbler from National Park Drive. At the last minute, I decided to drive up there even though I figured it wouldn't be singing by the time I got there, which was now close to 11:00. I stopped at the spot and didn't hear it, but I did hear Pileated Woodpecker, Blue-gray Gnatcatcher, Ovenbird, and American Redstart. Along the rest of the road, I had Great Crested Flycatcher, Yellow-throated Vireo, Common Raven, Scarlet Tanager, Indigo Bunting, Louisiana Waterthrush, and Swainson's Thrush.

Swainson's Thrush

Although it was early afternoon, I figured I'd check Bear Swamp for thrushes. I only managed to find Wood Thrush and Veery.

Veery

At nearby Lake Minsi, I did a quick check to see if I could find any of the Common Gallinules. I did find one of the two. Did the other bird leave or is it on a nest?

Common Gallinule

Two Great Blue Herons, an Osprey, and 18 Purple Martins were also noted.

A brief stop at the Newburg Road retention pond yielded a Spotted Sandpiper and a Savannah Sparrow.

Spotted Sandpiper

Savannah Sparrow

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Plainfield Recreation Trail and Jacobsburg State Park ~ May 12, 2023

I birded the Knitters Hill Road section of the Plainfield Recreation Trail, which is the site of this Sunday's Lehigh Valley Audubon Society's bird walk. A Warbling Vireo and a Great Crested Flycatcher were photographed on the way down the trail.

Warbling Vireo

Great Crested Flycatcher

On the return walk, a Swainson's Thrush flew up from the edge of the trail.

Swainson's Thrush

When I got back to the car, a Willow Flycatcher was calling from a wire next to the parking lot.

Willow Flycatcher

Other notables there were Pileated Woodpecker, Eastern Phoebe, Red-eyed Vireo, Blue-gray Gnatcatcher, Eastern Bluebird, Wood Thrush, American Goldfinch, Field Sparrow, Baltimore Oriole, Rose-breasted Grosbeak, and warblers that included Ovenbird, Yellow, Yellow-rumped, Black-and-white, Northern Parula, American Redstart, and Common Yellowthroat.

I drove over to Jacobsburg State Park to take a walk along Sobers Run. It was already 10:15 when I got out of the car at the gate by the bridge. One of the first songs I heard was one that I didn't immediately recognize. Luckily, the bird was constantly singing, and when I finally found it, it was a Golden-crowned Kinglet! I was very familiar with the call notes from winter but had rarely heard its full song. It was so persistently singing at this one area that I wonder if it might be trying to claim a territory. Here are some photos I got of it.

Golden-crowned Kinglet

It was fairly quiet along the trail, but I did manage to find Eastern Phoebe, Great Crested Flycatcher, Red-eyed Vireo, Blue-gray Gnatcatcher, Gray Catbird, Wood Thrush, Eastern Towhee, Ovenbird, Louisiana Waterthrush, Common Yellowthroat, Chestnut-sided Warbler, and Solitary Sandpiper along the creek.

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Shorebirds at Regency Boulevard Ponds and Steuben Road ~ May 11, 2023

After golfing with my friend, I headed over to the Regency Boulevard retention ponds and got there around noon. Along the woods edge, I saw Baltimore Oriole and two Yellow Warblers and heard Wood Thrush, Chestnut-sided Warbler, and Common Yellowthroat.

Yellow Warbler

A Red-tailed Hawk circled overhead with prey before taking it to the nest.

Red-tailed Hawk with prey

Over at the north pond, shorebirds were evident all around the perimeter. As I scanned the edges, I counted 14 Killdeer, 11 Lesser Yellowlegs, 12 Spotted Sandpipers, 6 Solitary Sandpipers, 56 Least Sandpipers, and two Semipalmated Plovers.

Semipalmated Plover

The fairly late female Ring-necked Duck also continued there.

A fairly late female Ring-necked Duck

At the nearby Steuben Road and Monocacy Creek flooded field, one White-rumped Sandpiper remained along with a Semipalmated Plover and a few other more common shorebirds.

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More Birds Continue to Move Into and Through the Area ~ May 10, 2023

It was another nice day with migrants moving through our area and also some that recently arrived on territories to breed here. I started the day along National Park Drive. A Swainson's Thrush conveniently perched for me long enough to get this photo from the car.

Swainson's Thrush

A little farther down the road, a Hooded Warbler loudly sang on territory while a Blackburnian Warbler showed off its orange throat as it moved through on its way to a more northern location.

Hooded Warbler

Blackburnian Warbler

Near the eastern end of the road, I saw Green Heron at the little pond and Yellow-throated Vireo near the previously washed-out bridge that's been replaced.

Yellow-throated Vireo

Other notables along the road were Broad-winged Hawk, Pileated Woodpecker, Red-eyed and Blue-headed Vireo, Blue-gray Gnatcatcher, Eastern Bluebird, Veery, Wood Thrush, American Goldfinch, Scarlet Tanager, Rose-breasted Grosbeak, and 14 species of warblers that included Yellow, Yellow-rumped, Blue-winged, Ovenbird, Black-and-white, Black-throated Blue, Black-throated Green, Chestnut-sided, Northern Parula, American Redstart, Common Yellowthroat, and Louisiana Waterthrush.

From there, I headed down to the Totts Gap Conservation Area where I saw Osprey, Bobolink, American Kestrel, and Eastern Meadowlark.

Bobolink

American Kestrel

Birds found over at Bear Swamp included a Red-shouldered Hawk, Pileated Woodpecker, Red-eyed and Yellow-throated Vireo, Common Raven, Veery, Wood Thrush, Swamp Sparrow, and Scarlet Tanager.

Red-shouldered Hawk

Warblers found there included Ovenbird, American Redstart, a fairly late Palm Warbler, and a nice comparison between the more yellowish Northern Waterthrush and the cleaner white-looking Louisiana Waterthrush.

Northern Waterthrush

Louisiana Waterthrush

I checked for the Common Gallinules at adjacent Lake Minsi. Two Solitary Sandpipers were in a small puddle across the road from the entrance to the west parking lot. A Great Blue Heron, 22 Purple Martins, a Louisiana Waterthrush, and an Osprey with a fish were also spotted. I eventually found one of the gallinules. Did the other one leave or is it on a nest? Time will tell.

Common Gallinule

It was now early afternoon as I drove up to Kirkridge. Because it was near mid-day, I was happily surprised to be able to find a Red-breasted Nuthatch and a Cerulean Warbler. It's always tough to get a good photo of a Cerulean. Like Yellow-throated Warbler, they spend most of their time at the very tops of the trees, so most photos only capture the underside of the bird. I did fairly well considering this and the fact that the bird was backlit by the sun.

Cerulean Warbler

On the way home, I stopped at the Hollo Road retention pond. Some of the common shorebirds were there, but I couldn't find the Semipalmated Plover that had been found there earlier.

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Another Good Day of Good Birds Around the County ~ May 8, 2023

I spent the early morning at Jacobsburg State Park. I didn't see anywhere near the numbers of warblers that I'd seen the last two days, but I still found 11 species that included Ovenbird, Blue-winged, Black-and-white, Black-throated Blue, Black-throated Green, Yellow, Yellow-rumped, Chestnut-sided, Northern Parula, American Redstart, and Common Yellowthroat.

Chestnut-sided Warbler

An Indigo Bunting was singing along the field edge near Jacobsburg Road.

Indigo Bunting

A Belted Kingfisher and two Common Mergansers were seen from the walkbridge over the creek.

Common Merganser

A Wood Thrush hopped along the trail right in front of me while a lot more secretive Swainson's Thrush stayed in the thick cover along the creek near the small overlook.

Wood Thrush

Swainson's Thrush

A Pileated Woodpecker pecked at the fallen logs along the creek, providing nice looks and several chances for photos.

Pileated Woodpecker

An Ovenbird was constantly singing from a tree right next to the trail.

Ovenbird

Other notables seen there included Cooper's Hawk, Red-eyed Vireo, Blue-gray Gnatcatcher, Eastern Bluebird, Veery, Baltimore Oriole, and still a good number of White-throated Sparrows.

I left Jacobsburg and drove to Moore Township. Along Schlegel Road, I spotted a Vesper Sparrow and an Eastern Kingbird.

Vesper Sparrow

Eastern Kingbird

Next, I checked Smith Gap Road where I found Red-eyed and Blue-headed Vireo, Wood Thrush, and warblers that included Worm-eating, Black-and-white, Black-throated Blue, and Yellow-rumped.

Worm-eating Warbler

Black-throated Blue Warbler

At the bottom of Smith Gap, I headed down Skunk Road. I got out of the car after hearing a Scarlet Tanager and found this male right over the road.

Scarlet Tanager

A second male was on the other side of the road and, at one point, the two males were sparring with each other. Unfortunately, I wasn't able to get any photos of these two flashes of brilliant color hovering together.

Scarlet Tanager

Soon after, a Rose-breasted Grosbeak also flew in while a Broad-winged Hawk soared overhead.

Rose-breasted Grosbeak

Broad-winged Hawk

From there, I drove down E. Best Road and saw two Red-headed Woodpeckers copulating on one of the snags.

Red-headed Woodpecker

Two Red-headed Woodpeckers copulating

A Pileated Woodpecker was hammering on a tree stump along the road while a Brown Thrasher that had just taken a bath was shaking itself off and preening away.

Pileated Woodpecker

Brown Thrasher

From there, I drove down through Bath to the Regency Boulevard retention ponds. Although it was mid-day, I took a quick walk along the woods edge and happened to find two calling Least Flycatchers.

Least Flycatcher

Adam Miller had texted me in the morning that he found what he thought was either a female Redhead or Ring-necked Duck there, which would be a fairly late date for either one. When I walked over to the north pond, the bird was there on the small point by the gatehouse. It eventually swam out a bit and took a bath, allowing me to get some nice photos of the wing pattern. After several birders studied the photos, it was determined to be a Ring-necked Duck.

A fairly late Ring-necked Duck

There continued to be a good number of shorebirds there. I found 17 Lesser Yellowlegs, 12 Spotted Sandpipers, 7 Solitary Sandpipers, 36 Least Sandpipers, and 9 Killdeer. While I was scoping the shoreline for shorebirds, I noticed a recently-hatched Killdeer chick. As I was watching it, a pretty large Bullfrog lunged at the chick and got a hold of its leg! Immediately, the Killdeer parent ran over and started pecking at the frog, which eventually let the chick go. It makes you wonder how many times young birds go through life-threatening situations.

I made the short drive down Steuben Road to the Monocacy Creek. The two White-rumped Sandpipers continued at the back of the flooded field. I took a long-distance photo of the two for the record.

Two White-rumped Sandpipers

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