Great Egret at the Valley Center Parkway Ponds ~ July 20, 2026

Great Egret sightings usually increase in late summer during what is known as the "post-breeding dispersal period". Yesterday, Dan Altif spotted one at the Valley Center Parkway ponds, so I drove over there to see if it might still be there. Before I parked the car, I noticed it in the pond next to Route 22 where I took these photos of it.

Great Egret

I then went to the Regency Boulevard ponds where I saw a female Wood Duck with three young, a Killdeer, and an Eastern Kingbird.

I stopped at Green Pond on the way back and found 11 continuing Snow Geese, a Killdeer, 3 Spotted Sandpipers, 4 Least Sandpipers, a Green Heron, a Great Blue Heron, 5 American Goldfinches, and 5 Chipping Sparrows. The Least Sandpipers were in the back middle pond along the paved pathway, which is now the only one that has water remaining in it.

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Bicentennial Park and Some Ponds ~ July 19, 2026

I went to Bicentennial Park in East Allen Township to check for young birds since I have that Breeding Bird Atlas block. On the way there, I saw an American Kestrel on a wire by Arrowhead Road. I first birded the wetlands area of the park, which was dried up, and then walked the adjacent section of the Nor-Bath Trail. That's where I was surprised to see a Merlin chasing down another bird over the field to the north! Unfortunately, both birds dropped behind the treeline before I could even try for a photo. Among the other 22 species seen at the park were Northern Flicker, Eastern Wood-Pewee, Great Crested and Willow Flycatcher, Eastern Kingbird, Barn Swallow, Gray Catbird, American Goldfinch, and Chipping Sparrow.

Eastern Kingbird

Willow Flycatcher

A young Chipping Sparrow.

I stopped at Green Pond on the way back and found 11 continuing Snow Geese, a Killdeer, 2 Spotted Sandpipers, 4 Green Herons, a Great Blue Heron, an Eastern Kingbird, 2 Eastern Warbling Vireos, 3 Tree Swallows, 2 Northern Rough-winged Swallows, a Baltimore Oriole, and around 30 Red-winged Blackbirds.

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Breeding Birds and Others ~ July 13, 2026

I got special permission to do a follow-up visit to look for breeding birds in the Hollo Road pines area. I found 26 species during my walk, several of them young birds like this Gray Catbird.

Gray Catbird

I made a quick stop at the Nazareth Quarry and found an immature Double-crested Cormorant there along with a Northern Yellow Warbler in the adjacent brush.

An immature Double-crested Cormorant.

Northern Yellow Warbler

Over at Green Pond were 12 continuing Snow Geese, a Spotted Sandpiper, 3 Green Herons, a recently-fledged Northern House Wren, and 7 American Goldfinches.

A Spotted Sandpiper and a Green Heron.

A recently-fledged Northern House Wren.

American Goldfinch

I checked the two Trio Farms Boulevard retention ponds and found 5 Chimney Swifts, 2 Killdeer, 3 Green Herons, 2 Great Blue Herons, an Osprey hunting over the one pond, a 'fly-by' Bald Eagle, 2 Eastern Kingbirds, and 4 Barn Swallows.

A Great Blue Heron and a Green Heron.

The Newburg Road retention pond area held a good count of 16 Killdeer, a Spotted Sandpiper, 9 Barn Swallows, 2 Eastern Bluebirds, and an American Goldfinch.

Spotted Sandpiper

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Two Pond Checks ~ July 8, 2026

After golfing, I made two pond checks. The first stop was at the Tatamy Exit retention pond, which only held 3 Killdeer and a Spotted Sandpiper.

The other stop was at Green Pond. There, I found 13 continuing Snow Geese, 2 Spotted Sandpipers, a Killdeer, 2 Green Herons, a pair of Northern Flickers, 8 Barn Swallows, a Northern House Wren, 2 Gray Catbirds, 2 American Goldfinches, and this Great Crested Flycatcher.

Great Crested Flycatcher

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Least Sandpipers Returning ~ July 5, 2026

The heat had kept me from birding for a few days. It wasn't as hot today, so I stopped at a few ponds to check for early returning shorebirds. I stopped at Green Pond and counted 14 continuing Snow Geese. It's been extremely dry for months, and two of the three retention ponds are completely dried up. In the back middle pond, I found 4 Least Sandpipers, 3 Spotted Sandpipers, and 3 Killdeer.

Least Sandpipers

Other birds noted were an Eastern Phoebe, 8 Barn Swallows and a Tree Swallow, and around 30 Red-winged Blackbirds. Two Great Blue Herons also flew by.

Great Blue Herons

The Hollo Road retention pond continued to hold a female Wood Duck with two young.

A female Wood Duck with two young.

My last stop at the Tatamy Exit retention pond produced two more Least Sandpipers with 5 Killdeer and a Spotted Sandpiper.

Least Sandpipers

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Snow Geese at Two Stops ~ June 29, 2026

On the way home after golfing, I stopped at Green Pond where 11 Snow Geese continued. Also there were 3 Killdeer, 3 Spotted Sandpipers, one each of Great Blue and Green Heron, Eastern Phoebe, Tree and Barn Swallow, Chipping Sparrow, and American Goldfinch.

American Goldfinch

After mowing my mom's grass later in the day, I stopped at the Hollo Road retention pond. I was surprised to see a Snow Goose there along with the continuing two young Wood Ducks.

Snow Goose

Two young Wood Ducks.

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A Few Quick Local Stops ~ June 26, 2026

I made a few quick stops on the way back home. Two Spotted Sandpipers continued at the Tatamy Exit retention pond. The Hollo Road retention pond held a female Wood Duck with two young.

A female Wood Duck with two young.

Over at Green Pond, 12 continuing Snow Geese were present. An adult Cooper's Hawk was also seen being harassed by several Tree and Barn Swallows.

An adult Cooper's Hawk being 'divebombed' by several Barn Swallows.

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