Bird List                

    all yr: 2012-now          FOS in NY
    2016 celebrate birding 10 year anniversary - 決志:  矢志不渝 、堅定不移地 進行觀鳥, 成為一生一世的嗜好, 天長地久的興趣.
    2016 (Jan-Jul): Mexico (4/7)
    2015 (8/14-): Curacao / HK
    2015 (Jan-8/8) log: South Carolina / Seattle
    2014 log: Jamaica / Canadian Rockies / Curacao
    2013 log (New Orleans, Costa Maya, Belize City, Roatan, & Cozumel, HK)        
    2012 (after Hurricane Sandy) log  
    2012 (Jul-before Hurricane Sandy) log  (Netherlands, UK, Scotland, Norway, Denmark) (birdList.b4_split2_b_and_c.htm)   
    2012 (Jan-Jun) log  (Costa Rica)  
    2011 log  (HK, Punta Cana) 
    2010 log  ( 1. Mar. Caribbean Cruise : Fort Lauderdale / Cozumel, Mexico ; 2. Nov. Caribbean Cruise : Puerto Rico / Half Moon Cay ) 
    2009 log  (Las Vegas; HK, Mainland China and Taiwan)  
    2008 log  (South Caribbean Cruise - Puerto Rico, St. Thomas, St. Kitts, Grenada, Bonaire & Aruba; Toronto; Palm Beach, Florida)   
    Photo and Video @ Punta Cana    pic01.htm  others   HK trips
    Note on Dragonfly and Damselfly   my insect spider list    Macro   butterflyMoth.htm   frog   kissena_rare_encounter.htm    Postings of NY Birding List
    Favorites in 2013   Favorites in 2012   Favorites in 2011  
    Bees   Wasps   Cricket   myInventory   myNationalPark.htm
    Costa Rica info   Costa Rica, 2012 - Photo    costa_rica_mybirdlist.htm
    Birding in Shetland Islands     Norway cruise     pc_stuff.htm    Google Voice    t-mobile (6/2014)   多部未华子   Don't vote Senator Gillibrand in 11/2018!   cull_CanadaGeese_at_JBWR.htm
    samsung_s3600.note01.htm   smart_phone.htm   http://www.nycgovparks.org/news/notices   Biblical_problems_caused_by_translation.htm   translation resource
    how_can_i_make_a_very_sharp_phot.htm   flash_wont_sync_in_slave_mode.htm   Camera/Camcorder for birding   cam4underwater   infrared_photography.htm
    snorkeling  
    comet_PANSTARRS.htm    Jamaica_bird.htm   2015plus_jamaica_trips.htm   Glacier   Hay fever   Glacier & Canadian Rockies  
    Curacao-1   Curacao-2   Bermuda   Cancun
    Cuba [mirror]  Ethiopia [Rockjumper's standard tours (as we classify this PNG tour) are aimed at the keen birder who wants to see as many birds and as much wildlife as possible without extreme effort or arduous hours in the field i.e. the average birder. src]
    South Carolina   Seattle
    Lead Adventures 3-Week Galapagos program - doc  
    Quito - Monastery of San Francisco - pic1  quito.htm
    List of whale and dolphin species        List of birds of HK
    全膝關節置換術 (TKA)   飛蚊症

Vanessa's Delights Omega-3 Mix contains Omega-3 Fortified Cranberries, Roasted Almonds, Walnuts, Pecans, Raw Pistachios, and Pepitas (Pumpkin Seeds).   Other brands: thenutbox.com (has retail stores in NYC)

How many birds with common name in USA starting with American? 19.  ref-1  ref-2 

- American White Pelican (Pelecanus erythrorhynchos) vs. Great White Pelican (Pelecanus onocrotalus)
- American Black Duck
- American Wigeon
- American Green-winged Teal
- American Bittern
- American Coot
- American Avocet
- American Woodcock
- American Golden-Plover
- American Oystercatcher
- American Kestrel
- American Crow
- American Goldfinch
- American Tree Sparrow
- American Redstart
- American Pipit
- American Dipper
- American Robin
- American Three-toed Woodpecker (Picoides dorsalis)

How many duck (inc.  shelducks) species did I see?  And which has not yet?

Confirm (20+): 
     Redhead.  Muscovy Duck.  Wood Duck.  American Wigeon.  Gadwall.  Ruddy Duck.  Bufflehead.  Blue-winged Teal (8/20/2011).  Green-winged Teal.  Hooded Merganser.  Ring-necked Duck (1/2012 at "New Alley Pond").  Shoveler.  Mallard.  American Black Duck.   Domestic Duck. 
     Greater or Lesser Scaup (1/8/2012).   Red-breasted Merganser (1/8/2012, 7/28/2012).  White-winged Scoter (1/8/2012).  
     Black-bellied Whistling-Duck (where and when? 2012 Costa Rica?)  Long-tailed Duck (2/18/2012).   
     Egyptian Goose (Alopochen aegyptiacus; "fox-goose") in the shelduck subfamily Tadorninae (8/24/2012).  
     Muscovy duck (?Kissena Park 2/28/2009 [No, it is the the big Snowy Goose]?, Punta Cana 2011). 
     Horned Grebe (1/8/2012).

Question: Mottled Duck (rare in NYC) in FL or others?  Masked Duck.  Mandarin duck (HK). 

Definitely Not Yet:  (1) Cinnamon Teal (Anas cyanoptera) 

Note: Mallard call duck - mini mallards breeding for their loud call, to attract mallard's for hunting.

Tides for Barren Island, Rockaway Inlet starting with July 30, 2016.

Day        High      Tide  Height   Sunrise    Moon  Time      % Moon
           /Low      Time    Feet    Sunset                    Visible

Sa  30     High   5:16 AM     5.1   5:51 AM    Rise  2:43 AM      19
    30      Low  11:29 AM     0.0   8:12 PM     Set  5:26 PM
    30     High   5:45 PM     6.1

Su  31      Low  12:23 AM     0.0   5:52 AM    Rise  3:38 AM      11
    31     High   6:18 AM     5.2   8:11 PM     Set  6:22 PM
    31      Low  12:24 PM    -0.1
    31     High   6:42 PM     6.3

M    1      Low   1:16 AM    -0.2   5:53 AM    Rise  4:37 AM      5
     1     High   7:14 AM     5.5   8:10 PM     Set  7:12 PM
     1      Low   1:18 PM    -0.1
     1     High   7:33 PM     6.4

Tu   2      Low   2:06 AM    -0.3   5:54 AM    Rise  5:39 AM      1
     2     High   8:04 AM     5.7   8:09 PM     Set  7:56 PM
     2      Low   2:09 PM    -0.1
     2     High   8:21 PM     6.4

W    3      Low   2:53 AM    -0.4   5:55 AM    Rise  6:41 AM      0
     3     High   8:52 AM     5.7   8:08 PM     Set  8:34 PM
     3      Low   2:57 PM    -0.1
     3     High   9:06 PM     6.3

Th   4      Low   3:37 AM    -0.3   5:56 AM    Rise  7:43 AM      1
     4     High   9:38 AM     5.7   8:07 PM     Set  9:09 PM
     4      Low   3:43 PM     0.0
     4     High   9:49 PM     6.1

F    5      Low   4:18 AM    -0.2   5:57 AM    Rise  8:44 AM      4
     5     High  10:24 AM     5.6   8:06 PM     Set  9:41 PM
     5      Low   4:26 PM     0.2
     5     High  10:33 PM     5.8 

http://www.saltwatertides.com/cgi-local/newyork.cgi

Photo:
  Skimmer - <1>   
  A small butterfly, Eastern Tailed-Blue - <1> 
  A large fly -

Eastern Pondhawk	1 immature male
	2 female

Note:
(1) butterfly id tool
(2) Ranger  Ryan on Eastern Pondhawk at Big John's (Jun 7, 2016 posted) - While the green females tend to remain stationary among the plant life around the pond, the blue males spend a lot of their time cruising over the waters and hunting other flying insects, some as big as themselves.

Photo:
  Skimmer babies - 
  Common Tern babies - 
  Oystercatcher babies/juveniles - 
  Piping Plover juveniles -
 

Photo:
    Unicorn Clubtail -

Note on Unicorn Clubtail (Arigomphus villosipes):
1. It commonly rests on wet pond edges, rock and logs, where it can be extremely difficult to approach. It is apparently proficient at taking and feeding on smaller dragonflies.  src
2. odonatacentral.org
Genus Arigomphus

Photo:
    Grackle - juvenile   bathing adult

Note:
(1) List of Butterflies of New York 

Skippers (Hesperiidae)

Spread-wing Skippers (Pyrginae) 
Columbine Duskywing (Erynnis lucilius)
Common Checkered-Skipper (Pyrgus communis)
Common Sootywing (Pholisora catullus)
Dreamy Duskywing (Erynnis icelus)
Golden Banded-Skipper (Autochton cellus)
Grizzled Skipper (Pyrgus centaureae)
Hoary Edge (Achalarus lyciades)
Horace's Duskywing (Erynnis horatius)
Juvenal's Duskywing (Erynnis juvenalis)
Long-tailed Skipper (Urbanus proteus)
Mottled Duskywing (Erynnis martialis)
Northern Cloudywing (Thorybes pylades)
Persius Duskywing (Erynnis persius)
Silver-spotted Skipper (Epargyreus clarus)
Sleepy Duskywing (Erynnis brizo)
Southern Cloudywing (Thorybes bathyllus)
Wild Indigo Duskywing (Erynnis baptisiae)

5/28/2016 (Sat) 7:30 am - pm
Nickerson Beach (880 Lido Blvd, Lido Beach, NY 11561) / Lido Beach Passive Nature Preserve / Oceanside / Big Egg Marsh / Broad Channel American Park
Seeing Jeff (NYSIF) at Nickerson.

Nickerson Beach:  Skimmers.  Sanderlings.  Terns (Common, Least).  Piping Plovers.  Skimmer is FOS, last seen on 7/11/2015.  Oystercatchers, esp. a mating pair.
Lido: Common Yellowthroat (not sure here or Oceanside?)
Oceanside: Osprey (1 chick).  Dragonfly.
Big Egg Marsh: Dragonfly.

Photo:
    Least Tern -
    Common Tern -
    Sanderling -
    Skimmer -
    Piping Plover -
    Osprey -
    Willet -
    Yellow-crowned Night Heron - juvenile eating crab   adult eating crab
    Laughing Gull -
    Semipalmated Sandpiper -
    Oystercatcher - mating

Photo:
    Eastern Cottontail - <1>   The third-1 (no red veins in its ears so it may not be a juvenile; unless its parent mated in one of the warm days in March; rusty nape patch is a key to id cottontail)   Running-1  Running-2 (set to run)
    Robin -
    Rock Dove -

Note: 
(1) This is the time to see many juvenile Starlings and enjoy shorebirds at Big Egg Marsh / Broad Channel American Park.
(2) Eastern Cottontail Rabbit -
Rabbit or Hare?
The term "rabbit" and the term "hare" are often used as synonyms but are not at all interchangeable. The most obvious difference between these two types of small, grazers is the shape of their ears: hares have much longer ears than rabbits and the ears of hares tend to have black colored tips. There are also significant differences in the two groups' burrowing habits (only rabbits make underground burrows) and in the characteristics of their young (rabbits have naked newborns, hares have furred newborns).

Mating can occur at any time during the warmer months of the year.

The young are born after a thirty day gestation period and are dependent upon the doe for food for approximately two weeks. At two weeks the small rabbits forage and fend for themselves.

(3) Eastern Cottontail Rabbit (New Hampshire) - The eastern cottontail mates between February and September. The female builds a nest in a depression in the ground and lines it with soft materials and fur from her chest. The female gives birth about a month after mating. She has between one to nine babies, although she usually will have four to five young. The female feeds the young twice a day. The babies are weaned after about three weeks and leave the nest after about seven weeks. The female may mate again just hours after giving birth. Females can have three or four litters a year. Eastern cottontails are ready to mate when they are three months old.

Photo:
    Least Tern -
    Common Tern -
    Sanderling -
    Dunlin -

Note:
(1) Sanderling - breeding plumage highly variable; some show rich chestnut head and upperparts, while others remain relatively colorless.

Photo:
    Common Yellowthroat - <1> 
    Solitary Sandpiper -
    Tree Swallow -
    Warblers -
    Plant - hdr
    Evening sister Tam 100th birthday banquet: fb  Google Photo

Note:
(1) THE PROPER NAME FOR A BABY SWAN: Adult swans typically nest in pairs, rather than in colonies, and don’t necessarily mate for life. According to the University of Michigan Animal Diversity Web, mute swans have been seen with up to four different mates and have also been known to leave one mate and pair up with another. Pairs do remain together throughout the breeding season, but may switch partners the following year. Together they build a nest that can be as large as 6 feet across where they will hatch as many as nine babies.
Family Life: The male swan, called the cob, helps the female, known as a pen, to look after their babies, called cygnets until they are a year old. The young don’t spend more than one day in the nest once they hatch. If the pen is still brooding eggs, the cob will take care of any cygnets that have already hatched, leading them directly to the water. Though they can swim from birth, cygnets may sometimes ride on the backs of their parents or take shelter under their wings until they are old enough to strike out on their own.
(2) Eastern tent caterpillar wiki: The tents act as miniature greenhouses, trapping the heat of the morning sun and allowing the caterpillars to warm more quickly than they would if they remained outside. An aggregation of basking caterpillars can achieve temperatures in excess (T_body−T_ambient) of 44 °C. They easily overheat, so the aggregation splits up when they reach a satisfactory temperature.

(3) Eastern Tent Caterpillar (Malacosoma americanum): The only predators in JBWR are the 2 species of Cuckoos.
(4) Bird Notes:

Cuckoos perch quietly and scan their surroundings for food. Hairy tent caterpillars, shunned by most birds, are often on their meal ticket. So, if you have an infestation of tent caterpillars, you might see one of these slender brown and white birds with long, white-spotted tails.

The cuckoo plucks a caterpillar from its tent and manipulates it back and forth in its bill, taking off many of the bothersome hairs. But some of them remain, and cuckoo stomachs are sometimes lined with these hairs. When the hairs are dense enough to prevent digestion, the entire stomach lining is cast off and regurgitated. Nature finds surprising ways to deal with problems!

(8) Tent Caterpillars are for the Birds  -
There are two species of springtime tent caterpillars in northern Michigan: eastern tent caterpillars (Malacosoma americanum) and forest tent caterpillars (Malacosoma disstria), ... someone asked whether any birds will eat these pesky insects. Tom answered that severely declining populations of black-billed and yellow-billed cuckoos in particular are crazy about them. According to research conducted at the Minnesota Agricultural Experiment Station 60 birds species have been documented to eat tent caterpillars including cuckoos, orioles, jays, chickadees and nuthatches. This same study also found that tent caterpillar outbreaks are controlled by native predators and parasites including 127 insect parasites, 28 insect predators, frogs, mice, bats, reptiles, squirrels, skunks, and bears. By sifting through one day’s worth of bear poop (fun job) researchers found that a single bear on average ate around 25,000 caterpillars in a one day. 

(9) Ranger  Ryan (2016): Birds can only eat them [Eastern Tent Caterpillar] when they are very young, after a few weeks they become too hairy to be swallowed.

Photo:
    Robin eating worm -
    Killdeer -
    Mourning Dove in flight -
    Small White butterfly -

Not surprisingly , all the Swallows were first seen over water, with Bank,
Tree, Cliff and Barn feeding over the South Pond, while N.Rough-winged was
encountered over MacDonald's Pond. We then were reluctant to leave this
location in case a Purple Martin decided to show up, and I even had the
idea to offer a $6.00 bonus for the first person to find one...but I
chickened out ! In addition to the Bank and Cliff Swallows, Great Crested
Flycatcher, E.Kingbird and Ovenbird were FOY species for me.   src

 to view a YouTube video of one in action). 

Like Tree Swallows and bluebirds, House Wrens are cavity-nesters that can't make 
their own cavities, and though tiny in size House Wrens have developed effective 
methods for competing with larger species for these crucial resources, methods that 
can mean big trouble for Tree Swallows and bluebirds.  If House Wrens have indeed 
discovered your boxes you will need to decide whether to remove the boxes or not.


House Wrens tend to migrate north later than Tree Swallows and bluebirds, often 
arriving on the scene when the swallows and bluebirds are already building nests or 
have eggs or small nestlings.  If the swallows and bluebirds are lucky the wrens will 
find unoccupied cavities in or near the shrubby tangles they prefer, and leave the 
other species' nests alone.  However, if the swallow or bluebird nests are themselves 
anywhere near shrubby tangles they may be in danger of destruction or takeover by 
the wrens.  

Classic signs of House Wren depredation include coarse twigs, typical of wren nests, 
placed on top of existing swallow or bluebird nests, eggs with smallish two-holed 
punctures found in the nest, or punctured eggs or small dead swallow or bluebird 
nestlings on the ground beneath the nest box. src

Photo:
    Tree Swallow -  crop-1  hdr-1

Photo:
    Oystercatcher -
    Fisherman's Parking Area Sign

Note:
 (1) Mar 15 or after, go to Breezy Point early morning, leaving before 9 or 9:30am.  My ticket was given after 10am.  Or get the one day pass for birding.

Photo:
    Green Sea Turtle - fb   fb-pic 
    Winnie's Album - fb  Google Photo  
    my TS30 - Google Photo
    Parroquia Catolica de San Jose, a small church at town square of Puerto Morelos - HDR (Preset: Painterly 2)

Photo:
    Cowbird - female-1

Photo:
    Raven (or crow?) taking off - HDR, w800 (fb)

Note:  Common Raven: 渡鸦（学名：Corvus corax）- C. c. principalis：出沒於北美洲北部及格陵蘭。牠們有着很大的體型及最大的喙，羽毛有強烈的光澤，頸羽則很豐滿。

The ‘impacts’ paper on the below web page estimates mortality of birds due to cat predation to be one billion.

https://abcbirds.org/threat/cats-and-other-invasives/

Collision mortality updates:
https://abcbirds.org/threat/bird-strikes/

桃始華：桃花紅，自此漸盛。
倉庚鳴：黃鸝叫鳴。
鷹化為鳩：鷹開始悄悄地躲起來繁育後代，而原本蟄伏的鳩開始鳴叫求偶，古人沒有看到鷹，而周圍的鳩好像一下子多起來，他們就誤以為是鷹變成了鳩。

驚蟄，是24節氣中的第三個節氣。每年3月5日或6日，太陽到達黃經345度時即為驚蟄，這時氣溫回升較快，漸有春雷萌動，驚蟄的意思是天氣回暖，春雷始鳴，驚醒蟄伏於地下冬眠的昆蟲。蟄是藏的意思。 

火鏡藏蒼鷺 火猴送金羊

* ACCUMULATIONS...SNOW ACCUMULATION OF 6 TO 11 INCHES.

* WINDS...NORTH 25 TO 35 MPH WITH GUSTS UP TO 50 MPH.

* TEMPERATURES...IN THE UPPER 20S TO LOW 30S.

* VISIBILITIES...ONE QUARTER MILE OR LESS AT TIMES.

* TIMING...SATURDAY MORNING THROUGH SUNDAY MORNING.

* IMPACTS...EXTREMELY DANGEROUS TRAVEL DUE TO HEAVY SNOWFALL AND
STRONG WINDS WITH WHITEOUT CONDITIONS LIKELY. SECONDARY AND
TERTIARY ROADS MAY BECOME IMPASSABLE. STRONG WINDS MAY DOWN
POWER LINES AND TREE LIMBS.

A BLIZZARD WARNING MEANS SEVERE WINTER WEATHER CONDITIONS ARE
EXPECTED OR OCCURRING. FALLING AND BLOWING SNOW WITH STRONG WINDS
AND POOR VISIBILITIES ARE LIKELY. THIS WILL LEAD TO WHITEOUT
CONDITIONS...MAKING TRAVEL EXTREMELY DANGEROUS. DO NOT TRAVEL. IF
YOU MUST TRAVEL...HAVE A WINTER SURVIVAL KIT WITH YOU. IF YOU GET
STRANDED...STAY WITH YOUR VEHICLE.

Updated: Jan 23 2:45AM (Northern Queens, New York)

  A BAND OF HEAVY SNOW STRETCHING WEST TO EAST FROM CENTRAL NEW
JERSEY TO SOUTH OF LONG ISLAND WILL MAY ITS WAY INTO THE AREA OVER
THE NEXT 2 HOURS. SNOWFALL RATES OF 1 TO 2 INCHES PER HOUR ...

Here are the top snow and ice totals by state reported as of 2:14 a.m. Sunday, with the highest snow totals listed first:

Mid-Atlantic and Northeast (Friday-Saturday)

• West Virginia: 40 inches of snow in Glengary, in the eastern panhandle of West Virginia.
• Virginia: 39 inches in Philomont, about 25 miles northwest of Washington, D.C.
• Maryland: 38 inches in Redhouse, in western Maryland. Redhouse is 150 miles west of Baltimore.
• New York: 30.5 inches at JFK Airport in New York City.
• Pennsylvania: 35.5 inches at Somerset, about 25 miles southwest of Altoona.
• New Jersey: 29.6 inches at Whitehouse, in Readington Township in the northern part of the state.

Washington, D.C.

1) 28.0 inches (Jan. 27-29, 1922)
2) 20 inches (Feb. 12-14, 1899)
3) 19.4* inches (Winter Storm Jonas)
4) 18.7 inches (Feb. 18-19, 1979)
5) 17.8 inches (Feb. 5-6, 2010)

*An earlier snowfall report of 21.4 inches was retracted and it may be a while before the final snowfall total is clarified.

Baltimore, Maryland

1) 29.2 inches (Winter Storm Jonas)
2) 26.8 inches (Feb. 16-18, 2003)
3) 26.6 inches (Jan. 7-9, 1996)
4) 26.5 inches (Jan. 27-29, 1922)
5) 25 inches (Feb. 5-6, 2010)

New York City at Central Park

1) 26.9 inches (Feb. 11-12, 2006)
2) 26.8 inches (Winter Storm Jonas)  Revised to 27.5 - The new storm total of 27.5 inches now beats New York City's previous record snowstorm of 26.9 inches Feb. 11-12, 2006. Weather records have been taken at Central Park since 1869.
3) 25.8 inches (Dec. 26-27, 1947)
4) 20.9 inches (Feb. 25-26, 2010)
5) 20.5 inches (Jan. 7-9, 1996)

New York City's biggest snowfall on record hit on Feb. 11, 2006, dumping 26.9 inches of powder on the city over two days. 

Forecasts predicting a crippling blizzard warned New Yorkers nearly a week in advance before the storm finally dumped a record 26.8 inches of powder on New York City.

The second(?) largest blizzard killed at least 77 people when it stuck on Dec. 26, 1947. The paralyzing storm lasted for two days and dropped 25.8 inches on Central Park.

A four-day blizzard that hit late in the winter of 1888 threw the city into chaos and killed more than 200 people in New York City. The March 11-14 storm brought 21 inches of snow to the city ...

A fierce “snowicaneâ€� ripped through New York City on Feb. 25, 2010, bringing 20.9 inches of snow with it.

Where Jonas Was the All-Time Heaviest Snowstorm

Jonas was the single biggest snowstorm on record for at least six locations in the East:

• Allentown, Pennsylvania: 31.9 inches Jan. 22-23, 2016 crushed the Jan. 7-9, 1996 blizzard total of 25.9 inches.
• Baltimore-Washington International Airport, Maryland (BWI): 29.2 inches Jan 22-23, 2016 beat the President's Day II storm of Feb. 16-18, 2003. Records date back to 1892.
• Harrisburg, Pennsylvania: 30.2 inches Jan. 22-23, 2016 tops 25 inches Feb. 11-12, 1983. Records date back to 1888.
• New York - LaGuardia Airport: 27.9 inches Jan. 23, 2016 beats the previous record snowstorm of 25.4 inches Feb. 11-12, 2006. Records date back to 1945.
• New York - JFK Airport: 30.5 inches Jan. 23, 2016 beats the previous record snowstorm of 26 inches in the President's Day II storm of Feb. 16-18, 2003.
• Newark, New Jersey: 27.9 inches Jan. 22-23, 2016 surpassed the Jan. 7-8, 1996 blizzard total of 27.8 inches. Records date back to 1893.