(click on pics for zoom in)
It must be my lucky day. I happened to finish park inspections I do every two weeks when I noticed movement on the Ambergill creek water , thru the Esdale Bridge framework. So I stopped the golf cart I was driving, walked slowly and carefully towards the bridge railing. Its a big bird down there , bathing .Thinking it was just a juvenile Red-tailed Hawk, to my great surprise ,as the big raptor turned, I saw all the spotting on the upper breast and immediately knew I saw my second sighting of the juvenile NORTHERN GOSHAWK in the past 2 days.
The Gos bathed in that spot --just below the bridge--for a good ten minutes, hopping several times upon the boulder in the creek, and back in.Eventually, it flew off to a nearby limb, then another limb above the Ambergill Pool, before it took off towards the Boulder Bridge and Ricks Place.This was 2:50 to 3 pm. One of my most exciting winter moments.
Then after telling my coworkers and showing them the pictures I took ( not great but good enough), I left for home. On the way when I customarily check the lake, I noticed on the ground movement near a big tree. It was an Opposum ! And an adult too, scavenging for whatever it saw. A terrific afternoon of birding and wildlife seeing...Prospect has it all! :)>
---Kingsboider
PS. I am wondering if the Opposum is sniffing a cigar..can't tell.....what do you think?
List:
Location: Prospect Park
Observation date: 1/14/10
Number of species: 29
Canada Goose X
Mute Swan 6 lake
Wood Duck 1 boathouse pond, drake
American Black Duck 5 lake
American Black Duck x Mallard (hybrid) X
Mallard X
Northern Shoveler 90 lake
Ruddy Duck 8 lake
Northern Goshawk 1 juvenile Ambergill creek ( Ravine)
Peregrine Falcon 1 perched on BBGarden radio tower
American Coot 8 lake
Ring-billed Gull 1600 lake
Herring Gull (American) X
Great Black-backed Gull 6 lake
Rock Pigeon X
Mourning Dove X
Downy Woodpecker 2 feeders
American Crow 32 on lake ice
Black-capped Chickadee 3 feeders
White-breasted Nuthatch 2 feeders
American Robin 2
Northern Mockingbird 2
European Starling X
White-throated Sparrow X
Northern Cardinal X
Common Grackle 1 feeders
House Finch X feeders
American Goldfinch 2 feeders
House Sparrow X
This report was generated automatically by eBird v2(http://ebird.org/)
Observation date: 1/14/10
Number of species: 29
Canada Goose X
Mute Swan 6 lake
Wood Duck 1 boathouse pond, drake
American Black Duck 5 lake
American Black Duck x Mallard (hybrid) X
Mallard X
Northern Shoveler 90 lake
Ruddy Duck 8 lake
Northern Goshawk 1 juvenile Ambergill creek ( Ravine)
Peregrine Falcon 1 perched on BBGarden radio tower
American Coot 8 lake
Ring-billed Gull 1600 lake
Herring Gull (American) X
Great Black-backed Gull 6 lake
Rock Pigeon X
Mourning Dove X
Downy Woodpecker 2 feeders
American Crow 32 on lake ice
Black-capped Chickadee 3 feeders
White-breasted Nuthatch 2 feeders
American Robin 2
Northern Mockingbird 2
European Starling X
White-throated Sparrow X
Northern Cardinal X
Common Grackle 1 feeders
House Finch X feeders
American Goldfinch 2 feeders
House Sparrow X
This report was generated automatically by eBird v2(http://ebird.org/)
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Kingsboider note: Cooper's Hawk is missing from the list; I saw an adult perched in a tree adjacent to the Lullwater Bridge , near the Boathouse.Thanks to Jonathan Wells of the Audubon Center ,who was watching it.
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From Rob Bate:
Half an hour before your text about the Northern Goshawk, I was in the Ravine ready to scope our little guy when an adult Cooper's [Hawk] flew into the tree right above Rock Arch Bridge. He was all wet and spent a good 20 minutes preening and drying before flying away to another close tree. Another hawk, seemingly much smaller, had replaced the Cooper's Hawk on the same branch. I thought it must be a Merlin by its size and overall brown mottled appearance, but as it dried , it kept getting bigger and when it flew it was definitely an accipiter. It's tail was cut straight across making it a Sharpie [Sharp-shinned Hawk] . That makes it 3 accipiters bathing in the Ambergill.
