Chirps and Cheeps

A Photo Journal of My Birding Adventures & Observations

My birding blog site


  A Couple of Uncommon January Sightings

Published: January 28, 2016
Tags: General Observations, American Pipit, Field Sparrow

It was fun for Bernie and I to catch up to the American Pipit Chris Kundl found at Goat Island.  It's not too often one sees a pipit in Western New York during January.  We all really enjoyed watching it forage, picking and poking in the mud along the rocks and weeds at the water's edge.

The sun was a most welcome sight that day and we had lots of fun picking through the gulls under Chris' guidance, studying a probable Thayer's Gull and learning more of their nuances.  Passerines were nearby and we ended the fun by feeding them seed from our hands.

A couple of days later, I was amazed to find a Field Sparrow with a flock of American Tree Sparrows and Song Sparrow at a local park.  I have a poor photo attached here just to prove it was there!

It's been a strange winter with some uncommon sightings.

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American Pipit at Goat Island - a very uncommon bird for WNY in January!

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American Pipit

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American Pipit

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Field Sparrow - another very uncommon bird for WNY in January!

Reply from: LP Jakarta on 3/14/2016 10:59 PM
 The picture is quite good. With what camera did you take it? And where can I find this bird? Are they still out in summer?


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