Rump for your Life!

My favorite part of the path to the East Pond

at Jamaica Bay NRW

The Rapture

Golden-crowned Kinglet

Brant

Chipmunk

Today was the day of the Yellow Rump. We must have seen over 1000 today birding Plumb Beach and Jamaica Bay. I am still learning how to use my new Digital SLR camera. It seems that my subjects are too small and too far away to get really good, clear pictures. Now I know why I see all those guys walking around with those huge lenses.

It was a really great day for birding, some of the unexpected birds were the Tri-color Heron and the return of some Buffleheads to Jamaica Bay. I haven't seen Golden Crowned Kinglets in a while. We found a flock of them at Plumb Beach this morning. We were trying to find the Nelson's Sharp-tailed Sparrow, we didn't have any luck, but found a whole new place to go birding in Brooklyn.

Identifying sparrows is hard, even with a photo. Was that a Juvenile White-crowned Sparrow or a chipping sparrow? Damned if I can tell! I am fairly certain that this is a juvenile white-crowned.

Here's a test, which is the Lincoln's Sparrow and which is the Song Sparrow?

The top photo is the Song Sparrow and the bottom the Lincoln's. They were both found in the same flock at Mount Loretto Unique Nature Area on Staten Island yesterday. Also in the "mixed flock" were the juv. White-crowned Sparrows (photo above) and Chipping Sparrows.