They’re baack! The Main Pool has a few thousand ducks!! This week there are plenty of dabblers (puddle ducks – Mallards, American Wigeon, Gadwall, Green and Blue winged Teal, Northern Pintail, Northern Shovelers and Black Ducks) and a respectable showing of divers (Redheads, Ring-necked and Ruddy Ducks) for early October. Despite the rain that we so badly need, it was easy to see lots of ducks close to the Wildlife Drive!! Except for the Visitors’ Center Pool, most of the other units have much lower water levels or they are essentially dry, so it will be a while before we see ducks in those areas.
We still have some shorebirds migrating through. The Visitors’ Center Pool had a flock of Long-billed dowitchers that could be seen from a car along the entrance drive and from the observation deck. The NE corner of the Sandhill Crane Unit (listed on the sheet as Van Dyne Spoor Road) had Lesser and Greater Yellowlegs and a couple of Pectoral Sandpipers. This pool of water at the eastern end of Van Dyne Spoor Road is very close to the road and the shorebirds are easy to see! The slough of water that comes in from the Seneca-Cayuga Canal towards the Wildlife Drive just south of Larue’s Lagoon had 2 Yellowlegs and 2 Solitary Sandpipers.
If you are looking for Sandhill Cranes, start at the Knox-Marsellus Overlook on East Road. The other day there were 57 down in the marsh. Due to the drought, that unit has very little water but there have been numerous sightings of Bald Eagles and Turkey Vultures as well.
Eaton Marsh (north of the photo blind area on the Wildlife Drive) has been mowed and fitted with a disc. It is ready for water; hint, hint, Mother Nature!! In the meantime, Refuge staff are working through the logistics to pump water into the unit.
It looks like it should be a good weekend to get out of the house and enjoy what the Refuge has to offer! Remember there are NO restroom facilities at the Refuge at this point.
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