Our free monthly evening programs feature regional environmental experts to connect you with ongoing issues and expand your natural horizons. Free and open to the public. No reservations needed. As with all of our events, in case of uncertain weather, check our website or call our office, 914-666-6503, for any schedule changes.
Thursday, September 28, 7:00 pm
Croton Free Library
What Can Wood Thrushes Tell Us About Forest Health: Dr. Elijah Goodwin
Many of us are familiar with the haunting flute-like song of the Wood Thrush. Do numbers of breeding birds tell the whole story? How successful are Wood Thrush nests? Dr. Elijah Goodwin will present preliminary results from his three-year study of Wood Thrush nests at Rockefeller State Park Preserve. What have we learned so far from Wood Thrushes? [Download a flyer to share]
Thursday, October 26, 7:00 pm
Chappaqua Library
Bird Migration Through Urban Landscapes: Dr. J. Alan Clark
How are birds affected by our urban landscapes in their annual journeys across the continent? Most birds migrate at night. Light, noise, and buildings pose particular challenges for these birds. In his research, Dr. J. Alan Clark uses recordings of the short vocalizations that most birds use during migratory flight as well as small- and large-scale radar to examine these urban challenges to bird migration. Dr. Clark is an Associate Professor of Biology at Fordham University and coordinator of the school’s conservation biology program.[Download a flyer to share]
Thursday, November 30, 7:00 pm
Croton Free Library
The Mysteries of Sparrow ID: Joe Giunta
Come learn how to sort out the challenging LBJs (Little Brown Jobs) with this presentation by an experienced New York birder. Joe Giunta is the birding instructor for the Brooklyn Botanical Garden and leads bird walks for the Nature Conservancy, Brooklyn Bird Club, South Fork Natural History Society and New York City Audubon. He is a captain in the Brooklyn Christmas Bird Count and has participated in state breeding bird surveys.[Download a flyer to share]
Looking Ahead…
Thursday, December 21, 7:00 pm
Members’ Best Photos & Holiday Gathering
Croton Free Library
Join us for this fun and informal event where members and friends of Saw Mill River Audubon share photographic highlights of the past year of birding and nature exploration and enjoy holiday desserts. Let us know if you would like to share 2-5 of your best photographs by emailing our office by December 13. Bring holiday cookies and other treats to share and exchange. (It is also very okay to come without photos or desserts!)
In late March 2017, Charlie Roberto noted that he had seen Purple Martins last spring just a few miles north of Croton Point, in Putnam County along the Hudson. He added, “Croton Point is a perfect place for a colony…but we would have to get it done by the end of April to have a chance for nesting this year.” Challenge accepted!
Saw Mill River Audubon contacted Rob Armanini, owner of the Feed the Birds store in Croton to see about martin tower pricing. Rob immediately offered us wholesale pricing and then went even further than that, underwriting half the cost. (Thanks again, Rob!)
SMRA also contacted John Baker, (then) Director of Conservation for Westchester County Parks, who linked us with the Westchester Parks Foundation for more funding support.
Croton Point Park Naturalist John Phillips handled the Croton Point Park permissions and went even further, arranging for some park staff to dig the hole, and erect the tower. Meanwhile, John also assembled the many, many parts that go into a purple martin nesting tower.
By April 19, Croton Point Park had a brand new Purple Martin nesting tower. Now for some martins.
There’s a wealth of advice online about Purple Martin colonies including an active discussion forum at the Purple Martin Conservation Association’s web site (www.purplemartin.org.) All these experienced martin watchers agree that the best way to attract martins to a new colony was (1) have a purple martin plastic decoy at the top of the tower, and (2) play recordings of a purple martin dawn song — when else? — at dawn. Purple Martins are highly social and will show up where they think other martins already are.
Fake Martin
John Phillips took care of getting the plastic Purple Martin decoy installed. This plastic decoy came with our Purple Martin structure but lacked a good attachment scheme. No matter. Some duct tape did the trick. (We shall leave nameless those few birders that, briefly, eBirded the plastic martin.)
As for the dawn songs, there’s an .mp3 audio file for that. We put up a notice on Facebook for some volunteers to come at dawn and play recordings. Jessica T. stepped up for several mornings of song playing, some others did as well. We persisted. And a month went by with no Purple Martins.
May 22, 2017 Saw Mill River Audubon’s regular 4th Monday morning walk at Croton Point saw a martin! A lone Purple Martin — perhaps a scout for a new colony — was flying around the main parking lot, singing and trying to enter the emergency siren structure. Just down the road from our sparkling new nesting structure.
This one martin stuck around for two more weeks, finally making its way over the nesting tower.
It kept adding its voice to our dawn chorus playbacks and then, at last, FOUR Purple Martins were seen on June 8, sitting and singing in the right place, on the new nesting tower.
A week later, June 15, we had five martins and a week later, reports of up to 8 martins! .
Our Monday walk on June 26 stopped to watch the martins. We saw an adult pair, male and female, carrying nesting materials into one of the nesting gourds.
If nesting is successful, this will be the only known Purple Martin colony in Westchester County. (A small colony was in the Rye area, along the Long Island Sound, but apparently lost its housing during Hurricane Sandy in 2012.)
Here’s another look at real Purple Martins on the tower either side of the decoy martin.
Photo: Valerie Heemstra.
August 2017 Update
Despite several people observing the nesting tower, we are uncertain whether nesting was successful this year and we will check the nesting gourds before winter storage. However, by the middle of August, as many as 11 martins were seen at once, as shown in this photo below by Jim Bourdon. (The Martin decoy was also slipping its duct tape bounds at that point and later retrieved to be reattached next spring.)
September 2017 Update: What was in the Gourds?
Croton Point Naturalist John Phillips took down the nesting gourds the end of September and cleaned them out. He also recorded the contents of the gourds and noted, “The uniformity of the contents of 6 of the 8 gourds is remarkable.”
Bottom line: we don’t think we had nesting Purple Martins this year but are hoping for next year! See John’s notes below
Gourd contents:
1N (lower, facing gate house)
– clean no droppings
– 1 twig tip White Pine
– 6 stems/leaves/seed heads of various grasses
– 1 phragmites stem section
2N (upper, facing gate house)
– clean (1 dropping)
– 1 White Pine needle whorl
– 5 stems/leaves/seed heads of various grasses)
– 1 Phragmites outer stem
– 1small white feather
1E (lower, facing Park entrance)
– light droppings and debris
– 1 White Pine twig
– 15 stems/leaves/seed heads various grasses, 3-4 different species
– 4 small white feathers
– 2 large feathers, one white, one dark
– 1 strip Phragmites core, one sm rectangle Phrag outer stem
2E (upper, facing Park entrance)
– significant nesting materials but fairly clean- apparently unused
– a few droppings
– bottom 1/3 of gourd full of various grasses (# sp.?)
– a few small stems Phragmites, one ribbon Phrag cambium
– a few White Pine twigs
– approx 30 feathers, mostly small white, mixed in with grasses
– 2 sm pieces plastic
– in lower layer (buried) a fully formed nesting cup made of various grasses and lined with large number of feathers. *
1S (lower, facing Maintenance Barn)
– trace droppings
– 8 grass stems/leaves/seed heads various species
– 1 ribbon Phrag cambium
– small paper wasp nest below entrance platform (interior)
2S (upper, facing Maintenance Barn)
– clean
– 10 grass stems/leaves/seed heads
– 1 small gray feather
1W (lower, facing bath house)
– Apparently remains of nesting activity. Different contents than all other gourds: compacted mass apparently cemented by droppings.
– shallow, solid, dark mass on bottom 3″ of gourd. Difficult to remove.
– a few large loose twigs, feathers, and a few identifiable droppings on top of mass
– mass composed primarily of thousands of insect exoskeletons w iridescent blue and green fragments, a few intact thorax, abdomens, legs. One apparent Cicada wing, one apparent dragonfly wing.
– Also fragments of brown deciduous leaves (oak? maple?) 6 valves and one whole bivalve Asian Clam (Corbicula),
– a few partial feathers, pieces Phragmites stems & cambium ribbon, hatched fly eggs (sp?),
– at bottom of mass many pieces of flat plastic (candy wrappers, cellophane, sheet plastic, etc.)
2W (upper facing bath house)
– clean
– 5 White Pine needles (2 loose, 3 remaining in original whorl)
– 20 grass stems/leaves/seedheads, various species
– 2 small white feathers (down)
– 1 section Phragmites stem
Karalyn Lamb was able to identify some of the grasses as “non-native cool season grasses” and “switch grasses”.
* Jim Bourdon suggested that 2E may have held a Tree Swallow nest early on in June (which was subsequently covered over by the Martins?)
Spring 2018 Update
Max count of five Martins — three adult males among them — are being seen around the nesting structure as of May 18, 2018 with one pair, at least, apparently establishing a nest in one gourd.
Every Monday
Guided Birding at Area Hotspots
NOTE: start times vary seasonally.
April: 8:30 am; May: 7:30 am;
June through August: 6:30 am
Meet in main parking area for all walks.
No registration needed. Rain or shine.
1st Mon: Muscoot Farm
2nd Mon: Rockefeller State Park
3rd Mon: Teatown Lake Reservation
4th Mon: Croton Point County Park
5th Mon: Location varies.
(Very) Early Morning Bird Walk Series: 5:30 am
Timed to catch the early morning bird chorus during
height of the season. No registration needed. Meet at
the main parking area for each location at 5:30 am.
Binocular loans available. Rain or shine.
Thursday, May 11: Croton Point Park
Thursday, May 18: Rockefeller State Park Preserve
Thursday, May 25: Teatown Lake Reservation
Thursday, June 1: Rockefeller State Park Preserve
Thursday, June 8: Croton Point Park
Field Trips: Flight of the Woodcock
Sunday, April 9: Croton Point Park, 7:30 pm
Saturday, April 16: Muscoot Farm , 7:30 pm
Gather with us at dusk for the seasonal courtship display
of American Woodcock. At Croton Point Park, meet in
ballfield parking. At Muscoot, meet in main parking.
For adults and ages 10 and up. $5/donation suggested
for Muscoot, payable at walk.
Sunday, April 23, 8:00 am
Field Trip: Celery Farm (NJ)
A special birding trip to the famed Celery Farm in
Allendale, New Jersey, a 107-acre freshwater wetland
with trails and viewing platforms maintained by the Fyke
Nature Association. (www.fykenature.org) Meet us 8:00
am at the Celery Farm parking lot on Franklin Turnpike,
Allendale, NJ. Look for waterfowl and very early spring
migrants. Register by calling/emailing SMRA office,
914-666-6503 or office@sawmillriveraudubon.org
Saturday, May 13, All Day
Westchester Birdathon/Global eBirding Day
We will be birding Friday 7:00 pm to Saturday 7:00 pm
to count as many species as possible & to raise funds
for SMRA & Rockefeller State Park Preserve projects.
Visit: www.sawmillriveraudubon.org/birdathon
Saturday, May 20, 5:30 am
Field Trip: Doodletown & Iona Island Birding
A SMRA tradition: visiting Doodletown and Iona
Island for spring migration. Meet at parking area on Rt.
9W just north of Iona Island. No registration needed.
Sunday, May 28, 6:00 am–12:30 pm
Field Trip: Sterling Forest
Join us on a birding field trip to Sterling Forest in
Orange County. Target species include Golden-winged
Warbler and other specialties. We are arriving 6:00 am
at Sterling Forest. Email us for details and to register.
This past year saw strong participation in our events, with over 100 well-attended field trips and dozens of classroom and community programs. The 2016 annual fund drive was our strongest ever. More
Thursday, May 18, 7:30 pm
Close-Up Insects: Macro Photography
Teatown Lake Reservation
Explore the world of macro and insect
photography with Charlie Roberto and
Jeff Seneca as they discuss tips and
techniques for capturing the smaller
organisms of the natural world. Cosponsored
with Teatown Lake Reservation.
Saw Mill River Audubon’s March 2017 public program featured Corey Finger, author of Birds of New York State. SMRA Board Member Brian Kluepfel wrote about this program. More
An April 2016 article in the journal Biological Conservation considered how birding data collected in eBird can be a valuable tool in the conservation of birds and their habitats. One example cited is the effort by Saw Mill River Audubon at Croton Point Park to encourage the nesting of grassland species, including Grasshopper Sparrows. More
Saturday, February 11,
9:00 am – 4:00 pm
Hudson River EagleFest!
SMRA is proud to be part of the 8th annual Hudson River EagleFest centered at Croton Point Park on Saturday, February 11 from 9:00 am to 4:00 pm (The snow date is Sunday, February 12.)
For the past decade, Teatown Lake Reservation has been the prime mover behind this event which celebrates the return of our national bird, the Bald Eagle, to the Hudson Valley. SMRA does our part at EagleFest by leading bird walks inside Croton Point, offering our “Raptors for Rookies” program at Croton Point, providing birders with spotting scopes at the Croton boat ramp and George’s Island to help spot eagles and other birds, and underwriting the cost of warming tents at both locations. SMRA Board Member Larry Trachtenberg, donated the cost of the warming tent at George’s Island. (Thank you, Larry!)
The festival will also feature live birds of prey shows, two screenings of the film Eagle Huntress at Pace University and music by Tom Chapin and other artists. There are even guided bus tours to visit all the key eagle viewing spots. Please note that some special events do require advance reservations before the event.
There is an EagleFest admission charge to enter Croton Point Park for the main event tent and other activities there. To find out more and make advance special event reservations, visit: www.teatown.org/eaglefest-schedule
Thursday, February 16, 7:00 pm
Exploring the Gaspé Peninsula
with Charlie Roberto
Teatown Lake Reservation
Charlie Roberto will introduce us to the beautiful Gaspé Peninsula in Québec and its abundance of birds and other wildlife, including images from Saw Mill River Audubon’s trip in 2016. Co-sponsored with Teatown Lake Reservation.
Thursday, March 16, 7:00 pm
Field Guide to Birds of New York
With author Corey Finger
Chappaqua Library
Author Corey Finger will overview his work on the American Birding Association’s Field Guide to Birds of New York, published in July 2016 and offering tips on finding and IDing birds in the Empire State. Book sales & signing follows. Come early for best parking. Co-sponsored by Chappaqua Library.
February Birding Road Trips
Space in cars and numbers of cars in caravan will be limited for a better experience for all. Call/email ASAP to register and for meeting place and time, and include your cell number to office@sawmillriveraudubon.org or 914-666-6503. Minimum of three people per car.
Sunday, February 5, 8:00 am
Birding at Barnegat & Other NJ Sites
We will be traveling to Barnegat Lighthouse on the New Jersey coast to enjoy the view of wintering Harlequin Ducks, possible Purple Sandpipers and other winter coastal visitors. Based on the most recent sightings reports, we then plan to visit one or more other nearby north New Jersey locations for winter birds.
Sunday, February 26, All Day
Winter Birding in Dutchess County
We plan to make a circuit of varied habitats in Dutchess County for winter birds including the possibility of winter raptors like Rough-legged Hawk, Golden Eagle or even a Snowy Owl! Along the way, we’ll keep an eye out for other winter grassland species like Horned Larks and Snow Buntings. John Askildsen of Dutchess County’s Waterman Bird Club will be our leader.
Flight of the Woodcock, 6:00 – 7:30 pm both dates
Saturday, March 11: Muscoot Farm
Sunday, March 12: Croton Point Park
Gather with us at dusk for the seasonal courtship display of American Woodcock. Meeting place & details upon registration. Registration required by calling or emailing our office. Space limited. For adults and youth 10 & up.
Every Monday, 8:30 am Guided Bird Walks
at Area Hotspots
Meet in main parking area for all walks.
1st Mon: Muscoot Farm
2nd Mon: Rockefeller State Park
3rd Mon: Teatown Lake Reservation
4th Mon: Croton Point County Park
5th Mon: Location varies.( No 5th Monday walk in January.)
Every Second Saturday, 9:00 am Guided Hike at Brinton Brook
Rain, snow or shine. Meet at main parking lot off Route 9A. No registration needed. Best for adults and youth age 6 and up.
Every Saturday & Sunday, 9:00 am – 11:00 am
Project FeederWatch
at Croton Point Nature Center
Join SMRA volunteers at the Croton Point Nature Center every weekend morning from now until early April as we identify and count birds visiting the bird feeding station there. We watch from inside the Nature Center. Beginners encouraged. Great opportunity for bird photography as well.
By April 19, Croton Point Park had a brand new Purple Martin nesting tower. Now for some martins.
This one martin stuck around for two more weeks, finally making its way over the nesting tower.
A week later, June 15, we had five martins and a week later, reports of up to 8 martins! .
