I just spent a little over an hour watching a pair of Black Vultures atop the concrete smokestack low on South Hill in the City of Ithaca. That’s at the old Morse Chain / Emerson Power Transmission factory. I can scope it from my house, and it’s probably visible from numerous locations around the City. I use the term “pair” intentionally, because they seemed very comfortable and friendly with each other, each almost touching the other with its bill on several occasions, although most of the time there was very little happening. I don’t know what constitutes courtship among Black Vultures, but this seemed to be more than the coincidental convenience of a place to rest. When they took flight, they flew together, mostly staying within the same scope view. Unlike last fall when I often saw Black Vultures fly well above downtown on their way NE toward trees in Collegetown, today they glided N, descending slowly, in front of the taller buildings near the Commons (i.e. lower than them) and down toward treetop level. When I lost view of them due to closer obstructions, they were due E of me, which is the latitude of Cascadilla St & Farm St. I don’t know whether there is some food source or nest site in the N half of downtown Ithaca, but that would be my guess, unless they have some other destination and it’s worth flying so low just to avoid fighting today’s 10mph NW wind. Anyway, for those interested in where the Black Vultures nest this year, I think we have a pair in the City of Ithaca, it wouldn’t surprise me if they nest here, and it wouldn’t surprise me if their courtship is carried out on top of that smokestack.
- - Dave Nutter > On Mar 6, 2024, at 9:53 AM, Dave Nutter <nutter.d...@me.com> wrote: > > The barn is between Freeville & McLean, more specifically along the SE side > of Fall Creek Rd between Red Mill Rd & Malloryville Rd. Google maps shows a > building complex associated with a closed farm stand. Below is the eBird rare > bird report which I saved. The record doesn’t show up in the eBird database > if you search Black Vulture, but I am still able to access it from this link, > so it hasn’t been deleted, revised, or hidden, I guess just not confirmed. > >> >> Black Vulture (Coragyps atratus) (2) >> - Reported Feb 16, 2024 11:34 by Paul Rodewald >> - 340–350 Fall Creek Rd, Freeville US-NY (42.5289,-76.3158), Tompkins, New >> York >> - Map: >> http://maps.google.com/?ie=UTF8&t=p&z=13&q=42.528927,-76.315839&ll=42.528927,-76.315839 >> - Checklist: https://ebird.org/checklist/S162563609 >> - Comments: "Two BLVUs flying from barn at this location. Seems early for >> northern limit of breeding range, but appeared to be inspecting a potential >> or prior nest location." >> > - - Dave Nutter > >> On Mar 5, 2024, at 10:53 PM, anneb.cl...@gmail.com wrote: >> >> Seems to me unlikely that many black vultures are nesting north of us. We >> should see more incl juveniles in fall. Maybe I haven’t been on top of the >> observations, but doesn’t match my memory. So migrating through???? >> >> Where’s this barn? Near McLean or Lime Hollow? >> >> I will say that I haven’t seen them overhead here just outside of Freeville >> but I am completely capable of missing birds, even big black ones I should >> be noticing. 😬 >> >> Anne >> >> Sent from my iPhone >> >>> On Mar 5, 2024, at 12:14 AM, Dave Nutter <nutter.d...@me.com> wrote: >>> >>> Paul Rodewald said a pair of Black Vultures seemed to be prospecting a >>> barn recently between Freeville & Cortland. >>> >>> Last year the number of sightings over downtown Ithaca & lower S Hill, & >>> near Titus Flats/ Wegmans/ the Elmira Rd strip seemed like some affinity - >>> maybe nesting nearby? Or is it just that there are lots of potential >>> observers, and they are conspicuous so they get reported more here even >>> though they travel widely? Anyway it seems to be continuing. Is there a >>> food source for them in the neighborhood? Or did they nest here? >>> >>> I wonder how many pairs we are dealing with, how many birds are local, and >>> how many of the birds seen recently have been migrating through. >>> >>> - - Dave Nutter >>> >>>> On Mar 4, 2024, at 5:07 PM, anneb.cl...@gmail.com wrote: >>>> >>>> Let’s try to figure out where they nest this year!! >>>> >>>> Sent from my iPhone >>>> >>>>> On Mar 4, 2024, at 12:04 PM, Laura Stenzler <l...@cornell.edu> wrote: >>>>> >>>>> A new yard bird this morning over Hunt Hill Road. Two black vultures >>>>> circling each other just flew over. >>>>> Laura >>>>> >>>>> Laura Stenzler >>>>> l...@cornell.edu >>>>> -- >>>>> >>>>> (copy & paste any URL below, then modify any text "_DOT_" to a period ".") >>>>> >>>>> Cayugabirds-L List Info: >>>>> NortheastBirding_DOT_com/CayugabirdsWELCOME_DOT_htm >>>>> NortheastBirding_DOT_com/CayugabirdsRULES_DOT_htm >>>>> NortheastBirding_DOT_com/CayugabirdsSubscribeConfigurationLeave_DOT_htm >>>>> >>>>> ARCHIVES: >>>>> 1) mail-archive_DOT_com/cayugabirds-l@cornell_DOT_edu/maillist_DOT_html >>>>> 2) surfbirds_DOT_com/birdingmail/Group/Cayugabirds >>>>> 3) aba_DOT_org/birding-news/ >>>>> >>>>> Please submit your observations to eBird: >>>>> ebird_DOT_org/content/ebird/ >>>>> >>>>> -- >>>>> >>>> >>>> -- >>>> >>>> (copy & paste any URL below, then modify any text "_DOT_" to a period ".") >>>> >>>> Cayugabirds-L List Info: >>>> NortheastBirding_DOT_com/CayugabirdsWELCOME_DOT_htm >>>> NortheastBirding_DOT_com/CayugabirdsRULES_DOT_htm >>>> NortheastBirding_DOT_com/CayugabirdsSubscribeConfigurationLeave_DOT_htm >>>> >>>> ARCHIVES: >>>> 1) mail-archive_DOT_com/cayugabirds-l@cornell_DOT_edu/maillist_DOT_html >>>> 2) surfbirds_DOT_com/birdingmail/Group/Cayugabirds >>>> 3) aba_DOT_org/birding-news/ >>>> >>>> Please submit your observations to eBird: >>>> ebird_DOT_org/content/ebird/ >>>> >>>> -- >>>> >>> >>> -- >>> Cayugabirds-L List Info: >>> Welcome and Basics >>> Rules and Information >>> Subscribe, Configuration and Leave >>> Archives: >>> The Mail Archive >>> Surfbirds >>> ABA >>> Please submit your observations to eBird! >>> -- -- (copy & paste any URL below, then modify any text "_DOT_" to a period ".") Cayugabirds-L List Info: NortheastBirding_DOT_com/CayugabirdsWELCOME_DOT_htm NortheastBirding_DOT_com/CayugabirdsRULES_DOT_htm NortheastBirding_DOT_com/CayugabirdsSubscribeConfigurationLeave_DOT_htm ARCHIVES: 1) mail-archive_DOT_com/cayugabirds-l@cornell_DOT_edu/maillist_DOT_html 2) surfbirds_DOT_com/birdingmail/Group/Cayugabirds 3) aba_DOT_org/birding-news/ Please submit your observations to eBird: ebird_DOT_org/content/ebird/ --
