On an after dinner walk this evening in the Massapequa Preserve I observed a least bittern in the pond north of the USGS Gauging Station (the 2nd pond north of Clark Boulevard). I was sitting on the bench that overlooks this small pond for a few minutes when a male least bittern flew out of the phragmites on the e/s/o the pond (about halfway up the pond) and flew north landing in the phragmites at the north end of the pond, in full view. I watched it for about five minutes; at first it clung to a phrag stem but then moved down and to the right ending up out of sight, in the northeastern corner of the pond, screened behind a closer growth of phragmites. I did not see it in that spot again. I sat for 45 minutes and as it was beginning to get dark I got up to leave when another (or the same?) least bittern flew across the pond from the western side of the pond to the eastern side, about halfway up the pond (landing at about the same spot the first bird left from). With the fading light I couldn't make out if it was a male or female. Given the fact I never saw the first bird fly from the northeastern corner to the western side of the pond I think, but am not positive, it was a second least bittern.
I intend to scope out the pond tomorrow evening in an effort to determine if there is a single bird or a pair........ Also had a beautiful view of five barn swallows perched on a single phragmites stem arching over the water........ John Turner -- NYSbirds-L List Info: http://www.NortheastBirding.com/NYSbirdsWELCOME http://www.NortheastBirding.com/NYSbirdsRULES http://www.NortheastBirding.com/NYSbirdsSubscribeConfigurationLeave.htm ARCHIVES: 1) http://www.mail-archive.com/[email protected]/maillist.html 2) http://www.surfbirds.com/birdingmail/Group/NYSBirds-L 3) http://birdingonthe.net/mailinglists/NYSB.html Please submit your observations to eBird: http://ebird.org/content/ebird/ --
