Jones Beach for the Beach

By Corey • June 29, 2008 • 6 comments

Yesterday in New York was hot. Way too hot. Fortunately for Daisy and me our friends Kerry and Becky were heading to the beach and offered a ride. And it wasn’t just any beach either, but the birding Mecca of Nassau County, Jones Beach. The south wind was strong, the waves were huge, and we were swimming. But after being buffeted by waves for awhile I decided to take a stroll down to the jetty at the west end of Jones Beach just to see, you know, if there might be a bird or two in the area.

The Piping Plover above was one of at least ten that I spotted on my walk. A couple birds were sitting on nests and two young were wandering around under a parent’s watchful eyes at the edge of some beach vegetation. Between them and the Least Terns that would pass overhead on their trips out to sea and back into the dunes I was pretty satisfied. But they weren’t the only birds at the beach.

No less than seven American Oystercatchers were present, and one group of three was comprised of two adults and a young bird. The usual gulls were present, of course, and Great Black-backed Gulls seemed to be the most numerous.

After my walk it was back in the water to be beaten up by the waves once more before we packed up and went for ice cream. It’s a tough life but somebody’s got to live it…

Tags: features, jones beach, nassau county, plovers, shorebirds, Trips

Looking for a good book or field guide? We've got some suggestions...

Explore These Related Posts

...Or These Blasts From The Past

About the Author

Corey

Corey is a lifelong upstate New Yorker who recently took the plunge and moved to the city. He's only been birding since 2005 but has garnered a respectable life list and broke the magical 300 barrier in New York State in 2007 by birding whenever he wasn't working as a union representative. He lives near Forest Park in Queens with Daisy, their son, Desmond, and their two indoor cats, Hunter and B.B.

6 Responses to “Jones Beach for the Beach”

Klaus Jun 29th, 2008 at 7:16 am

Yep - I see your pain! Thanks for your sacrifice!
Good ones!
Cheers, Klaus
Liza Lee Miller Jun 29th, 2008 at 9:24 am

You give and you give and you give, Corey. Thank you for suffering through it to bring us those great shots!
Corey Jun 29th, 2008 at 10:41 am

Liza Lee and Klaus: You are welcome…it was a struggle but it was worth it.
Will Jun 29th, 2008 at 11:47 am

You have no idea how jealous I am… I got to go grocery shopping yesterday, and I did see a Ring-billed Gull, not too common in summer in these parts.
mon@rch Jun 29th, 2008 at 8:28 pm

Heard many great things about Jones Beach . . . maybe one day I can visit them down there!
Corey Jun 30th, 2008 at 7:34 am

@Will: Well, at least you saw something…

@Mon@rch: You really should visit the city one of these days.

Share Your Thoughts

Asides

First Bird of 2010

What was your first bird of 2010? Let us know in the comments…and, if you wrote a blog post or have a picture of your first bird of the year online somewhere, well, leave a link in the comments too.
Happy New Year from all three of us at 10,000 Birds! And here’s hoping you see many great birds, including lots of lifers, in 2010!

‘Mermaids’ battered by boats

“Each year, about 87 manatees are killed by collisions with boats, the single greatest cause of premature mortalities. This is more than seven times number of manatees that the Fish and Wildlife Service estimates can be killed without impairing the species’ recovery. Meanwhile, boating in Florida is at an all-time high and increasing with more boats in the water…”. Another good example of why the International Year of Biodiversity ought to matter.

Residents Crying Foul…

…over Common Peafowl. Seems that Longboat Key, Florida, has way too many of the gorgeous gregarious birds and has to continually cull the flock. And Longboat Key isn’t the only community in the U.S. with a peafowl problem: apparently California and Texas locations have had issues as well. So introducing non-native birds because they are pretty might not be the best idea? Who would’ve thunk it?

Say Hello to the Limestone Leaf-warbler

Is a new Old World warbler better than an old New World warbler? You be the judge! A new species, dubbed the Limestone Leaf-warbler (Phylloscopus calciatilis), has been discovered in the karst limestone regions of Vietnam and Laos. As ever, BirdLife International has the scoop.