| OVERVIEW
At this time of the year, we continually make note of “signs of spring,” from snowdrops to pussy willows to red-winged blackbirds, wishing it along. For some of us, it is the arrival of the first bald eagle nestling of the year, which occurred this week. At this week’s Vernal Equinox, the Hudson River Almanac began its twenty-fifth year.
HIGHLIGHT OF THE WEEK
3/23 – Town of Poughkeepsie: This was incubation Day 33 at bald eagle nest NY62. Then, at 5:00 p.m., it became the first day of a new eagle’s life. We saw the adult male bring a small fish to the nest and the female began pulling the fish apart – another mouth to feed. She ate some and then made several motions down into the nest before settling back down again. At this age, she will feed the nestling pieces of fish the size of a quarter.
– Bob Rightmyer, Dwight Reed
[As it turns out we were right on with the expected hatch date range of 32-35 days after egg laying. This is not always the case. Just as often, the hatch occurs later and we have to backtrack 32-35 days to discover when the egg laying actually occurred. Tom Lake]
NATURAL HISTORY ENTRIES
3/17 – Battenkill River, HRM 188: A portion of the Battenkill Bog had melted away, providing some open water. Within a very small open pocket, we found a single drake northern shoveler dabbling away. We’re looking forward to some warmer temperatures and will keep our eyes on this Battenkill overflow.
– Scott Varney, Charlie “Bulldog” Varney (Hudson-Mohawk Bird Club)
3/17 – Mohawk River, HRM 159: There was quite a diversity of waterfowl at Lions Park in Niskayuna this St. Patrick’s Day morning. Viewing from the train station, among the ducks we counted were American black ducks, northern pintail, wood duck, common goldeneye, common merganser, Hooded Merganser, bufflehead, greater scaup, and ring-necked duck. Five immature bald eagles were cavorting just above the trees across the Mohawk River.
– Tom Williams, Colleen Williams (Hudson-Mohawk Bird Club)
 3/17 – Town of Saugerties, HRM 102: I was doing some trail work at Esopus Bend Nature Preserve when I heard a chorus of wood frogs vocalizing from the larger of two vernal pools. This was not the frenzied activity that is typical of peak breeding, but clearly multiple individuals that could be heard from a considerable distance. I had not been in that part of the Preserve in over a week, so it is conceivable the frogs entered the pool some days earlier. But these were the first wood frogs I had heard this year. There were also a few scattered spring peepers singing throughout the wetlands area. (Photo of wood frog courtesy of Laura Heady)
– Steve Chorvas
3/17 – Ulster County, HRM 85: An unwelcome immature bald eagle made a pass too close to bald eagle nest NY92 and the adult male flew out to cut it off and chase it away. When the young eagle didn’t want to leave the area, the female left the nest for thirty seconds to give him a hand. The immature called it quits and soared up river. A while later the male caught an unidentified decent-sized fish, landed in a tree about 150 feet from where I was sitting, and had it down in a matter of minutes. I don’t think there were any leftovers.
– Jim Yates
3/17 – Kerhonkson, HRM 76: The mated pair of local red-shouldered hawks was back. It was good to see them circling and screaming again around the field. For me, it was a sure sign of spring.
– Jeremy Baracca
3/17 – Town of Poughkeepsie: It was incubation Day 27 at bald eagle nest NY62. Our daily vigilance included more than just watching the adults on eggs. Today, as “Mom” kept the eggs warm, “Dad” flew in from the river with a foot-long channel catfish. It is easy to see why eagles build their nests close to water, especially big water like the Hudson. For NY62, their next meal is only a dozen wing beats away.
– Debbie Lephew, Bob Rightmyer
 3/17 – Croton Point, HRM 34: It was a bit windy to walk the landfill so we took the low road along the tidemarsh, past the old Underhill wine cellar and on out to Sarah Teller’s Point. Just off the tip of the Point, we spotted a very cooperative female black scoter. I do not believe we’d ever seen one at Croton Point. On the walk back we heard and then saw a pair of adult bald eagles calling and playing in the air. Soon four immatures joined them and all six could be viewed in the same frame of our binoculars. (Photo of black scoter courtesy of Kyle Bardwell)
– Larry Trachtenberg, Kyle Bardwell
[Three species of scoters (“sea ducks”) have been reported in the Hudson River watershed. They include: the black scoter (Melanitta americana), surf scoter (Melanitta perspicillata), and white-winged scoter (Melanitta fusca). Scoters are Arctic breeders and are primarily seen in migration. Their presence reminds us how faraway places are connected by the Hudson River flyway. Tom Lake]
3/18 – Saratoga County, HRM 173: Though it was cold and windy this afternoon, there were a few ducks and many geese on Ferry Lane in Stillwater. The big pleasure for me was finding seven snow geese tucked in by the shore near the first bend on Ferry Lane – these were my first snow geese of the year. Among the eight species I counted, in addition to the snow geese, were bufflehead, common goldeneye, hooded merganser, common merganser, and 350 Canada geese in two large rafts.
– Ron Harrower (Hudson-Mohawk Bird Club)
3/18 – Town of Poughkeepsie: This was incubation Day 28 at bald eagle nest NY62. Attendance to the nest had been precise as you might suspect for a female eagle with 17 years’ experience. Her gorgeous white head was popping up from the nest, glowing against a deep blue sky. After a while, the male came in from the river, soared and circled around for a while, before landing in a nearby red oak. We had hoped to see a turnover. Bob Rightmyer, a daily observer of NY62, told us that the male, in particular, will arrive near the nest and wait for the female to call him in. In this instance, however, the female was not quite ready to relinquish her time on the eggs.
– Tom Lake, T.R. Jackson
3/19 – Greene County, HRM 125: I watched a courtship display by a pair of red-shouldered hawks on Sugar Loaf Road in Earlton today. They soared and called together as the male took steep dives towards the female.
– Michelle Joyce
3/19 – Town of Poughkeepsie: This was incubation Day 25 at bald eagle nest NY372. Timely turnovers were occurring on a schedule known only to the adults, and it looked promising. After one turnover, with such impressive energy, the female (Mom) took off for the river.
– Dana Layton
3/19 – Town of Poughkeepsie: As we were watching bald eagle nest NY62, as well as an entertaining red-tailed hawk we have named “Harry” that was running sorties after small mammals, we had another show to watch: the robins were harvesting earth worms from the soft ground. There is no more classic a sign of spring.
– Bob Rightmyer, Kate Courtney, Justin Schmidt
3/19 – Quassaick Creek, HRM 60: My Mount Saint Mary’s College students helped us check our glass eel fyke net today. The net was set yesterday and had all night to collect glass eels heading upstream from the river. Upon opening the net, we counted 301 glass eels and one elver (last year’s glass eel).
– Suparna Bhalla
[Freshwater eels have survived global cataclysms for millions of years but now, some populations appear to be diminishing, even disappearing worldwide, and scientists are not quite certain why. While American eels are considered a freshwater fish, they are born at sea before migrating inland where they spend much of their lives in the fresh and brackish waters of the upland watersheds. “Glass eels” are one of the juvenile life stages of the American eel. They arrive in the estuary by the millions each spring, following a six-month to year-long journey from the greater Sargasso Sea area of the North Atlantic where they were born. “Glass eel” is a colloquial name, owing to their lack of pigment and near transparency. These are juvenile American eels, “returning” to the estuaries of their ancestors along the east coast of North America. This is a particularly vulnerable time for them and little is known about this period in their life history. In anywhere from 12-30 years, depending on their sex, they will leave the Hudson River watershed for the sea where they will spawn once and then die … or so we think. Tom Lake]
3/19 – Furnace Woods, HRM 38.5: Dozens of robins, scores of robins, skeins of robins, were jousting and tut-tutting around in the trees, on the lawns, in the gardens, avoiding the shrinking banks of snow, relishing the run in the sheltered places.
– Christopher Letts
3/19 – Manhattan, HRM 1: On an almost-spring day we checked our research sampling gear in Hudson River Park at The River Project’s sampling station on the lighthouse tender Lilac at Pier 25 and found a handsome three-spined stickleback (Gasterosteus aculeatus) in one of our killifish traps. This adult stickleback (50 millimeters (mm)) is one of our estuarine fishes that can survive in salt water, brackish water, or full freshwater.
– Siddhartha Hayes
[Note: one inch = 25.4 millimeters (mm)]
3/20 – Hudson River Watershed: Volume XXV of the Hudson River Almanac began today on the Vernal Equinox as spring arrived 12:15 p.m. The Vernal Equinox is a global, astronomical phenomenon when the sun is directly over the Earth’s equator producing equal lengths of day and night. The Vernal Equinox ushers in spring to the Northern Hemisphere and autumn in the Southern Hemisphere.
– Tom Lake
 3/20 – Quassaick Creek, HRM 60: Marlboro Middle School students joined us in celebrating the first day of spring by getting in the chilly water (39 degrees Fahrenheit (F) to check our fyke net for glass eels. Like opening a birthday present, the students carefully searched through the “cod end” of the net and collected 176 glass eels and one elver (140 mm), likely last year’s glass eel. That was a lot of glass eels for such chilly water. But whenever we think we have them figured out, they surprise us. (Photo of students checking fyke net for glass eels courtesy of Tom Lake)
– Lily Collins, Martice Smith, Tom Lake
[A fyke net is a sampling device used most often for fish and occasionally for turtles. The net is 10-12 feet long and includes a series of hoops connected by mesh netting through which fish pass, and a “cod end” where the captured fish accumulate. When used in a Hudson River tributary, the fykes are set facing downstream to collect fish such as glass eels heading upstream. At the downstream opening, a section of netting is angled away on either side from the initial hoop to serve as a guide, encouraging fish to take the path of least resistance toward the mouth of the net. Tom Lake]
3/21 – Fort Miller, HRM 192: The Hudson River at Fort Miller had a high count of 17 green-winged teal on the first day of spring. They were in the company of 40 snow geese and too many Canada geese to count! There were at least three cackling geese among the Canadas, all of them mallard-sized with stubby bills and short necks.
– Scott Varney
 3/21 – Clinton Corners, HRM 82: The leucistic red-tailed hawk known as “Lucy” was in her usual area of Clinton Corners today. Deb Tracy-Kral has been photographing the Stanfordville-Clinton Corners “white” red-tail for at least six years. (Photo of leucistic red-tailed hawk courtesy of Jodie Preuss)
– Jodie Preuss
[Leucism is an abnormal plumage condition caused by a genetic mutation that prevents pigment, particularly melanin, from being properly deposited on a bird’s feathers. As a result, the birds do not have the normal, classic plumage colors listed in field guides. Instead, the plumage may have several color changes, including: white patches where the bird should not have any; paler overall plumage that looks faint, diluted or bleached; or overall white plumage with little or no color discernable. Leucism affects only the bird’s feathers, and typically only those with melanin pigment – usually dark feathers. Birding.about.com]
3/21 – Hudson River Estuary: We saw glass eel numbers in our fyke nets rise at some sites but not others as we worked our way up the Hudson estuary this week. Six sites reported catches this week including Richmond Creek, Staten Island (30), Center for the Urban River at Beczak, Yonkers (300), Furnace Brook, Cortlandt (790), Minisceongo Creek, West Haverstraw (600), Quassaick Creek, Newburg (500), and Fall Kill, Poughkeepsie (2).
– Chris Bowser
3/22 – Fort Miller, HRM 192: As I watched the waterfowl on the river at Fort Miller at midday, a pink-footed goose flew in with thousands of Canada geese.
– Scott Varney
[In recent years, there has been a dramatic increase in the reports of the pink-footed goose from Quebec, Newfoundland, Maine, Massachusetts and New York. Pink-footed geese (Anser brachyrhynchus) breed in Greenland and Iceland and their presence has become an inexplicable phenomenon, mirrored in a similar increase of other Eurasian goose species such as barnacle goose and greater white-fronted goose. Rich Guthrie]
3/22 – Ulster County, HRM 90: I saw two coyotes in the farm-hub fields west of Route 209 and east of the Esopus Creek. One was large, shaggy, and what I can only describe as “blonde.” The other was smaller, had shorter fur, and had splotchy dark and light gray fur that reminded me a bit of a gray fox or an Australian cattle dog. I must have caught the attention of the smaller one, because it ran toward me. The larger, presumably older, wiser coyote ran away and eventually the younger companion ran off as well. They continued nosing around in the stubble of the corn field.
– Tom O’Dowd
[Eastern coyotes (Canis latrans) come in a variety of colors. While most tend to be a yellowish-tan or grizzled-grayish mixture, we have seen them as blonde as a golden retriever and as black as a German shepherd. Some may have a reddish color to them as well. These colors may come from interbreeding with domestic dogs, or may simply represent the range of variability and the blossoming of recessive traits for the eastern variety. March/April is the time when many of New York’s resident coyotes set up dens for pups that will arrive this spring. For more information on coyotes and what you can do to avoid conflicts, visit DEC’s website at: http://www.dec.ny.gov/animals/6971.html. Tom Lake]
3/22 – Staatsburg, HRM 86: A flock of eight cedar waxwings came through today and stopped long enough to enjoy the berries on our cedar trees.
– Robin Kintz
3/22 – Town of Poughkeepsie: It was incubation Day 31 at bald eagle nest NY62. During a nest turnover, it looked like they were changing “bed-linens.” As “Mom” relinquished her place, “Dad” brought fresh grass to the nest to replenish the cup for the eggs.
– Mauricette Potthast, Malcolm Castro
[Eagles will frequently toss out soiled grass from the nest and replace it with fresh clean grass. The need for a sanitary nest environment is an instinctive adaptation. Tom Lake]
3/22 Manhattan, HRM 1: In the beautiful, warm sun, we checked our research sampling gear in Hudson River Park at The River Project’s sampling station on the lighthouse tender Lilac at Pier 25. In our pots and traps we found an assemblage of Crustacea including both sand shrimp (Crangon septemspinosa) and shore “grass” shrimp (Palaemonetes sp.), as well as a few Baltic isopods (Idotea balthica).
– Siddhartha Hayes
3/23 – Town of Saugerties, HRM 102: A few early migrant tree swallows had returned to Esopus Bend Nature Preserve. Five or six individuals were seen and heard vocalizing as they flew in acrobatic circles low over Esopus Creek, apparently in search of flying insects. These were the first tree swallows seen here this year.
– Steve Chorvas
3/23 – Pine Plains, HRM 96: I spotted an immature golden eagle and several immature bald eagles late this afternoon near Pine Plains. The raptors were all lined up in individual trees along the back inlet of a pond and all the ducks and geese were swimming directly toward them. The golden eagle made a few moves on them but then left with empty talons, eventually flying north toward Halcyon Lake.
– Deb Tracy-Kral
3/23 – Clinton Corners, HRM 82: Each night my wife Kate turns on the outside light to see what is rambling around in the yard. Recently, we’ve been seeing a few raccoons and a lonely opossum during the evening hours. Tonight, she was watching two raccoons when suddenly they took off like a shot. She exclaimed, “I didn’t think raccoons could run that fast.” Well the reason showed up a microsecond later as something was chasing the raccoons at hyper-speed. She assumed a fox or coyote but just couldn’t identify it.
– Robert Tucker
[A raccoon would be a bit too much for a fox. This was likely a coyote or a bobcat. A healthy raccoon can still be a hard night’s work for either of them. Certainly, there are far easier targets. But a high-end predator will invoke the fight-or-flight response regardless. Raccoons, in this case, do not try to figure out the odds. Tom Lake]
 3/23 – Croton Bay, HRM 34: On December 2, we commented in the Almanac on an old report in Scientific American (September 1881) on Hudson River sharks, 136 years ago, specifically occurrences in Croton Bay (August 1881). The report spoke of three large sharks, each about 8-feet-long, caught in nets. After consulting several shark experts, we concluded that these were probably bull sharks (Carcharhinus leucas). Our discussion of large sharks is fascinating in light of the fact that we have not had reports of them in the estuary with credible evidence for a century or more.
Today Scott Craven found another reference to large sharks in the Hudson River, 167 years ago, from the New York Evening Post, September 24, 1851.
“A shark of the shovel-nosed species measuring eight and a half feet in length, and weighing it is estimated, over three hundred pounds, was taken at Croton Cove, Westchester county on Thursday last [September 18].”
If we take this report to be accurate, then it is describing a hammerhead shark. Of the large hammerhead sharks likely to be in the western Atlantic at this latitude, the most likely candidate is the smooth hammerhead (Sphyrna zygaena). They can attain the requisite size and the literature cites them as a “temperate water” hammerhead that has been known to enter estuaries (Ebert, D.A. 2003). (Photo of smooth hammerhead shark courtesy of Encyclopedia Britannica, Inc.)
– Tom Lake
WINTER-SPRING 2018 NATURAL HISTORY PROGRAMS
Friday, April 20 – 7:00 p.m.
The River before Henry (the Prehistory of the Hudson Valley)
Tom Lake, Hudson River Estuary Program’s Consulting Naturalist
Sponsored by the French and Indian War Society
Fort William Henry Museum
Lake George, New York
For information, e-mail Melodie Viele
Free Trees for Streamside Planting
The Hudson River Estuary Program’s Trees for Tribs program offers free native trees and shrubs for planting along the tributary streams in the Hudson River Estuary watershed. Our staff can help you with a planting plan and work with your volunteers. Since 2007, Trees for Tribs has provided more than 40,000 native trees and shrubs for planting along 20 miles of stream with the help of more than 9,000 local volunteers. We are now accepting applications for spring planting projects.
For more information about the program or to download an application, please visit the DEC website at: HudsonEstuaryTFT.
Hudson River: Striped Bass Cooperative Angler Program
Do you fish for striped bass in the Hudson River? You can share your fishing trip information and help biologists understand and manage our striped bass fishery.
– Here’s how it works: Fill out a logbook provided by us whenever you fish on the Hudson River (by boat or shore). Record general location, time, gear used, what you caught (or if you didn’t catch anything) and return the logbook when you are done fishing. You’ll receive an annual newsletter summarizing the information in addition to the latest news regarding regulations and the river.
– Whether you catch-and-release or take home a keeper, you can be part of the Cooperative Angler Program. Join today by contacting: Jessica Best 845-256-3009 jessica.best
HUDSON RIVER MILES
The Hudson is measured north from Hudson River Mile 0 at the Battery at the southern tip of Manhattan. The George Washington Bridge is at HRM 12, the Tappan Zee 28, Bear Mountain 47, Beacon-Newburgh 62, Mid-Hudson 75, Kingston-Rhinecliff 95, Rip Van Winkle 114, and the Federal Dam at Troy, the head of tidewater, at 153. The tidal section of the Hudson constitutes a bit less than half the total distance – 315 miles – from Lake Tear of the Clouds to the Battery. Entries from points east and west in the watershed reference the corresponding river mile on the mainstem.
TO CONTRIBUTE YOUR OBSERVATIONS OR TO SUBSCRIBE
The Hudson River Almanac is compiled and edited by Tom Lake and emailed weekly by DEC’s Hudson River Estuary Program. Share your observations by e-mailing them to trlake7.
To subscribe to the Almanac (or to unsubscribe), use the links on DEC’s Hudson River Almanac or DEC Delivers web pages.
Discover New York State Conservationist – the award-winning, advertisement-free magazine focusing on New York State’s great outdoors and natural resources. Conservationist features stunning photography, informative articles and around-the-state coverage. Visit the Conservationist webpage for more information.
USEFUL LINKS
National Oceanic and Atmospheric Administration online tide and tidal current predictions are invaluable when planning Hudson River field trips.
For real-time information on Hudson River tides, weather and water conditions from sixteen monitoring stations, visit the Hudson River Environmental Conditions Observing System website.
Information about the Hudson River Estuary Program is available on DEC’s website at http://www.dec.ny.gov/lands/4920.html.
Smartphone app available for New York outdoor enthusiasts!
DEC, in partnership with ParksByNature Network®, is proud to announce the launch of the New York Fishing, Hunting & Wildlife App for iPhone and Android. This FREE, cutting-edge mobile app gives both novice and seasoned outdoorsmen and women essential information in the palm of their hands. Powered by Pocket Ranger® technology, this official app for DEC will provide up-to-date information on fishing, hunting and wildlife watching and serve as an interactive outdoor app using today’s leading mobile devices. Using the app’s advanced GPS features, users will be able identify and locate New York’s many hunting, fishing and wildlife watching sites. They will also gain immediate access to species profiles, rules and regulations, and important permits and licensing details.
NY Open for Hunting and Fishing Initiative
Governor Cuomo’s NY Open for Fishing and Hunting Initiative is an effort to improve recreational opportunities for sportsmen and women and to boost tourism activities throughout the state. This initiative includes streamlining fishing and hunting licenses, reducing license fees, improving access for fishing and increasing hunting opportunities in New York State.
In support of this initiative, this year’s budget includes $6 million in NY Works funding to support creating 50 new land and water access projects to connect hunters, anglers, bird watchers and others who enjoy the outdoors to more than 380,000 acres of existing state and easement lands that have gone largely untapped until now. These 50 new access projects include building new boat launches, installing new hunting blinds and building new trails and parking areas. In addition, the 2014-15 budget includes $4 million to repair the state’s fish hatcheries; and renews and allows expanded use of crossbows for hunting in New York State.
This year’s budget also reduces short-term fishing licenses fees; increases the number of authorized statewide free fishing days to eight from two; authorizes DEC to offer 10 days of promotional prices for hunting, fishing and trapping licenses; and authorizes free Adventure Plates for new lifetime license holders, discounted Adventure Plates for existing lifetime license holders and regular fee Adventure Plates for annual license holders.
Copies of past issues of the Hudson River Almanac, Volumes II-VIII, are available for purchase from the publisher, Purple Mountain Press, (800) 325-2665, or email purple |
Hudson River Almanac
