Caleb Smith State Park Preserve

Our first official birding day was last week.  We never ventured out of the yard!  Today, we began our birding day from the yard, but then we actually traveled to a state park.  It was a beautiful day!  Very cold, but not a cloud in the sky.  Light wind.  Our birding foray that began in the yard, started with a Tufted Titmouse, a House Finch, a Cardinal, and several American Goldfinches.  Once we entered the park, the birds became more vocal but less visible.  There is a great need to brush up on our bird calls!  However, we must both see the bird in order to add it to our list.  The exception might be our quest for owls, but we're not there yet.  As we ventured further into the park, it was unusually quiet.  Not a movement, not a sound.  Once we passed the "Creaking Tree," we spotted a lake.  There must be birds there!!  Nothing unusual here, however, we did find some birds that we could add to our list.  There were some Mute Swans, Canada Geese, and Mallards and American Crows.  Those pictured on the left hand side are:  American Crow; Tufted Titmouse; Mute Swan; Mallard.  Those on the right side are:  House Finch; Cardinal; Canada Goose; American Goldfinch.  Don't forget to visit the following two sites if you are interested in the calls of these birds:  www.birdjam.com/learn.php and www.enature.com/birding/audio.asp.   This excursion has really whetted our appetite for future visits to many of the other parks and preserves on Long Island.  Stay tuned....