Archived issues: April 23-30, 2008 April 16-22, 2008 April 7-15, 2008 April 1-7, 2008 March 25-March 31, 2008 March 19-March 26, 2008 March 12-March 20, 2008 March 5-March 11, 2008 February 27-March 4, 2008 February 20-26, 2008 February 13-20, 2008 February 4-12, 2008 January 28-February 4, 2008 January 22-28, 2008 January 14-21, 2008 January 8-14, 2008 January 1-7, 2008 December 23-31, 2007 December 13-17, 2007 December 4-12, 2007 November 28 - December 4, 2007

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HUDSON RIVER ALMANAC
April 23 - 30, 2008
Compiled by Tom Lake, Hudson River Estuary Program Naturalist New York State Department of Environmental Conservation

<<<<< OVERVIEW >>>>>

Every spring, without fail, as though it's required, we comment that "spring is early" or "spring is late." These perceptions are based on averages, many of which are purely anecdotal in our memories. But it seems no matter how early or late spring arrives, by May the season has caught up with itself. With global warming and climate change on most people's minds, however, even small deviations are magnified. Having said all that, I feel compelled to mention that the spring flowers sure seemed to bloom early this year!

<<<<< HIGHLIGHT OF THE WEEK >>>>>

4/25 - Saugerties, HRM 102: Yesterday, after walking around our wetland pond to see if mama Canada goose's goslings had hatched, my eye caught a large slow-moving form in the alder thicket not fifteen feet away. It was a gorgeous American bittern! As it slowly and somewhat awkwardly moved through the thicket, it repeatedly croaked a harsh staccato call that seemed odd in the face of a potential threat. Today, after some searching, I managed to spot it again, motionless, head pointed toward the sky, in the nearby tussock sedges. Several years ago we saw one on and off for two weeks here in the same tussocks and were hopeful it would nest, but it was apparently just passing through.
- Dan Marazita

<<<<< NATURAL HISTORY NOTES >>>>>

4/23 - Newcomb, HRM 302: I joined biologist Stacy McNulty at the Adirondack Ecological Center on a search for spotted salamanders. It was supposed to be rainy, but the stars were out. We hiked to two vernal pools near Arbutus Lake and scanned the water with our head lamps. There were several masses of wood frog eggs, which - thanks to the lack of rain - were starting to emerge from the ponds. We were able to scoop 2 spotted salamanders in a net so we got a good look at them with their shiny black skin, sides blushed with blue, and backs speckled with bright yellow dots. Several more were floating in the water. Adult wood frogs were out as well, silently suspended at the surface of the water.
We even saw two in mating embrace, the small grayer male grasping the larger, pinker female. As we moved to the second pool, wood frogs and a few peepers started to call in the first pool - the trauma of our presence having passed. While not as exciting as a salamander migration, it was still a great experience to be out in the woods at night taking a peak at the private lives of our native amphibians. We were also treated to the distant calling of a barred owl.
- Ellen Rathbone

4/23 - Norrie Point, HRM 85: It was the end of the academic semester and the beginning of another great seining season on the Hudson, so my Marist College students and I took a field trip to Norrie Point. As soon as we got there we noticed a pair of furry mammals swimming in the cove, frequently diving, arching their backs as they did so, with no tail slaps at all. I think they were river otters. We seined at two hours after high tide. For most of the students, it was their first time in waders, and no one was disappointed. Our catch included golden and spottail shiners, tessellated darters (several of them gravid with eggs), white perch, yellow perch, a few small American eels, banded killifish, several river herring, and a 16" white catfish. One of the herring had a distinct fresh wound on its back. Perhaps a near miss with an otter?
- Chris Bowser, Beth Roessler

4/23 - Hunter's Brook, HRM 67.5: Students from Randolph School had the opportunity to assist in a moment of research. Fyke nets set for eels are an easy and efficient collection method. At low tide the stream is usually behaving itself, and the net is quickly checked and reset. Today we had 6 glass eels that had fully transformed from their fresh-from-the-ocean transparency of a month ago to a bright translucency. They will continue gaining pigmentation all summer until by fall they will look like miniature brown and yellow adult eels.
- Goldy Safirstein, Chris Iverson, Tom Lake

4/23 - Town of Wappinger: As far as we can tell, the eagle pair in the new nest along the river (NY62B) are not incubating eggs this spring, or any longer if they had been. With no solid tie to the nest, they are less likely to put up with intrusion, so approaching the area to monitor behavior has to be done in a stealthy manner or they will leave. A spotting scope allows us to "get close" while still hundreds of feet away. They know you are there, but you have not stepped inside their "alert" distance, let alone their flight distance. Over time you establish, at least in my mind, a compromise separation of mutual tolerance. This morning there was one big white head sitting down in the nest. It was the female and it was anyone's guess as to why she was there. It is possible that there are eggs in the nest that will never hatch and, at the risk of sounding anthropomorphic, sitting there allowed her a measure of comfort.
- Tom Lake

4/23 - Sandy Hook, NJ: This is the height of coastal spring migration of raptors, and Sandy Hook concentrates them before they make the cross-water hop to New York and Long Island. Falcons cross the water without hesitation and accipiters are pretty much the same. But the buteos, great fans of thermals, come up to the tip of the Hook and the ocean (no thermals over water), then hang around soaring for a bit before heading back south till they find solid land to continue their northern voyage. Least happy with over-the-water flying are the turkey vultures and today 15 of them came up to the end of the Hook and spent at least an hour bobbing in the air before heading south to go west to head back north over land.
- Dery Bennett

4/24 - Newcomb, HRM 302: I heard my first common loon this afternoon, although our seasonal, Mary Tisi, reported hearing one earlier this week.
- Ellen Rathbone

4/24 - Town of Wappinger: We hoped to see some encouraging activity but neither adult eagle was in sight at the new nest, NY62B. The nest tree was quickly acquiring its spring allotment of poison ivy, the bane of tree-climbers. We'd have to deal with that and soon. The tree's new tulip-shaped leaves had grown to where we could clearly see the connection to its common name. A horizontal limb just below the nest had been a feeding perch for the pair; we noted two long, fresh cuts where the bark had been scraped off. It may also have been the result of "beak-cleaning," often a post-meal activity.
- Pete Nye, Tom Lake

4/24 - Croton-on-Hudson, HRM 35: Shadbush - a.k.a. shad blow, juneberry, sarvisberry (serviceberry) - was blooming along the shores of the Croton Reservoir. In my yard, brilliant yellow goldfinches clustered amidst the pinky, lavender blossoms of the azalea.
- Robin Fox

4/25 - Town of Wappinger, HRM 67: I was admiring our flowering dogwood in bloom, by all accounts a week or more early, when I spotted a brilliant orange red fox twenty feet beyond in the background, lazily lounging on a small hill of dirt in our woods. We had recognized this dirt hill, a former woodchuck colony, as a potential fox den in late winter as we saw sporadic activity in the area.
- Tom Lake

4/25 - Beacon, HRM 61: The "Big Carp" showed up today at Long Dock, the largest of which was 17 lb., 32" long, and 22" in girth. I estimated two others to be in the 5-8 lb. All were measured and released. I lost two more due to hook pulls, as I was trying to move them away from the rocks. I also caught a 9" golden shiner, solving the mystery of what was stealing my bait. Anglers at the end of the dock were catching bullheads, channel catfish, and small striped bass. A dozen sportfishing boats arrived after noon, drifting and trolling in the channel for striped bass.
- Bill Greene

4/25 - Hunter's Brook, HRM 67.5: Thirteen days without rain had reduced the brook to a trickle on low tide. The few remaining shallow pools appeared glassy in the darkness of midnight. Every few minutes I heard and saw an eruption as a half-dozen alewives rushed into a riffle in a spawning commotion.
- Tom Lake

4/25 - Newcomb, HRM 302: Toby Rathbone and I saw our first mockingbird of spring this morning and down the road the first forsythia was starting to bloom. While out in my yard I saw in my peripheral vision a long, skinny white thing floating across the grass and through the fence: an ermine. Poor thing was still totally white, which was the only reason I was able to see it. It looked like someone had tied a string to a white hankie and was dragging it across the lawn.
- Ellen Rathbone

[Ermine is the common name for the winter white phase of the short-tailed weasel. Like many boreal species, being white where winters are snowy is an adaptation that provides an element of camouflage. As spring arrives, the fur of the short-tailed weasel turns a tawny brown, perfect for the dark understory of the forest floor. Tom Lake.]

4/26 - Minerva, HRM 284: It was a wonderful evening: the air was nearly 65 degrees F and the peepers were shrill, almost deafening. The American bittern was back in the swamp, with its cool call that sounds like plumbing about to give up the ghost. I also heard the very strong and amazing song of a frisky hermit thrush in the woods. Yellow-rumped warblers, winter wrens, and brown creepers are back, with their pretty, unmistakable songs (I never actually saw them). Our early spring exotic "wildflower," coltsfoot, blooming along the road. Some early trillium is up, but too early for blooms.
- Mike Corey

4/26 - Norrie Point, HRM 85: We had an all-day parade of biodiversity at the Norrie Point Environmental Center today. This morning an angler caught a 39" striped bass. Nearby along the Indian Kill, we have a net specially designed to catch juvenile American eels. It is regularly checked by students from the Dutchess Academy of Environmental Science during the week. On the weekends, Kingston volunteers Katrina Gagnon and John Miller take over. This afternoon, we found 10 glass eels in the fyke net, along with an older eel (elver) and a beautiful leech. The leech was roughly 2" long, though it's hard to really tell. It looked just like the size and type I've often seen on the undersides of snapping turtles.
The main event of the day centered around the monthly "Fishin’ the River" program offered by the Hudson River Research Reserve and NYSDEC's "I Fish NY" program. We estimate about 200 people participated throughout the afternoon, both seining and angling for fish and learning about Hudson River ecology firsthand. White perch were the major catch on rod and reel, while the seine brought up a diverse assortment of white perch, yellow perch, bullhead catfish, tessellated darters, spottail shiners, banded killifish, pumpkinseeds, and a fourspine stickleback.
- Chris Bowser, Mark Vangorden, Ryan Coulter, Katrina Gagnon, John Miller

4/26 - Hunter's Brook, HRM 67.5: It was now 14 days without rain and fish migration had all but ceased. Whatever alewives had been here had left. The pools were empty - no white suckers, white perch, or carp. Glass eels were scarce. The magic riverward flow of spring rains that seems to urge the fish upstream was missing.
- Tom Lake

4/26 - Furnace Woods, HRM 38.5: Everything seems earlier this year. A few years ago lilac and dogwood were a mid-May treat. Both were in full bloom now.
- Christopher Letts

4/26 - Yonkers, HRM 18: I spotted a savannah sparrow today at the Beczak Environmental Center. I saw a pair there last week, maybe three altogether.
- Jeff Weber

4/27 - Newcomb, HRM 302: We finally got some rain last night (0.14"), first in along time. With it came our first worms on the roads this morning.
- Ellen Rathbone

4/27- Minerva, HRM 284: Shadbush was in bloom, about ten days early in an average year, along the Olmstedville to Pottersville road. Over the last 15 years, blooming has ranged from April 20 to May 19 with the average of about May 6.
- Mike Corey

4/27 - Saratoga County, HRM 170: I was eager to take a look at the Round Lake, Anthony Kill heron rookery this year. My visit was about a month earlier than last year. The sad news is that we've lost 8 nests, but the good news is that the remaining 13 are all being gently tended by the adult great blue herons.
- Fran Martino

4/27 - Town of Wappinger, HRM 67: We had been seeing the male red fox, a brilliant orange with black legs, sitting on top of the dirt hill they have modeled into a den. This morning, the reddish-gray female, was out with her three kits, each no larger than a house cat. They are reddish-gray like their mother, and adorable. Like a combination puppy-kitten, they played up and down the dirt hill finding toys in the twigs, branches, sticks, and each other’s tails.
- Tom Lake

4/27 - Hunter’s Brook, HRM 67.5: ... and on the fifteenth day it rained! By the time it ended we would have over an inch and a half. Because it was a gentle rain, one that Native Americans would call a "female rain," the land had a chance to absorb much if it. Still the brook ran and strong and clear. It would take a while for the wildlife to respond; I did not expect to see an increase in fish migration for a few days.
- Tom Lake

4/28 - Town of Wappinger, HRM 67: Lilacs were showing serious color. It is an odd year when the parade of spring flowers have all bloomed before the first of May.
- Tom Lake

4/29 - Poughkeepsie, HRM 76: The heavy rain exiting the Fall Kill took its toll on our eel fyke net, bending the supporting re-bar in all sorts of directions and pulling the net up taught. We decided to leave the net out for the night, even at the cost of a night's hole in our data. On the bright side, the net seemed fine, we caught 14 glass eels, and everybody pulled together safely and in good humor.
- Chris Bowser

4/29 - Croton-on-Hudson, HRM 35: My house is at the edge of woods, with an arm of the Croton Reservoir out front. I know there are coyotes around. For years I've heard them, seen their tracks, and caught glimpses of them. But I always hoped to see a fox. I see the tracks in the snow but never a live animal. Yesterday, right in the middle of the daffodils, was a beautiful red fox. It stood, posed, sniffing the air, occasionally pawing the ground. It had delicate black legs, black tipped ears, and a wonderful bushy tail. The perfect fox! It trotted a few steps, plopped down to unceremoniously scratch dog-style. Then, it faded into the brown, leafy undergrowth of the woods. What a treat!
- Robin Fox

4/29 - Furnace Brook, HRM 38.5: Yesterday our "Furnace Brook team" put their eel fyke back in the brook for a week of sampling. They noted a high flow rate and debris all over the place from the rain. Today, they found 49 glass eels, 8 of which weighed a whopping 2.2 grams!
- Chris Bowser

4/29 - Sandy Hook, NJ: Flocks of double-crested cormorants, more than 500, fewer than 1000, flew up the spine of the Hook this noon on their way north. Usually we see them strung out over the water; these were in patches about 300 feet high.
- Dery Bennett

4/30 - Newcomb, HRM 302: It was snowing, fair-sized flakes, and depressing! Like so many drops of scarlet blood, the fallen maple flowers lay scattered on the pavement.
- Ellen Rathbone

4/30 - Delmar, HRM 142: The past week has seen air temperatures in the 70s and 80s at the Five Rivers Environmental Education center. During reptile training for our volunteers, the painted turtles put on a real show, basking on every log. I counted 24 on one log alone. Trout lily, shadbush and cherry were all blooming. Today summer left. It's in the low 40's with snow flurries between breaks of sun.
- Dee Strnisa

4/30 - Hunter's Brook, HRM 67.5: Each year we try to figure out what motivates these two-inch glass eels to ascend waterways they have never seen before. We mull over the moon and its pull, rain and riverflow, and the likely possibility that we are drawing from a dwindling population.
Students from Roy C. Ketcham High School collected 5 glass eels today, a number that may be significant, if we only knew what it meant.
- Tom Lake, Jon Tokarc, Jeremy Patton

4/30 - Town of Wappinger: Dutchess Community College student Angela Anderson had never seen an eagle in the wild. In recent days we had stalked NY62B in the shadow of the tall tuliptree several times but no one was home. Today Mama was sitting in the nest and Papa was perched on an adjacent limb. In the context of the smaller nest (compared their six-year-old original, NY62A) they appeared enormous.
- Tom Lake

<<<<< SPRING 2008 NATURAL HISTORY PROGRAMS >>>>>

Norrie Point Environmental Center, Mills-Norrie State Park, Staatsburg [Dutchess County]. Information 845-889-4745, ext:105.
Fishin’ on the River! Seine netting and angling. All equipment provided. Free.
- May 17: 3:00-5:00 PM

Tivoli Bays Talks: 1st Thursdays, 7:30-8:30 PM, Tivoli Bays Visitor Center [Dutchess County].
Handicapped accessible. Free. Information: 845-889-4745, x105.
- May 1: Life on the Edge: Small Mammals in Hudson Tidal Wetlands, Cathy McGlynn

Spring 2008 Hudson River Shad Bakes

• May 3: 16th annual, Inwood Park, Manhattan, NYC 1:00 PM.
• May 4: 22nd annual, Alpine Boat Basin, Palisades Interstate Park, Alpine, NJ 1:00 PM.
• May 10: 21st annual, Riverfront Park, Nyack, NY, 1:00 PM.
• May 11: 2nd annual, Erasmus Corning Park, Albany, NY, 1:00 PM.
• May 18: 18th annual, Croton Point Park, Croton-on-Hudson, NY, 1:00 PM.

For information, call (212) 483-7667.

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HUDSON RIVER ALMANAC
April 16 - 22, 2008
Compiled by Tom Lake, Hudson River Estuary Program Naturalist New York State Department of Environmental Conservation

<<<<< OVERVIEW >>>>>

The "greening" of the Hudson Valley occurs like a wave, slowly moving up the watershed in April as tree leaves and grasses begin to backlight the emerging flowers. The steady spread of color from the yellow forsythia to the stark white of cherries is like a light going on along the river. Shadbush and flowering dogwood are close behind.

<<<<< HIGHLIGHT OF THE WEEK >>>>>

4/16 - Town of Wappinger, HRM 67: Our red fox family continues to delight. Today Mama was sitting next to the tool shed under which she has her nest. I commented to her from my back door that she must have beautiful little pups. Scarcely a minute later 2 tiny fox kits trotted out from under the shed. In a week or two, once the young are fully weaned, the female will probably move the den to another location
- Diane Lowry

<<<<< NATURAL HISTORY NOTES >>>>>

4/16 - Furnace Woods, HRM 38.5: Our forsythia was in full bloom now, pickerel frogs were calling, and yet there was frost on the windshield. At dawn the air temperature was 23 degrees F. As temperatures rise, even at 50 degrees, black flies have become ferocious. Yard work will be a bloody business this week. Coincident events just about every year: the flowering cherries break into bloom, and the first barn swallows return to Pine Lake.
- Christopher Letts

4/16 - Croton-on-Hudson, HRM 35: On a warm and breezy day, the spicebush in our woods burst into blossom.
- Robin Fox

4/16 - Hudson River Estuary: The NYSDEC Hudson River Fisheries Unit has resumed its annual tracking of sonic tagged adult Atlantic sturgeon. These fish spend the first few years of their life in the river where they were born, then move out to ocean waters where they spend most of their life. Once mature (about 10 years old for males, 15-20 for females), they return to fresh water in their natal river in late spring through early summer to spawn.
Last year our remote receiver, anchored in the river near Hastings-on-Hudson [HRM 21.5], indicated that a few fish showed up early and were missed by our mobile boat tracking crew. This year we started early to listen for any fish on their way into the Hudson to spawn. To our surprise and delight, "Minerva McGonagall," a 7.5 foot female Atlantic sturgeon, was found in the river on April 8. (Note: Atlantic sturgeon tagged in 2006 were christened with names of Harry Potter characters.) She stayed near Stony Point [HRM 40] at the upper end of Haverstraw Bay for nearly a week. She has now begun to move with the tide into the lower Hudson Highlands.
Minerva was tagged with a long term [5 year] sonic tag near Roger's Point [HRM 82], just north of Poughkeepsie. The objective of the program is to identify Atlantic sturgeon spawning areas and gain insight into their behavior and habitat preferences during their spawning run.
The long term tags will also confirm how often males and females spawn.
- Amanda Higgs

4/17 - Town of Wappinger, HRM 67: I consider the ornamental magnolia tree to be the new "shadbush" in the Mid-Hudson reach of the river. The true shadbush, a native species, has been, at least colloquially in some areas on the East Coast, considered a harbinger of shad arriving in estuaries. However, in the last several decades, either shadbush is blooming later, shad are arriving earlier, or our observations are becoming more precise. The bright, beautiful, and immensely fragrant magnolia was in full bloom today. As it began to show color a week or more ago, the first shad were nosing up the river.
- Tom Lake

4/17 - Croton-on-Hudson, HRM 35: This morning I went out with my second cup of coffee to look for the newest "spring-thing." The slowly greening lawn was dotted with very tiny composite flowers - more a bunch of pin-head sized white dots than flowers. But, they carpeted much of the still-brown lawn. I looked, hoping, at the area where I expect the spring beauties to flower. There was nothing showing. But just now, in late afternoon, I went out to look again and to my delight, there they were: the first spring beauty blossoms trembling in the breeze!
- Robin Fox

4/18 - New Paltz, HRM 78: I travel on Route 32 each morning and feel fortunate to enjoy a wonderful sight. Along the way I often pass wild turkeys, at least 15, both toms and hens. I guess the toms know it's spring because they strut about with their beautiful tails fully open for all the hens to admire.
- Gail Logan

4/18 - Hunter's Brook, HRM 67.5: Another day without rain; the brook level was dropping and the flow decreasing. Students from Dutchess Community College and Roy C. Ketcham High School helped with the eel net. Even with the stronger tides of the full moon approaching, our count was only 10. A dead male white sucker drifted slowly downstream.
These fish ascend freshwater streams in spring to spawn, a dangerous activity in shallow water. Predators. This one had a huge chunk ripped from its back. With no talon marks from an eagle or osprey, we guessed it might have been a lost fox or coyote lunch.
- Angela Anderson, Kathryn Goerge, Kayla Rath, Tom Lake

4/18 - Beacon, HRM 61: During an enjoyable seven-hour session in the great weather on Long Dock, I caught and released 4 carp, all decent size, the largest of which weighed 8 lb. 6 oz. The carp were occasionally rolling at the surface. Anglers at the end of the pier were catching small striped bass, white perch, and an occasional brown bullhead.
- Bill Greene

4/18 - Furnace Woods, HRM 38.5: We dined on the fruits of the new season: shad roe, dandelion crown and mustard greens salad, and rhubarb pie. Finest kind!
- Christopher Letts

4/18 - Sandy Hook, NJ: Hard clam season in the Navesink River runs out the end of this month so we hit the low tide around noon today to build up a small backlog. The clam bed showed signs of wearing thin; it's been pounded since November 1. But we landed our share accompanied by the soothing mutterings of brant and the incessant, raucous chatter of oystercatchers arguing over mates and territory.
- Dery Bennett

4/19 - Newcomb, HRM 302: We hit 80 degrees F today, in a shady spot! Somehow 80s in April in the Adirondacks just isn't right. So much for spring. The river was back up, though. It had crested earlier in the week and was going down, but the abnormally hot weather over the last two days did a number on the snow pack in the High Peaks, resulting in a flush of water downstream. Meanwhile, "spring" is bursting out all over.
At 1:30 AM wood frogs were "quacking," I heard peepers this afternoon, and the toads have been trilling for the last three nights. I don't recall ever hearing them this early, and certainly not before the frogs.
I saw a merlin this morning, a killdeer has been around for a couple of days, and I heard my first woodcock "peent" as well.
- Ellen Rathbone

4/19 - Minerva, HRM 284: I heard my first peepers and scattered wood frog calls tonight. The open water area in the swamp near my house is still pretty much iced in, although the small ditches and associated pools away from the swamp are open. We have many male red-winged blackbirds acting territorially. A phoebe made itself known to me today - a first for the year. We still have around 18" of snow in the woods behind the house, despite the 78 degree weather. Snow is melting fast.
- Mike Corey

4/19 - Stony Creek, HRM 100.5: I was walking along the path to Stony Creek with the intention of setting herring nets. It was great to see blooming bloodroot and a huge patch of blooming dogtooth violets (a.k.a. troutlilies). I had a stand off with an American toad on the path and saw a great butterfly (probably a comma, but I have trouble telling them from question marks on the wing). There was also my first snake of the season, a very rusty colored garter snake in the mouth of the Saw Kill.
Later I managed to intercept a small run of male yellow perch (210-240 mm) in the mouth of the Saw Kill.
- Bob Schmidt

4/19 - Norrie Point, HRM 85: Through binoculars from the NYSDEC Environmental Center patio, I found an osprey flying wide circles west of Esopus Island until an adult bald eagle zoomed into view and "attacked" the osprey. There was a brief scuffle, then a short acrobatic "dogfight" with circling loops, and dives, until the osprey flew downriver and the eagle landed in a large pine on the west shore.
Shortly the osprey returned and made several looping passes in front of the perched eagle, then finally gave up.
- Dave Lindemann

[Eagles and ospreys often have a very contentious relationship along tidewater.Osprey, the great "fish hawk," are the equal of an eagle at fishing. Bald eagles, however, have a tendency to be lazy. They are noted for their in-flight pirating of fish caught by osprey with harassing, body-bumping, talon-raking, and feather-scattering intimidation maneuvers designed to force the osprey to give up the catch. Tom Lake.]

4/19 - Poughkeepsie, HRM 76: Craig Hoover, a student at Dutchess Community College, and his father, Skip Hoover, a teacher at Kreiger Elementary, found a whopping 84 glass eels in the fyke net set up on the Fall Kill. That's the record for that site this season.
- Chris Bowser

4/19 - Town of Wappinger: It is looking bleak for the production of nestlings from the NY62 nests this spring. After five successful season of fledging eaglets this may be the pair's second barren year in a row.
The male brought a fish to the new nest (NY62B) this week, ordinarily a sign that there is a third mouth to feed. But the fish, a gizzard shad, was never offered to the nest and was instead eaten on a nearby feeding perch. At dawn this morning both adults were at the new nest, but neither were inside. They perched side-by-side on a limb a few feet away.
- Tom Lake

4/19 - Furnace Brook, RM 38.5. Ossining High School students Laura Hellmich and Dara Illowski, along with their mothers, Heidi and Susan, and their teacher Valerie Holmes, sampled glass eels for three days around this month's full moon. After the first full day and night, they found 101 glass eels in their fyke net. The water was a warm 68 degrees F. They are setting the nets as part of a high school research project to see what kind of environmental factors, such as lunar cycles, affect glass eel numbers in their local tributary.
- Chris Bowser

4/19 - Croton-on-Hudson, HRM 35: Spied the first bloodroot blossom in the garden today. I expect the deer will spy it next. I also picked my first batch of fiddlehead ferns for supper!
- Robin Fox

4/20 - Newcomb, HRM 302: A heard a hermit thrush last night! Presently, a winter wren is singing its little heart out outside my office window at the Adirondack Park Visitors Interpretive Center.
- Ellen Rathbone

4/20 - Minerva, HRM 284: I heard one solitary, lonely little peeper in the back end of the swamp behind our house this evening. Still no wood frogs. I'm wondering if their population is sinking everywhere? I recall hearing none, or few of them, last year. While standing and musing, I did hear "peenting" and twittering coming from sky; although I couldn't actually see the woodcock, I knew it was there. Song sparrows were out and about, robins were noisily hanging out in the woods, and one wood duck was desperately seeking open water.
- Mike Corey

4/20 - Columbia County, HRM 118: I was standing in my yard when I heard an unmistakable sound: our yellow-bellied sapsucker had returned and was pounding on my metal 911 sign.
- Bob Schmidt

4/20 - Hunter's Brook, HRM 67.5: After two days in the 80s, the air today was more April-like - in the 60s. Glass eel and elver numbers in the net continued to be unpredictable. Discovering what motivates them to swim upstream is still elusive after six years of paying attention.
Out in Wappinger Creek, the carp were beginning their spring behavior of rolling and splashing, mostly tied into spawning. Carp are a nonnative species of minnow, meaning that Colonial Americans did not witness these often stunning performances.
- Tom Lake

4/20 - Furnace Brook, RM 38.5: On the second day of their sampling, Ossining High School students Laura Hellmich and Dara Illowski found 48 glass eels in their fyke net. The water temperature had fallen 9 degrees F in 24 hours, an amazing number that underlines the resiliency of these fish. As the students worked, 2 bald eagles circled overhead.
- Chris Bowser

4/20 - Furnace Woods, HRM 38.5: Where two barn swallows flew four days ago, three dozen now dipped and soared, mingling with tree and rough-winged swallows. We hope their appetite for the wicked black flies is sharp.
- Christopher Letts

4/20 - Croton-on-Hudson, HRM 35: A female eastern towhee came to the bird feeder several times this afternoon. What a pretty bird and a first for me.
- Robin Fox

4/21 - East Fishkill, HRM 61: As we passed a semi-truck heading west this evening on I-84, we saw, ever so briefly in the glare of our headlights, a lone coyote on the highway median. Upon arriving home, we listened to a neighbor's message on our answering machine alerting us to the presence of coyotes heard in our nearby woods and suggesting that we not let our cat outdoors.
- Ed Spaeth, Merrill Spaeth

4/21 - Staatsburg, HRM 85: I went up the road to check on the resident kestrels. As I got there, the male flew up from the ground to a telephone wire with a small snake in his talons. It was 6-8 inches-long, still alive, but too far away to identify. The kestrel put the snake's head in his mouth and slurped it down like a piece of spaghetti.
- David Lund

4/21 - Furnace Woods, HRM 38.5: Tulips and redbud were flowering and shadbush was finally in full bloom.
- Christopher Letts

4/22 - Staatsburg, HRM 85: The red shouldered hawks are definitely nesting. One or the other of them has been more-or-less constantly on the nest since April 11. When I go by, there's always a head or a tail sticking out over the edge of the nest.
- David Lund

4/22 - Highland, HRM 76: Most people know wood ducks nest in hollow trees, using cavities carved by pileated woodpeckers. But have you ever seen them just perched in a tree for no particular reason? Such was the case as I was walking my dog in the early morning hours. We had just passed our mailbox and the silhouette of two large birds in a red oak caught my attention. I took a closer look and saw it was a mated pair of wood ducks perched on a pair of limbs 30 feet above the ground. I live a half-mile from Black Creek and have seen them on a large vernal pool in wet springs. But this year being so dry, I guess they stopped in the tree to wonder "what happened to our summer home?"
- Jim Beemer

4/22 - Hunter's Brook, HRM 67.5: Students from Randolph School combined their 15 minutes of volunteer river herring observation with a check of our eel fyke. We counted 13 glass eels and noted that at least half of them were beginning to show some darker pigment, an adaptation that we think is linked to their switch from ocean to estuarine habitat. A few of them resembled tiny black threads, a major change from the near transparency of a month ago.
- Tom Lake

4/22 - Sandy Hook, NJ -The shad bush is blooming here, about on schedule. We have had strong onshore winds the past few days, keeping the temperature about 15 degrees F cooler than inland.
- Pam Carlsen

[Since 1994, shadbush bloom dates for Sandy Hook have ranged from 4/8 to 4/28, with an average date of the third week in April. Tom Lake.]

<<<<< SPRING 2008 NATURAL HISTORY PROGRAMS >>>>>

Norrie Point Environmental Center, Mills-Norrie State Park, Staatsburg [Dutchess County]. Information 845-889-4745, ext:105.
Fishin’ on the River! Seine netting and angling. All equipment provided. Free.
- May 17: 3:00-5:00 PM

Tivoli Bays Talks: 1st Thursdays, 7:30-8:30 PM, Tivoli Bays Visitor Center [Dutchess County].
Handicapped accessible. Free. Information: 845-889-4745, x105.
- May 1: Life on the Edge: Small Mammals in Hudson Tidal Wetlands, Cathy McGlynn

Spring 2008 Hudson River Shad Bakes

• May 3: 16th annual, Inwood Park, Manhattan, NYC 1:00 PM.
• May 4: 22nd annual, Alpine Boat Basin, Palisades Interstate Park, Alpine, NJ 1:00 PM.
• May 10: 21st annual, Riverfront Park, Nyack, NY, 1:00 PM.
• May 11: 2nd annual, Erasmus Corning Park, Albany, NY, 1:00 PM.
• May 18: 18th annual, Croton Point Park, Croton-on-Hudson, NY, 1:00 PM.

For information, call (212) 483-7667.

---

HUDSON RIVER ALMANAC
April 7 - 15, 2008
Compiled by Tom Lake, Hudson River Estuary Program Naturalist New York State Department of Environmental Conservation

<<<<< OVERVIEW >>>>>

The spring cascade of colors has begun: forsythia to magnolia to shadbush. This will continue in the weeks ahead to dogwood, lilac, and many others. It is one of the best ways to measure the northward and upward advance of spring from the coast to the High Peaks of the Adirondacks.

<<<<< HIGHLIGHT OF THE WEEK >>>>>

4/9 - Hunter's Brook, HRM 67.5: On a gorgeous afternoon with a perfect tide and gentle stream flow, students from Randolph School had the opportunity to assist in a moment of research. Our eel fyke is fixed to short lengths of re-bar set in the stream bottom and measures about 15' long by 12' wide. As we approached our net from downstream we spotted 4 wood ducks, 2 pairs, using it as a break in the current to dabble on the gravel bottom. We had a dozen or more glass eels and half as many elvers - a good haul. They would be weighed and measured and returned upstream. The wildlife parade continued as a muskrat swam across just downstream, a flock of 100 noisy goldfinches in daffodil-yellow came through, a graceful Cooper's hawk shadowed the forest canopy, a broad-winged hawk made a fly-by, and before leaving, we had accumulated a woodpecker "grand slam," with a downy, hairy, pileated, flicker, and a red-bellied.
It was an altogether perfect hour.
- Goldy Safirstein, Phil Suriano, T.J. Groen, Nils Lewis, Chris Bowser, Tom Lake

<<<<< NATURAL HISTORY NOTES >>>>>

4/7 - Hudson Highlands, HRM 45: I watched a pair of ravens flying in formation today over the "goat path," Route 6/202, about a mile south of Anthony's Nose. With wings cocked and legs down, and without seeming to move a feather, they flew within a foot of each other the whole time while they made several turns and dropped over the edge.
- Scott Craven

4/7 - Verplanck, HRM 40.5: Riverman Cal Greenburg told me today that he will not set shad nets this spring. For the first time in 40 years, shad lovers will leave his driveway disappointed. It kind of takes the gold out of forsythia, one of the flowers that we link to the appearance of shad in the Hudson each spring.
- Christopher Letts

4/8 - Newcomb, HRM 302: We were staring at a slowly moving Hudson River as it passed along the shore at the Newcomb pump house and made its way under and around the remaining floes of ice. I heard a gurgle of water that didn't match what I was seeing and, as I looked downstream, I saw the head of a beaver cutting across the current to the far bank. A sound upstream drew my attention and I watched the force of the water break off mini-bergs from the ice pack. From downstream we heard another sound, the call of a beaver, a very hard to describe moaning whine. As we looked, we saw not one, but two beaver heads now skimming the surface. One hauled itself up on the shore while the other continued to swim around. Another ice chunk grated loose upstream and the beaver on the shore decided this was a threat so he returned to the water. We returned to our vigil and watched the beavers swim back to the shore where once again one of them climbed out. Then we decided to call it a day, bid the beavers farewell, and headed home.
- Ellen Rathbone, Toby Rathbone

4/8 - Minerva, HRM 284: I was out on my snowshoes this evening behind the house. The ice-covered open water areas of my swamp yielded little in terms of critters, but in the marginal shrubs and in the woods were male red-winged blackbirds, mourning doves, and robins. I searched in vain for snow fleas. I think they need warmer, sunny conditions to get them up and out on the snow.
- Mike Corey

4/8 - Indian Kill, HRM 85: Overnight our glass eel fyke net caught 2 glass eels, 20 elvers (two-years-old plus), and 3 fourspine sticklebacks. I'm wondering if the tidal marsh habitat at the site, with much cattail, phragmites, and substantial horizontal range of tide, makes it a great place for eels to spend a year or two.
- Chris Bowser

4/8 - Staatsburg, HRM 85: Recently, as I drove into the hamlet of Staatsburg, I saw a red-shouldered hawk fly up from near the roadside and alight on a mass of sticks lodged in a V of a white ash trunk.
Later, with binoculars, I could see the hawk standing on the mass of sticks that incorporated what looked like fresh nesting material, including sprigs of hemlock. I have seen this red-shoulder frequently and today there was a female on the sticks with a male a few dozen feet away. Dare we hope there's a new family in town?
- David Lund

[Although they are less common than red-tailed hawks, red-shouldered hawks do nest in Dutchess County. They seem to stay in an area several years, perhaps moving to a different tree, but not far from last year's nest. Barbara Butler.

Red-shouldered hawks are more tolerant of people and close proximity to housing than red-tailed hawks. The fresh greens are a good sign. It sounds like they are setting up housekeeping. Rich Guthrie.]

4/8 - Town of Wappinger, HRM 67: Our resident breeding red foxes have had, so far, a single kit. Last year they had 4. We can see it moving around at the edge of the woods with Mom mostly at dawn and dusk. This seems early. Last year we did not see the baby foxes until April 30. In spring 2007, their maternity den was in a compacted brush pile; this year they have moved under a nearby tool shed where the adults have brought squirrels. We have found their skins and bones scattered around the edge.
- Diane Lowry

4/8 - Brooklyn Heights, New York City: Star magnolias were in bloom through Hicks Street, and perched on just one, a lovely, mint-bright phoebe, tail bobbing and flitting from flowered branch to flowered branch.
- Dave Taft

4/8 - Staten Island, New York City: The robins were crazy with love and vying for territories every morning, ignoring the worms on the pavement and the blooming Persian speedwell blooming everywhere on the lawn at Fort Wadsworth. Three cardinals were also besotted this morning, each calling from a separate parking lot tree, and each as red as a forgotten Christmas tree ornament.
- Dave Taft

4/9 - Newcomb, HRM 302: Our first butterfly of the season, a Compton's tortoiseshell, came by today.
- Ellen Rathbone

4/9 - Town of Wappinger: It seemed like a change in plans was afoot.
The mated pair of bald eagles were now back in their original nest, NY62A, having, or so it seems, abandoned the nest closer to the river.
This morning, Mama was hunkered down in the nest with Papa perched close by. It was not too late for them to make up their mind and incubate eggs.
- Tom Lake

4/9 - Staten Island, New York City: In a secluded woodland, dozens of clean white bloodroot flowers greeted the cool air of spring like they have since bloodroot was "invented." Seeing these blooms has become a personal ritual for me each spring.
- Dave Taft

4/10 - Newcomb, HRM 302: This evening as Toby Rathbone and I headed down to the river, we were taken aback by a branch full of pussy willows just emerging. They hadn't been there the day before.
- Ellen Rathbone

4/10 - Hudson River Estuary: Observing river herring! There is a volunteer effort underway this spring to record, albeit anecdotally, the presence of river herring in Hudson River tributaries. Times and tide play a major role in the presence of river herring in tributaries, but the mix of these tend to be different for each. For example, in the bigger tributaries, like the Wappinger, Rondout, Catskill and possibly Stockport Creeks, river herring come in on the flood tide, mingle, and then stick around for another tide cycle. In smaller tributaries like Canterbury Brook, Quassaick Creek, Hathaways Glen, and Hunter's Brook, they come in on the flood, spawn if they are ready, and exit on the ebb tide. It is not unusual to see their characteristic "rushing up along the shore," males chasing females, at any time of the day or night in most tributaries, although nighttime flood tides might be favored. Time and tide may not be as important as the location where you are observing. Some reaches of tributaries lend themselves better to the acrobatics of herring, such as long deep runs, pools behind large rocks, and inshore shallows adjacent to deeper water. In the Serengeti, it would be like finding a spot to watch the perfect watering hole, thus the lions!
- Tom Lake

4/10 - Hudson River, HRM 92-96: This evening a friend and I paddled north from Kingston Point to the Kingston-Rhinecliff Bridge. We watched the falcon box for awhile until it became clear that there was at least one peregrine present. At one point, the falcon flew out, briefly fluttering overhead checking us out, perched on the beams under the bridge, and watched us until we left.
- Wes Ostertag

4/11 - Newcomb, HRM 302: I heard my first winter wren of the season singing away in full voice.
- Ellen Rathbone

4/11 - Town of Esopus HRM 82: On a beautiful sunny afternoon, my partner Tona and I decided to canoe on Chodikee Lake and then continue north on Black Creek. We had gone past several beaver lodges and were passing another when suddenly a Canada goose began swimming toward us.
It took off and flew just over Tona's head, wheeled and flew back grazing her head this time with fast-beating wings. We were frightened; that bird was big and its wings very powerful, especially as seen close-up underneath! We back-paddled and the goose swam away. Then we realized what had happened: We had failed to notice its mate sitting atop a beaver lodge; it was simply defending its nest. We wanted to continue but instead made a wide detour through a flooded area next. We were rewarded further by the sight of a bald eagle, many herons and, on the way back, a huge beaver swimming in the lake, then diving down with a great flap of its tail.
- Judy Mage

4/11 - Staten Island, New York City: I wondered when it would happen, but today while touring through the Great Kills park with my friend Dave Avrin, a pair of wild turkeys paraded out in front of the car. My first wild turkey within the park boundary.
- Dave Taft

4/12 - Germantown, HRM 108: After an entire winter of seeing only 2-3 purple finches and goldfinches at a time my backyard feeders, today produced an explosion in numbers. I counted 15-20 of each, as well as the typical numbers of "regulars" - titmice, downy woodpeckers, mourning doves, and assorted sparrows. The ground was a moving patchwork of colors as they hopped about pecking up the seeds I'd scattered.
- Laurie Fila

4/12 - Hunter's Brook, HRM 67.5: Some A.P. Biology and Environment students from Roy C. Ketcham High School helped us check our daily catch
- 5 glass eels and 2 elvers - from our research net. As we finished up our work, a pair of trusting mallards drifted downstream right past us, close enough to exchange smiles.
- Celina Alvarez, Arnold Cruz, Wilfredo Chaluisant, Tom Lake

4/12 - Furnace Woods, HRM 38.5: Just when I was winding down on the bird feeding season, a little push of birds made me think twice. Fox sparrows, a family favorite, showed up - gotta feed them! - and chipping sparrows, song sparrows, white-throated sparrows and the kicker, white-crowned sparrows. Off the ground, we saw the usual goldfinches, house finches, and continuing strong numbers of pine siskins. And a flock (well, 6) of purple finches, usually seen only in the nastiest of winter weather. Sigh. Another trip to the feed store seems in order.
- Christopher Letts

4/13 - Newcomb, HRM 302: We were getting snow, little stuff that won't likely stick around, but still, it was snowing. The river is in flood stage now, thanks to almost an inch of rain and the continual melting of snow. I've heard that there is still over eight feet of snow up on Mt. Marcy. Our snowstick shows that we have a little less than a foot of snow on the ground, but that all depends on where you are standing.
There are many bare spots, but likewise there are pockets where it is almost knee deep.
- Ellen Rathbone

4/13 - Ulster Park, HRM 87: Forsythia and myrtle are out in Esopus.
- Bill Drakert

4/13 - Hunter's Brook, HRM 67.5: As far as we can tell, our first alewives of the spring arrived to spawn here today.
- Chris Bowser

4/13 - Croton River, HRM 34: It's not like it was 15 years ago, or before that as far back as I can recall. Still, the sight of hundreds of Dutchman's breeches blooming pulls me here every April. Back then, in the road gorge, there was a carpet of dainty flowers under foot and a canopy of ancient hemlocks overhead. The hemlocks succumbed to the woolly adelgid and now, with the canopy missing, Japanese knotweed has colonized the gorge, pushing out everything else. Still, it's worth the visit this time of year, as the remaining hundreds of dainty, lacy mint green leaves support tiny blossoms of Dutchman's breeches.
- Christopher Letts

4/14 - Norrie Point, HRM 85: We spotted our first osprey of the season, scouting the river for fish. Its appearance, not surprisingly, coincides with the first reports of herring being caught in our eel nets. The exquisite timing in the natural world never ceases to amaze me. We also have a mallard nest near the building. The female is camouflaged so well that you have to actively look to spot her.
- Laurie Fila

4/14 - Croton River, HRM 34: No wildlife observer should miss any chance to visit this estuary. Something is always going on. Dawn low tides are especially fine for good looks at the usual and unusual. This morning from my "blind" (pickup truck cab) I watched tree swallows, phoebes, a lone pair of bufflehead and another of green-winged teal. Then, riding the flood under the railroad bridge, a couple of horned grebes, one splendid in breeding plumage, the other drab in winter wear.
A mated pair, surely: they swam together, dove together, and got within ten yards of my blind.
- Christopher Letts

4/14 - Staten Island, New York City: Shad bush was fully in bloom. I could not resist the urge to take a final peek at a Staten Island bloodroot patch on this cool and drizzly day. As I walked, dozens of chipping sparrows flew off from a grassy field at the entrance to the woods. And once in the bright leafless shade of the woods, I noted 175 flowers before losing count, possibly because of a waterthrush calling, my first of the season. I couldn't track down the bird, and ultimately had to guess that there were still about a hundred flowers left uncounted. Trout lily and Canada mayflower leaves sprang up through the leaf litter without flowers as yet. Blue cohosh and wild oats poked up flowerless as yet too. Spicebush was alive with its tiny chartreuse flowers.
- Dave Taft

4/15 - Saw Kill, HRM 98.5: A group of Siena College students showed up to talk about eels and check the glass eel fyke in the mouth of the Saw Kill. We only caught two glass eels but one of the students saw and picked up a red-spotted newt. This is the first time we had seen one from tidewater.
- Bob Schmidt, Catherine O'Reilly, Cris Winters, and lots of Siena College students

4/15 - Fishkill, HRM 61: A bright, sunny spring morning was made a bit more cheerful by watching the courtship display of two resident eastern bluebirds. Both male and female bluebirds were perched on different branches of a budding dogwood tree that was near their nest box, when the very bright blue male flew down to the ground and seized an insect.
With the insect in its mouth, he returned to the dogwood tree where he fed the insect to the female doing a fluttering wing display. He did this twice in close succession. On the third foray, he moved to another branch, ignored the begging flutters of the female and presumably ate the captive insect himself.
- Ed Spaeth

4/15 - Dobbs Ferry, HRM 23: From our new third floor apartment on Palisade Street, we can see the Hudson River, the tops of trees, and yes, the Palisades. We have come to recognize the calling of a neighborhood cardinal that frequents the trees across the street, making us crane our necks for a welcome flash of red in the still bare woods.
- Denise Woodin

<<<<< SPRING 2008 NATURAL HISTORY PROGRAMS >>>>>

Norrie Point Environmental Center, Mills-Norrie State Park, Staatsburg [Dutchess County]. Information 845-889-4745, ext:105.
Fishin' on the River! Seine netting and angling. All equipment provided. Free.
- April 26: 3:00-5:00 PM

Tivoli Bays Talks: 1st Thursdays, 7:30-8:30 PM, Tivoli Bays Visitor Center [Dutchess County]. Handicapped accessible. Free.
Information: 845-889-4745, x105.
- May 1: Life on the Edge: Small Mammals in Hudson Tidal Wetlands, Cathy McGlynn

Spring 2008 Hudson River Shad Bakes

• May 3: 16th annual, Inwood Park, Manhattan, NYC 1:00 PM.
• May 4: 22nd annual, Alpine Boat Basin, Palisades Interstate Park, Alpine, NJ 1:00 PM.
• May 10: 21st annual, Riverfront Park, Nyack, NY, 1:00 PM.
• May 11: 2nd annual, Erasmus Corning Park, Albany, NY, 1:00 PM.
• May 18: 18th annual, Croton Point Park, Croton-on-Hudson, NY, 1:00 PM.

For information, call (212) 483-7667.

---

HUDSON RIVER ALMANAC
April 1 - 7, 2008
Compiled by Tom Lake, Hudson River Estuary Program Naturalist New York State Department of Environmental Conservation

<<<<< OVERVIEW >>>>>

April is the time of the year for "firsts," and this week had plenty of them: river herring, shad, flowers, warblers, osprey, butterflies, woodchucks, and in no fewer than 22 huge nests along Hudson tidewater, the first bald eaglets!

<<<<< HIGHLIGHT OF THE WEEK >>>>>

4/6 - Tappan Zee, HRM 27: In our overnight gill nets we caught our first river herring (alewives) and first American shad, one nice plump roe shad, of the season. Dinner!
- Robert Gabrielson Sr.

[Since its inception, the Hudson River Almanac has reported the first American shad caught in the estuary each spring, usually by a commercial fishing net. The dates have ranged from March 26 to April 18, reflecting late winters, early springs, and extreme conditions on the river. Water temperature seems to be a contributing factor; the shad appear when temperatures hit 40 - 48 degrees F. Also affecting the date is the dwindling number of shad netters. For example, 20 years ago the first commercial nets shad encountered were in the Upper Bay of New York Harbor; today they might not meet a net for another week and 30 miles or more up the river. Regardless of when the first one is caught, they probably are in the river by late March every year. With shad stocks in steep decline and a long and rich tradition of Hudson River shad fishing on the verge of disappearing, the first shad should be celebrated as it kindles hope for renewal of the population and the fishery. Tom Lake.]

<<<<< NATURAL HISTORY NOTES >>>>>

4/1 - Kinderhook, HRM 128: The snow geese I reported 5 days ago were now settled on the top of the hill behind our house. I wondered why the snow hadn't melted up there yet until I got a closer look!
- Cris Winters

4/1 - Columbia County, HRM 118: We caught a Jefferson's salamander on a road in Hillsdale tonight. We happened to look at its feet and discovered that the front left foot had seven toes! The two outer toes had "split" to form the extra digits. A quick search of the internet indicated that polydactyly is not uncommon in some New York salamanders (spotted salamanders) and known from tiger salamanders as well. There was no specific mention of this condition in Jefferson's salamanders, but they all are close relatives.
- Bob Schmidt, Alec Schmidt, Caroline Wise

4/1 - Norrie Point, HRM 85: We spotted an adult bald eagle perched at the mouth of the Indian Kill this morning and a pair of pileated woodpeckers flying along one of the park's access roads.
- Laurie Fila

4/1 - Hyde Park, HRM 82: A little brown bat fluttered over my yard today at sunset. I was glad to see they're not all dead.
- Peter Fanelli

[Researchers have found wintering bats in the Northeast with a mysterious white fungus around their muzzles and occasionally on other parts of their bodies. Many bats have died. It has been named "white-nose syndrome" and the attributed mortality has exceeded 90% in some caves. The affected bats seem to have had low fat reserves, insufficient to keep them alive through the winter. The fungus is likely opportunistic, moving in after an unknown malady has already weakened them. Since the fungus on the bats is one normally found in caves, the illness probably begins as something else and the fungus just takes advantage of a sick animal. While the exact cause is largely unknown, some of the possibilities offered by experts include climate and seasonal changes possibly due to climate change, disrupted hibernation cycles, and the effects of pesticides. Ellen Rathbone, Erik Kiviat, Bob Schmidt.]

4/1 - Ulster Park, HRM 87: On a very mild night we heard our first spring peepers. - Bill Drakert, Fran Drakert


4/1 - Poughkeepsie, HRM 76: Poughkeepsie High School teachers and students helped us set our glass eel fyke net in the lower reach of the Fall Kill. As we were pounding rebar into the shaley bedrock, I heard 2 fish crows calling. I sometimes go a year or more without hearing any fish crows and yet this was the third pair I had heard in the last month. An omen of fish to come? The Fall Kill was 48 degrees F, considerably warmer than the river just 200 feet away (41 degrees).
These east side tributaries drain warm uplands, while the Hudson is still carrying remnants of ice and snow meltwater from the Adirondacks.
- Mark Vangorden, Lisa DiMarzo, Gwen Saylor, Chris Bowser, Angela Anderson, Tom Lake

[In a pilot project this spring, the Hudson River Estuary Program and Hudson River National Estuarine Research Reserve are involving students from several Hudson Valley schools in research on migration of glass eels into Hudson River tributaries (see 4/7 below). The students will strengthen their science education by doing real field research, and their efforts will expand our knowledge of eel migration, building on work done in recent years on Hunter's Brook in the Town of Wappinger and the Saw Kill in Annandale. Chris Bowser, Steve Stanne.]

4/1 - Furnace Woods, HRM 38.5: Rough-winged swallows were dipping and soaring over Pine Lake today. Daffodils are now in bloom and it's time to plant the peas!
- Christopher Letts

4/2 - Hunter's Brook, HRM 67.5: Even a single day of strong west-northwest winds can produce a blowout tide. We were still two hours from low tide and yet the water in Hunter's Brook barely wet the bottoms of my waders. Ordinarily the water would be knee-deep.
- Tom Lake

4/2 - Town of Wappinger: While the view from the new eagle nest (NY62B) is impressive, it is entirely exposed to the elements. Overnight we had a serious, albeit brief, storm. It lasted only ten minutes but featured thunder, lightning, quarter-inch hail in torrents, winds gusting over 50 mph, and driving rain. It may have been a straight-line storm or even a micro-burst heading through; it made a roar like a train coming that never quite arrives. During those ten minutes, NY62B would have been a frightening place to be. The tall tulip tree already bears the jagged scar of a previous lighting strike. At dawn this morning the nest was empty. Mama no longer was sitting on eggs. By mid-morning I found her sitting in the old nest sheltered by a stand of white pines.
- Tom Lake

4/2 - Sleepy Hollow, HRM 27: Our little tidal wetland keeps producing surprises. Twice a day it fills and empties through a culvert under the railroad tracks and is also fed by the runoff from Fremont Pond. I spotted two tall waders today, a great egret and a great blue heron. The heron left, flying away on slow-flapping giant wings. The egret followed a short while later, flying out over the Hudson, then returning to the muddy shallows to continue its stalking.
- Doug Maass

4/3 - Newcomb, HRM 302: We lost 3" of snow and were now down to 27". I saw a flash of bird this morning that didn't look familiar from recent months. It was a common flicker, probably reassessing its arrival as it stared at the snow.
- Ellen Rathbone

4/3 - Stockport Creek, HRM 121.5: An adult bald eagle greeted me and my little red kayak at the mouth of the Stockport Creek today. It seems I wasn't alone as I searched for spawning river herring. Stockport Creek is one of nine tributaries selected as a study site by the NYSDEC Hudson River Fisheries Unit Spring Volunteer River Herring Monitoring program. Volunteers from the Kinderhook Watershed Alliance are assisting by going to the site a couple of times a week for 15 minutes to record their observations. To learn how you can become an integral part of studying how river herring use the Hudson River, visit www.dec.ny.gov/animals/41545.html .
- Fran Martino

4/3 - Poughkeepsie, HRM 76: There was a nice display of male white suckers today vying for the attention of a larger female under the Water Street bridge on the Fall Kill.
- Chris Bowser

4/3 - Town of Wappinger: Magnolia and forsythia were showing color, daffodils were close, and bluebirds sprang up from my feet as I slowly walked the ridge line over the Hudson toward our eagle nests. The colors and images made it seem like a Disney cartoon. But my good cheer was dampened when I found that both eagles nests, the old and the new, were empty. I am now as confused as the mated bald eagle pair seem to be.
- Tom Lake

4/3 - Town of Pleasant Valley, HRM 75: The lower of the two vernal pools I reported on last week now has many wood frog eggs and, where communal breeding was taking place last week, there are now many adjacent clusters of eggs. There is still some breeding but not as frantic as last week. Spring peepers could be heard from the center of the pool and schools of fairy shrimp of all sizes were along the sides.

The upper pool is really a fen with many smaller and connected pools. In these, wood frogs were actively breeding and laying eggs. This evening, after two days of rain, many of these pools were filled with spotted salamanders, at least 100 in each pool, actively courting.
- John R. Mort

4/4 - Gardiner, HRM 73: On our walk today we spotted our first warbler of the spring, a yellow-rumped, as well as cedar waxwings, a saw-whet owl sitting in a tree cavity, and a garter snake.
- Rebecca Houser, Brian Houser

4/4 - Poughkeepsie, HRM 76: We had our first real "haul" of glass eels in our net this afternoon: six! The creek was running pretty strong.
- Chris Bowser

4/4 - Hunter's Brook, HRM 67.5: After a cold, hard driving rain, the water temperature in Hunter's Brook fell from 51 degrees F to 44 overnight. Each season that I work in tidal tributaries, I gain more respect for the resiliency of the cold-blooded creatures that live there.
- Tom Lake

4/5 - Town of Poughkeepsie, HRM 68: We were giving our field archaeology students a tour of the prehistoric rockshelters at Bowdoin Park when an osprey flew in from the river, did a pirouette over the sports field (a former Woodland Indian village, sand-mined during WWI), and then disappeared over the trees. Later, on a path near the river, we came upon the forward half of a large white catfish lying in the dirt.

It was probably dropped by a bald eagle and, since the "best parts" of the fish were missing, the evidence pointed to a male eagle. They are known for eating the best parts of a fish before sharing with nestlings.
- Tom Lake, Stephanie Roberg-Lopez

4/5 - Putnam County, HRM 55: As we drove along the Taconic Parkway we spotted 3 woodchucks (ground hogs, whistle pigs) actively eating grass.

Now we really believe that spring has arrived in the Hudson Valley.
- Bob Schmidt, Alec Schmidt

4/5 - Yonkers, HRM 18: We were walking along the shore at the Beczak Environmental Center today when we spotted a small dead fish in the mud.

We had to investigate. It turned out to be a juvenile (117 mm) spotted hake (Urophysis regia). We don't think of this species as being common in the Hudson estuary, so we were surprised to find one. This specimen was preserved and is now on its way to the New York State Museum collection in Albany.
- Bob Schmidt, Alec Schmidt

[The spotted hake is one of eight members of the cod family (Gadidae) documented for the Hudson River estuary. Among the other seven are some familiar names such as the Atlantic cod, the Atlantic tomcod, and pollock, as well as silver hake ("whiting"), red hake ("ling"), white hake, and fourbeard rockling. All are considered to be marine strays except for the tomcod, a migratory diadromous species that enters the estuary each fall to spawn under the winter ice. Tom Lake.]

4/6 - Feura Bush, Albany County, HRM 135: I was hanging out laundry for the first time this year when I spied something in the sky. Way up in the sky, just soaring around, the sun hit it just right and there was no mistaking the white head and tail. It was an adult bald eagle, the first I've seen and I have been looking. I watched as it soared toward the southwest. I wonder if it was headed to the Albany Alcove Reservoir, or possibly Onesquethaw Creek, just a quarter mile away.
- Roberta S. Jeracka

4/6 - Hunter's Brook, HRM 67.5: Our research net shared the narrow confines of Hunter's Brook this evening with a pair of gorgeous wood ducks. We had a nice collection of 22 glass eels but I felt guilty having to roust the wood ducks to get at them.
- Tom Lake

4/6 - Haverstraw Bay, HRM 38: Word came in from the river today that a netter had caught the first "bunker" (menhaden) of the spring. There was a time when the initial appearance of mossbunker, a marine herring, signaled the beginning of the end of the shad season. This year is coincided with the start.
- Robert Gabrielson Sr.

[Atlantic menhaden are a species of herring that spawn in salt to brackish water. Adults, also known regionally as mossbunker or pogies, and their young-of-the-year, known colloquially as peanut bunker or penny bunker, are found by the millions in the estuary in summer, providing forage for striped bass, bluefish, osprey, eagles and seals.Tom Lake.]

4/7 - Newcomb, HRM 302: We are at 21" at the snow stick, down 4" since yesterday! Rotting snow is everywhere, and roadsides are deep in sand left behind by the disappearing snowbanks. I heard the honk of a couple of Canada geese last night and again this morning, but I have yet to see a flock flying overhead.
- Ellen Rathbone

4/7 - Hunter's Brook, HRM 67.5: As the sun set over Wappinger Creek tidewater, five Roy C. Ketcham High School A.P. Biology and Environment students helped us check our eel net in Hunter's Brook. This was the evening after the new moon and with the strong tides and rise in water temperature (52 degrees F) we had high hopes. We felt more than saw the elusive glass eels in the bag of the net and carefully moved them to our collection bucket to be counted and weighed. We put 9 of them into a small glass jar and then watched as they performed an enthralling ballet, a graceful writhing. As dusk arrived and we re-set the net preparing to leave, a single little brown bat (Myotis) flitted among us along the narrow stream corridor.
- Chris Bowser, Samantha Deger, Jennifer Edwards, Amanda Faughnan, Kathryn Goerge, Kayla Rath, Tom Lake

[Glass eels arrive by the millions in the estuary each spring following a six-month to year-long journey from the greater Sargasso Sea area of the North Atlantic where they are 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. In anywhere from 12-30 years, depending upon their sex, they will leave the Hudson River watershed for the sea where we believe they will spawn once and then die. Tom Lake.]

4/7 - Newburgh, HRM 61: From a hilltop along the river in mid-afternoon, I was able to see "the river that flows both ways." At the top of the flood tide, during the reversal of the current from flood to ebb, the inshore waters were already a turbid tan. The physics of the near shore shallows had prompted the current to change to an ebb there while out in the deeper mid-river, with more inertia to overcome, the clear current was still flooding upstream.
- Tom Lake

<<<<< SPRING 2008 NATURAL HISTORY PROGRAMS >>>>>

Norrie Point Environmental Center, Mills-Norrie State Park, Staatsburg [Dutchess County]. Information 845-889-4745, ext:105.
Fishin' on the River! Seine netting and angling. All equipment provided. Free.
- April 26: 3:00-5:00 PM

Tivoli Bays Talks: 1st Thursdays, 7:30-8:30 PM, Tivoli Bays Visitor Center [Dutchess County]. Handicapped accessible. Free.
Information: 845-889-4745, x105.
- May 1: Life on the Edge: Small Mammals in Hudson Tidal Wetlands, Cathy McGlynn

Spring 2008 Hudson River Shad Bakes

• May 3: 16th annual, Inwood Park, Manhattan, NYC 1:00 PM.
• May 4: 22nd annual, Alpine Boat Basin, Palisades Interstate Park, Alpine, NJ 1:00 PM.
• May 10: 21st annual, Riverfront Park, Nyack, NY, 1:00 PM.
• May 11: 2nd annual, Erasmus Corning Park, Albany, NY, 1:00 PM.
• May 18: 18th annual, Croton Point Park, Croton-on-Hudson, NY, 1:00 PM.

For information, call (212) 483-7667.

---

HUDSON RIVER ALMANAC
March 25 - 31, 2008
Compiled by Tom Lake, Hudson River Estuary Program Naturalist New York State Department of Environmental Conservation

<<<<< OVERVIEW >>>>>

One of the thrills of Hudson Valley birding is to come upon a field of migrating snow geese. They are seen much more often as a high-flying white checkmark against the blue sky as they head south in autumn or north in springtime to Arctic breeding grounds. As uncommon as this is, we had two such sightings this week. The first glass eels, a rather ephemeral juvenile form of the American eel, arrived in the river's tributaries. This is the next chapter in their mysterious life history that began six months ago in the mid-Atlantic, a mile below the surface, or so we think.

<<<<< HIGHLIGHT OF A PREVIOUS WEEK >>>>>

3/23 - Saugerties Lighthouse, HRM 102: I spotted a river otter swimming in the mouth of the Esopus Creek this morning. Its swift and undulating motions were unmistakable. After swimming at the surface for awhile, it dove and reemerged near our dock, swimming along the bulkhead. An hour later, I noticed a ripple in the water along the bulkhead and went to investigate. While I waited for what I hoped was the otter to reemerge, I noticed a bald eagle perched in a tree on the other side of the creek. Add to the scene red-winged blackbirds flying from the marsh to visit our bird feeder, 4 mute swans milling about in the mouth of the creek, and a dozen swallows skimming the water's surface. Eventually, the river otter reappeared, stuck its head up out of the water, looked around, and dove back under. - Patrick Landewe

<<<<< NATURAL HISTORY NOTES >>>>>

3/25 - Saugerties Vly, HRM 104: I encountered our first-of-season Compton tortoiseshell butterflies flying in sunshine in an overgrown red cedar-shrub field adjacent to deciduous woodlands in extreme northern Ulster County, 250 yards south of the Greene County line. I was checking the field for woodcock when I heard one "peenting" nearby at the unlikely hour of 2:15 PM on a sunny afternoon. There was also a very cooperative Wilson's snipe foraging on one of the beaver dams, obligingly posing for a photo, and a male northern harrier ("gray ghost") hunting the cattail beds out in the marsh. - Steve M. Chorvas

3/25 - Highlands Lakes State Park, HRM 60: I saw my first turtles of the season today, 2 painted turtles basking on logs, enjoying the afternoon sun, in an old farm pond in Orange County. I was so surprised, since it seemed so chilly still; I had to get my binoculars just to be sure! - Laura Heady

3/25 - Staten Island, New York City: Even though these would be a ho-hum sighting anywhere else, I just cannot get enough of the turkey vultures that greet me almost daily as I enter Ft. Wadsworth. It could be simply a bad omen, but it's hard to see it that way as they glide by so buoyantly. - Dave Taft

3/26 - Northern Saugerties Township, HRM 102: I spotted another eastern comma in northern Ulster County today, this time in my yard. This particular butterfly spent more time basking in the sunlight, allowing me to get off a few photos. Though the photos reveal some minor wear to the tip of one hind wing, this individual was in remarkably good shape for one that flew last fall, then spent the last several months hibernating in a crevice. - Steve M. Chorvas

3/27 - Kinderhook, HRM 128: I spotted some hooded mergansers, a bufflehead, and hundreds of common mergansers in Kinderhook Lake. An immature bald eagle flew across the lake and started to extend its legs into the water when several ring-billed gulls chased it off. I watched a flock of a few hundred snow geese fly over the top of our hill. - Cris Winters

3/27 - Stockport Flats, HRM 122: As I scouted along the Hudson I stopped at Stockport Flats. There were many mallards in the shallow water between the bare mud beds of the dormant yellow water lily and the arrow arum. Wood ducks could be heard and seen. Song sparrows were singing away, reminding me of marsh wrens. - Cris Winter

3/27 - Saw Kill, HRM 98.5: Catherine O'Reilly and her Bard College students have been monitoring an eel fyke net that was set in the mouth of the Saw Kill 12 days ago. Today they caught their first glass eel of the spring. - Bob Schmidt

[Freshwater eels have survived global cataclysms for millions of year but now some populations appear to be diminishing, even disappearing, worldwide and no one knows why. While American eels are considered freshwater fish, they are born at sea and many of them spend much of their lives in tidewater. Each spring, millions of immature eels ascend tidewater from the sea along the entire coast of North America. Their near lack of pigment has earned them the name "glass eel." This is a particularly vulnerable time and little is known about this period in their life history. Our annual research in Hudson River tributaries is designed to understand some facets of the life of American eels. It is difficult to protect them as a species when you know so little about them. Tom Lake.]

3/27 - Newburgh, HRM 61: The sky was overcast but the temperature was a mild 48 degrees F as a gentle breeze ruffled the waters of a secluded wooded pond near Stewart Airport. A census of waterfowl in this pond revealed 2 Canada geese, several mallards, 4 hooded mergansers and a pair of northern pintails. On the nearby grassy slope were several robins, while a fox sparrow foraged near to the shelter of a fence row. - Ed Spaeth

3/28 - Minerva, HRM 284: Peepers in full voice? Salamanders rutting and frisking in vernal pools? Butterflies on the wing? Where? I noted these occurrences in the latest Almanac. However, in Minerva we were still looking at close to three feet of snow on the ground in the open, seven feet under the eves. The best we could do was a very confused-looking killdeer on an ice-covered parking lot a few houses away. The killdeer was bright with spring plumage, but looked very lost. Our maple taps thawed today; the sap is hesitant, but sweet. - Mike Corey

3/28 - New Baltimore, HRM 131.5: It started last night as a cool light drizzle. By midnight it had turned to a sleet/drizzle combo. And by morning the ground was covered with a layer of crunchy snow, sleet, ice and slush. Pretty, but not fun. The birds liked it though. They were lined up waiting for me to dish out cracked corn and sunflower seeds. I was soon inundated with hordes of grackles and red-winged blackbirds pushing and shoving to get to that morsel. An occasional mourning dove tried bravely to elbow in with some success. That dainty little bird has some chutzpah. It was worth the price of admission just to see the dove evade blackbird beaks now and again. Soon, though it became too much. The dove either was satisfied or discouraged enough to leave the table. White-throated and song sparrows were satisfied to feed in the sanctuary under the fir tree boughs. - Rich Guthrie

3/28 - Tivoli, HRM 100.5: Driving east on Kidd Lane in late afternoon near Tivoli Bays, a large dark-haired creature wandered into my path. At first I thought it was a rather large skunk as it waddled across the road. As I got closer, I realized it was a very large beaver. It lumbered across the road into a clearing and then into some brush. Its size, its shining black coat, very wet and oily, and that amazing tail were an incredible and exciting sight. - Rich Schiafo

3/28 - Columbia County, HRM 125: It was raining tonight so we went out looking for amphibians. There were few available but we did find our first spotted salamander and Jefferson's salamander of the year. - Bob Schmidt, Alec Schmidt

3/28 - Cold Spring, HRM xx: Walking along the edge of a large hayfield this morning, we realized that the “white line” in the middle of the field where the contour changed, was a flock of 60 snow geese. Within a few minutes, with much excited honking, they were joined by another one hundred or so winging in from the south. When they were spooked by a kestrel we could see that two of them were gray phase snow geese, a form also known as a blue goose. - Ralph Odell, Leslie Heanue

3/28 - Bronx, New York City: Dave Kunstler and I were searching for rare plants in Pelham Bay when a large female harrier swept past us and made us look up. Amid dozens of robins was a monk parakeet (parrot). As we headed back out, we saw our first phoebe of the season, perched on a fence-line. - Dave Taft

3/29 - Indian Kill, HRM 85: The NYSDEC Hudson River Estuary Program and National Estuarine Research Reserve, along with high school students, are studying the migration of juvenile glass eels into several Dutchess County tributaries. Today, our first glass eel was caught on the Indian Kill, which flows into the Hudson at Norrie Point. The two-inch-long eel was almost completely transparent except for its eyes and a line of small dark specks along its length. The water temperature was 47 degrees F. - Chris Bowser

3/29 - Pleasant Valley, HRM 75: I was excited to see, despite continuing cold temperatures (23 degrees F this morning with a dusting of snow!) that the male goldfinches that have been coming to my feeder all winter are beginning to change from their drab olive plumage to bright yellow. A true sign of spring! - Kathy Kraft

3/29 - Beacon, HRM 61: While walking southward along the Riverside Trail, the brisk northwest wind was at my back. On my return I was glad for layered clothing that kept the chill away. During my walk I encountered robins foraging, crows flying, red-winged blackbirds singing, cardinals and mourning doves foraging, and a pair of mallards swimming in a trackside slough. Swimming past me close to shore in Hudson was a river otter. It dove underwater briefly and then headed for the tree-lined shore. I lost sight of it, but it may have a home in a culvert or bank-side hollow. - Ed Spaeth

3/30 - Cohoes, HRM 157: We stopped by the falls at Cohoes hoping to see an eagle or two. The falls were roaring away, plumes of mist rising upward and the chilly waters roiling with savage speed. No eagles were seen, but we did see some huge greater black-backed gulls with heavy bodies and enormous wingspans. We left the falls and were driving back through Cohoes when I looked up and saw an adult bald eagle soaring above the city! The eagle glided and soared on thermals for a good ten minutes until suddenly making a straight line for the Mohawk River. The bird flew over the old mill area and dove toward the water. I lost view because of the roof tops. The eagle had a surprising amount of speed, especially in the dive. A great show! - Pat Van Alstyne

3/30 - Saugerties, HRM 102: On our walk along the trail leading to the Saugerties lighthouse we saw river otter scat along the boardwalk to the dock. There were also tracks and tunnels. - Virginia Luppino

3/30 High Falls, Ulster County, HRM 85: It was a gorgeous spring day with mild temperatures in the high 40s. While walking along the old towpath of the abandoned Delaware and Hudson Canal in High Falls, we noted the emergence of skunk cabbage in the damp environs of the canal bed. For the same reason that the skunk cabbage is beginning to open, an early rising little brown bat was seeking flying insects, surprised as we were at its appearance in broad daylight. Later, as we crossed Rondout Creek in Rosendale, we saw another little brown bat flitting above the bridge and the creek. - Merrill Spaeth, Ed Spaeth

3/30 - Black Creek, Ulster County, HRM 82: The vernal pools were alive at the Black Creek preserve. There were a few peepers and a noisy bunch of "quackers" (wood frogs). The spotted salamanders had begun their yearly pilgrimage. You could see the spermatophores deposited by the early-arriving males. Red-spotted salamanders [newts] were also swimming around at Shaupeneak. - Peter Relson, Carol Anderson

3/30 - Columbia County, HRM 125: Many birders were discussing the "red invasion" this winter, referencing the large contingent of northern species around this year. We had 3 red-breasted nuthatches most of the winter in our feeder until they left about two weeks ago. Today another "red" appeared, a common redpoll. A number of people have been reporting redpolls, but this was the first one to visit us. - Bob Schmidt

3/30 - Staten Island, New York City: Though still cold, spring was definitely in the air as Ray Matarazzo and I set out to explore a newly acquired piece of property. Tracts this size are rare enough in the city, but this was a healthy woodland with lots of grassy edges to boot. One of the highlights included an emergence of fire flies! Dozens of these beetles clambered about slowly, jockeying for a position among the first shoots of trout lily and Canada mayflower at the base of an old oak. The southern exposure had heated the ground significantly, and beetles were everywhere. I stooped to photograph them and was covered in an instant. My camera, my arms, my jeans. Ray and I agreed it was a wonderful spring initiation - baptism by firefly! We also found three species of Lycopodium, Spiranthes orchid rosettes (probably Cernua), and some beautiful old beech trees that had miraculously escaped the ardent pen-knives of Staten Islanders. - Dave Taft

3/31 - Sandy Hook, NJ: This was the 33rd annual last-Monday-in-March bird species count to celebrate the return of Sandy Hook ospreys as well as eat a mess of squid, squid salad, squid in spaghetti sauce, and squid sautéed. It was cool, 42 degrees F, drizzly, breezy with a northwest wind at 15 mph, and mostly dismal. We recorded 44 species, near our record low of 42, and we added no new species to our 32 year cumulative of 149. Among the notable sightings were red-throated and common loons, northern gannets, great egrets, oystercatchers, tree swallows, fish crows, and piping plovers. Raptors were noticeably absent with only northern harrier showing up, and we failed to spot a pigeon (rock dove) for the first time since we started counting back in 1974. - Dery Bennett

<<<<< SPRING 2008 NATURAL HISTORY PROGRAMS >>>>>

Norrie Point Environmental Center, Mills-Norrie State Park, Staatsburg.
Information 845-889-4745, ext:105.
Fishin’ on the River! Seine netting and angling. All equipment provided. Free.
- April 26: 3:00-5:00 PM

Tivoli Bays Talks: 1st Thursdays, 7:30-8:30 PM, Tivoli Bays Visitor Center [Dutchess County]. Handicapped accessible. Free. Information: 845-889-4745, x105.
- May 1: Life on the Edge: Small Mammals in Hudson Tidal Wetlands, Cathy McGlynn

Spring 2008 Hudson River Shad Bakes
- May 3: 16th annual, Inwood Park, Manhattan, NYC 1:00 PM.
- May 4: 22nd annual, Englewood Boat Basin, Palisades Interstate Park, Alpine, NJ 1:00 PM.
- May 10: 21st annual, Riverfront Park, Nyack, NY, 1:00 PM.
- May 11: 2nd annual, Erasmus Corning Park, Albany, NY, 1:00 PM.
- May 18: 18th annual, Croton Point Park, Croton-on-Hudson, NY, 1:00 PM.
For information, call (212) 483-7667.

---

HUDSON RIVER ALMANAC
March 19 - 26, 2008
Compiled by Tom Lake, Hudson River Estuary Program Naturalist New York State Department of Environmental Conservation

<<<<< OVERVIEW >>>>>

In a week full of eagles, harbor seals, and "monster" waterfowl migrations, we must give the amphibians their due! The first warm rains of late March launched spring peepers into song and sent frogs and salamanders on their annual journey to mate in vernal pools, wetlands, and ponds.

<<<<< HIGHLIGHT OF THE WEEK >>>>>

3/19 - New Paltz, HRM 78: Driving home from a trip to Manhattan, the sight of a few salamanders crossing the road tipped me that tonight was the night. A soft drizzling rain had fallen all day and continued as I went to a local vernal pool around midnight. The pool was still covered with ice on three sides but a thin sliver of open water on one side drew my attention. That is traditionally the best spot to find salamanders and, sure enough, they were there, not in large numbers but 20-30 of them were visible. Perhaps many more were hidden below the ice. Continuing around the pond I found another shallow depression with a few inches of water and salamanders arriving enthusiastically every few minutes. Hopefully I will see larger numbers on the next rainy night as the temperature warms.
- Fran Dunwell

<<<<< NATURAL HISTORY NOTES >>>>>

3/19 - Columbia County, HRM 118: Given that the calender said spring was imminent, and it was raining, we went out on a road known for amphibians. We saw and removed about 40 wood frogs and spring peepers from the road in about an hour. Good to see them again!
- Bob Schmidt, Kathy Schmidt, Margot Boucher, Alec Schmidt

3/20 - Cheviot, HRM 106: I spotted a pair of redhead ducks nearly at my feet at Cheviot Landing. I looked for more among the mass of waterfowl but could not locate any. This was a monster waterfowl day with a mix of canvasbacks, ring-necked ducks, and common goldeneyes.
- Mimi Brauch

3/20 - North Germantown, HRM 109: A pair of adult bald eagles have become almost a fixture here. There may be a nest nearby.
- Mimi Brauch

3/20 - Red Hook, HRM 98: (From the Red Hook Journal, March 20, 1868) Navigation Opens! The ice in the Hudson broke up very suddenly on Monday night and on Tuesday nearly all the ice in the river was in pieces. Considerable damage was done along the shore by the breaking up of the ice and high water. When the ice moved out of the Rondout Creek, canal boats, etc., were carried down the stream, and several canal boats were sunk. Near Castleton, the water and ice covered the railroad tracks for some distance, to the depth of four feet, so that no trains were able to pass for three days. The river, is now nearly free from ice, and navigation will soon be fully open.
- Maynard Ham

3/20 - Newburgh, HRM 60: A pond at Stewart Airport in a wooded area on the north side of the airfield, now ice-free, had attracted a pair of Canada geese and at least one hooded merganser. The merganser was diving in the water. Last year around this time at this same pond I noted that a pair of hooded mergansers were active.
- Ed Spaeth

3/21 - Town of Wappinger, HRM 67: The full moon came a day late, but the vagaries of the moon and the equinox are broad enough to say they coincide. A cold and relentless northwest wind blew all night and at dawn it was still bending trees. The wind plus the air temperature combine? to make it feel like zero Fahrenheit. It had been another night for eagle endurance. The new nest, only half-size in comparison with the old nest, seemed to have plenty of drafty openings where patching was necessary. The ground around the tulip tree was littered with twigs and branches of all sizes, leading me to wonder if the wind was doing a little dismantling. It bears watching.
- Tom Lake

3/22 - Saugerties, HRM 102: I was checking vernal pools and a reliable pond for amphibians this afternoon (those I found were swarming with red-spotted newts and bullfrog tadpoles) when I encountered my first flying adult butterfly of the year. An eastern comma flushed from my path out to an open utility cut, flew a few yards and alighted for a decent view. The utility cut is bordered by mixed woodlands on both sides, and is located at the very northern edge of Ulster County.
- Steve M. Chorvas

3/22 - Black Creek, Ulster County, HRM 82: On a public interpretive hike at Scenic Hudson's Black Creek Preserve, I heard my first spring peepers and wood frogs calling this season. They were in two different vernal pools closer to the Hudson River than to Black Creek. A third pool in the park, Hemlock Pool, had a quite few small masses of salamander eggs clinging to branches in the water - definitely spotted salamanders and perhaps even some Jefferson's. There were several members of the "spotted crowd" hanging out nearby in the water. The male salamanders had deposited their spermatophores a few days earlier. The wonders of the vernal pools never cease to amaze!
- Susan Hereth

3/22 - Port Ewen, HRM 88: I was unhappily awake before dawn, so I took my dog to Freer Park where the glow of sunrise began to reflect in the Hudson and in the ripples of mud at the shore. An exuberant chorus of birdsong told me spring had already arrived for some creatures, despite the sub-freezing chill. It was hard to regret the lost sleep after that.
- Dan Shapley

3/22 - Gardiner, HRM 73: On a walk this morning, we spotted a Compton tortoise shell butterfly! Seems a little to early for these guys to be waking up from overwintering.
- Rebecca Houser, Brian Houser

3/22 - Wappinger Creek, HRM 67.5: After three days of steady and strong west-northwest winds, a blowout tide pretty much emptied the lower end of the tidal Wappinger. A small group of black ducks were walking around in the exposed mud flats foraging.
- Tom Lake

3/22 - Beacon, HRM 61: During an afternoon walk along the riverside trail to Denning's Point, I heard woodcock calling, but I could not see them from my vantage point near the bridge over the railroad tracks. They might very well have been right there in the leaf litter near a secluded pond or even under the railroad bridge, but they were not visible to me.
- Ed Spaeth

3/22 - Manhattan, HRM 5.5: We had our second harbor seal of the season hauled out on a kayak dock off West 72nd Street. It has been here for a week (see 1/28). The seal slips off into the river, swims around, dives, and hauls back out onto the dock. It is so wonderful to see this beautiful animal. We also have a nesting pair of red-tail hawks who have built their nest in a honey locust tree along the on-ramp to the West Side Highway. The female is sitting on eggs. As the male flies in, the female leaves and he sits on the eggs.
- Leslie Day

3/23 - Town of Poughkeepsie, HRM 74: Almost as an afterthought, I went to see if the northern shrikes were still at Vassar Farm (see 1/12 - 1/13). The one by the gate was not there; however the other by field station was still hanging around. It was still making the circuit in the riparian area, particularly fond of the big grouping of dead trees in the middle. It seemed to be flying almost leisurely. At one point, right after landing on a perch, a black bird flew nearby calling repeatedly. It was red-winged in size, but through binoculars I saw the yellow iris a?d no wing patches: rusty blackbird! This was a preview of something that will be taking place, many times over, a couple of months from now and hundreds of miles north.
- Bill Lenhart

3/23 - Westchester County, HRM 34: Today, finally, the spring peepers were in full chorus in Glendale Swamp.
- Mimi Rosenwald

3/23 - Croton on Hudson, HRM 35: What a beautiful way to wake up Easter morning! A pair of bluebirds were checking out the nesting box in my backyard. What a joy to watch these magnificent birds, their brightly colored feathers glistening in that first morning light, as they engaged in their yearly rituals. I keep my fingers crossed that they stick around this year...
- Leen Provost

3/23 - Sandy Hook, NJ: This morning, between the bird feeders and the back door, there was an almost perfect circle of bird feathers on the grass, marking the last seconds in the life of a mourning dove and a hearty breakfast for a raptor, probably the neighborhood sharp-shinned hawk.
- Dery Bennett

3/24 Newcomb, HRM 302: We are still sitting at 30" at the snowstick, and when I misstep off the beaten paths, I crash through into snow about mid-thigh deep. I'll be glad when it has melted. Lots of sunshine lately, but the days and nights have been cold. I've seen snow buntings, red-winged blackbirds, brown-headed cowbirds, grackles, and I swear I even saw a starling. They have learned that I have food. They also seem very appreciative of the water in the heated birdbath. A suggestion to those who are considering purchasing a heated birdbath: Don't get the small one! Shuck out the extra money and get the full-size birdbath. It doesn't need refilling as often, and can service many more birds at one time.
- Ellen Rathbone

3/24 - Ulster Park, HRM 87: Coltsfoot was just beginning to bloom near our house.
- Bill Drakert

3/24 - Sandy Hook, NJ: On the way into work today, I spotted five rowboats with anglers fishing for winter flounder in the Navesink River. On Sandy Hook, northern gannets seemed to be aimlessly flying close to the beach. A half-mile offshore there was a great swath of gannets sitting on the water with a few flying overhead but none diving. It looked as if they had all just finished a strenuous feed and were resting up for the next assault.
- Dery Bennett

3/24 - New Paltz, HRM 78: Traveling along the New York State Thruway on my way home from work, I saw what I first thought to be a large brown ball rolling across the highway. Then I realized it was not rolling, but was instead scurrying and dodging fast moving traffic. A muskrat, trying to reach the safety of the center median.
-Reba Wynn Laks

3/24 - Crugers, HRM 38.5: Looking out our front window, we noticed an extra large buck in our neighbor's yard. He was the size of a small pony. In the moonlight, we could see that he had very large antlers and was devouring every crocus in the yard. Then he moved on to the shrubs. Later, I could hear the clip-clop of hooves on the blacktop as a herd was scattering down the street.
- Dianne Picciano, Phil Picciano

[White-tailed deer shed their antlers in late winter and then re-grow new ones during the summer and fall. Tom Lake]

3/25 - Newcomb, HRM 302: The air temperature fell to -4 degrees F tonight, but the stars were amazing. I heard no coyotes this time, however. For the last two nights they were in full voice, sounding like hundreds right outside the windows.
- Ellen Rathbone

3/25 - Columbia County, HRM 125: I was driving up the Taconic Parkway when I noticed a red-winged blackbird walking across some skim ice on a small pond. He slipped twice on the slick ice, which I found humorous, but I also identified with him. I guess all of us bipedal organisms have similar problems.
- Bob Schmidt

3/26 - Town of Pleasant Valley, HRM 75: Two ice-free vernal pools, 2000 yards apart, on? at 350' above sea level and the other at 516': At the lower pool, the wood frogs had moved in and spring mating was in full force: several clusters of 4-12 together and in full chorus. Frogs are quite docile and you can approach them to within a few feet and net them very easily - do not expect that in another week. Fairy shrimp were in abundance. The upper pool is a closed conifer and blueberry environment and no activity had begun as yet.
- John R. Mort

3/26 - Town of Wappinger: Although it was early morning, it was a warm sun that peeked over the trees and lit up the new eagle nest. Mama was incubating and the sun reflected from her big white head. She appears all the larger this spring as she sits in a smaller nest. The river was calm and in the absence of a cold west wind, I read her expression as serene rather that the pensive look of a few days ago.
- Tom Lake

3/26 - Annsville Bay, HRM 43.5: From the window of our car aboard the morning Metro North commuter train to Manhattan, we saw an immature bald eagle flying low over the water, its white spots clearly visible.
- Mike Boyajian, Jeri Wagner

3/26 - Manhattan, HRM 5.5: Just when we figured the seal had left and was chasing herring up the river, it appeared again today, hauled out on the kayak dock off West 72nd Street. Kim Durham, of the Riverhead Foundation for Marine Research and Preservation, viewed a digital photo and told us this was a yearling harbor seal.
- Lelsie Day

[To report a marine mammal sighting, call the Riverhead Foundation for Marine Research and Preservation's 24-hour Hotline, (631) 369-9829.]

<<<<< SPRING 2008 NATURAL HISTORY PROGRAMS >>>>>

Norrie Point Environmental Center, Mills-Norrie State Park, Staatsburg. Information 845-889-4745, ext:105.
Fishin' on the River! Seine netting and angling. All equipment provided. Free.
- April 26: 3:00-5:00 PM

Tivoli Bays Visitor Center. Free. Handicapped accessible. Information: 845-889-4745, ext:105.
- Saturday, March 29, 1:00-2:00 PM: River Otters on the Hudson.

Tivoli Bays Talks: 1st Thursdays, 7:30-8:30 PM, Tivoli Bays Visitor Center [Dutchess County]. Handicapped accessible. Free. Information: 845-889-4745, x105.
- April 3: A Visit with John Burroughs, Jack Maguire

---

HUDSON RIVER ALMANAC
March 12 - 20, 2008
Compiled by Tom Lake, Hudson River Estuary Program Naturalist New York State Department of Environmental Conservation

<<<<< OVERVIEW >>>>>

As the vernal equinox arrived we began year fifteen of the Hudson River Almanac, a natural history journal that seeks to capture the spirit, magic, and science of the Hudson River watershed from the High Peaks of the Adirondacks to the sea. A formidable goal. We do not capture it all, but then no one journal could. To try would be to underestimate the breadth of the subject. If we can document those moments that define the seasons, we will have done a good and interesting job.

<<<<< HIGHLIGHT OF THE WEEK >>>>>

3/12 - Breakneck Ridge, HRM 56: I love Breakneck and the Hudson Highlands this time of year. At sunset, Storm King throws its shadow on Mount Taurus. From on top we were able to look down on both black and turkey vultures soaring.
- Scott Craven, Anthony Stern

<<<<< NATURAL HISTORY NOTES >>>>>

3/12 - Putnam Valley, HRM 55.5: Today I heard the other sounds a common crow makes. The usual call we all know is a harsh "caw," but there is also a variety of rattles, coos, and clear notes. The sounds I heard were so interesting and attractive that I found it impossible to imagine they came from the crow sitting on the roof, except that the bird showed specific body movement coordinated with each different sound. The Cornell sound track doesn't do justice to the charming non-caw sounds. They have cured me of thinking of crows as the avian equiv?lent of horn-honking urban drivers. Would that Canada geese (they returned en masse this week.) also had a redemptive melodious aspect.
- Nancy P. Durr

3/12 - Sandy Hook, NJ: The English have long practiced the art of beach-bird sitting. They pick a winter beach, don every bit of wool they can find, and watch the ocean for hours. It's the opposite of ripping around the countryside missing things. I beach-sat for half an hour at lunchtime today and lucked on to a parade of 80 northern gannets gliding north 50-100 yards offshore in their favorite weather condition: winds of more than 15 mph. They made the less numerous herring gulls look clumsy. Then, a flock of shorebirds, probably sanderlings, also heading northward. Lastly, about 30 brant, reminding me just how fast waterfowl can fly. They were also going north up the beach. They usually do not make their migratory push until late May. Two red-eared, empty handed surf fishermen walked off the beach - no striped bass yet.
- Dery Bennett

3/13 - Knox, Albany County: Canada geese were setting up nesting territories, though our 15-acre freshwater pond remained nearly 100% ice-covered.
- Dave Nelson

3/13 - Croton Point, HRM 34.5: As the waxing quarter moon strayed in and out of high cirrus clouds I was reminded that spring was right around the corner. I saw my first robin, a harbinger of spring for me. Upon the setting of the moon, Canada geese, on their trip northward, awkwardly settled into the nearby wetlands.
- Jasper Fox

3/13 - East Fishkill, HRM 64: Throughout the winter we have had one or two common redpolls at our feeder every few days, along with the goldfinches. Yesterday there were a dozen redpolls at once, leaving no room on the thistle feeder for the goldfinches. Then today there were 20, so many that a few had to resort to other seeds from the other feeder and even dropped seeds on the ground. They were swooping in and out of the yard on and off all day. Will there be even more tomorrow or were these on their way north to their breeding territory?
- Carolyn Plage

3/13 - Beacon, HRM 61: The winter is over on Long Dock. Today I caught a channel catfish, 3.75 lb, 22" long, a healthy, robust fish. It looks like one of the larger male catfish I catch here from time to time.
- Bill Greene

3/14 - Albany, HRM 145: I heard a song sparrow singing this afternoon, the first I've heard this spring.
- Dave Nelson

3/14 - Hyde Park, HRM 82: All day I had seen the signs, geese and ducks pairing off in the marshes, crows flying overhead with large twigs, cardinals calling from high in the trees, but this evening was the kicker. As I went out to close the garage door, there it was, the sweet sound of spring: peepers!
- Susan Maresca

3/14 - Putnam Valley, HRM 55.5: My first chipmunk of the spring emerged and found some nourishment at the base of the bird feeder.
- Nancy P. Durr

3/14 - Staten Island, New York City: This is increasingly the island of wonderful mysteries to me. I've always loved it, but as I grow to know it better, I find myself consulting old maps, making new naturalist acquaintances and friends. Today Ray Matarazzo of the Staten Island Institute of Arts and Sciences and I took a walk through an unlikely looking ballfield, and found a beautiful natural grassland after trudging through endless mugwort. In the grassland we found Spiranthes orchids just leafing out after a winter dormancy, a red-tailed hawk, 5 woodcock (who scared us each five times), a very early nymphalid butterfly, perhaps a question mark, solitary bees, and the topper, a dead common shrew who had died on the sandy path between sites.
- Dave Taft

3/15 - Minerva, HRM 284: I tapped a couple of fine maple trees today and got maybe a half gallon of sap. Said sap froze the next day and has been quite solid since. It wa? 14 degrees F at my house today and there is still 2-3 feet of really heavy snow on the ground.
- Mike Corey

3/15 - Ulster Park, HRM 85: We had a fox sparrow at the feeder today. We do not see them often but, if we do, it is usually in March.
- Bill Drakert, Fran Drakert

3/15 - Poughkeepsie, HRM 74: Early this morning I watched a large "dog" go from behind my house down to the stream on the Springside Landscape Restoration site. It was grayish, had a beautiful bushy tail with a black tip and black at the base. Plenty of white-tailed deer take that route. The squirrels were all 20' up in the trees scolding. The coyote trotted along with a most beautiful, easy, rhythmic grace.
- Anne P. Strain

3/15 - Putnam Valley, HRM 55.5: Two red-tailed hawks were doing a soaring, mostly effortless, skillful ballet across a 100 degree arc of the sky today. It was an avian version of pair-figure skating. They moved with vertical changes using the thermals, sometimes far apart, sometimes close, and in three dimensions but without a lift from a partner, just the shared thermals.
- Nancy P. Durr

3/15 - Queens, New York City: Inspired by yesterday's explorations, I looked for similar sandy shoreline soils at Fort Tilden, and was rewarded with more Spiranthes rosettes (Spiranthes cernua). This is a fairly abundant species, if you know where to look. Two fine sharp-shinned hawks, courting with each other, flew overhead as I started off the trail and remained visible for what seemed like long minutes as ocean sounds ands pring scents filled the air.
- Dave Taft

3/16 - Town of Fishkill, HRM 63.5: The spring peepers were peeping this morning at Stony Kill Farm for the first time this year. I could actually count that there were only three chirping away.
- Andra Sramek

3/17 - Ulster Park, HRM 85: The sun is bright and getting higher in the sky every day. The first crocuses have appeared to join our snowdrops.
- Bill Drakert, Fran Drakert

3/18 - Town of Wappinger: This afternoon the "new" NY62 eagle nest appeared to be empty. That is a no-no for incubating birds eggs. After a while, I found the male perched on the shoulder of the "old" nest, not far away. He sat there for a while, then took off, flew right over my head, chirping, made a wide arc, and headed toward the new nest. Odd doings.
- Tom Lake

3/18 - Rockwood Hall, Westchester County, HRM 31: I could hear spring peepers while walking in Rockefeller Preserve in early afternoon. On the way back, on the same trail, I spotted a coyote.
- Joan Coffey

3/18 - Staten Island, New York City: As I was leaving Fort Wadsworth, a large turkey vulture with its typical "V" dihedral, tipped and glided over the guard booth of the park. Later, making my way up Hicks Street in Brooklyn Heights, a large sharp-shinned hawk crossed Atlantic Avenue before the light allowed me to follow.
- Dave Taft

3/18 - Sandy Hook, NJ: Sometime within the past three days, the last of more than 10,000 greater scaup deserted their wintering coves on the backside of Sandy Hook and headed north toward the Arctic. This was the first time in 40 years of noticing that I have not seen a canvasback in any of the usual haunts. In general, counts of long-tail ducks, common goldeneyes, and red-breasted mergansers were low.
- Dery Bennett

3/19 - New Paltz, HRM 78: We made our way out in the pouring rain tonight to see if the spotted salamanders were making their first attempt at migrating to the vernal pools. We were only expecting to see a few, but to our surprise we helped two dozen cross the road. We hiked through the woods to see if there were any in the pools yet and found a few swimming around, as well as many newts. The best sighting of the night was a big fat Jefferson salamander that we helped cross the road. - Rebecca Houser, Brian Houser

3/19 - Town of Wappinger: In a cold, driving rain at midday I peered through binoculars at the female in the new eagle nest. We have tentatively designated this one NY62B, after the old nest, now NY62A. It would seem that it is the same mated pair. She was facing me, albeit at 500 feet, hunkered down, looking wet and miserable. It is during March each year that we get a full appreciation of how resilient these birds are. For a month, they sit all day, all night, in what is usually frightful weather, waiting for their eggs to hatch.
- Tom Lake

3/19 - Croton-on-Hudson, HRM 35: Snow drops, sweeping borders of them, were blooming, edging their way up from their winter leaf blanket. I brought a little clutch of them indoors yesterday. To my surprise, I find they have a lovely, sweet scent!
- Robin Fox

3/19 Sandy Hook, NJ: The first resident osprey of the season arrived this afternoon, called a few times, and later landed on a nearby building roof with a big, fat menhaden (i.e., bunker, pogy, fatback). The timing is just about right, though over the years their arrival date has moved up about seven days. The first osprey day is part of a springtime frenzy: St Patrick's Day, the equinox, the annual Squid and Spaghetti supper, the March 26 bird species count on the Hook, and the opening of winter flounder season.
- Dery Bennett

Osprey Return to Sandy Hook, NJ

1988 - 3/25		1998 - 3/25
1989 - 3/21		1999 - 3/24
1990 - 3/21		2000 - 3/16
1991 - 3/19		2001 - 3/19
1992 - 3/25		2002 - 3/25
1993 - 3/30		2003 - 3/24
1994 - 3/29		2004 - 3/22
1995 - 3/22		2005 - 3/24
1996 - 3/28		2006 - 3/23
1997 - 3/27		2007 - 3/23
		2008 - 3/19

3/20 - Town of Wappinger, HRM 67: Just so I could say I did, I got up at 00:48 this morning, walked out on my deck in light rain, and noted not a thing had changed. Just a half hour earlier a pair of coyotes had been chorusing - they really do yip-yip-yip - and I had hoped they would keep it up just so I could have something to consider. But they tossed in the towel a few minutes early. The vernal equinox had arrived, and with it began our 15th year of the Hudson River Almanac.
- Tom Lake

3/20 - Wappinger Creek, HRM 67.5: With all of the rain and runoff of the past week, it has been difficult to distinguish high tide from low tide. Today the creek was out into the flood plain and two Canada geese were swimming furiously in a foot of water normally a footpath along the bank. I had to wonder if their nest was under water.
- Tom Lake

3/20 - Town of Wappinger: The new, or transplanted, bald eagle nest (NY62B) is near the top of a tulip tree, or yellow poplar. It is a "soft" wood but sturdy in comparison to the white pine where their old nest still resides. On a windy day that white pine will list back and forth until you wonder how it does not snap. In the face of a strong northwest wind today, the tulip tree stood its ground. Mama still has that stoic look as she endures the rigors of incubation.
- Tom Lake

3/20 - Queens, New York City: For me, the vernal equinox has rarely coincided with the first real signs of spring. My car was covered with the shed bud scales of a neighboring calary pe?r as I drove off to work this morning. The rain of the last few days had clearly started the buds opening. As I parked and headed into my office, I was greeted with a busy flock of robins who were eating the proverbial “early worms” of spring. Dozens of still living earthworms littered the sidewalk, and it called to mind that the full moon of March, tomorrow, is sometimes called the "worm moon."
- Dave Taft

<<<<< WINTER 2008 NATURAL HISTORY PROGRAMS >>>>>

Tivoli Bays Visitor Center. Free. Handicapped accessible. Information: 845-889-4745, ext:105.
- Saturday, March 29, 1:00-2:00 PM: River Otters on the Hudson.

Tivoli Bays Talks: 1st Thursdays, 7:30-8:30 PM, Tivoli Bays Visitor Center [Dutchess County]. Handicapped accessible. Free. Information: 845-889-4745, x105.
- April 3: A Visit with John Burroughs, Jack Maguire

---

HUDSON RIVER ALMANAC
March 5 - 11, 2008
Compiled by Tom Lake, Hudson River Estuary Program Naturalist New York State Department of Environmental Conservation

<<<<< OVERVIEW >>>>>

As we check off the many signs of approaching spring, one by one, we can add a couple more this week: huge flocks of mixed blackbirds surging up the Wallkill River valley and three more seal sightings. The first of the spring-spawning river herring are in the Hudson and the seals, mostly harbor seals, will soon be acting like kids in a candy store.

<<<<< HIGHLIGHT OF THE WEEK >>>>>

3/10 - New Paltz, HRM 78: On my way to work this morning I watched a three mile stretch of blackbirds pass over. In the past I have seen large flocks of migrating blackbirds but nothing like I saw this morning. There must of been at least 10,000 of them flying north. It was unreal, like Alfred Hitchcock's movie "The Birds."
- Rebecca Houser

<<<<< NATURAL HISTORY NOTES >>>>>

3/5 - Town of Poughkeepsie, HRM 68: The air temperat