Montezuma Heritage Park 7/13/25

Nine members and one guest attended the field trip along the dike at Montezuma Heritage Park in Montezuma, NY. : Lyn J, Steve & Linda B, Steve & Lori V, Allyn P, Kevin A, Holly N and Richard R. To avoid the sun (it would later reach 90 deg. this day) we chose the trails that offered cover and it was very much appreciated. Given the time of year, the birds that we observed were expected species that breed in our area, some seen carrying food for nestlings, on a nest or (oddly) an Osprey carrying a branch. Perhaps it was doing some home improvement. We observed one accipiter flying away that we could not be sure of and a Traill's Flycatcher that could be either Willow or Alder because, in the absence of a vocalization, it is nearly impossible to tell them apart. 

One sighting that did not hide behind foliage or fly away was a new Niagara Mohawk (now National Grid) transmission line tower, complete with Osprey nest platform, to replace the one formerly installed on the last stone pier of the aqueduct. I looked for photos of the process online but could not find anything.

Lyn Jacobs

Montezuma Heritage Park, Cayuga, New York, US

Jul 13, 2025 7:10 AM - 9:46 AM

Protocol: Traveling

1.376 mile(s)

35 species (+3 other taxa)

Wood Duck  6

Mourning Dove  2

Ruby-throated Hummingbird  2

Killdeer  1

Great Blue Heron  5

Turkey Vulture  2

Osprey  4

Accipitrine hawk sp. (former Accipiter sp.)  1

Downy Woodpecker  1

Pileated Woodpecker  1

Northern Flicker  4

Alder/Willow Flycatcher (Traill's Flycatcher)  1

Great Crested Flycatcher  1

Yellow-throated Vireo  1

Warbling Vireo  2

Blue Jay  2

American Crow  1

Black-capped Chickadee  3

Tufted Titmouse  1

Barn Swallow  1

swallow sp.  3

White-breasted Nuthatch  3

Blue-gray Gnatcatcher  2

Northern House Wren  3

Carolina Wren  1

European Starling  9

Gray Catbird  9

American Robin  18

Cedar Waxwing  6

House Sparrow  1

American Goldfinch  7

Song Sparrow  9

Swamp Sparrow  2

Red-winged Blackbird  10

Brown-headed Cowbird  2

Common Grackle  4

Yellow Warbler  2

Northern Cardinal  6