Seneca Lake SP & area 10/12/25

Eaton Birding Society held its 1^st October 2025 field trip at Geneva Lake Front Park and Seneca Lake State Park on 10/12/25. 11 members including Hope Galens, Carol Kylis, Carolyn Jacobs, Steve & Lori VanKirk, Steve & Linda Benedict, Rich Russell, Martha Mayo, Allyn Paul, and yours truly met at 8:00 AM at the Finger Lakes Welcome Center. We proceeded along the lake shore. We were careful to keep our ebird sighting records over land, and over water, separate. This is necessary because over land is Ontario County but over water is Seneca County. Ebird records by county. Geneva Lake Front Park birds:

 Over water birds  

20 Canada Geese

14 Mallard Ducks

6 Common Merganser

150 Ring-billed Gull

3 Double-crested Cormorant

Over land birds 

1 Canada Goose

x Ring-billed Gull (more than 100)

1 American Herring Gull

6 Great Black-backed Gull

1 Red-tailed Hawk

2 Blue Jay

78 American Crow

6 Fish Crow

1 European Starling

5 Song Sparrow

1 Red-winged Blackbird

We proceeded east to the Seneca Lake State Park access road (Seneca County line) then along the lake road, stopping from time to time, on to the marina. 

Lake shore area birds

6 Snow Goose

5 Canada Goose

1 American Wigeon

19 Mallard Ducks

30 Redhead Ducks

2 Common Mergansers

17 Killdeer

1 Greater Yellowlegs

x Ring-billed Gulls (more than 100)

2 American Herring Gull

226 Double-crested Cormorant

2 Bald Eagle

1 Belted Kingfisher

1 Red-bellied Woodpecker

1 Downey Woodpecker

2 Northern Flicker

x Horned Lark (heard, flyover, unable to distinguish among other small fly-over birds)

1 White-breasted Nuthatch

1 Carolina Wren

27 European Starlings

1 American Robin

1 Cedar Waxwing

1 Dark-eyed Junco

2 Red-winged Blackbird

1 Brown Cowbird

1 Northern Cardinal

Martha suggested a stop at the pond near the access road. I'm glad we stopped there.

Pond birds

1 Blue Jay

1 Black-capped Chickadee

2 White-throated Sparrow

2 Norhtern Cardinal

1 Magnolia Warbler (this bird made my day!)

As is our custom, the trip concluded with several members gathering for a late morning breakfast. This time at the Captain's Cafe in Geneva, where we broke out the bird books and resolved any question that our Warbler was indeed a Magnolia. We had a few laughs discussing the new Youtube video LISTERS. We also discussed the possibility of an impromptu combined bird/Indian Trail Marker Tree trip to Finger Lakes Land Trust's Wesley Hill Preserve sometime over the winter season.

PS; If you get to the Captain's Cafe I highly recommend the Eggs Benedict with roasted red peppers and spinach.  Mangia!