Date: 5/19/25 6:53 pm From: Larry & Penny Alden via groups.io <overlook...> Subject: [hmbirds] Century Run - Albany County
Jackie Bogardus, Steve Chorvas, and I did an Albany County-only Century Run
on Saturday and had some good luck and some bad luck. Fortunately, there was
more good luck than bad.
We hit hot spots across the county between 2:30 a.m. and 8:10 p.m. and
encountered a few pockets of migrant warblers as well as most of the
breeders. There were a few lingering waterfowl at Alcove and Basic Creek
Reservoirs, but we got pretty much skunked on shorebirds and gulls. We
managed only a Barred Owl in the middle of the day but got Virginia Rail and
multiple Least Bitterns. Late migrants such as cuckoos and flycatchers were
in and although we missed the Black-billed cuckoos which were singing in my
yard on Friday, we did pick up a Yellow-billed cuckoo or two.
Some memorable highlights included a bear running across the road in front
of the car at 3 a.m., a flock of Brant flying over an open area in Partridge
Run at 11 a.m. (maybe trying to beat the cold front which probably stopped
them in their tracks in the later afternoon), and a Peregrine Falcon
stooping on some pigeons at the cowbarns at Stanton Pond.
We ended up with 122 species, including 19 warblers. Our disappointing
misses included kingfisher, Blue-headed Vireo, White-throated Sparrow, and a
couple warblers, but really, in a day I feared we would only find breeders,
we did much better than I expected with migrants.
Look for a complete list along with the other Century Runners' results in an
upcoming Feathers.
On a personal note, after doing Century Runs in Saratoga County from the
1990s through the early aughts and Albany County every year since 2002 (with
the exception of 2023), this will likely be my last serious Century Run. I
find that advancing hearing loss (most likely genetic) has resulted in other
people (Jackie, Steve) hearing things I don't and me putting on headphones
with a small amplifier to try to "confirm" the species, if it calls/sings
again, or the wind or traffic noise isn't too overwhelming. It's not all
that fun for me and I can't imagine it's much fun for my colleagues. I'll
expect to be getting much-needed hearing aids soon, but unless they perform
miracles, I don't think I'll be out doing Big Days from now on. As an "eye
birder", I'll still be doing CBCs, and I will also still be compiling the
Century Run for the club, so you can't get rid of me that easily!
I hope that some younger birders who might be reading this will try their
hands at the Century Run to keep the participant numbers up. With eBird, the
concept of a Century Run may seem antiquated, but the idea of getting a
concerted effort in a limited geographic area on a given day is still a
useful snapshot of what's happening right here in our neighborhoods.
