Date: 11/6/26 9:30 am From: Shelley Page <shelleypage.imagine...> Subject: [cayugabirds-l] Loon Watch on Sunday Nov 8!
Jared Dawson confirms that Sunday, Nov 8 will be the day for the Annual Loon Watch along the shore at Taughannock State Park! Please arrive a bit after 6:00 am to be in place for the 6:18-8:18 window of viewing.
Here is Jared's description of this Cayuga Bird Club tradition.
Take the main entrance to the park (southeast of the creek), then hug left towards the northernmost parking lot. This is an annual event to look for migrating loons (almost all Common) that head south for winter. Initially, there will be dawn flights of loons from northerly portions of Cayuga Lake, then by 7:30 a.m. we will start to see loons coming over from Lake Ontario and points north. We might also witness other migrating waterfowl like scoters and Long-tailed Ducks, as well as the occasional Red-throated Loon. Migration is a weather-dependent event, which depends on a decent north to northwest wind. On a good north-wind day we might see hundreds of loons migrating over Cayuga Lake, which can make for an exciting morning. North wind means cold and blustery, so dress properly for the weather. Bring warm gloves and hats and handwarmers. Also carry warm liquids to keep you warm. The precise times are part of a protocol that counts the loons in 15-minute periods beginning 15 minutes before sunrise at 6:18 on the 8th. Recent totals have been: 11/14/25 - 121; 11/3/24 - 18; 11/18/23 - 88; 11/19/22 - 165; 11/10/21 - 137; and 11/7/21 - 41; 11/12/20 - 166. I have not been able to find precise dates for the collection of a $10 parking fee, which off-season is normally charged on weekends during the fall. This has not been an issue in the past.
Shelley Page *she/they/ki*
313-550-1437 261 Coddington Road Apt. B Ithaca, New York 14850
https://uuma.zoom.us/j/2065380867 "All that you touch you Change. All that you Change changes you. The only lasting truth is Change. God is Change." Octavia Butler, The Parable of the Sower
