Montezuma Muck Race

[huddiecat]

Hi All,
Don and I are entering the Muck Race this year.  This is the event where you bird for 24 hours and try to find as many species as possible on the Refuge, which is huge!  Last year there was a juvie Peregrine sitting on top of a snag in one of the marshes, a nice find! 

If anyone is interested, they are welcome to join us!  We do not intend to bird for the complete 24 hours, though.  Come for a few hours!  It is the only time we are allowed to drive onto Howland Island, a birder's paradise!
Suzanne

[Donna]

Now that sounds like fun!!! Good luck.

Donna

[Lisa McK]

Please sign me up as a member of your team.  I would love to join you for this event.  Please send me an email (raptors@rochester.rr.com) with info on where to meet you and Don.  I should be a lot of fun.

Lisa McK.

[Carol P.]

Don and Suzanne - What day is this scheduled for?

[Shaky]

Congrats on your first post, Lisa!

[huddiecat]

Hi All,
The race starts Friday evening at 7 pm on September 11th and finishes Saturday evening at 7 pm on September 12th at the Montezuma Audubon Center with lots of Pizza!!  We are doing the non-competitive versionof the race, ie. we are not going to bird for 24 straight hours

All are welcome to join us as I have already paid for a team!  Just let me know and I will add you to the Peregrine Team
Suzanne

[Lisa McK]

Suzanne,

Do I meet up with you and Don to bird together or do I go by myself?  If we are birding together, just let me know where and when?

I can't wait.  I have always wanted to do this.

Thanks
Lisa McK.

[huddiecat]

Hey Lisa,
You can meet up with Don and me.  I emailed our cell phone numbers to you at your raptor address.  We were up there both yesterday and today to "scope" is out   We will be able to get in to all sorts of places, and pizza at the end of it.  I paid for a "team" and still have spaces available...hint, Joyce, Carol, Dawn...
Suzanne

[huddiecat]

Hey Lisa, I am going to forward some Muckrace info for you to your raptors email account.  Look forward to seeing you Saturday!

Also, anyone interested in joining us?  There is still time, and there may be a fallout due to the weather, who knows!
Suzanne

[huddiecat]

Hey All,
Well, Lisa, Don and I survived the Muckrace!  We even made a reasonable showing with 96 species!  Don and I left Ithaca about 4:30 Saturday morning and drove to Howland Island, which is near the Refuge.  I was so excited because this is the only time one can drive on the Island.  Little did I know that the mosquitoes also look forward to this event, and were just waiting for our arrival!  We managed to find and id several species of Warblers between swats at the insects.  We stayed on the Island for several hours and located about 50-60 species by noon. 

Lisa arrived about 1 pm and we all decided to go back to Howland Island, well, we figured the mosquitoes must have had their full by now!  Wrong!  We continued to be attacked by the insects, but managed to find some wonderful birds, including a Philadelphia Vireo, Bay-breasted Warbler, and Red-eyed Vireo!  We referred to ourselves as "meals on wheels for mosquitoes" by this point.  On to shorebirds and waterfowl at May's and the Refuge!

While at May's, Don was setting up the scope, Lisa and I watched a stilt sandpiper being chased by a brownish...you guessed it, female, juvenile Peregrine Falcon performing all sorts of tricky maneuvers to catch that shorebird!  We were given quite a show, unfortunately all the shorebirds we were hoping to id had left! 

We moved on and found a few more birds, but it was getting difficult, because we already had all those "easy" ones!  We took a break and went to the North Spring Pool where we saw a bird perched on top of a snag.  Don dragged out the scope, as he had done a gazillion times that day, and we checked it out...oops, flew off!  We knew what is was, though, another Peregrine Falcon, probably a juvenile male.  How cool...TWO Falcons!  Ah, you have to remember, we were team Peregrine!

For those who could not make, mark your calendars for next year, and join Team Peregrine!  We plan to break 100 next time, and maybe have a sponsor!

Suzanne



 

[Helen in MD]

Congrats to Team Peregrine!  Ya did good

[mrs3popeye]

 the mosquitoes also look forward to this event,
Suzanne



 


[/quote]

The mosquitoes seem to be extra bad everywhere this year!! 

[Aafke]

Suzanne, thanks for your report!
  I wish I could be there next year, it sound like a really great day. If I would be there, I would even like the mosquitoes!!!!!
  greetings Aafke

[valhalla]

Suzanne,
  I would even like the mosquitoes!!!!!
  greetings Aafke

You are a real trooper, Aafka 

[huddiecat]

I agree, you would have to be a "real trooper" to endure those nasty munchers

Suzanne