On Sunday we did a 1.5 hour drive from New York City up to Shawangunk Grasslands National Wildlife Refuge | U.S. Fish & Wildlife Service (fws.gov) in Wallkill, New York. It was very cold and not very productive bird-wise. The refuge was full of expectant birders. Here’s a list of some of the birds one might see there Shawangunk Grasslands | Audubon Important Bird Areas
Sherry Felix - port4u 
They had to take the feeders down for a while due to a bird or two showing up with an issue they didn’t want to spread. I usually see a few things there. Bluebirds are regulars. An hour or two before sunset gets active with the birds of prey.
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Thanks Sharon. Unfortunately, we could not stay late or arrive early enough. I have been there in the past when the feeders were up and saw way more birds, including the bluebirds. I have nice pictures of them from that day https://port4u.net/2021/03/10/shawangunk-bluebirds/. I heard that the feeders were taken down because finches were showing up with conjunctivitis of the eyes.
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Yes, an eye issue. They took them down to clean them throughly and give time in hopes the issue would resolve I believe.
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I usually don’t see bluebirds at the feeders but next to the paths in the fields. Nice shots!
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The Shawangunk Grasslands look beautiful, Sherry, nice photos. It can be disappointing when the birds don’t show up, but there’s usually something pleasant to look at and sometimes it’s just that way. Thanks for the link. I’m guessing you all had your hearts set on a short-eared owl, as they seem to be their favored winter bird, wouldn’t that be great. Maybe if you go back in Aug. or Sept. you will see bobolinks…that would be super.
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Yes there’s always another time and it was lovely just getting out of the city and it is pretty there.
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Lovely photos
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Thanks Aletta.
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You are going to have to come with me. We had Rough—legged Hawk, tree sparrows. Da
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I looked for the tree sparrows for half an hour along the entrance road and saw one chickadee. There might have been another hawk in addition to the Harriers, but it was too far off for me to call it. The place was packed with birders. They didn’t see anything else either that afternoon either. We took a walk along the trail to the south and only saw blue jays in the trees. Some days are like that. Love to go with you next time.
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Thanks for the beatiful pictures. What birds did you have? The harrier and kestrels fly T
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Robin, blue jay, chickadee, crow, starling, grackles, Canada geese, Northern harriers, and a kestral.
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Went for the first time a summer ago and loved it. Thanks for sharing your great shots.
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Thank you. Usually, we see way more birds there. I love the place. Sometimes I’ve seen cranes in the pastures at Blue Chip Farms nearby.
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Good landscapes – and one bird 🙂
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Northern Harriers are cool. I enjoyed watching them hover over the grass.
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