LGLC Discovery Hike teaches the fundamentals of birding in the Adirondacks

An untrained ear may pick up an occasional bird call while hiking the trails through Godwin Preserve in Bolton Landing. Glens Falls zoologist Ari Cassella, a veteran birder, was able to identify more than two dozen birds before she even entered the woods. Cassella joined a group of hikers for the Lake George Land Conservancy’s Beginner Birding Discovery Hike led by Up Yonda Naturalist Rick Landry this past Saturday, July 12.

Cassella told the group of hikers gathered at the trailhead, “I have seen one bird and have a list of 30 already … what we’re likely to see here is a Hermit Thrush. This time of year, you can’t get away from Red-Eyed Vireos. There are a few Chickadees that are still hanging out in the lower elevations. Here, we will get some crossover with the marshes, so you’ll hear Common Yellowthroats.”

The Beginning Birding Hike is one of a series of Discovery Hikes offered by the Lake George Land Conservancy in partnership with Up Yonda Farm. The guided themed hikes are free to join and cover topics such as Adirondack geology and changing trees.

The Beginning Birding Hike introduced hikers to the tools they can use to identify birds by sight and sound. Hikers were encouraged to download the Merlin Bird ID app to their smartphones, and Laundry and Cassella explained how to use the application to identify the different birds by their songs and calls. Laundry also came equipped with traditional field guides for identifying birds by sight.

The 1.6-mile round-trip hike along the Godwin Preserve’s Red Trail, with a switch to the Yellow Trail to reach an overlook, was a moderate climb and, as Cassella predicted, filled with the sounds of Hermit Thrushes and Red-Eyed Vireos. The birding group also heard a Dark-Eyed Junco along the trail, which Cassella noted was unusual.  “They like cooler weather,” she said. “They are year-round residents; they’re not always vocal in the summer, but they are here.”

Sighting the birds proved to be more difficult as they easily blended into the thick stands of hemlocks and deciduous trees on either side of the shaded trails. The hikers had to search for a flutter of wings and then quickly raise their binoculars and scan the tree branches to catch sight of the birds that called overhead.

The Yellow Trail brought the group to a clearing that overlooks the marshes of Amy’s Park, a LGLC property that features two ponds and wetlands that support a population of beavers. From the overlook, the birding group scanned the area for signs of bird activity in the trees and the sky. Throughout the hike, Laundry, whose background is in geology and chemistry, pointed out features along the trail such as glacial erratics (rocks deposited by glaciers) and low areas that in the spring fill with snowmelt to form vernal pools.

The Beginning Birding Discovery Hike ended with a stroll across Padanarum Road to visit the wetlands in search of species, such as the Red-winged Blackbird, that populate Adirondack marshes.

The next scheduled Discovery Hike is titled “Trees of the Lake George Watershed,” which will be held on August 9, 8:30 – 10:30 a.m. at the Pinnacle Preserve, Edgecomb Pond Road, Bolton Landing. Visit the LGLC website for more information and registration.