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Bird Species of Bayberry Beach

note: To list all the species that are found at Bayberry Beach would take an unreasonable amount of time and effort. These are just some of the more common bird species in our area and for the most part, have been observed at Bayberry Beach. If you are an avid bird watcher, I recommend Roger Troy Peterson's "Birds of Eastern and Central North America, fifth edition." If you are interested in what other bird species exist in our area, contact Seatuck National Wildlife Refuge (631-286-0485) or South Shore Nature Center. The website for Long Island's refuges is longislandrefuges.fws.gov These pictures were not taken at Bayberry Beach, but from Google images.

Pine Warbler

The Pine Warbler is found in Eastern North America and the West Indies. Summers in the northern part of range.

Rufous Sided Towhee

According to Peterson's "Birds of Eastern and Central North America," this bird's song sounds like "drink your tea" with the last syllable higher. It is also known as the Eastern Towhee.

Gray Catbird

This species is easily recognizable by it's grayish-blue color and the dark spot on top of it's head. A member of this species is a frequent visitor to my backyard.

Song Sparrow

A distinguishing characteristic of this bird species is the brown spot on it's chest. According to Peterson, it's call is a low nasal "tchep" and it's song is a "variable series of notes, some musical, some buzzy;" and the first 3-4 notes are usually the same, for example, "sweet sweet sweet."

Northern Bobwhite

I will admit, I have not seen this bird species at Bayberry Beach. However, they are quite common, interesting looking, and are found on Long Island. They are about 8 1/2 to 10 1/2 inches in size. A Wildlife Biologist at Seatuck National Wildlife Refuge told me that you are likely to find this bird in brushy pitch pine/scrub oak environments.

American Robin

This species is very common. I just saw one in my back yard a few minutes ago. They are known to feed on apples and berries.

Mallard

The brown one is the female, the multi-colored one is the male. For many bird species, male birds are more colorful.

Herring Gull

This is the most common type of gull in our area.

Black-backed Gull

There are two types of Black-backed Gulls, the Lesser Black-backed Gull and the Great Black-backed Gull. You can tell them apart by their leg color, the Great Black-backed Gulls have pink legs and the Lesser Black-backed Gulls have orange/yellow legs. The Great Black-backed gulls are also larger.