A rare winter visitor anywhere in NY State. My Life Bird was at Fairhaven SP on Lake Ontario in January of 2001. This Bird is an immature, and has been seen on and off for most of the month of January 2003. Any sighting tends to be fleeting, however not always...
On my lunch break, I often drive along the east shore of Cayuga Lake and look for Birds. It is a very good idea to have a camera at-the-ready at all times! When I saw this Bird atop the telephone pole, I quickly pulled over and shot through an open window, using my car as a blind. Lake Rd. Aurora, NY. January-2003. CP-4500, OpticZoom 5X lens.
The HUGE bulk of the Bird; along with its long, square tail that extends well beyond the folded wing tips can be seen here. Lake Rd. Aurora, NY. January-2003. CP-4500, OpticZoom 5X lens.
Very soon after I discovered it perched, the Gyrfalcon flew off into a fallow field east of the lakeshore. It either killed its prey at that moment, or returned to a freshly killed Duck it had previously dispatched. Lake Rd. Aurora, NY. January-2003. CP-4500, Swarovski ST-80 HD set at 40X zoom.
For the next 40 minutes, the Gyrfalcon ate heartily while I changed lenses and attempted photos at a great distance through the scope. It would often raise it's head and look around. Lake Rd. Aurora, NY. January-2003. CP-4500, Swarovski ST-80 HD set at 40X zoom.
You can see blood and gore on the cere and forehead. Lake Rd. Aurora, NY. January-2003. CP-4500, Swarovski ST-80 HD set at 40X zoom.
This final shot shows the blue-gray cere and diffuse, limited extent of the moustache. Lake Rd. Aurora, NY. January-2003. CP-4500, Swarovski ST-80 HD set at 40X zoom.