Braddock Bay, sometimes improperly referred to as Braddock's Bay, is a small bay of

Lake Ontario Lake Ontario is one of the five Great Lakes of North America. It is bounded on the north, west, and southwest by the Canadian province of Ontario, and on the south and east by the U.S. state of New York. The Canada–United States border sp ...

located in

Monroe County Monroe County may refer to seventeen counties in the United States, all named for James Monroe: * Monroe County, Alabama *Monroe County, Arkansas * Monroe County, Florida * Monroe County, Georgia *Monroe County, Illinois *Monroe County, Indian ...

northwest of Rochester,

New York New York most commonly refers to: * New York City, the most populous city in the United States, located in the state of New York * New York (state), a state in the northeastern United States New York may also refer to: Film and television * '' ...

in the United States. Braddock Bay is renowned for being an excellent bird-watching location, as raptors and other birds congregate there when migrating north in spring.

History

The bay's name is derived from a "barbarous mispronunciation" of its original name, Prideaux Bay, which referred to British General

John Prideaux John Prideaux (7 September 1578 – 29 July 1650) was an English academic and Bishop of Worcester. Early life The fourth son of John and Agnes Prideaux, he was born at Stowford House in the parish of Harford, near Ivybridge, Devon, England, ...

. The name was first given after Prideaux and his force of 3,200 soldiers encamped at the bay in 1759, on their way to the Battle of Fort Niagara during the

French and Indian War The French and Indian War (1754–1763) was a theater of the Seven Years' War, which pitted the North American colonies of the British Empire against those of the French, each side being supported by various Native American tribes. At the ...

, where Prideaux would be killed. Initial mispronunciation of the bay's name led to some confusion with British General

Edward Braddock Major-General Edward Braddock (January 1695 – 13 July 1755) was a British officer and commander-in-chief for the Thirteen Colonies during the start of the French and Indian War (1754–1763), the North American front of what is known in Europe ...

, resulting in the bay's current name. Braddock Bay Marina was home to United States Coast Guard Auxiliary Flotilla 45 from its creation in November 1974 until its dissolution at the end of 2011.

Land management

Much of the land in this complex of marshland and small bays is managed by the

New York State Department of Environmental Conservation The New York State Department of Environmental Conservation (informally referred to as NYSDEC, DEC, EnCon or NYSENCON) is a department of New York state government. The department guides and regulates the conservation, improvement, and protection ...

(NYSDEC) as the Braddock Bay Wildlife Management Area. The WMA was created in 1982 after the

New York State Office of Parks, Recreation and Historic Preservation The New York State Office of Parks, Recreation and Historic Preservation (NYS OPRHP) is a state agency within the New York State Executive Department Parks, Recreation and Historic Preservation Law § 3.03. "The office of parks, recreation a ...

(NYSOPRHP) transferred all but approximately of the former Braddock Bay State Park (established in 1956) to the NYSDEC. The remaining parcels were leased to the Town of Greece in 1981. As of 2014, the NYSOPRHP retains ownership of on the bay. Much of this property is maintained by the Town of Greece as Braddock Bay Park, which is located on the east side of the open bay and includes a hawk-watching station.

Birdwatching

The Braddock Bay Raptor Research center sponsors banding of both owls and

hawk Hawks are bird of prey, birds of prey of the family Accipitridae. They are widely distributed and are found on all continents except Antarctica. * The subfamily Accipitrinae includes goshawks, sparrowhawks, sharp-shinned hawks and others. Th ...

s, whose numbers peak in late March and early April. The Braddock Bay complex also includes: * Owl Woods (Pear Orchard) – banding station * The Spits (East & West) * The Bay * Cranberry, Long and Buck Ponds * Beatty Point: a portion of the Braddock's Bay that has extensive grassy fields, a haven for the numerous grassland bird species (nests can easily be crushed when wandering off-trail in spring). * Hogan Point and Hincher Road * Northrup Creek * Salmon Creek * Island Cottage Woods * Rose Marsh Birds to look for include: * Spring: eastern kingbird, indigo bunting, bobolink,

Savannah sparrow The Savannah sparrow (''Passerculus sandwichensis'') is a small New World sparrow. It was the only member of the genus '' Passerculus'' and is typically the only widely accepted member. Comparison of mtDNA NADH dehydrogenase subunit 2 and 3 sequ ...

and

northern harrier The northern harrier (''Circus hudsonius''), or ring-tailed hawk, is a bird of prey. It breeds throughout the northern parts of the northern hemisphere in Canada and the northernmost USA. The northern harrier migrates to more southerly areas ...

, small groups of ducks, robins, swans and

Nelson's sparrow Nelson's sparrow (''Ammospiza nelsoni'') is a small New World sparrow. This bird was named after Edward William Nelson, an American naturalist. Formerly, this bird and the saltmarsh sparrow were considered to be a single species, the sharp-tail ...

. * Summer: black terns,

Caspian Caspian can refer to: *The Caspian Sea *The Caspian Depression, surrounding the northern part of the Caspian Sea *The Caspians, the ancient people living near the Caspian Sea *Caspian languages, collection of languages and dialects of Caspian peopl ...

common Common may refer to: Places * Common, a townland in County Tyrone, Northern Ireland * Boston Common, a central public park in Boston, Massachusetts * Cambridge Common, common land area in Cambridge, Massachusetts * Clapham Common, originally com ...

and Forster's terns during migration periods, red-winged blackbirds, swans,

great blue heron The great blue heron (''Ardea herodias'') is a large wading bird in the heron family Ardeidae, common near the shores of open water and in wetlands over most of North America and Central America, as well as the Caribbean and the Galápagos ...

s, and

sedge wren The sedge wren (''Cistothorus stellaris'') is a small and secretive passerine bird in the family Troglodytidae. It is widely distributed in North America. It is often found in wet grasslands and meadows where it nests in the tall grasses and sed ...

occasionally * Fall: red-winged blackbirds, sparrows, swans, great blue herons, and

turkey vulture The turkey vulture (''Cathartes aura'') is the most widespread of the New World vultures. One of three species in the genus ''Cathartes'' of the family Cathartidae, the turkey vulture ranges from southern Canada to the southernmost tip of South ...

s * Winter: chickadees

References

External links

Braddock Bay Raptor ResearchTown of Greece: Braddock Bay Park
{{authority control Bays of New York (state) State parks of New York (state) Parks in Monroe County, New York Bodies of water of Monroe County, New York Bays of Lake Ontario