To “count it” or “not to count it,” that is the question. Regardless, what’s more iconic about birding on Monhegan Island than a Ring-necked Pheasant?
My observations of note over the last seven days included my first two Morning Flights of the season at Sandy Point and 3 days on Monhegan included the following:
A light flight over and through Sandy Point Beach, Cousin’s Island, Yarmouth on 9/8:
6:12 to 8:00am.
50F, mostly clear, calm.
57 Northern Parulas
31 American Redstarts
17 unidentified
8 Cedar Waxwings
6 Magnolia Warblers
5 Black-throated Green Warblers
4 Red-breasted Nuthatches
3 Yellow Warblers
3 American Goldfinches
2 Swainson’s Thrushes
2 Bobolinks
1 Black-and-white Warbler
1 Purple Finch
1 Cooper’s Hawk
1 Bay-breasted Warbler
1 Yellow-rumped Warbler
1 Northern Flicker
1 Black-throated Blue Warbler
1 Osprey
1 Rose-breasted Grosbeak
Total = 147
1 DICKCISSEL, Wharton Point, Brunswick, 9/9.
2-3 Red Knots, Wharton Point, Brunswick, 9/10.
A very good flight over and through Sandy Point Beach, Cousin’s Island, Yarmouth on 9/11 featured over 1,000 migrants and 16 species of warblers.
6:13-10:20
46F, mostly clear. NW 1.8-2.8 increasing to 6.1-8.8mph.
312 Northern Parulas
272 American Redstarts
144 unidentified
81 Cedar Waxwings
34 Red-eyed Vireos
25 Red-breasted Nuthatches
25 Black-throated Green Warblers
24 Magnolia Warblers
23 Yellow Warblers
16 Blue Jays
11 American Goldfinches
10 Black-throated Blue Warblers
9 Canada Geese
8 Swainson’s Thrushes
7 Northern Flickers
7 American Kestrels
7 Black-and-white Warblers
5 Yellow-rumped Warblers
4 Eastern Wood-Pewees
4 Purple Finches
4 Ospreys
3 Bay-breasted Warblers
3 Wilson’s Warblers
3 Blackpoll Warblers
3 Mourning Doves
2 Blackburnian Warblers
2 Common Loons
2 Bay-breasted/Blackpoll Warblers
2 Blue-headed Vireos
2 Philadelphia Vireos
1 Palm Warbler
1 Pileated Woodpecker
1 Savannah Sparrow
1 Tennessee Warbler
1 “Traill’s” Flycatcher
1 House Finch
1 Hairy Woodpecker (6 “false starts”)
1 Sharp-shinned Hawk
1 Pine Warbler
1 Ruby-throated Hummingbird
1 unidentified Empid
1 unidentified flycatcher
1 Turkey Vulture
1 unidentified vireo
1 Merlin
1 Cape May Warbler
1 White-throated Sparrow
Total = 1,069
Monarch 1
Green Darner 2
Monhegan Island 9/12-14 (with Down East Adventures tour group):
Very slow by Monhegan standards, only Merlins and especially Red-breasted Nuthatches and Ruby-throated Hummingbirds were above average (significantly so for the hummingbird) for the date. Island notable species for us were limited to 2 DICKCISSELS all three days; 1 ORCHARD ORIOLE, 2 adult Lesser Black-backed Gulls, and 1 Marsh Wren on 9/13; and 1 Mourning Warbler on 9/14. Great insect-watching though.
Upcoming Tours:
Birds on Tap℠ – The Boat Trip! Migrant Birds and Island Exploration
September 21, 2025; 9:00am to 2:00pm
These unique, relaxed birding and beer-ing adventures that you have come to love combine great local birding at seasonal hotspots with visits to sample the delicious creations of some of our favorite local breweries. These tours are a perfect introduction to birding and/or craft beer, and a great opportunity to travel with significant others, friends, and family that have interest in one topic, while your interest is primarily in the other (for now!). But this time we’re leaving the van in the garage and hitting the water! That’s right, we’re taking a cruise, and we’re returning to the private House Island in Porland Harbor twice in 2025.
Building on that success of last year’s tours, we’re visiting the private House Island in Portland Harbor twice in 2025! Once again, we’ve been granted special permission to come ashore and scour the island here in the peak of fall migration. We’ll follow well-maintained trails through the island’s mosaic of open habitats, scrub, and young woods. These are great habitats to search for a variety of migrants, and perhaps even a rarity!
Freeport Wild Bird Supply is very excited to partner with Down East Magazine’s Down East Adventures for the fifth year of offering exclusive birding workshops focused on gaining greater knowledge and field skills in a focused group of seasonally accessible birds. Focused on skill-builder rather than list-building, there will be plenty of “life birds,” but also more knowledge and education about birds, habitats, birding, and much more about the natural world. We are honored to be their provider for a series of unique and exclusive birdwatching endeavors. In 2025, we will have four outings once again.
February 9, 2025; 9:00am – 4:00pm Cancelled due to multiple snowstorms!
Winter is a wonderful time for birding in Maine – at least when you are dressed appropriately! Colorful seaducks that breed in the high Arctic grace our shorelines – including all three scoter species and dapper Long-tailed Ducks, along with everyone’s favorite: striking Harlequin Ducks. Purple Sandpipers and Great Cormorants replace our summertime shoreline denizens. And if the winds are right, very sought-after alcids – including Dovekies and Thick-billed Murres – join our regular Black Guillemots and Razorbills. Black-legged Kittiwakes, Northern Gannets, and “white-winged” gulls add to the mix. In this workshop, we’ll hit a few of the prime viewing locations along Maine’s southern coast. But we won’t just be working on the checklist today. Instead, we’ll be focused on learning how to search for these birds – the how, when, and why – and how to identify them. We’ll learn about microhabitats, weather considerations, and seasonal timing to aid our search today and in the future. By visiting several seasonally-productive sites, we’ll compare similar species while taking time to savor the splashes of color offered by winter seaducks in an otherwise gray and white landscape.
To get an idea of what you may see when the tour returns in the winter of 2026, see the 2024 and 2023 trip reports.
This Northern Parula was one of many ultra-cooperative warblers today. This was one of 10 parulas in a single cluster of willows on the shoreline of Capsic Pond Park during our 20205 workshop.
Spirits seemed low when we met in such dense fog, but I was even more excited to explore the environs of Portland migrant traps, beginning with Evergreen Cemetery. After a slow start, with few warblers overhead in the Morning Flight, we encountered several very productive pockets of activity, including a great diversity of warblers. Many were down low, too, with just fantastic looks at species such as Yellow, Black-throated Blue Warbler, Nashville, and Black-and-white Warblers, along with great looks at Veeries and Least Flycatchers. A “herd” of about 75-100 White-throated Sparrows marched through the forest understory, and we stalked a Black-crowned Night-Heron and spotted a Merlin among many other species today.
Evergreen was good, but nearby Capisic Pond Park was just great! While there were fewer warblers in both quantity and diversity, the cool, drippy morning conditions kept everyone even lower here. We began with 10 Northern Parulas at eye level all around us in a blooming willow (photo above), had great looks at a Prairie Warbler, listened to Northern Waterthrushes, and marveled at Baltimore Orioles.
We then discussed the overnight migration and how the radar images suggested what we would see and not see today, and how the “poor” weather produced such great birding. In the end, we tallied a very respectable-for-the-date 15 species of warblers! Although the list was not the priority as usual in these workshops, it’s hard not to get excited about the diversity of warblers now arriving. While Northern Parula was our most abundant warbler today, the total warbler list – in very rough order of abundance- also included Black-and-white,Yellow-rumped, Black-throated Blue, Ovenbird, Magnolia, Chesnut-sided, Yellow, Nashville, Common Yellowthroat, Black-throated Green, American Redstart, Northern Waterthrush, Pine, and the aforementioned Prairie. More importantly, perhaps, we worked on building our skills of recognizing each species and family so that our birding will be better and more successful on our own next time.
3. Shorebird Workshop
August 18, 2025; 8:00am – 4:00pm
This juvenile Piping Plover was one of 12 species of shorebirds we had the chance to really study on our Shorebird Workshop tour.
Could we have had more of a perfect day? Temperatures topping out in the mid-70’s, a light breeze in the afternoon, and clear skies – considering the rain of early summer and the recent extreme heat, we could not have asked for better. And then we saw thousands of shorebirds!
With more than 35 species of shorebirds regularly appearing in Maine, this workshop was designed to appreciate the diversity and beauty of this fascinating family. We hit some of the marshes, beaches, and rocky roosts that shorebirds prefer at the peak of their migration. We focused on comparative experience, learning how to recognize each species both near and far. Starting with the basics, such as plover vs. sandpiper, we’ll work our way up to the identification quandaries such as the “peeps” and lone yellowlegs. We worked through species by species as we developed a “toolkit” to approach shorebird identification on your own, using a combination of habitat, shape, size, structure, behavior, and plumage to identify this wonderfully diverse and attractive group of birds.
By day’s end we tallied a decent 12 (and a half!) species of shorebirds, a little short of our unofficial goal of 15. We did see a couple of rarities but were also dogged by Peregrine Falcons and Para-gliders causing birds to disperse and/or take cover. But we had plenty of chances to study a nice array of species, often side-by side.
Beginning at Biddeford Pool Beach, we started with the basics and enjoyed watching Ruddy Turnstones bulldoze their way into the wrack line and picking out White-rumped Sandpipers from a mass of Semipalmated Sandpipers. A Baird’s Sandpiper at Great Pond was one of our most notable birds of the day, and not where we expected it.
At Hill’s Beach, there was a lot of disturbance today, but we had some good opportunities to study Piping vs Semipalmated Plovers, Sanderlings, spiffy Short-billed Dowitchers, and more. We then shifted to the Pool, where we studied silhouettes and practiced distant shorebird using mostly general impression of size and shape. It was here that we had our largest numbers of the day, with an estimate of 1600 Semipalmated Sandpipers, 300 Semipalmated Plovers, and 163 Black-bellied Plovers leading the way.
Near or far, good light or bad, the general impression of size and shape, behavior, and more can be applied to identify shorebirds more readily than little nuances in some color or pattern.
After our lunch break, we returned north to Scarborough Marsh, where I would usually start the workshop, but with very low water in the upper salt pannes due to the drought, we shifted the itinerary. But the incoming tide at Pine Point did not disappoint! We had some close studies of more Short-billed Dowitchers and better views of Black-bellied Plovers, and about 1200 Semipalmated Sandpipers were present. However, as they moved close and concentrated, a Peregrine Falcon came tearing in, flushing most of the birds. Then, it made a sudden burst of speed and a hard turn and before we knew it, there was one less Semipalmated Plover on the mudflat. While it was poor timing for our shorebirds workshop (let alone for that one particular plover!), it was an awesome show (well, for us anyway) and one that will not soon be forgotten.
Some birds finally returned to the mudflat, when a large (for the date) flock of Willets flew in, making their usual grand entrance. We were able to put our advanced shorebirds ID skills to work with the bigger, lankier, grayer one that we soon identified as a rare in Maine “Western” subspecies of Willet. It might have been beyond today’s goals, but it was a great lesson in using comparative tools.
A couple of upper marsh stops finally gave us a good, close comparison between Least and Semipalmated Sandpipers, and a Lesser Yellowlegs that was close enough to study and enjoy, bringing a productive and successful day to a close.
4. Monhegan Birding Workshop
September 12-14, 2025
Our final Downeast Adventures birding workshop tour of 2025 spent 3 delightful days on Monhegan Island. Weather, geography, habitat, and migration ecology all combine to produce some remarkable birding opportunities at this special place. And even when it’s “slow” by lofty Monhegan standards, lots of learning experiences and workshopping opportunities would be at hand, often right out the front door of our hotel. Oh yeah, the food is sooo good, too!
As per the plan, we hit the ground running shortly after our arrival on the island. It took us an hour and 45 minutes to walk the ½ mile or so to our hotel as we encountered quite a few migrants, especially at my favorite starting spot along Wharf Road. We jumped head-first into aging and sexing fall warblers thanks to 3 different plumages exemplified by a trio of Cape May Warblers. American Redstarts, Northern Parulas, Yellow Warbler, and more introduced us to what birding Monhegan in the fall is all about.
By the time we reconvened after a lunch break, the insanely gorgeous weather with bright sun and very little breeze encouraged birds to take to the shadows. A sky constantly abuzz with Merlins didn’t help either, although we enjoyed it. While passerine activity had slowed dramatically, we enjoyed a light hawk migration with a couple of Northern Harriers and a few American Kestrels, while the Merlins and 1-2 Sharp-shinned Hawks further diminished the activity in the trees and shrubs. We took the time to visit the east side of the island, sample the different habitat types of the island, and discuss food plants for birds and native insects. The butterfly, dragonfly, and insect-watching was excellent on this unseasonably warm afternoon, and we worked on learning the connection between birding and bird habitat.
On Saturday morning, we learned why there were so many birds around Friday morning, but few in the air at sunrise. But there were definitely “new” birds around, suggesting at least a light arrival of birds overnight had occurred, including two vociferous Dickcissels. I made the decision to try and track down a Blue Grosbeak that had just been reported, but unfortunately, it did not wait for us. We did have an immature male Orchard Oriole, however, which was a treat, and we spent more time studying Cape May Warbler plumages.
On such gorgeous days, a lot of newly-arrived migrants simply depart the island as part of their morning redetermined migration flights (yes, we discussed this more thoroughly among many topics of avian and general ecology discussed throughout the weekend). In fact, the second half of our morning was very slow, but we did enjoy a couple of adult Lesser Black-backed Gulls and we kicked up a very uncommon Marsh Wren. But warblers were few, and Merlins remained a’plenty. Red-breasted Nuthatches were very abundant however – demonstrating what an irruption looks like, and Ruby-throated Hummingbirds were unusually widespread for the date.
We filled the time between birds looking at all other walks of life. American Dagger Moths caterpillars were particularly plentiful.
The afternoon was spent with a couple of impromptu workshops, such as an introduction to gull identification as I attempted to enlighten the group about how manageable it is to understand the basics of this group of fascinating species. The avian highlight, however, was the thrilling chase of a Solitary Sandpiper by two Merlins right over our heads! The Merlins would gain some height, dive, and close the distance, only for the sandpiper to take another evasive maneuver. The sandpiper tried to gain elevation to stay above the diving Merlins, but they were getting closer! Then, the sandpiper made one quick turn, ascended, and took off to the north, leaving the hungry Merlins to mosey back down to the treeline to see if the marsh had something much slower to offer. We bid the sandpiper farewell and good luck as we thanked the Merlins for a most entertaining performance!
It was another very light migration overnight Saturday into Sunday, but unlike the previous day, we hit a wonderful early-morning wave. One sunny edge captivated us until it was time to hustle back for breakfast: Several American Redstarts, Red-breasted Nuthatches, Black-capped Chickadees, Common Yellowthroats, and Norther Parulas had joined together, punctuated by repeated views of a most cooperative Least Flycatcher. Every time we tried to move long, a new species appeared. A fly-over Greater Yellowlegs. A flycatching Eastern Wood-Pewee. And finally, a Brown Thrasher that popped out right in front of us.
I was thrilled to have this sample of “what Monhegan can be like” at this season for those who fought the urge to stay in bed. Post-breakfast was once again much slower, but we hit a few pockets of birds, as well a finding a Mourning Warbler which is always fun – and challenging – in fall migration. We watched and listened to territorial Carolina Wrens in a double-duet song battle, encountered a flock of 4-6 Red-eyed Vireos working on Fall Webworms, and spent more quality time with the island’s once-again-ubiquitous Ring-necked Pheasants. And of course, we made time to sample the stunning Acadian Forest habitat of the island’s interior and to take in the view from the lighthouse.
Another delicious lunch and then a slow meander to the ferry brought our visit to a close. On the ferry ride back, a few more Northern Gannets were seen, and plans to return to this extraordinary island were already in the works!
(2026 Birding Tours with Down East Adventures will be posted soon!)
They might be abundant, but I do love Cedar Waxwings, especially a tree full of them on Monhegan!
Eight great days of birding, including three days on Monhegan, yielded the following highlights:
9/13-9/15: Monhegan Island with Down East Adventures “Migration Workshop” tour group. Brief trip report here. Some of the most noteworthy observations included:
17 species warblers total.
Cape May Warblers dominated the morning on 9/14, including 3 of every 5 birds in Morning Flight and dozens in trees afterwards. Plenty on 9/13 and 9/15, but most of the arriving birds on the 14th seemed to depart for the mainland.
The usual “uncommon” migrants like Rusty Blackbird (2 on 9/14), Philadelphia Vireo (high count of 2-3 on 9/14).
1 first cycle Lesser Black-backed Gull, 9/13.
1 LARK SPARROW, 9/14.
1 fly-by Whimbrel, one probable Clay-colored Sparrow (seen too briefly), and 1 immature COOPER’S HAWK (very rare on offshore islands), 9/15.
1-2 American Pipits (first of fall locally) and 1 hen Northern Pintail, etc, Wharton Point, Brunswick, 9/18.
Meanwhile, I’ve once again spent most of my mornings when home birding our Durham property, which was productive. An impressive 60-80 American Goldfinches continue, while an impressive array of migrants continue. On several mornings this week, I had plans to go elsewhere but then never left the yard. A few of the highlights included continuing single Indigo Bunting and Rose-breasted Grosbeaks, 1 Ovenbird, 1 Blackburnian Warbler on 9/16, 6 Common Nighthawks (getting late) at dusk on 9/16, and a nice mix of migrants on the 18th that included 1-2 Philadelphia Vireos and the arrival of more sparrows.
The highlight though was the female-type LAWRENCE’S WARBLER (2nd generation Golden-winged x Blue-winged Warbler hybrid) that popped up on the 18th. After a short but perfect view, I ran for a camera and could not relocate it despite much searching.
A highlight of a slow weekend on Monhegan were the conspicuous Cape May Warblers, including these two that were regulars in a single tree that often featured every plumage aspect of this delightful warbler.
Following three days on Monhegan, I mostly birded the yard before heading back to the island for another tour.
Monhegan Island, 9/23-25 (with Down East Adventures Monhegan Migration Workshop group):
About as slow as I have ever experienced the island, even considering a nice little influx of birds on our last morning. Cape May Warblers were the most common warbler for the first two days, however, but overall numbers and diversity were extremely low. Highlights were few, but a brief trip report is posted here:
There were more birds in our yard than on Monhegan this week! A particularly active morning on 9/27 included tardy Ovenbird, Scarlet Tanager, 8 species of warblers including Tennessee and Cape May, a nice influx of sparrows including 4+ Lincoln’s, and my first 4 southern Maine Pine Siskins of the season.
A NOTE ABOUT YOUR “SLOW” BIRD FEEDERS:
Many folks have been reporting extremely slow feeders throughout much of the state recently. This happens on a regular basis, so the end is not near! In fact, a very similiar dearth of birds happened in the falls of 2017 and 2019. I’m currently working on a blog that is more specific to this year, but this blog written in 2017 nicely tells a good part of the story.
This presumed first-fall female Cape May Warbler was a good study in comparison with the other, brighter plumages of this species on display in that single tree on Monhegan.
Freeport Wild Bird Supply is very excited to partner with Down East Magazine’s Down East Adventures for our third year. In 2023, we are expanding our offerings to include two exclusive overnight trips, along with our popular ½- and whole-day targeted workshops. Focused on skill-builder rather than list-building, there will be plenty of “life birds,” but also more knowledge and education about birds, habitats, birding, and much more about the natural world.
The full list of upcoming tours can be found here. At the conclusion of each tour, I’ll post the trip report here.
Winter Waterbirds Workshop, January 15.
This Purple Sandpiper was about as cooperative as it gets for us at Sohier Park in York. Later, it was joined by its friends (photo below). This is really a lovely shorebird when viewed as well and as close as we experienced.
Extremely strong winds and very high seas presented a challenge as we sought out wintering waterbirds along the southern York County Coast. We worked hard to find sheltered water where we could observe birds well, but when we did find that secluded cove, peninsula lee, or rivermouth, we were treated to incredible looks at many of the birds we had hoped for.
We looked down on Red-breasted Mergansers at Perkin’s Cove, and you’ll never be closer to a Common Loon than we were at the Ogunquit Rivermouth. We checked a few more locations than I usually need to on this tour, but our most productive spot was the southern shoreline of Sohier Park at The Nubble. There, we were treated to close views of Black and White-winged Scoters, Harlequin Ducks, and a most-cooperative flock of Purple Sandpipers. We then ended the day at hidden Abbott’s Pond, where we enjoyed a break for the wind, close comparisons to study details between Mallards, American Black Ducks, and hybrids thereof.
Meanwhile, a group of 8 or so Black-legged Kittiwakes were feeding off of Short Sands Beach, and a stunning adult Iceland Gull passed by at The Nubble. Unfortunately, the seas were just a little too rough to find any alcids today, but we knew they were out there!
Spring Migrant Songbirds Workshop, May 14.
This stunning Blackburnian Warbler nicely demonstrated the value of blooming oak trees for seeing warblers in the middle of May.
Four hours later we had not left Evergreen Cemetery in Portland…a very good sign. There was just no need to move along, the birds kept coming to us. In the end we tallied a respectable 16 species of warblers, even though growing a list was not our goal. What made this workshop successful, however, was how well we saw just about all of the warblers and other songbird migrants throughout the morning.
Warblers were a highlight of course, including repeated quality time with favorites such as American Redstart and Black-and-white Warblers, the two most plentiful migrants this morning. We also enjoyed great looks at several Chestnut-sided Warblers, Magnolia Warblers, and Northern Parulas, with fantastic studies of Black-throated Blue Warbler, Black-throated Green Warbler, Yellow Warbler, and Wilson’s Warbler. We also saw two newly-arrived Tennessee Warblers which aren’t always easy to get looks at. There was a good amount of song this morning, so we had chances to listen and learn many of these species as well.
Shortly after hearing a Red-eyed Vireo and my describing it as “high up and often hard to see,” we found one in the lower branches of a nearby oak, and watched it sing, forage, and do all things vireo for almost 10 minutes! Likewise, after hearing distant Ovenbirds, we had two walking around right in front of us! Beginning with a view of a Veery on the ground in the open, we saw it again as the walk ended, only a few feet in front of us for another great view and chance to observe and study.
During the morning, we chatted about migration, habitat, and the process of building the necessary toolkit to build birding skills. Finishing the walk with a quick overview of some references (we had too many birds to leave much time for anything more), we recapped a very productive and instructive morning of spring birding.
Rangeley Birding Workshop, June 6-8.
Our first overnight tour together, the Rangeley Birding Workshop was based at Bald Mountain Camps in Oquossoc, nestled on the shore of Mooselookmeguntic Lake. Common Loons greeted us, but so did the rain. June of 2023 was one of the rainiest Junes on record in Maine, and we were very thankful for the wood stoves in each cabin!
Our first morning, 6/7, began at Hunter Cove Wildlife Sanctuary, with lots of singing Blackburnian Warblers. A large flock of Red Crossbills flew over, two Yellow-bellied Flycatchers were heard clearly and then glimpsed, and a variety of common warblers were detected. A confiding pair of Canada Jays was the highlight – as they often are – but even the common warblers were tough to see today, so we focused on practicing our birding by ear skills.
Enjoying our delicious boxed lunches at the Rangeley Waterfront Park, with more Common Loons offshore, we delved into an impromptu gull workshop, using each age class of Ring-billed Gull as an introduction to molt, feather topography, and identification. A 3rd-cycle Herring Gull kindly dropped in for comparison as well. In inclement weather, we take advantage of whatever learning opportunities the birds are willing to provide!
After lunch, we poked around the Mingo Spring Birding Loop, with good looks at the likes of Least Flycatcher, Alder Flycatcher, and Dark-eyed Juncos among others. But as rain returned, we called it a day and settled in to dry out in front of our stoves instead of an afternoon of lake-watching from the BMC property. And dinner was absolutely delicious!
Day 2 began with a brief walk around the BMC property (American Redstart, Ruby-throated Hummingbird, etc) followed by a foray over to the famous birding destination of Boy Scout Road, looking to build on the identification toolkit we worked on the previous day. We parked half the cars at one end and then walked the length of the road, birding along the way. But it was rather quiet here too – the ongoing story of June 2023. We did have some more Red Crossbills, a fantastic view -finally – of a Blackburnian Warbler, several Alder Flycatchers, and once again more Canada Jays. But this time, it was a family group of a pair with 2 juveniles in tow!
And then it began to rain. Again. A lot. But I give this group credit – they soldiered on! Of course the rain began in earnest when we were as far from either set of cars as possible, so there wasn’t really a choice, but still, spirits remained high and the birding continued. A pair of Hooded Mergansers, a singing Palm Warbler, and a Spotted Sandpiper were among the last birds of the outing, before the water had penetrated our clothing and it was time to call it a day and hope for better conditions next year!
Shorebirds Workshop, August 10.
The best way to learn shorebirds is to see them in their preferred habitats, feeding, moving, and mixing with other species, such as these Short-billed Dowitchers (a sandpiper) and Semipalmated Plovers here at Hill’s Beach in Biddeford.
An absolutely perfect day of summer weather (finally!) greeted us for this annual favorite outing. And the only thing better than the weather this day was the birding! Recent insane rainfalls have led to very high water in many of our favored high-tide, upper-marsh locales, so we focused on tidal habitats including beaches and mudflats, altering our usual routine from the start.
Beginning in Biddeford Pool, we introduced shorebirds with several Spotted Sandpipers along Ocean Avenue before jumping into the mixed species flock on Biddeford Pool Beach on the outgoing tide. There we estimated over 1,250 Semipalmated Sandpipers and 200 Semipalmated Plovers as we learned the basics of shorebird (sandpiper vs. plover) identification and began to work our way up to teasing out a couple of White-rumped Sandpipers and Ruddy Turnstones from the masses. 2 Killdeer in flight overhead were our only two of the day.
Kicking off our shoes to spend the rest of the morning on the sandflats of Hill’s Beach, we compared a Piping Plover to the many (400+) Semipalmated Plovers and 30 Black-bellied Plovers. A single juvenile Least Sandpiper was out of place on the beach, but offered a perfect opportunity to closely study the differences in shape, size, and overall structure to the 150 or so Semipalmated Sandpipers that were scattered about. 59 Short-billed Dowitchers gave us the chance to really observe shape and feeding styles, practicing identifying these birds both near and far.
Over at The Pool, a distant “Western” Willet joined 7 “Eastern” Willets, as we advanced into subspecific identification just briefly before stopping for lunch as the tide began to roll in.
The afternoon was spent at Scarborough Marsh, where our first two stops offered little (other than a calling Greater Yellowlegs to at least practice our shorebirding by ear) due to the very high water in the salt pannes from the recent rains. Pine Point more than made up for it on the rapidly incoming tide, however, with one heck of a shorebird show: 1500-2000 Semipalmated Sandpipers, 400-500 Semipalmated Plovers, a few more Short-billed Dowitchers and White-rumped Sandpipers, better looks at “Eastern” Willets, and the icing on the cake: a cooperative Whimbrel – our 13th species of shorebird for the day.
Practicing with our identification tool kit, we tested ourselves on finding the uncommon species among the masses, and took a moment or three to simply sit back and enjoy the show. Now that we know how approachable shorebird identification really is, we can more fully appreciate these most marvelous migrants!
Monhegan Birding Workshop, September 23-25.
Northern Gannets and two Green-winged Teal flying with 6 Surf Scoters from the ferry and an adult Lesser Black-backed Gull greeting us upon our arrival seemed like a great sign for what would be a bird- and fun-filled weekend on the Migration Mecca of Monhegan.
Unfortunately, it turned out to be one of the slowest (for both species and diversity) fall weekends I have ever experienced on the island. That being said, a big list wasn’t our goal. It was to learn birds – their ID, their migration ecology, and everything else that makes the island so special for birds and birders. And this is not tour guide spin: a slower day is better for that as we had ample opportunity to view almost everything we encountered, study them, discuss them, and luckily, what the island failed to provide in quantity, it certainly delivered in quality of observations.
On each day, we would find pockets of warblers here and there, but we kept coming back to one particular willow and a nearby thicket that constantly hosted 4-5 Cape May Warblers (photo above), 4 Yellow Warblers, a Yellow-bellied Sapsucker, and a smattering of others. The Cape Mays put on a clinic: all four plumages from pale, 1st-fall female, to bright and spiffy adult male were on display.
Over the first day and a half, we took what the island offered, besides exceedingly pleasant weather! There was the hen Green-winged Teal feeding within three feet of us, fly-over Rusty Blackbirds in the morning, and Great Cormorants on the cliffs on an afternoon short hike to name a few highlights. The skies were punctuated by the occasional migrant Peregrine Falcon and the constantly-hunting Merlins.
Granted, we were really just looking at birds to fill the time between the incredible meals at the Monhegan House!
On our final morning, a good migration overnight produced a new arrival of birds for the “morning flight;” the concepts and nuances thereof were topics of regular discussion.
The group’s high spirits earned them a great morning, with a taste of what Monhegan birding has to offer. There were American Pipits and Yellow-rumped Warblers in Morning Flight, a flock of 10 truant Bobolinks circling around, an immature male Belted Kingfisher displaying to a very-uninterested female, more Cape May Warblers, and a surprising fly-by Wilson’s Snipe.
At one point we had four juvenile Sharp-shinned Hawks dogfighting, exemplifying the difference in sizes of male vs female raptors. And the workshopping continued with Great and Double-crested Cormorants side-by-side, migrant raptors including several Northern Harriers, and more species before breakfast than we had most of the previous weekend! Speaking of breakfasts, goodness, they were good as well.
We finished up with a gull workshop on the shoreline, opening eyes to just how easy most gulls are most of the time. The advanced course was the fly-by 1st winter Lesser Black-backed Gull amongst Herring Gulls on the ferry ride back! And yes, we looked at butterflies, too!
Maine Birding Field Notes 