It was a good week for Caspian Terns, and it’s always a treat to see one sitting still. This adult was on the Lubec Flats on the 4th.

A busy week of birding included our annual late summer/early fall trip to Washington County and a bunch of guiding, producing the following observations of note:

• 25-30 Common Nighthawks, over Chebeague Island in the mid-morning, 9/3 (with The Chebeague & Cumberland Land Trust birdwalk group).

• 1 juvenile LITTLE BLUE HERON, 1 CASPIAN TERN, 1 Great Egret, 5 Surf Scoters, etc, Lubec Flats, Lubec, 9/4 (with Jeannette).

• A relatively slow morning in Head Harbor Passage from Eastport on 9/5 (with Beth Edmonds, Dan Nickerson, Jeannette, and friends) was most noteworthy for the continuing large numbers of COMMON MURRES. I tallied 109, but that seems very conservative. We only had 4 Razorbills and 1 adult Lesser Black-backed Gull. Quiet time with just us and a Fin Whale more than made up for it though.

• The afternoon whale watch on Eastport Windjammers to the same waters that day (with Beth Edmonds, Dan Nickerson, and Jeannette) yielded an adult LITTLE GULL, 3 CASPIAN TERNS, 1 late ARCTIC TERN, 2 Great Shearwaters, etc. Incredibly experience with 2 Fin Whales, 1 Humpback Whale, and 1 Minke Whale though.

We always enjoy our quality time with Black-legged Kittiwakes in the Head Harbor Passage area at this time of year.

• 2 American Pipits (FOF), Sanborn Cove, Machiasport, 9/6 (with Jeannette). Interestingly, we had pipits at a number of places throughout the day, with a high count of 22 at Addison Marsh, Addison.

• 1 Great Egret, Addison Marsh, 9/6 (with Jeannette).

• 1 Great Egret, Essex Marsh, Bangor, 9/6 (with Jeannette).

• 3 SANDHILL CRANES, Plymouth Pond, Plymouth, 9/6 (with Jeannette).

• High count for warbler species in our Durham backyard this week was 11 on 9/7 (with Angela Woodside).

• 3 adult Lesser Black-backed Gulls, Popham Beach State Park, Phippsburg, 9/8 (with clients from Texas).

• Great whale-watching trumped the bird-watching again this week with 3 lunge-feeding Fin Whales off of Boothbay Harbor aboard Cap’n Fish’s Cruises on 9/8 (with clients from Texas). 3 RED-NECKED PHALAROPES, 1 Great Shearwater, 1 adult Lesser Black-backed Gull, 10 Wilson’s Storm-Petrels and making it back to shore before the violent thunderstorms add to the success of the trip!

Meanwhile, my shorebird high counts this week were as follows. While reduced in diversity by a lack of visitation to southern Maine shorebird hotspots, Downeast yielded some excellent numbers and I found some uncommon species in unexpected places for a goodly total of 18 species (“shorebird season” is far from over!):

• AMERICAN OYSTERCATCHER: 1, Popham Beach State Park, Phippsburg, 9/8 (with clients from Texas).
• Black-bellied Plover: 75, Lubec Flats, Lubec, 9/4 (with Jeannette).
• Killdeer: 56, Mayall Road, Gray, 9/6 (with Jeannette).
• Semipalmated Plover: 600, Lubec Flats, 9/4 (with Jeannette).
• Ruddy Turnstone: 1, flying 10 miles off of Boothbay Harbor, 9/8 (with clients from Texas). Odd sighting of a single juvenile bird circling the boat repeatedly in hazy conditions where the mainland was not visible.
• Sanderling: 24, Popham Beach State Park, 9/8 (with clients from Texas)
• BAIRD’S SANDPIPER: 1, Yarmouth Town Landing, 9/2 (with Saturday Morning Birdwalk group).
• Least Sandpiper: 25+ Sanborn Cove, Machiasport, 9/5 (with Jeannette).
• White-rumped Sandpiper: 125!, Lubec Flats, 9/4.
• Semipalmated Sandpiper: 2500-3000!, Lubec Flats, 9/4 (with Jeannette).
• WESTERN SANDPIPER: 1 juv, Lubec Flats, 9/4 (with Jeannette).
• Short-billed Dowitcher: 4, Lubec Flats, 9/4 (with Jeannette).
• American Woodcock: 1, over Rte 1, Pembroke, at dusk on 9/5 (with Jeannette).
• Spotted Sandpiper: 1, multiple locations.
• Solitary Sandpiper: 1, over our yard in Durham, 9/2.
• Lesser Yellowlegs: 9, Yarmouth Town Landing, 9/2 (with Saturday Morning Birdwalk group).
• Greater Yellowlegs: 2, Red Point Nature Preserve, Lubec, 9/4 (with Jeannette).
• RED-NECKED PHALAROPE: 7, Passamaquoddy Bay, Eastport-New Brunswick, 9/5 (with Beth Edmonds, Dan Nickerson, Jeannette, and friends).