Tag Archives: Stilt Sandpiper

Recent Highlights, 9/19– 9/25/24

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This molting juvenile (into 1st winter) Stilt Sandpiper was one of a goodly 8 that were in the salt pannes along the Eastern Road Trail through Scarborough Marsh on the 19th.

With numerous nights of clear and calm conditions, or northerly winds, migration continued in earnest almost every night this week. Meanwhile, a couple of days of onshore winds have helped push record numbers of Lesser Black-backed Gulls to the Maine coast. My observations of note over the last week were as follows:

  • It was a big week of sparrow migration as well. For example, we had an estimated 100 each of Song and Savannah Sparrows, 25 Swamp Sparrows, etc, at Wolfe’s Neck Center in Freeport on our Saturday Morning Birdwalk on the 21st.
  • 8 juvenile/1st winter STILT SANDPIPERS and 1 juvenile AMERICAN GOLDEN-PLOVER, Eastern Road Trail, Scarborough Marsh, 9/19.
  • An incredible 42 Lesser Black-backed Gulls (all but 4 were adults);1 adult presumptive LESSER BLACK-BACKED X HERRING GULL HYBRID (perfectly intermediate in all characteristics); 1 ad with 1 juvenile CASPIAN TERN; and 1 AMERICAN GOLDEN-PLOVER, Popham Beach State Park, Phippsburg, 9/20.
  • 1 Snowy Egret, Auburn Riverwalk, 9/22.
  • Highlights from morning birding on our Durham property this week included near-daily Philadelphia Vireo, continuing Indigo Buntings, multiple Lincoln’s Sparrows daily beginning on 9/19, the arrival of Palm Warblers on the 21st, a late YELLOW-BILLED CUCKOO on 9/22, a bog arrival of Swamp Sparrows on 9/24, and late-ish Scarlet Tanager and Magnolia Warbler on 9/25.

Five of the 38 adult Lesser Black-backed Gulls at Popham Beach on the 20th.

UPCOMING TOURS:

Our annual half-day pelagic with our partners Cap’n Fish’s Cruises out of Boothbay Harbor is only 2 ½ weeks away! Join us on this annual favorite on October 14th – a nice, late date that should put us more in the season of things like Great Skua. More info and link to registration is here.

Recent Highlights, 9/3 – 9/10/24

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Although not in Maine, this spiffy adult Sabine’s Gull was the icing on the cake of an incredible day in Head Harbor Passage, New Brunswick on 9/4 (with Beth Edmonds, Dan Nickerson, Jeannette, and friends). An impressive concentration of gulls was led by 5,000-8,000 Bonaparte’s Gulls, 5,000 Herring and Great Black-backed Gulls, and also including 20+ Lesser Black-backed Gulls and 20-30 Laughing Gulls (also Ring-billeds and Black-legged Kittiwakes). It was the best concentrations of birds we have experienced here in several years.

With our annual early fall weekend with friends to Washington County, a productive eight days of birding included the following observations of note: 

  • Sandy Point Morning Flight, 9/3: 355 total migrants led by 105 Northern Parulas and 88 Cedar Waxwings, and also including a single BLUE-GRAY GNATCATCHER (Only my 4th morning flight record). Complete tally here.
  • 4 Red-breasted Mergansers, Lubec Bar and Flats, 9/5 (with Beth Edmonds, Dan Nickerson, Jeannette, and friends).
  • 1 adult Lesser Black-backed Gull, Roque Bluffs State Park, 9/6 (with Jeannette).
  • 1 juvenile YELLOW-CROWNED NIGHT-HERON, Jones Creek, Pine Point, Scarborough, 9/10 (with Jeannette).
  • Our Durham property continues to impress during migration. Another week with at least 15 species of warblers detected in the yard, and highlights including Philadelphia Vireo on several days and a Brown Thrasher at our feeders 9/8-9.

Based on the progressing season, and my upcoming schedule, this was the last week I focused on shorebirds. As always, my peak shorebird season culminates with our visit down east. There are plenty of shorebirds left to enjoy (and count), but my final shorebird “high counts” report of the season – including a goodly 20 species this week – is as follows:

  • AMERICAN OYSTERCATCHER: 4 (2 ad with 2 juv), Pine Point, Scarborough, 9/10 (with Jeannette).
  • Black-bellied Plover:  8, Pine Point, 9/10 (with Jeannette).
  • Killdeer: 14, Crystal Spring Farm, Brunswick, 9/8.
  • Semipalmated Plover: 71, Pine Point, 9/10 (with Jeannette).
  • Whimbrel: 3, Lubec Bar and Flats, 9/5 (with Beth Edmonds, Dan Nickerson, Jeannette, and friends).
  • Ruddy Turnstone: 1, Lubec Bar and Flats, 9/5 (with Beth Edmonds, Dan Nickerson, Jeannette, and friends).
  • RED KNOT: 1 juv, Lubec Bar and Flats, 9/5 (with Beth Edmonds, Dan Nickerson, Jeannette, and friends).
  • STILT SANDPIPER: 1 juvenile, Walsh Preserve, Freeport, 9/9.
  • Sanderling: 11, Carrying Place Cove, Lubec, 9/5 (with Jeannette).
  • DUNLIN: 1 juv, Lubec Bar and Flats, 9/5 (with Beth Edmonds, Dan Nickerson, Jeannette, and friends).
  • Least Sandpiper: 150+, Sanborn Cove, Machiasport, 9/3 (with Jeannette).
  • White-rumped Sandpiper: 10+, Sanborn Cove, 9/3 (with Jeannette).
  • Pectoral Sandpiper: 2, Walsh Preserve, 9/9.
  • Semipalmated Sandpiper: 3,000-4,000 (!), Machiasport, 9/3 (with Jeannette). Only 2,000 or so on 9/6 (with Jeannette).
  • WESTERN SANDPIPER: 1 juvenile, Pine Point, 9/10 (with Jeannette).
  • Short-billed Dowitcher: 15, Walsh Preserve, 9/9.
  • Spotted Sandpiper: 2, Pike Lands Preserve, Lubec, 9/5 (with Jeannette).
  • Lesser Yellowlegs: 41, Walsh Preserve, 9/9.
  • “Eastern” Willet: 2, Pine Point, 9/10 (with Jeannette).
  • Greater Yellowlegs: 6, Wharton Point, Brunswick, 9/8.

Recent Highlights, 8/19 – 8/25/2024

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Brandon Baldwin and Kevin Harding found this American White Pelican off Wharton Point in Brunswick on the 24th. My “lunchbreak chase” ended up taking a few extra hours, but it was more than worth it when a small group of us were treated to the bird flying right over our heads at the end of the Maquoit Bay Conservation Land trail. Luckily, it wasn’t any closer when it decided to lighten the load, as caught in action here.

It was an exceptional week of late summer birding. Once again motivated by shorebirds, I ran into quite a few other species of note while working the usual hotspots. My non-shorebird observations of note over the past 7 days included:

  • Common Nighthawks were on the move this week, while some other widespread migrants and frequent visitors to our Durham property included American Redstart and Yellow, Black-and-white, Magnolia, Tennessee and Cape May Warblers.
  • 1 adult Little Blue Heron and 2+ Surf Scoters, Wharton Point, Brunswick, 8/21 (with Anniversary Day Birdwalk group).
  • 2 FORSTER’S TERNS, 2 CASPIAN TERNS, and 1 adult Lesser Black-backed Gull, Hill’s Beach, Biddeford, 8/23 (with Noah Gibb).
  • 1 female LONG-TAILED DUCK and 2 Surf Scoters, Biddeford Pool Beach, Biddeford, 8/23 (with Noah Gibb).
  • 2 continuing adult RED-NECKED GREBES, Ocean Avenue, Biddeford Pool, 8/23 (with Noah Gibb).
  • 1 Blue-gray Gnatcatcher, 2 Cape May Warblers, etc, Old Town House Park, North Yarmouth, 8/24 (with Saturday Morning Birdwalk group).
  • 1 AMERICAN WHITE PELICAN, Wharton Point, Brunswick, 8/24. A State Bird for me, it was found about an hour earlier by Kevin Harding and Brandon Baldwin. After it was displaced by a passing airboat, I arrived at about 12:30 and relocated it on the rocky ledge at the southern end of the bay. Brandon and I cut the distance in more than half by walking out to the end of the Maquoit Bay Conservation Land trail. Although closer, the light was brutal, but a small group of us waiting until the tide had inundated the ledge. Then the pelican took off. First it started heading south, but circled back, passed directly overhead (see photo above) and then gained altitude high over Wharton Point before disappearing off to the north.
  • 26 Surf Scoters, Maquoit Bay Conservation Land Trail, 8/24 (with Brandon Baldwin).

Meanwhile, fueled by a successful 19-species “shorebird mini-Big Day on 8/23 with Noah Gibb, my shorebird high counts for a total of 20 species this week were as follows:

  • AMERICAN OYSTERCATCHER: 2, Little Whaleboat Ledges, Casco Bay, 8/25 (with Birds of Casco Bay Boat Trip tour group).
  • Black-bellied Plover: 150+, The Pool, Biddeford Pool, 8/23 (with Noah Gibb).
  • Killdeer: 26, Crystal Spring Farm, Brunswick, 8/21 (with Anniversary Day Birdwalk grpup).
  • Semipalmated Plover: 400, The Pool, 8/23 (with Noah Gibb).
  • Piping Plover: 1, Hill’s Beach, Biddeford, 8/23 (with Noah Gibb).
  • Ruddy Turnstone: 30, Biddeford Pool Beach, Biddeford, 8/23 (with Noah Gibb).
  • RED KNOT: 1 ad and 1 juv, The Pool, 8/23 (with Noah Gibb).
  • STILT SANDPIPER: 1 continuing adult, Walsh Preserve, Freeport, 8/19 (with Jeannette) and 8/23 (with Noah Gibb).
  • Sanderling: 17, Hill’s Beach, 8/23 (with Noah Gibb).
  • DUNLIN: 1 fresh juvenile (FOY), Biddeford Pool Beach, 8/23 (with Noah Gibb).
  • Least Sandpiper: 100+, The Pool, 8/23 (with Noah Gibb).
  • White-rumped Sandpiper: 6, Biddeford Pool Beach, 8/23 (with Noah Gibb).
  • Semipalmated Sandpiper: 1250, Biddeford Pool Beach, 8/23 (with Noah Gibb).
  • Short-billed Dowitcher: 16, The Pool, 8/23 (with Noah Gibb).
  • LONG-BILLED DOWITCHER: 1 adult, Walsh Preserve, 8/19 (with Jeannette). Photo below.
  • Spotted Sandpiper: 3, Ocean Avenue, 8/23 (with Noah Gibb).
  • Solitary Sandpiper: 2, multiple locations and dates this week.
  • Lesser Yellowlegs: 54, Walsh Preserve, 8/19 (with Jeannette).
  • “Eastern” Willet: 3, The Pool, 8/23 (with Noah Gibb).
  • Greater Yellowlegs: 8, Royal River flats, 8/25 (with Birds of Casco Bay Boat Trip tour group).

An adult LONG-BILLED DOWITCHER was a fun find for Jeannette and I this week at the Walsh Preserve in Freeport. It could have been closer, but this photo shows some of the pertinent identification features in the bird to the right including the larger size and very round shape, hunched back, and uniformly reddish tone throughout much of the undersides.

Recent Highlights, 8/12 – 8/18/2024

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Far from being my best shot of the week, our Saturday Morning Birdwalk group enjoyed 2 Stilt Sandpipers at Freeport’s Walsh Preserve. Here’s one of them (pardon the lousy hand-held phone-scoped photo) flanked by Lesser and Greater Yellowlegs for a perfect comparison. Instructional shorebird identification was the name of the game for my tours this week!

Two shorebird-focused tours, plus a few mornings out on beach/mud on my own produced some solid shorebird high counts. My species list and a few high counts would have been added were in not for the rapidly-approaching thunderstorm as my Shorebird Workshop group arrived at Hill’s Beach on the 15th!  Landbird migration is really picking up as well, with lots of the expected early warblers on the move, including a Cape May Warbler at the Walsh Preserve in Freeport (with Saturday Morning Birdwalk group) on the 17th.

Non-shorebird observations of note this week:

  • 28+ continuing Surf Scoters, Wharton Point, Brunswick, 8/12.
  • 2 Common Nighthawks (First of fall), over our property in Durham, 8/13.
  • 2 adult Lesser Black-backed Gulls, Pine Point, Scarborough, 8/15 (with Down East Adventures Shorebird Workshop tour group).
  • 6 Surf Scoters, Popham Beach State Park, Phippsburg, 8/16.

Shorebird high counts this week:

  • Black-bellied Plover: 91, Wharton Point, Brunswick, 8/12 (with Jeannette).
  • Killdeer: 35, Crystal Spring Farm, Brunswick, 8/12 (with Jeannette).
  • Semipalmated Plover: ~300, Pine Point, Scarborough, 8/15 (with Down East Adventures Shorebird Workshop tour group).
  • Ruddy Turnstone: 35, Biddeford Pool Beach, Biddeford, 8/15 (with Down East Adventures Shorebird Workshop tour group).
  • STILT SANDPIPER: 2 adults, Walsh Preserve, Freeport, 8/17 (horrible photo above; with Saturday Morning Birdwalk group).
  • Sanderling: 13, Popham Beach State Park, 8/16.
  • Least Sandpiper: 20+, Great Pond, Biddeford Pool, 8/15 (with Down East Adventures Shorebird Workshop tour group).
  • White-rumped Sandpiper: 12, Pine Point, 8/15 (with Down East Adventures Shorebird Workshop tour group).
  • Semipalmated Sandpiper: ~1750, Biddeford Pool Beach, 8/15 (with Down East Adventures Shorebird Workshop tour group). Honorable mention of ~1200 at Pine Point on 8/15 (with Down East Adventures Shorebird Workshop tour group).
  • Short-billed Dowitcher: 8, Popham Beach State Park, 8/16.
  • Spotted Sandpiper: 2, multiple locations this week.
  • Solitary Sandpiper: 2, Walsh Preserve, 8/17 (with Saturday Morning Birdwalk group).
  • Lesser Yellowlegs: 54, Walsh Preserve, 8/17 (with Saturday Morning Birdwalk group).
  • “Eastern” Willet: 14, Pine Point, 8/15 (with Down East Adventures Shorebird Workshop tour group).
  • Greater Yellowlegs: 41, Wharton Point, 8/13 (with Jeannette).

Tours and Events:

The 20th Anniversary Celebration Month is underway here at the store.  All the details can be found here, including a silent auction for conservation, and several chances to win a new pair of binoculars!

Recent Highlights, 8/5 – 8/11/2024

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Two of the three Lesser Black-backed Gulls present at Hill’s Beach in Biddeford on the 8th included these two 3rd-cycle birds, seen here with a likely 4th cycle Herring Gull for a nice comparison.

Once again, I focused on shorebirds this week, and not surprisingly the non-shorebird highlights I encountered were while looking at said shorebirds. Meanwhile, passerine movement is really ramping up, with lots of early warblers like Yellow, American Redstart, and Black-and-white on the move. Some of the other migrants on our Durham property this week included Canada Warbler, Eastern Kingbird, Bobolink, and Barn Swallow.

Non-shorebird highlights this week:

  • 1 juvenile BLACK TERN, Eastern Road Trail, Scarborough Marsh, 8/5 (with Jeannette).
  • 3 Lesser Black-backed Gulls (one 1st-summer; with Dan Gardoqui and two 3rd-summers arriving later), Hill’s Beach, Biddeford, 8/8.

The adults of a lot of species of shorebirds are peaking now, and a growing number of juveniles are arriving, providing for some good numbers at a variety of locations. Shorebird high counts this week:

  • Black-bellied Plover: 86, The Pool, Biddeford Pool, 8/8.
  • Killdeer: 21, Crystal Spring Farm, Brunswick, 8/5 (with Jeannette).
  • Semipalmated Plover: 150+, Pine Point, Scarborough, 8/11 (with Birds on Tap – Roadtrip! Tour group).
  • Piping Plover: 6, Hill’s Beach, Biddeford, 8/8.
  • Whimbrel: 2, Pine Point, 8/11 (with Birds on Tap – Roadtrip! Tour group).
  • STILT SANDPIPER (FOY): 1 adult, Walsh Preserve, Freeport, 8/9. Still present at low tide on 8/10 (with Saturday Morning Birdwalk group – All-time Saturday Morning Birdwalk Species #253!)
The All-Time Saturday Morning Birdwalk List
  • Sanderling: 14, Hill’s Beach, 8/8 (with Dan Gardoqui).
  • Least Sandpiper: 73, Eastern Road Trail, Scarborough Marsh, 8/5 (with Jeannette).
  • White-rumped Sandpiper: 1, Hill’s Beach, 8/8 (with Dan Gardoqui) and Yarmouth Town Landing, 8/10 (with Saturday Morning Birdwalk group).
  • Pectoral Sandpiper: 5, Eastern Road Trail, 8/5 (with Jeannette).
  • Semipalmated Sandpiper: 1500+, The Pool, Biddeford Pool, 8/8 (with Dan Gardoqui).
  • Short-billed Dowitcher: ~40, The Pool, 8/8 (with Dan Gardoqui).
  • Spotted Sandpiper: 2, multiple locations this week.
  • Solitary Sandpiper: 1, several locations this week.
  • Lesser Yellowlegs: 71, Walsh Preserve, 8/9.
  • “Eastern” Willet: 18, Pine Point, 8/11 (with Birds on Tap – Roadtrip! Tour group).
  • “WESTERN” WILLET (FOY): 1, Hill’s Beach, Biddeford, 8/8.
  • Greater Yellowlegs: 12, Wharton Point, 8/6 (with Jeannette).

Tours and Events:

This Week’s Highlights, 8/19-25,2023

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This juvenile Marbled Godwit continues at Hill’s Beach in Biddeford, making a nice addition to my “Shorebird Big Day” effort on Tuesday.

After being thwarted by weather on a couple of days recently, I conducted a “Shorebird Big Day” on Tuesday the 22nd. I birded between Sanford and Brunswick, seeking shorebirds from near-dawn to dusk. My goal was “at least 20” species of shorebirds, so I was happy to finish my day with 22 species.  Needless to say, that day dedicated to shorebirding produced the majority of my high counts this week:

  • AMERICAN OYSTERCATCHER: 6 adults, Ocean Avenue, Biddeford Pool, 8/22 (with Luke Seitz).
  • Black-bellied Plover: 126, Wharton Point, Brunswick, 8/22.
  • Killdeer: 17, Winding Brook Turf Farm, Alfred, 8/22.
  • Semipalmated Plover: 220, Pine Point, Scarborough, 8/20.
  • Piping Plover: 3, Hill’s Beach, Biddeford, 8/22 (with Luke Seitz).
  • Whimbrel: 3, Hill’s Beach/The Pool, 8/22 (with Luke Seitz).
  • Ruddy Turnstone: 6, Ocean Avenue, 8/22 (with Luke Seitz). One at Sanford Lagoons on 8/22 was quite out of place inland.
  • RED KNOT: 1 juv, Hill’s Beach, 8/22 (with Luke Seitz).
  • STILT SANDPIPER: 4 (2 ad, 2 juv), Sanford Lagoons, Sanford, 8/22.
  • Sanderling: 22, Hill’s Beach, 8/22 (with Luke Seitz).
  • BAIRD’S SANDPIPER: 1-2, Hill’s Beach, 8/22 (with Luke Seitz).
  • Least Sandpiper: 36, Eastern Road Trail, Scarborough Marsh, 8/20.
  • White-rumped Sandpiper: 8, Biddeford Pool Beach, 8/22 (with Luke Seitz).
  • Pectoral Sandpiper: 3, Sanford Lagoons, 8/22.
  • Semipalmated Sandpiper: 600, Biddeford Pool Beach, 8/22 (with Luke Seitz).
  • Short-billed Dowitcher: 51, Pine Point, Scarborough, 8/20.
  • Spotted Sandpiper: 4, Ocean Avenue, 8/22 (with Luke Seitz).
  • Solitary Sandpiper: 8, Sanford Lagoons, 8/22.
  • Lesser Yellowlegs: 83, Walsh Preserve, Yarmouth, 8/22.
  • “Eastern” Willet: 19, Pine Point, 8/20.
  • Greater Yellowlegs: 24, Walsh Preserve, 8/22.

A nice list of non-shorebird highlights this week also included:

  • At least 12 species of warblers have been in our yard daily this week, with a high count of 15 on the 24th. A Tennessee Warbler that I spotted while conducting our Bird Safe Open House birdwalk on the 19th was our 141st yard species.
  • Common Nighthawks have been on the move all week, with nightly sightings. My high counts included 16 over the Bates Mill in Lewiston on the 19th (with Dan and Renee Klem) and 244 in an hour over Wharton Point in Brunswick on the 23rd.
  • 1 continuing proposed TRICOLORED HERON X SNOWY EGRET X SMALL WHITE EGRET SP(P) HYBRID, Eastern Road Trail, Scarborough marsh, 8/20.
  • 3 BLUE-GRAY GNATCATCHER, Green Point WMA, Dresden, 8/21 (with Jeannette).
  • 1 ad. Lesser Black-backed Gull, Hill’s Beach, 8/22 (with Luke Seitz)
  • Continuing mid-summer scoter Hat Trick off Biddeford Pool Beach, 8/22 (with Luke Seitz): 2 White-winged Scoter, 2+ Surf Scoters, 75-100 Black Scoters.
  • 2 continuing adult RED-NECKED GREBES, Ocean Avenue, Biddeford Pool, 8/22 (with Luke Seitz).
  • 2 adult SANDHILL CRANES, Mayall Road, Gray/New Gloucester, 8/22.
  • 3 Great Egrets, southbound over the store on 8/24 during our Paul Doiron & Ron Joseph Maine Authors event. Yard Bird #134!

This Week’s Highlights, August 6 – August 12, 2022.

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Here are three of the incredible 26 White Ibis that were found in Webhannet Marsh in Wells beginning on August 10th when one was photographed. I was able to see them in the late morning on the 11th, as the number grew. Most interestingly, we observed them eating Green Crabs (such as the one on the left)!  Well, we know we have enough of those invasive species around, so maybe we just need more White Ibis!

All. The. Shorebirds. And rare wading birds! Here are my observations of note over the past seven days:

  • 1 TRICOLORED HERON (my first pure TRHE of the year), Eastern Road Trail, Scarborough Marsh, 8/9 (with Jeannette).
  • 26 WHITE IBIS, Webhannet Marsh, Wells, 8/11. 29 were present earlier, but I had to settle for “only” 26. Either way, wow…A flock of White Ibis!  Rapidly expanding up the Eastern Seabird, this was just a matter of time.

Shorebird high counts this week, with many species now peaking:

  • AMERICAN OYSTERCATCHER: 2 ad with 1 juv, Upper Green Island, Casco Bay, 8/12 (with Seacoast Tours and private tour group). Is this a family group from Ram Island, or perhaps another pair is now breeding further up the bay?
  • Black-bellied Plover: 62, Pine Point, Scarborough, 8/8 (with client from NY).
  • Killdeer: 5, Pelreco Marsh, Scarborough Marsh, 8/7 (with Down East Adventures Shorebird Workshop Group).
  • Semipalmated Plover: 300+, Pine Point, 8/7 (with Down East Adventures Shorebird Workshop Group).
  • Whimbrel: 2, Pine Point, 8/8 (with client from NY).
  • Ruddy Turnstone: 1, 8/7 (with Down East Adventures Shorebird Workshop Group).
  • STILT SANDPIPER: 9 (great count!), Eastern Road Trail, 8/8 (with client from NY) and 8/9 (with Jeannette).
  • Sanderling: 34, Hill’s Beach, Biddeford, 8/7 (with Down East Adventures Shorebird Workshop Group).
  • Least Sandpiper: 75+, Eastern Road Trail, Scarborough Marsh, 8/8 (with client from NY).
  • White-rumped Sandpiper: 46, Eastern Road Trail, 8/8 (with client from NY).
  • Pectoral Sandpiper: 3, Eastern Road Trail, 8/8 (with client from NY)
  • Semipalmated Sandpiper: 550+, Eastern Road Trail, 8/9 (with Jeannette).
  • Short-billed Dowitcher: 44, Eastern Road Trail, 8/8 (with client from NY).
  • Spotted Sandpiper: 4, Sebago Lake State Park, 8/11.
  • Lesser Yellowlegs: 64, Royal River, Yarmouth, 8/12 (with Seacoast Tours and private tour group).
  • “Eastern” Willet: 8, Pine Point, 8/7 (with Down East Adventures Shorebird Workshop Group).
  • “WESTERN” WILLET (FOY): 3 juv, Hill’s Beach, 8/7 (with Down East Adventures Shorebird Workshop Group).
  • Greater Yellowlegs: 24, Royal River, Yarmouth, 8/12 (with Seacoast Tours and Private Tour Group).
  • WILSON’S PHALAROPE: 1 molting juv, Eastern Road Trail, 8/8 (with client from NY). Phone-scoped video here: https://fb.watch/ePAQA03F_3/
Well, it wasn’t a rare bird, but I really liked this photo of a Ring-billed Gull from Sebago Lake Park on 8/11. In came to check out if I was going to have a snack after my weekly dip in the lake.

This Week’s Highlights, July 23- July 29, 2022.

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A lousy photo of great birds: two Stilt Sandpipers were in the Pelreco Marsh on 7/29.

Seal Island, Monhegan Island, and shorebird migration. Lots of “good birds” in great places this week. Here are my observations of note over the past seven days.

  • Red Crossbills along the coast: 1+, Pownal, 7/23; 1, Brooksville, 7/24 (with Laura Blandford); 1-2’s scattered on Monhegan Island, 7/25;
  • An incredible trip to Seal Island on 7/23 produced all of the expected breeding seabirds, a couple of Common Murres; a Peregrine Falcon show; migrating Whimbrels, one Great Shearwater, and a PARASITIC JAEGER.  Photos and the complete trip report can be found here.
2022 Seal Island Trip Report (The “not-so-search for Troppy), 7/23.
  • Hardy Boat from New Harbor to Monhegan, 7/25 (with Jeannette): 6 Cory’s Shearwaters (FOY) and 8 Great Shearwaters.
  • A “non-birding” weekend with Jeannette friends to Monhegan Island 7/25-26 actually yielded some outstanding birding! The highlight was a four-species shearwater show off of Lobster Cove throughout the day on 7/25. We saw at least 3 MANX SHEARWATERS and 2 Sooty Shearwaters (FOY) among numbers of Cory’s and Great Shearwaters.  They were passing at a slow but steady rate of about 16 Great and 6 Cory’s every 5 minutes, plus an average of 9 Atlantic Puffins per 5 minutes.  Hard to tell if the shearwaters were swirling, rounding the island, or just streaming by. 1-2 ROSEATE TERNS joined Arctic and Common Terns feeding nearshore – Roseate was a new “island bird” for me.
  • Other Monhegan highlights: 1-2 Blue-winged Teal continue, 1 Great Egret (also an “island bird” for me!), and 1+ Sharp-shinned Hawk.
  • Hardy Boat departure from Monhegan to New Harbor (with Jeannette), 7/26: 1 PURPLE SANDPIPER, Outer Duck Islands from ferry seal watching diversion. Unexpected and incredible mid-summer record; no camera available and phone-binning was a complete failure.  With a few Ruddy Turnstones.  1 more Cory’s Shearwater en route.
  • 1 molting adult BLACK TERN, Pine Point Co-op, Scarborough, 7/29.

Shorebird high counts this week. I had an excellent tally of 19 species, although counts were a little low due to limited visitation to the best shorebird sites.

  • Black-bellied Plover: 14, Pine Point, Scarborough, 7/29.
  • Killdeer: 4, Rte 1/9 pannes, Scarborough Marsh, 7/29.
  • Semipalmated Plover: 159, Pine Point, 7/29.
  • Piping Plover: 6, escaping people by foraging on mudflats off the Pine Point Co-op, Scarborough Marsh, 7/29.
  • Whimbrel: 20 (flocks of 12 and 8), Seal Island, 7/23 (with “Not-so-search for Troppy Tour Group).
  • Ruddy Turnstone: 5, Outer Ducks, Monhegan, 7/26 (with Jeannette).
  • STILT SANDPIPER: 2 ad, Pelreco Marsh, Scarborough Marsh, 7/29 (John Lorenc had 5 earlier in the morning) and 1 ad, Eastern Rd Trail, Scarborough Marsh, 7/29.
  • PURPLE SANDPIPER: 1, Outer Ducks, 7/26 (with Jeannette; see above).
  • Sanderling: 4, Seal Island, 7/23 (with “Not-so-search for Troppy Tour Group).
  • Least Sandpiper: 40+, Eastern Road Trail, 7/29.
  • White-rumped Sandpiper: 6 total around Scarborough Marsh, 7/29.
  • Pectoral Sandpiper: 1, Pine Point, 7/29.
  • Semipalmated Sandpiper: 100+ Pine Point, 7/29.
  • Short-billed Dowitcher: 24, Eastern Road Trail, 7/29.
  • Spotted Sandpiper: 3, Seal Island, 7/23 (with “Not-so-search for Troppy Tour Group).
  • Solitary Sandpiper: 1-2, Monhegan Island, 7/26 (with Jeannette).
  • Lesser Yellowlegs: 18, Eastern Road Trail, 7/29.
  • “Eastern” Willet: 27, Pine Point, 7/29.
  • Greater Yellowlegs: 12, Eastern Road Trail, 7/29.

Our next event here at the store is on August 4th when we welcome Paul Doiron to read from and sign copies of his new book, Hatchett Island. His latest crime thriller takes place on an imaginary seabird island here in Maine!  More information can be found here.

This Week’s Highlights, July 9- July 15, 2022.

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The local “bird of the summer,” Henslow’s Sparrow, continues this week in Brunswick. (Note: photographed only via patience, no playback or other harassments).

Another dandy week of summertime birding produced the following highlights for me.

  • 2 continuing HENSLOW’S SPARROWS, Crystal Spring Farm, Brunswick. Quite a bit of my birding time this week was spent enjoying this exceptional visitor.  I saw it on 7/9 with our Saturday Morning Birdwalk group for our 246th all-time Saturday Morning Birdwalk bird!  On 7/11, Jeannette and I, along with two other birders saw both individuals at the same time for the first time – as two scopes had both birds in view at once in the opposite direction here. No disputing that!  However, the echo and acoustic issues are very apparent here – at one point, we could easily have argued there were four birds! Interestingly, on 7/12, Cameron Cox and I were unable to confirm the presence of two birds, as was the case in my visits prior to the 11th.  Phone-scoped video from the 11th here.
  • HYBRID HERONS of Scarborough Marsh. On 7/11, Cameron Cox and I spotted both continuing birds. The proposed Snowy Egret x Tricolored Heron x Little Egret was off of Eastern Road, while the proposed Snowy Egret x Tricolored Heron x Snowy Egret was incredibly close and cooperative at Pelreco Marsh. Video of the latter bird here.
  • 1 subadult LESSER BLACK-BACKED GULL, Pine Point Beach, Scarborough, 7/11 (with Cameron Cox).
  • 2 Fish Crows, Point Sebago Resort (private), Casco, 7/14 (with Point Sebago Resort birdwalk group).  Are these two from the Windham colony or outliers of this slowly expanding species?
  • Eastern Egg Rock/Whale-watching/and mini-pelagic tour out of Boothbay Harbor with our partners Cap’n Fish’s Cruises, yielded the following highlights in addition to a fantastic show at Eastern Egg Rock from Atlantic Puffins; Roseate, Common, and Arctic Terns; Black Guillemots; etc): 2 Razorbills on Eastern Egg, a mere two Wilson’s Storm-Petrels and handfuls of Northern Gannets offshore, but an insane show from a breaching Humpback Whale. And for the record, the Tufted Puffin appeared there a mere 3 hours after our boat left.

Each summer, I begin reporting my “shorebird high counts this week” here. Really, I do it for my own note-keeping and organization, but I hope at least a few folks find value in it. This year, I am starting it early, even though diversity is expectedly low and I didn’t get to a lot of shorebird sites this week. However, numbers are picking up dramatically, and this bears watching. Unfortunately, large numbers of adult shorebirds in early July could portend widespread breeding failure. Therefore, I will organize my counts here so I can compare it to previous seasons.

  • Black-bellied Plover: 2 first-summer, Pine Point Co-op, Scarborough, 7/11 (with Cameron Cox).
  • Killdeer: 35, Crystal Spring Farm, Brunswick, 7/12 (with Cameron Cox).
  • Piping Plover: 4+, Western Beach from Pine Point Beach, 7/11 (with Cameron Cox).
  • STILT SANDPIPER (FOF, Early!): 2, Pelreco Marsh, Scarborough Marsh, 7/11 (with Cameron Cox).
  • Least Sandpiper: 60, Eastern Road Trail, Scarborough Marsh, 7/11 (with Cameron Cox)
  • Pectoral Sandpiper (early, FOF): 2, Eastern Road Trail, 7/11 (with Cameron Cox).
  • Semipalmated Sandpiper: 15, Eastern Road Trail, 7/11 (with Cameron Cox).
  • Short-billed Dowitcher: 60, Eastern Road Trail, 7/11 (with Cameron Cox).
  • Spotted Sandpiper: 2, Eastern Egg Rock, 7/15 (with Cap’n Fish’s Cruises Pufifn/Whale Watch Combo tour group.)
  • Lesser Yellowlegs: 30, Eastern Road Trail, 7/11 (with Cameron Cox).
  • “Eastern” Willet: 20+ Pine Point, Scarborough, 7/11 (with Cameron Cox)
  • Greater Yellowlegs: 20, Eastern Road Trail, 7/11 (with Cameron Cox).

Our next boat trip is on Saturday, July 23rd to Seal Island. No “Troppy” this year, but you know we’ll be looking hard for the Tufted Puffin! A limited amount of space on this extended charter is available here.

The stellar Roseate Tern show continues at Pine Point Beach. Cameron Cox and I enjoyed
a nice photo session with them there on the 11th.