Tag Archives: Western Sandpiper

This Week’s Highlights: September 10-16, 2022

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Jeannette and I spent some quality time with “sharp-tailed sparrows” in Scarborough Marsh on Tuesday. It’s even more of a challenge this time of year with some birds still molting (such as the Saltmarsh Sparrow on the left) and other birds in fresh plumage, such as this apparent Nelson’s Sparrow on the right
(although a hybrid may be impossible to rule out).

Unlike last week, I was out birding plenty this week, including some of my favorite fall activities: Sandy Point and sorting through shorebirds.  Here are my observations of note over the past seven days:

  • Morning flight over our Pownal yard, 9/10: 6:15-7:30am: 250+ warblers of at least 10 species, led by 40++ Northern Parulas and including 1 Bay-breasted and 2++ Cape May Warbler.
  • “Zeiss Day” Hakwatch right here at the store, 9/10 (with Rich Moncrief): 95 individuals of 11 species of raptors led by 21 Ospreys and 18 Broad-winged Hawks.  Full count here.
  • 20-25 Common Nighthawks, over our yard in Pownal at dusk, 9/10, and 5-10 on 9/11.
  • 6 Northern Waterthrushes, 6 Swainson’s Thrushes, etc, Capisic Pond Park, Portland, 9/11 (with Down East Adventures Fall Songbird Workshop group).
  • 3 Saltmarsh Sparrows, 2 Nelson’s Sparrows, 15+ “sharp-tailed sparrow sp.,” 5 Pectoral Sandpipers, etc, Eastern Road Trail, Scarborough Marsh, 9/13 (with Jeannette).
  • 1 3rd-cycle LESSER BLACK-BACKED GULL, Pine Point, Scarborough, 9/14 (with clients from CA and CO).
  • 1 juv. WESTERN SANDPIPER, Biddeford Pool Beach, Biddeford, 9/14 (with clients from CA and CO; Noah Gibb photo).
  • 1500-2000 Tree Swallows, Mile Stretch, Biddeford, 9/14 (with clients from CA and CO).
  • Sandy Point Morning Flight, 9/15: 2,115 migrants of 40 species including 15 species of wablers. Full count here.
  • Sandy Point Morning Flight, 9/16: 394 migrants of 33 species including 12 species of warblers. Full count here.

This Week’s Highlights, July 16- July 22, 2022.

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While small numbers of juvenile WESTERN SANDPIPERS can be found in Maine in late summer and early fall, we rarely see adults. Therefore, this was an exciting find at Hill’s Beach in Biddeford
on the incoming tide on the 22nd.

Another dandy week of summertime birding produced the following highlights for me. Shorebird numbers and diversity are growing rapidly now.

  • 1 Yellow-billed Cuckoo, Old Town House Park, North Yarmouth, 7/16 (with Saturday Morning Birdwalk group; few around locally this summer). One calling in our Pownal yard on 7/22.
  • 2 continuing HENSLOW’S SPARROWS, Crystal Spring Farm, Brunswick, 7/20.  Both birds singing, but the west bird continued long past the east bird went silent. I spent my time this morning attempting to observe the east bird, but never saw it once it stopped singing about 5 minutes after I arrived.
  • 1 Fish Crow, Point Sebago (Private; with Point Sebago Birdwalk group) and 1 at Sebago Lake State Park, 7/21 (still wondering if these are from the Windham colony or not).

Shorebird high counts this week (see last week’s post for an explanation):

  • Black-bellied Plover: 4, Pine Point, Scarborough, 7/22.
  • Killdeer:  22, Crystal Spring Farm, Brunswick, 7/20.
  • Semipalmated Plover: 10, Hill’s Beach, Biddeford, 7/22.
  • Piping Plover: 1 adult with 2 nearly-fledged juveniles that are somehow close to making it on Pine Point Beach, Scarborough, 7/22.
  • Whimbrel (FOF): 5, Pine Point, 7/22.
  • Ruddy Turnstone: 1, Eastern Egg Rock, 7/16 (with Hardy Boat Evening Puffin Cruise group).
  • Sanderling: 18, Hill’s Beach, 7/22.
  • Least Sandpiper: 31, Eastern Road Trail, Scarborough Marsh, 7/22.
  • Semipalmated Sandpiper: 140, Pine Point, 7/22.
  • WESTERN SANDPIPER: 1 rare adult, Hill’s Beach, Biddeford, 7/22 (photo above).
  • Short-billed Dowitcher: 165, The Pool, Biddeford Pool, 7/22.
  • Spotted Sandpiper: 2, Eastern Egg Rock, 7/16 (with Hardy Boat Evening Puffin Cruise group) and Sebago Lake State Park, 7/21.
  • Solitary Sandpiper (FOF): 1, Old Town House Park, North Yarmouth, 7/16 (with Saturday Morning Birdwalk group) and 1, Eastern Road Trail, 7/22.
  • Lesser Yellowlegs: 53, Eastern Road Trail, 7/22.
  • “Eastern” Willet: 96, The Pool, 7/22.
  • Greater Yellowlegs: 10, Eastern Road Trail, 7/22.

Beat the heat tomorrow, Saturday, July 23rd with a boat trip 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.

Register on Eventbrite
This Piping Plover is one of two siblings that have somehow survived on the jam-packed Pine Point Beach. Often exercising their wings on the 22nd, they are probably just a
few days away from being able to fly away from crowds.