Where was the rain? Seven PBCers enjoyed great conditions for
shorebirding on Saturday, overcast and cool and breezy as we headed for
Rock Point first thing in the AM. There was not a large number of
birds there on the beach but we had greater diversity in comparison
to our previous visit there about 3 weeks back. New shorebirds added
for our fall list included basic plumaged Ruddy Turnstones, Sanderlings, and 2 "not-so" Red Knots. There were also two juvenile Short-billed Dowitchers probing in the muddy patches as well. On the drive down Downey Road beside the park we spotted what was likely an Olive-sided Flycatcher up on the hydro line as we drove along which then shot out and caught an insect and promptly disappeared from view. This observation is given more credence given that OLSF (correct acronym?, works for me) were seen on the same day in both western New York and the Leslie St. Spit. The warbler movement here was a
bit disappointing as the wind seemed to keep them very low and tight as we walked around the banding sites in Rock Point. We did spot Wilson's Warbler, Blackburnina, and Common Yellowthroat; Gray Catbirds, Baltimore Oriole, Cedar Waxwings, and a few Ruby-thr. Hummingbirds which seemed to be defending patches of Jewelweed in this area.
From here we opted to drive west from Dunnville along Lakeshore Rd.
to check out the shoreline for more shorebirds on our way towards
Selkirk P.P. Bill spotted a Black-billed Cuckoo fly across the road in
front of us at one point and we stopped and enjoyed great eye-level,
out in the open views by the road as it sunned itself with drooping
wings and extended tail while straddling a branch (parallel like a
nighthawk!). It flew down to some tall grass and grabbed a big
caterpillar and then back to the same conspicuous perch and
proceeded to eat it in front of us before sunning itself for a little
while longer. It was quite a show. We then pulled over near
Featherstone Point residential area (just east of it) where we
spotted one Baird's Sandpiper on the beach hanging out with about a
dozen Semipalmated Sandpipers. It provided a very nice study and
comparison for some of the new birders as we looked down on them from
the side of the road. We then continued west to near Hoover Point
where we spotted a larger group of shorebirds on an open beach near
the road. Here we got our best birds of the day as we IDed both
Lesser and Greater Yellowlegs, Stilt Sandpiper, Short-billed
Dowitcher, Semipalmated and Least Sandpipers, and last but not least,
a White-rumped Sandpiper. We were able to watch them for about 20
minutes in good lighting through our scopes from the side of the road.
By now we realized we only had time for one more stop after enjoying
the leisurely drive along Lakeshore Road and we opted to head
NW before we got to Selkirk to check out the Townsend lagoons. This was
our only disappointment for the day as conditions there had changed
dramatically since our last visit perhaps in part due to work being
done on them as well as the recent hot weather. The second lagoon was
nearly completely dry and the north section of the first cell had
been altered by recent work and was not very productive. We did spot
a lone Ruddy Duck in the NE cell and had a few more good looks at
Baird's Sandpiper before we headed north for home around 3pm. We
finished the day with 14 shorebird species, missing out on the Poth
Road Black-bellied Plovers and running out of time to check the
Mosaic wetlands. BG
