Brigantine 9/14-Change of the Seasons

Another of what seems like my weekly trip to Brigantine didn't add anything new for the year but there were some very cool birds like the very quick look at a Sora that skittered across the dike at the Gull Pond. It was only seen for two seconds by me & one other person on the trip. Soras are notoriously shy, so although Pete tried calling it out, it remained a no show. Not a very satisfying sighting, but it counts.

The "big" bird of the day was the American Avocet we spotted on both trips around the dikes. The first time was in Turtle Cove, rather distant but decent looks at the bird in its high contrast b/w version of itself. The 2nd trip around the impoundments it had moved to the north dike, where we were able to get much closer views. We car pool at Brig and for one of my passengers the avocet was a life bird and I was happy to see her excitement when she got great looks at this rather exotic bird.




























At the dogleg we again found grasspipers. I have to say that I have never in my life seen as many American Golden-Plovers as I have these last few weeks. They're almost becoming a "ho-hum" bird. Also present were both Baird's and Buff-breasted Sandpipers again this week.

Not much in the way of passerines. Some early birders saw some warblers in the woods around the parking lot, but I didn't get there until about 8:30--too late.

You could really feel the change of the seasons today--it felt more like fall than summer on the road with a stiff breeze and the most abundant shorebird was Black-bellied Plover, a bird it won't be surprising to find in mid-winter. Two Marbled Godwits, another species that is no stranger in winter were also in the NW corner of the refuge. The warblers are moving through, the ducks are moving in, the shorebirds are moving out--summer's over gang.

61 species for our 2 circuits.
Canada Goose  100
Mute Swan  2
American Black Duck  1
Mallard  10
Blue-winged Teal  100
Northern Shoveler  2
Northern Pintail  2
Green-winged Teal  2
Pied-billed Grebe  1    Gull Pond
Double-crested Cormorant  25
Great Blue Heron  3
Great Egret  100
Snowy Egret  20
Little Blue Heron  5
Glossy Ibis  1
Osprey  3
Northern Harrier  2
Red-tailed Hawk  2
Clapper Rail  1
Sora  1    Gull Pond dike. 
American Avocet  1
Black-bellied Plover  700
American Golden-Plover  3    
Semipalmated Plover  10
Greater Yellowlegs  100
Lesser Yellowlegs  10
Whimbrel  4
Marbled Godwit  2
Dunlin  10
Baird's Sandpiper  1
Least Sandpiper  5
White-rumped Sandpiper  1
Buff-breasted Sandpiper  2
Semipalmated Sandpiper  500
Western Sandpiper  1
Short-billed Dowitcher  25
Laughing Gull  100
Ring-billed Gull  1
Herring Gull  100
Great Black-backed Gull  10
Caspian Tern  3
Forster's Tern  100
Royal Tern  2
Mourning Dove  2
Belted Kingfisher  1
Downy Woodpecker  1    Heard
Peregrine Falcon  1
Blue Jay  4
American Crow  2
Tree Swallow  200
Carolina Chickadee  1    Heard, entrance road
Tufted Titmouse  1    Heard, parking lot
White-breasted Nuthatch  1    Heard, Lily Lake
Carolina Wren  1    Heard, picnic tables
Gray Catbird  1    Heard, exit ponds
European Starling  500
Chipping Sparrow  2    Parking lot
Northern Cardinal  1    Picnic tables
Red-winged Blackbird  100
Boat-tailed Grackle  4
American Goldfinch  3    Visitor Ctr feeder, south dike, & parking lot