Whitesbog 10/15--2nd Shorebird Season

Wilson's Phalarope (right) with Lesser Yellowlegs, Union Pond

It looks like we're going to get a second shorebird season at Whitesbog. For the last month or so the drawn down bogs have been empty of any birds, save for the occasional Killdeer, but Union Pond, just on the other side of the road, has been slowly draining, exposing fresh mud and vegetation.

Pectoral Sandpipers

This morning, I could hear the Killdeer calling from the Pond when I was on the other side of the middle bog. Walking over there, sans scope, since I wasn't expecting to need it, I saw a big flock of them. My first count was 30, but then I noticed that some were not Killdeer. I continued around the pond and despite having the sun almost directly in my eyes, I could see that there were 5 shorebirds that I at first took for Dunlins (which are rare in Burlco) but then decided, after some thought, that they were Pectoral Sandpipers. I continued my walk, satisfied with adding Pec to the month list. It was fairly active around Union Pond and Ditch Meadow, with a good influx of the common fall warblers like Yellow-rumps, Palms, Pines, and a couple of "Yellowstarts."  The most interesting warbler though was in the bog behind the village (I was putting in the miles today) where I found an immature Nashville Warbler.

Walking back out to the bogs, I decided to recheck Union Pond to see if anything new had come in. At first I was disappointed to see that most of the Killdeer had flown off, along with half the Pecs. But, some new, interesting shorebirds had indeed come in, including one Dunlin and some Lesser Yellowlegs. In with the yellowlegs was another shorebird that struck me as really odd. Because the light was harsh and I didn't have my scope, I wasn't willing to put out an alert until I got home to view my photos and to get a second opinion from the Burlco eBird reviewer, who confirmed my strong suspicion that the smaller bird with the white face, gray back and needle-like bill was a Wilson's Phalarope, a rarity in the state, never mind the county and pretty late to boot. Two rare birds on that pond is pretty good work for one day.

Dopey Duck

One of the first birds I saw today, just after dawn, was a Bald Eagle perched up in a tree on the northern side of Union Pond. And below it, persisting for more than a month despite the eagle's presence was the bird I've come to call "Dopey Duck." Someone released this big, white, domestic duck and I and the regulars thought it didn't have much of a survival chance with the all the raptors around, but somehow Dopey has managed to thrive. For the first month or so, it was accompanied by what looked like a Mallard/Black Duck hybrid, but that duck seems not to have made it.

Not counting Dopey Duck, I had 39 species for my walk around the bogs and the village, which is a very good number for the date and the place.

Mallard (Domestic type)  1    Dopey Duck 

Mourning Dove  2    Village

Killdeer  25

Dunlin  1    Brown/gray sandpiper with slightly curved Bill, smaller than pecs, killdeer. 

Pectoral Sandpiper  5

Wilson's Phalarope  1    White face, pale breast, gray back, needle like bill

Lesser Yellowlegs  7

Great Blue Heron  2

Turkey Vulture  8

Northern Harrier  1    Ditch Meadow

Bald Eagle  1    Union Pond

Belted Kingfisher  1    Union Pond

Red-bellied Woodpecker  4

Downy Woodpecker  1

Northern Flicker  2

Eastern Phoebe  1    Lower Bog

Blue Jay  10

American Crow  2

Carolina Chickadee  3

Tufted Titmouse  3

Golden-crowned Kinglet  1    Heard

Ruby-crowned Kinglet  2

Carolina Wren  1    Heard

European Starling  12

Gray Catbird  1    Heard

Eastern Bluebird  1    Heard

American Robin  10

Chipping Sparrow  2

Field Sparrow  2

White-throated Sparrow  5

Song Sparrow  10

Swamp Sparrow  3

Eastern Towhee  4

Red-winged Blackbird  1    Flyover, middle bog

Nashville Warbler  1    Immature

American Redstart  2    Yellowstarts

Palm Warbler  7

Pine Warbler  10

Yellow-rumped Warbler  15

Northern Cardinal  3