September 8, 2021 was my planned day to chase after 2 “grasspipers” seen at the Orangeburg, SC sod farms – American Golden-Plover and Buff-breasted Sandpiper. But that morning as I was making my final preparations for the trip, I received an eBird SC Needs Alert that included yet another grasspiper - a Baird’s Sandpiper first seen on the 7th at Dobbins Farm in Anderson County. Dobbins Farm is a great spot; I’ve seen quite a number of rarities there in my 2 years living in the area. So not to be greedy, I wondered if I could try for both the Orangeburg birds and the Baird’s on that same day. Unfortunately, a trip to Dobbins Farm would require a major deviation in my route to and from Orangeburg. So the Baird’s would have to wait. Hopefully I could try for that one on the 9th if it was still around. Or maybe I’d find one at Orangeburg eliminating the need for the drive to Dobbins altogether.
The good news on the 8th was that I found both my
Golden-Plover and Buff-breasted targets.
The bad news was that I didn’t find a Baird’s at Orangeburg. So once I got home I quickly checked the
reports from Dobbins and sure enough the Baird’s was spotted on a morning trip
there on the 9th. Though a birder there
in the afternoon did not find it. What
to do? Had it moved on, or should I
still give it a try? Ever the optimist,
I decided to make a run for it on the 9th anyway and talked my birding buddy
Bill Hooker into meeting me there as well.
Bill and I arrived at 8:30 and quickly focused on the lower
pond where the Baird’s had been seen.
There were a number of Pectorals, Leasts, and Semi Sands foraging along
the muddy bank, but no Baird’s. I
scanned more of the shoreline, picking up Spotted, Solitary, Semi Plover, and
Lesser Yellowlegs. That’s a nice group
of shorebirds for this limited habitat,, but still no target bird. My optimism was waning. And then I scanned the near shore once again
and this time picked up a medium-sized peep which didn’t look like one of the
Pectorals. With a closer look it had
that characteristic long-winged look, patterned upper chest, and scalloped
pattern to the mantle – we had our Baird’s Sandpiper. I took this phonescoped photo of the bird in
the distance.
And cropped the photo further to zoom in on the Baird’s.
Over the next hour we watched as the bird would sometimes forage in the open on the near shore, but then more often spend time at a portion of the bank that was hidden from view. Undoubtedly that’s where the bird was when we first arrived. I guess we were lucky to have spotted it when it was in the open. And good thing we didn’t wait to chase after it as Bill and I were the last birders to see this latest Dobbins rarity.
Speaking of rare birds at Dobbins, during our visit we also
had a Black Tern make stops at both ponds, two early Green-winged Teal foraging
with Blue-wings, and heard a Dickcissel fly overhead. Not to mention views of the resident Barn Owl
nearby. What a great spot!
Baird’s Sandpiper is #289 for my SC state list. My statebird map is inserted below – the blue
states are those where I’ve seen Baird’s in its regular range; the tan states
are the numerous east coast states where I’ve seen them as a rarity. I still need it in 3 states where it’s
regular (the cross-hatched states).
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