South Florida and Southeastern US Trip, January 6-16, 2025, Part 3 of 3

In November 2024 I started planning a mid-winter trip to south FL trip focused on specialties, exotics, and rarities.  And speaking of rarities, there were 3 mega rarities being seen – Bananaquit, Yellow-headed Caracara and Large-billed Tern.  I mentioned the upcoming trip to my good birding friend Bill Hooker, and he expressed interest in coming along.  Soon we were thinking about a trip for 4 of us –including Bill and his wife Anita, plus Bill’s friend Bob Cowan.  Not only were all of us looking for lifebirds and statebirds, but Bill was also working on his county lists, and Bob was embarking on a 2025 big year.  Plus, Anita was great at photographing our target birds.  So there were lots of potential targets for all of us.  And speaking of state and county birds, we decided to drive to south FL instead of flying so we could work on our lists along the way.

After perhaps 200 hours of research, I mapped out a route that would take us down the coast of SC and GA, through inland northern and central FL, then onto south FL.  Then we would return along the Atlantic coast of FL and back through GA and SC.  We tentatively planned it as an 11-day trip including 5 days in south FL.  Though we included more than enough flexibility to pursue any newly reported target birds.  With this itinerary I hoped for 4 new statebirds in SC, 2 in GA, and 10 new statebirds in FL.  And perhaps 2 of those new FL birds would be lifebirds as well.  Though unfortunately one of the initial triggers for our trip, the Bananaquit, was no longer being seen.

See my previous 2 blog posts for summaries of the first two thirds of the trip.

1/13 – Central Florida

With our south FL birding complete, we started our long drive home.  Though of course we would have some birding stops along the way.  Our next set of stops would be at the Merritt Island NWR, first to look for a long-staying Eurasian Wigeon.  This bird was first discovered back in November, and had been seen nearly daily ever since.  Although it was enticing to look for it on our way south through the state, I decided to skip the search for this bird as we headed south so we could use a more inland route through FL for other targets.  Instead, we would look for the Wigeon several days later as we took a more coastal route on the way back north.  That strategy was a bit risky, but I was betting that the bird would stick around at least until we made our return.  And the bird was indeed still being seen daily when we got to the refuge so my gamble paid off.  Many of the eBird reports provided good details on the location of our bird (between stops #2 and #3 of the Black Point Wildlife Drive).  Now we just needed to find that one bird in a large American Wigeon flock.

We finally arrived at the refuge mid afternoon and headed straight for the Wildlife Drive.  There were quite a number of waders near the beginning of the Drive, but there were next to no waterfowl.  Just after we passed stop #2 we got to a lake on the left with good numbers of dabbling ducks in the eastern end, including quite a few Wigeon.  Now the pressure was on.  I started a slow scan of the closer ducks, then the ones a bit farther out, and finally the dabblers in the distance.  There were 50 or more American Wigeon but I couldn’t find the Eurasian.  There were a couple small mangrove islands in the middle of the lake that blocked my view of part of the lake, so I changed my vantage point a couple times but still couldn’t find our target.  I was getting worried.  I tried to tell myself that I wasn’t overlooking the bird; instead it was just in a different location.

We drove a short distance farther along to check the western end of the lake and came upon some more Wigeon.  Did we have the right location now?  Sure enough, within just a minute I had picked out the Eurasian Wigeon.  It was backlit a bit, but the orangey-red head and gray sides really stood out.

That was my 16th state where I’ve seen Eurasian Wigeon, mostly along both ocean coasts.

Our last targets of the day were a pair of American Flamingos wintering in the northern part of the Merritt Island refuge.  Initial eBird reports seemed to suggest that the birds were being seen in multiple locations, but that mostly turned out to be erroneous locations for the checklists.  Instead, a bit of research indicated that they were principally being seen at the south end of the Haulover Canal, most often on a small island called Bird Island.  All the photos showed the birds were quite far away, roosting with Cormorants and Pelicans.  So some distant searching might be necessary.

When we pulled up to the canoe launch area at the south end of the canal we quickly spotted Bird Island about a half mile away, along with the roosting flock of Cormorants and Pelicans.  And even with just binoculars you could see pink dots among the flock.  Scope views confirmed we had the 2 Flamingos.  Good thing they are such large and colorful birds.

Flamingo wasn’t a life bird or even a state bird for any of us, but it was great to see these beautiful birds again for our year lists.  And it sure was easier than my last FL Flamingos in the Everglades at the end of Snake Bight Trail.

1/14 – Central and Northern Florida

As we continued to head north, our first stop of the day was at Blue Spring SP for Florida Scrub-Jays.  The park is in the heart of Scrub-Jay habitat, and that part of central Florida has lots of Scrub-Jay reports in eBird.  But these birds are often in isolated spots, or move through the habitat in small family groups. So you often have to be lucky to run into one of those small wandering flocks.  In any case, it’s not a sure thing to find them on any given trip, even in good habitat. 

In doing my research I found multiple recent reports from Blue Spring, some concentrated near the campground and others from the Scrub-Jay Loop trail.  We asked for advice from the ranger at the entrance booth and he said the best spot was the Scrub-Jay Loop trail.  With a name like that how could you go wrong?  We started a slow walk down the trail in nice habitat but didn’t encounter any Jays.  We turned a curve in the trail and Bob spotted a bird foraging in the trail in the distance – we had our first Florida Scrub-Jay.  When we got closer we found 3 birds at this spot.  And a bit farther down the road we ran into another group of 4.  This one perched in the open affording nice, albeit backlit, views.

Later we took a short side trip to the spring and got great views of numerous manatees lounging in the relatively warm waters of the spring. 

Next we headed back to the Ocala Wetland Recharge Park for another try for the Swifts and Ash-throated Fly.  The Swifts had been reported several times since our last trip there, but they continued to be seen only sporadically.  The Ash-throated had been reported a couple times too, so we tried to stay optimistic.  But despite nearly an hour of waiting near the southern impoundments the Swifts were once again a no show.  Then we walked to the northwest part of the park where the Flycatcher is typically seen but had only Phoebes.  Rather than doubling back as we did on our first visit, we continued on the loop around the northern impoundment and came back on the eastern side.  We had only walked perhaps 50 yards when we spotted some movement at the edge of the low brush – it was the Ash-throated Flycatcher, nicely captured by Anita in this picture.  (FL statebird #11) 

We were lucky we saw it when we did because it soon slipped down further into the vegetation mostly out of view.  FL was my 8th east coast state (along with KS) where I’ve seen this species as a vagrant.

Our next stop was a home in Gainesville where a female Western Tanager was coming to a feeder.  It took a bit of effort but I was finally able to obtain contact information for the homeowner.  With a quick call it turned out that he was very willing to have us come by his home and watch for his Tanager which had returned for its 3rd consecutive winter.  We watched his feeders through his kitchen window, and after a 30-minute wait, the Tanager dropped in to feed (FL statebird #12), along with several of his Baltimore Orioles.  Once again, here is one of Anita’s pictures of the Tanager.

My statebird map for Western Tanager is actually quite similar to the Ash-throated map.

Many thanks to the homeowner for his hospitality!  He also told us about a pair of rare Common Goldeneyes in a nearby pond, which made for a most successful last birding stop in FL. 

1/14 – Coastal Georgia

We had just enough time before sunset for 2 quick stops in southern GA for unusual waterfowl.  The first was a male Common Goldeneye in a small lake along Queens Court just outside of Brunswick.  Unfortunately, we weren’t successful in finding it, though we had at least 150 Ruddy Ducks on the lake.  The bird was last seen a couple days earlier, with a photo showing it sitting on the shore, and the birder commented that it had a bad eye.  It sure didn’t look healthy in that picture; perhaps it passed before our visit on the 14^th.

Our last GA stop was at Blythe Island Park where a White-fronted Goose was hanging out with a small Canada Goose flock.  As we arrived at the park gate it was 5:45 and we all noticed the sign that the gate would close at 6.  But it was a small park so we hoped we would have just enough time to find our target and get out by 6.  We pulled up to the park lake and heard some geese calling in the distance.  It was starting to get pretty dark, but I was able to pick out the White-front in the distance.  We quickly drove over to the campground where we last saw the bird, re-spotted it in with the Canadas (Anita was able to snap this one picture) and got back out just 2 minutes before 6. 

 Can’t get any more efficient than that!

1/15 – Coastal Georgia

Our last full birding day of the trip was focused on several of our targets along the GA coast.  First we headed just a couple miles inland from Brunswick to Paulks Pasture WMA where Henslow’s Sparrows had been seen recently.  I had reached out to a local birder and got precise locations for the birds lurking in wet grasses along a powerline cut.  I donned my boots and rainpants and trudged through the tall grass but came up empty, finding just a Sedge Wren, despite what looked like ideal habitat.  It was nice to find this large patch of pitcher plants that measured at least 3 feet across.

Our next stop was in the Spartina marshes along the causeway to St. Simons for the 3 “marsh sparrows”.  We timed our visit to be close to high tide to aid in flushing them out, but we only had one Seaside Sparrow respond to tape.  A Clapper Rail in flight was a nice bonus bird.

Once onto St. Simons we headed to Sandcastle Drive near the airport.  A ditch and small riparian area continued where the road stopped, and a Lincoln’s Sparrow had been seen there recently near a railroad tie retention wall.  This area was quite birdy, and we found birds like Painted Buntings and an Orange-crowned Warbler.  Eventually we found the retaining wall and spotted the Lincoln’s Sparrow skulking in the low brush just below the wall.  (GA statebird #1)  I now just need this species in 4 more states (the cross-hatched states in my statebird map below).

Our next targets were a pair of Western Kingbirds near the south end of the St. Simons airport, just a 5-minute walk from the Lincoln’s Sparrow spot.  They were typically seen perched in a large brush pile, and along the airport fences.  But even though they had been seen in the area for some time, they were only seen infrequently.  In fact, my local contact told me that he had recently spent 3 days looking for them with no luck.  And then the day before we arrived there was a report that they were seen perched on a relatively hidden back side of the brush pile.  Luckily I got directions to reach that portion of the pile, and we headed straight to that spot.  And within a couple minutes I was able to get distant scope views of one of the birds.  (GA statebird #2)  Western Kingbird is another of those typically “western” species that is a regular vagrant to the east coast.

Our last stop on the island was a shorebird hotspot named Gould’s Inlet.  A Snowy Plover had been spotted there recently, but not reported in the most recent couple checklists.  So I wasn’t too hopeful, though looking forward to seeing some big numbers and variety of shorebirds.  As we arrived there were already good numbers of shorebirds on the flats, and more continued to fly in as the tide dropped.  We were able to find 9 species of shorebirds including the only Piping and Wilson’s Plovers of the trip.  And wild estimates of numbers were dominated by 500 Dunlin, 100 Semi Plovers, and 75 Least Sandpipers.  An estimated 300 Black Skimmers were notable as well.  But as expected, we could not find the Snowy Plover.  A flyby flock of Black Scoters were nice as well.

We continued up the GA coast and headed for yet another try for Purple Sandpipers at the Tybee Island North Jetty.  Two had been reported and photographed there on the 13th, so we were actually more hopeful this time than on our first try.  But once again we only found Turnstones and Sanderlings.

1/16 – South Carolina

We made 2 final stops in SC on our last day on the road.  The first was at the Savannah NWR Visitor Center where Bill hoped to find Purple Finch as a new SC statebird.  I wasn’t too hopeful since the last time a Purple Finch was reported there was 12 days earlier at the feeding station.  But I liked Bill’s optimism.  We arrived at dawn and only found squirrels at the feeder.  We started talking about how wintering Purple Finches like to eat tree seeds, especially tulip, sweet gum, and sycamore seeds.  I started looking around and spotted a large gum tree nearby loaded with seed balls.  Sure enough there were 4 birds near the top of the tree that turned out to be Purple Finches.  Like I said, I like Bill’s optimism.

Our last stop was at the Orangeburg Sod Farm where we hoped for Ground Doves, especially around the maintenance buildings.  We found numerous MODOs, but alas no Ground Doves.

Summary of Trip Results

We amassed 213 species on the trip.  When the trip was over we were all briefly in eBird’s top 20 for the ABA Region for the year, and top 5 in FL.  And speaking of FL, we saw 43 of 53 south FL targets. 

Other highlights among our 213 species were:

- South FL Specialties - Short-tailed Hawk, Snail Kite, White-crowned Pigeon, "Great White" Heron, Burrowing Owl, Lesser Nighthawk, Florida Scrub Jay, Vermilion Flycatcher, Whooping Crane, "Golden/Carribean" Yellow Warbler, 15 species of wintering warblers

- Exotics - Spot-breasted Oriole, Red-whiskered Bulbul, Common Myna, Indian Peafowl, Egyptian Goose, 6 species of parakeets/amazons/macaws

- Rarities - 4 Tropical Kingbirds, Ruff, Brown-crested Flycatcher, 10 Shiny Cowbirds, 2 American Flamingos, Eurasian Wigeon, 2nd record of Gray-headed Swamphen for SC, 5 Cave Swallows, 2 Ash-throated Flycatchers, 2 Western Tanagers, Black-throated Gray Warbler, and a remarkable 18 Western Kingbirds

I ended up with 2 new Lifebirds – Blue-and-yellow Macaw and Orange-winged Amazon - bringing my ABA Continental list to 776 per eBird’s countability rules.  Plus I added 20 new statebirds, much better than the 16 I hoped for:

- SC – added 6 bringing my total to 312

- GA – added 2 with a new state total of 272

- FL – added 12 raising my total to 343

The eBird Trip Report can be found at – ebird.org/tripreport/318837

It sure was a nice break from winter birding in western NC!

Coastal VA and NC Trip Nets 11 New Statebirds, December 9-13, 2021, Part 1 of 2

I attended a Carolina Bird Club trip to the Outer Banks of NC in mid-December 2021.  And along with extensions into coastal VA, plus 2 travel days, I made it into a 5-day weekend.  It had been more than 20 years since I birded southeastern VA, and I had quite a number of possible new statebirds.  First, several target species like Lesser Black-backed Gull and White Ibis are more numerous there now.  Plus my VA statelist was only at 250 so there were a number of gaps in general I could fill.  On the downside, my last trip was before 9/11 when I was still able to bird on the islands of the Chesapeake Bay Bridge Tunnel (CBBT) – locations which are no longer accessible due to possible terrorist concerns.  As for NC, even though it had been nearly 3 decades (ouch) since I birded the Outer Banks, my potential targets in NC were pretty limited.  Most importantly I was banking on a couple long-staying rarities, Eurasian Wigeon and Hudsonian Godwit, which were rather reliable.  All told I hoped for 5 or 6 new statebirds in VA and 3 in NC.  And I was looking forward to reacquainting myself with some of the top hotspots on the NC and VA coasts.

This is my summary of the first half of the trip; see my next post for the latter half of the trip.

December 9 – 0 for 3 for the Travel Day to the Coast

I had 3 targets for my day heading to the coast – Say’s Phoebe near Greensboro, NC, Heermann’s Gull in Hopewell, VA, and Red-cockaded Woodpecker in Sussex County, VA.  Even with lots of hours on the road, I had plenty of time to be able to check off all 3.  That is if the birds were reasonably cooperative. 

The Say’s Phoebe had been coming to a complex of farmfields and related buildings in Guilford County since mid-October.  Earlier in its stay it was quite reliable, with most birders finding the bird rather quickly.  But lately, many reports included several hours of wait time.  Though all birders were apparently eventually seeing the Phoebe.  That is except for a visit 3 days before my trip which came up empty.  In any case, I remained optimistic and allotted myself at least an hour and a half to find my target.

I got out of the house 30 minutes earlier than expected, and the early morning traffic was light, so I had even more time to find the Phoebe.  Within minutes I had picked out most of the perches where the bird had been photographed – wooden fence posts along the pond, fencing surrounding the corral, concertina wire around the former penitentiary, and roofs of old farm buildings.  But by 11:45, my planned time to depart this spot, 2 hours of searching still hadn’t produced the Phoebe.  I could stay longer in the hope that it would still show up, but that could reduce my chances of finding my later targets.  I decided I could give it another 30 minutes and still have enough time to get my last 2 targets, though just barely.  But it was not to be.  After 2 ½ hours I still didn’t have the bird, and I wondered if the cold, raw, overcast weather was minimizing the activity of the Phoebe’s insect food.  I decided to call it quits, since I could always give it another try on my way back home on Monday.  That is if it was still being seen.

Next it was on to the Hopewell, VA City Marina where an immature Heermann’s Gull had been overwintering since late October.  Not only was it long-staying, but it was also very reliable.  Many birders reported seeing it within minutes of arriving, often as it begged for food at the marina.  If the bird was just as cooperative for me I could be in and out in just a few minutes and still have time to try for the Red-cockaded Woodpeckers, my third target of the day.  I pulled in just after 3 PM and saw a few Ring-bills and Laughings in the parking lot, but no Heermann’s.  I was already past my allotted time when I noticed large gull flocks on the 2 marina roofs, but only found the regular Herrings, Laughings, and Ring-bills.  There were a couple reports of the bird perched under the adjacent bridge, but with a quick look again I came up empty.  Quite a number of gulls were now coming into roost on the buildings, so I tried to check out each bird as it arrived.  Still no luck.  After more than an hour I decided that my target bird just wasn’t around.  And not only had I missed the Heermann’s, but I also no longer had enough time to try for the woodpeckers. 

That left me 0 for 3 for my targets for the day.  Not the best way to start the trip.  And my results, or I should say lack of results, really put a monkey-wrench in my plans.  I could always try for all 3 after my trip to the Outer Banks, but that would probably require me to cut the NC portion of my trip short.  I’d definitely have to be flexible.

December 10 – Successful Day in Eastern VA

The plan for the 10th was to visit several hotspots in Northampton and Virginia Beach Counties in eastern VA.  I was in search of as many as 7 targets, though all but one, Lesser Black-backed Gull, were long shots.  Most were not reported recently, and/or could have just been passing through.  I started to brace myself for another less than successful day, maybe with just one new statebird.  Then again, after yesterday’s results, my luck had to improve, right?

Then just before the trip another target popped up on the radar screen – a Western Kingbird was found in Virginia Beach on the 9th.  If it was spotted again on the 10th I would revise my itinerary to chase after this rarity.  I would just have to check my Needs Alert during the day to see if it was re-found.

First I was off to Northampton County, with a first stop at the Eastern Shore of Virginia NWR.  Specifically. I was heading to the salt marshes at the end of Ramp Road where I hoped for Nelson’s Sparrow and Sedge Wren that had been reported there sporadically.  My route to the refuge took me across the CBBT which yielded lots of gull and cormorant flybys, though nothing of interest (stopping on the islands is no longer allowed).  Soon I was at the first boat ramp at the edge of a large expanse of Spartina marsh.  And it didn’t take long before I had a couple inquisitive Nelson’s Sparrows (VA statebird #1). 

My statebird map for Nelson’s Sparrow is inserted below.  The blue-shaded states are those where I’ve seen this species in its regular range; the cross-hatched states are those where I still need it as a regular species.  The 2 tan states (WV and VT) are locations where I’ve seen it as a rarity.  I still need it in several coastal states as a wintering bird and throughout its migration and breeding range in the Midwest.

I spent another half hour or so trudging through the marsh and adjacent brush trying for Sedge Wrens but with no luck.  But I had another spot to try for them so I hadn’t given up hope.

Next I was off to Sunset Beach where 4 Eurasian Collared-Doves had been reported a month earlier.  With no details on the location of the sighting, I wasn’t sure exactly where to look, so I took a 30-minute stroll around the beach area and adjoining campground and hotel.  No luck again.  I had 2 other spots to try for ECDs so wasn’t stressing too much.  I got back to my car and began to plan my next stop when I looked out my passenger window and noticed this Sapsucker not 10 feet away.  Nice cooperative bird.

 Then I headed to Magotha Road a few miles away which passes through ag fields and associated farm houses, and then ends in saltmarsh habitat similar to Ramp Road at the refuge.  Over the years there had been a fair number of ECD reports along Magotha Road, including 2 a month earlier at 5037 Magotha.  I started driving slowly along the road looking for doves perched nearby.  And when I got to #5037 slowed down to a crawl (I was a bit hesitant to park on the road opposite the house).  There were a couple feeders and some House Finches nearby but no doves so I just continued driving along.  I got to the end of the road without seeing any doves, so turned around to try again.  This time I went by 5037 even slower and spotted a large pale bird perched on the roof.  I came to a quick stop and put my binocs on it – it was indeed a Eurasian Collared-Dove (statebird #2).  Since I was already stopped, I scanned the rest of the area in more detail and found 2 more ECDs.  And no homeowners even came out to complain.

My statebird map pretty well matches the range of this species.  After first appearing in FL, Eurasian Collared-Doves expanded their range to the north and west throughout those parts of the US and southwestern Canada.  And for the most part they have avoided the northeast, though they are known for their vagrancy – I’ve now seen ECDs as a rarity in 7 northeast states.

With ECD nicely checked off, I headed to the salt marshes at the end of Magotha Road in hopes of finding a Sedge Wren.  Certainly lots of excellent habitat to search through.

 I walked along the road and played a bit of tape near some low brush – instantly I spotted movement of two birds skulking low in the brush.  Eventually 1 bird popped into the open giving me nice views of a Sedge Wren (statebird #3).  Later a third bird called spontaneously a short distant down the road.  As I was heading back to the car I noticed a number of waterfowl in the bay – there were Buffleheads everywhere.  I estimated at least 500 birds.  And the cherry on top was a flyby Peregrine.  

My next stop was at the southern end of the CBBT back in Virginia Beach County on Guy Avenue where there were two recent reports of Common Eiders.  The reports included large numbers of Surf Scoters, though there was no mention if the Eiders were in with the scoters or elsewhere.  After a few lefts and rights in a residential neighborhood I arrived at the viewing spot and quickly spotted the large flock of Surf Scoters – I counted 190 Surfs, and with careful searching found 4 White-wings and 1 Black.  But couldn’t come up with an Eider despite searches of the entire area.

When I got back to the car I checked my Needs Alert to see if the Western Kingbird was seen again that morning.  But there were no reports from that day so no need to make a diversion to look for it. 

Back on my original route my next stop was Rudee Inlet.  This location appeared to be THE spot for seawatches in Virginia Beach, plus featured occasional sightings of rarities on the jetties like Brown Booby and Heermann’s Gull.  Not to mention it would give me my first chance for Lesser Black-backed Gull which has become quite common on the coast.  The visit started well enough – a boat was dredging the channel, and the stirred-up sediments attracted a nice flock of gulls.  Here’s a pic of the dredge and the south jetty in the distance.

But the gulls at the dredge were all Laughers.  And the birds on the south jetty were just Pelicans and Great Black-backs.  Then I spent more than an hour doing a Seawatch, but the only thing that was notable was a nice flight or Red-throated Loons.  Though I did have one Long-tailed Duck flyby – I need that one in NC though not in VA.  At least there were several Lesser Black-backed Gulls loafing on the beaches nearby (statebird #4).

I’ve now seen this expanding species in most of its regular eastern states, and have seen it in 9 states across the country as a rarity.  And to think this was quite a rare species throughout the US not too many years ago.

The last stop of the day was at Little Island Park with its fishing pier - another good spot for a seawatch.  I spent about 90 minutes watching the ocean from the end of the pier, but had even less than at Rudee Inlet.

As I got back to the car I felt pretty happy with 4 new VA statebirds on the day.  That is until I checked my VA Needs Alert once again – the Western Kingbird was indeed seen again that day.  It was too late to give it a try now.  If only I had checked it before I left Rudee Inlet I would have gone after the Kingbird instead of going to Little Island Park.  Then again if it’s still being seen through Saturday I could give it a try on Sunday.  Yet another miss that I would need to try for later in the weekend.

December 11 – Outer Banks, NC

This was my first day to bird with the CBC group covering portions of Pea Island and Bodie Island.  Unfortunately, my limited list of NC statebird targets got even shorter by the time of the trip since the Hudsonian Godwit was last seen on the 7th.  Plus the long-staying Eurasian Wigeon had not been reported for several days, and American Wigeon numbers had dropped.  I started the NC portion of my trip with a realistic expectation that I might not get any new NC statebirds.  But I still looked forward to birding this area which is one of the best birding spots in the country. 

We started the day in the middle of Pea Island with our first stop targeting the maritime sparrows.  Here we had great looks at Nelson’s and Saltmarsh Sparrows (I missed the Seaside) and Marsh Wrens, and had a calling Virginia Rail.  Next we moved north to Pea Island NWR seeing excellent numbers of waterfowl such as 600 Snow Geese, 1400 Tundra Swans, 450 Gadwall, 900 Pintail, and 5000 Redheads.  Anyone for a few Redheads at North Pond?

Then there were the American Wigeon.  There was a smattering of Wigeon in South Pond and New Field Pond, and I looked at each of them in hopes of finding their red-headed cousin.  Then when we got to North Pond there were several hundred Wigeon scattered through the pond.  Certainly critical mass for a Eurasian.  Since that was quite possibly my only realistic target for the day, I focused on trying to pick out a Eurasian in the flock.  Most of the Wigeon were at the far western side of the pond which was more than 2,000 ft away.  But despite watering eyes and the great distance, I finally found a Eurasian Wigeon, pointing it out to everyone in the group.  At least I got 1 new NC statebird.  The Wigeon are in the far back portion of the impoundment in this picture.

Later we took a trail along the southern end of North Pond and got closer looks.  Here’s a closer phonescoped pic of the Eurasian.

One of our other stops was the observation platform at the north end of South Pond where the Hudsonian Godwit had been for about a week.  But it had been almost a week since it was last seen and we came up empty.  Though I still looked for the Godwit at each of our stops in the vicinity.

After lunch we headed to Oregon Inlet finding several nice birds, like a pair of Purple Sandpipers and a Great Cormorant near the bridge.  We also saw the spot where the Snow Bunting foraged for about a week earlier in the month – long gone of course.  A long walk to the jetty at the inlet didn’t yield much, but it was great to understand how to bird another hotspot in the area. 

The last stop of the day was at Jennette’s Pier, a long fishing pier that extends nearly 1,000 feet out into the ocean.  We had good numbers of birds passing by especially Brown Pelicans and Gannets.  And as we approached sunset a nice flock of gulls accumulated on the water in front of us, including a few Lessers and 1 Bonaparte’s.  We were excited for a while as a couple fishing boats passed by with large clouds of birds behind them, but we couldn’t pick out anything unusual.

I ended the day with 71 species.  And even though I only added 1 NC statebird, I had a great time re-learning many of those great local birding hotspots.

See my next post for a summary of the latter half of my birding trip. 

Eurasian Wigeon, Putney Great Meadows, VT, April 2015

Just before lunchtime came a report of a Eurasian Wigeon spotted in Putney, VT, feeding in a flooded field at the Putney Great Meadows.  Back in Spring 2014 I had decided not to chase a VT Eurasian Wigeon spotted in northwestern VT because it was a 3 ½ hour drive for me.  But this bird was in southeast VT, and although I didn’t know where Great Meadows was exactly, I knew this would be less than a 2 hour drive away.  As I rushed to head out the door I e-mailed the person who reported it and hoped she would get back to me with directions before I got to the area.  (It was there the day before as well, though the news didn’t get out.)  Luckily the local VT birder sent great micro-directions while I was en route – park on River Road opposite Ompawmet Road at the railroad tunnel.  Then climb up the bank to the railroad tracks for a nice view of Great Meadows to the east.

When I first arrived at River Road and got my first distant glimpse of Great Meadows I didn’t see any standing water in the field.  Did I have the right location?  But as I got to Ompawmet Road I saw the railroad tracks and tunnel, and new I was in the right spot.  I could see another birder with a scope up on the tracks, so I quickly got out of my car and climbed up the very steep bank to join him.  He had the target bird in his scope, and I got a quick view – a nice male Eurasian Wigeon! 

As I set up my scope to get better looks, I noticed that there was another birder/photographer out in the field quite close to the birds.  And I could hear the Canada Geese starting to “talk” as if they were upset at his presence.  I quickly got on the Wigeon, and got this passable phonescoped picture of this charming bird –

Good thing I got this shot when I did, because not 30 seconds later the photographer walking in the field flushed the entire flock of dabblers including the Eurasian Wigeon.  This was less than 2 minutes after I arrived – if I had delayed my trip by even a few minutes I would have been most disappointed.  Plus there were many Green-winged Teal in the flock, and I was really hoping to be able to check for Eurasian Teal, but never had the chance to.  The Wigeon and the other dabblers never returned while I was there.  And the photographer flushed most of the other birds in the field as well, so I didn’t have the opportunity to look for other rarities.  Those photographers….

It turns out that there was another Eurasian Wigeon in Vernon, VT that day, and one each in central MA and central CT.  That was 4 in the Connecticut River Valley on the same day.  And a couple Eurasian Teal were seen in VT the day before as well.  That’s a nice haul of European migrant waterfowl for inland New England!

VT was my last New England state for Eurasian Wigeon – the 234^th species I’ve seen in each of those 6 states.  I now have seen this species in 13 states overall – not bad for a Eurasian bird (see my statebird map below).

This brings my VT total up to 268, and 1,998 in New England.  Just 2 more to go to 2,000.