Wednesday started clear, cold and nearly windless; generally about as good a day as we get for Keeper rotation. However, things started downhill shortly after I got back onto the island with increasing wind and a biting chill that accompanied the increasing cloud cover.
Nonetheless, I made a quick reconnoitre which produced many of the expected birds.
Nonetheless, I made a quick reconnoitre which produced many of the expected birds.
Most notable for their numbers were SONG SPARROWS and JUNCOS, both of which were about as plentiful as we see.
Other species included FLICKER, PHOEBE, COWBIRD, SWAMP SPARROW, WHITE THROATED SPARROW, CHIPPING SPARROW, MOURNING DOVE & STARLING, with only one or two of each.
The 2 RAVENS continue to be present and vocal and over 20 PURPLE SANDPIPERS were playing in the surf.
1 EAGLE was feeding on a very small, white coat GRAY SEAL pup.
RAZORBILLS & MURRES have been rafting around the island and coming ashore each evening for about a week. Last night several thousand ALCIDS set down in heavy wind but not a PUFFIN among them.
Scanning the rafts on the water yielded only 5 Puffins, which seems the norm for these early season arrivals.
Also normal, all the arriving Alcids were limited to the main parts of the colony. Absolutely no Alcids landed on the northerly or easterly sections of the island and only about a hundred rafted in the cove.
The Razorbills & Murres have stayed ashore today, with the normal coming and going.
Other water birds about the island include:
>20 HARLEQUIN DUCKS;
a half dozen RED BREASTED MERGANSERS;
3 COMMON LOONS;
>30 LONG TAILED DUCKS;
around 30 COMMON EIDERS;
random BLK. LEGGED KITTIWAKES;
20 some HERRING GULLS;
4 ICELAND GULLS and
5 GREAT BLACK BACKED GULLS.
Some 100 plus GRAY SEALS were taking the sun on Gull Rock.
A moment ago a cloud of Sparrows and Juncos swarmed past the window, obviously flushed from their patio lunch.
A quick glance found a KESTREL in full costume trying to maintain a precarious perch just outside the kitchen window in the 35 knot (65 km/hr) wind.
Maine birds mailing list
maine-birds@googlegroups.com
http://groups.google.com/group/maine-birds
https://sites.google.com/site/birding207
---
You received this message because you are subscribed to the Google Groups "Maine birds" group.
To unsubscribe from this group and stop receiving emails from it, send an email to maine-birds+unsubscribe@googlegroups.com.
For more options, visit https://groups.google.com/d/optout.
0 comments:
Post a Comment