Greetings, birding friends! I filled in for Mike Windsor on this week's regular Thursday 7-9AM bird walk at Maine Audubon's Gilsland Farm. The low tide had just turned when we started so we headed straight for the Presumpscot River estuary in search of shorebirds. (1/2 hour on either side of dead low tide is the ideal time for viewing shorebirds here and out on the Mackworth Flats, as the extensive mudflats are covered by water throughout almost the entire tide cycle.)
This strategy paid off handsomely, as we enjoyed wheeling flocks of well over 1,000 "peeps" (nearly all Semipalmated Sandpipers) plus good counts of Black-bellied Plovers and several other shorebird species. A count of 8 Great Blue Herons alongside good numbers of Great and Snowy egrets was a further highlight.
We scrounged a bit for fall warblers but one late-arriving member of the group (Nancy Houlihan) encountered a nice "wave" near the headquarters buildings. 4 Ruby-throated Hummers was a further indication of trans-gulf migrants on the move. Down at the pond a Green Heron was still as a statue on a lilly pad, affording captivating looks. Osprey seemed to be everywhere, with 4 in view at once from the community garden area.
Oddly, we didn't have a single duck species. An eBird list for the walk follows. [P.S. to Mike: I think I left Rock Pigeon (12) and Mourning Dove (3) off the eBird list -- so our species total was 49.]
This walk takes place every Thursday morning and rarely disappoints, thanks as much to the participants as the birds. For more info please visit http://maineaudubon.org/events/category/gilsland-farm/
Peace & good birding,
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Gilsland Farm Audubon Center, Cumberland, US-ME
Aug 30, 2012 7:00 AM - 9:00 AM
Protocol: Traveling
2.0 mile(s)
Comments: Regular Thursday AM bird walk at Maine Audubon's Gilsland Farm property
47 species (+2 other taxa)
Double-crested Cormorant 8
Great Blue Heron 8
Great Egret 4
Snowy Egret 9
Green Heron 1
Osprey 4
Cooper's Hawk 1
hawk sp. 1
Black-bellied Plover 35
Semipalmated Plover 20
Spotted Sandpiper 1
Greater Yellowlegs 6
Lesser Yellowlegs 4
peep sp. 1200 Counts of 1000+ peeps are not unusual here at this time of year at or near dead low tide
Bonaparte's Gull 24
Ring-billed Gull 10
Herring Gull 15
Chimney Swift 4
Ruby-throated Hummingbird 4
Belted Kingfisher 1
Yellow-bellied Sapsucker 1
Downy Woodpecker 3
Hairy Woodpecker 1
Pileated Woodpecker 1
Eastern Phoebe 8
Red-eyed Vireo 3
Blue Jay 6
American Crow 14
Tree Swallow 3
Black-capped Chickadee 9
Tufted Titmouse 1
White-breasted Nuthatch 3
House Wren 4
Hermit Thrush 1
American Robin 3
Gray Catbird 8
Cedar Waxwing 12
Black-and-white Warbler 1
Common Yellowthroat 2
Northern Parula 1
Blackpoll Warbler 1
Pine Warbler 1
Black-throated Green Warbler 3
Wilson's Warbler 1
Song Sparrow 4
Northern Cardinal 3
House Finch 5
American Goldfinch 15
House Sparrow 6
This report was generated automatically by eBird v3 (http://ebird.org)
Protocol: Traveling
2.0 mile(s)
Comments: Regular Thursday AM bird walk at Maine Audubon's Gilsland Farm property
47 species (+2 other taxa)
Double-crested Cormorant 8
Great Blue Heron 8
Great Egret 4
Snowy Egret 9
Green Heron 1
Osprey 4
Cooper's Hawk 1
hawk sp. 1
Black-bellied Plover 35
Semipalmated Plover 20
Spotted Sandpiper 1
Greater Yellowlegs 6
Lesser Yellowlegs 4
peep sp. 1200 Counts of 1000+ peeps are not unusual here at this time of year at or near dead low tide
Bonaparte's Gull 24
Ring-billed Gull 10
Herring Gull 15
Chimney Swift 4
Ruby-throated Hummingbird 4
Belted Kingfisher 1
Yellow-bellied Sapsucker 1
Downy Woodpecker 3
Hairy Woodpecker 1
Pileated Woodpecker 1
Eastern Phoebe 8
Red-eyed Vireo 3
Blue Jay 6
American Crow 14
Tree Swallow 3
Black-capped Chickadee 9
Tufted Titmouse 1
White-breasted Nuthatch 3
House Wren 4
Hermit Thrush 1
American Robin 3
Gray Catbird 8
Cedar Waxwing 12
Black-and-white Warbler 1
Common Yellowthroat 2
Northern Parula 1
Blackpoll Warbler 1
Pine Warbler 1
Black-throated Green Warbler 3
Wilson's Warbler 1
Song Sparrow 4
Northern Cardinal 3
House Finch 5
American Goldfinch 15
House Sparrow 6
This report was generated automatically by eBird v3 (http://ebird.org)
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