Beth's Patch ~ Spring Migration

Red-breasted Mergansers flying down the Bay

And the Laughing Gulls have returned for the season

Dunlin are around all winter in good numbers.  Here they are moving along the Bay.

Cumberland County ~ Heislerville WMA & Thompson Beach Road

Black-bellied Plover

Short-billed Dowitcher

Semipalmated Sandpiper

Dunlin

Osprey on nest

Marsh Wren

Florida ~ Green Key

Next stop was in Green Key at the Robert K Rees Park.  What a great place!  Apparently, it is a migrant magnet in the spring and other times of the year after storms.  There are warblers found along the entrance in the trees.  I saw many Palm and Pine Warblers along with a gorgeous Yellow-throated Warbler.  We didn't find any birds along the beach front but that was probably the time of day and all of the people on the small beach. Then as we were leaving we saw White Ibis, Little Blue Heron and a Dunlin along the water's edge.  We were also surprised to see a horseshoe crab on the same beach.

Yellow-throated Warbler

Red-bellied Woodpecker

Dunlin

Bay Bay Birding

Out and about on Monday in the Back Bays behind Wildwood to get a bird fix.  I love the spring birding when the birds are migrating through the area.  I saw lots of Common Loons, both in breeding plumage and not, Short-billed Dowitchers, Dunlin, Semipalmated Plovers, Black-bellied Plovers, good numbers of Whimbrel, Osprey with one flying in nest building materials, American Oystercatchers, Common Terns, Ruddy Turnstones.  Here are a few pictures.

Stone Harbor Point Jetty

    I was able to over today to Stone Harbor Point after work and walked out to the jetty. In the water I saw Brant, Common Eider, Black Scoter while along the beach feeding were Sanderling and Dunlin.  Up on the rocks were American Oystercatcher, Dunlin,  Ruddy Turnstone  and several species of gulls.  Tide was out and I walked out the jetty but as with all jetties you must be careful as the moss on the rocks makes them very slippery.  Proper footwear is always a good idea to prevent any falls.

Wordless Wednesday - Dunlin - Avalon 8th Street Beach

 

Cook's Beach on a great day of birding

After checking out Benny's Landing Road where I finally saw my first Clapper Rail of the season I cut across the island to Cook's Beach hoping to see some Red Knots feasting on the horseshoe crab eggs. Cook's Beach was having great flybys of mixed shorebirds though I saw no Red Knots in the mix. It looked like there were good numbers of Semipalmated Sandpipers, Sanderlings and a few Dunlin and Ruddy Turnstones.   Going back out the road I saw Willets, Snowy Egrets and a great Glossy Ibis feeding among the reeds in a pan.

Out & about on a Sunday afternoon

Today included a trip on the Skimmer Salt Marsh Safari. My first trip on the boat since last fall where we saw lots of migrating spring shorebirds plus some that stay here to breed. The highlight of of the trip for me had to all of the Whimbrel feeding in the salt marshes.  There was a family of American Oystercatchers with chicks though we didn't get to see the chicks.  Several times we saw American Oystercatchers doing flybyes.

When going home I stopped to bird along Ocean Drive going towards Cape May. Here I saw Dunlin, Yellow Legs, Dowitchers, Willets and lots of Laughing Gulls.

Dunlin (pictured above)    Greater Yellow Legs (pictured below)

The beach at Stone Harbor

I am still going strong and now it's afternoon where I have decided to chcek out Nummy Island and the Point at Stone Harbor. What I found were hundreds of Dunlin and Sanderlings on the 117th & 118th Street beaches.

Avalon Jetty

During winter I try to get out birding and doing photography as much as possible. Today's trip was up again to Avalon Jetty. It was a cold and windy day so the birds were roosting against the rocks. I was surprised to see these 3 species of birds there - Semi-palmated Plovers, Red Knots and Dunlins along with some Sanderlings playing at the edge of the water along with the usual Purple Sandpipers and Ruddy Turnstones. I wasn't sure of the ID of the Dunlin and Red Knot so turned to my friends at the Cape May Bird Observatory for verification.

Semi-palmated Plover

Semi-palmated Plover

Red Knot

Dunlin