FreeLists / birdky / [birdky] Mitchell Lake 8/1 & 8/2

["John Brunjes" <john.brunjes@xxxxxxxxx>]

I got to spend a few days in western KY checking on the Least Tern nesting
sites in the Ohio.  This gave me the chance to go check out the shorebirds
at Mitchell Lake last evening and again this morning.  As others have noted,
there were really good numbers of shorebirds and wading birds present. There
were also good numbers of least terns including at least 5 newly fledged
young.  Pectoral sandpipers and killdeer were the most abundant shorebird
species but there were other species there in good numbers as well.  Lots of
the birds were at extreme distance that with heat distortion made species
seperation(specifically peeps) impossible.  I also had good looks at 2 adult
Miss. Kites.

Shorebirds (numbers were ~average of the two days):
Killdeer 200+ (seemingly everywhere)
Semipalmated plover 3
Greater Yellowlegs 3
Lesser Yellowlegs 2
Solitary Sandpiper 3
Spotted Sandpiper 3
Pectoral Sandpiper 150+ (I counted 146 and there were some I know I missed)
Baird's Sandpiper 1
Western Sandpiper 2
Semipalmated Sandpiper 5
Least Sandpiper 50++
Unidentified peep (25+ mostly semiwestern sandpipers...but a few larger guys
mixed in)
Stilt Sandpiper 1
Dowitcher sp. 4 (way out there)

It was a couple great days to check out shorebirds.

John H. Brunjes
Frankfort, KY