FreeLists / tn-bird / [TN-Bird] Shorebirds Species Increase

[OLCOOT1@xxxxxxx]

July 11, 2004
Lauderdale, Dyer, Lake Co. TN
Fulton Co. KY


Shorebirds kept making appearance but in only at scattered locations. At 
Chickasaw NWR the Egrets and Herons held any concentrations of shorebirds at 
bay. 
I've seen both Great Egrets and Great Blues catch and eat peeps and these 
birds were wall to wall at the refuge. There were 65 Am. White Pelicans lolling 
about and I later found 76 on a slip of a sand bar at Tiptonville.

At White Lake Refuge, as expected the wet habitat has practically 
disappeared, 1 Black-necked Stilt and 2 Least Sandpipers were the lot. I did 
see a single 
Coot, 1 male Green-winged Teal, 1 Shoveler, 2 adult Blue-winged Teal with a 
just fledged young trying to keep up with the parents in the air and lots of 
Mallards.

At 103 Highway and Hurd Loop Road, I flushed 1 Solitary Sandpiper. Another 
Solitary was found in a small wet area and the last refuge for shorebirds at 
this location. The surprise bird here was photographed, an alternate plumaged 
Dunlin, my first ever for July. I have a sprinkling of sightings in mid August 
but they usually are only seen late in migration. Six Least Sandpipers were the 
only other Wind Birds seen here.

The mother load was found at Phillippy Pits, this field consistently out 
produces all the managed habitat in the area. Here I counted, 21 Black-necked 
Stilts, mostly unpaired birds but a few may stay and try late nesting. I had 
found 
nests there last week and those nests are still being tended. The other goodi
es were, 1 Semipalmated Plover that was right on schedule, 39 Lesser 
Yellowlegs, 2 Solitary Sandpipers, 4 Pectoral Sandpipers, one male was so huge 
and a 
female so small that it was hard to believe they were the same species when 
standing side by side, 1 Stilt Sandpiper in alternate plumage, 2 Short-billed 
Dowitcher and 9 Least Sandpipers.

At three locations in KY, I had 9 Black-necked Stilts, down as I expected 
from the huge number of last week. There are 2 nests at one location as I 
watched 
for over an hour to see nest tending change overs. I suspected a third nest 
but no luck before I had to move on. A pair looked like they were just hanging 
out at another location, while a single flew over at another. I checked for 
the adults with young but their wet hole had dried and evidently they had led 
their charges away. I had 3 Pectoral and 5 Least to round out the list. I also 
counted over 200 Cliff Swallows feeding and perching over a field of flooded 
out corn stubble.


Good Birding!!!

Jeff R. Wilson
OL'COOT / TLBA
Bartlett, TN


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