[birdky] RPT: May 20th shorebirds McLean & Hopkins cos ... 16 spp incl. Red-necked Phalaropes

From: brainard@xxxxxxxxxxxxxx
To: "birdky@xxxxxxxxxxxxx" <birdky@xxxxxxxxxxxxx>
Date: Sat, 21 May 2011 00:52:21 -0400 (GMT-04:00)

Eddie Huber, Mark Monroe, and myself birded the receding floodwaters of Green 
River/Cypress Creek/Otter Creek in areas roughly between and west of Rumsey and 
Sacramento in northern McLean & northeastern Hopkins County on Friday. It is 
amazing how much the water has gone down in a week, but there is still SOOO 
much shorebird habitat there to be covered that we stayed in the area all day 
and didn't get to all the shallow water areas. If the water continues to drop 
at current rate, most of the fields will probably be dry in less than a week. 
Eddie kept the numbers, so some of these totals are rough right now coming from 
my initial notes. Highlights follow:

We did NOT see the Black-bellied Whistling-Ducks anywhere. We did see a few 
Blue-winged Teal, Northern Shovelers, Double-crested Cormorants, and American 
Coots.

Cattle Egrets ... we can't figure out where these birds are coming from, but we 
encountered at least 5 flocks of 15-56 birds foraging in the shallows.

Shorebirds ... 16 species including Semipalmated Plover, Killdeer, 1 Greater 
Yellowlegs, Lesser Yellowlegs, Solitary, Spotted, Least, Semipalmated.

Black-bellied Plover ... a state record one-day total of at least 137, most in 
4 flocks of 20-51 individuals, but scattered about just about every good muddy 
spot.

Black-necked Stilt ... 3

Ruddy Turnstone ... 4

Sanderling ... 2

White-rumped Sandpiper ... only 5

Dunlin ... another state record one day count total of at least 1010, most in 4 
flocks of 56, at least 200, 234, and 512.

Short-billed Dowitcher ... 9 (2+4+3)

Red-necked Phalarope ... two "tweener"(between typical male and female plumage) 
birds; saw them with large flock of plovers and Dunlin in the morning and 
photo'd presumably the same two birds about two miles away late in the 
afternoon.

Black Tern ... 1

Least Tern ... 3 (courting on borrow pond on N side of US 60 NE of Owensboro).

We also heard a Bell's Vireo singing along the Gaither's driveway off Ross Road.

bpb, msm, ebh




================NOTES TO SUBSCRIBERS==============

The BIRDKY Mailing List requires you to sign 
your messages with first & last name, city, & 
state abbreviation.
--------------------------------------------------
To post to this mailing list, send e-mail to:
birdky@xxxxxxxxxxxxx
-------------------------------------------------- 
To unsubscribe, send e-mail to:
birdky-request@xxxxxxxxxxxxx 
with 'unsubscribe' in the Subject line.
* * * * * * * * * * * * * * * * * * * * * * * * *  
Visit the Kentucky Ornithological Society
web site at http://www.biology.eku.edu/kos.htm
* * * * * * * * * * * * * * * * * * * * * * * * * 
BIRDKY List Manager: Gary Ritchison, Richmond, KY
E-mail: gary.ritchison@xxxxxxx

[birdky] RPT: May 20th shorebirds McLean & Hopkins cos ... 16 spp incl. Red-necked Phalaropes

Other related posts: