[texbirds] Corpus Christi west - Dark Harlans / Semipalmated Sandpiper

From: Clay Taylor <Clay.Taylor@xxxxxxxxxxxxxxxxx>
To: TexBirds <texbirds@xxxxxxxxxxxxx>
Date: Thu, 7 Mar 2013 22:09:18 -0500
Hi all -
After cleaning up around the house for the umpteenth time (in the past month, 
we had the foundation stabilized, cracked floor re-tiled, replaced the kitchen 
counters, etc.), I got out to Tule Lake and the Joe Fulton Trade Corridor this 
afternoon.

Two days ago a howling SW wind had drained most of the water out of Tule Lake, 
but the current E / SE winds allowed some water back, so the shorebirds were at 
a closer distance.    As I walked up onto the viewing pavilion, the hawk that 
was flying over the marsh looked familiar - binocular up, and yes, it was the 
dark-morph Harlan's Hawk that has been there for almost two weeks.    Sweet!   
Looking at my photos from 2/23, it is now definitely missing a few wing 
feathers - specifically a secondary on the left wing, and likely a primary on 
both wings.

Scanning the shorebirds, I noticed that the numbers of Western Sandpipers had 
jumped greatly from my last visit, with well over 20 mixed in with the Leasts.  
 I then spotted a peep that had very white undersides, the upper side was 
definitely not as warm brown as the nearby Least Sandpipers, and it had a 
stubby, thick-tipped black bill.    As it mixed with the nearby Western 
Sandpipers, their longer bills, tapering to a fine, slightly drooped tip stood 
out in contrast to this bird - Semipalmated Sandpiper.    Hah!  A new bird for 
the 2013 Local Patch List!     eBird flagged the record, but I would think that 
the arrival dates for Semis should not be too far in the future.    As usual, 
the 200+ American Avocets were doing their thing, but most everything was 
hunkered down out of the wind.

I then went over to the Joe Fulton Road, but the big mudflat there was almost 
dry, so I did not get any new birds there.   However, the pond at the bottom of 
the hill, as the road bends to the East, held 4 Northern Pintails, and a few 
meadowlarks flushing from the sides of the road brought one Western amongst the 
Easterns.     I am starting to think that the white in the tail might be the 
best field ID mark for these two species - having just returned from California 
and seeing LOTS of Westerns, the tail of a flying Eastern has a wide brown 
middle with white edges, while the flying Westerns have a tail that is 
dominated by white with a thin brown stripe.

The marshes to the north of the road were dotted with just the tops of the head 
of many White Pelicans, evidently resting in the creeks.  I did spot one Brown 
Pelican fly up and then down again - not a new Patch bird for the year, but one 
for the Month List.

OK, so tomorrow I am off to see eagles in Minnesota for 4 days, so y'all can 
add to your Patch lists while I am away.

Good birding,


Clay Taylor
TOS Life Member
Calallen (Corpus Christi),  TX
Clay.taylor@xxxxxxxxxxxxxxxxx<mailto:Clay.taylor@xxxxxxxxxxxxxxxxx>


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[texbirds] Corpus Christi west - Dark Harlans / Semipalmated Sandpiper

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