[TN-Bird] S. Holston Lake - Possible Baird's Sandpiper

Musick's Campground - S. Holston Lake, Sullivan Co., TN
April 27, 2008
9:00am - 10:15am

John Moyle mentioned in his earlier report that we saw another Sandpiper 
Species with the Sanderling, but that it flew off  before we could ID 
it.  However shortly after John drove off, the Sanderling and its 
unknown companion landed nearby.  I spent 20 minutes looking at this 
bird making sure of my ID.  Taking everything into consideration I 
believe that this bird was a Baird's Sandpiper.

Thanks to Rick Knight's The Birds of Northeast Tennessee I realize that 
this would be a very unlikely sighting, so let me present my case.

1. The flight feathers extended past the tail feathers.
2. The Bill was very black from base to tip, like the Sanderling.
3. The legs were black.
4. Similar size as the Sanderling
5. My first impression was Pectoral SP because of the breast markings, 
but they seemed to end higher up.  A google search of Baird's SP photos 
revealed a few that looked the same on the breast, such as the photo at 
this address (sorry I didn't take any photographs).

 http://www.flickr.com/photos/deinandra/1281841355/

6. The bird also vocalized once when taking flight.  I remember it as a 
high pitched trill.  Using the song samples on the Cornell site, the 
vocalizations were not at all like a Pectoral SP, but very similar to a 
Baird's SP.

This would be a lifer for me, but after lots of work I feel confident of 
the ID. 

David Hunt
Gray, Washington Co., TN

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