I spent an hour in midmorning checking out the shorebirds at Leonard's Pond,
after Tom Lord reported a good list there yesterday, including the Baird's
that has been there since August 22. The first thing I noticed was a group of
17 Canada Geese on the pond, and these displayed a wide size variation.
Next to a large and tall individual was another somewhere between 1/3 and 1/4
smaller, leading me to wonder if I were seeing a newly-listed Cackling Goose.
Then I noticed that perhaps five of them were somewhat smaller than the big
fellow, and I began wondering if I was seeing a group of young geese from this
year's hatch that had not yet reached their full size, though they appeared
to be fully feathered. I would appreciate any comments on this. Are
cackling geese likely to be present this early in the season in Virginia?
Shorebirds present included:
Killdeer 15
Solitary Sandpiper 3
Spotted Sandpiper 1
Least Sandpiper 8
Semipalmated Sandpiper 1
Baird's Sandpiper 1
Short-billed Dowitcher 2
John Irvine
Harrisonburg, VA
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