Okay, so maybe theyâre not all peeps, but it sounds funâ¦.
The tides have been really high lately; full moon, south wind, storms in the
gulf, etc. So, I figured the gulf beach at Matagorda might have some
interesting shorebirds and if not then the holiday beach goers should provide
some entertainment. And there were lots of shorebirds, terns, gulls and
skimmers. None of them particularly unusual, but eBird flagged 6 species as
having high numbers for the date:
- Semipalmated Plover (256) â One huge flock loafing in the debris at the
lagoon and some foraging on the beach. Probably missed some hunkered down in
the debris. Very cool.
- Red Knot (75) â This is my highest number ever in one outing and certainly
at Matagorda beach. The birds were scattered along the beach east of the
jetty. Most groups were 4-8 birds with some singles and doubles. They were
evvvrrrryywhere! One of the birds sported a light blue flag labeled â2L9â.
Flag info sent to Dave Newstead with FWS in Corpus.
- Lesser Black-backed Gull (11) â One group of 6 down the beach about 4
miles. First, second, third year and adult plumages represented.
- Caspain Tern (53) â Flagged but not exceptional IMHO
- Royal Tern (620) â Again, flagged but not exceptional
- Black Skimmer (420) â Mostly all in one group just as you enter the area
along the Colorado river channel west of Jetty Park
-
Other highlights for me included:
- Piping Plovers (10) with one bird carrying a yellow color band and the label
â9Z8â. Data sent to PIPL team at FWS.
- Wilsonâs Plover (1) with injured left wing and red and yellow color bands
on left leg. Dr. Sue Heath with GCBO says the bird was banded as a chick at
Matagorda beach in 2016. The bird has been taken to rehab to hopefully repair
the wing.
- American Oystercatchers (10) with six being banded and one of the banded
birds an apparent HY bird. Photos taken and band info sent to Dr. Sue Heath
with GCBO.
- A Peregrine got one of the gull/tern flocks up
- Horned Larks were up high near the dunes.
The beach is in great shape for driving. Itâs hard-packed and raked clean by
the recent storms. There is no soft sand until you get about 6 miles down the
beach. Itâs a perfect time to go if you only have 2WD transportation. The
beach was fairly quiet on the drive down, but an hour and a half later coming
back there were 3xâs as many vehicles parked. It was time to leave.
Good birding to all!
Bob Friedrichs
Palacios
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