July 23, 2015,
After noticing the lower water level in Pool 1, I decided to take a kayak
and check it out better yesterday afternoon.
Over a hundred White Pelicans and hundreds of Canada Geese were visible from
the Pump station, and I could see distant Terns and shorebirds that needed to
be identified.
A closer view of the Island where the pelicans were resting produced 8
Caspian Terns, 2 Black Terns, a Ring-billed Gull, and a larger, adult
Black-backed gull.
This second gull was much larger than the ringer, but didn't seem to be bulky
enough for a GBBG.
Sadly, the bird flew before I got close enough to I.D. properly and never
stopped before disappearing high on the horizon headed South. Are there any
records for Lesser Black backed gull in the state this early?
The shorebirds turned out to be 50 Killdeer, 4 Pectoral Sandpiper, 6 Least
Sandpiper, 1 Semipalmated Sandpiper, and numerous Spotted scattered throughout.
If Clayton Ferrell keeps the water levels going down at the present rate,
this should be a good shorebird season at the DRU.
Ruben Stoll, Centerville, TN.
Sent from my Verizon Wireless smartphone
