[wisb] Re: More shorebird madness!! (Mississippi River, Prairie Du Chien)
- From: Alex Stark <thearctictern@xxxxxxxxx>
- To: little_blue_birdie@xxxxxxx
- Date: Sun, 26 Aug 2012 20:27:02 -0500
Hey guys,
First off....whoa...i don't know what happened on that reply message.
Thought I had all that stuff worked out when I got my new phone.
What I meant to say was that I'll break the suspense and tell you all
that it was a RED-NECKED PHALAROPE.....a block away from my home!
Added 6 new BIGBY shorebirds today all thanks to a tip off from Chris
West.
Seems to be more red-necked phalaropes inland this year than in
typical years. I wouldnt think this be drought related as these birds
are typically pelagic. Any theories?
But yes, shorebirds ARE few and far between on the
Mississippi...especially Red-necked Phalaropes.
Bird on,
Alex Stark, Prairie du Chien
On Sun, Aug 26, 2012 at 7:15 PM, Chris West <little_blue_birdie@xxxxxxx> wrote:
> Hey everyone!
> The shorebird madness continued today with a spectacular shorebird
> extravaganza in Prairie Du Chien! For those of you familiar with birding
> along the Mississippi River, you'll know that shorebird habitat is usually in
> short supply and far between, and therefore, shorebirds also tend to be in
> short supply.
> That changed with the movement today.
> The route that my daily cruise takes leaves St Feriole Island and heads
> south. Just south of the Hwy 18 bridge, the first small island has a mudflat
> that extends quite a ways out. As we cruise past, I've been checking this on
> a daily basis for shorebirds. Today, I lucked out.
> As I scanned the mudflat, I picked up the regulars: Ring-billed Gull, Great
> Blue Heron, Canada Goose, etc. All of a sudden, I came across a slightly more
> unexpected bird. A large Tern sitting at the edge of the water. I just about
> flipped out! It was a Caspian Tern! It got better from there. The next group
> of birds I came across were medium-sized, pale shorebirds. It took a second
> since I don't see these regularly in WI, but the ID was clear. There were 3
> WILLETS foraging on the mudflat.
> We continued our cruise route down to the mouth of the WI River and then
> back. On the return route, we passed the island again. This time, an eagle
> flew over and spooked everything. I watched as the Tern got up and flew off,
> then the Willets, then, all of a sudden, there were about 20 smaller
> shorebirds flying around; Sandpipers!!As they twisted and turned, I picked
> out LEAST, SEMIPALMATED, BAIRD'S and PECTORAL Sandpipers. Then, another
> medium-sized bird flew by. This one was mostly white with a dark belly;
> BLACK-BELLIED PLOVER!!
> As you can imagine, I was ecstatic by this time.
> After our cruise ended (we saw 18 Bald Eagles btw) I headed straight to a
> good spot where I could see the mudflat from land. The Tern and the Willets
> were gone, but the others were still present. As I scanned, I picked out a
> smaller, whitish-looking shorebird doing little circles in shallow water.
> Realizing what it probably was, I quickly contacted my friend Alex Stark to
> let him know.
> He wasn't able to run down immediately, but did arrive later, after I had
> left and texted me to let me know that most of the shorebirds were still
> present.
> I'll let him tell you his story since he was able to get better looks at
> everything (I am currently minus a scope for now).
> Alex confirmed my suspicion that the smaller, whitish-looking shorebird was
> indeed a Phalarope, and that the other small, pale shorebird was a
> SANDERLING! I won't say what the Phalarope was, I'll let Alex tell you that
> part. However, I will say this: it wasn't a Wilson's!
>
>
> That's one heck of a shorebird day along the Mississippi River by the way!
>
>
> Happy Birding! --Chris W, Richland County Interpretive Naturalist Mississippi
> Explorer Cruises
> http://mississippiexplorer.com/chris@xxxxxxxxxxxxxxxxxxxxxxx
> http://swallowtailedkite.blogspot.com/
> http://www.nabirding.com/http://www.flickr.com/photos/swallowtailphoto
>
> "The beauty and genius of a work of art may be reconceived, though its first
> material expression be destroyed; a vanished harmony may yet again inspire
> the composer; but when the last individual of a race of living things
> breathes no more, another heaven and another earth must pass before such a
> one can be again."
>
> (From William Beebe's "The Bird: Its Form and Function," 1906)
> ####################
> You received this email because you are subscribed to the Wisconsin Birding
> Network (Wisbirdn).
> To UNSUBSCRIBE or SUBSCRIBE, use the Wisbirdn web interface at:
> //www.freelists.org/list/wisbirdn
> To set DIGEST or VACATION modes, use the Wisbirdn web interface at:
> //www.freelists.org/list/wisbirdn
> Visit Wisbirdn ARCHIVES at: //www.freelists.org/archives/wisbirdn
>
>
####################
You received this email because you are subscribed to the Wisconsin Birding
Network (Wisbirdn).
To UNSUBSCRIBE or SUBSCRIBE, use the Wisbirdn web interface at:
//www.freelists.org/list/wisbirdn
To set DIGEST or VACATION modes, use the Wisbirdn web interface at:
//www.freelists.org/list/wisbirdn
Visit Wisbirdn ARCHIVES at: //www.freelists.org/archives/wisbirdn
Other related posts:
