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Tuesday, August 24, 2010

Baird's Sandpiper!

Never thought I'd see a Baird's Sandpiper this far EAST -- they migrate south through the Great Plains west of the Mississippi -- but we've had one here at nearby Bald Eagle State Park for the last couple of days, and today I was able to get up there and see it!

Here are the best of my crappy photos; it was an overcast and misty day:

Here's the bird with what I first thought was a Semipalmated but someone else called a Least Sandpiper that was working the swimmer's beach alongside the Baird's:I just didn't pay much attention to the little guy, but he was small and brown, a lot like a Least.

Here's what a real photographer, listserv buddy Ron Crandall, did with the same bird, a much better camera, and getting a lot closer to the bird.

I also saw more Eastern Kingbirds and Eastern Bluebirds than I could count; they were everywhere and the bluebirds were VERY excited, chasing one another in what seemed liked territory-protection displays. These two were hanging out on a pavilion after chasing each other in super-tight formation. The funny part was their plumage. Do adults molt most of their blue off, or were ALL the birds I saw first-year juveniles? Because they ALL looked like this: speckled like starlings on the breast/shoulders, blue only on wing and tail tips.

Here's my complete list, courtesy of eBird:
Double-crested Cormorant
Turkey Vulture
Osprey
Least Sandpiper
Baird's Sandpiper
Northern Flicker (Yellow-shafted)
Eastern Kingbird
American Crow
Barn Swallow
Eastern Bluebird
Gray Catbird
Chipping Sparrow (I was delighted to see an adult feeding a juvenile as they foraged on the ground. No pics, though! Couldn't get a good shot in time.)
American Goldfinch
House Sparrow

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