I visited Swan Creek twice today: in the morning from 8:27 until 9:42 am and in the afternoon from 2:50 - 3:30 pm. The viewing conditions were much better in the afternoon. As previously posted, there was a fairly large group of peeps working the south cell, but no gulls or terns to speak of. It was difficult to do to much with the shorebirds in the morning due to the harsh light, but I did pick out a few Western Sandpipers, as well as larger numbers of Least and Semipalmated Sandpipers. I was also able to identify a few Lesser Yellowlegs and Killdeer. Waders down in the wetland area included lots of Great Blue Herons and Little Blue Herons, as well as 5 Snowy Egrets, 3 Great Egrets, and one flyover Cattle Egret.
I returned in the afternoon, and viewing conditions were much, much better. The majority of the shorebirds were Semipalmated and Least Sandpipers, and I also saw at least 12 Western Sandpipers. The Lesser Yellowlegs were still present, and I was also able to find more Killdeer, 4 Semipalmated Plovers, and one White-rumped Sandpiper. I was able to study the White-rumped for about five minutes before closing at 3:30, and felt that I got decent (if distant) views of the plumage, shape, and size of the bird from a variety of angles. Good birding,
Fred Shaffer
<GlaucousGull...>
Crofton, Anne Arundel
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