The waters at Paper Mill Road ( Baltimore County) have receded sufficiently to create a substantial mud flats area for shore birds.

Yesterday evening, we saw :

  Least Sandpiper 25
  Semipalmated Sandpiper 7
  misc Peeps 12
  Greater Yellowlegs 1
   Lesser Yellowlegs 3
   Spotted Sandpiper 2
   Killdeer 8  


     Also seen Bald Eagle ( 3rd year?)
    Great Egrets 2
    Wood Ducks 7
    Baltimore Oriole 1 



            This area should attract a large number of migrating shorebirds over the next 2-3 months.
It should be an interesting habitat and will probably attract at least a few of the more uncommon shorebirds.
The views are close enough to allow 'close' viewing with a scope. A great way to study fall shorebirds. 

        Anyone who has had the opportunity to study Kenn Kaufman's Advanced Birding may have read that its the adult shorebirds who migrate first;
their plumages are generally 'worn' in July and  August, while the juveniles generally migrate later; their plummmages are fresh looking.
It might be interesting to attempt to discern whether the shorebirds have adult or juvenile plummage. The least sandpipers that we observed were decidedly adults with worn breeding plummage.



                        good birding !




                        Taylor and Paula McLean
                        Baltimore Co, MD