Today my brother George and I went out to Ocean City and took the ocean
fishing trip out of Bahia Marina (i.e. the poor man's pelagic).  We were
hoping to see some pelagic birds and enjoy the beautiful day.  The
highlight of the trip was when George spotted a group of birds about 100 or
150 feet off the boat.  This was when the boat first stopped to let people
fish about 9 or so miles off Ocean City.  It was a group of five Red-necked
Phalaropes.  We got pretty good looks at the birds at rest, and then in
flight as the group flew off.

Also seen on the pelagic portion of the boat trip were 59 Wilson's Storm
Petrels, 2 Common Terns, 1 Forsters Tern, and all the common gulls.  The
lack of shearwaters could have been due to the almost completely still
conditions in the morning, with no winds to speak of.

Other highlights from the day included 3 Tricolored Herons on the mudflats
behind the Marina (between 21st & 22nd Streets), several Oystercatchers,
and 1 Black Tern over the water.

Assateague State Park was also productive, although we did not see the
Curlew Sandpiper.  We bumped into Les Eastman on the beach, and he also did
not see the bird.  However, highlights were a Red Knot, both Yellowlegs,
many Semi Plovers, several Black-bellied Plovers, Least Sandpipers, Semi
Sandpipers, 2 juvenile Western Sandpipers, 3 Piping Plovers (Les saw a
total of 10 as he went further down the beach then we did), Spotted
Sandpipers, 1 Pectoral Sandpiper, a few Killdeer,Ruddy Turnstones, and many
Willets and Sanderlings.

Also of note at Assateague were another Tricolored Heron, a juvenile Black-
crowned Night Heron.  Several Meadowlarks were in the grassy/marshy area
near the Curlew Sandpiper spot (bayside).  And, at one point there was
quite a commotion as the shorebirds flushed and flew around noisily as a
young Peregrine Falcon took a pass over the beach and marsh.

Fred Shaffer
Patuxent MOS