Hi Everybody,

Down on the ocean and shore we had many of the usual (good) suspects, 
some of the expected  unusual suspects, and  some less expected unusual 
suspects. The best bird of the day was one of the earliest. A DOVEKIE 
entered the inlet at about 11:00 or a bit later and drifted well into 
the inlet, eventually almost reaching the US 50 bridge. A tiny 
songbird-size, stub-billed alcid swimming with a short cocked tail with 
its wings relaxed so it could use them under water upon diving. It 
flapped a few times showing its dark under-wings, the crown and face 
were black and the white on the underparts curled around behind the 
auriculars almost to the nape. We could also see the white trailing edge 
on the wings.

Other birds at the inlet included the adult and immature drake HARLEQUIN 
DUCKS; the adult PEREGRINE FALCON on the water tower; a single Brant on 
the south jetty (oddly our only one today); at least 24 Purple 
Sandpipers; 15 Ruddy Turnstones; 15 Long-tailed Ducks; over 400 scoters 
flying by offshore, mostly Surf with a few Black; a single flyby 
RAZORBILL keeping company with three scoters; a distant third-cycle 
gannet; both loons in good numbers; and eight Bonaparte's Gulls. At 4th 
Street there were 4 oystercatchers; 24 Red-breasted Mergansers; eight 
more Bonaparte's Gulls; and our only Black Vulture of the day (over West 
Ocean City).

On our way back to West Ocean City via route 90 (recall that the US 50 
bridge is closed for construction) we stopped off at the Isle of Wight 
to scan the Bay. We added Horned Grebe and goldeneye to our list, and 
the number of Bufflehead was impressive at 550. At the Ocean Pines Ponds 
we had 11 species of waterfowl including 600 Canvasback; 24 Hooded 
Mergansers; 2 hen COMMON MERGANSERS; 26 Ring-necked Ducks; 3 Northern 
Shovelers; 3 American Wigeon; and a Pied-billed Grebe. At West Ocean 
City Pd. we had 290 pintail; 24 more shovelers; seven Tundra Swans; and 
24 black ducks (plus some obvious drake blackXmallards).

We capped the trip with a visit to Indian River Inlet in Delaware. New 
species there were a two-year old GREAT CORMORANT, and 12 Boat-tailed 
Grackles feeding on the low tide rocks of the jetty. Also there were 70 
Long-tailed Ducks; more Surf and Black Scoters flying by offshore (very 
few inshore today); 18 Common and 12 Red-throated Loons; a single Horned 
Grebe; Purple Sandpipers; and turnstones. We wrapped up with a total of 
61 species for the day, given a typical lack of dickey-birding on a 
seacoast trip, we're happy with the total.

Good birding,

Walter Ellison & Nancy Martin

23460 Clarissa Rd
Chestertown, MD 21620

phone: 410-778-9568

e-mail: rossgull(AT)baybroadband.net

Observing Nature is like unwrapping a big pile of presents every time 
you take a walk.