Hi all
I ended the day in the Ocean City area by stopping off at the Berlin Sewage Ponds. The highlight of the flock on the water (the highlight of my day!) was a Eurasian form of the GREEN-WINGED TEAL. I've not seen this form in America before. I snapped some photos but I've not had time to check out my own shots, since my family had company when I came home. If any shots turn out to be beautiful, I'll let you know.
Other pleasant surprises from earlier in the day: the two EIDER were still present at the end of the OC Jetty. (I slipped and fell on the wet rocks - be careful out there - birding can be a high impact sport!) Another pleasant surprise was a beach full of shorebirds. I drove back Eagles Nest Road (alas, no Eurasian Wigeon at the golf course) and at the end of the road, the gate was open to the place where people can go to the water's edge. I got out the scope and started scanning and was surprised to find a more than a hundred shore birds. Most were far away - pushing the edge of my identifying ability. Judging from size, general body shape and bill length, and behavior, I'm sure that there were at least 40 BLACK-BELLIED PLOVERS, an equal or greater number of DUNLIN, and peeps. About a dozen peeps were close enough for me to check out their plumage and they all were SANDERLINGS. Still - I didn't expect a high shorebird count in January! With the Oystercatcher at the same location, and with the Purples and the Turnstones at OC Inlet, I had a 6-shorebird day! Still another pleasant surprise: My first bird of the day (actually my first officially identified bird in 2009) was a GREAT HORNED OWL flying across the road just before sunrise. (My second bird of the year was a starling. sigh.)
I found most of the common ducks but, interestingly, they were divided between separate locations. Gadwalls, Greater Scaup and Redheads at Bayview - Canvasback and Hoodies (and Lesser Scaup) at West OC Pond and at a lake off of Race Track Road (Macklyn Springs?) - Green-winged Teals and Pintails (and some others, including 2 Snow Geese) at the Berlin ponds. Ruddies and Buffleheads, however, were everywhere.
Interesting miss: no Northern Gannets were flying in sight of the OC Inlet.
Interesting almost-miss: I didn't see a Mourning Dove until I saw one on the telephone line on the way home!
I had to leave early - remember the company I mentioned before - but the day was lots of fun.
Don Burggraf
Baltimore
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