Hi Everyone,

On Saturday (30 May 2009), I barely joined Jim Stasz, Jim Brighton, Mike Burchett, John Hubbell, and Bill Hubick for a "poor man's pelagic" on a fishing boat out of Ocean City.  See Jim Stasz's 26 May post for details about these trips.  I'm glad I made it (thanks, guys!), because highlights at sea included:

Common Loon--1
Wilson's Storm-Petrel--4
LEACH'S STORM-PETREL--1 flyby that Mike Burchett got on; I think Jim B. got a look too
Red Knot--2 
Red-necked Phalarope--2 close to the boat (photos by Bill)
Black Skimmer--1 flyby as we passed Skimmer Island on our way out to sea
Common Yellowthroat--1 female that repeatedly circled and briefly landed on the boat

Also:

Ocean Sunfish--2
sea turtle (looked like a Loggerhead, the most expected species here)

Next we made an attempt to drive the ORV Zone at Assateague, but a 20-vehicle wait caused us to change our plans.  Jim Stasz split off at this point.  The rest of the day's itinerary went something like this...

Worcester: Bayside Development Pond, Skimmer Island, West OC Pond, Berlin, Ironshire Station Rd

Wicomico: Laws Rd, Sixty Foot Rd,  Berry Rd (off Mt Hermon Rd), Rt 50 Borrow Pit, Jester Rd, Waller Rd, Little Ln  (Mike Burchett left after Berry Rd).

Dorchester: Hurlock WWTP

Caroline: Poplar Neck Rd, Tanyard Marsh

Not surprisingly, our best shorebird numbers were in Worcester (Skimmer Island and Ironshire Station Rd; see below).  Despite a bit of searching in Wicomico, our only shorebirds were on Sixty Foot Rd; they turned out to be just what we were looking for though, providing county birds for John (BLACK-BELLIED PLOVER and SHORT-BILLED DOWITCHER) and Bill (SHORT-BILLED DOWITCHER).  I kind of hate to mention it since my Wicomico list is temporarily stalled at 198, but it turns out that the dowitcher is Bill's 200th species for Wicomico.  John is further ahead at 213, and Jim B. (227 or so) is ahead of all of us.  Of course the real champions of Wicomico County--Sam Dyke (296), Carol Broderick (288), and Jim Stasz (258)--don't have much to be concerned about anytime soon.

We did NOT relocate the SNOW BUNTING on Berry Rd.

Jim Brighton's good Hurlock birds from the other day (RED-NECKED PHALAROPE and BLACK TERN) had moved on, but we did have good fortune in Caroline--LEAST BITTERN at the Poplar Neck Rd marsh was a new county bird for everyone, and MARSH WRENS (6) were almost as numerous as the deer flies there (not really; the flies out-numbered all birds combined).  We hoped for WHITE-RUMPED SANDPIPER at Tanyard, but the flock of 80 SEMIPALMATED SANDPIPERS was pure.

Full lists for Skimmer Island and Ironshire Station Rd are below.  Thanks to Bill for keeping the lists and entering them into eBird.

Another fun day of MD birding!  Have fun,

Ron Gutberlet
Salisbury, MD
 



Location:     Ocean City--Skimmer Island
Observation date:     5/30/09
Observers: Jim Brighton, Mike Burchett, Ron Gutberlet, John Hubbell, and Bill Hubick.
Number of species:     27

Brown Pelican     6
Double-crested Cormorant     48
Great Egret     24
Little Blue Heron     2
Black-crowned Night-Heron     36     Many along the water line, a large group flushed when a dog ran along the beach
Black-bellied Plover     44     Arrived in one large flock
American Oystercatcher     12
Willet (Eastern)     9
Ruddy Turnstone     65
Red Knot     25     Exact count
Sanderling     50
Semipalmated Sandpiper     80
Dunlin     12
Short-billed Dowitcher     28
Laughing Gull     2
Ring-billed Gull     1
Herring Gull     150
Great Black-backed Gull     85
Least Tern     1
Common Tern     2
Forster's Tern     3
Fish Crow     5
American Robin     1
Gray Catbird     1
Common Yellowthroat     1
Red-winged Blackbird     6
Boat-tailed Grackle     4


Location:     Ironshire Station Rd.
Observation date:     5/30/09
Observers: Jim Brighton, Mike Burchett, Ron Gutberlet, John Hubbell, and Bill Hubick.
Number of species:     27

Canada Goose     8
Mallard     1
Cattle Egret     7
Glossy Ibis     88     Checked carefully for White-faced Ibis, of course
Turkey Vulture     7
Black-bellied Plover     342     Exact count between three flooded areas
Semipalmated Plover     2
Killdeer     2
Greater Yellowlegs     3
Ruddy Turnstone     16
Semipalmated Sandpiper     12
Dunlin     2
Short-billed Dowitcher     6
Laughing Gull     323
Ring-billed Gull     2
Mourning Dove     3
American Crow     2
Horned Lark     2
Barn Swallow     2
American Robin     2
Northern Mockingbird     1
European Starling     10
Chipping Sparrow     1
Grasshopper Sparrow     2
Indigo Bunting     2
Common Grackle (Purple)     3
American Goldfinch     2

This report was generated automatically by eBird v2(http://ebird.org)