Hi Everyone,

A few migrants passed through Bayside on Assateague early this morning (13 Sep 2011), but the main highlights came when I walked the Bayside Campground.  A HUDSONIAN GODWIT was feeding at the edge of the marsh visible from campsite #46.  I got great looks through the scope, and the bird even flew a short distance once, providing confirming looks at the black tail, white uppertail coverts, and black underwing.  I got some digiscopes too; the godwit was still there at about 9:15 am when I left it.  A new Worcester bird for me!

A little later, while walking back to the Bayside parking lot along the main road, I noticed a smaller bird feeding in the grass near a Brown Thrasher.  I managed to get a quick scope view before a car flushed it--a LARK SPARROW.  I waited and the bird returned to the grass, and I eventually got some decent digiscopes in between flushes (bike riders, another car, etc.).  Even with the abundant mosquitoes, there were a lot of people on Assateague today.  A new human behavior for my list was a woman pushing a baby in a stroller while riding a skateboard.  Maybe she added me to her list too--guy in the middle of parking lot staring at the sky and making strange noises at bushes.

A few of the birds seen from Bayside from 6:30-8:25 am are listed below.  Full checklists from this morning are in eBird.

Have fun,

Ron Gutberlet
Salisbury, MD



Marbled Godwit  1     flew fairly low over the Bayside parking lot, flying roughly SE; large cinnamon shorebird with a very long and slightly upturned bill
Eastern Kingbird  1
Red-eyed Vireo  2
Black-and-white Warbler  1
American Redstart  36     came through pretty steadily, mostly in 1's and 2's, but 8 were together at one point
Northern Parula  1
Magnolia Warbler  7
Yellow Warbler  4
Black-throated Blue Warbler  3
warbler sp.  20     conservative estimate of escapees that went un-id'd; I suspect many were AMRE
Blue Grosbeak  1
Dickcissel  1     seen flying over; calling loudly
Bobolink  8     probably more; saw three of them and only heard the rest
Baltimore Oriole  3
American Goldfinch  1
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