Friday Morning at Higbee - short-distance migrants on the move

This morning's CMBO walk at Higbee Beach WMA was well-attended and featured both great weather and great birds, although some birds were more cooperative than others. There was evidence of a flight of "short-distance" migrants (passerines that don't migrate to the tropics) last night, including at least 9 Hermit Thrushes, a couple dozen White-throated Sparrows, a handful of Ruby-crowned Kinglets and 5 getting-to-be late Dark-eyed Juncos.

We enjoyed superb looks at a perched Merlin, as well as a rather cooperative male Common Yellowthroat. Overhead migrants included several groups of Double-crested Cormorants and Surf Scoters, as well as the occasional Common Loon and Great Blue Heron. 2 Willets were calling as they flew over, heading northeast, possibly back to their breeding grounds along Ocean Drive. I briefly heard a Yellow-throated Vireo sing, but unfortunately no one else locked on to it.


Location: Higbee Beach
Observation date: 4/18/08
Number of species: 63

Canada Goose 2
Mallard 2
Surf Scoter 66
Common Loon 3
Double-crested Cormorant 84
Great Blue Heron 3
Snowy Egret 1
Osprey 1
Merlin 3
Willet 2
Laughing Gull 31
Ring-billed Gull 1
Herring Gull 7
Great Black-backed Gull 1
Forster's Tern 4
Mourning Dove 13
Red-bellied Woodpecker 1
Downy Woodpecker 1
Hairy Woodpecker 1
Northern Flicker (Yellow-shafted) 1
White-eyed Vireo 4
Yellow-throated Vireo 1
Blue-headed Vireo 1
Blue Jay 6
American Crow 1
Fish Crow 3
Northern Rough-winged Swallow 2
Carolina Chickadee 12
Tufted Titmouse 4
Red-breasted Nuthatch 1
White-breasted Nuthatch 1
Carolina Wren 14
House Wren 2
Ruby-crowned Kinglet 4
Blue-gray Gnatcatcher 9
Hermit Thrush 9
American Robin 4
Gray Catbird 2
Northern Mockingbird 1
Brown Thrasher 4
European Starling 2
Cedar Waxwing 9
Yellow-rumped Warbler (Myrtle) 8
Pine Warbler 2
Prairie Warbler 3
Palm Warbler (Western) 3
Palm Warbler (Yellow) 11
Common Yellowthroat 4
Eastern Towhee 14
Chipping Sparrow 11
Field Sparrow 6
Savannah Sparrow 8
Song Sparrow 1
Swamp Sparrow 1
White-throated Sparrow 24
Dark-eyed Junco (Slate-colored) 5
Northern Cardinal 22
Red-winged Blackbird 11
Rusty Blackbird 1
Common Grackle 21
Brown-headed Cowbird 24
House Finch 2
American Goldfinch 9

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