Sun 22 Feb 2015 survey

Sun 22 Feb 2015

All,

   Wil Christenson and Kathy Greider joined me this past Thursday and Friday for a special two-day Bulls Islandwaterfowl/shorebird survey. Thanks to Coastal Expeditions for boating arrangements and the Cape Romain NWR for overnight accommodations on the island in the Dominick House--we really enjoyed our overnight birding trip and will plan more to target peak birding times on the island. 

   We had wonderful light right before sunset while scoping ducks on Upper Summerhouse Pond. It was great to relax and watch the sunset from the island rather than race back to beat the sunset. One quickly forgets just how many stars can be seen on clear, cold nights away from artificial light pollution. It was a spectacular early morning look at those skies when I walked into the front lawn (the picnic grounds outside the Dominick House) to read the thermometer (18 °F) at 5:30 AM Friday. And the sunrise peaked at the boneyard with a brilliant golden-yellow through and over the distant clouds well out over the ocean, the only clouds that we saw for the whole trip, I think. 

   We focused on waterfowl in the impoundments on Thursday and on shorebirds with the 8:40 AM Friday high tide. The water levels in Jack's Creek continue to drop in preparation for a new dike construction across the impoundment. The birding was good with numerous shorebirds in Jack's plus high numbers of both diving and dabbling ducks. Waterfowlwere plentiful across both Jack's Creek and Upper Summerhouse Pond. A combined report from our three eBird checklists is appended, below, FYI and shows 103 species for the trip. Even with two days, we focused on the surveyspecies and really did not beat the bushes for passerine species. Avian highlights included Snow Goose (new to thesurvey), numerous Wood Ducks (usually hard to find on the island), MANY Gadwall, Northern Pintail, Canvasback, White-winged Scoter, Long-tailed Duck, Virginia Rail (excellent, close scope views in great light), Eastern Screech Owl, Merlin, Barn Swallow, and Fox Sparrow.

   Non-avian sightings included five mammalian species: Atlantic bottle-nosed dolphin (some displaying impact feeding behavior), fox squirrel, bobcat, white-tailed deer, and otter. 

   Looking ahead at the tide calendar suggests the following dates to consider for our next, one-day survey:

Mon 9 Mar 2015 4.7 ft high tide at 10:36 AM

Tues 10 Mar 2015 4.6 ft high tide at 11:10 AM

Wed 11 Mar 2015 4.5 ft high tide at 11:51 AM

Stay tuned for further plans.

Regards,

David

Sun 22 Feb 2015

eBird checklists from our 2 day Bulls Island waterfowl/shorebird survey.

dcmclean

BirdLog Checklist Summary for: Feb 19, 2015 to Feb 20, 2015

Number of Checklists: 3

Number of Species: 103

Checklists included in this summary:

(1): Bull's Island Ferry

Date: Feb 19, 2015, 8:35

(2): Cape Romain NWR--Bull Island

Date: Feb 19, 2015, 9:30

(3): Cape Romain NWR--Bull Island

Date: Feb 20, 2015, 8:00

1 Snow Goose -- (3)

19 Wood Duck -- (2),(3)

3137 Gadwall -- (2),(3)

31 American Wigeon -- (2)

2 American Black Duck -- (2)

25 Mottled Duck -- (2),(3)

16 American Black/Mottled Duck -- (2)

4 Blue-winged Teal -- (2)

247 Northern Shoveler -- (2)

13 Northern Pintail -- (2)

25 Green-winged Teal -- (2)

1 Canvasback -- (2)

17 Redhead -- (2)

1 Ring-necked Duck -- (2)

200 Lesser Scaup -- (2),(3)

2 White-winged Scoter -- (2),(3)

80 Black Scoter -- (3)

2 Long-tailed Duck -- (2),(3)

36 Bufflehead -- (1),(2)

139 Hooded Merganser -- (1),(2)

3 Red-breasted Merganser -- (2)

171 Ruddy Duck -- (2)

31 Pied-billed Grebe -- (2),(3)

12 Horned Grebe -- (1),(2),(3)

110 Double-crested Cormorant -- (1),(2),(3)

4 Anhinga -- (2),(3)

80 American White Pelican -- (2),(3)

10 Brown Pelican -- (1),(2),(3)

24 Great Blue Heron -- (2),(3)

31 Great Egret -- (2),(3)

51 Snowy Egret -- (1),(2),(3)

18 Little Blue Heron -- (2),(3)

78 Tricolored Heron -- (2),(3)

31 Black-crowned Night-Heron -- (2),(3)

93 White Ibis -- (2),(3)

1 Glossy Ibis -- (2)

1 Black Vulture -- (2)

11 Turkey Vulture -- (2),(3)

2 Osprey -- (2),(3)

1 Northern Harrier -- (3)

4 Cooper's Hawk -- (2)

3 Bald Eagle -- (2),(3)

3 Clapper Rail -- (1),(2)

3 Virginia Rail -- (2),(3)

41 Common Gallinule -- (2),(3)

365 American Coot -- (2)

116 American Oystercatcher -- (1),(2)

32 Black-bellied Plover -- (1),(2),(3)

95 Semipalmated Plover -- (2),(3)

1 Killdeer -- (2)

3 Spotted Sandpiper -- (2),(3)

8 Greater Yellowlegs -- (1),(2),(3)

14 Willet -- (1),(2),(3)

18 Lesser Yellowlegs -- (2),(3)

5 Marbled Godwit -- (2),(3)

21 Ruddy Turnstone -- (3)

56 Sanderling -- (3)

1302 Dunlin -- (2),(3)

9 Least Sandpiper -- (2),(3)

85 Western Sandpiper -- (2),(3)

81 Short-billed Dowitcher -- (1),(2)

1 Wilson's Snipe -- (3)

28 Bonaparte's Gull -- (2)

41 Ring-billed Gull -- (1),(2),(3)

13 Herring Gull -- (1),(2),(3)

15 gull sp. -- (3)

7 Forster's Tern -- (2)

2 Black Skimmer -- (2)

16 Mourning Dove -- (2),(3)

2 Eastern Screech-Owl -- (3)

4 Belted Kingfisher -- (2),(3)

7 Northern Flicker (Yellow-shafted) -- (2),(3)

4 Merlin -- (3)

1 Peregrine Falcon -- (1)

4 Eastern Phoebe -- (2),(3)

10 Blue Jay -- (3)

3 American Crow -- (2)

66 Tree Swallow -- (2)

90 Barn Swallow -- (2)

1 Carolina Chickadee -- (3)

1 Tufted Titmouse -- (3)

1 Marsh Wren -- (3)

2 Carolina Wren -- (3)

1 Blue-gray Gnatcatcher -- (2)

4 Ruby-crowned Kinglet -- (2),(3)

2 Gray Catbird -- (2),(3)

6 Brown Thrasher -- (2),(3)

3 Northern Mockingbird -- (2),(3)

50 Cedar Waxwing -- (2),(3)

2 Palm Warbler -- (2),(3)

1 Pine Warbler -- (2)

130 Yellow-rumped Warbler (Myrtle) -- (2),(3)

3 Eastern Towhee -- (2),(3)

2 Savannah Sparrow -- (3)

3 Nelson's Sparrow -- (3)

1 Seaside Sparrow -- (3)

1 Fox Sparrow -- (3)

5 Song Sparrow -- (2),(3)

9 Swamp Sparrow -- (2),(3)

5 Northern Cardinal -- (2),(3)

50 Red-winged Blackbird -- (2),(3)

4 Eastern Meadowlark -- (3)

10 Boat-tailed Grackle -- (2),(3)

This trip summary was created using the BirdLog app for iPhone and iPad.

See BirdLog for more information.

--

David C. McLean, Jr.

Sent from my iPod

Sat 7 Feb 2015 survey

Sat 7 Feb 2015

All,

   Wil Christenson, Pam Ford, and I had a terrific waterfowl/shorebird survey today on Bulls Island. With many thanks to the generosity of Coastal Expeditions, we had our own boating arrangements and were thus able to focus more on thesurvey and less on meeting a set ferry time.

   We tallied 57 species on the survey proper, 87 species on the day's outing. Our eBird checklists from today are combined and appended, below, FYI. Notable avian sightings included MANY Gadwall, Ruddy Duck, Dunlin, Western Sandpiper, Short-billed Dowitcher, Herring Gull, Bonaparte's Gull, Redhead, Red-breasted Merganser, Northern Pintail, and Horned Grebe. Birds of the day were first-record-on-survey (perhaps) of Canada Goose, a second-for-the-survey (I think) Long-tailed Duck, and first-in-a-while Least Sandpiper, and a Canvasback. 

   We also had a very interesting duck that we first guessed to be a Mallard hybrid or a Gadwall/American Wigeon hybrid but was likely simply a weird-looking Mallard. It had an overall look, plumage pattern, posture, and attitude of a mature male Mallard but had atypical plumage coloring, especially around the head and neck. Who knows for sure? 

   Misses included Wood Duck, and all three scoters. 

   The North Beach continues to amaze me as it accretes, grows dunes with vegetation, and changes to its profile every time I walk out. Water levels in Jack's continue to drop in preparation for construction of a brand new dike across the middle. The middle-of-the-island impoundments, especially Pool 2, are full almost to overflowing with recent rains. And Upper Summerhouse Pond water levels continue to rise slowly (I think) and today had good numbers and diversity ofwaterfowl.

   Non-avian sightings on the day included bottle-nosed dolphin; American alligator (including, we're fairly sure, Gatorzilla); a few no-see-ums;  and a small, red tick crawling on my scope cover (a useful reminder to always spray my boots and socks with insect repellent year-round!).

   Looking ahead at the tidal calendar suggests the following dates to consider for our next survey:

Fri 20 Feb 2015 high tide 6.1 ft at 8:40 AM

Sat 21 Feb 2015 high tide 5.8 ft at 9:30 AM

Sun 22 Feb 2015 high tide 5.5 ft at 10:21 AM

Mon 23 Feb 2015 high tide 5.2 ft at 11:13 AM

Stay tuned for an upcoming recruitment email.

Regards,

David

dcmclean

BirdLog Checklist Summary for: Saturday, Feb 07 2015

Number of Checklists: 2

Number of Species: 87

Checklists included in this summary:

(1): Bull's Island Ferry

Date: Feb 7, 2015, 8:41

(2): Cape Romain NWR--Bull Island

Date: Feb 7, 2015, 9:47

1 Canada Goose -- (2)

2038 Gadwall -- (2)

98 American Wigeon -- (2)

1 American Black Duck -- (2)

1 Mallard -- (2)

20 Mottled Duck -- (2)

7 American Black/Mottled Duck -- (2)

2 Blue-winged Teal -- (2)

504 Northern Shoveler -- (2)

11 Northern Pintail -- (2)

4 Green-winged Teal -- (2)

1 Canvasback -- (2)

37 Redhead -- (2)

1 Ring-necked Duck -- (2)

342 Lesser Scaup -- (1),(2)

1 Long-tailed Duck -- (2)

111 Bufflehead -- (1),(2)

119 Hooded Merganser -- (2)

20 Red-breasted Merganser -- (2)

293 Ruddy Duck -- (2)

2 Common Loon -- (1),(2)

92 Pied-billed Grebe -- (2)

32 Horned Grebe -- (1),(2)

1 Northern Gannet -- (2)

29 Double-crested Cormorant -- (1),(2)

2 Anhinga -- (2)

18 American White Pelican -- (1),(2)

9 Brown Pelican -- (1),(2)

1 American Bittern -- (2)

10 Great Blue Heron -- (1),(2)

13 Great Egret -- (1),(2)

34 Snowy Egret -- (2)

11 Little Blue Heron -- (2)

9 Tricolored Heron -- (2)

15 Black-crowned Night-Heron -- (2)

98 White Ibis -- (1),(2)

2 Glossy Ibis -- (2)

3 Turkey Vulture -- (2)

2 Osprey -- (2)

4 Northern Harrier -- (1),(2)

1 Sharp-shinned Hawk -- (2)

2 Cooper's Hawk -- (1),(2)

1 Bald Eagle -- (2)

2 Red-tailed Hawk -- (1),(2)

1 Clapper Rail -- (2)

2 Sora -- (2)

48 Common Gallinule -- (2)

609 American Coot -- (2)

3 American Oystercatcher -- (1)

19 Black-bellied Plover -- (1),(2)

170 Semipalmated Plover -- (2)

3 Piping Plover -- (2)

3 Spotted Sandpiper -- (1),(2)

2 Greater Yellowlegs -- (2)

17 Willet -- (1),(2)

12 Ruddy Turnstone -- (2)

108 Sanderling -- (1),(2)

2491 Dunlin -- (1),(2)

6 Least Sandpiper -- (2)

100 Western Sandpiper -- (2)

1011 Short-billed Dowitcher -- (1),(2)

12 Bonaparte's Gull -- (2)

4 Laughing Gull -- (1)

13 Ring-billed Gull -- (2)

38 Herring Gull -- (1),(2)

10 Forster's Tern -- (2)

4 Mourning Dove -- (2)

5 Belted Kingfisher -- (1),(2)

3 Northern Flicker (Yellow-shafted) -- (2)

1 Eastern Phoebe -- (2)

2 Blue Jay -- (1),(2)

100 Tree Swallow -- (2)

1 Golden-crowned Kinglet -- (2)

2 Northern Mockingbird -- (2)

1 Orange-crowned Warbler -- (2)

3 Common Yellowthroat -- (2)

2 Pine Warbler -- (2)

12 Yellow-rumped Warbler (Myrtle) -- (2)

2 Eastern Towhee -- (2)

1 Chipping Sparrow -- (2)

2 Savannah Sparrow -- (1),(2)

3 Song Sparrow -- (1),(2)

1 Swamp Sparrow -- (2)

2 White-throated Sparrow -- (2)

4 Northern Cardinal -- (2)

110 Red-winged Blackbird -- (1),(2)

1 Boat-tailed Grackle -- (1)

This trip summary was created using the BirdLog app for iPhone and iPad.

See BirdLog for more information.

--

David C. McLean, Jr.

Sent from my iPod