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