8 February 2025

Posts Tagged ‘purple sandpiper’

Christmas Count Day

Sunday, December 18th, 2022
Dunlin, Rockland Breakwater, Rockland, Maine, 18 December 2022.
Dunlin at the Rockland Breakwater.

Today was a special day that only happens once a year: Audubon Christmas Bird Count Day. It’d been four years since I’d participated, and I was really looking forward to it. It did not disappoint.

In fact, among the birds we spotted at the Rockland Breakwater (which I hadn’t walked since Jack’s and my return from Salt Lake City back in April) was a lifer for me: Dunlin. Fact is while heading out across the great granite blocks, I nearly stepped on the bird. (OK, it was maybe eight or ten feet away.) There were a pair that I saw (although my birding pals saw a third). Not every day you get a lifer.

Brown Creeper, Beech Hill Preserve, Rockport, Maine, 18 December 2022.
Brown Creeper.

Many other species also (see below), and then I returned home for Jack and right away we hiked Beech Hill—albeit a little later than usual.

Notable at the hill were a posing Brown Creeper and the call of an Evening Grosbeak in overflight. Snow up there (not much here, a mile and a half away).

I kinda like the end of the year but, to me, every day is a holiday.

Beech Hill List
Beginning at 10:02 a.m., I hiked all trails.

1. Blue Jay (v)
2. American Crow* (v)
3. Golden-crowned Kinglet (v)
4. Downy Woodpecker** (v)
5. Brown Creeper
6. Evening Grosbeak (v)
7. Black-capped Chickadee**
8. Red-breasted Nuthatch** (v)
9. Northern Flicker
10. Tufted Titmouse (v)

Elsewhere

11. Mallard
12. Herring Gull
13. Great Black-backed Gull
14. Ring-billed Gull
15. House Sparrow
16. House Finch
17. Common Goldeneye
18. Common Loon
19. Horned Grebe
20. Long-tailed Duck
21. Black Guillemot
22. Purple Sandpiper
23. Canada Goose
24. American Wigeon
25. Surf Scoter
26. Bufflehead
27. Red-breasted Merganser
28. Dunlin‡
29. Common Eider
30. Ring-billed Gull

(v) Voice only
*Also elsewhere
**Voice only elsewhere

†First-of-year
‡Lifer

Gallery: Christmas Bird Count, Plus One

Sunday, December 17th, 2017

Intrepid bird counters, Rockland Breakwater, Rockland, Maine, 16 December 2017.

Intrepid bird counters.

Purple Sandpiper, Rockland Breakwater, Rockland, Maine, 16 December 2017.

Purple Sandpiper.

Purple Sandpiper, Samoset Resort, Rockport, Maine, 16 December 2017.

Purple Sandpiper.

Sharp-shinned Hawk, Rockport, Maine, 16 December 2017.

Sharp-shinned Hawk.

Pileated Woodpecker, Beech Hill Preserve, Rockport, Maine, 16 December 2017.

Pileated Woodpecker.

Beech Hill List
Beginning at 1:45 p.m., I hiked the open trail.

1. Black-capped Chickadee*
2. American Crow*
3. White-breasted Nuthatch** (v)
4. Pileated Woodpecker

Elsewhere (all on Christmas Bird Count list)

5. Canada Goose
6. American Black Duck
7. Mallard
8. Common Eider
9. Long-tailed Duck
10. Common Goldeneye
11. Bufflehead
12. Hooded Merganser
13. Common Merganser
14. Red-breasted Merganser
15. American Wigeon
16. Ring-necked Duck
17. Common Loon
18. Red-necked Grebe
19. Horned Grebe
20. Pied-billed Grebe
21. Bald Eagle
22. Northern Harrier
23. Sharp-shinned Hawk
24. American Coot
25. Purple Sandpiper
26. Bonaparte’s Gull
27. Ring-billed Gull
28. Herring Gull
29. Great Black-backed Gull
30. Black Guillemot
31. Downy Woodpecker
32. Blue Jay
33. Golden-crowned Kinglet
34. European Starling
35. Northern Cardinal
36. House Sparrow

v = Voice only
*Also elsewhere
**Voice only elsewhere

 

Year-End Bird Count

Saturday, December 31st, 2016

(Some photos from today’s Audubon Society Christmas Bird Count.)

Purple Sandpiper, Rockland, Breakwater, Rockland, Maine, 31 December 2016.

Purple Sandpiper.

Common Eider (female), Rockland, Breakwater, Rockland, Maine, 31 December 2016.

Common Eider (female).

American Goldfinch, Samoset Resort, Rockport, Maine, 31 December 2016.

American Goldfinch.

Red-breasted Merganser (with an itch), Rockland Breakwater, Rockland, Maine, 31 December 2016.

Red-breasted Merganser (with an itch).

American Tree Sparrow, Samoset Resort, Rockport, Maine, 31 December 2016.

American Tree Sparrow.

Red-tailed Hawk, Chickawaukie Lake, Rockland, Maine, 31 December 2016.

Red-tailed Hawk.

Beech Hill List
Beginning at 1 p.m., I hiked the open trail.

1. American Robin*
2. Black-capped Chickadee*
3. White-breasted Nuthatch*
4. American Goldfinch* (v)
5. American Crow* (v)
6. Downy Woodpecker
7. Tufted Titmouse** (v)
8. Blue Jay

Elsewhere

9. Canada Goose
10. American Black Duck
11. Mallard
12. Common Eider
13. Long-tailed Duck
14. Bufflehead
15. Common Goldeneye
16. Red-breasted Merganser
17. Common Loon
18. Horned Grebe
19. Great Cormorant
20. Northern Harrier
21. Red-tailed Hawk
22. Purple Sandpiper
23. Ring-billed Gull
24. Herring Gull
25. Great Black-backed Gull
26. Black Guillemot
27. Mourning Dove
28. American Tree Sparrow
29. Song Sparrow
30. House Finch
31. American Goldfinch
32. House Sparrow

v = Voice only
*Also elsewhere
**Voice only elsewhere

 

 
Bird Report is a (sometimes intermittent) record of the birds I encounter while hiking, see while driving, or spy outside my window. —Brian Willson



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