It’s been an exciting week at the Point, with many of our later migrants starting to hit hard and many of our irregular migrants starting to show up. Our second wave of Canada Geese is in full swing, with over 3,000 individuals being seen over the last three days. White-winged Scoters are still passing in good numbers, with most days having over 100 birds. Steady numbers of Common and Red-throated Loons are still pushing north, along with plenty of Red-breasted Mergansers. We have not seen large pushes of Long-tailed Ducks yet, but hopefully, they will push soon.
Shorebirds like Dunlin, Semipalmated Plover, and Black-bellied Plover are starting to appear almost daily, with our first Ruddy Turnstones and Whimbrel showing up this week. Many move soon after sunrise, so arrive early if you want good shorebird action. Quite a few more rare migrants were cited this week as well. A Hudsonian Godwit was seen on May 19, two Parasitic Jaegers and a Forster’s Tern were seen on May 20, and a Franklin’s Gull was seen on May 22. The end of May often brings many of these rarities to the Point, so hopefully, more are still to come.
Warbler diversity has stayed pretty consistent, with better numbers of Bay-breasted, Blackburnian, Chestnut-sided, and many more. Ruby-throated Hummingbirds also seem to be back in pretty good numbers. Most excitingly, a Western Kingbird flew northwest over the Point on May 19.
~ Troy Herrel
2024 Spring Waterbird Counter
Featured photo by Troy Herrel
Troy is a recent graduate from The Ohio State University where he obtained a degree in zoology. He has experience banding passerines and raptors, conducting point counts, and doing migration surveys. He spent last fall at Hawk Mountain Sanctuary in Pennsylvania, where he assisted the biologists with various research and educational outreach. He hopes to one day get a master’s degree and continue working with wildlife.
