The birding at Whitefish Point has been magnificent over the past week! We’ve had several expected bird species finally arrive at the Point for the first time this fall (mainly on the waterbird count), but we had quite a few surprises as well. The most exciting of these surprises was on 10/8. I was walking over to prop up the Merlin pole that had blown over in the wind when I spotted a small bird in the dunes that caught my eye. I was able to take some photos for closer examination and determined that it was a Chestnut-collared Longspur! Besides being a lifer for me, it is the 8th record of this species for Michigan and the 3rd for Whitefish Point. It was seen by others throughout the following day on 10/9 before disappearing for the next two days. Interestingly, the Chestnut-collared Longspur was seen again on 10/12 by me and others, but photos suggest it could be a different individual based on minor plumage differences.

We had some other exciting songbirds show up at the Point this week, including Townsend’s Solitaires on 10/10 and 10/12, and a Western Kingbird spotted by Fall Waterbird Counter Hannah Leabhart on 10/11. Most of our rare/uncommon species seen at the Point this fall are often found migrating through or breeding in areas not too far west of here, such as Minnesota, North Dakota, and Manitoba. We may be getting an influx of these species as they are pushed farther east by strong westerly winds this fall. This pattern could hypothetically explain the appearance of our Burrowing Owl, Chestnut-collared Longspur(s), and the high number of Harris’s Sparrows, among several other migrant birds at the Point in the past few weeks. Over the next week, it looks like the winds in our area will stay fairly strong most days and shift around quite a bit, so who knows what might turn up at Whitefish Point in mid-late October!

~ Clay Bliznick
2024 Fall Field Ornithologist

Featured photo: The Chestnut-collared Longspur seen at the Point on 10/9, the 8th Michigan record. Photo by Clay Bliznick

Townsend's Solitaire briefly seen on the south part of the woods at Whitefish Point on 10/12. Photo by Clay Bliznick

My lifer Snow Bunting on the beach at the Point! Photo by Clay Bliznick

The potential 2nd Chestnut-collared Longspur seen on 10/12. Photo by Clay Bliznick

Western Kingbird seen perching on jack pines near waterbird shack. Photo by Clay Bliznick

You can keep up with the 2024 Fall Field Ornithologist by reading Clay’s weekly blog posts and following WPBO’s social media (Facebook, Instagram, and X).

Would you like to go birding with Clay? Join him for one of his WPBO Migratory Bird Walks this season. Learn more at wpbo.org/events.

Clay Bliznick, MS: 2024 Fall Field Ornithologist

Clay first took an interest in birds during a high school trip to Alaska, where he was struck by the flamboyance of magpies, the sleek, penguin-like appearance of alcids, and the sheer number of waterbirds residing along the coast. He dived headfirst into the birding world while an undergraduate at the University of Kentucky, spending every free second exploring his home state for exciting new birds and places. Afterward, he attended graduate school at Murray State University and wrote a master’s thesis examining the response of bird communities to environmental factors in Western Kentucky bottomland hardwood forest restorations. Most recently, Clay has been living in South Florida, where he’s worked closely with many charismatic birds, such as the Crested Caracara, Swallow-tailed Kite, and Florida Grasshopper Sparrow. Clay is excited to join the Michigan Audubon team at WPBO as a fall field ornithologist and is eager to observe the spectacle of bird migration in the Upper Peninsula firsthand.