September 15 marked one month since we started the waterbird count this fall. If you look at the data we’ve collected thus far, you might see some trends emerge. Some species have largely departed, some are beginning to show up in numbers. While a few of these changes happened quickly, like the gigantic flight days [...]
Pomarine Jaeger by cotinis on Flickr There are few words that can bring immediate focus to a group of avid birders. Typically we’re occupied with scanning the horizon, looking in every direction, actively listening for chips and chirps and in general trying to take in everything from every angle. The more eyes and [...]
...sailors take warning.” This saying tells us that under a red morning sky you can expect weather coming your way. Today couldn’t have been a better affirmation of this thousands of years old saying. A beautiful morning sky foretold the gale that came in the afternoon, shaking the waterbird shack and observers(read here for an [...]
Today was an astounding day at Whitefish Point. We had a nice variety of species, some high counts, and a few surprises. 1,413 Red-necked Grebe, 569 Blue-winged Teal, a Black Scoter, two jaegers, and a Whimbrel were some notable sightings. Looking at the forecast, today looked like it was going to be a day with [...]
The first week of the Fall Waterbird Count is approaching its end, and let me say it has been an exciting one. Before we delve into the details, I’d like to introduce myself. My name is Steve and I’ll be the counter for this fall. I’m very excited to be in such a beautiful place [...]
Since the last blog post, the migration past the point slowed down to a crawl. There was even a day that we didn't count a single Red-necked Grebe! But, migration heated back up on the Aug. 30 when we recorded 2,269 Red-necked Grebe. We've also seen some good Common Tern flights. The best flight consisted [...]
The fall waterbird count kicked off on the morning of Aug. 15. We've been lucky to start the season off with relatively good numbers throughout the first week. As usual for August, our most common migrant has been the Red-necked Grebe. We've counted a total of 3,292 with a peak of 809 on Aug. 20. [...]
The 2016 fall waterbird count was a record breaker! In terms of waterbird species, we broke the previous record of 80, with a season total of 82. In terms of numbers, we had the second highest count with 111,126. The major highlights of the count consisted of Ancient Murrelet, an eider, two Ruddy Ducks, Red [...]
It's that time of year again; the count ends and the birds leave. Well, maybe there are still some birds hanging on up here. As expected, the waterbird counts were relatively slow throughout the last week and a half of November but the rarities kept the count interesting. We did have a couple of good [...]
November can be a slow month for waterbird migration here at the point. Luckily, this November has started off quickly with lots of good birds and a good flight. For the point, November is the time for big flights of Bufflehead and Common Goldeneye and also occasional flights of Long-tailed Ducks and Red-breasted Mergansers. Today [...]
