Waterfowl: Not large numbers by any means but better numbers than the past week and a steady trickle of birds throughout the day. Species diversity was up as well with 9 today. Highlights were a close flyby Red-throated Loon (one of three today) and 11 White-winged Scoters-- two of which officially represented the final birds detected during the fall 2009 waterbird count.
Gulls: An exhilarating highlight of the day was a juvenile BLACK-LEGGED KITTIWAKE seen during the fifth hour of the count. We were able to watch the bird for several minutes as it effortlessly sailed NW straight into the 30mph headwind. This was the first of the season and great to see after I thought it may not happen this fall.
Other: A fun sighting was a Sharp-tailed Grouse that flew out of the woods near the merlin pole and flew a lap around the tip of the point before tucking back into the woods near the ponds.Stay tuned for a season wrap-up post!
Tom Prestby
Waterbird Counter
4 comments:
Cool sighting, I had one on the 15th last year as well at the Point.
Even though it's not a super close photo of the kittiwake, it's still really cool to see.
Tom
Thank you for the excellent job you did this season. I have enjoyed your daily blog, keeping everyone informed on what is happening at the Point.
Have a good winter, Hope to see you back next spring
Susan
Tom,
When do you get back to Madison? Let's go birding when you get back.
Aaron
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