After arriving in Montauk yesterday afternoon, I set about exploring the shores of the Lake in search of the Brown Booby. I found no sign of the long-lingering rarity: hopefully she moved south ahead of the cold weather. A pipit and some Purple Sandpipers were observed at the Gin Beach area, and I set up for an evening seawatch from the restaurant at the Point. Several hundred Bonaparte’s Gulls were mixed in with Laughers and other species, the highest numbers I’ve seen around the island in some time. There were also two Great Shearwaters associating with the fishing boats just beyond the breakers.
I started another seawatch from Camp Hero before sunrise this morning. Anthony Collerton joined me, and shortly after doing so he spotted a Pacific Loon flying west to east and out beyond the Point. He also picked out two early Razorbills, and I relocated one of yesterday’s shearwaters. Duck numbers are increasing but not yet peaked, though five Green-winged Teal rafting with the scoters were interesting. Non-avian highlights included a Gray Seal, as well as a Minke Whale and a Humpback observed feeding in very close association: the alternating appearance of different dorsal fins confused us at first. We explored a few more sites around the area, turning up a Parasitic Jaeger and some Snow Buntings on the west side of Montauk Inlet, and a surprising pod of Short-beaked Common Dolphins feeding north of Culloden Point. -- NYSbirds-L List Info: http://www.NortheastBirding.com/NYSbirdsWELCOME.htm http://www.NortheastBirding.com/NYSbirdsRULES.htm http://www.NortheastBirding.com/NYSbirdsSubscribeConfigurationLeave.htm ARCHIVES: 1) http://www.mail-archive.com/nysbirds-l@cornell.edu/maillist.html 2) http://www.surfbirds.com/birdingmail/Group/NYSBirds-L 3) http://birding.aba.org/maillist/NY01 Please submit your observations to eBird: http://ebird.org/content/ebird/ --
