Since most of the birding reports from Jamaica come from the ponds, I was curious to see what was elsewhere in the bay. I've kayaked most of the bay last Sunday (August 7), checking all the islands on each side of Cross Bay Boulevard mainly to look for attractive areas for shorebirds. Richard Aracil joined me yesterday for a second full day kayak trip focused in the areas that seemed to be the most productive last Sunday: Ruffle bar (at high tide), little egg marsh sand bar (at high tide), Rulers bar and Black Wall Marsh, the latter having the highest diversity apart from just around high tide. Birds were remarkably tolerant of the kayak.
Highlights of these 2 trips are: *-*Black-headed Gull: 1 first summer, Black Wall Marsh, on August 14 spotted by Richard. Picture here with other pictures from both days: https://flic.kr/s/aHskGwNh2M. Potentially the same bird as the one found last week by Isaac Grant on the East pond. *-* American golden Plover: 1 seen on August 14 while it was landing on Black Wall Marsh with a group of Black bellied Plovers and Dowitchers. *-* Gull-billed Tern: 2 on August 14 (Black Wall Marsh), 1 on August 7 (Jacks Hole creek) *-* Tricolored Heron: 2 on August 14 (flying towards Yellow Bar Hassock), 1 on August 7 (Yellow Bar Hassock). *-* Pectoral Sandpiper: 2, Ruffle bar on August 7. *-* Both Willets: 13 willets on August 7 (the ones I could assign were Eastern type, on Little egg marsh sand bar), 5 on August 14, a bird in the water along the Ruffle bar with typical Western characteristics (straight, slim & long bill, long primaries, pale gray on back and wings, white breast, abrupt front, was feeding in rather deep water). It flew before it could be well documented. *-*Royal Tern: 7 on August 14 (2 ad. in nuptial plumage on the Ruffle bar, 3 ad. in non breeding plumage with 2 juveniles on Black Wall Marsh) ; 1 in non breeding plumage on August 7 in Black Wall Marsh with a ring on the right leg. *-* Purple Martin: 1 ad on August 14 (Little Egg marsh sand bar) *-* Bank Swallows: 3 on August 7 (Ruffle bar), 1 on August 14 (Ruffle bar). Regarding common shorebirds, the largest groups were (around high tide): - Short-billed Dowitchers: ~ 250 on Black Wall Marsh and Rulers bar on August 14 ; 140 at Little egg marsh sand bar on August 7, - Oystercatchers: 205 on the 14th on the Ruffle bar ; 136 on Ruffle bar and Little egg march sand bar on the 7th. - Semipalmated Plovers: 470 on Ruffle bar on the 7th, ~ 350 on the 14th on Black Wall Marsh / Rulers bar. - Semipalmated Sandpipers: 360 on Ruffle bar on the 7th, ~ 280 on the 14th on Black Wall Marsh / Rulers bar. - Black-bellied Plovers: ~ 200 on Black Wall Marsh on the 14th on on Black Wall Marsh, 80 on Jack Hole creek on the 7th. - Ruddy Turnstone: 80 on August 14, Black Wall Marsh. - Least Sandpiper: 40 on August 14, Black Wall Marsh. We'll put soon all the sightings and counts on ebirds lists by islands. I unfortunately won't be available for the NYC Shorebird Blitz this fall but the use of kayaks (with proper training) can be very efficient to count the shorebirds in areas that are hard/impossible/forbidden to access on foot. Some non bird sightings included 10-12 Diamondback Terrapin on Sunday 14 and many big Cownose rays on Sunday 7 with females holding the tip of their pectoral fins out of the water. Matthieu -- NYSbirds-L List Info: http://www.NortheastBirding.com/NYSbirdsWELCOME http://www.NortheastBirding.com/NYSbirdsRULES http://www.NortheastBirding.com/NYSbirdsSubscribeConfigurationLeave.htm ARCHIVES: 1) http://www.mail-archive.com/[email protected]/maillist.html 2) http://www.surfbirds.com/birdingmail/Group/NYSBirds-L 3) http://birdingonthe.net/mailinglists/NYSB.html Please submit your observations to eBird: http://ebird.org/content/ebird/ --
