This post brought to you by Air Jordan 11 CMFT Low^TM sneakers (shown here in ‘white/gym red’): “The footwear choice of discerning Least Sandpiper the world over!”^TM

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Moving on, it’s Part II of Gull Point coverage from this last Sunday afternoon (@ Presque Isle State Park, naturally), w/ both good and less-good bird photographs.

This just about sums up Gull Point on Sunday – “small birds at a distance.” Here’s Killdeer + perhaps a Semipalmated Sandpiper:

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The yellow bird in the following shots = an “unusual for the time of year” female Yellow Warbler:

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Just left/right of middle, a Lesser Yellowlegs (l) + sandpiper of some sort:

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Somewhere there’s a Semipalmated Plover:

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Not much happening at outer Gull Point Sunday afternoon – cormorants, gulls, Turkey Vultures, and a few distant Black-bellied Plover, Lesser Yellowlegs, Killdeer, etc.

OTOH, some great activity at the ‘big bend’ bay-side beach access, including at least five Greater Yellowlegs:

And surprisingly (for this time of year), a Short-billed Dowitcher:

Series of Greater Yellowlegs (left) + Short-billed Dowitcher (right):

Dowitcher taking flight:

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Dowitcher landing:

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Here’s a shot of 5 Yellowlegs (5th is center left foreground/blurry) + 1 Dowitcher (center right):

Finally for “Part I,” two juvenile plumage Bald Eagles in a tree adjacent the lagoon/lake of the above shots (past east side of Thompson Bay):

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[Editor’s note: ID on Greater Yellowlegs – overall size, slight barring on flanks, slightly upturned bill, + Merlin voice ID. (The Yellowlegs with its beak shown open above was unusually vocal.)]

BirdingPI.com’s insect coverage has been somewhat sporadic since the Sr. Editor for Insect Photography ‘retired’/went missing. As such, happy to get the following shots Sunday near outer Gull Point, even if with the ‘wrong’ lens. (600mm prime telephoto = unusual choice for this application.) All Orange Sulphur butterfly (Colias eurytheme) on goldenrod:

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And now for something completely different, the “BirdingPI.com weekend award for intrepid nature exploration” goes to this (redacted) individual apparently attempting to walk directly from outer Gull Point to Beach No. 11 across Thompson Bay! The photographer did not remain on site long enough to verify whether this is physically possible, but it is a bold idea. #in_too_deep? #time_for_a_swim

Other than a surprise, passing thunderstorm Saturday morning, it was a beautiful/warm/dry equinox weekend at Presque Isle State Park. The interesting warbler activity continued, including fairly unusual multiple sightings of Yellow Warbler. (Based on yearly records, most Yellow Warblers would have departed Presque Isle in August, with just one or two northern breeders typically recorded passing through in late September.) There’s lots of “yellow-ish” birds in fall with non-breeding or juvenile plumage, making identification tricky, but here’s a ‘control sample’ of female (juvenile?) Yellow Warbler at the tree line at outer Gull Point Sunday afternoon:

Spotted at least several Yellow Warbler at Leo’s Landing, all dingier juveniles, like this one foraging in blooming goldenrod:

Another juvenile Yellow Warbler at Leo’s Landing:

Here’s a shady Wilson’s Warbler (note the dark cap):

Another common yellow bird, a female or juvenile American Goldfinch:

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Backlit Palm Warbler. Not ‘super yellow,’ but has a yellow-ish rump and lower underside:

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Two ‘not the best shots but still fun to see’ of Nashville Warbler. Note the gray head, bold white eyering, yellow underside, & hint of russet cap:

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Except where noted, following shots are all juvenile Yellow Warbler:

Dateline: 3 August 2024

Happy “autumnal equinox day!” While waiting on photo editing for more recent content from Presque Isle State Park, it’s a return to Apache-Sitgreaves National Forest outside Pinetop/Lakeside, AZ in the White Mountains. This is a view from the Mogollon Rim in Pinetop, looking south-ish:

Moving on to birds in a different but nearby location. Have to love Acorn Woodpeckers!

Nice sequence of female Western Tanager “bug catching:”

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In the field, thought these were Summer Tanager, but a closer look = nice sighting of Hepatic Tanager. Female is overall yellow, & male is overall red + gray, but note the distinctive gray cheek patches/colouring:

It may be the end of summer, but that means fall migration at Presque Isle State Park = happy warbler times for birders and bird photographers. BirdingPI.com is celebrating the seasonal transition with recent shots of beautiful female/immature Magnolia Warbler along the Canoe Portage Trail:

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Looks like a nice weekend ahead. Migratory bird activity at PI appears (anecdotally) to be in full swing! Happy nature! #more_bird

It’s almost fall, but the foliage remains in full summer mode = a shady Pine Tree Trail Sunday afternoon. Final/part 6 of Weekend Update content, here’s lots of mostly poorly lit bird shots:

Here’s a very interesting sighting of male Scarlet Tanager w/ non-breeding plumage. (Breeding plumage = full red w/ black wings.) Note the overall tanager shape + dark wings + black ‘shoulders’ (scapulars).

[Editor’s note: what are ‘scapulars?‘]

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Another interesting sighting, this time of (probably) Yellow-bellied Flycatcher. Didn’t get a good shot of the belly, but note the overall olive/hint yellow colour, + yellow throat, + slightly yellow eyering, + final shot shows a hint of the yellow underside.

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Probably juvenile Yellow-rumped Warbler:

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Shady Yellow-billed Cuckoo; one spotted towards east end of Pine Tree Trail, and two together, later, towards west end:

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This is a tough one, but probably Pine Warbler. (And even if not, it’s a warbler in a pine tree = “pine warbler.”)

It’s a recurring joke here on BirdingPI.com, but is “Greater” and “Lesser” Yellowlegs really fair? Instead, maybe something like “Pretty Good Yellowlegs” and “Even Better Yellowlegs.” [Editor’s note to staff: this ‘joke’ can be retired now, thanks.] Anyway, from the Gull Point bayside, by the ‘big bend’ beach access, it’s probably Greater Yellowlegs (+ misc. bird):

ID note: Greater Yellowlegs = barring on flanks + relatively long, slightly upturned bill.

Why not a mid-week interlude with beautiful Red-breasted Nuthatch spotted along the Pine Tree Trail @ Presque Isle State Park last weekend? (Might be the first BirdingPI.com sighting of this species at PI this year; more common at ‘pinier’ places like Asbury Woods.) For those on the normal work week schedule, happy “hump day!”

Part 2 of Weekend Update content (part 3 counting the Cuckoo post) featuring outer Gull Point, mostly in chronological order. First up, remiss in not earlier mentioning the “surprise bench” that appeared adjacent the old observation platform recently. Many thanks (!) to whoever/whatever was responsible for this excellent addition to the Gull Point infrastructure!

Moving on to birds, within the tree line, immature American Goldfinch:

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Next up, bad shots of American Golden-Plover. (Expensive camera equipment notwithstanding, nothing gets past atmospheric heat shimmer at long distance.) This appears to be a male in some sort of transitioning or molting plumage. Note the overall ‘large plover’ appearance, dark cap, white face colouration, and very blotchy chest and underside. (E.g., eventually, presumably, it would transition to black cap + black breast/underside = American Golden-Plover; Black-bellied Plover lacks a dark cap.)

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Thankfully, a good shot of juvenile Black-bellied Plover:

Two juvenile Black-bellied Plover (left & middle), + ‘mystery bird’ on right:

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Had no idea of the ID on this bird in the field, other than “never seen the likes of it before = must be interesting/unusual.” Based on image analysis back at HQ, turns out this is a non-breeding plumage adult Red Knot – rather unusual for Erie. (A breeding-plumage bird would be, well, somewhat red-ish.) Note the overall relatively medium size, stout bill, yellow-green legs, white eyebrow, & pale gray rump especially visible in flight:

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More nice shots of juvenile Black-bellied Plover:

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Coming up soon, more Pine Tree Trail, & inner Gull Point w/ lots of Yellowlegs content!