If it’s August, must be time to check back in @ the BIRDS (BirdingPI.com Regional Desert Southwest) field station, for the SE Arizona Birding Festival and otherwise. (With high temps of 41+ deg C in Tucson, Erie is looking pretty good.)
Starting off – and why not? – with nature! #monsoon_lightning
These shots late July @ 28mm, Tucson, AZ, using the 1/8 – 1/10 sec continuous/handheld shooting method. Cropped but not sharpened or colour revised.
Almost always lots of interesting bird activity @ Pine Tree Trail, Presque Isle State Park. These recent shots from July.
First up, beautiful Blue Jay:
Hairy Woodpecker with a very long beak:
And lots of nice shots of Downy Woodpecker:
Coming up soon, wild pigs?!?
Great ‘under the radar’ birding in the Jamestown/ Williamsburg, VA area = the 100% free Jamestown-Scotland Ferry. Drive onboard (in nice weather) for cormorants, gulls, terns, and beautiful views of the James River. Depending on waiting time to board, maybe a half-hour commitment each direction.
Great spot to see Laughing Gull:
First winter/juvenile Laughing Gull in flight/landing:
Very exciting – Season 3, ‘Volume 2’ of ‘The Dowitcher!’ All shots July 2023 @ Gull Point, Presque Isle State Park.
Beautiful Dowitcher (adult breeding plumage) @ foraging/feeding behavior:
Wrapping it up with a view on a different day of Semipalmated Plover (lower left) + Sanderling, on the north outer beach. Cropped view @ 560mm (?) from ‘stop sign’ at end of beach trail.
Currently enjoying Season 3 (Vol. 1) of ‘The Dowitcher’ at Presque Isle State Park. These recent shots all at Gull Point. Probably Long-billed Dowitcher. (Thoughtful bird ID analysis: “Those bills look pretty long…”)
Wrapping up this post with several shots of Yellowlegs wading x flight:
Coming up soon, Season 3 (Vol. 2)!
More great shots of juvenile/adult ‘begging/feeding’ behavior @ Eastern Kingbird. Complete with ‘exploding’ bugs! This is east of Budny Beach along the Gull Point Trail.
Thunderstorms forecast for Erie County Saturday, but mostly clear and moderate temps Sunday. Should be a nice day for birding Sunday at Presque Isle State Park!
Heavy thunderstorms this past Wednesday = tree damage at Presque Isle including human injury and eventual park closure. Based on a quick reconnoiter out to Budny Beach early this morning, things seem back to normal. Trail conditions: damp.
By the beach, a few ‘summer regulars:’
Have a nice weekend! #more_nature
[Editor’s Note: Recommend avoiding forested areas at Presque Isle during heavy wind situations – falling trees are a regular occurrence.]
Almost as exciting as the famous bigfoot film, it’s bonus video clips of five Great Egret at Gull Point, Presque Isle State Park.
Also, bonus Stilt Sandpiper at Gull Point. Note the heavy underside baring, yellow-green (but not bright yellow) legs, and long/slightly dropping bill (longer than Yellowlegs, shorter than Dowitcher).
More from Presque Isle State Park on Sunday, at Gull Point/trail.
eBird did not ‘believe’ there were five Great Egret at Gull Point on Sunday, but 100% true. See, e.g., all five egrets together:
No one disbelieves the hundreds of Double-crested Cormorants:
Only a quick stop at the observation platform (w/o a spotting scope), but still saw two Piping Plover chicks:
Several shots of three of the Great Egret as they moved further away from the observation platform due to human presence:
Beautiful American Lotus (Nelumbo lutea) are starting to bloom on ‘turtle pond’ (pond/lagoon adjacent to the entrance of the roped-off observation platform corridor):
This was a tough one, but research indicates it’s a juvenile Spotted Sandpiper. (“Tough” = lack of spots.) Note the white underbelly, relatively plain/brown back, and partial spectacle. (Plus yellow-green legs which aren’t easy to see in this view. Also exhibited characteristic ‘bobbing’ behavior.)
More juvenile ‘begging’/feeding behavior, here with Red-winged Blackbird @ the grassy area at Thompson Circle, Presque Isle State Park.
