BIRD SIGHTINGS March/April 2006 256 ABOUT the COVER: Belted Kingfisher William E
Total Page：16
File Type：pdf, Size：1020Kb
Bird Observer VOLUME 34, NUMBER 4 AUGUST 2006 HOT BIRDS Norman Levey found this Scissor-tailed Flycatcher (left) hawking insects in Lincoln on June 4, 2006. Erik Neilsen took this photograph the same day. On June 12, 2006, Brian Harris found and photographed this Sandwich Tern (right) on South Monomoy in Chatham. He found an apparently different individual on July 3 on Minimoy. The bird of the summer (as of press time) was this very cooperative Black-tailed Godwit (above), found on July 17 on the Parker River NWR by Phil Brown and seen by many birders over the following days. Photographs: above left by Phil Brown (July 17); above right by Erik Nielsen (July 23). Acceptance by the Massachusetts Avian Records Committee (MARC) will make this the fourth state record. Sue Finnegan got a treat on August 6, 2006, when she captured and banded this Black-chinned Hummingbird (right) in Brewster. Acceptance by the MARC will make this only the second state record of this hummingbird species. CONTENTS BIRDING MILFORD POINT, CONNECTICUT Nick Bonomo 213 SOME ADDITIONS TO THE NESTING AVIFAUNA OF ESSEX COUNTY, AND SIGNIFICANT NESTING EVENTS OF SEVERAL OTHER SPECIES Jim Berry 221 EAGLES IN THE BACK YARD Bob Pierce 234 BALD EAGLES IN MASSACHUSETTS Trudy Tynan 239 ADVENTURES OF THE ROWLEY DUMP GIRLS (AND BOYS) Mary Cunningham 240 SHOREBIRDS OF THE WELLFLEET BAY WILDLIFE SANCTUARY Stephanie Ellis 245 ABOUT BOOKS ATrip of Plovers, a Leash of Merlins, a Parcel of Oystercatchers, and Meatloaf on a Stick and a Gaggle of Guides Mark Lynch 248 BIRD SIGHTINGS March/April 2006 256 ABOUT THE COVER: Belted Kingfisher William E. Davis, Jr. 271 ABOUT THE COVER ARTIST: Barry Van Dusen 272 ATA GLANCE Wayne R. Petersen 273 Looking Skyward: A Passion for Hawkwatching took first prize in the Cape Cod Shorts Section of the Woods Hole Film Festival this summer. Looking Skyward is a 16-minute video that Shawn Carey, John Sutherland, Don Crockett, Fred Bouchard, and others created at Migration Productions. The video explores why people hawk watch and features interviews with Pete Dunne, Bill Clark, and Paul Roberts. It covers hawk watching at Hawk Mountain, Cape May, Mount Wachusett, and Mount Watatic. It features hawks in flight and footage of all the raptors likely to be seen in the northeast. Shawn Carey and Jim Grady started Migration Productions <http://www.migrationproductions.com> in 1994, focusing on multi-image slide presentations. Since then, the company has presented slide and video programs to Mass Audubon, Eastern Mass Hawk Watch, many bird clubs, and national birding festivals and meetings. Congratulations to Shawn Carey and all of the talented people at Migration Productions! BIRD OBSERVER Vol. 34, No. 4, 2006 211 Bird Observer A bimonthly journal — to enhance understanding, observation, and enjoyment of birds VOL. 34, NO. 4 AUGUST 2006 Editorial Staff Corporate Officers Editor Paul Fitzgerald President H. Christian Floyd Associate Editor Mary Todd Glaser Treasurer Sandon C. Shepard Production Editor David M. Larson Clerk John A. Shetterly Bird Sightings Editor Marjorie W. Rines Assistant Clerk Fay Vale Compilers Seth Kellogg Board of Directors Robert H. Stymeist Dorothy R. Arvidson Jeremiah R. Trimble Susan L. Carlson Fay Vale Harriet E. Hoffman Copy Editors Harriet Hoffman Renée LaFontaine Susan L. Carlson David M. Larson At a Glance Wayne R. Petersen Carolyn B. Marsh Book Reviews Mark Lynch John B. Marsh Cover Art William E. Davis, Jr. Wayne R. Petersen Where to Go Birding Jim Berry Marjorie W. Rines Maps Dorothy Graaskamp Brooke Stevens Associate Staff Carolyn B. Marsh Robert H. Stymeist Brooke Stevens John B. Marsh Trudy Tynan Subscriptions Advertisements Robert H. Stymeist Mailing Renée LaFontaine SUBSCRIPTIONS: $21 for 6 issues, $40 for two years for U.S. addresses. Inquire about foreign subscriptions. Single copies $4.00, see <http://massbird.org/birdobserver/subform.htm>. CHANGES OF ADDRESS and subscription inquiries should be sent to: Bird Observer Subscriptions, P.O. Box 236, Arlington, MA 02476-0003, or e-mail to John Marsh at <[email protected]>. ADVERTISING: full page, $100; half page, $55; quarter page, $35. Send camera-ready copy to Bird Observer Advertising, P.O. Box 236, Arlington, MA 02476-0003. MATERIAL FOR PUBLICATION: BIRD OBSERVER welcomes submissions of original articles, photographs, art work, field notes, and field studies. Scientific articles will be peer- reviewed. Please send submissions to the Editor by e-mail: Paul Fitzgerald <[email protected]>. Please DO NOT embed graphics in word processing documents. Include author’s or artist’s name, address, and telephone number and information from which a brief biography can be prepared. POSTMASTER: Send address changes to BIRD OBSERVER, P.O. Box 236, Arlington, MA 02476-0003. PERIODICALS CLASS POSTAGE PAID AT BOSTON, MA. BIRD OBSERVER (USPS 369-850) is published bimonthly, COPYRIGHT © 2006 by Bird Observer of Eastern Massachusetts, Inc., 462 Trapelo Road, Belmont, MA 02478, a nonprofit, tax-exempt corporation under section 501 (c)(3) of the Internal Revenue Code. Gifts to Bird Observer will be greatly appreciated and are tax deductible. ISSN: 0893-463 212 BIRD OBSERVER Vol. 34, No. 4, 2006 Birding Milford Point, Connecticut Nick Bonomo Introduction The Connecticut coast is often overlooked by New England birders as a productive shorebird location. And who can blame them, with such sites as the Charlestown Breachway and South Beach to the east and Jamaica Bay NWR to the south? Even so, Milford Point, located at the mouth of the Housatonic River in Milford, certainly deserves attention. Well known to Connecticut birders, Milford Point is arguably the best location for shorebirds and terns in the state. The birding here goes beyond these two taxa, however, as waterfowl, long-legged waders, raptors, owls, and even a few passerines are featured during the appropriate seasons. In addition to the regular migrants and breeders, Milford Point has a history of drawing impressive rarities, including a few first state records. Be sure to bring a scope along: this makes identification of those small DOROTHY GRAASKAMP brownish shorebirds much easier! Milford Point consists of 8.4 acres of Connecticut Audubon Society property adjacent to a 22-acre barrier beach that stretches northeast-to-southwest into the mouth of the Housatonic River. On the inland side of the beach lies an 840-acre salt marsh named the Charles E. Wheeler Wildlife Management Area. Wherever you are birding along this stretch, you’ll have to deal with insects during the summer months, although a constant breeze will often keep the mosquitoes and gnats down. During July and August, be prepared for greenhead flies too. I recommend long pants if you can deal with the heat because they can really chew up your legs, especially in July. Directions Milford Point is easily reached via Interstate 95 in Connecticut. From either northbound or southbound directions, take Exit 34. At the end of the ramp, take a right onto Route 1 South. Proceed on Route 1 for 0.5 mile, and turn left at the traffic light onto Naugatuck Avenue for 0.6 mile, and then turn right at the traffic light onto Milford Point Road. Follow this for 1.2 miles, then remain on Milford Point Road by turning right at the stop sign. Note that the street signs are unclear, so it may appear that you are turning right onto Seaview Avenue. However, this is actually Milford Point Road. Follow the road for another 0.3 mile until it ends in a fork. Take the right fork, which is the entrance to the Milford Point parking lot. Do not take the left fork through the steel gateway, which is a private community. BIRD OBSERVER Vol. 34, No. 4, 2006 213 DOROTHY GRAASKAMP The Birds of Milford Point As you enter the parking lot you will see a gray building straight ahead. This is the Connecticut Audubon Society Coastal Center at Milford Point. It is open Tuesday through Saturday from 10:00 a.m. to 4:00 p.m. From inside the building, the birder has an elevated view of the marsh through large windows, which can be very inviting on cold and windy winter days. The parking lot itself is open daily from sunrise to sunset. Our first stop will be the observation deck that overlooks the marsh from the northern corner of the parking lot. Morning is the best time of day to look at the marsh from here, when the sun is behind you. This is the first of three marsh overlooks that the birder should utilize. During shorebird migration (April to early June and July to October), the mudflats can be teeming with feeding shorebirds at low tide. Several species can be expected here, including Black-bellied and Semipalmated plovers, both yellowlegs, Willets, Whimbrels (rare in spring), Red Knots, Sanderlings, Dunlins, Short-billed Dowitchers, and Spotted, Semipalmated, Least, White-rumped, and Pectoral sandpipers. When the uncommon Hudsonian or Marbled godwits are present during autumn migration, they are often seen feeding in the marsh. In fact, Connecticut’s first Black-tailed Godwit was found in this marsh in April of 2001. 214 BIRD OBSERVER Vol. 34, No. 4, 2006 Long-legged waders are well represented in the marsh, especially during the summer. High tide is the best time to see these birds, when they are forced out of the numerous marsh channels. Great Blue Herons occur year-round, while Great and Snowy egrets and Black-crowned and Yellow-crowned night-herons nest nearby and use the marsh to feed. It would be wise to brush up on your fly-by night-heron identification before making a visit, since you often see these birds flying from point to point over the marsh.