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November 2010

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jen brumfield <[log in to unmask]>
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jen brumfield <[log in to unmask]>
Date:
Thu, 18 Nov 2010 20:10:31 +0000
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Greetings - 
Just sent out a quick email to ohio-birds a few minutes ago, with brief list of this morning's highlights from ROCKY RIVER PARK. I started the morning around 9 a.m. Had just run up to see if the previously-reported White-winged Scoter was still off the observation deck. What entailed was the single largest flight of Common Loons, Pomarine Jaegers, and Red-breasted Mergansers that I've witnessed on the Erie lakefront. Fortunately, "backup" came in the form of Paula Lozano around 9:30, and Jerry Talkington and Suzanne Wagner afterwards. Paula left at one point to pick up Lukas Padigamas (spelling), but returned and literally pulled up as another Pomarine was passing. Just before I left, we had two Pomarines in flight, battling it out, up over the lake, and almost straight out from Bradstreet Landing. 
An incredible flight. Winds WNW steady at 15-20mph. A rain front moved through in the earlier part of the morning and it cleared up around noon. The flight dropped off significantly around noon, but birds were still steadily moving through. Flight was east to WEST for 95% of the birds. Typically flight patterns this time of the year are eastward. Particularly if winds are WNW. While some of the mergansers and loons could be seen bare-eye or through binoculars, SPOTTING SCOPES were absolutely, absolutely necessary for seeing the majority of the birds. If you arrive at Rocky River Park thinking you're going to spot birds on the horizon line through binoculars, you'll be sorely disappointed and likely very frustrated. Scopes are imperative. I can't say it more clearly. 
A note about weather. If you visit the lake on a calm sunny day, you'll enjoy yourself with pleasant, comfortable weather, but you likely will not see as many birds. Certainly not the big movements. To witness waterfowl/gull/jeager/loon movements, you need to set yourself up on a clear overlook (a bluff of some sort to give you better visibility) and you'll need to rough it out through strong winds and sometimes rain. You want winds that are WNW, NW, or NNW. Which means you'll probably end up dealing with cold and precipitation. It's worth it. We were in heavy winter gear and were still cold. Bad weather=good birds, is often the case. 
The immature male King Eider passed east to west with the Red-breasted Mergansers hordes around 9:30 a.m. Looks were fast but good. The jaegers started passing around 10 a.m. and continued through 1 p.m. A pair of Long-tailed Ducks passed around 9:30 and a single male passed around 10:45. Scoters were in fair abundance, with the largest group, 16 (unidentified but very likely Black). Black Scoter is generally the more abundant scoter on Erie at this time of the year but that is certainly NOT a definable ID assumption. The Common Loon passage was breathtaking, with 1,189 individuals and still counting when I left. They were just STREAMING west. Some were directly overhead the observation platform but many of the birds were out on the horizon or just in, and required a scope for accurate counts. Red-breasted Mergansers came in around 10,300 (low count), and Lesser Scaup were second most abundant waterfowl with 840. 
Simply incredible day. 
TOTALS: (18 species of waterfowl certainly a highlight)
Canada Goose - 36Tundra Swan - 67Mallard - 45American Black Duck - 17Northern Pintail - 3Northern Shoveler - 8American Wigeon - 3Bufflehead - 68 Common Goldeneye - 6Lesser Scaup - 840Canvasback - 2Red-breasted Merganser - 10,300Common Merganser - 35Hooded Merganser - 12Black Scoter - 26Surf Scoter - 6unidentified scoter species - 16LONG-TAILED DUCK - 3KING EIDER - 1 immature maleCommon Loon - 1,189Horned Grebe - 435Double-crested Cormorant - 45POMARINE JAEGER - 6 (5 dark morph, 1 intermediate)PARASITIC JAEGER - 2 (1 dark morph, 1 intermediate)Herring Gull - xxxRing-billed Gull - xxxBonaparte's Gull - 525Lesser Black-backed Gull - 1 adult basicGreat Black-backed Gull - 5Dunlin - 16Pine Siskin - 3

cheersJen



Jen Brumfield 
[log in to unmask]
Cleveland, Ohio
330-701-6452

Bird Illustrator / www.jenbrumfield.com








> Date: Thu, 18 Nov 2010 13:54:46 -0500
> From: [log in to unmask]
> Subject: [Ohio-birds] Eider jaegers more
> To: [log in to unmask]
> 
> Paula lozano, Jerry talkington, Suzanne Wagner and I had incredible
> morning at rocky river park. Will send full email and details. This is
> to get word out. My cell died.
> 
> Incredible conditions. Wnw winds and fronts moving thru. Loons and
> mergansers in mass numbers.
> Birds moving quickly and hard WEST.
> 
> KING EIDER- 1 imm male at 9:30 with mergs headed west
> Long-tailed Duck- 3
> Black Scoter- 26
> Surf scoter- 6
> Unid. Scoter- 16
> Common Loon- 1,189 and counting
> Red-breasted Merganser- 10,300
> Common Merganser- 35
> POMARINE JAEGER- 6 (six)
> PARASITIC JAEGER- 2
> Horned Grebe - 435
> Lesser Scaup- 840
> Tundra Swan-67
> N Pintail-  3
> N Shoveler- 8
> Am Wigeon - 3
> Bufflehead- 68
> Am Black Duck- 17
> Pine Siskin-3
> 
> Jen Brumfield
> 
> 
> Sent from my iPod
> 
> ______________________________________________________________________
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