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November 2010

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From:
Greg Miller <[log in to unmask]>
Reply To:
Greg Miller <[log in to unmask]>
Date:
Fri, 12 Nov 2010 03:24:28 -0800
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Howdy All!

I birded with Robert Hershberger (of Time and Optics) and Emory Yoder (of
wheatear fame) yesterday.  Our first stop was Wellington Reservoir.  Our best
bird there was a Greater White-fronted Goose.  There were lots of Ruddy Ducks
and Ring-necked Ducks and American Coots present as well.

We stopped at Loraine impoundment and stayed there until noon.  With rising
temperatures and bugs and flies out we hoped to nail a Cave Swallow but did not
have any luck.  We did have pipits and snow buntings fly over while there.  In
the harbor was one adult Lesser Black-backed Gull.  Of note yesterday at Loraine
were the presence of about half a dozen seemingly oiled Ring-billed Gulls.  The
first one we saw from the parking lot was so dark that it appeared to have a
black belly (as dark as a Black Tern).  Other ring-billeds had varying amounts
of black smudging.  I only found one Herring Gull with a black face.  My
question is, where are these black-smudged birds coming from?

From Loraine we headed over to Bradstreet Landing near Rocky River and spent the
rest of the afternoon there.  There were lots of gulls present.  AND there were
feeding groups both to the East and West of the end of the pier.  Feeding groups
of gulls (diving to the water surface) is nearly always a good sign.  We had
innocent hopes of finding a few ducks and in particular, scoters.  We did manage
to see all three species of scoters during our 3 hour stay at Bradstreet.  Also
present were Horned Grebes and Common Loons and Red-breasted Mergansers.  Not
much in the way of other duck species though.  There were 2 more oiled
Ring-billed Gulls at Bradstreet as well.  Something bad must be happening to
these birds somewhere.

But the surprise of the day for us were the jaegers.  Yes, that is plural.  We
had at least TWO light phase non-breeding adult Pomarine Jaegers and possibly
3.  The one bird may have been the same individual as the first bird we observed
2 hours before.  I can't be sure.  But a 4th jaeger sighting was very
interesting and unfortunately, left unidentified.  The 4th bird was also a light
bird but by the time I got on the bird it was already pretty distant.  Still,
this bird was smaller and lighter-bodied (less overall mass) than the
Ring-billed Gull it was chasing (Pom Jaegers are bulkier than Ring-billed Gulls
by about 1/3).  The combination of size and sleeker build alone ruled out
Pomarine Jaeger.  Unfortunately this bird stayed to West of us into bad
lighting.


I was totally not expecting to see jaegers on such a beautiful day.  All my
other sightings have been on wind-swept days with cold, uncomfortable winds.  So
why did they visit today.  Why now?  My only guess is that the mild breezes from
the North that we had were not enough to inhibit normal migration patterns and
we were just plain lucky to be in the right spot at the right time.  The feeding
gulls is something that I noted.  When I lived in Maryland and needed jaegers
for my year list I would go to the Atlantic Ocean, wait for late afternoon, then
drive along the shoreline until I ran into a large flock of FEEDING gulls.  This
strategy proved successful multiple times.  Will these birds hang around?  I
don't know.  It would be nice if they did!!!

If anyone has any info on the oiled gulls along the Lake, let me know.  Is this
something brand new or have others noted this previously?  This is the first
that I have seen it.

-Greg Miller
Sugarcreek, OH

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