The Darby Creek Grain Elevator Wetlands Sunday and Today continue to be
good shorebirds.  Finally found the Wilson's Phalorope that Paul and others
have been seeing but completely missed the Red-necked Phaloropes he
reported yesterday morning.   Like Paul says there is lots of turn over.
I haven't been to the ponds at the 2nd spot Map:
http://people.mbi.ohio-state.edu/hurtado.10/docs/battelle-darby-mp-wetlands.html
he
mentions but that must be where so many ducks head in the evening as I see
flocks flying off in that durection.

Sunday Aug 20 (three hours in the mornng and three in the late afternoon)
include:
Mallard 250 including a entirely white bird
Blue-winged Teal 8
Northern Shoveler 11
Green-winged Teal 22    New arrival as far as I know, has anyone else seen
this sp?   f./eclipse type at dawn in wetlands, geese left first, followed
by Mallards, then Green-wingeds.   Small bodies, heads and bills.  Dark
brown, whitish bellies.  Compact.  Fast flight, compact flock.

American Bittern 1  One flushed at first light from edge of cattails, flew
straight away toward the greenway trail

American Golden-Plover 5
Semipalmated Plover 45 past adult peak, juv. peaking
Killdeer 350
Spotted Sandpiper 4
Solitary Sandpiper 20
Greater Yellowlegs 4
Lesser Yellowlegs 325
Semipalmated Sandpiper 20 majority juv., most adults seem to have passed.
Least Sandpiper 145  A few adults still passing, appearing quite worn and
dark, even blackish on the mantle and crown.
Baird's Sandpiper 1  beautiful juv.  Within 40 ft. on grassy edge at
approach to pond.  Stayed for about five min. and then without warning flew
off calling.  Lost from sight but may have returned although we didn't see
it again.
peep sp. (Calidris sp. (peep sp.))  22
Pectoral Sandpiper 180     Pectoral's appear to have a extended, protracted
fall migration with adults peaking well ahead of juv., late July thru Aug.
 Adult males appearing to arrive ahead of females, being past peak by now.
 The Aug. flight however seems to be quite evident.
Stilt Sandpiper 21 all well moulted ad.
Short-billed Dowitcher 4
Wilson's Snipe 4
American Woodcock 2

Vesper Sparrow 2
Savannah Sparrow 6
Grasshopper Sparrow 1
Henslow's Sparrow 3
Swamp Sparrow 1

meadowlark, sp?  flight, notably less white in tail than expected for
Eastern
Mammals:  2 Eastern Cottontail, 1 Gray Fox

Aug 21, 2012 5:00 AM - 8:00 AM
Comments:     Watched the sunrise and listen to shorebirds and waterfowl
move about.   3 Great Horned Owl were heard, one adult giving typical hoot
and two giving the typical juv. begging call.   These latters calls being
short and rather soft (not far carrying) were rather weak, variable, wheezy
(often fading or rising), < 3/4 sec.  In my mind, this discription
therefore eliminates the louder, hard, screech on one note given by Barn
Owl.

Many shorebirds continue, although peaks of Semipalmated Plover, Lesser
Yellowlegs, Solitary Sandpiper and Stilt Sandpiper seems to have or is
passing.  Most Semipalmated Sandpipers now are juv. and the three Western
Sandpipers here were the first juv. of the fall; other first records of
juv. were noted for Greater Yellowlegs and Stilt Sandpiper.

Highlights included American golden Plover, Upland Sandpiper, White-rumped
Sandpiper, Long-billed Dowitcher, Wilson's Phalorope and Eurasian Collared
Dove.

American Wigeon f./juv. type, with grayish heads, warm buff-orange tones on
flanks, calls distinctive two or three note whistle.
Northern Shoveler 5
Northern Pintail 4
Green-winged Teal 100

American Golden-Plover12
Semipalmated Plover 30
Killdeer 175
Spotted Sandpiper 3
Solitary Sandpiper 9
Greater Yellowlegs17, peaks later than Lesser; 1st juv. (5)
Lesser Yellowlegs 125
Upland Sandpiper 1
Semipalmated Sandpiper 50
Western Sandpiper 3 All juv.  Feeding Dunlin-like at waters edge, showing
rich reddish scaps.
Least Sandpiper 100
White-rumped Sandpiper 3 ad., weedy edge, rest and flight, calling.
peep sp. (Calidris sp. (peep sp.))  13
Pectoral Sandpiper 110
Stilt Sandpiper 8 incl. 1st juv. (1)
Short-billed Dowitcher 18  one flock, calling as they flew off
Long-billed Dowitcher 1 Ad., single, working in shallows on near side of
wetlands at first approach.  Studied for about five minutes, much of the
time it was calling.  A long legged, long-billed dowitcher (bill > 3 X
head).   Very dark, including scaps and tertials which fringed in dark
chestnut.   Head dark, gray.  Call a keek, kreep, pweet, given while on the
ground.  Short-billed's only called in flight,.
Wilson's Snipe  2
Wilson's Phalarope 1

Eurasian Collared-Dove 2     Two well seen, flying by, about 1 min.  Light
very good, with sun behind.  Large, heavy (much more robust than the
abundant Mourning Dove); long broad square tail.  Both birds were very pale
gray (lacking brown, spots), bellies gray.  Tail gray with broad white
tips, flight fleathers darker than rest of mantle.  I have seen hundreds of
this species on the the east coast, and once in late spring in Columbus.

Marsh Wren 3

Savannah Sparrow 9
Grasshopper Sparrow 1
Song Sparrow 65
Swamp Sparrow 8
Dickcissel 30
Opposite the pond are extensive cattails and dry weedy edges.   Most of
these birds were here flushed up from the ground, perching on weed stalks,
cattails, small shrubs.   Large heavy, long round tail.  Few showed any
rufous in shoulders; few showed anything close to bright yellow on their
breasts.  None were males, most were immature.  Large headed, long heavy
pointed gray bill.  They showed pale black face, due to long broad
supercillium and submostachial regions meeting at eye, leaving face with
bare eye.  White throats, breast pale gray to tinge of yellow to obvious
yellow cast.   Malar streak thin and black to heavy and black flaring
downward.   Ad. f. were clean yellow on breast but otherwise they were
streaking with thin dark streaks.   Mantle were gray as nape and neck, with
broad paler braces.  Pale colorful  rump with dark tail i.e. Bobolink.
Call distinctive, a clear but low and  soft, unemotional, note recalling a
weak drawn-out Bobolink or House Finch.  The typical flight note (widely
known as the "electric buzz") an unobtrusive zzsrrrpt was given often,
always from a perch.

Good birding

David Tan
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