Jamaica Bay Wildlife Refuge East Pond Shorebird Report 8-15-2013...

White-rumped Sandpiper

The East Pond at Jamaica Bay Wildlife Refuge in Queens NY, did not host very many shorebirds today with the numbers even smaller than yesterday.  Shorebird Highlights included the continuing AMERICAN AVOCET, 1 RED KNOT, a few STILT SANDPIPERS still hanging in, a lone PECTORAL SANDPIPER (a scarce bird for the East Pond this year) and 3 WHITE-RUMPED SANDPIPERS.  Other highlights include seeing and chatting with photographers Lloyd Spitalnik and Harry Mass. The last time I saw these two in the field was at Cupsogue LI on the day Andy Guthrie and I had that spectacular outing with Elegant Tern, Hybrid Calidrid (Dunlin X White-rumped Sandpiper), Siberian form of Common Tern (S. h. longipennis) and the continuing Red-necked Stint.  Nothing like that today, but their presence brought back memories of that day!

We should see more juvenile birds in the next week or so, but besides that I am still holding out for one big day with thousands of birds again on the pond and maybe get a GODWIT or PHALAROPE in the mix (notice no mention of Stints or other rarities but I am looking).

Juvenile Semipalmated Sandpiper

Today's count is listed below:

Black-bellied Plove: 270
Semipalmated Plover: 160
Killdeer: 1
American Avocet: 1
Spotted Sandpiper:1
Greater Yellowlegs: 15
Lesser Yellowlegs: 12
Ruddy Turnstone: 7
Red Knot:1
Semipalmated Sandpiper: 50
Least Sandpiper: 10
White-rumped Sandpiper: 3
Pectoral Sandpiper: 1
Stilt Sandpiper: 4

Tags: Jamaica Bay Wildlife Refuge, Queens, Shorebird, Jamaica Bay, American Avocet