Early birding! - 16 Aug 2009

We got home late Saturday nite from our trip north, so I opted to get up early and head down to Pt. Mouillee to see if I could digiscope the Marbled Godwits reported earlier. I parked at the Mouillee Creek entrance at 5 am and headed up the Middle Causeway in the dark. Things were quiet in the marsh 'till about 5:30 am when the Killdeer, Caspian Terns and Great Egrets started making noise from various locations in the marsh.

I stopped at the junction of Long Pond, Lead and Vermet Units and attempted to scope the small island where the godwits were reported earlier. A number of Great Egrets, Great Blue Herons, Black-crowned Night Herons, Caspian Terns, and Lesser Yellowlegs were crowded onto the small mud spit, but no godwits could be found. Mosquitos were feeding voraciously on me as it was warm, muggy, humid, and w/o breeze.

As I waited for the sun to come up I grabbed a digiscoped image of the crescent moon, and attempted a pic of the early morning red dawn. With the skeeters in hot pursuit, I headed on to Cell 3 and waited for the sun to come up.

Dozens of Lesser Yellowlegs were crowded along the mud flat of Cell 3, but no evidence of White Pelicans or Marbled Godwits could be found. A single Snowy Egret was resting alongside a Great Egret, but flew off w/ the crowd of gulls roosting on the mud flats. 

Pte. Mouillee SGA (permit required Sep 1-Dec 15), Monroe, Michigan, US
Aug 16, 2009 5:00 AM - 6:30 AM
Protocol: Traveling
3.0 mile(s)
Checklist Comments:     Hot, humid, mosquitos!
9 species

Killdeer (Charadrius vociferus)  2
Lesser Yellowlegs (Tringa flavipes)  62     Crowded along shore of Cell 3 before dawn
Ring-billed Gull (Larus delawarensis)  36
Herring Gull (Larus argentatus)  10
Caspian Tern (Hydroprogne caspia)  6
Black-crowned Night Heron (Nycticorax nycticorax)  4
Snowy Egret (Egretta thula)  1
Great Egret (Ardea alba)  16
Great Blue Heron (Ardea herodias)  4

View this checklist online at https://ebird.org/checklist/S166067407

This report was generated automatically by eBird v3 (https://ebird.org/home)

It was too early to try to digiscope the yellowlegs, so I opted for a few more sunrise pics. As the sun appeared, I made out a Wilson's Phalarope dashing about in the middle of the cell chasing flying bugs off the surface of the water. Unfortunately, it stayed well out of digiscoping range. With no real opportunities to digiscope, I watched a massive feeding frenzy of Caspian Terns, Tree/Bank/Barn Swallows, and gulls flying over Cell 3 and the Lead Unit chasing an early morning insect hatch of some sort.

With the sun now up I headed north along the Banana Unit toward the Vermet Unit to see if any shorebirds would appear. A few Pectoral Sandpipers, Lesser Yellowlegs, and Blue-winged Teal made for some nice scoping, but no camera opportunities. I scoped across the Vermet Unit but found no interesting birds. The flock of Barn Swallows that roost in Cell 5 were cooperative enough for a few digiscoped images. With the heat building I decided to move on.

It wasn't until I was back on the dike between Vermet and Long Pond Units that any photo opportunities presented themselves. A flock of Red-winged Blackbirds were ahead of me on the trail leading back to the Middle Causeway. Among them were four Bobolink and several Savannah Sparrows. I managed a few sets of digiscoped images of the female Bobolink as they perched and posed in the early morning sunlight. Gorgeous birds!

Back at the Junction, I found 8 Bobolink next to the trail going into the Long Pond Unit. As I digiscoped the birds from about 30 feet away, a female Common Yellowthroat appeared just a few feet away. I managed a couple nice closeups from about 20 feet before it, and the Bobolinks disappeared into the unit.

By now, Sunflowers were blooming all along the Middle Causeway, so I stopped for a few photos. 

Monarch Butterflies were on the move, and seemed to be drawn to the bright yellow flowers. I could only imagine that their large finch-like bills were perfect for feeding on sunflower seeds and keeping them sustained while they migrate to Mexico...:) Bees were also taking advantage of the pollen opportunities, so I digiscoped a few pics, as well. Marsh Mallow were also in bloom, and were posing long enough for photos, as well!
Before leaving, I paused for a few minutes to admire the Black-crowned Night Herons sunning themselves out in the cattails in the Lead Unit.

As I headed back by the pump house and Walpatich Unit I found an Indigo Bunting singing high in a Willow. I got a couple digiscoped images before it flew off. 

A pair of Cedar Waxwings were courting in the creek to my right, so I got a few pics of them from across the bank. 

Just as I was packing up a Willow Flycatcher appeared in the phragmites to my left, and posed for several pics w/ the D300.

I was back at the car by 9am and home by 9:30. As I packed away the bike, a Song Sparrow hopped out onto the gravel nearby. This partially-cropped photo of a partially 'cropped' bird was taken before I left. The poor thing had lost part of its tail!

Hot morning, but productive! God, I love this Coolpix P6000!

Pte. Mouillee SGA (permit required Sep 1-Dec 15), Monroe, Michigan, US
Aug 16, 2009 6:30 AM - 9:00 AM
Protocol: Traveling
6.0 mile(s)
Checklist Comments:     Hot, humid, mosquitos
13 species

Blue-winged Teal (Spatula discors)  8
Lesser Yellowlegs (Tringa flavipes)  6
Pectoral Sandpiper (Calidris melanotos)  3
Black-crowned Night Heron (Nycticorax nycticorax)  4
Willow Flycatcher (Empidonax traillii)  1
Barn Swallow (Hirundo rustica)  18
Cedar Waxwing (Bombycilla cedrorum)  2
Savannah Sparrow (Passerculus sandwichensis)  4
Song Sparrow (Melospiza melodia)  1
Bobolink (Dolichonyx oryzivorus)  12
Red-winged Blackbird (Agelaius phoeniceus)  26
Common Yellowthroat (Geothlypis trichas)  1
Indigo Bunting (Passerina cyanea)  2

View this checklist online at https://ebird.org/checklist/S42234289

This report was generated automatically by eBird v3 (https://ebird.org/home)