Winds! - 15 Apr 2011

I had worked late Thursday night, so I took Friday morning off to bike Pt. Mouillee and look for the White Wagtail.  It was cold, and forecasts called for high winds today (up to 30mph).  They got it right...

I parked at Mouillee Creek entrance and biked in at 6:45 am.  Winds were already blowing out of the NE, so the ride along the Middle Causeway was a cold one.  And hard.  I spotted a Great Horned Owl flying across the Nelson Unit, and heard a Sora singing in the Long Pond Unit.  Otherwise, few birds were moving. 

I scanned the south end of the Vermet Unit but did not see any evidence of the wagtail.  Continuing up to the Banana Unit I headed straight to Cell 3.  The wind was biting, and there were whitecaps in Cell 4.  At least the sky was clear and the sun was rising.

I took shelter along the north shoreline of Cell 3, crouching low with my back to the wind.  From 7 am till about 8 am I sat and scoped the flock of gulls on the mudflats.  No wagtail, but did find six adult Lesser Black-backed Gulls, numerous Caspian Terns, and small flocks of Bonaparte's Gulls.

I spent some time trying to digiscope some of the nearer Ring-billed Gulls.  Several attempts were made at mating between pairs of gulls, but the winds were blowing everything about, so it was difficult for the males to mount the females.

I decided to hike the shoreline toward the SE corner, and was surprised that the winds were significantly reduced if I kept low and close to the rocks.  A flock of six Dunlin were foraging along the edge of the mudflats and provided some photography opportunities from 20 - 30 feet. 

I spent some time digiscoping the Dunlin from about 30 feet away, and got some nice images as they foraged and paid me no attention.  The birds were in mid-molt, and starting to develop their black bellies and orange feathering.

A large flock of Bonaparte's Gulls were roosting 50 - 60 feet away, and provided some nice flight photography when they would lift off and fight the north winds.

A flock of Lesser Scaup fly by and provided a few pics a few minutes later.  By 9 am I had had enough, and decided to head back to the car.

  

No evidence of a wagtail could be found, and trying to photograph it would be next to impossible.  I found the bike and attempted to ride the 100 yds. or so to the Middle Causeway.  I almost didn't make it, but once I turned and headed west the winds pushed me all the way to the car.  I could've coasted the entire length had the ground been smoother.  I reached the car exhausted, and headed back to work.

At least others would find the wagtail later in the day, and again on Saturday (16th) and Sunday (17th).

Pte. Mouillee SGA (permit required Sep 1-Dec 15), Monroe, Michigan, US
Apr 15, 2011 6:45 AM - 9:00 AM
Protocol: Traveling
4.0 mile(s)
Checklist Comments:     Cold, high winds (30 mph) from NE
9 species

Lesser Scaup (Aythya affinis)  6
Sora (Porzana carolina)  1
Dunlin (Calidris alpina)  6
Bonaparte's Gull (Chroicocephalus philadelphia)  12
Ring-billed Gull (Larus delawarensis)  36
Herring Gull (Larus argentatus)  12
Lesser Black-backed Gull (Larus fuscus)  6     Cell 3. Dozens of gulls hunkered down on mudflats, but 6 had dark gray mantles, yellow legs. Heads were not clean white like Great Black-backed Gulls.
Caspian Tern (Hydroprogne caspia)  18
Great Horned Owl (Bubo virginianus)  1

View this checklist online at https://ebird.org/checklist/S164744720

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