Fall Shorebirding Starts Early - 10 Jul 2022

For me fall shorebirding begins on July 4th. This is typically when Lesser Yellowlegs and Semipalmated Sandpipers make their first appearance at Pt. Mouillee SGA in Monroe Co., MI. This year, however, small flocks of shorebirds were found a full week earlier with many reports of Greater and Lesser Yellowlegs, Semipalmated and Least Sandpipers, Sanderlings, Ruddy Turnstones, and the like. 

Justin Labadie found a Common Redshank at Pt. Mouillee on 04 July; this represents a 1st record for Michigan, and a 1st record for the lower 48-States in the US. All other North American Records have come from Newfoundland. Congratulations, Justin!

I finally returned home from a week in Nebraska and took a ride out to Pt. Mouillee to see if any shorebirds were lingering after the first wave. Low winds and warm temperatures made for a perfect evening ride. While much of the SGA was sans-shorebirds, there were plenty of wildflowers, butterflies and dragonflies to distract me. I stopped long enough to get some pics of Black Swallowtails and Halloween Pennants.

Black-necked Stilts, also rare for Michigan, have two nests in the north end of the Humphries Unit. Both nests are visible from the NE corner of the unit and can be seen from the Middle Causeway. This evening I spotted one pair of stilts near their nest, but did not see any of the hatchlings. Both birds were quite vocal, so I stayed on the causeway and did not linger.

Most of the action was occurring at the Pumphouse where small flocks of Lesser Yellowlegs, six Short-billed Dowitchers, Least and Semipalmated Sandpipers, and another Black-necked Stilt foraged in the mudflats of the Humphries Unit. 

A possible Arctic Tern was spotted earlier today by Bobby Irwin, but only a pair of Forster's Terns were present in the area.

Just before leaving I flushed a Mallard duckling from the shoreline. No other ducks were around, so I'm hoping it hasn't been orphaned...

Pte. Mouillee SGA (permit required Sep 1-Dec 15), Monroe, Michigan, US
Jul 10, 2022 5:00 PM - 7:30 PM
Protocol: Traveling
11.0 mile(s)
7 species

Mallard (Anas platyrhynchos)  1
Black-necked Stilt (Himantopus mexicanus)  3     2 adults on nest in NE corner of Humphries Unit. Continuing. 1 adult near Pumphouse in Humphries.
Short-billed Dowitcher (Limnodromus griseus)  6
Lesser Yellowlegs (Tringa flavipes)  12
Least Sandpiper (Calidris minutilla)  4
Semipalmated Sandpiper (Calidris pusilla)  6
Forster's Tern (Sterna forsteri)  2

View this checklist online at https://ebird.org/checklist/S159561683

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