Of Pelicans and Dunlin - 11 Apr 2023

I took a ride out at Pt. Mouillee this morning. Skies were clear and temps were forecasted to hit mid 70's, but would include high winds. I had hoped to get there early enough to avoid the winds. Not so much.

I headed out the Middle Causeway from the Mouillee Creek parking lot and came upon several pairs of Bufflehead in the Walpatich Unit. With the Sun rising there was significant backlighting so I couldn't get any pics. Once I reached the Pumphouse I was able to find one in better lighting.


A small raft of Ruddy Ducks were swimming out from the shoreline and numbered several dozen.


Scoping the mudflats yielded a couple dozen Ring-billed Gulls and 72 Dunlin. As I continued on bike I noticed the winds picking up. Phragmites were bending in the direction of northeast, which meant that I'd be riding back to the car against the southwest winds. 

I headed north along the dike separating Long Pond and Vermet Units and counted 120 Mute Swans (they survived last week's cull). I also noticed a significant decline in ducks in both the Vermet and Long Pond Units. Likewise, the Huron River along the North Causeway was devoid of waterfowl. My only subject was this Horned Grebe.


Lake Erie had rough water from the winds. No birds were seen out on the lake. When I rode around to Cell 4 of the Banana Unit I was surprised to still see the Common Loon swimming in the NW corner. I wished the lighting was better.


The south end of Cell 4 held a few dozen Redhead and Lesser Scaup while 4 American White Pelicans swam along the shoreline. Another 10 pelicans flew in from the Vermet Unit while the 77 pelicans roosting on Pelican Island in the Vermet made for an impressive 91 total.


As I reached the Middle Causeway and the Banana Unit I was able to see a dozen Caspian Terns roosting on the mudflats Nearby, I counted 119 more Dunlin roosting on the small mud islands jutting out from the  northern shoreline of the Humphries Unit.

I had planned to come back and photograph them after circling Cell 3 but a "No Trespassing" sign has been erected in the NW corner of the cell so I decided to go back and photograph the Dunlin.








As I scoped the Dunlin 10 pelicans flew right over my head from behind. Luckily, 4 of them circled back a couple of times before settling down on the water near the Dunlin. 








They took off as soon as I took the bike down the Middle Causeway and tried to approach from the grass.  





With winds blowing steadily at 10-15 mph I rode west back toward the car. A half dozen Blue-winged Teal flew past me (from behind) so I missed photographing them. I consoled myself with a pair of Gadwall the flew across the Humphries Unit ahead of me.



A Cooper's Hawk flushed from the Vermet shoreline but flew off to the NW carrying a bird carcass of unknown origin. 

I returned to the car and headed home.

Pte. Mouillee SGA (permit required Sep 1-Dec 15), Monroe, Michigan, US
Apr 11, 2023 9:30 AM - 11:45 AM
Protocol: Traveling
11.0 mile(s)
Checklist Comments:     70's and wind!
14 species

Mute Swan (Cygnus olor)  120     These are the ones that survived last week's cull.
Blue-winged Teal (Spatula discors)  6
Gadwall (Mareca strepera)  2
Redhead (Aythya americana)  9
Lesser Scaup (Aythya affinis)  15
Bufflehead (Bucephala albeola)  6
Ruddy Duck (Oxyura jamaicensis)  12
Horned Grebe (Podiceps auritus)  1
Dunlin (Calidris alpina)  191
Ring-billed Gull (Larus delawarensis)  12
Caspian Tern (Hydroprogne caspia)  13
Common Loon (Gavia immer)  1
American White Pelican (Pelecanus erythrorhynchos)  91     Exact count. 4 swimming in s end of Cell 4, 10 flew in from Vermet, and 77 roosting on Pelican Island in Vermet.
Cooper's Hawk (Accipiter cooperii)  1

View this checklist online at https://ebird.org/checklist/S158577489

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