American White Pelicans - 10 Apr 2024
Skies were clear and temps were hovering near 50F this morning when I arrived at Erie Marsh Preserve in southern Monroe Co.. I brought the bike along with the intention of riding the outer dike to look for early passerines.
Red-winged Blackbirds, Common Grackles, and Tree Swallows dominated the ride. Photo opps were few, and the Sun was burning my eyes as I rode east for the first 1-2 miles of the loop. Red-breasted Mergansers were swimming in the pond to my left, and a half-dozen American White Pelicans were swimming near shore in the bay to my right. Unfortunately, I was unable to photograph them through the thickets until I reached a somewhat opening.
The first of several dozen Bald Eagles flushed from the tree tops ahead of me. At one point I was hearing a high-pitched "Siri-siri-siri" call from the trees ahead of me, but could not locate the bird. Pine Warbler?
As I rounded the bend of the loop and started heading north I spotted small flocks of American White Pelicans soaring over the marsh to my left.
I then had to stop when I spotted a massive roost of American White Pelicans along the dike separating Ponds F and E of the preserve. I counted ~160 birds packed tightly along the far shore.
In the channel to the right of the pump house a small group of Ring-necked Ducks were swimming and courting.
A pair of Northern Shovelers appeared, followed by another drake.
As I walked out to photograph the pelican roost a pair of Blue-winged Teal flushed.
I would continue northward along the outer dike picking up Northern Flicker, several American Tree Sparrows, Dark-eyed Juncos, and my first Fox Sparrow.
As I reached the NE corner I found another small roost of American White Pelicans at the tip of the small peninsula just west of the Woodtick Peninsula. Here I counted ~70 birds.
I continued along the north dike until I reached the new dike that was completed just last year. There, I rode southward back toward the ponds 5 and 4. My only birds were several pairs of Northern Shoveler and a couple Killdeer.
I momentarily got lost at Sparrows Corner and rode into the Gun Club, but then backtracked and found the main trail back to the parking lot. I would fail to refind the pair of Black-necked Stilts reported earlier by Arnie Buehler, but would see 3 Trumpeter Swans fly in from Bay Creek.
Erie Marsh Preserve, Monroe, Michigan, US
Apr 10, 2024 8:34 AM - 10:52 AM
Protocol: Traveling
6.2 mile(s)
Checklist Comments: Mild 50F
44 species
Canada Goose (Branta canadensis) 34
Mute Swan (Cygnus olor) 12
Trumpeter Swan (Cygnus buccinator) 3 In creek next to reserve. Later flew into Pond 1 just as I was leaving. Trumpeting while flying.
Wood Duck (Aix sponsa) 16
Blue-winged Teal (Spatula discors) 18
Northern Shoveler (Spatula clypeata) 20
Gadwall (Mareca strepera) 24
American Wigeon (Mareca americana) 16
Mallard (Anas platyrhynchos) 8
American Black Duck (Anas rubripes) 2
Green-winged Teal (Anas crecca) 14
Ring-necked Duck (Aythya collaris) 12
Common Merganser (Mergus merganser) 6
Red-breasted Merganser (Mergus serrator) 14
Ruddy Duck (Oxyura jamaicensis) 8
Pied-billed Grebe (Podilymbus podiceps) 2
American Coot (Fulica americana) 50
Sandhill Crane (Antigone canadensis) 2
Killdeer (Charadrius vociferus) 4
Pectoral Sandpiper (Calidris melanotos) 1
Bonaparte's Gull (Chroicocephalus philadelphia) 2
Ring-billed Gull (Larus delawarensis) 6
Herring Gull (Larus argentatus) 2
Caspian Tern (Hydroprogne caspia) 2
Double-crested Cormorant (Nannopterum auritum) 22
American White Pelican (Pelecanus erythrorhynchos) 237 Large roost along dike separating Ponds F and E viewed from outside dike. By 2s to 75 then doubled. Another 70 in NE corner of reserve. Viewed from outer dike at NE corner.
Great Egret (Ardea alba) 4
Great Blue Heron (Ardea herodias) 1
Bald Eagle (Haliaeetus leucocephalus) 2
Downy Woodpecker (Dryobates pubescens) 2
Northern Flicker (Colaptes auratus) 8
Tree Swallow (Tachycineta bicolor) 84
European Starling (Sturnus vulgaris) 8
American Robin (Turdus migratorius) 8
House Sparrow (Passer domesticus) 2
American Tree Sparrow (Spizelloides arborea) 4
Fox Sparrow (Passerella iliaca) 1
Dark-eyed Junco (Junco hyemalis) 4
White-throated Sparrow (Zonotrichia albicollis) 2
Song Sparrow (Melospiza melodia) 10
Red-winged Blackbird (Agelaius phoeniceus) 86
Brown-headed Cowbird (Molothrus ater) 6
Common Grackle (Quiscalus quiscula) 12
Northern Cardinal (Cardinalis cardinalis) 2
View this checklist online at https://ebird.org/checklist/S1
This report was generated automatically by eBird v3 (https://ebird.org/home)
