Detroit River Black Tern - 29 May 2025

 

Early this afternoon a Black Tern was reported foraging next to the fishing pier at the Humbug Marsh Unit of the Detroit River International Wildlife Refuge. Robin and I decided to take a drive to see if it would stick around for at least the next hour. I'm not certain, but it would be a Wayne County bird for me.

We arrived shortly after 2 pm and sat in the parking lot overlooking the Detroit River. I scanned the fishing pier and intially saw nothing of interest. Then, the first of a dozen Common and Forster's Terns appeared and started foraging along the near shore of the river just south of the fishing pier.

Finally, I spotted the Black Tern among them, grabbed the camera and ran down to the pier just as the White Bass started biting. As I made my way to the end of the pier the Black Tern came into view and made a couple passes overhead. I was able to get some pics against the overcast skies.













I couldn't ignore the Common Terns that were fishing nearby. I don't photograph them enough.





A nice half-hour visit!

Detroit River IWR--Refuge Gateway (Humbug Marsh), Wayne, Michigan, US
May 29, 2025 2:38 PM - 2:40 PM
Protocol: Traveling
0.3 mile(s)
Checklist Comments:     Mostly cloudy, 65F
21 species

Mallard (Anas platyrhynchos)  2
Killdeer (Charadrius vociferus)  1
Bonaparte's Gull (Chroicocephalus philadelphia)  1
Ring-billed Gull (Larus delawarensis)  1
Black Tern (Chlidonias niger)  1
Forster's Tern (Sterna forsteri)  4
Common Tern (Sterna hirundo)  8
Double-crested Cormorant (Nannopterum auritum)  13
Great Egret (Ardea alba)  1
Great Blue Heron (Ardea herodias)  1
Turkey Vulture (Cathartes aura)  1
Bald Eagle (Haliaeetus leucocephalus)  1
Red-tailed Hawk (Buteo jamaicensis)  1
Tree Swallow (Tachycineta bicolor)  4
Barn Swallow (Hirundo rustica)  9
Song Sparrow (Melospiza melodia)  1
Red-winged Blackbird (Agelaius phoeniceus)  2
Common Grackle (Quiscalus quiscula)  1
Yellow Warbler (Setophaga petechia)  1
Northern Cardinal (Cardinalis cardinalis)  1
Indigo Bunting (Passerina cyanea)  1

View this checklist online at https://ebird.org/checklist/S244267953

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