Cell 3 Was The Place To Be - 02 Jun 2025

A Stilt Sandpiper was reported this morning in Cell 3 at Pt. Mouillee SGA in Monroe Co., MI. The continuing Marbled Godwit and a Whimbrel were also reported. Skies were clear and a cool 57ºF prompted me to take a drive.

I parked at Roberts Road and biked out onto the South Causeway toward Cell 1 then headed north to the junction of Cells 1 and 2. Turning east I headed to the Lake Erie shoreline and rode slowly looking/listening for the Western Kingbird that continues to be reported but continues to be elusive.

I ran into Mark Dettling who reported that the birds were still present in Cell 3 so I headed in that direction. I had forgotten the scope this morning (sitting in the garage) so it was easier to walk out onto the dried mud flats of Cell 3 (no dredge pumping had commenced as yet). A Least Bittern was calling incessantly from the phragmites to my left, "Kukuku-Ku, Kukuku-Ku".

I did not see the Marbled Godwit but was able to spot the Stilt Sandpiper next to a small flock of Dunlin. So I turned the camera on it 

and a pair of Semipalmated Sandpipers that were foraging on the mud in front of me.

As I walked across to the west side of Cell 3 I spotted the Whimbrel on the mud near the water's edge and took some distant shots.

I saw several Semipalmated Plovers and more Dunlin in the water patch along the west shoreline so I decided to wade into the phragmites sprouting at water's edge to see if the Marbled Godwit was hiding and found it tucked next to the shoreline. It flushed and headed back out to the water where the Whimbrel was foraging so I walked back to get photos of it.

The mud was dry enough that I could attempt to photograph the birds at ground level (I had the 600/4 with me today). But no sooner did I get on my elbows to shoot my phone rang; it was Jack and Janet Volker reporting a Wilson's Phalarope in the Humphries Unit). We relayed sightings and I went back to shooting the Marbled Godwit and Whimbrel at ground level.

As I predicted being too close to the ground would ruin most of the thousand photos I took; convection currents made the images look as if a layer of Saran Wrap was covering the lens. Better photos were taken from my knees just a few feet off the ground.

The godwit wandered out to deeper water so picked myself up and headed back to the bike and a slow ride to look for the Western Kingbird. I stopped long enough to get a few more pics of the Stilt Sandpiper (and Dunlin).

I would fail (again) to find the Western Kingbird. And, by the time I got back to the car it was too late in the morning to attempt to find the Wilson's Phalarope. 

Pte. Mouillee SGA (permit required Sep 1-Dec 15), Monroe, Michigan, US
Jun 2, 2025 9:01 AM - 10:28 AM
Protocol: Traveling
5.085 mile(s)
Checklist Comments:     Clear, light haze from Canadian wildfire smoke, 57F
46 species (+1 other taxa)

Canada Goose (Branta canadensis)  22
Mute Swan (Cygnus olor)  2
Blue-winged Teal (Spatula discors)  2
Gadwall (Mareca strepera)  2
Mallard (Anas platyrhynchos)  10
Redhead (Aythya americana)  2
American Coot (Fulica americana)  2
Killdeer (Charadrius vociferus)  2
Semipalmated Plover (Charadrius semipalmatus)  2
Whimbrel (Numenius phaeopus)  1
Marbled Godwit (Limosa fedoa)  1     Cell 3 continuing
Spotted Sandpiper (Actitis macularius)  2
Ruddy Turnstone (Arenaria interpres)  1
Stilt Sandpiper (Calidris himantopus)  1     Cell 3. Zebra-striped belly. Pics
Sanderling (Calidris alba)  5
Dunlin (Calidris alpina)  16
White-rumped Sandpiper (Calidris fuscicollis)  1
Semipalmated Sandpiper (Calidris pusilla)  5
Bonaparte's Gull (Chroicocephalus philadelphia)  1
Ring-billed Gull (Larus delawarensis)  1
Caspian Tern (Hydroprogne caspia)  6
Forster's Tern (Sterna forsteri)  2
Pied-billed Grebe (Podilymbus podiceps)  1
Double-crested Cormorant (Nannopterum auritum)  1
Least Bittern (Botaurus exilis)  1
Black-crowned Night Heron (Nycticorax nycticorax)  1
Great Egret (Ardea alba)  1
Great Blue Heron (Ardea herodias)  1
American White Pelican (Pelecanus erythrorhynchos)  13
Osprey (Pandion haliaetus)  1
Northern Flicker (Colaptes auratus)  1
Willow Flycatcher (Empidonax traillii)  4
Alder/Willow Flycatcher (Traill's Flycatcher) (Empidonax alnorum/traillii)  1
Eastern Kingbird (Tyrannus tyrannus)  2
Warbling Vireo (Vireo gilvus)  1
Barn Swallow (Hirundo rustica)  2
Marsh Wren (Cistothorus palustris)  2
European Starling (Sturnus vulgaris)  7
Song Sparrow (Melospiza melodia)  1
Swamp Sparrow (Melospiza georgiana)  1
Baltimore Oriole (Icterus galbula)  1
Red-winged Blackbird (Agelaius phoeniceus)  33
Brown-headed Cowbird (Molothrus ater)  2
Common Grackle (Quiscalus quiscula)  1
Common Yellowthroat (Geothlypis trichas)  2
Yellow Warbler (Setophaga petechia)  4
Indigo Bunting (Passerina cyanea)  2

View this checklist online at https://ebird.org/checklist/S245923163

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