Hudsonian Godwit @ Pt. Mouillee SGA - 09 Oct 2026

Having just chased Swamp Sparrows in the Bad Creek Unit I arrived in the SW corner of the Humphries Unit and began scanning the shoreline for shorebirds. A pair of Greater Yellowlegs and Killdeer were visible ahead of me when another shorebird flew in; brownish with a long bill I immediately thought Long-billed Dowitcher. But, a moment later it turned its head and showed a long recurved, two-toned bill. Hudsonian Godwit (Limosa haemastica)! It was somewhat backlit so verifying that it wasn't a Marbled Godwit took a little bit of moving around and waiting for the right angles. But, it finally flashed a black-and-white tail. 

I approached the bank slowly as it wrestled with a freshly-caught leech. The poor leech hung on for dear life and gave the godwit fits for several moments.

Finally, got it swallowed...

It then started moving a bit north and joined up with a Pectoral Sandpiper and Greater Yellowlegs.

Greater Yellowlegs and Hudsonian Godwit size comparison.

This is a size comparison between Pectoral Sandpiper, Hudsonian Godwit and Greater Yellowlegs.

The yellowlegs suddenly became skittish and flew off, so I trained the camera on the Hudsonian Godwit and waited for it to fly off, as well. It did, and landed 50 yards closer to the South Causeway. This gave me a chance to get photos of the black and white wing patches and white rump and black tail.

I walked around to the South Causeway and found the Hudsonian Godwit and Greater Yellowlegs hanging out together north about 100 yds away. It would then fly off temporarily before being found an hour later.

Hudsonian Godwits are casually rare here in SE Michigan. We tend to see them in fall during migration and at the very end of August. This year they seem to be moving a bit later?

I would head back to the car along Roberts Road and pause long enough for a pair of Palm Warblers to appear in the trees to my right.

Pte. Mouillee SGA (permit required Sep 1-Dec 31), Monroe, Michigan, US
Oct 9, 2026 8:39 AM - 10:55 AM
Protocol: Traveling
1.978 mile(s)
Checklist Comments:     Mostly clear, calm, 55F. Bad Creek Unit looking for Ammodramus sp. sparrows.
38 species

Wood Duck (Aix sponsa)  2
Blue-winged Teal (Spatula discors)  6
Gadwall (Mareca strepera)  6
American Wigeon (Mareca americana)  4
Mallard (Anas platyrhynchos)  12
Sora (Porzana carolina)  2
Sandhill Crane (Antigone canadensis)  2
Black-bellied Plover (Pluvialis squatarola)  1
Killdeer (Charadrius vociferus)  6
Hudsonian Godwit (Limosa haemastica)  1     South Causeway along W shoreline of Humphries Unit. Uniform gray w long recurved bill. Black and white tail and rump. Pics.
Greater Yellowlegs (Tringa melanoleuca)  6
Pectoral Sandpiper (Calidris melanotos)  4
Ring-billed Gull (Larus delawarensis)  2
Pied-billed Grebe (Podilymbus podiceps)  2
Great Egret (Ardea alba)  4
Great Blue Heron (Ardea herodias)  2
American White Pelican (Pelecanus erythrorhynchos)  90     Flying N along Humphries Unit in large V-formation. Exact count.
Bald Eagle (Haliaeetus leucocephalus)  2
Red-shouldered Hawk (Buteo lineatus)  1
Downy Woodpecker (Dryobates pubescens)  1
Hairy Woodpecker (Leuconotopicus villosus)  1
Blue Jay (Cyanocitta cristata)  2
Black-capped Chickadee (Poecile atricapillus)  1
Tree Swallow (Tachycineta bicolor)  600     Massive swarm in sw Humphries and overhead. Estimate by 50s using block count.
Golden-crowned Kinglet (Regulus satrapa)  1
Marsh Wren (Cistothorus palustris)  1
Carolina Wren (Thryothorus ludovicianus)  1
European Starling (Sturnus vulgaris)  150
White-crowned Sparrow (Zonotrichia leucophrys)  2
White-throated Sparrow (Zonotrichia albicollis)  8
Song Sparrow (Melospiza melodia)  16
Lincoln's Sparrow (Melospiza lincolnii)  1
Swamp Sparrow (Melospiza georgiana)  24     Bad Creek Unit
Red-winged Blackbird (Agelaius phoeniceus)  130
Common Grackle (Quiscalus quiscula)  6
Palm Warbler (Setophaga palmarum)  2
Yellow-rumped Warbler (Setophaga coronata)  10
Northern Cardinal (Cardinalis cardinalis)  1

View this checklist online at https://ebird.org/checklist/S400542595

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