Saginaw Bay Area's Summer '07 Bird Survey

[Joe Soehnel]

The summary for Saginaw Bay Area's Summer '07 Survey is listed below.  You can view the survey in its entirety at http://www.saginawbaybirding.org.  Thanks to everyone who sent in their reports for the summer period!
 
Good Birding,
 
Joe Soehnel
 


An impressive SBA total of 193 species were recorded for the summer period, which is a total reminiscent of the early to mid ‘90’s.  Topping the list of rarities included a Black-backed Woodpecker that was observed in the Cooke Dam Area, IO on 7/25, which is only the 3rd SBA record with the others recorded in 1885 (‘collected’ in AR) & 1965 (banded at Tawas Pt, IO).  A Tri-colored Heron was observed at SNWR, SA on 7/22, which was the 16th SBA record and the 1st for Saginaw County.  A Yellow Rail was observed briefly at Wigwam Bay, AR, which is the 5th SBA record and 1st AR record.  A Laughing Gull was a one evening wonder at Lebourdais Rd, BA along the Saginaw Bay shoreline, which was the 7th SBA record.  Documentation has been forwarded to the state compiler on all but the Yellow Rail.  Last but not least, a Loggerhead Shrike was observed on 6/13 in the Port Austin Area, HU.
 
Other good birds included two separate observations of American White Pelicans, several Cattle Egret sightings, Red-necked Phalarope, Olive-sided Flycatcher,  Grasshopper Sparrow observed in no less than three locations, Henslow’s Sparrow, which has been missed for a few years in the SBA, and numerous Dickcissel observations including confirmed nesting in the Caro Area, TU.
 
Beyond the rarities, other birds that seemed to be 'out of character', for the time of year, included:  a pair of Common Goldeneye @ Tawas Bay, IO on 7/24; Peregrine Falcon along the Lake Huron Shoreline, IO on 7/8; Willet on 6/2 @ SNWR, SA; Swainson’s Thrush on 7/9 on Weaver Rd, HU; Tennessee Warbler on 6/27 in the Caro Area, TU, and an unlikely Northern Parula on 7/7 in Alabaster Twp, IO.
 
Good birds that grace the SBA in the summer on a fairly regular basis in their favored locations include:  Piping Plover (Tawas Area, IO); Acadian Flycatcher (Murphy Lake Area, TU); Kirtland’s Warbler (North-Central IO); Cerulean Warbler (Pinehaven, MI); Yellow-headed Blackbird (Nayanquing Pt, BA), and Purple Finch & Evening Grosbeak (Cooke Dam Area, IO)


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