Weather: bright, but overcast, windy & very cold. From 2pm.
My first Stateside visit to an actual birding location, the refuge at Sachuest Point. I chose this location as I wanted to visit somewhere in Narragansett Bay after reading about it in Wild America which details the epic 1950s trip Roger Tory Peterson undertook around the States. Although no specific site is mentioned Sachuest came up in my search as also being the best place for over-wintering harlequin ducks, I also had my fingers crossed for a loon.
After motoring through Middletown, Rhode Island, the peninsular soon came into view & what a view it was. A lovely, long, wild-looking beach lead up to a headland on which a visitors' centre was perched. The water looked freezing cold, & I'm sure it was, nonetheless a couple of hardy wind surfers where doing their thing amongst the waves.
Just past the surfers the birds almost immediately became apparent, with a stunning view of a female Northern Harrier (UK hen harrier) quartering the rough grass on the road leading up to the visitors' centre. It came back & forth a few times, on one occasion probably no more than 30 yards away.
As well as the harrier quite a few gulls were also about on the shoreside: Ring-Billed Gull (~10),
Herring Gull (1), & a couple of dainty Bonaparte's Gull which where hovering over the waves almost petrel-like with their feet dipped into the water; also American Crow & Great Black-Backed Gull (~4).
After a visit to the centre where they informed us that the harriers were a regular spectacle we headed out onto the fairly small refuge, an American Robin overflew & a couple of birds flitted along the path as we walked along. It was small with a yellow rump & a yellow chest, & there were quite a few of them, however it took reference to the Sibley field guide to identify Yellow-Rumped Warbler, the only over-wintering warbler & a new species for me; initially we saw a couple but they were almost ever-present around the reserve.
It didn't take us long to reach the 'Island Rocks' the favourite haunt of the target Harlequin Duck, & 3 were seen almost immediately in the choppy water around the rocks & although my travel binoculars didn't provide the greatest contrast on a dull day, I could plainly see the smart white markings as they were fairly close to the shore.
Other ducks also present were a few Black Duck, which would have been another life tick had I not just seen it at Apponagansett on the way to Sachuest! Also Red-Breasted Merganser, Brant (Brent) Goose & a (Great) Cormorant, which is infrequently seen in the States but is a regular visitor to Sachuest apparently.
Continuing along, another species which seemed to favour the pathside verges was soon noticed; this time a chunky, mottled brown & grey bird reminiscent of an Old World bunting but identified as Song Sparrow, in good numbers just like the 'yellow-rumps'.
After a few more minutes we reached the northern most point of the refuge where there was a viewpoint which looked back towards the visitors' centre & a sheltered bay, in the lee of the land up which the road runs. I could see large numbers of ducks, mainly black ducks as well as mergansers & Goldeneye but also quite a few mainly white ducks which were unfortunately too distant to identify positively, but possibly buffleheads. Just before departing the viewpoint I was delighted to spot, as I'd hoped, a diver just offshore, easily identifed as Common Loon (Great Northern Diver), with a heavy bill & a much less elegant dive than the red-throat I'd seen at similar close quarters in March.
By this time the light was fading & it was trying to snow so we beat a hasty retreat from hypothermia & re-traced our steps back to the car, accompanied by the yellow-rumps & song sparrows; the harlequins were also in the same place, then a sudden flash of another northern harrier just before the final turn where a Cardinal perched obligingly on a bush.
17 species, 4 new species.
No comments:
Post a Comment