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Posted by Robin Diaz on 09:19:09 11/24/11
Typical wintering birds have arrived on Crandon Park Beach. The Piping Plover flock is 34-strong, with 3 banded birds. "Rocky" returned for his 4th consecutive year, a female from Cross Village, MI is back for her 3rd consecutive year and a bird with a brood marker from Port Inland, UP is here. Other wintering shorebirds: Black-bellied Plover (92), Sanderling (270, including a flagged bird), Semipalmated Plover (63), Least Sandpiper, Ruddy Turnstone, Short-billed Dowitcher, Dunlin and Wilson's Plover.
Adult Herring and Ring-billed Gulls have joined the younger birds and of the 15 Lesser Black-backed Gulls, 10 are adults. Four Caspian Terns are usually present, as are 2 young Great Black-backed Gulls.
Offshore, Red-breasted Mergansers are around Key Biscayne and Virginia Key. With the recent 3-4 days of wind, the Northern Gannet (mostly adults) parade was constant. Jaegers were visible but just out of species-ID range. From flight style and body structure, most seemed to be Pomarine but 2 (probable) Parasitics were closer to shore on Tuesday. Their buoyant acrobatics and relentless tern-chasing were entertaining.
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