Re: On the subject of shorebirds...

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Posted by Paul Bithorn on 15:24:50 05/29/05

In Reply to: On the subject of shorebirds... posted by Rock Jetty

Inspired by Rock Jetty's call to arms to check out the ag fields and tree farms around Homestead Speedway, I ventured out at noon and headed south with cooler, field guides, binoculars and scope in search of shorebirds, yearbirds and beerbirds.
My first bird was an adult White-rumped Sandpiper (yearbird) in alternate plumage in the runoff from the flooded ditch that runs adjacent to the dirt road that runs into the northeast corner of the racetrack. Two Semipalmated Plovers, two Least Sandpipers, a Spotted Sandpiper and couple dozen Black-necked Stilts were also in the area.

I then headed east on Mowry Rd. (S.W. 320th Street) and stopped just east of the Farm Share Packing House, just before a CAT track machine, and located a pair of basic plumaged Semipalmated Sandpipers and a family of Shiny Cowbirds, including a juvenile male that would have been an enigmatic id had not the parents been present.

I first saw this plumage-the dark body of the male and the brown head and breast of the female-several years ago inside Fort Jefferson in the Dry Tortugas, while birding with Bruce Purdy. Serendipitously, Bill Robertson, the late ornithologist, who co-authored the Annnotated Checklist of Florida Birds with Glen Woolfenden, happened to be at the Fort with a group of University of Miami students and helped us with the id. I believe there is a color plate of this plumage in Raffaele's; Birds of the West Indies.

Undaunted by the "Dog Days of Summer," with temperatures in the mid-90's, my adventure paid off in spades. Life is good....................

Remember to honor the many American Veterans, who gave their lives to preserve our precious freedoms. I myself will hoist a libation in honor of two family friends of mine, young Marines, who gave their lives in Vietnam, PFC Bruce Wayne Carter (Congressional Medal of Honor) and PFC Fred Butler, who are now soaring with the eagles.

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Comments:	: Inspired by Rock Jetty's call to arms to check out the ag fields and tree farms around Homestead Speedway, I ventured out at noon and headed south with cooler, field guides, binoculars and scope in search of shorebirds, yearbirds and beerbirds. : My first bird was an adult White-rumped Sandpiper (yearbird) in alternate plumage in the runoff from the flooded ditch that runs adjacent to the dirt road that runs into the northeast corner of the racetrack. Two Semipalmated Plovers, two Least Sandpipers, a Spotted Sandpiper and couple dozen Black-necked Stilts were also in the area. : : I then headed east on Mowry Rd. (S.W. 320th Street) and stopped just east of the Farm Share Packing House, just before a CAT track machine, and located a pair of basic plumaged Semipalmated Sandpipers and a family of Shiny Cowbirds, including a juvenile male that would have been an enigmatic id had not the parents been present. : : I first saw this plumage-the dark body of the male and the brown head and breast of the female-several years ago inside Fort Jefferson in the Dry Tortugas, while birding with Bruce Purdy. Serendipitously, Bill Robertson, the late ornithologist, who co-authored the Annnotated Checklist of Florida Birds with Glen Woolfenden, happened to be at the Fort with a group of University of Miami students and helped us with the id. I believe there is a color plate of this plumage in Raffaele's; Birds of the West Indies. : : Undaunted by the "Dog Days of Summer," with temperatures in the mid-90's, my adventure paid off in spades. Life is good.................... : : Remember to honor the many American Veterans, who gave their lives to preserve our precious freedoms. I myself will hoist a libation in honor of two family friends of mine, young Marines, who gave their lives in Vietnam, PFC Bruce Wayne Carter (Congressional Medal of Honor) and PFC Fred Butler, who are now soaring with the eagles.
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