Four Lifers in Plymouth County today! 10/06/2022

I headed to the Daniel Webster Wildlife Sanctuary for a MA Audubon guided walk with Sally that was scheduled for 8:30 am. Within minutes of arriving, I was shown my first lifer, a Common Nighthawk, which was in a field next to the parking lot. This beautiful and unusual bird was flushed from another field by a lawn mower, and it has been around for a few days according to other posts. A little research told me that Nighthawks don't have typical beaks and feet. Their beaks are very small, and they feed by flying through swarms of insects with their flexible mouths wide open. Insects go straight down, and it reminds me of how some whales, like the humpback, feed. Fascinating! This one is likely migrating through to South America for the winter.

My next lifer showed up in a field feeding among the Milk weed pods, a juvenile Dicksissell, which is a very uncommon migrant. It is sometimes called the miniature Meadowlark due to similar coloring.

A continued walk out towards Fox Hill at the Sanctuary turned up a Yellowbellied Sapsucker and my third lifer, a female or immature Merlin feeding on top of a very tall light pole. Since it was feeding, it wasn't likely to fly unless we approached too close, so we were able to see it through the spotting scope as well!

After seeing quite a few other bird species, our walk ended although I decided to do a quick ride to Duxbury Beach since it was only five minutes away to see if I might be able to see a Black-bellied or American Golden Plover. I had never seen one and a few had turned up at Plum Island north of Boston. When I got to the beach, I parked near Powder Point Bridge and headed bay side to look for Sanderling and Semipalmated Plover as I usually see these feeding near the bridge. In the distance, I saw a single larger, lankier bird in with a flock of Sanderlings at the water's edge just north of the bridge. I snapped a few pictures from a distance thinking it was a Lesser Yellowlegs, and it flew off when I was momentarily distracted by a Harrier that flew nearby. It is only when I got home and looked at the image on my computer that I saw it was a Black-bellied Plover! I got my fourth lifer and I was so excited! It is an amazing bird with one of the longest migration routes as it flies down the East Coast to winter in South America and then flies up through Central US to breed in the Arctic tundra. Not a common bird to see! What a great day!