I.D. Help -- American Pipit?

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I shot this at the Wastewater today and am not sure if I've got the I.D. correct, so please let me know if I'm wrong.
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Mike VanderStelt
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Mike, not following your directions, I'm letting you know if you're right:  American Pipit.  However, I'm not sure they're in season!  :-)  - Ric

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Silver-haired Bat Information

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Carolyn Weng has emailed more information about the bat she saw killed by a Merlin (see our previous posts, Tuesday, September 13: "Merlin and Bat - What Bat?").
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Here's more info about the Silver-haired Bat (the species the Merlin caught at MSP beach; pictures I sent). If you think website member might like info about research on the species, here's something from the Bird Studies Canada newsletter. Interesting comparison with small bird migration parameters.

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- Carolyn

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Silver-haired Bat migration - Canada to southern U.S.
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14 October 2011 – Researchers from the University of Western Ontario and Bird Studies Canada (BSC) recently published an article in the Journal of Animal Ecology on migratory stopovers in a long-distance migratory bat. Several species of bats fly south for the winter but little is known about their migrations. Silver-haired bats were captured during autumn migration along the north shore ofLake Erie at the Long Point Bird Observatory (LPBO) and affixed with radio transmitters in order to continuously track their movements throughout a broad stopover region (~ 800 km²). There was no obvious preference for daytime roost locations; rather it seemed a case of ‘home is where you hang your hat’. Upon continuing migration, about half of the bats departed to the south across the lake, while others followed the shoreline. Bats generally only stayed for one day (longer in bad weather). This was surprising given that many migrating birds stop at this site for days or weeks. Body condition of each individual was also assessed (fat and lean stores), and computer simulations suggested most bats had enough fuel to reach their winter destination in the southern United Stateswithout the need for extended refueling stopovers. The authors suggest the ability to use torpor, saving energy by lowering body temperature when inactive, may be key to the differences between the migration of bats and birds allowing bats to complete their migration at a fraction of the time and energy required for similar sized birds.

   The research team included Liam McGuire (PhD candidate, University of Western Ontario), Dr. Chris Guglielmo (University of Western Ontario), Stuart Mackenzie (LPBO Program Coordinator), and Dr. Phil Taylor (BSC Chair in Ornithology at Acadia University). To read a summary of the article, select this link. For more information or a copy of the article contact Stu Mackenzie at smackenzie@birdscanada.org.

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Shorebirds in Posts Below Identified

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Bruce's 3-picture set of shorebirds are 1- Pectoral Sandpiper (note the rufous tone to the upper plumage), the short yellow legs (relative to the legs of the Lesser Yellowlegs in the next 2 pictures), the shorter bill.
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Mike's shorebird appears to be a Lesser Yellowlegs. Yellowlegs have an eyering and 'spotted' plumage like Solitary Sandpipers, but notice that on Yellowlegs the 'spotting' on the upper feathers goes all the way around a feather making the back patterning interlinked when observed closely per Mike's great photo (enlarged), whereas the Solitary has spots.A Solitary's breast markings are darker than a Yellowlegs. The bills of a Greater Yellowlegs tend to have a hint of an upward curve besides being longer in relation to the width of the head compared with Lessers, so this bird appears to be a Lesser to me. Mike, did you catch both Yellowlegs species in the same shot? Please post for comparison.

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Carolyn Weng

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eBird Report for Saturday's Fieldtrip

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 Muskegon Wastewater System, Muskegon, US-MI
Oct 22, 2011 8:15 AM - 12:00 PM
Protocol: Traveling
5.0 mile(s)
Comments:    Muskegon County Nature Club Fieldtrip
45 species (+3 other taxa)

Canada Goose (Branta canadensis)  5000
Gadwall (Anas strepera)  6
American Black Duck (Anas rubripes)  3
Mallard (Anas platyrhynchos)  200
Northern Shoveler (Anas clypeata)  2000
Northern Pintail (Anas acuta)  1
Green-winged Teal (Anas crecca)  4
Redhead (Aythya americana)  6
Ring-necked Duck (Aythya collaris)  1
Greater/Lesser Scaup (Aythya marila/affinis)  6
Bufflehead (Bucephala albeola)  20
Ruddy Duck (Oxyura jamaicensis)  4000
Wild Turkey (Meleagris gallopavo)  2
Pied-billed Grebe (Podilymbus podiceps)  1
Horned Grebe (Podiceps auritus)  1
Great Blue Heron (Ardea herodias)  1
Turkey Vulture (Cathartes aura)  3
Bald Eagle (Haliaeetus leucocephalus)  1    immature
Red-tailed Hawk (Buteo jamaicensis)  2
Rough-legged Hawk (Buteo lagopus)  1    light morph
Peregrine Falcon (Falco peregrinus)  1    unbanded juvenile
American Coot (Fulica americana)  300
Killdeer (Charadrius vociferus)  17
Greater Yellowlegs (Tringa melanoleuca)  2
Lesser Yellowlegs (Tringa flavipes)  1
Pectoral Sandpiper (Calidris melanotos)  4
Dunlin (Calidris alpina)  4
Bonaparte's Gull (Chroicocephalus philadelphia)  6
Ring-billed Gull (Larus delawarensis)  X
Herring Gull (Larus argentatus)  X
gull sp. (Larinae sp.)  5000
Mourning Dove (Zenaida macroura)  2
Blue Jay (Cyanocitta cristata)  1
American Crow (Corvus brachyrhynchos)  5
Horned Lark (Eremophila alpestris)  12
Black-capped Chickadee (Poecile atricapillus)  3
Eastern Bluebird (Sialia sialis)  7
European Starling (Sturnus vulgaris)  200
American Pipit (Anthus rubescens)  60
Yellow-rumped Warbler (Setophaga coronata)  3
Savannah Sparrow (Passerculus sandwichensis)  4
Song Sparrow (Melospiza melodia)  1
White-throated Sparrow (Zonotrichia albicollis)  1
Red-winged Blackbird (Agelaius phoeniceus)  X    See blackbird sp
Eastern Meadowlark (Sturnella magna)  1
Brown-headed Cowbird (Molothrus ater)  6
blackbird sp. (Icteridae sp.)  3000    Flock flowing southeastward for +20 minutes - may all have been RWBL
American Goldfinch (Spinus tristis)  2

This report was generated automatically by eBird v3 (http://ebird.org)
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Jaegers, Rouglegs and Peregrines, Oh My!

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These four reports plus the four posts below all regard Saturday, Oct. 22, 2011 !
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- Ric
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Email:  "Hey, Ric, this morning around 9:30 we had a juvenile Parasitic Jaeger at Pere Marquette!  We also had all three species of scoter fly by."  (Black, Surf, and White-winged)
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- The Lautenbachs
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Email:  "My sister couldn't identify this shorebird.  Can you help?  It and the Peregrine Falcon were at the Wastewater today. (Oct. 22)"
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- Bruce Delamarter,
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Bruce, thanks for the photos!  I'll leave the shorebird ID to others; watch for their comments below in the next few days.  If you told me that these were three photos of two different individuals, I'd believe it!  Shows what lighting can do!

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Meanwhile, 18 members of the club followed Charlie and Carol DeWitt on a Wastewater fieldtrip Saturday morning unofficially tallying tens of thousands of birds of 45 different species.  Once we get those birds entered at eBird, we'll post the numbers on this page.  Jim Ponshair stopped by to hand us a few of his Wastewater data albums from the 30 years he conducted the surveys (see Carolyn's survey report below).

Highlights of our field trip included a virtually endless stream of blackbirds, the same shorebirds as reported below, thousands of gulls, thousands of geese, thousands of ducks (including one Northern Pintail male and four Green-winged Teal), three Yellow-rumped Warblers, our first Rough-legged Hawk of the year (probably the bird in Mike's photograph below), and a Peregrine Falcon (probably the one in Bruce's photos above and Mike's photos below).

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Finally, Carolyn Weng reports:

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Brian Johnson and I surveyed the Wastewater for shorebirds. The eastern most cell (abutting  the Center Dike north of the West Lagoon) was drawn down to mudflats and had attracted almost all of the shorebirds detected:  Dunlin, Pectoral Sandpiper, both Yellowlegs and Killdeer. Making up for the lack of shorebird numbers were the variety of ducks collecting in the lagoons and a beautifully plumaged juvenile Peregrine Falcon.

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Testing, Testing: Part 2

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At the Wastewater Saturday, besides the Peregrine Falcon (posted below), I tested my camera on this Horned Lark, Rough-legged Hawk and Solitary Sandpiper (?).
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Mike VanderStelt
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Remember, to see Mike's and Charlie's photos in all their feather-counting beauty, you must open them in a new tab (see one way to do this in the left hand column of this page).  - Ric
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Testing, Testing: Part 1

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Just a few shots of a Peregrine Falcon at the Wastewater today as I test a new camera.  I also saw Red-winged Blackbird, adult Bald Eagle, European Starling and Mourning Dove along with "the usual suspects": ducks, geese, etc. 

Mike VanderStelt
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Northern Harrier at Wastewater Saturday

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After this morning's MCNC field trip, Carol and I spent a little more time at the Wastewater.  We found this Northern Harrier at the northwest corner of White Road and Swanson Road.
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Charlie DeWitt
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Yellow-rumped Warbler

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I had this Yellow-rumped Warbler stop by my water feature today. Also today I saw a Field Sparrow and a Yellow-bellied Sapsucker (#205) by the Muskegon County Airport.
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Charlie DeWitt
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Ctenucha Moth

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What does a Ctenucha Moth have to do with birding?  Let me tell you.  On Tuesday afternoon I took a photo walk at the Norton Shores leaf dump on Wood Road to see if I could get some fall color pictures or other interesting close ups.  So I leave my big telephoto lens and binoculars home.  Big mistake! The area was full of birds.
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Here is a list of what I could identify: Red-tailed Hawk, American Robin, Northern Cardinal, Blue Jay, American Crow, Eastern Towhee, Black-capped Chickadee, Song Sparrow, White-throated Sparrow, Swamp Sparrow, Fox Sparrow, Thrush species, Wren species, Red-bellied Woodpecker, Hairy Woodpecker, Northern Flicker, Wood Duck, Pied-billed Grebe, Horned Grebe, Ring-necked Duck and 20 Dark-eyed Juncos.  There were other small birds in the woods, but without my binoculars I could not identify them.  Maybe next time I will bring the binoculars.
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- Charlie DeWitt
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Charlie's moth picture should be seen in all its detail.  To do so, follow the "About This Page" directions in the left column.  - Ric
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Coyote

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"I was about five hundred yards east of the Wastewater entrance (Oct. 10) when I spotted Wiley."
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Bruce Delamarter
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Nighthawks! + Grasshopper Sparrows

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During an afternoon jog by my house in Norton Shores, I was surprised to see three Common Nighthawks foraging overhead. This date (October 9) is far beyond all my previous fall sightings of the species in Michigan.

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Afterwards, I made a short visit to the Wastewater to attempt some more Grasshopper Sparrow banding. In August, I had banded 37 there (with 11 caught at once by Micah Petersen and me on August 16). Unfortunately, in September, my day job and banding at Muskegon Lake Nature Preserve precluded any additional sessions. However, on October 7, after Carolyn Weng and I finished the Shorebird Survey, I made a quick try and was pleased to capture two Grasshopper Sparrows. Unlike the August birds, these were very nearly finished with their molt.

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This evening, with the continued warm temperatures and calm conditions, all the bird song emanating from the Wastewater fields reminded me of a spring chorus. Two more sparrows in my nets were a further reward.

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Brian Johnson
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Wastewater Survey

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Brian Johnson and Carolyn Weng surveyed shorebirds at the Wastewater, Oct. 7. There was a good variety of species scattered along the lagoon shorelines and the two lowered-water-level concrete aeration ponds next to the West Lagoon: Black-bellied and American Golden Plover, Killdeer, Greater and Lesser Yellowlegs, Spotted, White-rumped (2), Pectoral and Stilt Sandpipers plus Wilson Snipe.
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Other species of interest included four Eared Grebe, two Horned Grebe in the East Lagoon, one Lesser Black-backed Gull along the West Lagoon, and two Eastern Screech-owls whinnying after sunset from the Clay Pond south of Apple Ave.
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Harrier

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Bruce Delamarter photographed one of a pair of Northern Harriers hunting near the model airport on the south Wastewater properties today.
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Pipits, Shorebirds and Warbler at Wastewater

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Rick Hamlin photographed these birds at the Wastewater recently:  American Pipit, Greater Yellowlegs, Greater and Lesser Yellowlegs, Least Sandpiper, Wilson's Snipe and Yellow-rumped Warbler.
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Fox, Egret and Ducks in Autumn

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"I am thinking 'What a picture!' and my guess is he is thinking 'Can I eat all of that?'  Same family of fox north of me all summer; this one I believe is from this year's litter.  I was patient and he was curious."
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- Bruce Delamarter
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"This is the first time I have had fall colors and a Great Egret in the same picture."
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-  Bruce Delamarter
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Pipits and More at Wastewater October 1-2

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A few shots from the Wastewater Saturday and Sunday. There were 30-40 Turkey Vultures in the road between the dump and east lagoon.

This Sanderling (or is it a Semipalmated Sandpiper) was along the east side of east lagoon as were the American Pipits, as noted by Kathryn.

Portrait of a Great Blue Heron in the east lagoon also.

And in the NW corner of the west lagoon was a group of 20-30 Bonaparte and nonbreeding Little Gulls. (Someone correct me if I'm wrong about the Little Gulls, could be Bonapartes, but no black on wings.)*

Don Neumann

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*  Don, I don't do gulls, but I'm pretty sure that Little Gulls at the Wastewater would be quite remarkable.  We'll see if others more knowledgeable will post their comments about the gulls or your shorebird (which I also think is a Sanderling).  - Ric

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Pipits at Wastewater Saturday

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Kathryn Mork reports: "I finally found American Pipits on the east side of the East Lagoon and the north end of the Center Dike at the Wastewater yesterday (Oct. 1)."
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