Date: Mon, 17 Nov 2003 19:51:53 -0500 Reply-To: Maryland Birds & Birding Sender: Maryland Birds & Birding From: Robert Ringler Subject: Re: Southern sweep Willets MIME-Version: 1.0 Content-Type: text/plain; charset="iso-8859-1" Content-Transfer-Encoding: 7bit Lou, The only birds likely to be confused with a Willet in flight are godwits (Hudsonian and Black-tailed). However, if the white wing stripe was wide they were probably Willets. Eastern Willets should be gone from the region by now and I don't know of any confirmed records west of the bay. Western Willets do occur inland in the state and sometimes winter on the coast. I hope someone can get in there to see these birds again. Bob Ringler ----- Original Message ----- From: Louis Nielsen To: Sent: Monday, November 17, 2003 3:28 PM Subject: [MDOSPREY] Southern sweep Willets > Yesterday, 9/16, I spent the day in a run down Rt. 301, Birds of interest: > > A dawn check of Schoolhouse Pond in Upper Marlbora provided a Great > Egret, six Wood Ducks, a Gray Catbird and a first winter Pied-billed > Grebe. > > Rt. 225 in Charles County gave me a flyover Cooper's Hawk. Myrtle > Grove had > a lot of the expected birds along with a Hermit Thrush, ten Cedar > Waxwings and > a flock of over fifty Common Grackles. > > Mattawoman NEA off Rt. 224 gave me huge numbers of ducks: Mallards, Black, > Amrican Wigeon, Green-winged Teal, Northern Shoveler, Gadwall, a few Pintails > and lots of coots. As I first reached the edge of Mattawoman Creek, a first > year Bald Eagle put all the birds up which slowly resettle a little farther away > from the near shore -- naturally. > > As the birds returned to drop into the broad sweep of water plants > (effectifely making finding some of them a labor) I spy first one and then, a few > minutes later, a second Willet droping down among all the ducks. Problematical > arrivals, as the Eastern sub-species is said to prefer sandy beaches > along the > shore. This habitat does not qualify. The "Western" Willet is an > "inland bird". Does this broad sweep of water at its confluence with > the Potomac qualify > as inland? Also I think it is getting late for the "Western". > Although the > morning was overcast and gray there is no mistaking the gaudy black > and white > wing pattern of the Willet, broad, white band of white along the > primaries and > secondaries, black primaries and an otherwise gray bird. Size rules > out all > the smaller shorebirds. I was unable to relocate the birds at rest, > just a bit > too far away and the scene choked with green plants and thousands of ducks. ======================================================================= To leave the MDOsprey list, send e-mail to listserv@home.ease.lsoft.com with the following message in line 1: signoff mdosprey ======================================================================= =========================================================================