Global Big Day Birding - The Afternoon

Migratory shorebirds at a refuge in St. Lucy

My Global Big Day birding adventure continued in the afternoon, after a late start. I had planned to begin at noon, but I only got on the road at 2:30. This meant that I had to skip some of the places I wanted to visit in the southeast of the island. However, I was joined by the rest of team Moore Birders as we headed to our first stop Redland, St. George.

 American Coots - Red-shielded at Redland

At Redland, we spotted Pied-billed Grebes (Podilymbus podiceps) and the two types of American Coots (Fulica Americana): White-shielded and the much rarer Red-shielded. Then we moved on to our next stop at the Ermy Bourne Highway, on the border of St Joseph and St. Andrew. Here, the bird we were targeting was one not seen for the year thus far namely Black Swifts (Cypseloides niger). We were lucky to find two of them flying among Caribbean Martins (Progne dominicensis) over the hills of Cambridge, St. Andrew. We also saw an Antillean Crested Hummingbird (Orthorhyncus cristatus) and a Little Egret (Egretta garzetta) on the beach side of the road, wading among the rock pools on the seaside. We continued our journey northward, stopping at a few locations but not adding any more new birds to our list until we reached North Point, the northernmost point of the island. There we observed Grassland Yellow-Finch (Sicalis luteola) in the fields next to the solar farm. We also added one more bird, an Osprey (Pandion haliaetus), as we drove to our last stop of the day.

Semipalmated Plover in the beautiful sunset 

We arrived at our final destination around 5:30, with the sun just above the horizon. My son and I quickly surveyed the mudflats and added eight new birds to our Global Big Day list. Most of them were shorebirds. We sat on the grass, watching the busy shorebirds feed in front of us as the sun set behind them, painting the sky orange. It was a beautiful, peaceful, and wonderful way to end a day of birding.

Collared Plover was the bird of the day

As we sat there, reminiscing about the birds we had seen throughout the day, our bird of the day flew in. It was a rare one: a Collared Plover (Charadrius collaris) a South American plover. It was amusing to watch it chasing around the larger Semipalmated Plovers (Charadrius semipalmatus) from its space on the drying mudflats. It was a fitting way to end our day of birding on this World Migratory Bird Day, surrounded by examples of such migrants, at a place established to provide them with refuge as they travel across flyways in search of better conditions.

Here is a list of bird species seen during the 2023 Global Big Day:  

1. Gray Kingbird (Tyrannus dominicensis)
2. Eurasian Collared-Dove(Streptopelia decaocto)
3. Cattle Egret(Bubulcus ibis)
4. Caribbean Elaenia(Elaenia martinica)
5. Golden Warbler(Setophaga petechia)
6. Bananaquit(Coereba flaveola)
7. Barbados Bullfinch(Loxigilla barbadensis)
8. Scaly-naped Pigeon (Patagioenas squamosa)
9. Common Ground-Dove(Columbina passerina)
10. Green Heron(Butorides virescens)
11. Striated Heron (Butorides striata)
12. Black-crowned Night-Heron(Nycticorax nycticorax)
13. Shiny Cowbird (Molothrus bonariensis)
14. Carib Grackle(Quiscalus lugubris)
15. Brown Booby(Sula leucogaster)
16. Rock Pigeon(Columba livia)
17. Zenaida Dove (Zenaida aurita)
18. Magnificent Frigatebird(Fregata magnificent)
19. Green-throated Carib(Eulampis holosericeus)
20. Laughing Gull (Leucophaeus atricilla)
21. Royal Tern(Thalasseus Maximus)
22. Black-whiskered Vireo(Vireo altiloquus)
23. Common Gallinule (Gallinula galeata)
24. Rose-ringed Parakeet(Psittacula krameri)
25. Black-faced Grassquit(Melanospiza bicolor)
26. Semipalmated Plover (Charadrius semipalmatus)
27. Ruddy Turnstone (Arenaria interpres)
28. Common Tern (Sterna hirundo)
29. Pied-billed Grebe (Podilymbus podiceps)
30. American Coot  (Fulica Americana)
31. Black Swift (Cypseloides niger)
32. Antillean Crested Hummingbird (Orthorhyncus cristatus)
33. Caribbean Martins (Progne dominicensis)
34. Little Egret (Egretta garzetta)
35. Grassland Yellow-Finch (Sicalis luteola)
36. Osprey (Pandion haliaetus)
37. Black-bellied Plover (Pluvialis squatarola)
38. Collared Plover (Charadrius collaris)
39. Least Sandpiper (Calidris minutilla)
40. Semipalmated Sandpiper (Calidris pusilla)
41. Spotted Sandpiper (Actitis macularius)
42. Greater Yellowlegs (Tringa melanoleuca)
43. Lesser Yellowlegs (Tringa flavipes)
44. Snowy Egret (Egretta thula)
45. Glossy Ibis (Plegadis falcinellus

Global Big Day Birding - The Morning

On May 13th, I participated in the Global Big Day, a worldwide event to celebrate  World Migratory Bird Day and bird diversity.  I had a blast birding for half a day, although I wished I could have stayed longer. Unfortunately, some urgent matters came up that shorten my outing. Nevertheless, I was proud to add my observations and photos to the island's and my team's (Bajan Birders & Friends) final counts. I spotted 45 different species of birds, two of which were first for the year for the island and four for me.

Caribbean Elaenia @ Graeme Hall 

The first bird I heard today was a Grey Kingbird (Tyrannus dominicensis), singing at 4:39 am. That was the start of our birdwatching day, breaking the quiet of the dawn. After a while, more birds joined the chorus, like the native Barbados Bullfinch (Loxigilla barbadensis). Then a Golden Warbler (Setophaga petechia) chimed in, followed by a couple of Caribbean Elaenias (Elaenia martinica). Some Eurasian Collared-Doves (Streptopelia decaocto) added their low tones and a pair of Bananaquits (Coereba flaveola) made their sharp noises. We had already seen seven kinds of birds by the time Jason and I left the house, around 5:30 in the morning.

Black-crowned Night-Heron @ SBRC's Pond

We went to the SBRC in St. Thomas first. We were looking for the uncommon Striated Heron (Butorides striata) and Black-crowned Night-Heron (Nycticorax nycticorax) and we spotted them right away. We also saw a Green Heron (Butorides virescens) there. We had 14 species on our list when we left the SBRC.

We continued our journey to Pile Bay, where we spotted two Brown Boobies (Sula leucogaster) perched on a distant bouy. We hoped to see a Lesser Black-backed Gull (Larus fuscus) at Carlisle Bay, but we only found a Royal Tern (Thalasseus Maximus) and two Laughing Gulls (Leucophaeus atricilla). By the time we arrived at Graeme Hall Swamp, our list had grown to twenty-two species. 

The Graeme Hall Swamp was teeming with birds.

Golden Warbler @ Graeme Hall

This is the kind of habitat that World Migratory Bird Day and Global Big Day aim to protect and promote by emphasizing its ecological value and its crucial role in bird migration. At the swamp, we encountered seventeen species, but only three counted for our list.

A minor glitch with our vehicle delayed us a bit, so we could've only visited one more location before ending our morning's birding. That place was Oistins, Christ Church, where we added three more species to our list. One of them, a Common Tern (Sterna hirundo), was the first of the four new birds for the year for me.

Our morning birding ended at about 8:10 am with a tally of twenty-eight species seen. 

Here is a list of the birds seen at the break:  

1. Gray Kingbird (Tyrannus dominicensis)
2. Eurasian Collared-Dove(Streptopelia decaocto)
3. Cattle Egret(Bubulcus ibis)
4. Caribbean Elaenia(Elaenia martinica)
5. Golden Warbler(Setophaga petechia)
6. Bananaquit(Coereba flaveola)
7. Barbados Bullfinch(Loxigilla barbadensis)
8. Scaly-naped Pigeon (Patagioenas squamosa)
9. Common Ground-Dove(Columbina passerina)
10. Green Heron(Butorides virescens)
11. Striated Heron (Butorides striata)
12. Black-crowned Night-Heron(Nycticorax nycticorax)
13. Shiny Cowbird (Molothrus bonariensis)
14. Carib Grackle(Quiscalus lugubris)
15. Brown Booby(Sula leucogaster)
16. Rock Pigeon(Columba livia)
17. Zenaida Dove (Zenaida aurita)
18. Magnificent Frigatebird(Fregata magnificent)
19. Green-throated Carib(Eulampis holosericeus)
20. Laughing Gull (Leucophaeus atricilla)
21. Royal Tern(Thalasseus Maximus)
22. Black-whiskered Vireo(Vireo altiloquus)
23. Common Gallinule (Gallinula galeata)
24. Rose-ringed Parakeet(Psittacula krameri)
25. Black-faced Grassquit(Melanospiza bicolor)
26. Semipalmated Plover (Charadrius semipalmatus)
27. Ruddy Turnstone (Arenaria interpres)
28. Common Tern (Sterna hirundo)

My 2023 Images - March

I am still looking for time to get out and make images.  Most, if not all of my pictures for March were made after work or during a break. Hopefully, as the year goes on I will be able to spend more time with birds.  All images were made with my trusted Canon 7D II, Candace II, and a Sigma 150-600mm 5-6.3 Contemporary DG OS HSM aka Big Selma, with post-processing, using Lightroom 5. These are some of my favorites from the month of March I hope you enjoy them. 

Blue-winged Teal(Spatula discors)

Masked Duck (Nomonyx dominicus) Female

Masked Duck (Nomonyx dominicus) male

two more Males 

 Grassland Yellow-Finch (Sicalis luteola) aka Grass Canary 

Bananaquit (Coereba flaveola barbadensis)

Caribbean Elaenia (Elaenia martinica)

Red-billed Tropicbird (Phaethon aethereus)

another Red-billed Tropicbird

Singing Golden Warbler (Setophaga petechia petechia)

Golden Warbler

Glossy Ibis (Plegadis falcinellus)

Sora (Porzana Carolina)

Lifer # 154 - Garganey

My second local lifer for the year, and it's a mega.  I saw it while afternoon birding in the north.  The bird was a Garganey (Spatula querquedula), a small dabbling duck that breeds mostly in Europe and Asia.  It was among a flock of Blue-winged Teals (Spatula discors) and could have easily been mistaken for the female of that species, but what alerted me that it was different, was the distinctive facial markings, two clearly defined lines, one passing through the eyes and the other just below.  Also, the brownish patch just above the eyes, and the lack of the white patch at the base of the bill were not field markings of the Blue-winged Teal. 

Comparing the Female BW Teal, (front), and Garganey (back)

Taking the field markings into account, I tentatively thought - Garganey but having ever only seen an example of one in a field guide, I wanted expert confirmation. That was found with our local expert Ed Massiah, who I shared images with on our local Bird Alert messaging board, and Whatsapped said images to a friend and bird expert living in Guadeloupe,  Anthony Levesque of Birding Guadeloupe (If you are visiting Guadeloupe and need a guide, look him up, he's the best).  Both of them confirmed Garganey.  The task now is to get quality images of this species before it migrates.

Here is how my birding numbers look: 

• Barbados - 154 species
• West Indies - 198 species
• World - 363 species
• 2023 checklist 

can you find the Garganey among the BW Teal?

RBTB at Green Point

Red-billed Tropicbird

I made a brief visit to the Red-billed Tropicbirds (Phaethon aethereus) nesting cliff at Green Point St. Philip on Thursday. On arrival, it was very quiet, with just one bird seen far out to sea, but that soon changed as more and more birds flew in from the ocean.  Some birds appeared to be actively searching for nesting areas in crevices in the face of the cliff. 

A Red-billed Tropicbird entering a crevice 

Their made repeated flights to the rock face, as if entering a specific hole then pulled away at the last minute.  This inspection continued repeatedly along the cliff front, going in a northerly direction.  Two birds successfully entered holes, like the one in the image above, and a different bird flew out of another, directly out to sea. In the 45 minutes I spent on the sea ridge I counted eleven birds but I am sure there are more nesting pairs along the coast. Here are a few more images from the outing.

My 2023 Images - February

Last year, I concentrated on birding and seeing as many species as I could. This year, 2023, I will concentrate on photography. My primary tools will be Candace II (Canon 7D II) and a Sigma 150-600mm 5-6.3 Contemporary DG OS HSM aka Big Selma, with minor adjustments in Lightroom 5. Every month, I'll post some of my favourite images, as well as any images of rare or interesting birds; feedback and suggestions are welcome. Here are the February ones.

Golden Warbler (Setophaga petechia petechia) at Graeme Hall Swamp
1/1000 @ f8 , ISO 1250

Another Golden Warbler (Setophaga petechia petechia) (Male) hanging out at Graeme Hall's mangroves
1/800 @ f8 , ISO 1600

Green Heron (Butorides virescens) aka Gaulin wading among the reeds at Graeme Hall
1/800 @ f8 , ISO 1600

Black-faced Grassquit (Melanospiza bicolor) (Male)
1/800 @ f8 , ISO 1600

Antillean Crested Hummingbird (Orthorhyncus cristatus) the smaller of our two hummers
1/1250 @ f8 , ISO 1600

Carib Grackles (Quiscalus lugubris)
1/1250 @ f8 , ISO 1600

Barn Swallow (Hirundo rustica)
1/2000 @ f8 , ISO 1600

Spotted Sandpiper (Actitis macularius)
1/1000 @ f8 , ISO 640

Common Gallinule (Gallinula galeata)
1/1000 @ f8 , ISO 800

Grey Kingbird (Tyrannus dominicensis)

1/2000 @ f8 , ISO 1000

Masked Duck (Nomonyx dominicus)

1/1000 @ f8 , ISO 500

Blue-winged Teal (Spatula discors)
1/2000 @ f8 , ISO 1000

Caribbean Elaenia (Elaenia martinica)
1/400 @ f8 , ISO 640

Black-whiskered Vireo (Vireo altiloquus)
1/400 @ f8 , ISO 500

American Oystercatcher (Haematopus palliatus) at Inch Marlow
1/2000 @ f8 , ISO 1000

 

American Oystercatcher Returned to Inch Marlow

The American Oystercatcher (Haematopus palliatus) has returned to Inch Marlow, in the parish of Christ Church. I first noticed this bird on the island in late April of last year, and it returned to the same location almost a year later. Here's a series of photos of it feeding on cockles.