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There is a digiscoped image of the Stilt Sandpiper on the Vermont eBird Flicker feed: http://www.flickr.com/photos/60611812@N05/7909845582/in/pool-929116@N20 -- Ron Payne Middlebury, VT On Sat, 1 Sep 2012 21:40:25 -0400, "Ian A. Worley" <[log in to unmask]> wrote: Thanks to an early posting by Dan Huber, Ron Payne and I went to the end > of the west trail at Brilyea Access in Addison to search for > shorebirds. A slight rise in water levels has returned a small area > of open, shallow water to the area completely grown-in by plants > during the June and July drawdown. > > Among many Lesser Yellowlegs and some Greater Yellowlegs there were > other sandpipers, notably a Stilt Sandpiper, a Pectoral Sandpiper, > and three Dunlins. There were nine shorebird species in total. > > We also surveyed a number of locations along the shore of southern > Lake Champlain from Orwell to Addison. Not unexpectedly there were > few shorebirds, and no noteworthy species. We did come upon 11 > Horned Larks on a short farm road leading to a manure pile at a farm > on Lake Street in Bridport. > > The full Brilyea list is below. > > Ian > =============== > > > Brilyea Access, Addison, US-VT > Sep 1, 2012 2:12 PM - 5:26 PM > Protocol: Traveling > 1.8 mile(s) > Comments: Ron Payne and Ian Worley. Took west trail to dam, > then east along shore, then north along shore to beginning of west > trail. Most shorebirds and waterfowl were at the end of the west > trail east to the main body of open water --- an area mostly grown in > since the drawdown began a month or two ago, but with a few shallow, > wade-able waters. > 39 species > > Wood Duck 10 > > Mallard 6 > > Blue-winged Teal 32 > > Green-winged Teal 19 > > Great Blue Heron 13 > > Northern Harrier 1 > > Spotted Sandpiper 2 > > Solitary Sandpiper 5 > > Greater Yellowlegs 11 One group of five, otherwise generally > mixed with Lesser Yellowlegs. Intermittently calling. > > Lesser Yellowlegs 52 Actively foraging and moving about; > occasionally short flights. Usually silent. Carefully counted by > individuals. > > Least Sandpiper 1 > > Pectoral Sandpiper 1 Mixed in with Lesser Yellowlegs. > > Dunlin 3 A close-knit group of three foraging amid water lilies > and Yellowlegs. Size of a largish peep, short legs, down-turned > bill noticeably longer than that of Least, Baird's, White-rumped, and > Semipalmated Sandpipers. Supercillium minimal at best. These birds > did not appear especially rotund. While the neck did not appear > exceptionally short, it was never extended far from the body. Mostly > gray, though possibly with some brownish tint on upper parts of body > and in chest area. Either juvenile or nonbreeding; breast tinted or > streaked carrying up into shoulder area. Belly light to white. > > Stilt Sandpiper 1 Obviously smaller than adjacent Lesser > Yellowlegs with long, slightly down-turned bill often carried mostly > perpendicular. Bill black and moderately stout at base, evenly > tapered to tip. Yellowish to yellow-green legs, strikingly less > yellow than legs of Yellowlegs. Legs long, though not as long as > those of Yellowlegs. Probing/feeding up-and-down motion more like > Dowitchers than Yellowlegs; body well tipped-up during probing. > Evident supercilium. Breast lightly tinged. Seemed overall light > enough to be a first winter bird. Mixed with Lesser Yellowlegs; > stayed in shallow water in and around emergent grasses. > > Wilson's Snipe 1 Flushed from ditch or weedy place along trail. > > Ring-billed Gull 3 > > Ruby-throated Hummingbird 1 > > Northern Flicker 2 > > Eastern Wood-Pewee 1 > > Eastern Phoebe 2 > > Eastern Kingbird 6 > > Blue Jay 5 > > American Crow 2 > > Common Raven 1 > > Tree Swallow 3 > > Bank Swallow 1 > > Barn Swallow 11 > > Black-capped Chickadee 1 > > White-breasted Nuthatch 1 > > American Robin 3 > > Gray Catbird 2 > > European Starling 7 > > Cedar Waxwing 4 > > Common Yellowthroat 1 > > Song Sparrow 3 > > Red-winged Blackbird 3 > > Common Grackle 11 > > Baltimore Oriole 1 > > American Goldfinch 2 > > > This report was generated automatically by eBird v3 (http://ebird.org/vt) > > ----- End forwarded message -----