May 124 min read

I'm back in Rhode Island

I didn't get home from Arizona until @2am -- but was up at 6am birding. I dropped from @1 in Rhode Island on eBird to number 16 -- 32 birds behind. Now I don't expect to actually get to 1 again this year -- not going to happen. There are too many places I cannot go, but it is reasonable to get within say 10 birds -- so I'm working on catching up. It is much easier to find birds (for the most part) that have already been found. I did find something on Sunday was that new for the year in Rhode Island (not just me). A Yellow-crowned Night Heron at a place that wasn't in my plan... but I was driving by and this bird has been annual in Allen's Harbor Marina area, so I stopped and there it was.

Allen's Harbor Marina

Yellow-crowned Night Heron

On Sunday night I noticed someone reported a Clapper Rail across from the Town Beach in Westerly -- oddly it did not come through on my needs alert and I couldn't find the original checklist, but I started my Monday morning at the Kayak Ramp and was rewarded by a serenade & some photos.

Westerly Kayak Ramp

Clapper Rail

Quonnie Breachway

Eastern Towhee

Tuesday brought me back to my residency at Quonnie -- long overdue because I was out of town. Spring peak migration is already underway for 1.5 weeks and ended at Succotash Marsh.

Quonnie Breachway

Semipalmated Sandpiper & Least Sandpipers (blurry)

Semiplamated Sandpiper

Least Sandpiper

Succotash Marsh

Molting Red-winged Blackbirds

Greater Yellowlegs

Wednesday was threatening rain and it was foggy, but I managed to bird anyway. Started at Ninigret Park and saw one of the famous Gnomes. Ended in Westerly.

Ninigret NWR

Eastern Towhee

Ninigret Park (a different place)

Gnome No. 1

Westerly Town Kayak Ramp

Least Sandpiper (with 49 of his colleagues)

Miaquamicut State Beach

Lesser Black-backed Gull

Thursday brought a beautiful morning that started with my Quonnie Residency and went all over the place.

Quonnie Breachway

Piping Plover

Semipalmated Sandpiper

Black-bellied Plover

Ruddy Turnstone

Semipalmated Plover

Least Sandpiper

Willet

Yellow Warbler

Horseshoe Crab & Tracks

Scarborough State Beach

Black-headed Gull

Dirt Road at a turn on Snuff Mill Road

Yellow Warbler

Black-and-white Warbler - Very Cooperative and close!

Great Crested Flycatcher

Friday started off raining, which I expected, but not for it to last so long (it rained until almost 9), but I went to Swan Point Cemetery anyway. Lots of birds and birders, but not a lot of pictures -- it's tough to ID birds with a bright white sky, let alone photograph them. Got a few new birds and caught up with lots of friends who were birding. Of course, after I left two great birds showed up in the parking lot - my kind of birds. Here are a few shots from today...

Swan Point Cemetery

Wild Turkey - standing on a headstone

Eastern Phoebe - Standing on a headstone

A tree in a rock in the Rock Pond

Red-tailed Hawk

Saturday began VERY early because I was awake, I decided to take a shot at seeing the Northern Lights at Ninigret Park… not particularly impressive here, but I did see them. My camera captured more nuance & color than I could see with the naked eye. Tomorrow I need to go north early, I think they will be on display again, so maybe I will take another shot, so to speak. Bonus - there were a bunch of Eastern Whip-poor-will singing away...

Ninigret Park, Charlestown

Northern Lights

After hanging around to listen to the Whip-poor-will and Woodcock -- and hoping for some Owl hoots (no luck) I went to Buckeye Brook Road where the Veerys were out in force -- Whooping away and actually copulating on the Road (the wrong side for me to get a photo) and as you can see it was still fairly dark out when I took the shot below

Buckeye Brook Road

Veery

After than I just wandered around -- ending up at Quonnie and in Westerly to check on my Osprey nests.

Quonnie Breachway

Belted Kingfisher

Great Egret

Spray Rock Point, Weekapaug

Roseate Terns

Bonaparte's Gull

Atlantic Avenue

Greater Yellowlegs

Watch Hill Lighthouse

Various Terns -- Common & Roseate

Sunday I had intended to go to a bird walk at Mt. Auburn Cemetery in Cambridge MA, but when I woke up, I just felt the last three weeks of less than optimal sleep had caught up with me. I couldn't drive 2 hours, to walk for 4 hours and then drive back -- I made the tough call (I really wanted to go - but it was the right call) not to go. So I started at one of my new favorite area, near the Gilbert Stuart Museum in Sanderstown -- Lots of activity -- but no easy photos. Next to Succotash Marsh where there were lots of peeps flying around. I ended up in Quonnie because Peak migration is over on Wednesday and I've only done two reports (one abbreviated) this season. It's been cold and gloomy -- sitting in those conditions (like today) is not so fun.

Corner Rd., Saunderstown

House Wren