View Red-necked Phalarope in a larger map

In comparison to nearby Eastern Meadowlarks, I was able to note several differences which I think made it relatively easy to pick out. The Eastern Meadowlarks had a much darker, almost black, eyeline and facial pattern while the Western Meadowlark’s facial pattern seemed pale and indistinct. I could also pick out the difference in malar area, with the Western Meadowlark having yellow and the Eastern having white.

A third feature that helped me pick out the Western Meadowlark was the amount of black streaking on its side. The Western Meadowlark was much less heavily streaked with a spotted effect compared to the Eastern Meadowlarks.

Unfortunately these pictures don’t show off these distinguishing characteristics except for the yellow malar so you will all just have to go check it out for yourself. You can also check out this comparison page for more illustrations of the differences.

When I got there, the Western Grebe was swimming a couple hundred feet down the creek from the access, so I got pretty good looks but it wasn’t close enough for great pictures. It was hanging out with a Red-necked Grebe which provided an interesting comparison.

The grebes are hanging out in the Conoduguinet Creek and you can see the exact location in the map below.  The owner of the house there is allowing birders to park in her driveway as long as they leave room for her to get in and out. Don’t park along the road.

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Stopped at the Darlington Tract in Delaware County today to look for the Le Conte’s Sparrow that has been seen in the area. I was lucky as I walked out and saw the bird almost immediately, although it was skittish and I only got to see it for a short time before it disappeared. I didn’t have my digiscoping equipment with me so I didn’t get any pictures but you can find some nice ones of the same bird on flickr and HowardsView.com.

Le Conte’s Sparrow belongs to the same group as our Henslow’s and Grasshopper Sparrows which can be found in parts of the state. 

Here is a map of the general area the Le Conte’s Sparrow is frequenting…

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Le Conte’s Sparrow is an excellent find in Pennsylvania any time of the year because it neither breeds nor winters near us. In fact, its migration path is significantly west of us on the central plains. This bird has withstood several good snow/ice storms so far so hopefully it will make it thru the whole winter. If you haven’t made it out to see this bird yet, I would recommend trying for it because it seems pretty reliable.

Le Contes Sparrow Range Map from BNA Online

Click on the images to zoom in or go to the Picasa gallery where I also have two videos. I have also posted closer crops of several of the images here.

This is my second White Ibis in Pennsylvania, the first being the immature bird that showed up last year in Harrisburg. Apparently juvenile White Ibis were annual at one time in Washington Boro, attracted to the rookery there. During an invasion year in 1977, 17 White Ibises were counted at the Conejohela Flats on August 11th.

Anyone going to see the White Ibis should be forewarned that it is keeping to the upper part of the cove on the west side of Avocet Point which makes it hard to see from shore unless you walk down the river from the boat launch to where there is a break in the trees.

As we dejectedly pulled out our scopes from the trunk we happened to see a bird flying past the passengers side of the car and land on the shore right up the road. The white rump, a characteristic of Wood Sandpiper, had been obvious and looking at the bird it quickly became obvious that it was the Wood Sandpiper.

Wood Sandpiper- 5/9/2008

The Wood Sandpiper was quite cooperative, foraging along the near shoreline so at times it was only about 30 feet away. One interesting thing that we noticed was that it bobbed its rear end, Spotted Sandpiper-style, pretty much non-stop. It worked its way up the shore at one end of the road with a contingent of birders in pursuit, and then would fly to the other end of the road. This happened several times and I finally wised up and instead of chasing it, I stayed put. I figured if it came back this way, I might be the only one around and get really close looks.

And that is exactly what happened. It flew back and landed almost right in front of me, allowing me to get great unobstructed views.

The Wood Sandpiper seemed to be a mix between a Solitary Sandpiper and a Lesser Yellowlegs. At first, I thought there was no way that I would look at this thing and be able to pick it out as something different. But then I realized that it was different enough from each of these similar species that if I looked in a book, I would know it was different.

There were lots of other birds flying around; Dunlin, Short-billed Dowitchers, yellowlegs and various peeps. This kept me occupied during the brief periods when the Wood Sandpiper was hiding.

The Wood Sandpiper is still being seen as of May 11th, 2008. Check the Delaware listserv for more up-to-date sightings.

Pictures by Jeff Gordon.