Montrose Beach & Techny North Sunday 8-9-26

[Al Stokie]

Hello Bird People,

Well not much went according to plan today. Kept changing my targets &
kept missing them.
Was on the way to Techny North when I saw there was a Buff Breasted
Sandpiper at Montrose so I changed directions & arrived at Montrose to
learn the Buffie had left 15 min before I got there. Waited a while to
see if it would return & when it didn't I went back to going to Techny
North where a Golden Plover had been reported. But once again I was
too late as the Plover had departed before I could see it. There are
days like this I guess. Had I gone to Techny North 1st as I'd planned
I'd have seen the Plover or if I'd gone to Montrose at my usual early
time I'd have seen the Buffie. Planning was not my strong suit today!

Montrose Beach (8:15-9:45 am)

D.C. Cormorant (2 fly-bys)
Canada Goose (~20, lawns)
Mallard (2)
Killdeer (8)
Spotted Sandpiper (2)
Least Sandpiper (5)
SHORT BILLED DOWITCHER (1)
Ring Billed (~100) & Herring (4) Gulls
FORSTER'S TERN (1)
Purple Martins, Barn Swallows & Pigeons

Techny North (10:40-11:55 am)

Here I birded with John Leonard which was good as he helped with
raptor identification later.

Great Blue Heron (2) & Great Egret (also 2)
Mallard (2-AD with 6 larger young)
Killdeer (17)
Lesser Yellowlegs (10, John had 12)
Solitary (2) & Spotted (4) Sandpipers
Least (6) & Pectoral (3) Sandpipers
BAIRD'S SANDPIPER (1, sort of with the Least Sandpipers)
Caspian Tern (2-AD)
Raptors:
Turkey Vulture (2)
Osprey (3)
Red Tailed Hawk (1 or 2)
BROAD WINGED HAWK (1, John did most of the I.D. work)
Kestrel (2 bothering one Osprey & 1 by itself)
Pigeons (a flock of about 30 flying north)
Barn Swallow (3)
Starlings (on the golf course lawns)

So 26 species at my 2 locations plus 3 roadside additions for a day's
total of 29.
Bird-Of-The-Day will be the Baird's Sandpiper as I found it by myself
& could I.D. it as well.
Runner-Up to the Broad Winged Hawk as I agreed that's what it was but
John was pointing out all the details. Other Runners-Up to the
Forster's Tern & the Dowitcher.

Al Stokie
In Cook County today missing some birds but seeing others