[birding] Finley Knots and Whimbrels, etc, 6 May

[Douglas Robinson]

Unless I'm mistaken, the Red Knots are likely the first record for Benton
County. There's a report (without details from Finley) from March 10, 1984,
but that date seems extraordinarily unusual for a knot in Oregon (yet,
stranger things do happen). At least one of the birds at Bruce Road today
was seen by at least 6 observers. The two birds apparently split up about 30
minutes after I found them.

The 2 Whimbrels came in later with another rainstorm. They were not present
before 10:30.  Whimbrels are apparently rare, but regular, passage migrants
at Finley/Corvallis area.  A couple of us have had flybys each of the last 3
years, either in late Apr/May or late July/August.  It was good to see a
couple on the ground today, even if it meant getting a face full of rain as
the wind was blowing directly at us.

Other shorebirds present there today:

2 Black-bellied Plovers
11 Killdeer
4 Black-necked Stilts
5 Greater Yellowlegs
33 Semipalmated Plovers
51 Western Sandpipers
308 Least Sandpipers
46 Dunlin
16 Long-billed Dowitchers
2 Short-billed Dowitchers
1 Wilson's Snipe

9 Red-necked Phalaropes at Philomath poo ponds

Pretty good for a county with no shorebird habitat.

Have fun
Doug

--