[Birdnet] Black Terns, Great Egrets, Ruddy Turnstone

[Kristin Purdy]

I visited Great Salt Lake west of Willard Bay in Box Elder County today and saw somewhere between 150 and 200 BLACK TERNS. In addition, I saw at least 30 GREAT EGRETS. 

The Black Terns were fluttering over the water and dropping down to pick items off the surface, resting on a couple rocky spits, and resting on a distant mudflat with a mixture of Forster's and Caspian Terns and Franklin's, California, and Ring-billed Gulls. The terns are in a variety of plumages right now--most are still in black breeding plumage, but a few have begun to molt and juveniles were also present. 

The Great Egrets were mixed with Snowy Egrets and sometimes Great Blue Herons, which made size comparisons easy. 

Other interesting sights out there today included eight adult Black-crowned Night Herons in the same patch of reeds near the first turn in the dam when the heading changes from west to southwest;several "islands" or pods of American White Pelicans feeding in elegant synchrony with their accompanying entourage of Double-crested Cormorants, gulls, terns, and herons; and what I now consider a regular species at the Flying J at exit 357 of I-15 and at the entrance to the north dike surrounding the bay, GREAT-TAILED GRACKLES.

Other species seen west of the dam not already mentioned above include:

Canada Goose
Mallard
Redhead
Pied-billed, Eared, Western Grebe
White-faced Ibis
Turkey Vulture
Osprey
American Coot
Killdeer
Black-necked Stilt
American Avocet
Greater and Lesser Yellowlegs
Spotted Sandpiper
Marbled Godwit
Western Sandpiper
Dowitcher spp
Wilson's Phalarope
Belted Kingfisher
Tree, Bank, Cliff, and Barn Swallows
Western Meadowlark
Yellow-headed Blackbird
Brewer's Blackbird

Instead of taking the rough road around the west side of the reservoir that jiggles my gizzards, I levied a mountain bike assault and rode the Arthur V. Watkins dam beginning at the north entrance behind the maintenance buildings, made the turn southwest and then along the long, long west side, and finally made the last turn to the south at the beacon tower on the dike. I never left the dike because the view was good from up there. Birding from the dam is purely a scope endeavor; if you choose to bike the dam you'll need to deal with the logistics of taking your scope (and binoculars, and water...). 

The area is not small shorebird habitat until you reach the last turn mentioned above, or that turn will be the first one if you drive the road and come from the direction of Harold Crane WMA. Just remember the beacon on the dike at the turn. The water begins near there with mudflat habitat. All the small shorebirds were there except the Killdeer and the Spottie. From that curve, two rocky spits project west into the water; one of them hosted 47 of the Black Terns along with other species, and the other spit hosted 12.

I was disappointed not to distinguish any Common Terns from the Forster's. I know the Commons have to be there. 

I also visited Antelope Island Causeway in Davis County and saw the RUDDY TURNSTONE Cheryl Peterson reported last night. The bird I saw was a juvenile on the gravel island north of the 'No Swimming' bridge at the end of the channel. He or she didn't stay for long, but this spot seems to be a favorite among Ruddy Turnstones and perhaps the bird will make another appearance there. 

Kris

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