Bird Watching

I invite M to come over and do a bird watching paddle with me in the big marsh. We have a very high tide today, but the air is calm and the day is just plain pleasant. We head out somewhat early, timing the trip, first, so that we will be there before anyone else, and secondly to catch the earliest of the incoming tide.

Juvenile Night Heron

As with yesterday, the east shoreline is a one mile long eddy and it is an easy paddle to the top of the marsh. We pass ten or more Great Egrets as we get to the marsh. Lots of Egrets picking minnows from the shallows. We head up the shortcut aiming for the central phragmites patch, but the water isn't quite high enough and we back out to return later. We spot a small Virginia Rail, looks like the same bird that, yesterday, I caught a glimpse of and misidentified as a Clapper Rail. A closer, longer look at it...too small for a Clapper.

We head down and then across the marsh. We're spotting or flushing juvenile Night Herons and Great Egrets... not counting, but it's fairly constant to have at least one or the other in sight. A Harrier sweeps across the marsh. A flock of 40 Canada Geese is near Milford Point. They take off on their own accord and head out towards the sound.

We reverse and head back to the east to scope out the trees. Now, there are ten Great Egrets perched in the branchy dead tree. I expect to find many Night Herons, but it is only four or five.

Now, we can head back into the central phragmites patch. The water has been rising fast. We stop talking and ease in. Today, the birds are a little farther in, near the floating reed mat. But, we flush 10-12 adult Black Crowned Night Herons and a Great Blue Heron.  Still not enough water to push through the reed mat, so we back out and head down to Beaver Creek.

The creek is fairly quiet. We find a Green Heron and some Snowy Egrets, until farther in, a large mature Bald Eagle takes off and flies through the trees and away.

Heading out, there is a pretty good flood current against us in the creek. The water is high enough to cut the corner into the river, which turns out to be a good plan. About a dozen adult Yellow Crowned Night Herons are perched in here.  The return upriver is easy with a good flood current under us.