Date: 8/30/25 7:06 pm From: Roger Adamson via groups.io <radamson...> Subject: [Mendobirds] Shorebird Walk Ten Mile beach
We had a spectacular weather for our beach walk this morning looking
for sandpipers and associated shorebirds. Excellent visibility and low
breeze made the walk north from Ward Avenue very comfortable. Just below
the parking area we had Black-bellied Plovers, Semipalmated Plovers, and
Least Sandpipers. A lone Marbled Godwit was the first shorebird to the
north when we got to the end of the Haul Road. We walked nearly a mile
and a half to get to some special birds where we found four very
obliging Baird's Sandpipers, life birds for a few of our party. Two
Snowy Plover were in the area and a group of about 15 Marbled Godwit
flew close but refused to stop. At scope distance we spotted one
Whimbrel. We enjoyed three Elegant Terns and one Caspian Tern, all
fly-bys headed north. Brown Pelicans put on a very entertaining show of
diving for fish less than 100 yds off-shore where they were joined by
Brandt's and Pelagic Cormorants and Common Loons. Exceptionally clear
conditions enabled us to see fishing boats about two miles out being
swarmed by Sooty Shearwaters and a few of our party saw whales breaching
on the horizon. An Osprey and a Peregrine Falcon were the only raptors.
Surprisingly, there were few scoters this morning, but we did see a
flock of ducks headed south which were identified as scaup sp. when
looking through our photos.
Roger Adamson
