It was a lovely May day, with a breeze, blue sky and moderate temperature, and plenty of birds. A walk around the woods edge featured Ruby-throated Hummingbird, White-eyed Vireo, Orchard Oriole, and Blue Grosbeak. Raptors were represented by Osprey, Broad-winged Hawk, and Cooper’s Hawk, plus a dramatic show when a pair of Red-tailed Hawks ganged up on an Eagle. But the feature of the day was the shorebirds, with excellent numbers of Greater and Lesser Yellowlegs, Willets, and Whimbrels, plus a few others, such as Black-bellied Plover, Spotted Sandpiper, and “peep.” Extras included Oystercatchers; Forster’s, Gull-billed, and Caspian Terns; and plenty of Tree and Barn Swallows, Purple Martins, and many Herons and Egrets.

Part of the group toured Tuckerton after a picnic lunch, adding Yellow Warbler and many noisy Boat-tailed Grackles, while the rest of the party adjourned to lunch at Allen’s.

Participants: Ethel Cebra, Dino Fiabane, Holly Hoffman, Robert Koch, Laurie Larson, Miriam Swartz, Chris and Jean Tindall, Louise Tompkins.
Photographs by Robert Koch (RK) and Laurie Larson (LL).