Some good birds out today. I started at Cupsogue which had the standard mix of shorebirds. *RED KNOT* numbers were up with near 100 individuals. The highlight on the flats was 1 adult basic *BONAPARTE'S GULL*. The boney was loafing among Royal and Common Terns. I counted 19 *ROYAL TERNS*.
I then decided to follow up on John Turner's Road K observations from yesterday. There were several great birders in the vicinity and we collectively located 1 *MARBLED GODWIT* and 1 *WHIMBREL*. The Godwit seems to be favoring the west side of the island that is located across from Road K. The Whimbrel was feeding within the mussel beds between Road K and the Ponquogue Bridge. Both birds seemed to intermittently disappear behind the Spartina grass. By far, my most exciting bird of the day was a *MANX SHEARWATER* located well inside the mouth of Shinnecock Inlet. This is hands down the best land views I've ever gotten of a Manx. The bird entered the inlet, put on a brief show, circled back, rounded the east jetty and out of sight. Talk about being in the right place at the right time. Finally, I briefly scouted out Mecox which was very slow by way of shorebirds. However, there was a mix of approximately *150 SWALLOWS*roosting on the sand behind one of the dozer mounds. Tree and Bank dominated the group with Barn Swallow numbers in the single digits. The cut has recently been reopened providing for some good tidal exchange. Some photos of yesterdays gulls and today's Bonaparte's can be seen on my Flickr page. Best, Derek Rogers Sayville http://www.flickr.com/photos/39025168@N07/ -- NYSbirds-L List Info: http://www.NortheastBirding.com/NYSbirdsWELCOME http://www.NortheastBirding.com/NYSbirdsRULES http://www.NortheastBirding.com/NYSbirdsSubscribeConfigurationLeave.htm ARCHIVES: 1) http://www.mail-archive.com/nysbirds-l@cornell.edu/maillist.html 2) http://www.surfbirds.com/birdingmail/Group/NYSBirds-L 3) http://birdingonthe.net/mailinglists/NYSB.html Please submit your observations to eBird: http://ebird.org/content/ebird/ --