an unexpected arrival

A distinctive chip alerted me to the presence of a waterthrush. I was nowhere near the water but I was pretty sure it was a waterthrush. There was, it's true, something a little different about the chip -- a sort of wet splat instead of the hard note usually heard from our recent arrivals. And unlike the waterthrushes at the water, this one did not respond to my squeaking and pishing noises. Eventually I got a look. It was a waterthrush all right but a rather good-sized one with a prominent white eye stripe, rather light stripes on a white breast, pink legs, furious bobbing as it walked and that odd call note. Far from the water and extremely shy. It wasn't a Northern Waterthrush but a LOUISIANA WATERTHRUSH!

While Northern Waterthrush is a common summer visitor, Louisiana Waterthrush is a regular but scarce migrant in these parts. I have an old (somewhat suspect) record for upper Weesuck Creek (the part above Montauk Highway) and a number of years ago a few of them spent a couple of weeks in the back part of Trout Pond in Noyack. But this is my first record for lower Weesuck Creek -- and it wasn't even on the creek!

I took my hummingbird seat to see what I could see and, sure enough, all the hummingbirds turned up. The larger of the two young took a solid perch on a branch inside the natal Red Cedar tree and was promptly attacked by its smaller sibling. And I mean furiously attacted. Junior junior really went after its nest mate with what looked like hummingbird fury, trying to knock it off its perch. I can't imagine why unless the perch was a favored spot for mama hummingbird to come in and feed her offspring. Eventually I did see all three flying although I never did see a feeding.

There'll be a story in this weeks Southampton Press about the hummingbirds; it's already posted on their 27east web site

In the meanwhile, my seated perch proved to be the spot for a sort of Mini Big Sit. Most of the birds were familiar (B-c Chickadees, Flickers, Song Sparrows, House Wren, American Goldfinches. Common and Royal Terns on the creek) but a Blue-Gray Gnatcatcher was a new arrival. Not as new as the Louisiana which is the 242nd species seen on and around this place.

Eric Salzman