A Visitor From Sable Island, Nova Scotia

Savannah "Ipswich" Sparrow


Savannah "Ipswich" Sparrow                                                          Derek Rogers
This morning, I joined friends Mike and Lynne Scheibel at Point Lookout Town Beach for a brief bird outing. Diversity was somewhat low all around. The first jetty yeilded several numbers of our common gull species. Four Harlequin Ducks were a nice surprise but are always fairly reliable at this location. We made our way east toward the inlet, the usual suspects continued. Horned Grebes were gaining some color as the early signs of the breeding season were apparant in their plumage.

While scanning the inlet, Mike called out, "Ipswich." He located the sparrow about 30 feet from us on the jetty of which we were standing. The Ispwich variety of the Savannah Sparrow is one of my favorite of the sparrow species. While not entirely uncommon on Long Island, or the coastal Northeast, you will very rarely see an Ipswich sparrow inland.

The Ispwich Sparrow (Passerculus sandwichensis princeps) is one of many subspecies of the widespread populations of the Savannah Sparrow. They breed only on Sable Island in Nova Scotia. What separates them in identification is their pale color, sometimes appearing gray or white. Like the "typical" savannah sparrow, they have fine streaking that runs down the breast and flanks toward the ventral. They have a pale yellow supercillium and are slightly larger than the "typical" savannah. 

Sable Island - 110 miles from the mainland in Nova Scotia
 Lucky for us Long Islanders, Ipswich Sparrows spend their winters along the coast of the Northeast and Mid-Atlantic States. They have been known to head as far south as Georgia. I often see this sparrow in and among the dunes on ocean beaches. On occasion, I see them feeding along jetties, which was the case with this particular individual. Stuck to its beak was a noticeable green residue from persistently picking macroinvertebrates among the algae covered rocks.
Savannah "Ispwich" Sparrow                                                                                                                                        Derek Rogers




Comments

Post a Comment

Popular posts from this blog

Brown Booby at Cupsogue Beach County Park - 7/5/2012

Image
Today at 1415 a Brown Booby flew eastbound, across the sand flats at Cupsogue Beach County Park. The bird completely struck me by surprise but I did not hesitate to quickly shout, “Brown Booby!” I was scanning around the flats, located in the approximate pin-pointed area on the map below when I noticed a “different” looking bird coming straight at me from the west. My brain scanned, I waited, then waited and the Brown Booby flew right past me, offering great looks. Accompanied by Arie Gilbert, I turned to him once the bird made some distance toward the east. We responsibly debated the other options, but quickly firmed my initial thought and sighting as a Brown Booby. Arie was fast with the shutter and managed to snap these photos. While not award winning, we were excited to see that they helped firm that the bird was indeed a Brown Booby. Yellow pin indicates our stationary position when the Brown Booby crossed our path headed east. In the solid 30 seconds of viewing, as the boo
Read more

Louisiana Waterthrush (Parkesia motacilla)

Image
My morning began with excitement when I watched a Louisiana Waterthrush belting out its song along the creek corridor at Franklin Pond in Cold Spring Harbor. I have been routinely checking this site for the past week and half on my way to and from work and my time has finally paid off. There's definitely a bit of luck involved when it comes to finding birds but knowing and reading your habitat is a big advantage when it comes to being a successful bird watcher. Franklin Pond is part of the Cold Spring Harbor watershed. It is situated above (south of) St. John's Pond where the two are connected by a small freshwater stream. Water exits Franklin Pond by means of a spillway, runs into the stream and eventually makes its way into St. John's Pond. The understory vegetation consists of skunk cabbage, canada mayflower, american beech tree and other hardwood saplings. Moss covered snags and rocks line the stream bank making this a perfect recipe for suitable Louisiana Waterthrush
Read more

Purple Sandpiper

Image
  Purple Sandpiper-Jones Inlet                             Derek Rogers I decided to go birding at Jones Beach, West End, this morning. The sky was overcast which made for perfect viewing. I began my loop trek along the East Side of Jones Inlet. Hundreds of Northern Gannets were plunge diving inside the inlet making for excellent, detailed viewing. Common and Red-throated Loons were beneath the feeding frenzy. I headed south along the jetty in hopes to see a Purple Sandpiper. Knowing that there was a decent ESE swell, I figured my chances of viewing a purple would be along the protected inlet side of the jetty. As I continued south, I noticed an approximately 30 individual flock of shorebirds burst off the jetty, regroup in the air, and land within the inside of the rocks. I knew they had to be purples. I've seen plenty of Red Knots foraging and roosting along jetties but these guys landed in low and deep, right along the water edge. I was still several hundred yar
Read more