I finished 2024 with 291 species in Rhode Island just two short of my best ever in 2022 of 293. This despite the fact my friend Sue Palmer who had the most birds this year saw 23 species I did not see.
Some because they were in places I did chose not to go –
· Western Flycatcher - Burlingame
· White-winged Dove – Beavertail (but I had just seen @250 of them in Arizona – did not need to see another
· Olive-sided Flycatcher – Great Swamp
· American Flamingo – Briggs Marsh
· American White Pelican – Briggs Marsh
· American Barn Owl – Block Island
Some I was out of town
· Mottled Duck
· Sedge Wren
Some I was there but either just didn’t see the bird or was too late to see it
· Atlantic Puffin
· Connecticut Warbler
· Mississippi Kite
The rest I wasn’t there and have no excuse – except Sue is a very good relentless birder and can’t compete.
· Long-eared Owl
· Thick-billed Murre
· Cerulean Warbler
· Yellow-throated Warbler
· Alder Flycatcher
· Mourning Warbler
· Wilson's Phalarope
· Baird's Sandpiper
· Golden-winged Warbler
· Gray-cheeked Thrush
· Golden Eagle
· Townsend's Warbler
So I missed all of those birds but still had one of my best years ever! That being said there were more birds that I had expected to get, that did not show up for me this year – Western Sandpiper, Black Tern, Sora, Western Kingbird, Glaucous Gull, Chuck-will’s Widow (may be gone for good – was a single individual that showed up each year but this one), Tricolor Heron & Tundra Swan. I was still looking for them today. That’s what I didn’t get – here is what I did…
My 2024 Rhode Island Birding –
January started strong with some good vagrants and an Owl. Several Little Gulls (that is their actual name, not a description) showed up and it was fun learning to pick them out from the plethora of gulls flying around. I appreciated being taught by Dan Berard at South Kingstown Town Beach. Louise Ruggeri found a Lark Sparrow and a Dickcissel at Fort Adams in Newport and they hung around for a while. I located a Short-eared Owl in Sachuest Salt Marsh which kept birders and photographers entertained for most of January.
Lark Sparrow
February brought in a few rare sparrows – Clay-colored at Godena Farm in Jamestown and Vesper (3 of them) in Richmond. A number of Red Crossbills were around and 7 Canvasback ducks landed in Wordon’s Pond.
Vesper Sparrow
In March I had a nice visit with a Black Guillemot in Block Island Harbor and a Pink-Footed Goose in a Nursery in Middletown (thanks to Derek & Jeanette Lovitch from Maine). An early Pectoral Sandpiper showed up as a harbinger of an excellent migrant trap this year -- Matunuck Schoolhouse Road Farm Pond. It was likely more attractive this year because many of the other fresh water ponds were very full and had almost no Mud Flats.
Black Guillemot
I was off to Arizona in April but I managed to see the Summer Tanager that visited Narragansett.
Summer Tanager
May brought 3 Black-necked Stilts to Matunuck Schoolhouse Road Farm Pond and I got a lifer Northern Fulmar on a pelagic – very exciting.
Black-necked Stilts
In June during an Ocean State Bird Club Quonnie Beach Sit, we discovered a Boat-tailed Grackle – a new state bird for me. It disappeared for a while, but I spotted it one more time a few days later, before it left for good.
Boat-tailed Grackle
July brought a Royal Tern and a number of Whimbrels to Quonnie. The find of the month goes to my friend Sue Palmer, who came for a chat and left with photo of a Jaeger (typically a pelagic bird only seen at sea). It turned out to be a Long-tailed Jaeger and the second one she saw from land within a few months.
Whimbrel
August was a fun month at Quonnie with an American Golden-Plover and a very friendly Buff-breasted Sandpiper who was the official beach greeter for almost a week. I loved that bird! We had another great sighting during an Ocean State Bird Club Quonnie Beach Sit – A group of 5 White Ibis spotted by Al Schneck. Misquamicut State Beach Parking Lot hosted a Hudsonian Godwit for about a week. Some Cliff Swallows were hanging out near TF Green Airport and a Yellow-bellied Flycatcher touched down for a few days at York Pond in Providence.
Buff-breasted Sandpiper
In September I was able to pick up a White-faced Ibis at Succotash Marsh, having missed one in the Quonset area in June when I was on vacation. Lucky to be on a boat with experienced pelagic birders who pointed out both a Pomarine Jaeger and a Parasitic Jaeger – life birds!
A Female King Eider gave me some “bins” time in Watch Hill in October, along with a Red-Headed Woodpecker at the Burlingame Picnic Area. While visiting a friend at Misquamicut Beach I was shocked with a single Sandhill Crane fly by. Two great vagrants visited too – a Black-throated Gray Warbler at Walker Farm in Barrington and a Tropical Kingbird at Albro Woods in Middletown. Credit to Louise Ruggeri for the ID!
Black-throated Gray Warbler
In November a Western Cattle-Egret showed up with some Cattle in my local Goose field and there was an irruption of Cave Swallows and I finally got my lifer Cave Swallow toward the end.
December was just incredible – usually I only two or three new year birds at the end of the year – this year I had SIX. It started with the MacGillivray’s Warbler up in Warwick – great find by Noah H and it stuck around for a few days. Local CBCs yielded a Long-billed Dowitcher, Painted Bunting and Eared Grebe. I was very lucky to see a Rough-legged Hawk in Newport while driving – but was able to pull off & get some photos.
Rough-legged Hawk
While looking for a Marsh Wren I had seen that morning when she discovered two Least Bitterns. I went back the next day and saw some Bitterns and assumed they were the Leasts (rookie mistake). They were American Bitterns – not so rare, but what are the odds there would be two of each species at the same time. Actually, there were three Least Bitterns.
Least Bittern
American Bittern
The biggest treasure in December flew in on a rainy afternoon and was discovered by birders (which comes out as murders in talk to text) from Maryland. For some reason I got the ebird Rare Bird Alert 10 minutes after the report was filed. I alerted Sue and headed over myself. It was Northern Lapwing – a bird primarily hangs out in Europe and some in Asia, but rarely in the US. A beautiful creature with a wispy crest and iridescent feather (that were hard to see through the gloom). I normally don’t care for the Circus that can surround such a rare bird, but this time I was just the “finders” and birders who were my friends – that made it a true pleasure. Everyone was respectful and in awe of the bird. It was lovely to share the beautiful bird with those folks – what a nice way to end the year.
Northern Lapwing
I leave for a cavalcade of travel the first two months of this year, so I will not be pursuing a “Big Year” in 2025. I do plan to spend lots of time in nature and with the birds, but rather than listing them, I will be enjoying them, watching them & making art with them.
Ok, I will still keep a list, but won’t actively list (yes, that is a verb). I’m looking forward to the change of pace. Stay tuned!
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