There isn't much water in Salem Lake this summer. Dam construction makes the western half of the lake look like a bomb crater, and the eastern half is reduced to a gentle stream. Without any boating, fishing or pretty scenery, maybe you've looked elsewhere for summer exercise. Yet, what lacks beauty to us may be a bit of heaven for migrating shorebirds and wading birds.
Sandpipers, plovers, herons, egrets and ibis feed in shallow water or along adjacent mudflats. Great blue herons and green herons are consistent regulars at Salem Lake, but this spring the temporary flats also drew other shorebirds as they moved to their breeding grounds.
Sandpipers and their plover cousins don't stay up north long. By early August they are flying back toward Florida, the Caribbean or South America. Grass now covers much of the lakebed at Salem Lake's east end, but the area still may offer an attractive rest stop. Here are some birds to look for.
Spotted and solitary sandpipers are common visitors to our area. Spotted sandpipers occasionally breed here, but solitary sandpipers nest in the boreal forests of Canada. They are one of only two sandpiper species to nest in trees. By August, spotted sandpipers are losing their spots and look more like their solitary cousins, and they both have a teetering motion when they feed. However the spotted has a solid brown back, white-eye stripe and dark tail, while the solitary has a speckled back, prominent eye ring and barred tail markings.
The peep sandpipers are smaller than either the spotted or solitary and not much bigger than sparrows. The peeps like to feed on mudflats for small crustaceans, worms and insects. They all have brown backs and chest streaks, and now the shades vary from bird to bird as they molt to winter plumage. Even experienced birders have difficulty telling them apart.
Least sandpipers are the peeps you most likely will see. Look for a rusty brown back, distinct chest markings and yellow legs. Semipalmated sandpipers have dark legs, paler brown back and lighter chest markings. You will not notice the webbed feet that give them their name. Western sandpipers show up here occasionally. They have a longer, slightly drooping bill and fewer chest markings.
Pectoral sandpipers, lesser yellowlegs and greater yellowlegs are larger sandpipers. Pectorals share the flats with peeps, but they have longer necks and heavily streaked chests. Still larger are the lesser yellowlegs (10 inches tall) and greater yellowlegs (14 inches tall). It is easier to tell them apart when they are together. The larger bird has a longer, perhaps slightly upturned bill and gives three or four sharp notes. Yellowlegs are very active while foraging. Other sandpipers are possible but rarely seen here. These include the white-rumped sandpiper, Baird's sandpiper and dunlin.
Plovers have shorter bills than sandpipers. The killdeer is named for its two-note call and is recognized by its two black chest bands. It is here year round and frequents both fields and mudflats. The semipalmated plover is a migrant. It is much smaller and has only a single black band. While looking for these shorebirds, also keep an eye out for larger wading birds like the great egret and the immature white ibis. Hint: They are brown, not white.
A good field guide is a big help to sort out these water-loving birds, but there are also are resources online. I recommend www.allaboutbirds.org.
- Audubon holds its second Saturday birdwalk at Archie Elledge Water Treatment Plant on Aug. 13. Check in at the main entrance at 8 a.m. This is another location to view shorebirds. But it's only open on Saturdays, and you must arrive between 8 and 9 a.m. For inquiries, send an email to geneschepker@gmail.com.
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