As I have mentioned before, bad weather often produces great birding. Unfortunately, the weather – as the remnants of Ernesto wandered through over the last two days – was not quite bad enough to produce much of a birding bonanza.

Yesterday, Jeannette and I spent the morning seawatching from Dyer Point in Cape Elizabeth. The easterly winds were not nearly as strong as predicted, and we saw relatively little. The high counts were of Double-crested Cormorants (78), Laughing Gulls (48), and Common Terns (46). While we did spot 17 Northern Gannets, and we were a little surprised by a decent late-summer total of 15 southbound Common Loons, we only tallied one other pelagic species. Luckily, it was one of my favorite birds, and it passed quite close by, providing a great view. This one subadult Parasitic Jaeger made the outing worthwhile, even if it was not the most productive morning.

Today, Ed, Ian, and I birded Scarborough. We began at the Wainright Farm Recreation Area, where grass-loving shorebirds sometimes land, especially after heavy rains that leave large puddles behind. This is a brutally under-birded location, and deserves more attention, especially during shorebird migration.

However, the storm that also disappointed with its weaker winds, also disappointed with its lower rainfall totals, leaving only a few small puddles behind. A couple of Least Sandpipers and 6 Killdeer were all that were to be found today, but the potential bird-of-the-morning remained unidentified – a large, dark accipiter made two very quick passes through the trees, only providing split-second glimpses of what was probably an immature Northern Goshawk.

Nest, we visited the Eastern Road Trail, where there were many, many fewer shorebirds – and waders – than expected. Did a bunch of birds get up and leave before the storm, or even immediately after early this morning? We had significantly lower counts of all the regular species, especially the usually abundant Semipalmated Sandpipers (only about 80 this morning). Two Merlins and a Northern Harrier were terrorizing the birds, keeping them on the move – has the recent raptor concentration here forced the birds to roost elsewhere (such as on Stratton Island)? Or, have they simply left already – it is early September after all. There were also very few Snowy Egrets, and only one flyover Glossy Ibis, lending credence to the theory that things have started to clear out. The long-staying Tricolored Heron has not left us yet though!

Ed and I then took a walk at Fuller Farm, where neither of had been for a while, to see if there were any landbirds in the woods. Fuller Farm is a large landtrust property off of Broadturn Road that includes some great fields, young brushy stands of trees, and some nice hemlock groves. We did chance upon one small group of migrants containing 4 Blackpoll Warblers, 2 Black-throated Green Warblers, 1 Red-eyed Vireo, and 1 Blue-Headed Vireo. However, we were most disheartened to see a large swath of devastation there, with what looks like a road being built through what was once some of the more productive second-growth. A large skidder and trailer were clearly taking out some large timber as well. I thought this was all protected land. Does anyone know what’s going on back here? I’d love to hear if anyone knows what’s up . . .