Yesterday, 16 of us crazy birders got together for the 3rd Annual Southcoastal Maine Rarity Roundup. I’ve organized this event, after stealing the idea from those in the Mid-Atlantic, as an excuse for a bunch of us to gather up, go birding, look for rarities, and then drink some beer.

We split up into teams, and each covered an assigned area between Kittery and Portland. The goal was to go over the coast with a fine-toothed comb in search of vagrants. But, we also tallied other species of note, such as lingering birds and “somewhat-rarities.” In all, we tallied 117 species, including a number of first “Rarity Roundup Records.” Although we did not have any “Mega” Rarities, we had some very good birds throughout the day. Plus, the weather was beautiful. The forecast was for clouds and temperatures in the low 40’s, but by mid-morning the clouds were gone and temperature rose to around 50.

A complete summary of the highlights of the day is available in the Special Edition of the Southcoastal Maine Rare Bird Alert, but some of the best birds included a Grasshopper Sparrow (found by a visiting Vermont birding group but luckily twitched by our Cape Elizabeth team – just to make it official!), 1 Long-billed Dowitcher, and 7 species of warblers including 3 Yellow-breasted Chats, a Nashville Warbler, and what MAY have been a Northern Parula

Dan and I began at dawn on the Eastern Promenade. After enjoying the duckage for a while, we headed onto the hillside where I promptly scored a “Patch Bird,” when we flushed an American Woodcock. This was my 154th Eastern Promenade bird, and quite a surprise. Another surprise was a little while later when Dan yells, “I’ve got another Patch Bird for you!” He had just discovered a Yellow-breasted Chat (not only was this a great Patch Bird for me, but it was a great LIFE bird for Dan!). And as if three Patch Birds wasn’t enough, we stumbled upon a pair of Carolina Wrens (an overdue addition to my list here), Eastern Promenade #156! (And counting!).

Our good luck continued as I find us a second Chat in a little lot in Portland’s East End that also contained a “feral” apple tree that produced one of the best apples that I have ever tasted! A quick check of the few gulls at the Portland Fish Exchange produced little, but as we pulled out, Dan tells me to turn around – he had just seen a group of birds in a weedy margin. We were looking for a Dickcissel among the multitudes of House Sparrows around Old Port, but instead we find a very late Nashville Warbler.

What a great first few hours of the day! Since other teams were out and about all the way down to Kittery, we were anxious to find out what others were finding. However, the phone was not ringing. Dan and I birded the woods of the west end of Commercial Street, the new Commercial Street Extension, the Western Promenade, and Western Cemetery, with very little to show for it – save for two more Carolina Wrens, and a Fox Sparrow. We were most definitely NOT complaining though, but admittedly, after the strong start we did have slightly higher aspirations for this end of town.

By now, I had checked in with all of the other teams. Some decent birds were found, but nothing I felt the urge to chase. Dan headed home, and I headed to O’Naturals for Butternut Squash Apple soup. Refueled, I wandered around downtown a bit, checking gardens and pockets of vegetation. Every now and then I find a migrant or two in these places (like the row of bushes in front of the Nickelodean Cinemas for example), but I was shocked by the amount of birds I found today. I had a total of 13 Hermit Thrushes, with one or two in almost every cluster of fruiting trees in the few square blocks that I explored. The small garden of the First Parish Church on Congress Street alone held 7 thrushes! And, many clusters of vegetation also held some White-throated Sparrows.

Dan and I were sure that as soon as he left, I would find something spectacular (the sacrificial birder theory). And, the amount of migrants around the cement jungle of downtown certainly led credence to the hypothesis!

Normally, I HATE hearing my cell phone ring - especially when birding - but today, during the Rarity Roundup, it is much different. Every time the phone rang, I would grab it in anticipation. Seeing who was calling, visions of rarities would float through my mind. However, today the calls were all reports of "decent" birds or requests for information.

I thought about staying in the area, but with so much more ground to cover, I headed out. Deering Oaks Park was slow, Capisic Pond Park added yet another Carolina Wren to the day’s total (by far the most I have ever seen in Maine in one day), and then I headed to Evergreen Cemetery in fading light. Luke joined me there, and we proceeded to photograph a very cooperative American Wigeon and a Great Blue Heron in the ponds there. One final quick stop as the sun went down at Back Cove did produce my only shorebird of the day – a Greater Yellowlegs, but not a migrant Nelson’s Sharp-tailed Sparrow as we had hoped.

So then, it was time for the real purpose of our outing today – the Great Lost Bear for brews, grub, and socializing. The list was tallied, highlights were shared, and beer was consumed. A great finish to another successful Rarity Roundup (now, we just need the rarities!).