White-winged Scoters
Purple Martins (click to see the larger version)
Migrant Purple Martins once gathered by the thousands in late summer and early fall at Montrose. It was quite a spectacle, reminiscent of a scene from Hitchcock’s “The Birds”. For unknown reasons the large numbers stopped using Montrose and the spectacle is a thing of the past. The Purple Martins we see anymore are mostly the local breeders. I photographed these birds at Montrose Harbor on August 1, 2016.
Barn, Tree, and Northern Rough-winged Swallows (click to see the larger version)
Large numbers of swallows of several species are using Montrose Dunes for feeding and resting. This happens every year in mid summer and lasts only a few weeks. The swallows like to perch on the rope that cordons off the protected areas of the Dunes. The majority are Barn, Tree, and Northern Rough-winged, but a few Bank and Cliff Swallows are also seen. Most are probably local nesting birds and include many fresh juveniles. For some reason Purple Martins don’t perch on the rope but they do use the Dunes for feeding.
Northern Rough-winged Swallows (click to see the larger version)
Juvenile birds are everywhere at Montrose, begging for food, following their parents, etc. The young of Tree, Barn, and Northern Rough-winged Swallows, Red-winged Blackbirds, Common Grackles, and European Starlings are especially obvious. The swallows like to perch on the rope that marks off the protected areas in the Dunes. These 2 juvenile Northern Rough-winged Swallows were taking a break from the hard work of being kids.
Red-breasted Merganser (click to see the larger version)
A female Red-breasted Merganser appears to be over summering at Montrose. She’s been seen near the fishhook pier and inside the boat harbor, where I saw and photographed her today.
I also saw my first juvenile Northern Rough-winged Swallows of the season today. Northern Rough-winged Swallows nest on the fishhook pier and can often be seen hawking insects over the dunes. They, along with other swallows, like to perch on the yellow rope that cordons off the protected areas of the dunes.
Cliff Swallow (click to see the larger version).
Several Cliff Swallows have been hanging around the dunes at Montrose with the scads of other swallows. I photographed this juvenile on July 16. Young Cliff Swallows are highly variable in terms of head pattern, much more so than our other regularly occurring swallows. Some can be dark headed like this individual while others can have white spotting on the forehead and throat. The dark head and dark centers to the undertail coverts identify this Cliff Swallow, vis a vis Northern Rough-winged and Barn Swallows.
Bank and Northern Rough-winged Swallows (click to see the larger version).
Montrose Dunes has been excellent for swallows lately. On July 15 I photographed a juvenile Northern Rough-winged Swallow next to a juvenile Bank Swallow on the yellow rope that cordons off part of the south end of the Dunes. These 2 “brown” swallows can look alike from behind.
In the photo to the right, note the narrow whitish edges to the tertials and primaries and the lack of rufous in the wing coverts of the Bank Swallow (left bird). The juvenile Rough-winged has duller edges to the tertials, and rufous edges to the primaries and wing coverts. The Bank Swallow also has a paler rump than the Roughie and pale edges to the tail feathers. I wasn’t aware of this later feature until I noticed it yesterday, and I’m not sure it’s a completely solid field mark but I didn’t notice it on any of the Rough-winged Swallows I looked at.