Hummingbirds are migrating big-time in August and into Sept. This Ruby-throated Hummingbird is visiting our Lady-in-Red Salvia. Both adult hummers and young ones are beginning to move and their populations are at peak. Keep your hummingbird feeders clean (clean every 2-3 days in hot weather so no black mold grows in feeders) and filled with fresh nectar and enjoy the hummingbird parade.
Shorebirds are migrating now, having completed their breeding in Arctic areas where most nest. Here are resting Sanderlings.
We birded the NH coast yesterday, braving the crowds of beach-goers. Found several hundred resting shorebirds, mainly Semi-palmated Sandpipers, Semi-palmated Plovers and a few White-rumped Sandpipers, in a parking lot, trying to get much needed rest. These little birds must travel very far to their wintering grounds south of the U.S. They need to stock up on food to fuel them, and get some rest also. There are so little places left for them, this parking lot by a fishing coop must do today. To learn to ID shorebirds, do it by shape and size. If you are a beginner or intermediate get our Stokes Beginner's Guide to Shorebirds, sooo easy. For the full nine yards and THE most complete reference, get our best-selling The Stokes Field Guide to the Birds of North America.
The last week in August is peak Common Nighthawk migration. Look up into the skies at the end of the day, 5-8 pm when they move. They are awesome birds!
Get out, go birding!!
3 comments:
Ha! The timing is right. We just saw our very first night hawk last weekend!
Great post and photos! We have many juvenile Hummingbirds and adults around our nectar feeders and it's a chore to keep all ten feeders filled.
Thanks to your blog I have been watching the skies as well as down in my yard. Last night at 5:45 we saw about 50 Night Hawks flying over! Needless to say supper got cold while we stood outside watching them circle around. It was awesome!!!! Wow! Barb Eaton Allenstown NH
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