Date: 5/30/25 6:17 pm From: Andrew Ednie <000006be14ba5998-dmarc-request...> Subject: [de-birds] RBA: Birdline Delaware, May 30th, 2025
Delaware * Statewide * May 30, 2025 * DEST 2025.05.30
*Birds mentioned Brant Mute Swan Black Swan Lesser Scaup Black Scoter Common Merganser Hooded Merganser Red-breasted Merganser Ruddy Duck Northern Bobwhite Common Nighthawk Chuck-will’s-widow Eastern Whippoorwill Virginia Rail Common Gallinule Sandhill Crane American Oystercatcher Black-necked Stilt American Avocet Black-bellied Plover American Golden Plover Semipalmated Plover Piping Plover Whimbrel HUDSONIAN GODWIT Ruddy Turnstone Willet Spotted Sandpiper Solitary Sandpiper Red Knot White-rumped Sandpiper Lesser Black-backed Gull KELP GULL Black Skimmer Least Tern Caspian Tern Common Tern Royal Tern Common Loon SOOTY SHEARWATER MANX SHEARWATER Brown Pelican Northern Gannet Least Bittern Little Blue Heron Tricolored Heron Western Cattle Egret Yellow-crowned Night Heron Sharp-shinned Hawk Broad-winged Hawk Barred Owl Red-headed Woodpecker OLIVE-SIDED FLYCATCHER Least Flycatcher Willow Flycatcher ALDER FLYCATCHER Common Raven Bank Swallow Cliff Swallow Brown-headed Nuthatch Ruby-crowned Kinglet Golden-crowned Kinglet Brown Creeper Gray-cheeked Thrush Swainson’s Thrush Hermit Thrush Savannah Sparrow LARK SPARROW Vesper Sparrow Saltmarsh Sparrow White-throated Sparrow Bobolink Northern Waterthrush Black and White Warbler Prothonotary Warbler Hooded Warbler Kentucky Warbler MOURNING WARBLER Magnolia Warbler Bay-breasted Warbler Blackburnian Warbler Blackpoll Warbler Chestnut-sided Warbler Yellow-throated Warbler Black-throated Blue Warbler Black-throated Green Warbler Canada Warbler Wilson’s Warbler Summer Tanager Blue Grosbeak
Hotline: Birdline Delaware Date: May 30, 2025 To Report: Andy Ednie 302-792-9591 (VOICE) Compiler: Andy Ednie (<ednieap...>) Coverage: Delaware, Delmarva Peninsula, nearby Delaware Valley, Southern New Jersey, Maryland
For Friday, May 30th, this is Birdline Delaware from the Delaware Museum of Nature and Science in Greenville. The Birdline is the rare bird alert (RBA) for The First State sponsored by the Delaware Ornithological Society. Opinions expressed do not necessarily reflect the views of our sponsors. The unofficial Delaware State Year List increased to 312 species mark with 2 new additions.
New this week was a KELP GULL seen on the ocean beach off the point in Cape Henlopen State Park. This bird was seen at high tide past the rope barrier north of the beach access path. Look for the yellow legs and black back of the KELP GULL, normally a bird of the southern hemisphere but with increasing sightings in North America. The bird was seen with LESSER BLACK-BACKED GULLS for comparison. If accepted, this will be Delaware 2nd record and the first in 30 years. Also seen on the beach has been a ROSEATE TERN with LEAST and COMMON TERNS plus PIPING PLOVER and AMERICAN OYSTERCATCHER. Not to be outdone, the sea watch at Cape Henlopen produced both MANX and SOOTY SHEARWATER, BLACK, ROYAL and CASPIAN TERN, BLACK SKIMMER, BLACK SCOTER, TRICOLORED HERON, NORTHERN GANNET, and BROWN PELICAN. Some late migrants at the Cape this week included a flyby SHARP-SHINNED HAWK, WHITE-THROATED SPARROW, plus RUBY-CROWNED, and GOLDEN-CROWNED KINGLETS. WHIMBREL was reported from Gordon’s Pon! d.
A pair of MOURNING WARBLERS were found at Joy Run on Sunday off Lorewood Road, near the town of Summit, along with a late WHITE-THROATED SPARROW. An ALDER FLYCATCHER was also found near the Joy Run gate, that make 5 species of Empidonax flycatcher found there this spring! ALDER FLYCATCHER was also found at Bombay Hook. OLIVE-SIDED and WILLOW FLYCATCHER were reported at Stave’s Landing Road. LEAST and WILLOW FLYCATCHER were reported at Ashland Nature Center.
The last gasp of late spring migrants pushed through this week. HOODED WARBLERS was found in Arden Woods and at Parson’s Point Trail in Bombay Hook. A KENTUCKY WARBLER continues to be seen at the Tybout’s Tract in Blackbird State Forest. Other species seen included: NORTHERN WATERTHRUSH, BLACK AND WHITE, PROTHONOTARY, WILSON’S, BLACKBURNIAN, BAY-BREASTED, CANADA, CHESTNUT-SIDED, MAGNOLIA, BLACKPOLL, plus BLACK-THROATED BLUE and GREEN. SWAINSON’S THRUSH arrived in force plus GRAY-CHEEKED THRUSH were found at Bombay Hook and Millsboro. There was a late HERMIT THRUSH reported in Milford.
COMMON RAVEN continues to be seen south of Newark. YELLOW-THROATED WARBLER and BLUE GROSBEAK were seen at White Clay Creek State Park. A BARRED OWL was reported from Christiana Manor west of Newark. COMMON MERGANSER and BROAD-WINGED HAWK were seen along the Brandywine Creek at First State National Historical Park. A late BROWN CREEPER was found at Winterthur Museum and Gardens.
WESTERN CATTLE EGRET and SANDHILL CRANE were seen at Greer’s Pond off Dutch Neck Road near Port Penn. A LEAST BITTERN was calling at the Fire Truck Pond in Port Pen, plus LITTLE BLUE HERON and CASPIAN TERN seen. CLIFF SWALLOWS were seen at the Appoquinmink Bridge along Route 9. A GRASSHOPPER SPARROW was seen carrying food at the Green Giant Road waterworks in Middletown. NORTHERN BOBWHITES were found at Cedar Swamp Wildlife Area.
An adult LARK SPARROW was seen briefly in the field next to the visitor center in Bombay Hook National Wildlife Refuge on Saturday. A breeding plumaged HUDSONIAN GODWIT was seen Sunday at low tide on Leatherbury Flats. Other shorebirds found included BLACK-NECKED STILT, AMERICAN AVOCET, BLACK-BELLIED, SEMIPALMATED and AMERICAN GOLDED PLOVER, WILLET, LESSER and GREATER YELLOWLEGS, SHORT-BILLED DOWITCHER, plus several WHITE-RUMPED SANDPIPERS. BLACK SKIMMERS and CASPIAN TERNS were seen at Bear Swamp. Waders seen were SANDHILL CRANES, LEAST BITTERN, TRICOLORED HERON, COMMON GALLINULE, and VIRGINIA RAIL at Shearness Pool. Waterfowl included BLACK and MUTE SWAN, and RUDDY DUCK. BOBOLINK and BANK SWALLOW were also seen.
A female RED-BREASTED MERGANSER, SPOTTED SANDPIPER and RUDDY TURNSTONE were seen at Port Mahon. BLACK SCOTER and BLACK SKIMMER were found at Bennett’s Pier. BROWN-HEADED NUTHATCH continues to be seen along the Big Stone Beach Road. COMMON NIGHTHAWK, EASTERN WHIPPOORWILL, and CHUCK-WILL’S-WIDOW were all found at Milford Neck Wildlife Area. COMMON NIGHTHAWK was also seen at Cape Henlopen and upstate in First State National Historical Park.
Delaware bay shorebirds are starting the migration to the arctic, a flight of 300 RED KNOTS were seen flying over Brandywine Hundred near Wilmington on Tuesday evening. Shorebirds seen at Mispillion Inlet from the Dupont Nature Center included RED KNOT, AMERICAN OYSTERCATCHER, BLACK-BELIED PLOVER, RUDDY TURNSTONE, SANDERLING, WHITE-RUMPED SANDPIPER, and WILLET. This is just in time for the Mispillion Shorebird Festival this weekend. Waterfowl seen included COMMON LOON and RED-BREASTED MERGANSER. CASPIAN, ROYAL, and LEAST TERNS were seen on the Back Beach at Mispillion. Two YELLOW-CROWNED NIGHT HERONS were seen at the Beach Plum Drive Pond in Slaughters Beach. SALTMARSH SPARROW was seen from the observation platform at the Marvel Salt Marsh Preserve
In Prime Hook National Wildlife Refuge, a pair of SANDHILL CRANES were seen along Prime Hook Beach Road. VIRGINIA RAIL, BLACK SKIMMER and ROYAL TERN were seen along the Dike Trail. HOODED MERGANSER and PROTHONOTARY WARBLER were found at Turkle’s Pond. BLACK-NECKED STILT, SAVANNAH and GRASSHOPPER SPARROW were seen along Oyster Rocks Road.
BRANT was seen across from the North Marina office at Indian River Inlet. A LESSER SCAUP was reported at Assawoman Wildlife Area. RED-HEADED WOODPECKER was found at Woodland ferry near Seaford and at Angola Neck near Rehoboth Beach. VESPER SPARROW was found along Remeter-Rum Bridge Road near Georgetown.
Thanks to the many people that make the Birdline possible Sean Fahey, Barbara Conway, Andrew Albright, Gina Sheridan, Holly West, Jeff Shanot, Martha Eisenhour, Jason Horn, Andy Markel, Kevin Bronson, Jessican Shahan, Aaron Coolman, Chris Machulski, Chris DiSanto, Kim Steininger, Frank Lenik, Sean O’Connor, Karen Hockgraf, Ian Stewart, Jeff Climie, Chris and Karen Bennett, Greg Gough, Sue Gruver, Tom Stock, Richard Jullian, David Fees, Rob and Carol Blye, Phil Misseldine, Debbie Blair, Randy Fisher, Walt Blackwell, Carolyn Holland, Mary Braun, Sam VanHorne, Jim and Amy White, Wendy Cesario, Rod Murray, Scott Northey, Melissa Lafferty, John and Andy Dunn, Will Krohn, Declan and Amy O’Neil, Joe Francis, Mike Moore, Bruce Peterjohn, Carol Ralph, and Joe Swertinski. The Birdline needs your help. Please call your sightings into 302-792-9591 or email <ednieap...> Until next week, this is Andy Ednie wishing you good birding.
