September is hands down the best month of the year. The weather starts cooling down, the waves start to pump and the warblers are pouring all over the place. It's all kind of overwhelming to be honest.
I started my September this year looking on the beaches for Franklin's Gulls and other rarities.
The Laughing Gulls are all molting and changing into basic plumage and trying to trick me.
Caspian Terns are making their croaking calls up and down the beach.
Some of the Laughing Gulls are sporting hoods that are dead ringers for Franklin's.
This Laughing Gull must have touched down in some toxic sludge or maybe someone's spilled Slushee.
Red-Eyed Vireo - Meanwhile Burnt Mill Creek was starting to have some migrants coming through.
American Redstart doing its best Nashville impression.
Someone has to band this bird! Every year now for 3-4 years running we get a Traill's type Flycatcher at the little pond north of Chestnut St and I have my suspicion that its the same bird.
On the 4th I decided to swing by Greensboro on the way to the OBX for a pelagic. It was only several hours out of the way. =)
It took a while to find where the Baird's Sandpiper was hanging out and it was super far out on a sandbar. A couple guys let me use their scope to get great looks but my camera shots were horrid.
Least Sandpiper on left and Baird's on right.
I also stopped at Vandemark Sod Farms but came up short for an Upland SP. I was starting to get really worried because Uppies migrate early and its hard to get them into late Sept. So I decided to head to Manteo Airport....
Bingo! Upland Sandpiper - the Lochness Monster of the grasslands.
Not sure why they decided to skip ILM this year.
The 5th of Sept dawned with a beautiful sunrise off the back of the boat in Hatteras. I was promising to be a truly epic weather pelagic with light winds and sunny skies.
Once we got out the Gulf Stream we started to pick up oceanic terns with mostly Sooty Terns like this juvenile.
Great Shearwater
Cory's Type Shearwater
Bridled Terns can frequently be found on flotsam.
Black-capped Petrels are always welcome.
Great
Long-tailed Jaeger!
There were at least two at the same time.
Sooty Tern
Atlantic Spotted Dolphin! Fun fact, these dolphins don't get proper spots until 8-9 years of age. As juveniles they don't have any spots and then they gradually over time add spots so individuals can be aged based on the amount of spots. This one here looks older.
The one in the foreground is a young one with no spots.
Young ones love to play.
I continue my streak of no rarities on pelagics....
I may give it one more go before the end of the year.
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