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Brown Boobies!



We returned from a 3 day trip to the NC outer banks yesterday.
On Thursday, 15 May, at ca 1000 hr, we were standing on the porch of the Pea
Island visitor center scoping the pond for shore birds. While Nancy was
scoping, I looked off to the SE & saw 4 birds which appeared different. I
watched them for a second or two & then told Nancy to look at them also. The
birds continued N, just over the top of the dunes and passed us at a
distance of about 100 yds, flapping & sailing. They were Brown Boobies!..at
least one was an adult & at least one was an immature. They were noticeably
smaller than Gannets & the adult that we saw underside of showed a clear
demarcation between the dark neck & white breast & belly. They were more
slender & had more slender, pointy wings that Gannets. I had, frankly
considerable problems in believing my eyes & I am glad that Nancy also saw
them..I did not tell her what they were & asked her to find them in Sibley.
She concurred on the ID. The birds were only in view for ca 4-5 sec &
disappeared from view behind the visitor center. We watched through Steiner
8x40 & Leitz 10x40 bins.
We have seen Brown Boobies before in Costa Rica & on Midway Is.
We were at the coast to observe shorebirds & our list follows: Most were
seen on Pea Is.
Black-bellied Plover
Semipalmated Plover
Killdeer
Oystercatcher 
Avocet
Black-necked Stilt
Greater & Lesser Yellowlegs
Willet
Spotted Sandpiper
Whimbrel
Hudsonian Godwit
Ruddy Turnstone
Red Knot (2)
Sanderling
Dunlin
Western Sandpiper (1)
Semipalmated Sandpiper (abundant)
Least Sandpiper (only about 4 or 5)
Short-billed (abundant) & Long-billed (3) Dowitcher
Red-necked Phalarope (1)
Also seen Red-breasted Merganser (1) & Tundra Swan (1)
& all of the usual suspects


--Helmut & Nancy Mueller
409 Moonridge Road
Chapel Hill, NC 27516
919-942-4937
Permanent email address: hmueller@email.unc.edu