The Fall-out in the Keys, Migration Day count here.

["William McDavit" <osprey1@mindspring.com>]

Dear C'Birders:

I wasn't going to mention seeing the wonderful fall-out on the Lower Keys,
but since Mr. Pardue sent the article about it, I gotta' tell you, Yes, I
was there.  And it was exactly as the article stated.  It was my first
really big fall-out - hoping for one at High Island a couple of years ago,
we had a few warblers like Kentuckys at our feet on the boardwalk, but my
experience last week was just amazing.  And I stayed at Big Pine Key.  I had
gotten an inkling a few keys up the road when I pulled over and noticed
there was a good little variety of migrants on the grass, parking lot,
trees;  but the best was yet to come.

Taking a walk thru a few residential streets immediately behind the Big Pine
Key Motel was remarkable.  A man came out of his home and said he had never
seen so many birds.  And then a few Antillean Nighthawks flew over.  Well, I
like to think they were - they're supposed to be there, but these didn't say
"Pitty, pit, pit" like the one I saw near the airport in Key West years ago,
but they just winked and said, "your call".

Anyway, the fall-out was principally Blackpolls, Redstarts, Black-throated
Blues, Cape Mays, and amazing to me Common Yellowthroats - why did I assume
they come earlier?

Then the next day on the beach at Ft. Zachary Scott, Taylor, whatever, the
exact same assortment.  It's awesome to look at that huge expanse of water
and see these little tiny birds landing on the rocks and making their way to
the beach, and furiously looking for food, oblivious of my presence -
hundreds of them!!!  They did NOT seem exhausted, just hungry, but I think
the wind from the East was keeping them grounded more or less.  Whether they
were going to continue either north or up the Keys, I don't know.

 So now I know what it's like to kick up warblers.  And Yes, they do get hit
after crossing the water.  In some areas there is just that little road,
then water on the other side.  The birds tend to fly low, low over the road,
so I guess they are tired.  I found if I kept it below 55 mph the birds made
it, but I did see a few hit by speeding vehicles, alas.

And why was I in Florida?  Chasing the Bahama Mockingbird, first in Dania
near Lauderdale and failing that, I  went on to Key West to look for the one
reported there.  OK it was only immature No.  Mockingbirds, with the streaks
in the wrong place for me.

But sure am glad I took the time to go there 'cause the fall-out  was some
kind of  fun.  After I got home going up mostly I-75, I learned the Southern
Florida  Atlantic coast had piles of inshore pelagic birds, once again
caused by the East wind moving the Gulf stream, hence the pelagic birds
towards land.   Florida birders were excited as I would have been had I
thought of this phenomenon taking place and gone home that way.

Worked Sunset Beach, Ocean Isle beach and the sewer ponds on Migration Count
day -  numbers down, but boy those red Red Knots are a Knockout now.

Good birding
Mary McDavit, Sunset Beach.