 |
| Alpine Swift my bird of the quarter |
The third quarter was very dry. With the continued low
rainfall the island was experiencing it was no surprise that most of the wet
areas were now dry. This did not stop
the birds from coming however, and during this quarter we had some exciting
birds. With the invasion of our beaches
by the Sargassum seaweed, they are teeming with small crustacean, fish eggs and
small insects, it was a buffet for the shorebirds.
July
 |
| Roseate Terns |
In July I registered forty-seven species. With the southern migration just beginning I was
not expecting any surprises but a surprise was what I got. On the afternoon of July 13th I
recorded an Alpine Swift (Tachymarptis
melba). This was only the fourth
ever confirmed sighting with the first one being in 1955 (The Birds of
Barbados an annotated checklist pg167) and it was also my 120th
lifer. I registered two other year birds, Roseate Terns at Inch Marlow and
Whimbrels at Chancery Lane. At the end
of the month my checklist stood at seventy-seven species.
August
August was like “spinning a top in mud”. In that month I recorded over 50 on the month’s
checklists and only added one species to my year list. While I was not productive in the sense of
increasing my list I was able to see fifty seven species during that month. The
single new bird for August was the White-Rumped
Sandpiper which was seen at Inch Marlow, Christ Church.
September
 |
| Striated Heron |
September was the complete opposite of August. I registered thirty-seven species from just eight
checklists but added twelve new species for the year including one lifer. The month started off with a low key World
Shorebirds Day (see
here). By the first half of the
month I had already surpassed my highest September Count with seven year birds.
This included my 121st lifer
a Fork-tailed Flycatcher seen at Harrisons Point (see
here). The second half of the month
was just as exciting with five more new sightings including the 2nd
recorded Striated Heron for the
island. It was truly a month
of rarities.
 |
| Caribbean Martins |
It was a dry quarter but it added sixteen species, including
two lifers, to my year list. I missed
three birds in that quarter a Pearly-eyed
Thrasher, Purple-throated Carib and a Yellow-crowned Night
Heron. There were a number of species which were seen in
large numbers. Barn Swallows and
Caribbean Martins were seen all over the island. The last quarter of the year
promises more birds with Harrisons Point in October and the rarities of
November, if all goes to plan, I am hoping to go pass the 100 mark before the
middle of December. So here is to the last quarter.
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