Lehigh Valley bird sightings for June 16

Male in breeding plumage

This year is turning out to be a real treat for birders in the Lehigh Valley. During the winter, we were thrilled to the first appearance of Snowy Owls since 2002. Now we're getting a glimpse of Black-billed Plovers, a shorebird that was last seen locally in 2004.

Two Black-billed Plovers were seen on June 13 and June 14 on flooded fields along Green Pond Road in Bethlehem Township, Northampton County. The birds are changing to their breeding plumage, which is quite striking. The difference from winter plumage to summer is so great that it's hard to believe that you're looking at the same bird.

The Black-bellied Plover is a large plump-bodied shorebird. It is the largest plover in North America, about 10 to 13 inches tall. In the winter, both sexes look gray overall. But in summer the adult male develops striking black underparts, separated from the spangled gray upper parts by a broad white band. The female is similar, but the black underparts are sometimes mottled. In flight, the birds reveal a striking black "armpit" and white underwings. The beak is black. 

During the summer the birds breed in the Arctic highlands. The pair sighted this week in Green Pond may be a breeding pair far inland and far south from the usual location. During the winter the plovers spend their time along the coasts as far north as Massachusetts and British Columbia.

Non-breeding plumage; the sexes are similar in appearance

Black-bellied Plovers are mostly solitary outside the breeding season. They're wary creatures and quick to give alarm calls, serving as a sentinel for other shorebird species. When disturbed, the plovers often will fly over the water, circle and land again behind the intruder. The Black-bellied Plover is the only American plover that has a hind toe on its foot. However, it's so small that it is difficult to see in the field. The voice is a clear whistled pee-oo-ee.

Their breeding diet is primarily insects. In the winter, they favor small crabs, sandworms and bivalves such as clams and mussels.

The plovers scratch out a nest in the ground and line it with lichen, pebbles, twigs or leaves. The clutch may have as many as five eggs, usually brownish with distinct dark spots. The hatchlings are covered with down but they develop quickly. They are able to walk soon after hatching and feed themselves within one day.

If you plan to visit Green Pond Road to see the Black-bellied Plovers, be careful with traffic. There aren't many cars, but there are no their shoulders along the road. Use a small paved packing area just off the road near the pond. The field are around the bend in the road, according to the updated version of "Birds of the Lehigh Valley and Vicinity," the must-have guidebook for birders in the region.

Green Pond Road is an exceptional site for seeing all kinds of birds, from waterbirds to songbirds to raptors. Local birders have reported 162 different species at Green Pond, according to the Eastern PA Birdline, a sponsor of the Lehigh Valley Audubon Society.

By the way, the Snowy Owls have returned to their summer breeding grounds in the Arctic. For details on their wintertime appearance in the Lehigh Valley, visit our blog postings here, here, here and here.

Below are the rest of the Lehigh Valley bird sightings for the period ended June 16. The list was compiled by The Bird House through individual reports to the American Birding Association News website and local observances.

Bethlehem, Northampton County
Peregrine Falcon, 3 hatchlings at nest on June 11.

Bethlehem, Northampton County
(Center City)
House Finch, 8 on June 16.
Common Grackle, 5 on June 16 (including 3 adolescents).
Mourning Dove, 2 on June 16.
Northern Cardinal, 1 male on June 15.
House Sparrow, 4 on June 16.

Haafsville, Lehigh County
Great Blue Heron, 1 on June 13.