Heislerville WMA, May 26th

I made an afternoon run to Heislerville WMA in southern NJ to take photos of shorebirds. High tide was ~2pm so by the time I got down there it was 3 hours past high, with a few birds exiting the impoundment that had been drawn down for them. But many remained - mostly Semipalmated Sandpipers but also Dunlin, Semipalmated Plover, a few Short-billed Dowitchers. And a Curlew Sandpiper. As in 2007, a brightly-plumaged male Curlew Sandpiper was present on the north side of the impoundment, and not particularly shy either.

Despite being the Monday afternoon of Memorial Day, traffic was not too horrendous either.

Shorebird list:

Black-bellied Plover
Semipalmated Plover
Willet (East Point Road)
Ruddy Turnstone
Red Knot (East Point Road)
Sanderling (East Point Road)
Semipalmated Sandpiper
Dunlin
Curlew Sandpiper
Short-billed Dowitcher