Another thing I don't see too often...

Living here on the mountain means I have a ringside seat to observe the goings on in the woods around me. As woodland habitats go, Roundtop is great. It is not, however, a place where I normally see many sandpipers.

Several places nearby are decent for shorebirds. The Susquehanna River serves as a major migration route. The nearby Pinchot Lake can also be decent for shorebirds. Roundtop Mtn. doesn’t fall into the decent range for shorebirds. Roundtop does have a few small ponds, though, and perhaps that and its proximity to decent shorebird paths combines to occasionally bring me a sandpiper to look at.

Today’s photo of a spotted sandpiper is one of the few I semi-regularly get to see here. The birds never stay long. This is just a pit stop for them. This bird has been here since at least Saturday and will likely disappear in another day or so. In the fall, I might get to see them again.

Spotted sandpipers are common and the kind most likely to be found around little ponds like those at Roundtop. Most self-respecting sandpipers wouldn’t deign to stop here, let alone dip their toes in the waters of ponds this small. Spotted sandpipers seem comfortable in small ponds or in the woods. I’ve seen them sitting on logs sticking up out of lakes. Other sandpipers probably think they’re odd.

Wet!

Last night I didn't sleep out on my deck. It wasn't the rain (see photo) that kept me inside, but the thunder and lightning with it.

I have camped outside in thunderstorms many times, and my feelings during those storms have ranged from being uncomfortable to downright terrified. Dog is also particularly afraid during thunder, and Baby Dog barks at it--not a particularly good combination for camping out. So, since I had a nice, cozy cabin to head into, I did.

The heavy rain and morning darkness now nearly forced me to resort to posting an archived photo. It's a heavy near-downpour that has brought aout 2" of much needed rain to the mountain. And it's still raining. Even with a rain jacket and rain hat, I got wet pretty quickly as I took the dogs for a shortened walk this morning.

As my outdoor activity and even the activity I could see in the outdoors was limited by the weather last night and tonight, I'll take this time to report on my latest bird sightings. This weekend I was sitting out on the front deck when a hummingbird paid a visit, plopping into a twig on the fig tree while I was sitting under. That's one of the few hummers I 've seen this season. We shared a few moments of togetherness, just 4-5 feet apart, before the hummer resumed its errands.

I can also report on two sandpipers I saw on the mountain. Anytime I see sandpipers on the mountain, it's a rarity. First and foremost is that mountains and sandpipers are not usually two words that are uttered in the same breath. Secondly, the snowmaking ponds that Roundtop has (and that occasionally attract sandpipers) are interconnected with pipes, and they are not usually allowed to get low enough for mud flats.

However, this weekend the new pond was down about a foot or so, creating some minor mudflats and the occasional puddle. That was enough to attract two tired sandpipers on their southbound journey. I had one stilt sandpiper and one solitary sandpiper. Neither is a new species for my ongoing Roundtop list, which is now at 132 species, but the solitary sandpiper was only my second sighting in 15 years and the stilt sandpiper my third.