Once again, the big Jaegerfest weekend on Wisconsin Point has come and gone—with this being our 27th year. The term “Jaegerfest” started out as a tongue-in-cheek, joking reference to the frequency of jaeger experiences at this event. Prior to this field trip (which started in 1999), jaegers were thought of as being fairly rare in Wisconsin, but we were finding that we were seeing them commonly here at the western end of Lake Superior in September—so early on we started referring to this field trip as Jaegerfest!
As has often happened, quite a few eager birders arrived on Thursday of Jaegerfest weekend (and some even on Wednesday), and they weren’t disappointed. That day the winds were strong and out of the northeast, which we often hope for, and there turned out to be very nice activity on Wisconsin Point. At least three different PARASITIC JAEGERS were spotted, an adult and two juveniles (which at times were flying together). In addition, the group observed adult FRANKLIN’S and LESSER BLACK-BACKED GULLS, several groups of COMMON TERNS, and at one point a lone BLACK TERN, which was relentlessly chased and harassed by the gulls.
Some of the other birds observed were NORTHERN SHOVELER, AMERICAN WIGEON, NORTHERN PINTAIL, HOODED MERGANSER, BONAPARTE’S GULL, COMMON LOON, MERLIN, and a lone RUSTY BLACKBIRD.
Friday, Sept. 19 – Dawn arrived with the skies remaining very cloudy, with periodic rain showers and a temperature of 56 degrees (and the high only reached 58). The winds continued to be blowing quite strong from the northeast— about 20-30 mph—so large waves were rolling in and crashing on the shore. The mist and rain certainly limited our birding, but there seemed to be much less bird activity than we’d seen yesterday.
Not long after we arrived on the beach (about 6:30 AM) we began to seen RING-BILLED and HERRING GULLS in the dim morning light, and the occasional BALD EAGLE passed overhead. Around 7:15 a COMMON LOON was seen, and a little later, a COMMON TERN.
Around 7:30 we had our first PARASITIC JAEGER sighting of the day, a moderately dark adult (or probably sub-adult), which certainly got everyone excited. It provided decent looks for the group, at a moderate distance, as it cruised just above the rolling waves and harassed a few gulls.
A few WATERFOWL were present from time to time, including CANADA GEESE and GREEN-WINGED TEAL, but there was a lot less movement than there had been on Thursday. On Allouez Bay, a small group of LESSER SCAUP swam about and dove, and a family group of TRUMPETER SWANS was present. At one point an AMERICAN GOLDEN-PLOVER passed overhead, calling.
Periodically, birders would work their way further down the Point, looking for passerines. A few WARBLERS were spotted, including YELLOW-RUMPED, PALM, NASHVILLE and MAGNOLIA, but they were only present in small numbers. SPARROWS included WHITE-THROATED, WHITE-CROWNED, CHIPPING and DARK-EYED JUNCO. Other birds included NORTHERN FLICKER, SWAINSON’S and HERMIT THRUSHES, WHITE-BREASTED and RED-BREASTED NUTHATCHES, and BLACK-CAPPED CHICKADEES, and along the way at least one MERLIN was spotted.
Saturday, Sept. 20 – Once again, the weather was cloudy, with continuing strong NE winds (although slightly less than yesterday’s), and the temperature range for the day was 57-60 degrees. Once again, we had some light rain at times.
RING-BILLED and HERRING GULLS were the earliest arrivals on the beach, but they were joined by a subadult LESSER BLACK-BACKED GULL about 7:30. At 7:45 a PEREGRINE FALCON came flying in from across the lake, and there were a couple of other sightings a little later.
As usual, we experienced our peak weekend attendance on Saturday morning, with approximately 80-90 birders present, including a field trip group that came over from Duluth’s Hawk Ridge festival.
At 9:00 AM the group gathered together for a solemn but joyful Celebration of Life Ceremony to honor Daryl Tessen, who was the person who had first encouraged us to start this annual field trip back in 1999. As the focal point, we set up Daryl’s green Gander Mtn. chair (which he used every year at Jaegerfest), and it was decorated with his famous red-and-black plaid jacket, a black stocking cap, his pale-blue bucket cap, and a decorative box that contained a portion of his ashes. As a part of the ceremony, Scott Baughman read his poem titled TESSEN, which he had written for this occasion, and we also spread some of Daryl’s ashes on the beach, giving him a most memorable send off.
About 9:53 an adult PARASITIC JAEGER flew past, providing some nice looks, and a juvenile PARASITIC made an appearance at 10:34. Both were observed chasing gulls.
WATERFOWL spotted off the beach were CANADA GOOSE, MALLARD, GREEN-WINGED TEAL, and COMMON MERGANSER, and 7 TRUMPETER SWANS were observed on the adjacent Allouez Bay. A few SANDERLINGS, AMERICAN WHITE PELICANS and DOUBLE-CRESTED CORMORANTS flew past us, and we also spotted a COMMON TERN.
Further down the Point, a few WARBLERS were observed, including PALM, YELLOW-RUMPED and AMERICAN REDSTART, but the numbers were still very low. A MERLIN was once again spotted, but the highlight raptor was an AMERICAN GOSHAWK that was initially perched, but then took off.
Addition birds found in the afternoon were NORTHERN PINTAIL, GREEN-WINGED TEAL, NORTHERN HARRIER and LAPLAND LONGSPUR. Most birders had left the beach by around 4:00 PM.
Sunday, Sept. 21 – As on the previous days, birders began arriving about 6:30 AM, and once again the sky was cloudy, with the temperature at 58 degrees. We were pleased to find that the winds had dropped considerably from the last few days, and were from the east at just 5-10 mph. As a result, the waters of Lake Superior were much calmer, although there were still a few rollers coming in to the beach.
At 7:10, a BONAPARTE’S GULL was noticed, swimming not far offshore. A little later more were observed, flying in small groups. One individual provided great looks as it perched between several RING-BILLED GULLS, right along the shoreline rather near us.
A LESSER BLACK-BACKED GULL arrived on the beach about 7:15 AM, providing good looks as it perched and preened, and then a little while later a juvenile was also spotted. There was another period of excitement when a SURF SCOTER was found around 8:35, swimming by itself quite a distance offshore. Another was spotted (or perhaps it was the same bird?) at 9:02, flying past us and heading eastward. By around 10:00 AM, many birders had departed for home, with just a few birders remaining on the beach – still hoping to spot Sabine’s Gulls, which unfortunately were not seen this year.
Worthy of special note at this year’s Jaegerfest was the continuing presence of a rare BLACK-BILLED MAGPIE at the nearby Superior landfill, which had been found just a week or so earlier. Many birders who came this year’s event took time on the various days to look for this elusive individual, and many were successful.
As best I could determine, the Jaegerfest bird total was 92 species, which wasn’t bad, considering the very slow warbler movement we’d experienced. We also missed finding a Harris’s Sparrow, which we often have had at this event—although I don’t think ANY had yet been reported yet this fall in WI or MN. Thanks to everyone who participated, and to Jeff Baughman and Wendy Schultz for co-leading this event.
Tom Schultz, WSO Field Trips
