On Saturday May 28th, Manitoba IBA led two shorebird walks at Oak Hammock Marsh. Starting at 8 am and then 10 am, we wandered the soaked marsh paths and while shorebirds were mostly small in numbers, we did have a few surprises from the day!

We met our first group just before 8am in the parking lot of the Harry J. Enns Interpretive Centre. Unfortunately, our coordinator Amanda, who would normally lead a walk such as this, was stuck at home recovering from Covid-19. However, we were lucky enough to have Bonnie Chartier with us! She is a experienced birder, IBA Steering Committe member, International Shorebird Survey volunteer and tour guide and was so was beyond perfect for the job. I (Ariel) was also there to assist. Before we set off, we spoke to Paula, Oak Hammock Marsh’s Resident Naturalist, who informed us of the high water levels, which was not surprising in the least.

Our first group included experienced birders and a young birder and her mom, their first birding outing! Our first stop was the Shorebird Scrape where we saw various duck species, including Northern Shoveler and Redheads, and were surrounded by swooping swallows. The majority were Tree Swallows but also spotted were Bank, Cliff, Barn and Northern Rough Winged Swallows. This is where we spotted two shorebird species, a Marbled Godwit and a Spotted Sandpiper. After monitoring that area for a while we set off towards Willow trail. Along the way we listened for sparrows and warblers. We were drawn by the calls of a few Sora, but never saw them. We only had a hour and a half for our walk so eventually we turned around and headed back. Just before the parking lot, a handful of the group noticed a number of birds flying in a “V” formation above, followed by many separate groups of the same bird. It was determined that they were Black-bellied Plover!

Our second group started out at 10 am and headed down Blackbird trail. By this time the wind had picked up significantly but we were still able to hear quite a bit of bird noise. Bonnie pointed out the call of a Least Bittern that was across the Marsh, and several Sora were also heard. A group of trees contained swallows, a Magnolia Warbler, a Wilson’s Warbler and a Common Yellowthroat, which was a first for me! We took our time on Blackbird trail and rounded out the walk by heading back on the boardwalk.

Overall, due to the water high water levels, few shorebirds were spotted but there was still plenty to be seen. A big thanks to everyone who came out and to Bonnie Chartier for leading the day! The full checklist of species for each walk can be found below:

Counts for 10:00 am walk:

Species	Count
Canada Goose	3
Blue-winged Teal	1
Northern Shoveler	1
Redhead	2
Lesser Scaup	2
Sora	4
American Coot	2
Black Tern	2
American White Pelican	1
Least Bittern	1
Great Blue Heron	3
Eastern Kingbird	1
Common Raven	1
Purple Martin	15
Tree Swallow	6
Bank Swallow	1
Barn Swallow	1
Marsh Wren	2
Clay-colored Sparrow	1
Song Sparrow	1
Swamp Sparrow	1
Yellow-headed Blackbird	2
Red-winged Blackbird	Present
Common Grackle	10
Common Yellowthroat	5
American Redstart	1
Magnolia Warbler	1
Yellow Warbler	3
Wilson’s Warbler	1

-Ariel Desrochers