Possible Red Phalaropes at Newnans Lake!

From: Rex Rowan <rexrowan@gmail.com>
To: Alachua County birding report

Caleb Gordon writes, “I saw two phalaropes from Windsor boat ramp this morning at around 9:30. They were way out, so 100% confident species ID is impossible, but I think they are more likely Red Phalaropes, based on being very pale overall, and having pale, apparently unpatterned backs. They were probably at least a mile out. If you stand at the water at the Windsor boat ramp and look across at Palm Point, these birds were at about 2:00 (clock face orientation), in other words, in the northern portion of the lake, and they were pretty much out on the middle of the lake. In a careful scope scan, they appear like mini Bonaparte’s Gulls, but really stood out as phalaropes with direct size comparison with actual Bonaparte’s on the water nearby. I had to zoom in on my scope to see the face pattern, and couldn’t really get much of a sense of the bill thickness at that distance. Good luck if anyone goes to look, and I’ll be curious to hear what others think re ID.”

There’s only one previous record of Red Phalarope in Alachua County: http://www.flickr.com/photos/30736692@N00/2787812673/in/photostream