Two rare birds for the island, American Flamingo and a shorebird called a Ruff, that were first observed in the Fall, hung around all winter to the delight of many birders on and off the island.
Several rare migrant warblers, Magnolia and Prothonotary Warblers, and uncommon migrant warblers, Cape May and Yellow-rumped Warblers visited the island.
Worthy of note is the high count of Wilson’s Plovers by Erick Bermúdez, who counted 78 plovers at Punta Galinde, which represents 2% of this Caribbean subspecies entire population. Erick also reported that the Brown Pelican colony at Cayo Conejo had 8 chicks, 23 juveniles, and 7 adult birds.
The fresh water pond at 4.7 km on Rt. 997 continues to be home to several Least Grebe families. On 27 Feb 23, Daphne Gemmill and Cesar Montero observed 2 adult Least Grebes with 3 chicks, 2 juveniles, and 2 more adults for a total of 9 Least Grebes, a record high count for this fresh water waterbird on the island.