‘They put on a great show’: shorebirds are back at Johnson’s Mills in healthy numbers
It’s that time of year again. Tens of thousands of semipalmated sandpipers and other shorebirds are gathering at the mudflats near Johnson’s Mills on Dorchester Cape, in a weeks-long feeding frenzy that will help them make their annual migration from breeding grounds in the Arctic all the way to South America. More than a quarter million shorebirds–about 30% of the world’s population–return to the Bay of Fundy’s tidal mudflats each year, according to the Nature Conservancy of Canada.
The Nature Conservancy’s observation deck and shorebird information centre at Johnson’s Mills is a popular spot to view the massive flocks of birds. CHMA stopped by on Monday to see and hear the goings on:
“I get down here several times per season,” said Sackville resident Paul Cant on Monday. “They put on a great show today, about 30,000 of them performing for us. It’s always spectacular to watch, and even to just see them on the beach walking around.”
Suzanne Smith from Campbellton was delighted with the display on Monday. “This is what I’ve been wanting to see for years,” said Smith. “They’re just amazing how they’re so close, and they they’re so camouflaged. And then when they all go up and just start swirling around, it’s just amazing.”
Zoe Estabrooks is manager of the interpretive centre at Johnson’s Mills, which is just off Route 935, about 10 minutes south of Dorchester.… Continue