FreeLists / bristol-birds / [Bristol-Birds] Scouting Clinch Mnt./Clinch River (East Tennessee)

["Wallace Coffey" <jwcoffey@xxxxxxxxxx>]

Greeneville's Don Miller is gathering records and understanding of a six-county 
Upper East Tennessee region which includes Hamblen and adjacent counties of 
Greene, Hawkins, Grainger, Jefferson and Cocke. This is a block of counties 
which, added to the five-county Northeast Tennessee group (Knight, 1994), makes 
up 11 contiguous counties of Upper East Tennessee.
With an ambitious agenda, I spent Sunday (6/5) on a nearly 200-mile habitat 
scouting trip along the western edge of the region and back through Hamblen and 
Greene to return home. 

A priority focus was the Clinch River watershed of Hawkins and Grainger 
counties which is to the west of Clinch Mountain. The Holston River is among 
the primary watersheds of the six-county area. The Clinch Mountain defines most 
of the western boundary but Hawkins and Grainger have extended areas over the 
mountain and down to the Clinch River to the northwest.

North of Church Hill, the route entered Stanley Valley, a wide expanse of easy 
rolling to flat prime grassland habitat. This area ranks with the best of 
grasslands in Upper East Tennessee. Two NORTHERN BOBWHITE were singing on Mount 
Zion Rd., a side road. Nice small stands of rushes leaves you to wonder if 
Virginia Rails nest here. Otherwise, the area supported an array of ridge and 
valley farmland species. A slow listing day could easily produce Dickcissel, 
Blue Grosbeak and Grasshopper Sparrow.   SAVANNAH SPARROW would not be 
surprising.  Big Creek, a lazy moving stream full of aquatic plants behind 
curious, abandoned, Shank's Mill on George Allen Rd. could host impressive 
species in several seasons. The entire Big Creek watershed, including its 
tributary of Stanley Creek, holds much promise. I left Stanley Valley through 
Shank's Gap and returned to US 11W near Surgoinsville.

The Clinch River watershed of Hawkins Co. was reached by traveling over Clinch 
Mountain on TN Rt. 66 out of Rogersville. It was followed up a another ridge to 
the Hancock Co. line. At the top of Clinch Mountain I blew my horn for RON and 
ROSE LAPP but their house is about 3 miles northeast. Why not be friendly 
anyhow :-) ? On the decent a PARAULA WARBLER was singing and several RED-EYED 
VIREOS.  Also heard a GREAT CRESTED FLYCATCHER. I was impressed at the 
extensive amounts of honeysuckle along the mountain road. 

In the Clinch River valley I headed southeast along Clinch Valley Rd. (DeLorme 
map calls it Mountain Rd. or East Lee Valley Rd., depending on where you are). 
Eventually I traveled down TN Rt. 131.

Much of the southeast route through Hawkins and Grainger was less expansive 
with more outcrops of limestone. It appeared more populated. Birding in most 
areas was among lots of apparently abandoned pastures in early successional 
stages. Wild rose, honeysuckle, locust and eastern red cedar were obvious. 
After a short stretch through Hancock Co., the road becomes Thorn Hill Rd. in 
Grainger Co. until it meets TN Rt. 131, which continued almost the length of 
Clinch Mountain through Grainger to the Union Co. line. At 1484 Thorn Hill Rd. 
a colony of 10-15 PURPLE MARTINS were at gourds and a nestbox. Heard one 
WHITE-EYED VIREO and several FIELD SPARROWS along this route. 

Near the railroad crossing of TN Rt. 131 just northeast of Highland Spring I 
took what was probably my last good route back over Clinch Mountains to U.S. 
11W. This was the Jopa Mountain Road. The low gap and nice hardwood area 
produced two SCARLET TANAGER, and a RED-BELLIED WOODPECKER feeding young in a 
nest cavity. Also an ACADIAN FLYCATCHER was calling. On the road to the top a 
BLACK-THROATED GREEN WARBLER was singing as well as a BLACK-AND-WHITE WARBLER. 
All of this habitat is intriguing and needs breeding season attention.

The routes which transverse Clinch Mountain should produce many more typical 
species. Much of this area seems like Chestnut-sided Warbler habitat but it is 
apparently does not occur along the Clinch in these counties. I did not hear a 
Black-throated Blue Warbler anywhere nor were there Darked-eyed Juncos. These 
are generally lower elevation mountain tops and gaps probably not exceeding 
2100 feet in most places -- to low for such species of higher-elevation 
influence.

I really need to get back into Stanley Valley and along the gaps and slopes of 
the Clinch to see what surprises might await any birder.

Along U.S. 11W at the bridge over a cove of Cherokee Lake near the intersection 
of Old 25E highway (Grainger Co.), 20 CLIFF SWALLOWS were perched on a utility 
wire at the bridge and flying beneath the bridge. The species may likely nest 
under most concrete bridge structures over Cherokee Lake

Stanley Valley in Hawkins Co.:

N. Bobwhite  2
Black Vulture 1
Turkey Vulture 3
Red-tailed Hawk 1
Killdeer 1
Rock Pigeon 1
Mourning Dove 32
Northern Flicker 2
Pileated Woodpecker 1
Eastern Phoebe 3
Eastern Kingbird 5
Blue Jay 2
American Crow 10
Tree Swallow 3
N. Rough-winged Swallow 5
Barn Swallow 37
House Wren 1
Carolin Wren 7
Eastern Bluebird 9
American Robin 14
Gray Catbird 1
Northern Mockingbird 17
Brown Thrasher 8
European Starling 52
Yellow Warbler 1
Common Yellowthroat 8
Eastern Towhee 2
Chipping Sparrow 9
Field Sparrow 6
Song Sparrow 4
Northern Cardinal 5
Red-winged Blackbird 66
Eastern Meadowlark 23
Common Grackle 23
Orchard Oriole 1
Baltimore Oriole 2
House Finch 7
American Goldfinch 4
House Sparrow 10

Let's go birding......

Wallace Coffey
Bristol, TN







     







 







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