FreeLists / bristol-birds / [Bristol-Birds] Drawdown near optimal at Musick's Campgrojnd (good birding)

["Wallace Coffey" <jwcoffey@xxxxxxxxxx>]

Area Birders:
South Holston Lake, east of Bristol,  has been in a steady drawdown for the 
past week.   At 5 p.m. today (8/30) the elevation has dropped to 1724.01 and 
has been falling throughout the day.  Conditions for birding are near excellent.

Shorebird and exposed mudflat shoreline habitat at Musick's Campground and in 
the Spring Creek Embayment and the mouth of Spring Creek channel along Va. Rt. 
75 is very good and quickly approach the peak for stopping and holding 
shorebirds, terns, herons, egrets, eagles, ospreys, grebes and a variety of 
waterfowl.

We have now reach the drawdown point at which daily coverage by birders is 
highly recommended.  The best time is early morning after heavy overnight 
rainfalls and almost any day during the last hour before dark.  The road to the 
outer viewing area is nearly out of the water.  Islands have surfaced.  
Mudflats and roosting area are available. 

Under the new reservoir management plan, TVA has held the waterlevel at a more 
full level and the drawdown this year has been three weeks later than normal.  

During recent years years the TVA summer pool drawdown has reached an optimal 
peak of 1721 to 1722 feet on or about August 10.  This is well timed for 
shorebird migration here at the foot of Holston Mountain, the western most 
mountain in the Unaka chain of the Blue Ridge.  It would appear that we have an
approximate 30 to 45-day window that best benefits shorebird and wading bird
mirgration. This now appears to be the last week of August and September to 
mid-October if not longer.  At elevations below 1723 the Spring Creek Mudflats 
along Va. Rt. 75 become well exposed as do other smaller areas in the Virginia 
portion of the impoundment.  

The "Musick's Campground" vicinity (Spring Creek Embayment)  is at  the
confluence of Spring Creek with the more narrow-channel of the South Holston
Reservoir along the Virginia-Tennessee line. It provide some of the most
critical and useful shorebird and wading bird habitat in the Upper Holston
Projects.  It is also identified by our field workers as one of the most
significant waterbird and shorebird  stopping, wintering and feeding areas
in the Southern Appalachian Flyway.  The diversity of species utilization is
high.

In addition, it appears that the Spring Creek Embayment is a settling site
for the nutrient-loaded inflow of Spring Creek (one of the largest watershed
areas of feeder streams flowing to South Holston Reservoir).  Here bottom
sediment most likely produces a rich and diverse food supply for many
migrant water-associated species.

The Spring Creek Embayment has a 10-year history of hosting the Southeastern
United States' largest migratory and wintering population of Eared Grebes.
Nearly two dozen individuals have been present there in a single count in
recent years.  This is also the area in which a large variety of gulls and
terns feed during passage (including the Sabine's Gull, Laughing Gull,
Black-legged Kittiwake and Least Tern).  Bald Eagles and Osprey are frequent
here in Fall and the Bald Eagle has been recorded every month of the year.
There are no breeding records for either.

The pebbled-shorline attracks some of our rarest shorebirds and is visited by
Ruddy Turnstones among many other species.  Black-bellied Plover and
American Golden Plover utilize the area at Musick's Campground as do winter
Dunlin.  It is a feeding and resting place for dowitchers. willets, smaller
plovers and many species of waterflow.  It has also been a stopover site for
the Snow Bunting.

The Spring Creek Embayment is one of the most shallow and wide areas in the
Upper Holston reservoirs.  Both the Virginia and Tennessee maximum record
counts for Pied-billed Grebes are known from this area with numbers reaching
about 200 birds during late fall.  It is the only location in the region
where Red-necked Grebe, Horned Grebe, Pied-billed Grebe and Eared Grebe have 
been seen at the same time.

At mid-winter drawdown the shoreline adjacent to Musick's Campground
provided a night roosting site for three wintering Sandhill Cranes.  This is
also one of only two known vagrant migration stopping and feeding locality for 
the Great White Heron (Florida white form of the Great Blue Heron) in 
Tennessee. It has been recorded there at least three fall seasons and, each 
time,  the bird stayed for a week or two.  The White Ibis and Tundra Swan have 
been found here.

Rafts of winter ducks can be very large and the area supports more unusaul
species such as Long-tailed Ducks and scoter species.

From a recreational standpoint,  Musick's Campground is the most heavily
birded site for waterbirds between Rankin Bottom and the New River.  It may
well be the most freqently birded site in the entire Western Virginia area
of the Ridge and Valley.  Birders are required to sign in and ideitify
themselves at a visitor station, list their findings and note the time
arriving and departing.  They also list their hometowns. This is monitored
by the property owner and enforced by the Bristol Bird Club. All visitation
records and specie accounts are kept on file by the club.

The location attracks nationwide interest since it was a lead article on the
front page of "Winging It"  published by the American Birding Association.
Our last summary was compiled in March 2002.  From Sept. 1997 to March 2002, 
1,589 birders in 774 field parties checked in at Musick's Campground to
observe and record birds.  Birders signed in from such places as Durham, NC;
Boone, NC; West Bloomfield, MI; Knoxville, TN; Millersville, PA; Ashville,
NC; Eagle River Alaska; Chattanooga, TN; Albany, KY; Huntsville, AL;
Hickory, NC; Roanoke, VA; Nashville, TN; Watsontown, PA; Tampa, FL;
Birmingham, AL; Sparta, NC; Wakefield, RI; Claremont, NC; Trussville, AL;
Clarksville, TN; Chapel Hill, NC; Reno, NV; Alexandria, VA; Hatteras, NC;
Falls Church, VA; McBee, SC; St. Gabriel, LA; Tucson, AZ; Ithaca, NY,
Memphis, TN and many smaller and closer localities across Tennessee,
Virginia, Eastern Kentucky and Western North Carolina.  We have had birders
list their home locations as simply Colorado and Texas.

This is a great time to be a birder.  Musick's Campground is a wonderful place 
to be birding.  Get out and enjoy the birds.

Wallace Coffey
Bristol Bird Club
Bristol, TN 
 










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