FreeLists / va-bird / [va-bird] Sky Meadows SP, Fauquier Co,; Feb. 11

[Scott Baron <brnpelican@xxxxxxxxx>]

Hello, birders.

A friend and I birded Sky Meadows today.  It was fun. 
Temp was 13F at 7:30, upper 20s in late morning. 
Thankfully the wind was absent!  Moving water was
partially frozen.  Highlights were LOGGERHEAD SHRIKE,
which my friend hadn't seen before, GREAT-HORNED OWL
and WHITE CROWNED SPARROW.

Some normally common birds were scarce (for example,
just one each of CHICKADEE, TITMOUSE, NUTHATCH and
CAR. WREN) but sparrows and raptors were quite common.
 We found the LOGGERHEAD SHRIKE perched in a tree at
the beginning of the Bridle Trail.  Songbirds fed
peaceably nearby until the shrike dropped toward the
ground, which scattered the songbirds.

We birded the fishing pond area to and including the
Shearman's Mill Trail and adjacent weedy field.  A
BELTED KINGFISHER kept us company along the stream as
we walked the trail.

4 MALLARD flew back and forth overhead.  We later
accidentally flushed them from the stream.  2 BALD
EAGLE were present, one was almost a full adult, the
other was an imm.  4 RED-TAILED HAWKS and 3 AM.
KESTRELS rounded out the birds of prey.  A
GREAT-HORNED OWL hooted far away from the W side of
the park around 8am.  Lots of sparrows: FIELD,
SAVANNAH, SONG, SWAMP, WHITE-THROATED, WHITE-CROWNED
(1 imm. at fishing pond parking area) and JUNCO.

S. Baron
Fairfax, Va.


 
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