FreeLists / va-bird / [va-bird] Eastern Shore update

[Phoebetria@xxxxxxx]

31 August

Great to see two Great Cormorants out at the CBBT with Greg Justice, Sue=20
Heath, and Todd Day (first found a week earlier by Rob Hilton and party), th=
e=20
earliest I=E2=80=99ve seen out there, at least as far as clear "fall" arriva=
ls go=20
(the species has oversummered rarely).  Only Common Yellowthroats and Seasid=
e=20
Sparrows otherwise (a juv. Seaside was nice).  The American Avocets were no=20
longer on the pond on Washington Avenue in Cape Charles (rats), but the=20
Buff-breasted Sandpiper and American Golden-Plovers persisted at Kiptopeke.=20=
=20
Nice to have a few Northern Harriers around, and the Horned Larks are=20
flocking up on fields (up to 13 in one group), crossing paths in the sky wit=
h=20
groups of Bobolinks, Eastern Kingbirds, and occasional Cedar Waxwing flocks.=
 =20
What seem to be migrant Northern Mockingbirds, Red-bellied Woodpeckers, and=20

1 September

Kingbirds galore!  It seems every tree in Cape Charles had a complement of=20
Eastern Kingbirds settling into the large shade trees Sunday night (flocks=20
totaling about 700 were noted, normal for this time of year).  Fairly good=20
numbers of peep are still in the Washington Ave. ponds, along with herons,=20
egrets, and Lesser Yellowlegs; small flocks of Forster=E2=80=99s and Royal T=
erns are=20
roosting on the west side of the pond near the gull roosts.  Yellow-billed=20
Cuckoos, Baltimore Orioles, American Redstarts, and Yellow and Prairie=20
Warblers are scattered through town in small numbers. =20

Out on the seaside, a flock of about 350 Black-bellied Plovers had 7 America=
n=20
Golden-Plovers mixed in, about 1.4 miles south of Oyster on Rte 600 (in the=20
field on the west side of Rte 600, right across from Copes Dr, a small=20
private lane).  Also a few Western and Least Sandpipers, Killdeer, and=20
Semipalmated Plovers in the field.  Imm. Bald Eagle, born this year, at=20
Oyster. =20

2 September

The morning started with 3-4 American Golden-Plovers just north of Sting-Ray=
s=20
on the west side of Rte 13, in a flock of about 250 Black-bellies or so.  On=
e=20
Pectoral Sandpiper to the north, nearly the highway.  Pectorals are still=20
around at Kiptopeke as well (10 or so), along with a Least.  The=20
golden-plovers apparently departed there this morning.  Large flocks of=20
unidentified Pluvialis were seen flying along Rte 13, mostly northward.  No=20
hawk flight today, but meeting up with Harry Armistead on the hawk platform,=
=20
we learned that Sunset Beach flights on Saturday and Sunday mornings were=20
good despite the rain (600 and 700 kingbirds on those mornings).  Harry and=20
group saw a nice Red-headed Woodpecker (ad.) at Kiptopeke.  Small numbers ha=
d=20
spent the summer on BayCreek around the golf course.  A Selasphorus=20
hummingbird continues for its third week at a private local feeder.  On the=20
pond at Ramp Road, shorebirds in good numbers quite suddenly:

Solitary Sandpiper 2
Spotted Sandpiper 5
Stilt Sandpiper 4 (gorgeous) juveniles
Lesser Yellowlegs 51 (mostly juv.)
Greater Yellowlegs 1 juv.
Western Sandpiper 1 juv.
Least Sandpiper 4 juv.
Semipalmated Sandpiper 5 juv.
peep sp. 2

Ned Brinkley
Cape Charles, VA=20
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