[Bristol-Birds] Hooded Mergansers and Buffleheads left early on.
- From: "Wallace Coffey" <jwcoffey@xxxxxxxxxx>
- To: "Bristol-birds" <bristol-birds@xxxxxxxxxxxxx>
- Date: Thu, 24 Apr 2008 19:38:14 -0400
Area Birders:
Among our wintering waterfowl, the Hooded Merganser and Bufflehead are the
species to make an early exodus from the region for northern migration.
Hooded Mergansers were fairly well gone by late March when Susan Hubley found
22 at
Rogersville. Rob Biller had 10 lingering along the Watauga River on 15 April.
There
have been no others reported on Bristol Birds Net since. It first appeared
that much of
the Bristol area wintering population of more than nearly 300 birds had begun
to disperse
with a significant high pressure over the region Feb 6 and the last birds at
Middlebrook
Lake may have been 11 found Feb 28.
The population of Bufflehead was still good at the Weir Dam on Mar 20 when Rick
Knight
counted 84. Michelle Talbott and Ed Talbott counted just 31 there a week later
on Mar 29.
Rob Biller had 15 along the Watauga River from Elizabethton to Wilbur Dam and
42 on
Wilbur Lake April 5. Following those reports it appeared that, for the most
part, wintering
birds were essentially gone.
The wintering population on the Bristol Christmas Bird Count tallied 265 Hooded
Mergansers
and 147 Bufflehead with Elizabethton at 159 Bufflehead. No other region counts
had more
than 10 Bufflehead and only Bristol had more than 10 Hooded Mergansers.
While a few migrants may yet be seen, it is well to note that both species have
lingered
well into the summer months or summered in Northeast Tennessee over the years
with a
number of records for each. The same is not true of Southwest Virginia.
If you have any additional late records or perspective, please post them to the
net.
Let's go birding......
Wallace Coffey
Bristol, TN
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