VA BIRDers,
Marc Ribaudo and I joined up with the Calmes Neck CBC crew and did a corner
of NW Loudoun County, north of Rt 7 and Round Hill. It was a wet day. I
would guess there was perhaps an hour when the sky was not doing a good
impression of raining. And then it was foggy. (Sometimes, it was raining
AND foggy.) Despite this adversity, we managed to tally 50 species of birds
with many misses, e.g., a vulture! Our top bird was a Chipping Sparrow, up
some gravel road on a hillside along a forested residential power line cut
near the Purcellville Reservoir - it was hanging with some Juncos. We also
managed to find Ring-necked Ducks, a Wild Turkey near the top of Appalachian
Trail Road, an Eastern Phoebe near the flatland portion of the previously
named road, a couple of Winter Wrens, two Eastern Towhees, a couple of
American Tree Sparrows, 4 Swamp Sparrows - many near the Appalachian Trail
Rd, and a Purple Finch. Song Sparrows, White-throated Sparrows and Juncos
were present in hundred-plus numbers. The list is below - I found that the
numbers of permanent residents tallied were somewhat similar to the numbers
found on other piedmont counts that I did this season.
Also, Phil Daley told us of finding 2 Gray Catbirds in his count area,
adjacent to ours. Very nice!
Kurt Gaskill
C. Goose 282
Mallard 8
Ring-necked Duck 8
Wild Turkey 1
accipiter sp. 2, both flew out the backside of conifer stands
Red-shouldered Hawk 3
Red-tailed Hawk 6
Rock Pigeon 36
Mourning Dove 99
Great Horned Owl 1, seen early in the morning flying across a road
Barred Owl 1, seen late in the day when we entered a mature pine tree lot
(and yes, it was raining..still raining)
Red-bellied WP 17
YB Sapsucker 3
Downy WP 17
Hairy WP 5
No. Flicker 13
Pileated WP 5
E. Phoebe 1
Blue Jay 14
Am. Crow 39
C. Chickadee 31
T. Titmouse 22
White-breasted Nuthatch 16
Brown Creeper 3
C. Wren 24
W. Wren 2
GC Kinglet 4
RC Kinglet 1
E. Bluebird 25
Hermit Thrush 4
Am. Robin 53
No. Mocker 21
E. Starling 157
Cedar Waxwing 114
Yellow-rumped Warbler 10
E. Towhee 2
Am. Tree Sp 2
Chipping Sp 1
Field Sp 10
Song Sp 114
Swamp Sp 4
White-throated Sp 103
Junco 131
No. Cardinal 62
Red-winged BB 25
E. Meadowlark 1
Purple Finch 1
House Finch 5
Am. Goldfinch 11
House Sp 6