On April 12 almost 30 people showed up for the regular monthly Banshee Reeks
Nature Preserve bird walk, including a large group from the Montgomery Co
chapter of the MD Ornithological Society. We split into three groups, one led
by John Drummond, one by Mary Alice Koeneke and one by me. After Banshee
Reeks about 12 of us went on to the Dulles Greenway Wetlands Mitigation Project
(DGWMP) which is immed. to the west of Banshee 15 observers. We saw a total
of 59 species at the Banshee Reeks Nature Preserve (www.bansheereeks.org) and
14 more species at the nearby Dulles Wetlands. The temperature was in the low
40's and windy when we began. It warmed up to close to 60 by the time we
wrapped up at the Wetlands.
The most int'g birds moment of the day occurred when a BALD EAGLE flew low,
apparently hunting, over the Wetlands, causing several hundred ducks to rise
into the air, many of which we did not even know were there. The Some of the
more int'g birds seen were: a fly-over Common Loon, Blue-winged Teal on the
DGWMP along w/lots of other waterfowl, a Broad-winged Hawk, several Bonaparte
Gulls over both the Wetlands and Banshee, several hours apart, a Red-headed
Woodpecker, a Purple Martin, Louisiana Waterthrush, and a female PURPLE FINCH
at the feeders at the Banshee Reeks Nature Preserve.
I would also like to mention that Banshee Reeks is now open to the general
public from 8 am to 4 pm on the 3rd weekend of every month (April 19 and April
20 this month).
The complete list follows (the first number is Banshee, the 2nd the Wetlands):
Common Loon 1
Pied-billed Grebe 0/6
Great Blue Heron 1/2
Great Egret 0/2
Black Vulture 9
Turkey Vulture 25/6
Canada Goose 10/150+
Wood Duck 0/1
Gadwell 0/6
American Wigeon 0/6
American Black Duck 0/25+
Mallard 0/50+
Blue-winged Teal 0/4
Northern Shoveler 0/3
Green-winged Teal 0/125+
Ring-necked Duck 2/0
Osprey 1
Bald Eagle 0/1
Cooper's Hawk 1
Red-shouldered Hawk 1/2
Broad-winged Hawk 1
Red-tailed Hawk 5
Am Kestrel 2/2
Killdeer 1/3
Lesser Yellowlegs 0/1
Ring-billed Gull 20
Bonaparte's Gull 13/8
Mourning Dove 18/6
Barred Owl 1
Belted Kingfisher 0/1
Red-headed Woodpecker 1
Red-bellied Woodpecker 4
Yellow-bellied Woodpecker 2
Downy Woodpecker 8/1
Northern Flicker 4/2
Pileated Woodpecker 1 fledgling
Eastern Phoebe 6/2
Blue Jay 9
Am Crow 25
Fish Crow 6
Purple Martin 0/1
Tree Swallow 2/20+
No. Rough-winged Swallow 4
Barn Swallow 8
Carolina Chickadee 6
Tufted Titmouse 2
White-breasted Nuthatch 4
Carolina Wren 1
Ruby-crowned Kinglet 1/1
Blue-gray Gnatcatcher 1
Eastern Bluebird 3
Am Robin 6/4
No Mockingbird 5/3
Brown Thrasher 3/1
European Starling 32/6
Yellow-rumped Warbler 10
Palm Warbler 2
Louisiana Waterthrush 2
Eastern Towhee 7
Chipping Sparrow 1
Field Sparrow 23/4
Savannah Sparrow 1
Song Sparrow 32/6
White-throated Sparrow 12/2
Dark-eyed Junco 30
No Cardinal 11/2
Red-winged Blackbird 14/12
Eastern Meadowlark 9/4
Common Grackle 4
Brown-headed Cowbird 30
Purple Finch 1 female
House Finch 14
Am Goldfinch 24
Joe Coleman, near Bluemont, VA
jandkcoleman@xxxxxxxxx or 540-554-2542
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