VA Birders,
I'm sorry this report is so late, but I've been asked about the Birding
Festival, and I have some information on the CBBT I wanted to share with you.
First, those of us who attended the Eastern Shore Birding Festival had
great weather, and we were delighted to learn that the lower Eastern Shore
suffered very little damage from Hurricane Isabel. I thought numbers of birds
seemed to be down from previous years. However, I did find 2 Eurasian
Collared-Doves about 6:15 pm Saturday at the intersection of Rts. 600 and 645,
where I
have seen them before.
CBBT Islands #2 & #4 (at the northern end of the tunnels) suffered
considerable damage from Isabel's visit, and they were closed to birders. Our
birding festival trip to the CBBT on Saturday visited Island #3, where we found
almost no birds, and then, because our (school) bus had a police escort, we
were
permitted on Island #4, where the highlights were a female Common Eider (which
I understand was not relocated on the Sunday trip) and 5 Peregrines flying by
very low, giving us great views. We also observed the damage to the island,
especially to the road surface, which looks like it has sunk on one side and
has large cracks in it. In fact, our leader (who shall remain nameless) almost
went down for the count when he was looking up at a bird instead of down at
where his feet were stepping!
When I crossed the CBBT on Monday morning, I stopped at the south office
and asked the officer on duty if he knew how long the islands might be closed.
Some construction on the buildings on the islands was also taking place, but
whether this was also due to Isabel I'm not sure. The officer told me that
he thought the islands would be reopened to birders after the road surfaces
were repaired, even if the buildings were still under construction. I suggest
anyone planning a trip to the CBBT in the near future call to find out which
islands are open.
One more note on the CBBT islands: Concrete barriers have been placed on
Islands #2-4, no doubt for increased security purposes. The first time I
encountered them (before Isabel), and their signs which said "Authorized
Personnel Only" could go beyond them, I didn't know whether it was O.K. for
birders to
drive around them or not, because the personnel in the office where I took my
letter had not mentioned them. However, at Island #2, I finally found a CBBT
official who said that birders with letters were authorized to drive around
the barriers and bird the rest of the islands.
Finally, I stopped at Craney Island after leaving the CBBT, and I found 8
Am. Avocets there. I had missed them on a previous trip when the tide was
high, but this time a little of the flat on the left at the beginning of the
drive was still exposed, and the water around it was obviously shallow, so that
the birds were standing there in good view.
Val Kitchens
Arlington, VA
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