Greetings...
Just a quick note to fill in some of the species seen the past couple days on
the Eastern Shore.
Ned already posted the Lark Sparrow from CBBT number 4, however the bird was
no longer there when I checked on 5 September.
At Oyster on the evening of 4 September, Ned and I had an estimated 7500
Bobolinks coming into roost. There were a similar number of Brown-headed
Cowbirds, and far more starlings. Red-winged Blackbirds and Common Grackles
were also present in lesser numbers.
At five-thirty AM on Wednesday, 5 September, I went to Sunset Beach. From my
arrival until daylight, I counted 184 chipnotes. Granted, a few of these
were probably birds making multiple notes. The bulk of them, probably half,
were Bobolinks. There were a few thrushes, and the rest were warbler types.
As the sky started to brighten, I did see a Yellow-crowned and a
Black-crowned Night-Heron go overhead. A Chuck-Wills-Widow flew in pretty
close to my position.
Once the birds started to be seen, the number of Redstarts was impressive.
All told I estimated about 200 or so of them. There were also about 250-300
Eastern Kingbirds. Far fewer than the numbers from a few days prior, but
spectacular nonetheless. Other warblers included several Magnolias, four
Cape Mays, one Blackburnian, six or so Black-throated Blues, 8-10
Black-and-Whites, one Nashville, one Yellow, and one Blue-winged. There were
scores of birds that flew overhead that I couldn't ID. Other species present
were five Red-eyed Vireos, two Yellow-bellied Flycatcher, four or so Traill's
Flycatchers, six Summer Tanagers, 100 or so Bobolinks, one Black-billed
Cuckoo, and one Selasphorus hummingbird coming to Trumpet vine just south of
the Pelican Pub.
I spent the next couple hours at the banding and hawkwatching station. It
was a great morning banding, as Ned has previously mentioned. The hawk
flight was starting out well, with a couple dozen kestrels and maybe a
half-dozen harriers when I left.
I finished my stay with quick stops on the CBBT. Not much happening there.
Island 4 had 9 Common Yellowthroats, two Seaside Sparrows, and one
Black-throated Blue. Island three had 13 Seasides, and nine Common
Yellowthroats. There were scores of Cloudless Sulphurs on both of the
islands and over the bay.
Cheers...
Todd
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Todd Day
Jeffersonton, VA
Culpeper County
Blkvulture@xxxxxxx
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