Hello VA-Birders,
First of all, Happy New Year to all. It was a very productive day in the
Lorton area of the Fort Belvoir CBC. Mike Friedman and I spent all day chasing
down and counting the birds of the area. In the end, we tallied 74 species
despite a poor showing of only 4 species of duck.
Best bird of the day was found close to the end, which of course was the
BROWN-HEADED NUTHATCH already mentioned on this listserv. I made some quick
calls to get the word out so others could see it in case it doesn't hang
around. However, the bird acted like it owned the place, so it seems to have
settled in. It is mixing with a small flock of Carolina Chickadees. Thanks to
Sue Heath for posting it for all interested.
Other highlights of our count area included a vocal COMMON RAVEN (near the
Vulcan quarry), a PINE SISKIN (near the gate of Sandy Run Park), and a CACKLING
GOOSE (in a retention pond with approximately 45 Canadas behind the new Lorton
High School). Enter the pond area from the Golf Course access from Hooes Road.
Also, we had a RED-BREASTED NUTHATCH (producing a nuthatch cleanup today),
AMERICAN KESTREL, AMERICAN WOODCOCK (two places including the landfill), 6
HORNED LARKS and 2 AMERICAN PIPITS (at the landfill cap), 6 SAVANNAH SPARROWS
(5 at the landfill, 1 staked-out bird on Hampton Hunt Road), RUBY-CROWNED
KINGLET, 2 BROWN THRASHERS, 4 FOX SPARROWS, 6 WHITE-CROWNED SPARROWS, 8 EASTERN
MEADOWLARKS, and 3 PURPLE FINCHES.
Additionally, owling from 3:45 AM to 6:00 AM yielded 2 EASTERN SCREECH OWLS, a
GREAT-HORNED OWL, and a BARRED OWL.
When executed well, Lorton can be a great place to bird. Thanks to Mike
Friedman for being a great partner and finding lots of good birds, and for
volunteering his time to the effort. We were both pleased at the birds we were
able to see today.
Finally, a special thanks to Kurt Gaskill who put together a fantastic CBC!
The challenges faced because of the holiday were more than made up for by his
hard work, as well as the hard work of the volunteers who graciously gave their
time to the count. I can't wait until next year's count!
Happy New Year to All,
Jay Keller,
Arlington
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