[va-bird] Remington area, Fauquier County, 16 June 2006; Dickcissels

Greetings,
 
Nothing like a ceiling fan that starts making a racket at four AM to end a  
peaceful night's sleep earlier than intended.  The benefit was that I made  to 
Remington by six AM, which is a nice time to be there.  I birded  entirely 
along roadsides from the Woodward Turf Farms south to Kellys Ford, with  a 
couple 
spur roads along the way.  If immediate gratification is your  game, there's 
a list at the end of this note.  If you're looking for  specific locations for 
Dickcissels, jump ahead a few paragraphs to the word  "dickcissels."  
 
There was a Barn Owl hunting the plowed field on the west side of Route 651  
(Sumerduck Road) near the Woodward Turf Farm right at six AM.  It stayed in  
view for only a couple minutes before I lost it.  This was one of very few  
instances where I've seen that species hunting in daylight.  
 
There were four singing Dickcissels, and one female along with the singer  at 
one location.  Savannah Sparrows were observed in two locations, two at  one 
spot, and a loner nearby.  An adult Bald Eagle was flying up river  at Kellys 
Ford, not too far south of where they nest.  Horned Larks  seemed to have had 
a good breeding season, as I counted well over two dozen,  with a lot of 
immature birds noted.  A Summer Tanager was singing from the  woods along 
Savannah 
Branch Road (Route 668); also along 668 were a  couple chats, a Kestrel, and a 
few Blue Grosbeaks.  I'm happy to report  that there were decent numbers of 
Blue Grosbeaks and Grasshopper Sparrows in  general, and a lot of Meadowlarks.  
 
I wasn't able to find any Upland Sandpipers, though that's not surprising  as 
in years where the species has bred there, they're typically difficult to  
find.  My success has been by getting there early in the morning or in the  
late 
evening on hot June and July days, and scanning the  short-vegetation fields 
(sod, or plowed fields that have barely started to  grow) .  It seems during 
the heat of the day they seek some  cover.  In late July they tend to be a 
little more reliable at all times of  the day in the sod or plowed fields.  Of 
course that might be because  they're migrants and weren't there at all during 
the summer.  
 
For those familiar with Remington, there's been a couple changes in the  
habitat.  The sod fields at Route 651 and 654 (the typical location) are  now 
half 
sod, and half soy beans.  The fields along Grassdale Road (Route  755) are 
all sod until about four-fifths of the way down, when it gives way to  pasture 
and hay fields.  Over in the Culpeper side, nothing seems much  different.  
It'll be interesting to see what late summer and fall  brings.  
 
For those not familiar with Remington, it is a small town in southwestern  
Fauquier County, just south of where US 29 crosses the Rappahannock River at 
the 
 Culpeper County border. 
 
 
Dickcissels:
 
A pair at the intersection of 651 (Sumerduck Road) and 654 (Strodes Mill  
Road west of 651).  There is also a pair of Blue Grosbeaks here.  The  habitat 
is 
pretty thin, but they're doing their thing.  
 
One on 654 (west of 651) at the bend in the road, in the direction of the  
house there.  Also a pair of Blue Grosbeaks here.  These fields along  654 are 
loaded with Grasshopper Sparrows, Horned Larks, and Eastern  Meadowlarks.  All 
three are easily seen, and are making a lot of noise  early in the morning.
 
One at the south end of the military/CIA facility on 651 on the east side  of 
the road, singing from a wire.  
 
One along Grassdale Road (755) on the south side of the road, along the  
fence line covered in vegetation.  Another spot with thin habitat, but it  was 
singing its head off.  
 
The Savannah Sparrows were along Grassdale, a pair just down from the  
intersection of 651, and a single bird a little farther down the road.  A  rare 
breeder in Fauquier, so if you see any confirmation of breeding, please do  
send 
me a note.  The oak tree covered with poison ivy at the intersection  of 
Grassdale and 651 has an Orchard Oriole and Eastern Kingbird nest, and Song  
Sparrow 
is nesting in the dense cover at the bottom of it.  
 
 
The eBird list:
 
Location:     Remington (Fauquier)
Observation  date:     6/16/06

Green Heron      1
Black Vulture     12
Turkey Vulture      4
Bald Eagle     1
American Kestrel      1
Mourning Dove     40
Yellow-billed Cuckoo   1
Barn Owl     1
Chimney Swift   1
Red-bellied Woodpecker     2
Downy  Woodpecker     1
Eastern Wood-Pewee      3
Eastern Kingbird     2
Yellow-throated Vireo   1
Warbling Vireo     1
American Crow   2
Fish Crow     2
Horned Lark   24
Tree Swallow     4
Northern Rough-winged  Swallow     3
Barn Swallow      6
White-breasted Nuthatch     1
Carolina Wren   4
House Wren     2
Blue-gray Gnatcatcher   1
Eastern Bluebird     5
American Robin   12
Gray Catbird     6
Northern  Mockingbird     10
Brown Thrasher      8
European Starling     100
Cedar Waxwing   2
Northern Parula     3
Prairie Warbler   2
Ovenbird     1
Common Yellowthroat   4
Yellow-breasted Chat     2
Summer  Tanager     1
Scarlet Tanager     1
Eastern  Towhee     2
Chipping Sparrow     4
Savannah  Sparrow     3
Grasshopper Sparrow      20
Song Sparrow     4
Northern Cardinal      2
Blue Grosbeak     12
Indigo Bunting      12
Dickcissel     5
Red-winged Blackbird      7
Eastern Meadowlark     30
Common Grackle   40
Brown-headed Cowbird     10
Orchard  Oriole     8
Baltimore Oriole     1
American  Goldfinch     15

This report was generated automatically  by eBird v2 (_http://www.ebird.org_ 
(http://www.ebird.org) )
 
Cheers, 
 
Todd


---------------------------------
Todd Michael  Day
Jeffersonton, VA,  USA
blkvulture@xxxxxxx
---------------------------------

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