Hello VA-Birders,
Another fine day of birding in northern Virginia, this time all Piedmont! I
started before sunrise at NY Monuments at Manassas Battlefield, where I was
joined by Peter and Molly Ross. After NY Monuments we visited the Deep Cut
area and I went on to Chinn Ridge and the defunct shopping center area. Later
this afternoon, my family and I had a picnic at Sky Meadows.
At Manassas, the best bird was a singing SEDGE WREN at the gate (which was
closed when I arrived). I am surprised that it was here, as the field is not
particularly wet to my knowledge.
The migrant show was muted here today, finding only 11 species of Warblers,
listed below:
Blue-winged Warbler 1
Nashville Warbler 1
Northern Parula 2
Magnolia Warbler 1
Black-throated Blue Warbler 1
Pine Warbler 28
Palm Warbler 2
Black-and-white Warbler 1
American Redstart 2
Ovenbird 2
Common Yellowthroat 12
Making up for this were the many flycatchers, which included Willow, Least,
several Traill's, Acadian, Great Crested, and E Wood-Pewee.
At the defunct shopping center location, I noticed several birds in the air,
so I did an impromptu 20-minute hawkwatch, and I found:
Black Vulture 12
Turkey Vulture 18
Bald Eagle 1
Red-shouldered Hawk 3
Broad-winged Hawk 1
Red-tailed Hawk 1
Other birds of note were BLUE GROSBEAK, BARRED OWL, ROSE-BREASTED GROSBEAK,
and my first-of-Fall WHITE-THROATED SPARROW. 69 Species here today.
Later at Sky Meadows SP, we found my personal high count of RED-HEADED
WOODPECKERS at 22. They were everywhere! I added AMERICAN KESTREL to the
reptor list, and EASTERN MEADOWLARKS for the day. The persistent rain killed
any chance for observing raptor movement. It was perhaps a fitting end to a
great birding weekend bookended by foul weather!
Take Care,
Jay Keller,
Arlington
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