VA Birders,
It was cloudy, foggy and wet here on Compton Mountain this morning, but that
didn't seem to bother the birds. Today's count tied the 53 species record I
had gotten on 9/21/02.
Several warblers were on the move with Bay-breasted Warblers seeming to
prefer the thickly leaved maples, where it's difficult to see them. An
impressive male Blackburnian fed in the top of the White Pine along with a
couple of Cape Mays.
Two handsome Black-throated Green males played tag among the branches of an
apple tree and the Mulberry tree.
The Magnolia Warblers were not discriminatory when it came to trees. A
couple fed in the treetops at the edge of the yard while another hopped
among the leaves of a Pokeberry plant.
2 Palm Warblers hopped in the grass under an apple tree, while 2 Pine
Warblers looked for insects in the branches of an Autumn Olive bush.
Tennessee Warblers seemed to be everywhere. Some were in the walnut or apple
trees, while others were bowing down a Giant Ragweed getting insects from
the very top.
A White-eyed Vireo played peek-a-boo, popping in an out of the branches of
the Cedar tree near the front of the house.
A worm-eating Warbler made a brief appearance in the top of a Sumac bush,
which surprised me since I thought they had already migrated.
A Black-and-white clung to the branch of a locust tree and probed in the
bark for insects.
Another surprise was the appearance of a House Wren, the only one I've ever
seen in the immediate area. They are rather rare in our heavily forested
county, evidently preferring the more open land of our neighboring, Russell
and Tazewell counties.
A Blue-headed Vireo hopped up to the lower branches of a cherry tree long
enough for a good look before dropping back into a thicket.
A Summer Tanager fed in the top of the dogwood tree along with Swainson's
Thrushes, a good flock of Scarlets, and a flock of Cedar Waxwings. The
berries were going fast. At times the tree seemed to be alive with feathered
bodies and moving branches. One thrush had the appearance of a Gray-cheeked,
but I didn't have time to get a positive ID.
Northern Flickers probed in the yard, and an adult male Redstart's colors
really glowed against the darkness of the woods behind it, as it darted
among the branches of a Sassafras Tree.
I was in the process of video taping some of the thrushes, when the movement
of a large flock of Starlings high in the air caught my
eye. A large (probably female) Cooper's Hawk was flying under the flock,
then suddenly flew upward scattering the birds, but missing its target. It
disappeared behind the trees, but seconds later I saw a sudden wave of birds
fly past me as most of the birds in the yard tried to get away from the low
flying Cooper's coming in low over the field. It flew just a few feet over
my head, its head turning from side to side as it searched for an unwary
target. It once again disappeared over the trees not to be seen again.
A Red-shouldered Hawk circled up out of the valley as another called in the
distance. I headed into the house to eat breakfast, pleased with the way the
morning had gone.
Following is the complete morning list.
Roger Mayhorn
Grundy, VA
American Crow 6
American Goldfinch 2
American Redstart 1 (adult male)
American Robin 6
Bay-breasted Warbler 6 ( 3 first year females)
Black-and-white Warbler 1
Blackburnian Warbler 1 (male)
Black-throated Green Warbler 2 (males)
Blue-headed Vireo 1
Blue Jay 3
Brown Thrasher 3
Cape May Warbler 4
Carolina Chickadee 1
Carolina Wren 3
Cedar Waxwing 12
Chipping Sparrow 5
Coopers Hawk 1 (female)
Downy Woodpecker 2 ( 1 male)
Eastern Bluebird 3 (males)
Eastern Kingbird 1
Eastern Phoebe 1
Eastern Towhee 7 (5 males, 2 females)
Eastern Wood Pewee 1
Empidnonax 1 sp
European Starling 60
Gray Catbird 5
House Finch 4 (2 males, 2 females)
House Wren 1 (first ever seen in the immediate area)
Magnolia Warbler 4
Mourning Dove 4
Northern Cardinal 5 (3 males, 2 females)
Northern Flicker 4 (3 males, 1 female)
Northern Mockingbird 1
Palm Warbler 2
Pine Warbler 2
Red-bellied Woodpecker 2
Red-eyed Vireo 1
Red-shouldered Hawk 2
Rose-breasted Grosbeak 4 (3 males, 1 female)
Ruby Throated Hummingbird 1 (female)
Scarlet Tanager 15 (9 males, 6 females)
Song Sparrow 2
Summer Tanager 1
Swainsons Thrush 6
Tennessee Warbler 9
Tufted Titmouse 3
Turkey Vulture 1
White-breasted Nuthatch 4
White-eyed Vireo 2
Wild Turkey 14
Wood Thrush 6
Worm-eating Warbler 1
Yellow-billed Cuckoo 1
Chipmunk 3
Eastern Gray Squirrel 3
White-tailed Deer 2
Wood Chuck 1
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