[va-richmond-general] Trip to Chincoteague NWR

A late spring (May 28-30, 2002) trip to Chincoteague to visit the refuge was 
one of the most productive trips we have experienced, and surely the best 
weather. We birded the National Wildlife Refuge all three days. Altogether, 
including the CBBT on the way, and a stop at the observation area overlooking 
the bay at the bridge to Fisherman Island, we had 86 species. On the way to 
Chincoteague, we stopped at the marsh just after Wallops Island and saw a pair 
of Clapper Rails. Although we walked almost all the trails on the refuge, one 
of the most common birds we saw there was the Glossy Ibis, which used to be 
rare a few years ago. The most productive trail in the refuge turned out to be 
the Woodland Trail. There we got good scope views of an Eastern Wood Pewee, 
several Indigo Buntings, a beautiful Yellow Warbler in bright sunlight, and a 
perched hummer. On the same trail we saw and heard several Winter Wrens singing 
on the dead pines, several Pine Warblers, Blue Grosbeaks, and a Yellow-breasted 
Chat. Great Crested Flycatchers were both abundant and visible. We took a 
wildlife tour run by the Chincoteague Natural History Association, to within 
three miles of the Maryland border. There we saw Black-bellied Plovers in 
addition to many others, and also several herds of wild Chincoteague Ponies. On 
the last morning we put our canoe in at Tom's Cove and paddled within about 50 
feet from the area roped off to protect nesting birds. There were many Piping 
Plovers, Red Knots, American Oystercatchers and Black Skimmers, as well as 
numerous Ruddy Turnstones, Willets, and several species of terns and gulls. It 
was great to drift downwind along the beach and get close-up binocular views of 
birds it normally takes a scope to see. While paddling from our put-in we 
thought we saw a diving duck, which would have been unusual that late in the 
spring. It turned out to be a very large sea turtle's head that bobbed up for 
air occasionally.

Here is the complete trip list, with our new life birds indicated by *:

 

      Gannet, Northern
     Plover, Black-bellied
     
      Pelican, Brown
     Plover, Semipalmated
     
      Cormorant, Great
     Plover, Piping*
     
      Cormorant, Double-crested
     Killdeer
     
      Heron, Great Blue
     Oystercatcher, American
     
      Egret, Great
     Yellowlegs, Greater
     
      Egret, Snowy
     Willet
     
      Heron, Little Blue
     Turnstone, Ruddy
     
      Heron, Tricolored
     Knot, Red
     
      Egret, Cattle
     Sanderling
     
      Heron, Green
     Sandpiper, Semipalmated
     
      Ibis, Glossy
     Sandpiper, Least
     
      Goose, Canada
     Dunlin
     
      Duck, American Black
     Dowitcher, Short-billed
     
      Mallard
     Snipe, Common
     
      Gadwall
     Gull, Laughing
     
      Vulture, Turkey
     Gull, Common Black-headed
     
      Osprey
     Gull, Ring-billed
     
      Falcon, Peregrine
     Gull, Herring
     
      Bobwhite, Northern
     Gull, Greater Black-backed
     
      Rail, Clapper*
     Tern, Royal
     
      Tern, Common*
     Mockingbird, Northern
     
      Tern, Least
     Waxwing, Cedar
     
      Skimmer, Black
     Starling, European
     
      Dove, Rock
     Warbler, Yellow
     
      Dove, Mourning
     Warbler, Yellow-rumped
     
      Hummingbird, Ruby-throated
     Warbler, Pine
     
      Flicker, Northern
     Redstart, American
     
      Wood-pewee, Eastern
     Warbler, Worm-eating
     
      Flycatcher, Willow
     Yellowthroat, Common
     
      Flycatcher, Great-crested
     Chat, Yellow-breasted
     
      Kingbird, Eastern
     Cardinal, Northern
     
      Martin, Purple
     Grosbeak, Blue
     
      Swallow, Tree
     Bunting, Indigo
     
      Swallow, Northern Rough-winged
     Towhee, Eastern 
     
      Swallow, Barn
     Sparrow, Song
     
      Jay, Blue
     Blackbird, Red-winged 
     
      Crow, American
     Meadowlark, Eastern
     
      Crow, Fish
     Grackle, Boat-tailed
     
      Chickadee, Carolina
     Grackle, Common
     
      Nuthatch, Brown-headed
     Cowbird, Brown-headed
     
      Wren, Winter
     Goldfinch, American
     
      Robin, American
     Sparrow, House
     

 

Linda & Al Warfield


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