[Bristol-Birds] Great Blue Heron nests expand at Boone Lake
- From: "Wallace Coffey" <jwcoffey@xxxxxxxxxx>
- To: "Bristol-birds" <bristol-birds@xxxxxxxxxxxxx>
- Date: Sun, 7 Mar 2010 16:42:03 -0500
7 March 2010
Boone Lake
South Fork Holston River Embayment
Sullivan County, TN
Our knowledge of the small but expanding Great Blue Heron nesting sites
on Boone Lake in Sullivan County were found to have expanded, Sunday,
when additional nests were found, including a tiny new rookery.
The new site includes just three nests and is located about 300 yards
west of Hicks Bend. It is near the ridge top of a narrow woodland strip
of a similarly narrow peninsula on a 175-acres farm lying between the
mouth of Candy Creek and the main South Fork channel. The nests
have an eastern facing aspect and herons were standing on two of
the nests. Several herons were seen hunting and flying in the vicinity.
The site is located between TVA lake points 6 and 7 at river mile 23.5.
The nesting colony of Great Blue Herons, discovered 29 May 2007
at Fickles Island on Boone Lake in Sullivan, Co., TN, has expanded
and shifted slightly. There were two nests on the island when it was
discovered and a Double-crested Cormorant was perched on branches
beneath the nest.
One empty nest was seen well up the ridge to the west but was not
active when found in 2007. On Sunday, 7 March 2010, a rookery of
9 nests was found high on the ridge. Eight of the nests had herons
standing on them. The nests are located on the edge of 50-acre
woodlot of private ownership. An old nest remains on the island
but was not used in 2009 and does not appear to be active.
The shifted site is located downstream of DeVault Bridge at the
mouth of Muddy Creek on the South Fork Holston River embayment
of the reservoir. It, too, has an eastern exposure aspect.
One Double-crested Cormorant was seen landing on the water
at the mouth of Muddy Creek. As in 2007, no cormorant's nest
could be detected.
To the best of my knowledge, the Muddy Creek location was
the first known rookery of Great Blues found on Boone Lake.
The Candy Creek nesting site is two miles downstream from the
Muddy Creek -- Fickles Island location and just a little less than
a mile by direct air distance.
Let's go birding......
Wallace Coffey
Bristol, TN
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