[Bristol-Birds] Rankin avocet

  • From: "michael sledjeski" <mtnsylva@xxxxxxx>
  • To: TN-bird@xxxxxxxxxxxxx, bristol-birds@xxxxxxxxxxxxx
  • Date: Sun, 10 Sep 2006 10:04:05 -0400

Rankin Bottoms, Cocke county, 9/9/06, 5-8:00 PM
Douglas Lake elevation: 983'

We watched an AMERICAN AVOCET foraging and grooming in the "Gate Pond", one mile south of the Coal Tipple. We had traveled by canoe along the submerged old RR bed road, then walked another 1/2 mile to the gate. To reach the pond on foot, you'd have to follow the trail from the WMA sign near the intersection of Hill & Rankin Hill Roads - it's rough going.

Currently, it's open season on Canada Geese (9/1-9/15) and teal & wood duck (9/9-9/13). Hunters were in the area, and their shooting disturbed the gathering of great egrets. They flew west beyond the tree line to roost elsewhere. We couldn't tell if the wood stork was with them. Hunters had set up decoys and a blind in the hottest spot for shorebirds, and their numbers were down yesterday. Most were seen along the riverbank shoal from the end of the treeline north to Leadvale.

Heavy rains in the mountains caused the lake to rise during the past week, but the water level is coming down again, and viewing from land should improve over the next week.

Highlights:

Wood duck (16)
Blue-winged teal (24)
Double-crested cormorant (6)
Great blue heron (10)
Great egret (100 +)
Cattle egret (2)
Green heron (2)
Little blue heron (2)
Black-crowned Night-heron (11)
Osprey
Bald eagle
Sharp-shinned hawk (being mobbed by crows)
Semipalmated plover (5)
Killdeer (45)
AMERICAN AVOCET
Greater yellowlegs (6)
Lesser yellowlegs (3)
Spotted sandpiper (2)
Semipalmated sandpiper (20+)
Western sandpiper
Least sandpiper (40+)
White-rumped sandpiper (3)
Pectoral sandpiper (10+)
Stilt sandpiper
Short-billed dowitcher (8)

Michael Sledjeski & Leslie Gibbens
Cocke county TN


************************************************* BRISTOL BIRDS NET LIST Bristol Birds Net Photo Gallery located at: http://photos.yahoo.com/ph/jwcoffeyy/album?.dir=/efd5

Be sure and visit the Bristol Bird Club website at:
http://bristolbirdclub.org

This is a regional birding list sponsored by the
Bristol Bird Club to facilitate communications between birders and bird clubs of Southwest Virginia
and Northeast Tennessee. --------------------------------------------------
You are subscribed to Bristol-Birds.
To post to this mailing list, simply send an email
to: bristol-birds@xxxxxxxxxxxxxx To unsubscribe, send
an email to bristol-birds-request@xxxxxxxxxxxxx with
the one word 'unsubscribe' in the Subject field.
--------------------------------------------------
Wallace Coffey, Moderator
wallace@xxxxxxxxxxxxxxxxxxx
(423)764-****


Other related posts:

  • » [Bristol-Birds] Rankin avocet