On August 9, 7 people showed up for the regular monthly Banshee Reeks Nature
Preserve bird walk on a very humid day. Because the fog was so thick we spent
the first part of the walk not only identifying bird sounds but other flora and
fauna as well. The group included Ron Staley, Mary Ann Good and Ray Smith all
of whom were a big help. Ron Staley made a brief visit was made to the Dulles
Greenway Wetlands Mitigation Project (DGWMP) which is immed. to the west of
Banshee prior to the walk. A total of 49 bird species and 12 butterfly species
were observed.
About 50 feet out in a field near the area where we most frequently see the
Red-headed woodpeckers we heard two birds peenting back & forth. While we were
never able to actually see these birds our best guess is that they were Common
Nighthawks. Other birds of interest include: Blue Grosbeak (at the DGWMP), 3
Red-headed Woodpeckers including one juvenile at Banshee Reeks, and 2 Trail's
(prob. Willow) Flycatchers which never vocalized. Our most int'g non-bird
species was a Hickory Horned Devil caterpillar about 4" long (it becomes a
Royal Walnut Moth).
PLEASE NOTE, Banshee Reeks is now open to the general public from 8 am to 4 pm
on the 3rd weekend of every month (Aug. 16 and 17 this month)!
The complete list follows (the first number is Banshee, the 2nd the Wetlands):
Great Blue Heron 1
Green Heron 3
Black Vulture 1
Turkey Vulture 5
Canada Goose 8
Red-tailed Hawk 2
Am Kestrel 3
Rock Dove 6
Mourning Dove 15
Yellow-billed Cuckoo 1/1
?Common Nighthawk 2
Ruby-throated Hummingbird 2
Belted Kingfisher 1
Red-headed Woodpecker 3, 1 a juvenile
Red-bellied Woodpecker 1
Northern Flicker 2
Pileated Woodpecker 1
Eastern Wood-Peewee 2
Trail's (Willow?) Flycatcher 2
Eastern Kingbird 6
Blue Jay 3
Am Crow 2
Barn Swallow 25
Carolina Chickadee 2
Tufted Titmouse 2
White-breasted Nuthatch 2
Carolina Wren 2
House Wren 2
Eastern Bluebird 5, including 2 juveniles
Wood Thrush 3
Am Robin 25
Gray Catbird 12
No Mockingbird 5
Brown Thrasher 5
European Starling12
Common Yellowthroat 1
Scarlet Tanager 1
Eastern Towhee 3
Chipping Sparrow 8
Field Sparrow 7
Grasshopper Sparrow 1
Song Sparrow 3
No Cardinal 3/4
Blue Grosbeak 0/1
Indigo Bunting 15
Eastern Meadowlark 3
Common Grackle 2
Baltimore Oriole 1
Am Goldfinch 20
We also saw the following butterflies:
Tiger Swallowtail: 15
Black swallowtail: 1
Cabbage White: 10
Clouded Sulphur: 5
Eastern Tailed Blue: 12
Great Spangled Fritillary: 2
Pearl Crescent: 1
Silvery Checkerspot(?): 1
Common Wood Nymph: 1
Monarch: 15
Silver Spotted Skipper: 1
Zabulon Skipper: 2
Least Skipper: 1
& a Hickory Horned Devil Caterpillar
Joe Coleman, near Bluemont, VA
jandkcoleman@xxxxxxxxx or 540-554-2542
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