Peter VanAcker and Tom Pendleton were foolish enough to get up at 3 AM
yesterday (May 15) morning to accompany me to Leonard's Pond and the marsh at
Nazarene Church Rd. in Rockingham County. I wanted to find out if any
interesting nocturnal birds might be calling -- especially rails. No rails
were heard! I was surprised at the Barn Swallow chatter in the pre-dawn hours.
I think the birds were actually flying about. We did hear a number of
Mockingbirds, well known (and at times despised) for their nocturnal singing.
As dawn broke at the marsh we saw several Wood Ducks, a female Mallard with
ducklings, a pair of Blue-winged Teal, one or two Spotted Sandpipers and a few
Killdeer. On our return around noon, we spotted a Green Heron in the back of
the marsh. This is an interesting marsh, to which I may make another night
visit. Anyone know of any other good marshes here in the valley that might
have breeding rails?
After dawn we headed up Briery Run Road to the top of Shenandoah Mountain. We
stopped at the dam and Peter promptly spotted a male Red Crossbill near the top
of a sycamore tree. It seemed agitated, turning side to side and uttering
repeated "jip, jips." A few other birds flew into the tree top, including
goldfinch, Worm-eating Warbler and Red-eyed Vireo, but the crossbill held onto
its branch and refused to vacate. That was the only crossbill we saw. As for
other birds, I list some highlights:
Acadian Flycatchers -- several heard and seen in the lower elevations,
especially along stream-side hemlock (what remains of these trees) stands.
Common Raven -- Reddish Knob
Black-capped Chickadee -- at or near summit
Red-breasted Nuthatch -- a small colony in a conifer grove about 3/4 mile south
on the ridge top road (Rockingham Co.)
Blue-headed and Red-eyed Vireo -- both species are common, but at different
elevations. As Clair Mellinger once pointed out, these birds distribute
themselves by altitude. My guess is that above 2500-3000 feet all or most of
the repetitively singing vireos were Blue-headed, while the Red-eyes were
lower. We had some good views of some Blue-headed Vireos "up top."
Parula -- one or two heard below the dam
Black-throated Blue -- about 5 were heard, two seen, along the ridge road,
including one in Augusta Co.
Canada Warbler -- two were seen, both in Augusta Co on the way to Reddish Knob.
One was in the expected habitat of rhododendron thicket at the fork in the
road just before the final ascent of the knob.
Yellow-rumped Warbler -- perhaps a dozen or more, with males singing their
territorial songs, all on the ridge.
Blackpoll -- a few were heard and Peter had a good look at one (eye level) on
the Reddish Knob road.
Bay-breasted Warbler -- we all had decent looks at a first year male and heard
a few more.
Black and White Warbler -- several heard, one or two seen.
Black-throated Green -- a few heard and one or two seen.
Chestnut-sided Warbler -- quite a few were heard in the higher elevations. The
open area atop Reddish Knob is a guaranteed spot to see a bold male singing
from an exposed perch.
Blackburnian Warbler -- one was heard, never seen, in a mixed forest canopy
around 3000 ft.
Worm-eating Warbler -- I counted 9 singing along Briery Branch Road in the way
up.
Ovenbird -- at least as many of these were heard as well; we also saw one on
the ridge road.
Scarlet Tanagers -- several heard, one pair well seen.
Dark-eyed Juncos -- many at the higher elevations. Found one nest with 4 eggs.
Towhees -- at all elevations.
Notably absent for us:
Raptors -- no Red-tails, Broad-wings or accipiters were seen. The Barred Owl
that was resident along the ridge a few years ago did not reveal itself.
None of the high elevation specialists like Winter Wren, Brown Creeper, or
Golden-crowned Kinglets were encountered. I'll have to check my notes, but I
thought I had G-c Kinglets up there last year?
No Hermit Thrush (don't know if they were ever known to breed up here); we did
hear a few Wood Thrush.
No Hooded Warbler, Cerulean Warbler or redstarts. Don't know about the status
of these up here, but we shoulda had a redstart at least!
Also, that afternoon I saw Cliff Swallows on Wayne Avenue, flying around the
red barn behind the Target distribution center near Stuarts Draft. There were
at least two singing Willow Flycatchers (my first of the year) along Lipscomb
Road.
I'm assuming that Allen Larner will post the bird list from Saturday's morning
field trips in Montgomery Hall Park in Staunton. Highlights for me were the
well-seen male Bay-breasted Warbler and the Olive-sided Flycatcher. Also, the
dedication of YuLee's trail was a very special happening. Thank you, YuLee,
for highlighting Augusta County as a fine place to go birding. If we could,
we'd name the county after you.
John Spahr
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