VA Birders,
Nine birders, including a new resident in the area from Spain, Tomas
Gomez, enjoyed today's regular Sunday AM Dyke Marsh walk through the
Belle Haven picnic area, the marina, and Haul Road. Cloudy skies and
cool breezes from the east, bringing wafts of eau de Blue Plains,
quickly gave way to warming, blue skies. The picnic area wasn't too
productive, with a Warbling Vireo singing there only briefly, but there
was lots of OSPREY activity out on the river at three different nests
and in flight. DOUBLE-CRESTED CORMORANTS perched on snags there and off
the tip of Hoag Island.
Highlights of the trip were watching an adult BALTIMORE ORIOLE feeding
a very vocal nestling, and discovering, thanks to Lori Keeler, an
AMERICAN GOLDFINCH nest not far from where the old boardwalk began. A
female was putting finishing touches on the lining, using what appeared
to be the lush "cotton" of nearby cottonwood trees. Already on their
own were three young ROUGH-WINGED SWALLOWS resting and preening on a
snag at the cove south of Dead Beaver Beach and a young RED-BELLIED
WOODPECKER learning the ropes of feeding on its own. Although some were
just heard, other birds of interest this morning were GREAT-CRESTED
FLYCATCHERS, WARBLING and RED-EYED VIREOS, MARSH WRENS, BLUE-GRAY
GNATCATCHERS, NORTHERN PARULAS, YELLLOW WARBLERS, and COMMON
YELLOWTHROATS, All of these, but the cormorants are regular breeders at
Dyke Marsh, and most have already been confirmed during this season's
Breeding Bird Survey, still ongoing.
Paula Sullivan
Alexandria
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