Fellow birder Greg and I spent yesterday morning (5/13/06) exploring
the backside of Huntley Meadows in Fairfax County. We arrived at about
5:50am. It was cool and misty. The mist lasted for a while but burnt
off as the clouds burned off after sunrise. Watching the sun shine
through the mist and the spider webs sparkle in the meadow is not a
sight I will soon forget.
We saw 72 species total.
The #1 highlight was a female PRARIE WARBLER on the edge of the woods
near the Coast Guard Swamp. She was carrying a piece of a leaf,
possibly to a nest.
The other highlights also all involve the color yellow: 3 flyover
YELLOW-CROWNED NIGHT HERONS while we were in the Woodcock
Meadow;.still present in the Woodcock Meadow were at least 5
YELLOW-BREASTED CHATs; a YELLOW-THROATED VIREO showed itself in one of
the small meadows on the East side of the main trail
Also of note, the number of Catharus thrushes has dropped off a good
bit as compared to the previous weekend, but the number of Indigo
Buntings went through the roof. I counted at least 24.The number of
Blackpolls is also on the increase while the number of Yellow-rumps is
on the decrease. We also saw 11 Spotted Sandpipers in one area on
Barnyard Run, another sign that migration has turned a corner.
12 Warbler Species Seen/Heard:
Northern Parula
Chestnut-sided Warbler
Magnolia Warbler
Black-throated Blue Warbler
Yellow-rumped Warbler
Pine Warbler
Prairie Warbler
Blackpoll Warbler
Black-and-white Warbler
American Redstart
Ovenbird
Yellow-breasted Chat
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Jeff Clark
Fairfax City, VA
http://www.nothoo.com
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