Hello VA-Birders,
What a day! I left Arlington at 12:30 AM this morning to head for the Eastern
Shore birding festival, hoping that the tropical storm and additional western
front would push in some interesting birds. This turned out to be the case.
It didn't start out well, however, as night calls were minimal at Magotha Road
and Ramp Road on the ESVNWR before sunrise. Three SWAINSON'S THRUSH calls and
a few warbler sp. calls were noted. Migrants did not show up much either
according to those well-positioned to observe them after sunrise. Perhaps
tomorrow will be a good day.
After the pre-dawn listening, I decided to attempt to round up some birds I
haven't yet seen this year. I had heard reports of Common Moorhen being seen
at Bredimus Farm and Yellow-headed Blackbird being seen at Willis Wharf, so
those became one of my targeted stops for the morning, along with Eyre Hall,
Magothy Bay, and various points in between. In the end, I added 5 year birds
to my list, bringing me to 293. I find that keeping track of my birds for the
year actually motivates me to find more birds and explore new areas. So far it
has been a lot of fun, though at some times a bit tiring.
My first success came mid-morning when I found an adult LARK SPARROW on a wire
with some Bluebirds along Wilsonia Neck Drive near Pear Cottage Drive. This
road extends west from Rte 13 a few miles south of Machipongo. Drive 0.8 miles
from Rte 13 to find the spot. Large fields occupy both sides of the road,
offering suitable habitat for the species. Ironically, I found this road while
getting lost looking for the Bredimus Farm.
After a few phone calls asking for directions, I found Bredimus Farm and also
found a COMMON MOORHEN. While trying to get a better look, Sue Heath and Bev
Leeuwenberg arrived and together we found two juvie Moorhens at the end of the
pond closest to the paved road. Also present on the pond were at least two
PIED-BILLED GREBES.
From here I went to Willis Wharf to try to refind the Yellow-headed Blackbird
reported by Ariel White the day before. I found a decent Red-winged Blackbird
flock but could not pull anything else out of it. The only other bird of note
at Willis was a hybrid male Mallard/Black Duck.
From there I drove to Kiptopeke where I *finally* got not one, but several
PEREGRINE FALCONS. These are not exactly a rare find at KSP, but for some
reason they eluded me all year in Virginia.
Following a nice time with many birders at the hawkwatch platform, Kurt Gaskill
and I decided to make a trip north to relocate some of the day's earlier finds
and do additional exploring. We refound one of the MOORHENS but not the Lark
Sparrow. We drove around various back roads and found a couple pockets of
birds, one having dozens of PALM WARBLERS, YELLOW-RUMPED WARBLERS, and a
BLACKPOLL WARBLER.
Later we went to Oyster, and we found it to be at high tide. This turned out
to be a blessing, as Kurt scanned the grasses he found a NELSON'S SHARP-TAILED
SPARROW among a couple SEASIDE SPARROWS, which was also a new bird for me this
year.
We departed the Eastern Shore and made a stop at Stoney Brook Estates near
Williamsburg where a MONK PARAKEET colony can be found. We found the colony of
at least 20 birds on Rexford Drive. This nest is on a telephone pole in front
of a couple of houses within a neighborhood, so please be respectful of the
residents if you decide to take a look. I understand that they now count as a
VA bird. They were fairly active and flew among the telephone poles giving
some calls occasionally, though far less raucous than when I observed them
flocking by the hundreds in South America this Summer. Still a nice addition
to the day's observed birds, though I wonder how the neighbors feel about them!
Take Care,
Jay Keller,
Arlington
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