Yesterday evening (30 June) I found two Least Terns on the James River just
upstream from the US 522 bridge on the Goochland/Powhatan county line. This is
not far south on 522 from the town of Goochland (the county seat) and is at the
river landing known as Maidens. A boat landing on the south side of the river
provides access; it can be reached by taking the first right turn off US 522
after crossing the river, and immediately turning right again on SR 669. Follow
this about 0.3 mile to the boat landing.
The terns were seen both flying and perched. A series of four small islands
lies just upstream from the bridge here, and the birds were flying around the
lower three islands while I watched them. They rested for a while on the
downstream end of the nearest island, providing good scope views. Both birds
were in full breeding plumage. I returned to the site today but did not see the
terns again. Other birds present both days included Warbling and
Yellow-throated vireos, many Tree Swallows over the river, Green Heron, Belted
Kingfisher, and other common species.
There are very few inland (Piedmont) records for this species in Virginia.
Although the species nests far inland along the Mississippi River and its
larger tributaries, there are no nesting records anywhere near this far inland
in Virginia (I'd certainly like to hear about it if anyone knows otherwise).
I'm at a loss to account for the presence of these birds at this time of year,
when I'd think they should be on or near their nesting grounds. I've imagined
several scenarios that might have brought them here, but can't say that any of
them are convincing to me. In any case, if anyone is birding along the James or
our other major rivers during the next few days, you might want keep an eye out
for this species.
Mike Stinson
Curdsville, VA
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