SMITH ISLAND, SOUTH POINT MARSH, FERRY NECK, JULY 8-16, 2017. Liz & Harry
Armistead, John Weske. Unprecedented medical events: PVC (Premature
Ventricular Contractions = irregular heart beat), dehydration, hypomagnesemia.
Anyone having a tilt towards it will find grist for their Schadenfreude mill in
this report.
JULY 8, SATURDAY. Arrive at Rigby’s Folly, Ferry Neck, Talbot County, MD
(family property) at 6:20 P.M. A small fawn and 2 does in Field 2. The
Carolina Wren nest in a structure under the car port has been removed
(Raccoons?). 1.2” in the rain gauge since last time. Eastern Cottontail 4.
Wild Turkey, 5 in Field 4. 86 dropping to 83 degrees F. by 9:15 P.M., fair, SW
10, hot. New growths of weedy “wheat” 6” - 1’ in all the fields in spite of
being disked a few weeks ago.
JULY 9, SUNDAY. Cattle Egret 1, Bald Eagle 1 immature, Green Heron 2, Snowy
Egret 1, Yellow-billed Cuckoo 1, BLACK SCOTER 1. A tight group of 3 Great Blue
Herons at dusk presumably heading for Poplar Island. For the first time this
year Cicadas are sounding off, big-time. Five bucks on the driveway between
Fields 4 & 5 and a fawn and doe in Field 2. Diamondback Terrapin 25, as seen
from Lucy Point. Good Firefly show. Circa 9:30 P.M. Liz hears a Great Horned
Owl call 10 times, a funny time of year for that. 75-88, NW5+ becoming calm,
clear, low humidity. BUTTERFLIES: Hackberry Emperor 3, Common Wood Nymph 1,
Black Swallowtail caterpillars in the parsley.
CAROLINA WREN: a 4th off-the-wall breeding attempt this year, in a planter of
Colius by the back porch, with 4 eggs. Previously this year there have been
nests in a fold of the director’s chair on the front porch, in the base of an
old Osprey nest platform under the car port, and, finally, in the metal vent of
the clothes dryer. In the past they have nested inside one of my white
waterman’s boots, in the bicycle basket, over the front door sill, in an open
bag inside the car accessed from the open hatchback, in my boat’s transom
(several times), and other quixotic places.
JULY 10, MONDAY. 76-91, fair, SW10-15+. Cedar Waxwing 1, Snowy Egret 1, a Red
Admiral, and a Least Tern. Single Laughing and 2 Ring-billed gulls are fall
arrivals, after a fashion. An American Robin singing in the yard is unusual.
They do not nest in our yard, that is very isolated (i.e., far from other
yards/lawns) and I suspect has no earthworms. Have to do some digging to see.
JULY 11, TUESDAY. A new “yard” species, a 41” Red Drum, dead at the mouth of
the cove, covered with flies, El Stinko Grande. a.k.a. Channel Bass, and, the
smaller ones, Puppy Drum. Sciaenops ocellatus. On hand are Fishes of
Chesapeake Bay by Samuel F. Hildebrand and William C. Schroeder (Smithsonian
Institution Press, p. 276-288, 1928, reprinted 1972, 388pp.) and Life in the
Chesapeake Bay by Alice Jane Lippson and Robert L. Lippson (Johns Hopkins U.
Pr., p. 190, 1984, 229pp.).
Neither source indicates by their illustrations that Red Drum have a notched
tail, although Hildebrand states: “slightly concave in larger fish”. This dead
one’s tail was pronouncedly concave so if I’d measured it to the outer tip of
its caudal (tail) fin instead of the central, notched area, you could say the
fish is 42” in length. Overall the fish was rosy-whitish in coloration. Big
scales. Gross. Biggest one on record: 94 lbs. I’d guess this one was c. 30
lbs. Some of the photographs via Google do show tails that are forked, but not
as markedly so as this one. Wading out to it, c. 100 yards, it is delightful
to find so much dense SAV, the most I’ve ever seen in Poplar Cove. At waist
depth the water is so much cooler than around the dock. See only 3 Sea Nettles.
Gray Squirrel 5 (including “snowshoes”, “half-tail”, and “tail-half-red”),
Eastern Cottontail 5. BUTTERFLIES: Pearl Crescent, Eastern-tailed Blue,
Buckeye. At 8:50 P.M., as I am wont to do, I dump chicken remains, popular
with minnows, off the end of the dock; coming back I hear a sort of chortling,
there between me and the base of the dock, on the dock, is a half-grown
Raccoon. Thinking rabies, I blow hard on a whistle and, unimpressed, it slowly
shambles off over the rip rap. 77-90, SW 5-10, fair, 86 degrees F. at 9:15 P.M.
JULY 12, WEDNESDAY. A 12” skink on the front porch. See “Snowshoes”. ROYAL
OAK: 4 Cattle Egrets. Hook up with John Weske in Easton. CAMBRIDGE, 35 Canada
Geese at Sailwinds Visitor Center. CRISFIELD: Rock Pigeon, 50 on the wires,
Bald Eagle 1 adult, Barn Swallow 7, Royal Tern 3, Osprey 1.
SOUTH POINT MARSH, ACCOMACK COUNTY, VIRGINIA (a couple of miles south of Smith
Island and the MD/VA line). John Weske and I reconnoiter the huge Brown
Pelican colony here prior to the main event, banding of young pelis tomorrow,
motoring out in John’s Boat, ‘the Lou”na” Sea’, with its 115 horse Suzuki. In
the south third of the colony I use the clicker, count 184 nests still with
eggs. I think I noticed all of these there. Many either also have very small
young (“naked chicks”, so to speak) and/or eggs that are pipping. With his net
John catches, employing his classic, legendary 40-foot sprint, 2 adult pelicans
banded previously (938-77877 and 938-65715).
I estimate 2,100 flight-capable Double-crested Cormorants in the entire S.P.M.
area. Also at this south end: American Black Duck 1, Seaside Sparrow 1,
Red-winged Blackbird 2, Yellow-crowned Night Heron 1, American Oystercatcher
11, 7 MUTE SWANS, Snowy Egret 5, Great Egret 2, Royal Tern 35 (intriguing,
several carrying minnows), Laughing Gull 12, Great Black-backed Gull c. 85
(many large, fuzzy young), Herring Gull 125 (likewise some big young). Many of
the cormorant nests are empty, the young already fledged, but there are still
scores with eggs or very small young. Enough Royal Tern sightings to suggest
there is a colony somewhere on the Eastern Shore of Virginia, Bayside. ?
In the central area of SPM there are also many nests still with eggs, 106.
Also Great Egret 2, Snowy Egret 2, Tricolored Heron 1, Seaside Sparrow 2,
American Oystercatcher 2. Up here and farther north are many large young
(“bruisers’), about as big as adults. Overall I’d say the SPM pelican colony,
in toto, comprises well over 1,000 pairs. What with the many nests still with
eggs and very small young, many 100s of pelicans will remain to be banded later.
SMITH ISLAND, MARYLAND, today, we pass all 3 of the towns: Little Blue Heron 3,
Tricolored Heron 2, Great Egret 2, Snowy Egret 2, Yellow-crowned Night Heron 2,
Fish Crow 16, Purple Martin 8, Barn Swallow 5, European Starling 5, Boat-tailed
Grackle 4, Double-crested Cormorant 60, Brown Pelican 1, Osprey 6, Willet 5,
Green Heron 1, Great Blue Heron 2, and Royal Tern 3.
JULY 13, THURSDAY. SOUTH POINT MARSH again: After 15 minutes ashore I become
very weary and spend the rest of the time in a boat under its canopy (thank you
APHIS) while the 33 others band 819 (preliminary, unofficial total) Brown
Pelican chicks, 10:15 A.M. - 1:45 P.M. A flotilla of 6 boats. I notice 3
other folks, all c. 1/3 my age, come back to the landing area after about an
hour and just sit there with their heads down, as well as a couple of older
folks, also done in, to various degrees, by the heat. One estimate of the heat
index is 110, that I think is much too high. My pulse, for the first time that
I know, is irregular, beats 3 times then pauses, 3 times then pauses …
While I’m resting in the boat under its canopy in the shade and hydrating I do
at least scan vigorously for birds other than gulls, pelicans, and cormorants,
and see: American Oystercatcher 1, American Black Duck 4, Snowy Egret 6, Fish
Crow 2, Little Blue Heron 2, Royal Tern 3, Tricolored Heron 6, Yellow-crowned
Night Heron 1, Laughing Gull, 2, Great Egret 2, and Osprey 1. My high count of
flight-capable Brown Pelicans in sight simultaneously from this vantage point
is 570.
SMITH ISLAND, MD, (not seen yesterday): MUTE SWAN 3 (still a few not yet
“removed” from the lower Bay), Glossy Ibis 1.
THE BIG MESS UPS. One of my very worst days, certainly the worst boating.
I’ve had over 50 years experience handling small boats, quite a bit of it in
this area (where for 3 straight Junes I operated out of the refuge house in
Ewell for a week each year), but today one wouldn’t know that. I take some
pride in my experience and seamanship abilities. I don’t think any of the
mistakes I make today are related to the onset of the several medical issues,
although that would be a convenient excuse. I just don’t know why they happen.
1st I make a wrong turn down towards Tylerton. 2nd I run aground out by the
jetties west of Ewell. 3rd, and potentially very serious, I slam into a big,
metal channel marker at 5,000 rpms in Big Thorofare. A glancing blow, but it
could have broken Jackie’s arm had it been outside the boat. No damage is done
to John’s boat save to some barely-detectable on the rub rail. I surrender the
helm, but on the way back to Crisfield we cross a very rough wake and the boat
slams down SO hard it feels as if my lower back is compressed in half. A very
rough ride today and I am amazed not to have any resulting back discomfort.
When I think of the collision, which is (too) often, I flinch, close my eyes,
shake my head, and have feelings of shame and guilt.
JULY 14, FRIDAY. HEALTH REPORT. Spend from 10 A.M. - 4 P.M. at 2 health
facilities in Easton, Maryland, with NO waiting at either place. First at Your
Doc’s In (“Doc-in-a-box”) where an EKG reveals, in their words, that my
heartbeat is “all over place” and the Dx is PVC (Premature Ventricular
Contractions), a low magnesium level, and dehydration from yesterday. Then 4
hours in the Easton hospital ER where I receive an IV infusion of saline
solution, a magnesium pill, have blood work done, and am closely monitored. It
didn’t help, and it would be a convenient excuse, but I do not believe any of
this caused my sloppy boat handling on Thursday. True, the helm is somewhat
unresponsive, and it is a boat I’d never driven previously. At both medical
places everyone on the staff is terrific.
Back at Rigby’s Folly: 78-96, fair, SW10, a storm from 5:45 P.M., with scary
winds of 35 m.p.h.+ and a brief deluge resulting in 0.7”. The temperature
drops from 96 to 74 in a few minutes during the storm. Fields 1 & 2 finally
get planted, with 2 Cattle Egrets following the huge rig. Two CAEGs also seen
with horses in Royal Oak. Four Painted Turtles in Frog Hollow. A 12” skink on
the front porch. The rains stimulate 2 Fowler’s Toads and a Cope’s Gray Tree
Frog to call, after the rains stop. On the way down from Philadelphia Mary
sees a double rainbow, probably unnoticed by her young David and Lucas, and,
coincidentally the same day George photographs another doubler in Park City,
Utah, where he is attending the annual Audubon Society meeting. John Weske
overnights.
JULY 15, SATURDAY. Just take it easy. 74-90, fair, NW5+, hot but humidity not
bad. Two American Crows bring smoke on an adult Bald Eagle. Mary and her
children (David and Lucas) capture 20+ minnows of 3 species in the trap with
leftover pork. A female Blue Grosbeak flies over the dock and lands in the
marsh. Sit on the dock 3:30-4:30 and see a Forster’s Tern, 2 Black Vultures,
an imm. Bald Eagle in addition to the adult, and the grosbeak and crows. Eight
Painted Turtles in Frog Hollow, their basking log finally exposed again.
BAD YEAR hereabouts for Cow-nosed Rays, bluets, Osprey nest sites unoccupied,
Diamondback Terrapin, hummingbirds, Fowler’s Toads, and Green Treefrogs. A
good year for Eastern Cottontails. Today see BUTTERFLIES: a Tiger Swallowtail,
a Red-spotted Purple, and a Hackberry Emperor.
JULY 16, SUNDAY. A 1/2 grown cottontail out on the drive in front of the
house. Leave for PA at 8:45 A.M. Big group of 410 mid-morning Tree Swallows
in a compact group on 2 adjacent wires E of Route 481 c. 1 mile NE of 481 X
Route 309, a sure sign that fall migration is underway, albeit in subdued sort
of way. But these are true fall arrivals since hardly any (perhaps none) breed
in that area.
SMITH ISLAND (Maryland) can get in your blood. In the excellent (Chesapeake)
Bay Journal, that everyone who cares about the Bay should subscribe to (the Bay
Journal, P. O. Box 222, Jacobus, PA 17407-0222; it’s free but send at least $25
anyway), in the July-August 2017 issue, vol. 27, no. 5, pages 1, 32-33, is an
article “Smith Island losing land, population, and now its shepherd.” There’s
a whole bunch of other great articles on the Bay by distinguished authorities.
Getting this is worth it just for the evocative photography of Dave Harp.
DAN CRISTOL ARTICLE. Hot off the press by an old friend, now Professor of
Biology at William and Mary College. “Age-related differences in foraging
ability among clam-dropping Herring Gulls (Larus argentatus)” by Daniel A.
Cristol (lead author) and 5 others, the Wilson Journal of Ornithology, vol.
129, no. 2, June 2017, pages 301-310. Studies were done at Powhatan Creek
where it enters the James River and Poquoson on the west shore of Chesapeake
Bay.
HYDRATION: what I am hearing from my recent experience is that the best
antidote to dehydration is simply plain water, but to add some flavor, Diet
Gatorade and/or Smartwater, too. Pedialyte is also recommended, but it is
sugary so, as an adult diabetic, I must avoid it. Important to get liquids
that provide electrolytes. Two of my prescribed medications, Lisinopril-HCTZ
20-12.5 mg and Metformin HCL 1,000mg, are apparently somewhat dehydrating.
Best to all. - Harry Armistead, Philadelphia.
