August 13, 2003, Wednesday. Smith Island, Somerset County, MD, area but
most time spent just south of there on islands and marshes in Accomack
County, VA. Gentle SW wind 5+ m.p.h., mostly overcast, with a couple of
isolated showers that mostly avoided us, temperature moderate, 70s - low
80s. Excellent boating weather, plus the added bonus that the tide was
rising the entire time, with really low water to start because of the full
moon.. Dramatis personae: Master bander, John Weske, Ph.D., Betty Pitney,
Charlie Vaughn, and myself.
Today we attempted to record all pelican, skimmer, and cormorant nests that
still contained apparently viable eggs and small, featherless young as
detailed below. One of the pelican eggs was pipping.
1. Crisfield, MD, a Clapper Rail walking chicken-like along an exposed mud
flat at Somers Cove. The Pines Motel in addition to being somewhat woodsy
is c. 1/3 miles off of the main drag and also a hundred yards back from the
side road. Here starlings were making depredations on the large fig bush
and a Gray Squirrel was scolding and putzing about (breathes there a mammal
more fussy?).
2. Shanks Island, Accomack County, VA. The main objective today, the main
event, was to band, for the first time this year, at the considerable Royal
Tern colony here, a late one. We banded 262 Royal Tern chicks. Always a
pleasure to handle these little dudes. They are attractive, scrappy,
vocal, and cute. They are also extremely variable with respect to bill and
leg color as well as the patterns of their early plumage. When released
they waddle engagingly along the beach and quickly reform their creche,
much to the relief of their attendant parents, and to us.
Also seen here: 65 American Oystercatchers (in sight from one spot), 30
Black-bellied Plovers, 3 Ruddy Turnstones, 7 Short-billed Dowitchers, 1
Least Sandpiper, 22 Sanderlings, 10 Semipalmated Plovers, 195 unidentified
peep (several distant flocks wheeling around at some distance), 1 Mute Swan
(only), 30 adult Black Skimmers, c. adult 235 Royal Terns in sight at one
time, and 17 Little Blue Herons (adults). A very low tide. The mud flats
were as extensive as I have seen them here and the various wading birds
were taking full advantage of this situation, the Shanks Island buffet. As
good a shorebird show as I have seen here. Butterflies: 1 Buckeye and 4
or 5 Cabbage Whites.
Black Skimmer nesting data. No nests with eggs. 1 nest with 2
medium-sized young in their classic hunkered-down, flat-to-the-sand
position. 9 other small young apparently not in their nests and unable to
be sorted out as to which were each others' siblings. And finally, 3 big
young, but not as big as the two capable of flight that I saw here on July
31. TOTAL (for today): 14 young. Young skimmers are even more appealing
than Royal Tern chicks.
For a nice, short essay on this beautiful, wild area please consider
reading Tom Horton's "Shankses", pp. 290-291 in his marvelous book: "An
Island Out of Time: a Memoir of Smith Island in the Chesapeake". (W. W.
Norton, 1996, 316pp.).
3. South Point Marsh, Accomack County, Virginia. (incl. remnants of
Cheeseman Island, formerly a separate island to the west of South Point
Marsh but now migrated east so that it abuts South Point Marsh now). This
area seems to fit well the phenomena described in the fine book on barrier
islands entitled "The Beaches Are Moving: the Drowning of America's
Shoreline" by Wallace Kaufman and Orrin H. Pilkey, Jr. (Duke U. Pr., 1983,
336pp.). What is left of Cheeseman and Shanks islands seems to closely
resemble a barrier island geologically as well as with respect to the
birdlife and vegetation, such as Sea Rocket.
Middle or second largest colony.
Double-crested Cormorant: 1 egg in 2 nests; 2 eggs in 10 nests; 3 eggs in
10 nests; 4 eggs in 1 nest; 1 young in 10 nests; 2 young in 27 nests; 3
young in 4 nests; 1 egg & 1 young in 5 nests; 2 eggs & 1 young in 1 nest;
and 2 young and 1 egg in 1 nest. TOTAL: 71 nests still with eggs and/or
small (i.e., featherless young). Also seen here: c. 190 large cormorant
young clambering around, mostly out of their nests. John banded 4 of the
large cormorant young.
Brown Pelican: 1 young in 3 nests; 2 young in 6 nests; 3 young in 2
nests; 2 eggs in 2 nests; 1 egg and 1 young in 1 nest. TOTAL: 14 nests
still with eggs or small, featherless young.
Also here: 1 of each of the night herons, 1 Saltmarsh Sharp-tailed and 6
Seaside sparrows.
4. South Point Marsh. Southernmost and largest pelican colony (the
nearest to South Point per se). A monster of a colony with over 600 pairs
of pelicans. What a spectacle. 1 of each of the night herons, a Northern
Harrier, 10 Boat-tailed Grackles, 3 Seaside Sparrows, and 40 large
cormorant young (out of the nest but not flying yet). Many of the Seaside
Sparrows seen today were juveniles. There were still several hundred adult
pelicans present here today and perhaps 200+ large young pelicans.
Double-crested Cormorant: 2 eggs in 1 nest; 3 eggs in 2 nests; 2 young
in 1 nest. TOTAL: 4 nests with eggs or small young.
Brown Pelican: 1 small young in 3 nests. TOTAL: 3 nest with small,
featherless young, none with eggs.
5. Ewell area, Smith Island, Somerset County, MD. The usual celebratory
crabcake lunch at Ruke's. 1 Yellow-crowned Night Heron, 1 Caspian Tern, 1
kingfisher, 14 black ducks, 9 Little Blue Herons (8 adults, 2 immatures).
Had a brief conversation with Michael Harrison, of the Martin N.W.R. staff,
at the U.S.F.&W.S. dock. At lunch we met Marty Cribb, who had come over
from St. Mary's County on one of the ferries and seen some Wilson's Storm
Petrels out in the Bay.
6. Today there was a moderate but definite migration of Barn Swallows
heading south through this area.
7. On the 183.4 mile trip home, a direct, non-stop flight (average speed
52.4 m.p.h.), this evening it was evident that goldenrod has started to
really color up in the past week or so. In Delaware the Wild Rice forms
really impressive stands at Duck Creek where Route 1 crosses it (New Castle
County). North of here, especially at Red Lion Creek, the Phragmites has
choked out much of the natural palustrine vegetation. A pleasure to listen
to Sibelius' 7th Symphony on 89.5. Haven't heard it before. It's brassy
and classy and dramatic like most of the other pieces by this composer that
I AM familiar with (Finlandia, the 1st & 5th Symphonies, Karelia Suite, et
al.). At the Delaware-Maryland state line on Rt. 13 a heavy rain storm
began whose edge was EXACTLY at the boundary, left and right as far as one
could see, so strong I almost had to stop. 3 miles farther up the line it
had stopped. Enough rain already.
8. Miscellaneous. Liz A. saw 2 Brown Pelicans at Beach Haven, NJ, today.
Still no breeding records north of Maryland. Last weekend George A., one
of the leaders of Brian Patteson's Outer Banks pelagic trips then, spotted
a Brown Noddy, one of the few offshore records for NC.
9. Best bumper stickers of the day:
God Bless the Entire World
Retired, 0/0.
10. Mea culpa. In my previous posting I'd indicated that Saturday was
August 1, Sunday was August 2. The days of the week were correct but Sat.
was Aug. 2, Sun. was Aug. 3.
11. from "Chesapeake haiku":
... Primordial ooze,
a periwinkle or two,
from boots in my boat.
I'll wash it ashore.
slack time is for maintenance.
distant islands wait:
Bloodsworth, Holland, Smith,
Spring, Pone, Tangier, James, South Marsh,
the Foxes, and Watts.
Terrapin Sand Point
and Okahanikan Cove -
names alone are good. ...
Best to all.-Harry Armistead, 523 E. Durham St., Philadelphia, PA
19119-1225. 215-248-4120. Please, any off-list replies to:
harryarmistead@xxxxxxxxxxx
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