February 19-21, 2005, three high quality, extremely satisfying days afield
on the lower Eastern Shore, land of Valero, Tru Blu and Royal Farms gas
stations, the latter having the worst chili I've ever eaten - featureless,
bland, and non-descript, almost a puree. No kingfishers or rails the
entire 3 days, hardly any Great Blue Herons. Jared Sparks and Harry
Armistead.
SAT., FEB. 19. Virginia. Chesapeake Bay Bridge & Tunnel. 7 A.M. - 4:30
P.M. 28-40 degrees F. Winds NW 5-15-10-5-0, nearly calm most of
afternoon. Clear. Tide sequence high to low to high, very low most of the
time. Forgot to get a permission letter so hung out on Island 1 most of
the time but infiltrated Jerry Jenkins' Virginia Beach Audubon Society
group on Islands 3 & 4 and later rode with Bobs Anderson and Ake and Thuy
Tran to Islands 3 and 2. Not a huge number of birds but great views of
most of them. Only three gull species was surprising and disappointing.
27 species, the complete list herewith. Common Loon 9. Red-throated Loon
11. Red-necked Grebe 1 (Island 1, many close views). Northern Gannet 20.
Double-crested Cormorant 75 (1 swallowed with not much apparent difficulty
an Oyster Toadfish at least 8 inches long, an impressive act of predation
considering all those spines and that large wide head, jaws lined with
teeth). Great Cormorant 22. Brown Pelican 1 adult. Brant 8. black duck
2. HARLEQUIN DUCK 5 (1 adult male, 4 females; Island 4). Lesser Scaup 75.
Bufflehead 60. Long-tailed Duck 32. White-winged Scoter 3 females. Surf
Scoter 460. Black Scoter 95 (their ringing, bell-like calls heard).
Red-breasted Merganser 120. Black Vulture 1. oystercatcher 2. Ruddy
Turnstone 16. Purple Sandpiper 34. Sanderling 4. Great Black-backed Gull
10. Herring Gull 60. Ring-billed Gull 360. Rock Dove 14. Song Sparrow
1. The white flank patches on the breeding plumage, adult Great Cormorants
are now quite conspicuous. We were able to see the striking green emerald
eyes of both cormorant species to good advantage today.
Best of all were 3 Harbor Seals variously hauled out on or swimming around
Island 3. Others reported 5 of these, Kipling's pudgy "child of the open
sea". A few times we heard them. Ships seen: Gemstar (Panama, with 7
huge holds). Helen W. Smith (trawler). Repulse Bay (London, container
ship). Lindavia (Monrovia, container ship). Contship Auckland (Monrovia,
container ship). Chaz's Toy (trawler). a U. S. Coast Guard ship whose
name escapes me mounting a big gun on the bow. A small, apparently unarmed
U. S. Navy ship, P621.
Ramp Lane, Eastern Shore of Virginia N.W.R., 4:45 - 6:15 P.M. Clear, winds
SW 5, temp. c. 38. The male EURASIAN WIGEON, probably the one first found
here on Dec. 31, seen in flight. Also a Merlin roosted on an Osprey
platform next to us for over an hour only about 100 feet away. Plus: 270
Snow & 1 Blue goose, 22 Gadwall, 10 American Wigeon, 2 Bald Eagles, 2
Mallards, 6 black ducks, 26 Canada Geese, 20 Black Vultures, 2 Hooded
Mergansers, 4 harriers, 2 Greater Yellowlegs, 70 Boat-tailed Grackles, 2
Tundra Swans, 9 Green-winged Teal, 900 Common Grackles, amd a few small
flocks of Red-winged Blackbirds. 1 woodcock seen at dusk. Also, 1
Raccoon. No White Ibis, herons or Clapper Rails. We were entertained by
an adult Herring Gull that several times flew across the Intracoastal
Waterway to a mussel bed then returned to the parking & launching area to
drop the shells on the ground, effectively breaking them, and then eating
their dull yellowish-brown contents.
SUN., FEB. 20. Mostly overcast, low 40s, winds NE 5-10. A highly
successful and enjoyable boat trip, 9 A.M. - 12:30 P.M. Embarking from
Ramp Lane with waterman Albert Heath were: John Young, Terry Jenkins,
Renee Hudgins, Bob Ake, Bob Anderson, Larry Lynch, Mel Baughman, Jared and
myself. We boated to the great Thoms Creek flats just off the SE end of
Mockhorn Island. Arrived c. 1 hour too late as the flats were quite
exposed and the shorebirds therefore rather widely dispersed but we did
see: 3 WHIMBREL (close, extended views), 12 Marbled Godwits, 21 RED KNOTS
(scarce here, more to be expected on sod tump areas on the sea side of
barrier islands), 115 Western Sandpipers, 110 Willets, 225 Black-bellied
Plovers, 1950 Dunlin (low, most probably already dispersed to other areas
to feed), only 6 oystercatchers, 45 Short-billed Dowitchers.
Many more waterfowl in the area than during the Dec. 30 Christmas count
here including: 195 Surf Scoters, 25 Long-tailed Ducks, 265 Red-breasted
Mergansers, 110 Hooded Mergansers, 170 black ducks, 385 Brant, 1100
Bufflehead (some thought my estimate to be way too low). Also: 1
Red-tailed Hawk, 5 harriers, 1 ad. Peregrine Falcon (at a hacking site on
Old House Creek 1 mi. or so N. of Thoms Creek), 7 Red-throated & 6 Common
loons, 1 Horned Grebe, only 1 Great Blue Heron, 20 Canada Geese, 1
Double-crested Cormorant, 20 Common Goldeneyes, and 3 Bald Eagles. Five
deer (does) near Dixon's Landing on our way back in.
All of us got to see the Eurasian Wigeon again today as did Jack Carroll
who was at the Ramp Lane landing when we returned. Mel Baughman found a
flock of 75 Wild Turkeys today a couple of miles north of Cheriton feeding
in a field there next to Route 13. As chance would have it Jared and I saw
apparently the same group on Feb. 21 at 8 A.M. just S. of milepost 83 south
of Eastville. Yup there were 75, exactly.
Kiptopeke State Park, end of Route 704 at the fishing pier, 2:15-4:15 P.M.
40 degrees, overcast, raw and penetrating, winds NE 10+ m.p.h. Here we
joined Bob Anderson and Bob Ake and 3 ladies from Maryland (with car tags
CATS MEO). 1 RAZORBILL spotted by the ladies, it then swam right next to
the fishing pier so that they looked down on it directly below them perhaps
10 feet away. Then it swam and dove rather rapidly off to the south.
Also: 8 Red-throated Loons (one heard calling at close range). 12 Common
Loons. 2, possibly 3, Cooper's Hawks. 2 Bald Eagles. 1 Great Cormorant.
40 Surf Scoters. 6 gannets. 5 Ruddy Ducks. 4 Common Goldeneyes. 6
Long-tailed Ducks, some calling. 12 Red-breasted Mergansers. 1
Sharp-shinned Hawk. 2 Red-tailed Hawks. 10 Lesser Scaup. An adult Great
Black-backed Gull was eating a c. 9-10 inch flounder with a Sanderling (1
of 8 or so there) in rather frantic attendance hoping for some little bits
of its own. Back near Route 13 an immature Red-shouldered Hawk was on the
wires.
Kiptopeke State Park, "Lake Maddox". 4:30 P.M. 28 American Coots, 1
Eastern Phoebe, 1 Pied-billed Grebe, 2 Gadwall, 1 male Ring-necked Duck, 3
Ruddy Ducks, and 1 adult Peregrine Falcon. 7 deer (does) seen nearby at
dusk.
Jared and I saw 30 Chipping Sparrows near Capeville c. 8 A.M. Also a dead
Striped Skunk d.o.r. in the center strip in front of Days Inn. "Dead skunk
lying in the middle of the road/Roll up the windows and hold your nose/That
ain't no rose..." Paradiso's "Mammals of Maryland" (1969; a book that
could use an index) indicates they're absent from southeastern MD but the
Peterson series mammal guide by Burt & Grossenheider shows them occurring
throughout the Eastern Shore of Virginia. Well ... which is it? I don't
have a Virginia mammal book.
Oyster. The "shell road", 5:15 - 6 P.M. High tide and getting higher. 80
American Oystercatchers, 85 Willets, 1600 Dunlin, 1 Greater Yellowlegs, 1
harrier, 1 Hooded Merganser. No Marbled Godwits. 1400 Common Grackles
coming in to roost in the phragmites.
MON., FEB. 21. Saw Paul DuMont and his Audubon Naturalist Society
entourage at breakfast at Sting-Ray's. They had seen a Chukar at
Chincoteague!
Willis Wharf, Northampton County, Virginia. 9-10 A.M. Semi-overcast, 45
degrees, winds SW at 15. High tide but ebbing, down a foot or so from
being very high. Shorebirds all concentrated in the water standing on the
highest but still-submerged mud-tidal area. Then they flushed and came to
within 100 yards of the main part of town allowing us to scope them to good
advantage for a full hour. 197 MARBLED GODWITS. 325 WILLETS. 47
Short-billed Dowitchers. 21 oystercatchers. 1 (that's right) Dunlin. 3
Greater Yellowlegs. 40 Ruddy Turnstones. At full high or full low tides
my experience is that one sees very few, sometimes no, shorebirds here.
Also: 1 Common Loon, 6 Fish Crows, 12 Rock Pigeons, 2 Bald Eagles, 7
Hooded Mergansers, 1 Double-crested Cormorant, 5 Boat-tailed Grackles. The
godwits spent most of the time preening, with their strikingly long,
carmine-colored bills, the epitome of elegance. Captain Monty Webb's boat,
The Safari, shifting around in a slight chop at the dock, made a sound just
like a bugling bull elk as its rub rail slipped against the pilings. Jared
buys a sack of clams from the Terry family.
Deal Island Wilidlife Management Area, Somerset County, Maryland. Noon -
6:15 P.M. On the way out Route 363 we detoured along Oriole Road to Oriole
to listen for Chorus Frogs. Sure enough there was a batch of them
ratcheting away, sound like a thumb running up the teeth of a comb a
little, getting higher-pitched and slower as it goes along. Dead calm most
of the time to winds SW 5-10 or less, temps to low 60s, fair but hazy
becoming overcast, a brief period of mostly clear skies at sunset, a few
periods of very light sprinkles, then stormy gray clouds overspreading from
the SW, the big moon occasionally visible. Beautiful late winter scenes on
the marshes and great open expanses of Chesapeake Bay. A splendid
afternoon.
2 SHORT-EARED OWLS (great views of their lovely, complex markings at close
range in plenty of daylight, the first seen at 3:18 P.M.). 1 dark phase
Rough-legged Hawk. 6 (SIX! This IS February!) HERONS: 23 Black-crowned
Night, 4 great blue, 1 imm. Little Blue (peculiar behavior - flushed out of
dense marsh grass like a rail and disappeared quickly; perhaps it was sick
and/or starving) & 2 Tricolored herons, 1 Great Egret, and 1 American
Bittern.
Waterfowl: 345 Canvasbacks (east of the bridge at Chance). 275 Surf
Scoters. 95 Buffleheads. 40 Long-tailed Ducks. 1350 AMERICAN WIGEON (no
doubt there's a Eurasian or 2 here but most of the wigeon were too far away
to diagnose). 300 pintails. 150 Green-winged Teal. 300 Tundra Swans
(extremely vocal, especially at dusk, great sounds, worth the trip alone).
85 Gadwall. only 4 shovelers. 25 Common Goldeneyes. 50 Lesser Scaup. 3
Mute Swans (way back in the marsh). 260 black ducks.
Also: only 1 Horned Grebe. 5 Bald Eagles (frequently flushed the
baldpates). 15 harriers. 1 catbird. 1 towhee. 1 Sharp-shinned Hawk. 6
Boat-tailed Grackles (1 male resplendent and shiny with iridescence). 30
Fish Crows. 52 Dunlin. 4 Greater Yellowlegs. A couple of men out on the
dikes exercising their retrievers (and themselves). Deal Island is still
home to 5 Skipjacks: the Somerset, City of Crisfield, Fannie L. Daugherty,
Ida May, and Caleb W. Jon. The latter is in sorry shape, will need much,
much more than 3-in-one oil, WD40, and some paint to get her going again.
She also lacks a lifeboat such as the small, blocky, coffin-like ones
suspended on davits off the sterns of the four others.
The rain started after dusk fell, when we didn't care, sometimes heavy,
beginning at 6:30 P.M. on the way home, when it didn't matter, with
occasional lightning. Stopped at Betty's Family Restaurant in Greenwood,
Delaware, for dinner. Nice little Greek place. My stuffed shells
parmesan, delicious but with a morass of gloppy, unmanageable cheese, also
delicious, but a Sisyphean task to try to untangle and cut it into edible
portions. Makes French onion soup look like a day at the beach.
When I first stumbled upon Emily Dickinson's 'There's a certain slant of
light/Winter afternoons' its impact was tremendous. She perfectly captures
the mild despair, malaise, and foreboding engendered by the failing
solstice light. Standing on the road at Tom's Cove at Chincoteague in
mid-December in the gathering dusk and watching the southwestern sky darken
this poem's lines ring absolutely true. "There's a certain slant of
light/Winter afternoons ... When it comes the landscape listens/Shadows
hold their breath./When it goes 'tis like the distance/On the look of
death." The afternoon skies now, two months later, are a different story.
They're luminous, lucent, full of the promise of spring, of summer, and of
days with still more sun. The Chorus Frogs seemed to think so.
Miscellaneous, extralimital. On Feb. 14 a roadkill Woodchuck on Levick
Street in Philadelphia in a densely-settled section a quarter of a mile
from their preferred habitat and stronghold at Melrose Country Club. Early
for it to be out and about (looking for love in all the wrong places?). An
immature female Cooper's Hawk flushed off the ground of my yard here on
Feb. 18. It perched and I walked closer to it. It flushed 2 more times,
perching in the same Swamp Magnolia each time, switching its tail back and
forth like a hyper motmot, and I approached it, getting closer each time.
I noticed a petrified Gray Squirrel at eye level behind a Yew bush 10 feet
from me. That hawk had Brunswick stew ('poo stew; originally made with
squirrel meat) in mind. I went into the kitchen (I was hungry also),
slammed the door a little, inadvertently, and the coop remained perched in
the same tree.
Best to all.-Harry Armistead, 523 E. Durham St., Philadelphia, PA
19119-1225. 215-248-4120. Please, any off-list replies to:
harryarmistead at hotmail dot com
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