We had nine birders for our walk today at Dutch Gap. Though we had unseasonably
warm temperatures, and spring migration is winding down, we had a very
interesting morning.
We are getting into Atlasing season proper, and we had lots of evidence of
breeding today, starting with the ducks - from the first observation platform,
we found mother Mallard and Wood Duck with their broods. We also found a
Red-winged Blackbird constructing a nest from this vantage point. We took a
walk along the new boardwalk and took in more nesting activity, viewing an
occupied Orchard Oriole nest found earlier in the week by Kathy Carpenter and
Kathy Louthan. At least two pairs of Orchard Orioles were very active in this
area, possibly more. We also discovered another Red-winged Blackbird nest, this
one quite close to the boardwalk. If you visit and notice Red-wings very
agitated by your presence, you may be near this nest - it is best to keep
moving in that case to avoid stressing the birds. While at this spot, we heard
a single Bobolink singing. Yellow Warblers were heard singing from several
spots.
On the walk out to the river overlook we found a singing American Redstart one
of only a handful of warbler species for the day. The osprey nest on the
channel marker is still active. Down by the fishing pier, we had an up-close
visit from a Prothonotary. We were there on the rising tide, and found a small
flock of shorebirds on the mud across the channel. The big surprise of the day
was a lone Willet in this batch of birds. A group of peeps disappeared after
being flushed by a powerboat that for some reason made multiple passes up and
down the channel - we never got a good look at those, but the birds that stuck
it out were a group of four or five Semipalmated Plovers.
On the trails behind the Visitor Center, we had another surprise, a singing
Grasshopper Sparrow, perched on the barbed wire fence with a Kingbird and
several swallows. There was also a singing Warbling Vireo near the Sycamore
Spur trail. We had a few singing Blackpoll Warblers, one Black-and-white
Warbler, and one Blue Grosbeak.
We found what seemed like an unusually large number of Brown Thrashers (seven),
and there were quite a few Yellow Warblers singing, though they did not deign
to show themselves at any point.
We totaled 62 species - the list is given below.
—
Lewis Barnett
blbarnett3@xxxxxxxxx
Dutch Gap Conservation Area, May 12, 2018
Canada Goose 15
Wood Duck 4
Mallard 6
Great Blue Heron 2
Green Heron 2
Black Vulture 50
Turkey Vulture 14
Osprey 6
Bald Eagle 2
Red-tailed Hawk 1
Semipalmated Plover 4
Willet 1
Spotted Sandpiper 1
Laughing Gull 5
Mourning Dove 2
Yellow-billed Cuckoo 1
Chimney Swift 2
Belted Kingfisher 1
Red-bellied Woodpecker 3
Northern Flicker 1
Pileated Woodpecker 2
Eastern Wood-Pewee 2
Great Crested Flycatcher 1
Eastern Kingbird 1
Warbling Vireo 2
Red-eyed Vireo 3
Blue Jay 3
Fish Crow 3
Tree Swallow 4
Northern Rough-winged Swallow 2
Cliff Swallow 1
Carolina Chickadee 5
Tufted Titmouse 1
Carolina Wren 1
Blue-gray Gnatcatcher 6
Eastern Bluebird 2
American Robin 6
Gray Catbird 2
Northern Mockingbird 5
Brown Thrasher 7
European Starling 4
Cedar Waxwing 9
Northern Parula 1
Yellow Warbler 5
Yellow-throated Warbler 3
Blackpoll Warbler 4
Black-and-white Warbler 1
American Redstart 1
Prothonotary Warbler 5
Common Yellowthroat 5
Summer Tanager 3
Grasshopper Sparrow 1
Northern Cardinal 7
Blue Grosbeak 1
Indigo Bunting 2
Bobolink 1
Red-winged Blackbird 25
Eastern Meadowlark 3
Common Grackle 5
Brown-headed Cowbird 2
Orchard Oriole 10
American Goldfinch 1
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