On March 17 Harry Armistead lead a field trip for ASNV through Blackwater NWR.
For such a blustery day there was an overall good showing of our avain friends.
The following comes from an email from Harry:
. Dorchester County, Saturday, March 17, 2007. Clear becoming fair then
mostly overcast, 31-38 degrees F., winds 20-25 m.p.h., at times stronger.
A very cold, very windy day that made landbirding and effective use of
scopes difficult. Water levels in the ditches, ponds, refuge impoundments,
and fields extremely high. Water low along Blackwater River. Tide high
but falling at Elliott Island Road. The drive down last night took 1 hour
longer than the usual 3 in the snow, ice, and sleet, the ground snow ending
c. 10 mi. S. of the defunct Howard Johnson's on Rt. 301.
A: Blackwater N.W.R. 7:30 - noon. The official refuge bird walk
participants (Norm Saunders, leader, and Levin Willey) combined forces with
the Audubon Society of Northern Virginia (Jack & Sue Carroll, Ray & Anne
Smith, and myself as leader). During the course of the day we also ran
into Sean McCandless, Kevin Graff, and 3 others, part of the, I believe,
Cecil County Bird Club. Norm kept the official list; if my numbers differ
use his.
6 Double-crested Cormorants in migration. 12 Ring-necked Ducks (Pool 1,
mostly males). 4 Common Mergansers. 10 AMERICAN WHITE PELICANS in
spectacular, circling flight, then hunkered down amidst Tundra Swans. 25
Bald Eagles plus 4 on the Visitor Center videocam, 2 adults feeding the 2
eaglets. 8 Ospreys. 400 Snow Geese (very distant on the Blackwater
River). 1 Cooper's Hawk. 2 coots. 2 Lesser Yellowlegs. 2 Wilson's
Snipe. 20 Forster's Terns. 2 Laughing Gulls. 10 Tree Swallows. 2 Horned
Larks. 10 Chipping Sparrows.
The Carrolls and Smiths and I carried on for the rest of the day.
B: Sewards (Little Blackwarer River bridge). 8 Wilson's Snipe.
C: "Chicken City" (Bestpitch Ferry Road just E. of Bucktown), adjacent to
some big chicken houses, where the road makes a hard right going E. 1
P.M.: 27 Bald Eagles in one field (almost all juveniles; waiting for
chicken corpses?) plus a Horned Lark, 100 starlings, 425 Ring-billed Gulls,
10 American Crows, a Red-tailed Hawk, 8 Tree Swallows, and an ad. male
Northern Harrier. Often there are good numbers of both vulture species in
this area.
D: A field on the N. side of the road W. of Bestpitch and across the road
from the Blackwater N.W.R. Kuehnle Tract. 1:30 P.M. 55 Green-winged Teal
and a Northern Harrier.
E. Bestpitch bridge area, Transquaking River. 6 Bald Eagles incl. one
carrying beaucoup nesting material. 4 Northern Harriers. 8 Northern
Pintails.
F. Griffith Neck Road, the "Eurasian Teal Pond" (N. side of the road;
Claudia Wilds saw a Eurasian Teal here once): 35 Green-winged Teal, 1
Great Blue Heron, 2 ad. Bald Eagles.
G. Lewis Wharf Road. 2:30 P.M.: 7 Bald Eagles, 35 Tundra Swans, 1
Red-tailed Hawk, 1 Northern Harrier, 185 Green-winged Teal, 2 Bonaparte's
Gulls (winter adults), 22 American Black Ducks, 18 Northern Pintails, 1
Killdeer, 3 Greater Yellowlegs. Also: a Red Fox. The ducks, shorebirds,
and Bonies were in the field S. of the road.
H. Elliott Island Road. Until c. 5 P.M. At "Gadwall Bend" 8 Blue-winted
Teal, 6 American Wigeon, and 40 Gadwalls. 1 dark phase and a light phase
Rough-legged Hawk. 35 Green-winged Teal. 10 Bald Eagles. 40 Dunlin. 22
Greater Yellowlegs. 1 kingfisher (only 1 all day). 6 Ruddy Ducks. 60
Canvasbacks. 10 Lesser Scaup. 6 harriers. 4 Mute Swans (getting ready to
nest in interior marsh ponds it would seem). 0 Boat-tailed Grackles. 1
Muskrat. Fishing Bay no doubt had hundreds of ducks but was a seething
mass of white caps and gray, muddy water.
I. 32 Wild Turkeys in one group in a field at the T-junction of Fork Neck
and Drawbridge roads.
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