I drove around Nokesville this morning looking for field birds, then visited
Bristow Battlefield and walked the trails. My drive covered Brookfield Rd.,
Parkdale Rd., and Valley View Drive. The highlight was the previously posted
dickcissel. Other notables were 3 pairs of kestrels (many nesting boxes
affixed to telephone poles in this area), warbling vireo at the stream crossing
on Brookfield, willow flycatcher at the marshy area on Parkdale, and bushels of
grasshopper sparrows and meadowlarks. At Bristow Battlefield grasshopper
sparrows and meadowlarks were again abundant. The notable bird was a singing
Lincoln’s sparrow in the trees along the fenced in horse pasture. I first
heard it singing, then saw it pretty high up in a tree.
Marc Ribaudo
Woodbridge
