VA BIRDers.
The regular Sunday field trip to Dyke Marsh started with cool-ish, less
humid weather and the participants were quite pleased! Highlights today
were 3 Least Bitterns flying to the south of the trail on the dogleg, one
bright male, one female and one juvie. The male gave quite a nice look
flying 2 hundred yards or more. The other notable today was a nearly fully
grown juvie Hooded Merganser mixed in with the Mallards and geese off the
picnic area - perhaps low water levels where it bred (Huntley?) was the
motivation to drop in?
We started at the picnic area noting Forster's Terns with the gulls over
Hunting Creek riverside mudflats. A few Great Egrets were seen at this
time. A good show of Orchard Orioles, Indigo Bunting and Eastern Kingbirds
in the picnic area kept us entertained. As we approached the marina we
spotted a young-ish looking Eastern Phoebe! Near the marina we encountered
a Prothonotary Warbler that insisted on feeding near the boats! Mixed in
with the Mallards was an American Coot - no sign of the Ruddy Duck from 2
weeks ago. Ramp Road produced a brood of 3 young Great Crested Flycatchers
and 2 nearby busy adults; and along Ramp Road a bit we found Cedar Waxwings
feeding on a massive insect swarm high in the trees and nearby was our only
Baltimore Oriole. We headed down the Haul Road and found a few more Orchard
Orioles, and Indigo Bunting plus Blue-gray Gnatcatchers. The dogleg area
produced singing Common Yellowthroats plus the Least Bitterns. Near the
end, after much encouragement, a hatch-year Yellow Warbler came out to be
seen. The end of the trail yielded up Song Sparrow, more Eastern Kingbirds,
another Indigo Bunting, singing Eastern Phoebe on the western island, Marsh
Wrens, a calling Brown Thrasher, Purple Martins, Tree Swallows and Northern
Rough-winged Swallows.
I returned near 5 pm to the Stone Bridge to check out the birds at low tide.
Nothing unusual: two Bald Eagles, Caspian Terns, a single Least Sandpiper,
and hatch year Herring Gulls and Laughing Gull were noted. Today's list of
55 species is below.
Kurt Gaskill
C. Goose 150
Mallard 100
Hooded Merganser 1
DC Cormorant 4
Least Bittern 3
Great Blue Heron 15
Great Egret 9
Osprey 10
Bald Eagle 2
Am. Coot 1
Killdeer 1
Least Sandpiper 1
L. Gull 12
RB Gull 200
Herring Gull 2
Caspian Tern 3
Forster's Tern 2
Mourning Dove 10
Chimney Swift 3
Red-bellied WP 7
Downey WP 2
No. Flicker 1
E. Phoebe 2
Great Crested Fly 5
E. Kingbird 8
Red-eyed V 1
Blue Jay 2
Fish Crow 1
Purple Martin 2
Tree Sw 2
No. Rough-winged Sw 2
Barn Sw 14
C. Chickadee 2
T. Titmouse 10
White-breasted Nuthatch 3
C. Wren 8
M. Wren 2
BG Gnatcatcher 4
Am. Robin 4
Brown Thrasher 1
Cedar Waxwing 2
Yellow Warbler 2
Prothonotary Warbler 1
Common Yellowthroat 3
Song Sp 2
No. Cardinal 10
Indigo Bunting 3
Red-winged BB 25
Com. Grackle 12
Brown-headed Cowbird 2
Orchard O 7
Baltimore O 1
House Finch 5
Am. Goldfinch 6
House Sp 5
