LOWER EASTERN SHORE, NOVEMBER 6-12, 2013, mostly
Virginia.
ABBREVIATIONS & GAZETTEER. CBBT, Chesapeake Bay Bridge & Tunnel. ESVNWR,
Eastern Shore of Virginia NWR. Fisherman Island NWR. KSP, Kiptopeke State
Park. Magotha Road, leads to Magothy Bay (note the
variant spellings) seaside due E of KSP. “the platform”, site of the hawk
watch at
KSP. Ramp Lane, S end of ESVNWR.
DRAMATIS PERSONAE (not intended to be a complete list). Bob Ake, Bob Anderson
& Thuy Tran, Scott
Barnes, Joe Beatty, Ruth Beck, Perri Borowiecki, M/M Jim Brighton, Larry
Brindza, Ned Brinkley, Ann Carpenter, Bob Chapman, Brenda Chase, Todd Day,
Shirley
Devan, John Diener & Lizzie Goodrick (these 2 headed to far eastern Russia
next summer to do Dunlin geolocater work), Adam D’Onofrio, Gerri Howe, Sally
Knight, Steve Kolbe, Nan LaRue, Gabriel & Mary Mapel, Andrew Mapp, Debbie
Mignogno (haven’t seen her in 32 years, she says), Paul Nasca, Zak Poulton,
Sheila Scoville, Capt. Buddy Vaughn, Gerry Weinberger, Alex Wilke.
NOVEMBER 6, WEDNESDAY.
Non-stop drive, 1:46 P.M. – 4:27 P.M., 2 hrs., 41 min., 137.3 miles,
average 51.2 m.p.h., not a record but close; the record is 2 hrs., 35 mins.,
done in the wee small hours once. Get to
Rigby’s Folly in time to see sunset from Lucy Point.
A Cackling Goose with 85 Canada Geese in the cove, the 3rd
sighting this fall. I suspect the same
individual. 8 Buffleheads, 3 Common
Loons, a bat, and 45 Laughing Gulls foraging in groups out on the Choptank
River mouth.
Only 0.2” in the rain gauge since last time. Fair, SW 5+, 63-60 degrees F.
NOVEMBER 7, THURSDAY.
All in MD except Chincoteague.
Overcast, 61 degrees F., NW5, light rain last night. 1 kingfisher.
Leave early, by 7:37 A.M.
Trappe: just N of town: 415 Canada and 1 adult Snow goose.
Egypt Road: Wild
turkey 26, killdeer 18, mourning dove 245, eastern meadowlark 4, ring-billed
gull 285 & 2 laughing gulls in with them, Canada goose 310, eastern
bluebird 7, red-tailed hawk 1, northern harrier 1, and American kestrel 3.
Blackwater N.W.R.
9-11:30 A.M. Pool 1 with a good
variety of ducks. Overcast, SW5, waters
high, 59°F. Complete refuge list:
Canada goose 1,100, Gadwall 41, American black duck 11,
mallard 535, northern shoveler 35, northern pintail 32, green-winged teal 172,
redhead 2 (Pool 1), ring-necked duck 110 (Pool 1), lesser scaup 4 (Pool 1),
AMERICAN WHITE PELICAN 20 (they often hang out on the far S side of Blackwater
River, so if one doesn’t scope over in that direction it’s easy to miss them),
double-crested cormorant 24, great blue heron 7, turkey vulture 14, bald eagle
21, northern harrier 3, red-tailed hawk 1, American kestrel 1, Virginia rail
11, American coot 1, greater yellowlegs 6, dunlin 20 laughing l 2 &
ring-billed gull 11, Forster’s tern 26, tree swallow 35, SNOW BUNTING 3 (on the
dike by Pool 5) plus a Fox Squirrel.
DeCoursey Bridge Road, 11:50 A.M: sora 1, Virginia rail 3,
green-winged teal 70, Canada goose 60, bald eagle 4 adults, double-crested
cormorant 4, swamp sparrow 5, hermit thrush 1.
Deal Island Wildlife Management Area. 1-4 P.M.
Overcast, occasional light rain, SW 5 – NW 15-20, starting to clear at
the end, covered only Dumpster and Riley Roberts roads, Route 363 in between).
Here and elsewhere some Queen Anne’s Lace is
still in bloom. Water is low in the big
impoundedment, high in tidal areas. Run
into 2 duck hunters from St. Michaels, one used to work for ex-neighbor Michael
Davidson. Complete list:
Canada goose 85, gadwall 55, American wigeon 70, American
black duck 45, unID’d ducks 300, pied-billed grebe 2, double-crested cormorant
23, great blue heron 3, great egret 4, black-crowned night heron 1, turkey
vulture 7, osprey 1, bald eagle 4 (all of them adults, on phone poles),
northern harrier 5, sharp-shinned hawk 1, Cooper’s hawk 1 (low over the road,
c. 2” above it, flying in front of the car), merlin 1, peregrine falcon 1 (on
the
hacking tower), clapper rail 3, Virginia rail 9, greater yellowlegs 11, dunlin
7, ring-billed gull 20, royal tern 3, belted kingfisher 4, red-bellied
woodpecker 1, Carolina wren 1, Savannah sparrow 10, song sparrow 1, eastern
bluebird 5, and boat-tailed grackle 1 male, plus, and this is important, a Gray
Squirrel on Riley Roberts Road.
Chincoteague causeway, 4:45 – 5:15 P.M.: clapper rail 1,boat-tailed grackle 18,
northern harrier 3, bald eagle 2 adults, greater yellowlegs 7, willet 1, great
blue heron 1, dunlin 25, common loon 1, belted kingfisher 1, American
oystercatcher 0.
NOVEMBER 8, FRIDAY.
Only 25 raptors at the platform but also there: Rusty Blackbird 3,
Purple Finch 20 (landed in a Black Cherry next to us), Tundra Swan 48 (groups
of 5, 10 & 33), 100s each of robins, grackles & redwings, 165 Brown
Pelicans on the concrete ships, a procession of 76 Turkey & 2 Black
vultures plus a redtail, 2 Wood Ducks, 2 Green-winged Teal, and Common Loon
plus a Monarch. Bob Chapman sees a
12-point buck near the raptor station.
Magotha Road with Gerry, Sally & Brenda. White Ibis 1 imm., Bald Eagle 2,
Forster’s
Tern 6, cormorant 2, Willet 40, Tundra Swan (heard only), Dunlin 10, Common
Loon 1, Bufflehead 2 males, oystercatcher 4, Chipping Sparrow 11, bluebird 7.
Ramp Lane, 4:15 – 5:45.
With Bob Ake, Debbie, Sally, Brenda & Gerry. Very low tide. Rough-legged Hawk
1 light phase, Glossy Ibis
1, Clapper Rail 20, Great Egret 1, Common Loon 1, Greater Yellowlegs 6, Tundra
Swan 1, Bald Eagle 3, Black-crowned Night Heron 7, Northern Harrier 5, Song
& Seaside sparrow 1 each, Boat-tailed Grackle 45, Willet 1, and Great Blue
Heron 6.
NOVEMBER 9, SATURDAY.
As part of Todd Day’s roundup Bob Ake and I are on CBBT 7:45 A.M. – 4
P.M. We see 31 species. We have noticed over the years that if you
see a cormorant on one of the big, metal, clangy channel markers it will be a
Great, if a gull it will be a Great Black-backed. It is a pleasure today to
see 4 scuba divers
on island 4, sometimes surfacing within 6 feet of the Black Scoters … and the
scoters didn’t mind; they also fly around within feet of the many fishing
boats.
Below are our complete lists. Bob and I
keep separate records, so some of his totals on eBird may differ from
mine. We both see some birds the other
misses. Listed in order from island 4 S
to island 1.
Green-winged teal 5: - - 5 -; surf scoter 53: 36 16 1 -; white-winged scoter
2: - 2 - -; black scoter 138: 120 17 1 -; scoter unID’d 132: 111 21 - -;
long-tailed duck 1 female 1: 1 - - -; red-breasted merganser 15: 6 1 8 -;
red-throated loon 3: 3 - - -; common loon 5: - 1 4 -; horned grebe 2: 2 - -
-; northern gannet 190: 85 70 35 -; double-crested cormorant 20: 2 8 4 6;
great cormorant 2: 1 1 - -; brown pelican 71: 36 17 18 -; turkey vulture 246:
144 101 1 -; American coot 1 (same bird both islands): 1 1
- -; ruddy turnstone 6: - 6 - -; sanderling 43: 19 – 12 12; purple sandpiper
10: 6 – 4 -; American woodcock 1 (dead): - 1 - -; Bonaparte’s gull 5: - 5- -;
laughing gull 115: 45 50 20 -; ring-billed gull 80: 50 3 2 25; herring gull
140: X 35 70 35; great black-backed gull 154: 20 40 70 15; royal tern 3: 2 1
- -; rock pigeon 49: - 4 20 25; tree swallow 4: 4 - - -; myrtle warbler 6:
6 - - -; song sparrow 1: - 1 - -; slate-colored junco 4: 1 2 – 1; eastern
meadowlark 1: 1 - - -; American goldfinch 1: 1 - - -; HOUSE SPARROW 1 female:
1 - - -
(only the 2nd CBBT record ever).
Dolphin unID’d 15: - 15 - - (in configurations of 11 & 4.).
One of the juncos is foraging in the intertidal zone. The vultures are
migrating completely across
the Bay, low, slow, and near in configurations of (N to S): 60, 20, 44, 20, 43,
14, 1, 1, 42 & 1.
Fun to see huge ships, among them the Antonis Angelicoussis
(Greece), the Felicity Ace (Panama), the BBG Bright (Hong Kong), and the MSC
Erminia (Panama). The latter is seen
going out between isl. 3 & 4, and then an hour or so later coming in
between isl. 1 & 2. Apparently ships
can’t just hang a right when coming from Baltimore to Newport News. There’s
also a large catamaran, the Cat’s
Meow. Of the many fishing boats I only
see one fish netted, that the repulsive and unwelcome Oyster Toadfish, which,
in my experience, ALWAYS swallows the hook.
Some of the goldenrod on the CBBT is still in good
bloom. At isl. 4 we see a big jellyfish
1’ across. Our effort at isl. 1 is
minimal, mostly taken up with “lunch”.
The 5 Green-winged Teal are flying with 8 Red-breasted Mergansers as
seen from isl. 2. Tide: low at first
(really low), then high, then falling at the end. Clear, light winds, 40s –
low 60s. Delightful.
At Fisherman I. NWR a big female Peregrine Falcon is on one
of the lamp posts. At Mile 14 c. 7 big
gulls are harassing an adult Bald Eagle that is carrying something. I neglect
to write down the SNOW BUNTING but
I think it is on isl. 4.
15 or so of us assemble in the KSP yurt for an informal
tally. Others have seen (or heard) at various places on the VA ES: Golden
Eagle, Marsh Wren, Eurasian Wigeon,
Vesper Sparrows, 26 American White Pelicans, a Virginia Rail, a
Barn Swallow, White Ibis, and a few other goodies I neglect to record. Katie
et al. find just 24 raptors today from
the platform.
NOVEMBER 10, SUNDAY.
Many pelicans are in view from the platform. I go down close to the concrete
ships for a
better view, estimate 270 plus a peregrine, Black Scoter, and Common Loon.
Katie spots on 2 Northern Goshawks from the
platform but otherwise just 19 raptors.
Tundra Swans go over in groups of 16, 15 and 6.
At ESVNWR I purchase a bargain, Bob Hines: national
wildlife artist by John D. Junga, autographed by him (Beaver’s Pond Press,
2012, 162pp.), reduced to $5, with 78 illustrations, many in color: paintings,
photographs, sketches. Hines is a much
underappreciated wildlife artist. He
illustrated (using only dramatic blue, black & white) my friend, George
Reiger’s, book, Wanderer on my native shore (Simon & Schuster,
1983), nominated for the Pulitzer Prize.
NOVEMBER 11, MONDAY.
After breakfast 47 Fish Crows outside of Sting-Ray’s; glad they are not
inside. Am on the platform 7:30 –
3:30. Keep track of the robin flocks
with a clicker, counting by 10s, end up with 1,975. Also a good goldfinch day
with c. 225. A FOUR BUTEO DAY: 5 Red-shouldereds, 3 late
Broad-wingeds, 22 Red-taileds, and a light phase Rough-legged. Well … I spot
the roughie but misidentify it,
at first, as a harrier. An immature
Northern Goshawk also passes by. Katie
tallies 70 raptors of 11 species, none of them falcons.
Also of interest: 2 Great Egrets, 8 Wood Ducks, 3
Green-winged Teal, 2 Tundra Swans, c. 65 waxwings in 3 flocks, 2 Killdeer, and
28 Common Loons. Late butterflies: 1
Monarch and an Orange Sulphur. A huge
female Cooper’s Hawk goes by – at first we think it’s a gos – but no, it’s a
Coop. One kettle of Turkey Vultures is
comprised of 37 birds.
Ramp Lane, 3:45 – 5:30 P.M.
There are 96 Greater Yellowlegs and a Western Sandpiper in
the pond … before flushed by a helicopter.
A pleasant evening tally here with Debbie Mignogno, Bob Anderson, Thuy
Tran, Steve Kolbe, Zach Poulton, and Paul Nasca present. Clear, high 50s, SW
or so 10-15, but it is
COOL, chilly even.
We find: Clapper Rail
20, Brant 38, Bald Eagle 4, Northern Harrier 2, Tree Swallow 10, American Robin
11, Myrtle Warbler 6, White Ibis 5, Dunlin 400, Green-winged Teal 22, Great
Egret 3, Mallard 5, Common Loon 1, Black Scoter 1 male, Great Blue Heron 3,
Brown Pelican 35, Double-crested Cormorant 6, Forster’s Tern 4, Wilson’s Snipe
1, American Black Duck 12, Black Vulture 4, and, on the way out, a Great
Horned Owl almost smacks into the
windshield. Also: 1 Eastern Cottontail,
1 deer.
NOVEMBER 12, TUESDAY.
Today is eleven twelve thirteen.
The sting of leaving is lessened by making some good stops along the
way. In a field E of Arlington Road at
7:12 A.M. near the Pond Drain road: 145 Rock Pigeons, 37 Killdeer, 95
starlings, a kestrel, 3 Mourning Doves, and a combo flock of 400 Red-winged
Blackbirds and Common Grackles. At
Arlington Road X Route 704 an adult Red-shouldered Hawk is perched somewhat
precariously on the wire.
Box Tree Road (Machipongo), 9:15 A.M.: 10 Greater
Yellowlegs, 4 Willets, a Red-tailed Hawk, 2 harriers, and, attracted by 4 large
Drum fish heads: 8 Turkey & a Black vulture, a Herring Gull, 2 Fish
Crows. Very low tide here.
Route 600: Next to Route 620 and Locust Lawn Drive are 185
American Crows foraging in a freshly-worked field, in a close formation. 9:34
A.M.
Willis Wharf, 10-10:45 A.M.
Fair, low 50s, NW 25 m.p.h., the front’s coming through. Tide as low as
I ever remember it here, but, thanks to an adult Bald Eagle, the shorebirds -
usually nowhere to be seen under such conditions - are flushed 3 times. Where
else in this region can one see a cloud
of Marbled Godwits?
So (a few of these seen at the adjacent Ballard Park Pond):
c. 145 Marbled Godwits, 80 Willets, and 11 Forster’s Terns. Also: 2 Ruddy
Turnstones, 9 Black Vultures, 7
Double-crested Cormorants, 6 Mallards, 35 Dunlin, 4 Fish Crows, a Pied-billed
Grebe, 3 Hooded Mergansers, 6 Buffleheads, 4 American Black Ducks, and 185
Canada Geese.
Chincoteague N.W.R., noon – 1:45 P.M. Low tide.
A few barely-detectable snow flurries.
Overcast and really blowing, 25 or so, overcast, 43 degrees F. falling
to 40. Didn’t do any birding along the
causeway, but count 32 fresh blinds from just one spot there. I concentrate on
Swan Cove, Black Duck Marsh,
and the road out to the beach:
Royal 65 and Forster’s 61 terns,, Greater Yellowlegs 16,
Dunlin 210, Black-bellied Plover 3, Bald Eagle 3, Bonaparte’s Gull 1 immature,
Snow 210 and Canada 90 goose, Great Egret 14, American Black Duck 195, Mallard
45, Green-winged Teal 6, Bufflehead 12, Sanderling 3, Northern Shoveler 10,
Red-breasted
Merganser 5, Ruddy Duck 15, Gadwall 28, Little Blue Heron 1 immature, 40
Ring-billed, 20 Herring, 3 Laughing & 30 Great Black-backed gulls, Turkey
Vulture 2. Kingfisher 1, cormorant 18, and Savannah Sparrow 1.
Get home at 6:15 P.M., almost running out of gas.
Best to all. – Harry Armistead, Philadelphia.
