As many of you know, the Path officially reopened a few weeks ago, in the
sense that the "trail closed" signs were finally taken down (active
construction ended a few months before). Hence all of the recent posts
about woodcock in the first memo. Sometime in the next couple of weeks, the
trail will be closed again (for several additional weeks) for the entire
trail to the platform (not the new trail to the water-control structure) to
be paved. Although some people used the trail during the previous closure
(particularly on Sundays when there was usually not construction work going
on), the park manager has asked people not to use the path during the paving
work-putting aside the safety considerations, I gather that walking on the
surface will it is being worked on can cause damage.
The path definitely wasn't closed yet yesterday. First of season birds
(for me) were:
Pine warbler 3
Barn swallow 1
NWR swallow 1
The good mix of ducks continues, highlights being 2 BLUE-WINGED TEAL and 1
RUDDY in breeding plumage. Also a couple of PIED-BILLED GREBES (too bad
that there have been no reports of red-necked-this would have been the
year). I flushed a WOODCOCK in the eponymous meadow. I large flock of
blackbirds (750) was mostly red-wingeds, but included a minimum of 15
RUSTIES (and could have had an order of magnitude more, as I was only able
to ID about 10 percent of the flock). Sparrows like the hay that has been
spread on the trail to the left of the platform, including at least 3 FOX.
Also of note, this morning I saw a RC KINGLET in White Oaks Park-checked my
records, and it is the first that I have seen since December 15. An entire
winter without seeing a single one-maybe I need to get out more. Has anyone
else notice them being scarce this winter?
Finally, an anecdote from the dry humor of The Dictionary of American Bird
Names (and no, I don't get a sales commission):
Aimophila. Gr. aima, "blood"; Gr. phila, "fond of." Swainson is credited
with naming this genus in 1837, its lone species being A. aestivalis. The
four other species of the same genus were first described later. It would
appear that Swainson made a separate genus for one species and then gave the
genus a singularly inappropriate name. "What's so blood-loving about a
sparrow?"
Ben Jesup
Alexandria
