VA BIRDers,
I spent the morning "out west" first visiting No. Forks Wetlands before dawn,
then heading up to Thompson WMA - the upper portion - just after 7 am.
Thence back down to No. Fork.
The early morning was focused on rails which netted Virginia at the wetlands.
As the sky brightened, a small group of Am. Black Ducks took flight. I
could hear the various Killdeer and peeps and Green Herons at this point and
noted
a Common Snipe relocating across the pond. But, the sky was starting to get
too bright and so I hightailed it for the mountains.
I arrived at the parking lot just south of the area I call Catbird Heaven and
slowly walked the gravel road northward along the ridge. This area has a
small clearing with a lot of vine shrouded trees and bushes and then two small
hayfields with a tree/bush edge alongside the road. The birds were just
becoming active as I started down the road (0715) and I soon noted a
Blue-winged
Warbler and a Canada Warbler foraging in the vines about 30 feet in front of
me.
E.W. Pewees and R.E. Vireos were singing nearby. The growling notes of a
Yellow-bellied Chat emanated from the vines and I noted my first Black-throated
Blue of the season. Soon, more activity ensued with E. Towhees, Gray Catbirds,
and Indigo Buntings darting back and forth.
As I continued down the road I noted much activity flying back and forth
along the road edges near the hayfields. A dozen feet to my left, a Least
Flycatcher began singing and continued to do so off and on for the next 10 min.
I
slowly moved up on the activity in front of me and quickly realized there were
many flycatchers in the area. Soon, the activity was going fast and furious
with flycatchers darting here and there punctuated by the snappy call notes of
Tennessee Warblers added to the back and forth mix. An American Redstart was
chasing another Least Flycatcher around the tops of trees whilst two Tennessees
mimicked their action on the other side of the road. Occasionally a
Ruby-throated Hummingbird would zip by....and then another. I then heard the
muted
piano key-like calls of Black-throated Greens. And then I noted this trio:
E.W.
Pewee, Trail's Flycatcher and Least Flycatcher sitting on the same leafless
branch. Beautiful!
Near the top of a tree, an Olive-sided perched. A Nashville was foraging in
nearby vines and below that was another Black-throated Green and a young
female Blackburnian. Near the turn out to the next parking area, a
Yellow-bellied
Flycatcher sat at eye level on another leafless branch. Some Blue-gray
Gnatcatchers moved about. I slowly made my way to the turn out, noting how my
zone
of disturbance cleared the flycatchers from my path. At the parking lot I sat
and waited, hoping for the birds to repopulate the edge. But, they had moved
on - a few Red-eyed Vireos flew out of the woods, not stopping. One HY female
Hooded dropped by, and another Tennessee appeared and then a Pine paused for
a moment. A Sharpie plowed through the hayfield across from me. I got up to
go as the first car came down the road. I walked the 1/3 mile back to my car
and, after making my notes, drove off. Two hours had past. The numerical
summary is below:
Sharp-shinned Hawk 1
Chimney Swift 4
RT Hummingbird 8
Olive-sided Flycatcher 1
E. Wood Pewee 12
Yellow-bellied Flycatcher 1
Willow Flycatcher 1
Trail's Flycatcher 2
Least Flycatcher 5
E. Phoebe 1
White-eyed Vireo 1
Yellow-throated Vireo 1
Red-eyed Vireo 5
Common Raven 1
Barn Swallow 1
Blue-gray Gnatcatcher 6
Gray Catbird 6
Brown Thrasher 1
Blue-winged 1
Tennessee 10
Nashville 1
Chestnut-sided 1
Magnolia 1
Black-throated Blue 2
Black-throated Green 2
Blackburnian 1
Pine 1
Black & White 1
Am. Redstart 5
Com. Yellowthroat 2
Hooded 1
Canada 1
YB Chat 1
E. Towhee 8
Indigo Bunting 5
I went back to North Forks and walked the circuit, chatting with Head Ranger
and Boy Scout Leader Joe Toelle afterwards. Highlights of this area were
Black-crowned Night-Heron, the aforementioned rail and snipe, and a
Green-winged
Teal. The summary of a hot hike:
Green Heron 5
Black-crowned Night-Heron 1
Wood Duck 11
Am. Black Duck 6
Mallard 4
Blue-winged Teal 2
Green-winged Teal 1
Red-tailed Hawk 1
VA Rail 1
Killdeer 5
Greater Yellowlegs 1
Lesser Yellowlegs 2
Semipalmated Sandpiper 5
Common Snipe
Chimney Swift 3
Tree Sw 12
Barn Sw 13
Field Sp 1
Savannah Sp 2
Grasshopper Sp 2
Song Sp 12
Blue Grosbeak 4
Indigo Bunting 10
E. Meadowlark 20
Kurt Gaskill
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