I arrived at Occoquan Bay just after the gate opened and I was the first one
there today. It was a bit foggy (stayed foggy most of the morning over the
water), but the rain was finished. Overall, it was quite birdy today.
Highlights included 9 species of sparrows (3 Fox Sparrows that were singing
back and forth to each other), a female Northern Harrier (seen several
times), plenty of Winter Wrens, and a late Palm Warbler (Yellow/Eastern).
There was a fair amount of shotgun fire, so I was expecting the worst in the
way of waterfowl. Surprisingly, there was a decent mix, including a very
large raft of 400-500 Ruddy Ducks, not far from shore. About half way
through the walk I met up with Herco Gooweg. He had started the day at the
Belmont Bay Marina, where he found American Wigeon in addition to the ones
we saw on the refuge (I went there after the refuge and found Northern
Shoveler). There were several large rafts of waterfowl that were quite
distant and which may have been IDable on a fog free day.
A somewhat humorous moment happened near the gazebo/cove. Herco and I both
scoped what we thought was a small raft of waterfowl that included a
Redhead, Canvasback, Greater Scaup, et. al. Further observation revealed
them to be DECOYS (we then noticed the nearby duck blind). In our defense,
it was still a bit foggy and they were somewhat distant. We both got a good
chuckle from that.
Complete list below. Herco also had a Gray Catbird near the swamp on culvert
on the wildlife drive, which I did not see.
Dave Boltz
Occoquan Bay NWR - CPW02, Prince William, US-VA
Nov 16, 2013 7:00 AM - 1:00 PM
Protocol: Traveling
4.0 mile(s)
63 species
Canada Goose 200 (many at Belmont Bay Marina)
Gadwall 2
American Black Duck 14
Mallard 40
Northern Shoveler 4 (Belmont Bay Marina)
Green-winged Teal 1
Ring-necked Duck 3
Lesser Scaup 6
Bufflehead 9
Hooded Merganser 6
Ruddy Duck 450
Pied-billed Grebe 1
Double-crested Cormorant 50
Great Blue Heron 4
Northern Harrier 1
Sharp-shinned Hawk 1
Bald Eagle 2
Red-shouldered Hawk 2
Red-tailed Hawk 1
American Coot 300 (most in Belmont Bay)
Ring-billed Gull 20
Herring Gull 2 (Belmont Bay)
Great Black-backed Gull 8
Mourning Dove 30
Belted Kingfisher 2
Red-bellied Woodpecker 3
Downy Woodpecker 4
Hairy Woodpecker 2
Northern Flicker 4
Pileated Woodpecker 2
Eastern Phoebe 1
Blue Jay 7
American Crow X
Fish Crow X
Carolina Chickadee X
Tufted Titmouse X
White-breasted Nuthatch 1
Brown Creeper 1
Winter Wren 7
Carolina Wren 6
Golden-crowned Kinglet 4
Ruby-crowned Kinglet 6
Eastern Bluebird X
American Robin 35
Northern Mockingbird 4
European Starling 300
Palm Warbler 1 (Yellow/Eastern)
Yellow-rumped Warbler 15
Eastern Towhee 4
Field Sparrow 6
Savannah Sparrow 1
Fox Sparrow 3
Song Sparrow 35
Swamp Sparrow 14
White-throated Sparrow 25
White-crowned Sparrow 1
Dark-eyed Junco 4
Northern Cardinal 25
Red-winged Blackbird 200
Rusty Blackbird 3
Common Grackle 120
American Goldfinch 15
House Sparrow 15
