All - I headed out this morning to look for warblers but the Blue Ridge Parkway
was fogged in, so I decided to hit a couple of ponds. I'm glad I did! I
stopped at a pond just outside of Lexington - it is restricted access and the
owner is very particular about letting people on his property. At this pond,
there were, literally, 5 shorebirds. As soon as I arrived at the pond, I
spotted a small, sandpiper-like bird in the water at the far end of the pond.
A quick look convinced me it was a phalarope. I texted a fellow birder who has
permission to be at the pond also, and I started to work my way closer. I was
able to determine it was a Red-necked Phalarope, which is a county record.
While watching the phalarope do circles, we spotted a larger shorebird - a
Short-billed Dowitcher (the 3rd record for the county). In addition there was
a Least SP, a Semipalmated SP, and a Solitary SP. We usually see Least and
Semipalms each year but never in great numbers. So, not bad for 5 birds.
William Leigh posted earlier that it was a big day for shorebirds a little
north of Lexington, so clearly there is movement of shorebirds west of the Blue
Ridge this year.
I've posted some photos on Flickr, if you are interested.
https://www.flickr.com/photos/vmibiology/
Dick Rowe
VMI Biology Dept
