I was out this morning in Loudoun County for the VSO foray (in support of the
Loudoun County Breeding Bird Atlas) when I saw an adult Scissor-tailed
Flycatcher being harassed by a Northern Mockingbird at approximately 8am. The
flycatcher was an adult and the salmon "armpits" were well seen, despite poor
lighting conditions (I was looking toward the sun for the most part). The
bird's tail was approximately twice the length of the mockingbird's tail. I
observed the scissor-tail for approximately 5 to 10 minutes. The location
(north of Leesburg and east of Highway 15) where the bird was sighted is along
Hibler Road (Route 656), east of the intersection with Limestone School Road
(Route 661), over the fields just west of 43225 Hibler Road (farmhouse on south
side of the road). Unfortunately, after repeated harassment by the mockingbird
and several Eastern Kingbirds, the Scissor-tailed Flycatcher took off and
headed north, disappearing in a line of trees to the north of the road address
listed above. I hoped that it would return, but after half an hour, I decided
to walk back to my car (parked about 2 miles away). After returning several
hours later, I scanned the fields in the area, but failed to find the
flycatcher. Other interesting birds included a singing White-throated Sparrow
(heard only) along Limestone School Road and singing Horned Larks and a singing
Dickcissel at Temple Hall Regional Park. I never saw the Dickcissel -- which
was very frustrating because it could be heard very clearly and seemed to be
singing from the tops of trees along the north boundary of the park.
Grasshopper Sparrows were out in good numbers and one could not avoid Gray
Catbirds -- are they always common in this part of the state? A nice, but
frustrating morning.
Elisa Enders
Portsmouth, VA
