Mary Foster, Tony Adcock, and I birded Staunton View Public Use Area and
neighboring Hogan Creek WMA at the intersection of Halifax, Mecklenburg, and
Charlotte counties this morning. Migrants were difficult to come by with
only a handful of small flocks passing through. The bird of the day was a
Merlin that perched on a dead snag over the water for several minutes before
making a quick flight into the Willows and returning to the same perch with
a meal. Unfortunately the bird was too distant to be able to id the prey
item. Shorebirds included a single American Golden-Plover and typical
numbers of Killdeer, Semipalmated Plovers, both Yellowlegs, Least,
Semipalmated, Pectoral, and Spotted Sandpipers. Only 7 warblers were found
today including Cape May, Magnolia, Prarie, Pine, Black & White,
Black-throated Green and Common Yellowthroat. Other notables were 4 Caspian
and 2 Forster's Terns and 10 Blue-winged Teal. Ebird checklist:
http://ebird.org/ebird/view/checklist?subID=S15180082
Paul Glass
South Boston, VA
