All - I headed out this morning hoping to find warblers along the Blue Ridge
Parkway. Unfortunately, the clouds and rain resulted in the Parkway being
fogged in. So, I headed to a couple of valley locations. I spent most of my
time at Locher Tract - a wildlife management area near Natural Bridge, VA.
Locher Tract is unpredictable, but today it was very birdy. I found several
mixed flocks of birds and one large groups of Swainson's Thrushes. I estimated
there were 30-40 Swainson's Thrushes. Most of the birds were moving through
the tops of the trees, but a few were cooperative enough to drop down near the
groups so that I could get good views and photos of them. In addition, I had
mixed flocks of Magnolia and Chestnut-sided Warblers, Ovenbirds, Red-eyed
Vireos, Redstarts, Great Crested Flycatchers, and Scarlet Tanagers. Also, I
saw a large number of Indigo Buntings (20+) and Catbirds (10). Both of these
must have been migrating and were held up at the base of the mountains.
I've posted a few photos on Flickr, if you're interested:
https://www.flickr.com/photos/vmibiology/
Dick Rowe
VMI Biology Dept.
