Dear VA- Birders
Alec Brenner, alum of the Northern Virginia Teen Bird Club, was home from
Caltech for spring break, so we went birding to many of my usual places in King
George and Westmoreland counties. Fog made visibility very low, never allowing
for any kind of view into the Potomac in Westmoreland, and only allowing for
views at King George ponds on the way back home. Despite that and the rain,
which kept us from straying far from the car, we managed to find 96 species
including two lifers for Alec.
Most notable sightings were:
1. 4 Red-necked Grebes in King George (1 at LaGrange La and 3 together in a
lake on private property)
2. 6 Pectoral Sandpipers (FOY), 2 Least Sandpipers (FOY), 1 snipe, and 59
yellowlegs (3/4 greater) in Leedstown
3. 60 shovelers, 15 pintails, 27 coot, 6 tundra swans, only 400 Canada geese, 3
blue-winged teal (FOY), green-winged teal, gadwall, 1 am. wigeon, ring-necked
ducks, lesser scaups, mallards in Leedstown on private property
4. 85! wood ducks at my swampy pond along Leedstown Rd (Peedee Creek)
5. 2 adult Lesser Black-backed Gulls along route 3 across from the entrance to
Aggregate Industries gravel pits hanging out with 105 herring gulls (high
number for here) and only a couple hundred ring-billed gulls. A flock of 75
pipits flying over this same field.
6. Singing Yellow-throated Warbler (FOY) along the Rappahannock near Port
Conway Rd and 11 pine warblers, 8 chipping sparrows, and 7 singing field
sparrows in various locations.
7. 48 Rusty blackbirds at George Washington's Birthplace, Leedstown and Port
Conway Rd
8. Scattered Tree Swallows and N Rough-winged Swallows (FOY).
9. A few tundra swans still at Washingtons Birthplace picnic area, along with
small numbers of canvasbacks, goldeneyes, and both scaup species.
10. 44 turkeys in 4 locations.
11. Mergansers: all 3 species but only 1 female hooded, 3 commons, and 50
red-breasted
12. Only 58 ruddy ducks, 44 ring-necked ducks, 30 buffleheads, and 73 scaup all
day. Part of that is weather-related but I think most of it is that they have
gone back north.
13. 22 Bald Eagles. A couple of them made a few unsuccessful passes at some
lesser scaup who dove under to escape.
All the best
Fred
Frederick D. Atwood fredatwood at yahoo dot com
Flint Hill School, 10409 Academic Dr, Oakton, VA 22124
703-242-1675
http://www.agpix.com/fredatwood
http://www.flinthill.org
http://tea.armadaproject.org/tea_atwoodfrontpage.html
