Hi VA-Birders,
What a fantastic weekend we had at Front Royal this past weekend for the
VSO summer trip! The 40 attendees enjoyed sunny skies every day and we
tallied 91 species over the 3 days.
At Andy Guest/Shenandoah River State Park on Friday afternoon, great birds
and lovely scenery made for a PERFECT outing by the enthusiastic and
knowledgeable participants. A Broad-winged Hawk being harried by a
Baltimore Oriole may have been the highlight, or maybe the two Louisiana
Waterthrushes walking the path ahead of us, or the three Yellow-throated
Vireos in one tree, or the nearly constant singing Warbling Vireos...We
also watched several species fly back and forth with food for hungry
nestlings: Orchard Oriole, Baltimore Oriole, Yellow Warbler and Blue-gray
Gnatcatcher.
Sky Meadows State Park was the site of Saturday's trip. Yellow-billed
Cuckoos, Red-headed Woodpeckers, Orchard and Baltimore Orioles,
Yellow-breasted Chats, Savannah Sparrow and much more were seen on an
enchanting walk through woodlands & meadows. Lee Adams led a group later in
the afternoon to Skyline Drive, where they stopped at a few overlooks and
pull-offs. They found Cerulean Warbler, Rose-breasted Grosbeak, Scarlet
Tanager, Hooded Warbler, and calling Wood Thrush and Veery. Meredith and
Lee Bell took a small group back to Andy Guest, where they watched another
(or maybe the same) Broad-winged Hawk get harassed, this time by a band of
six Tree Sparrows.
We spent Sunday morning at Bandy Experimental Farm/State Arboretum of
Virginia, which boasts a spectacular collection of trees and plants along
with a nice variety of birds. A Green Heron perched on a dead tree for
several minutes, giving the photographers in the group ample time to get
shots from all angles. A cooperative Willow Flycatcher posed atop a bush
and sang unceasingly, making it easy to identify. Raptors here included
Merlin, American Kestrel and Cooper’s Hawk.
Complete list of birds from the weekend is included below.
Meredith Bell and Lee Adams
VSO Field Trip Co-Chairs
Canada Goose
Mallard
Wild Turkey
Northern Bobwhite
Great Blue Heron
Green Heron
Black Vulture
Turkey Vulture
Bald Eagle
Cooper’s Hawk
Broad-winged Hawk
Red-tailed Hawk
American Kestrel
Merlin
Killdeer
Rock Pigeon
Mourning Dove
Yellow-billed Cuckoo
Chimney Swift
Ruby-throated Hummingbird
Belted Kingfisher
Red-headed Woodpecker
Red-bellied Woodpecker
Downy Woodpecker
Hairy Woodpecker
Northern Flicker
Pileated Woodpecker
Eastern Wood-Pewee
Acadian Flycatcher
Willow Flycatcher
Eastern Phoebe
Great Crested Flycatcher
Eastern Kingbird
Loggerhead Shrike
Yellow-throated Vireo
Warbling Vireo
Red-eyed Vireo
Blue Jay
American Crow
Fish Crow
Common Raven
Purple Martin
Tree Swallow
N. Rough-winged Swallow
Cliff Swallow
Barn Swallow
Carolina Chickadee
Tufted Titmouse
White-breasted Nuthatch
Carolina Wren
House Wren
Blue-gray Gnatcatcher
Eastern Bluebird
Veery
Wood Thrush
American Robin
Gray Catbird
Northern Mockingbird
Brown Thrasher
European Starling
Cedar Waxwing
Northern Parula
Yellow Warbler
Pine Warbler
Cerulean Warbler
American Redstart
Worm-eating Warbler
Ovenbird
Louisiana Waterthrush
Common Yellowthroat
Hooded Warbler
Yellow-breasted Chat
Scarlet Tanager
Eastern Towhee
Chipping Sparrow
Field Sparrow
Savannah Sparrow
Song Sparrow
Northern Cardinal
Rose-breasted Grosbeak
Blue Grosbeak
Indigo Bunting
Red-winged Blackbird
Eastern Meadowlark
Common Grackle
Brown-headed Cowbird
Orchard Oriole
Baltimore Oriole
House Finch
American Goldfinch
House Sparrow
