Although the morning was a little chilly (37F) at the beginning, things
warmed up as the VSO tram trip at Back Bay NWR moved along. Birding
highlights included great looks at waterfowl of many species including most
dabblers and a nice array of divers, too. Landbirds were at a premium,
clearly choosing to sleep in on this cold morning. Northern Harriers put on
a show. As many as three were in view at once with two doing some aerial
acrobatics while the third watched from the convenience of a perch on the
dike. Not to be outdone a couple dozen Green-winged Teal performed as well
showing first the collective dorsal surfaces, quickly followed by the pale
flip side, all in tight formation. The bayside had several rafts of divers
affording good looks at Redheads and Canvasbacks among the more numerous
Ruddy Ducks. For the last two years diving ducks have been more numerous in
bay, a good sign that maybe the health of the bay is improving. After
arriving back at the headquarters, a subgroup walked over the dunes to see
what was flying over the ocean. Loons, both Red-throated and Common, were
seen well in the surf. The viewing was interrupted by an American
Oystercatcher, flying by in review. Northern Gannets and Forster's Terns
were feeding a bit further out with a pod of dolphins cavorting in the
waves. A good time was had by all. Below is an ebird list of the species
seen during the trip. If any corrections or amendments are needed, please
let me know.
Robert L. Ake
6603 Catherine Street
Norfolk VA 23505
Canada Goose 200
Tundra Swan 50
Wood Duck 1
Gadwall 120
American Wigeon 40
American Black Duck 250
Mallard 160
Northern Shoveler 20
Northern Pintail 35
Green-winged Teal 25
Canvasback 8
Redhead 20
Ring-necked Duck 1
Lesser Scaup 30
Surf Scoter 1
Bufflehead 25
Hooded Merganser 3
Red-breasted Merganser 1
Ruddy Duck 200
Red-throated Loon 10
Common Loon 5
Pied-billed Grebe 6
Horned Grebe 3
Northern Gannet 10
Brown Pelican 6
Double-crested Cormorant 20
Great Blue Heron 6
Great Egret 2
Snowy Egret 6
Little Blue Heron 4
Turkey Vulture 1
Bald Eagle 2
Northern Harrier 4
Sharp-shinned Hawk 2
Red-tailed Hawk (Eastern) 1
King Rail 1
American Coot 8
American Oystercatcher 1
Dunlin 6
Laughing Gull 6
Ring-billed Gull 80
Herring Gull (American) 4
Lesser Black-backed Gull 1
Great Black-backed Gull 8
Forster's Tern 30
Rock Pigeon X
Mourning Dove 4
Belted Kingfisher 1
Northern Flicker (Yellow-shafted) 1
Blue Jay 1
Fish Crow 3
Carolina Wren 2
Northern Mockingbird 1
European Starling 30
Yellow-rumped Warbler (Myrtle) 25
Palm Warbler 1
Common Yellowthroat 2
Eastern Towhee 2
Savannah Sparrow 6
Song Sparrow 2
Swamp Sparrow 5
White-throated Sparrow 2
Northern Cardinal 1
Red-winged Blackbird 70
Eastern Meadowlark 12
Common Grackle 50
Boat-tailed Grackle 2
This report was generated automatically by eBird v2(http://ebird.org)
