John Pratt, Phil George and I spent a few hours at Occoquan Bay NWR this
morning. While bird activity, especially passerines was “somewhat subdued”,
likely due to the stiff wind coming off the bay, one of the first birds we saw
was a Vesper Sparrow, at the intersection of the roads approaching Painted
Turtle Pond. It afforded excellent views and even sat for scoping. Although
there was waterfowl in the bay, most of it stayed quite far off, due to the
waterfowl hunter at the mouth of the creek. Another highlight was a Hermit
Thrush on Easy Road.
After I exited the refuge via Wildlife Drive, I stopped again at the entrance
and noticed two birds perched on the nearby fence behind the entry shack. One
was a Mockingbird, but the other was another Vesper Sparrow. While I did get
some pics, it may be a while before they are downloaded, as my main computer
(with Photoshop) is currently under plastic wrap in the basement following some
construction work.
Dave Boltz
Alexandria/Fairfax Co.