We spent this past weekend at our place on Cedar Creek in Shenandoah
County, and though most of our birding was done from the comfort of
our deck, we did get a nice list. We tallied 40 species which is
about normal for this time of year there. All of the winter visitors
were gone, but we had a good list of FOS species: Yellow-billed
Cuckoo, Whip-poor-will, Ruby-throated Hummingbird, Red-eyed Vireo,
Scarlet Tanager, Indigo Bunting, and Baltimore Oriole. Other notables
included: 2 Broad-winged Hawks (almost never seen any more in our
area) and 2 Black-billed Cuckoos, courting and copulating no less (a
very rare passage migrant there, though some may breed at higher
altitudes nearby). As is always the case there during spring
migration, warblers were very few and included only: a singing
Louisiana Waterthrush (breeds most years), a pair of Am. Redstarts,
and a male C. Yellowthroat. The latter two species are regional
breeders, though not on our property or immediately adjacent areas.
The bottom line is that there were no strictly passage migrant warbler
species--or vireos or thrushes for that matter. Spring is always a
bust for us, but September is wonderful, underscoring a dramatic
difference in seasonal patterns. Many years ago when there were
active or recent clearcuts in the GW National Forest near us, we found
many more warbler species and greater numbers. Some of them, like
Golden-winged, Chestnut-sided, and chats were even breeding in the
clearcuts or in similar habitats nearby. But the cuts have grown into
uninteresting pole timber, the old fields have succeeded to young
forest, and the deer have made sure that none of those habitats have
decent understory. So it goes. Hope you all had a great weekend
birding and/or celebrating Mothers Day!
Dave Davis
Arlington