Date: 7/30/12 6:43 am
From: Tim Carney <timmyc83...>
Subject: [MDBirding] North Point State Park 7/29/2012


Had a relatively worthwhile trip to North Point State Park yesterday. Did not get the Barred Owls, but I also went during the most non-owly time of day (mid-afternoon). The Wetlands Loop was a waste of time and relatively birdless, probably due to the fact that the wetland was dried up. However, the Black Marsh Trail held some nice surprises. The marsh itself had 30 (exact count) Little Blue Herons, with 6 adults and 24 immatures actively foraging in all areas of the marsh. The only other representative of Ardeidae was a single, distant Great Blue Heron. I was surprised by both the abundance of Little Blues and the lack of all other herons/egrets. I also had a very cooperative Hairy Woodpecker and several flyover Purple Martins at the marsh.

Walking back from the marsh to the parking lot, I found a very vocal pair of Yellow-billed Cuckoos. One was carrying food, and flew on top of the other one -- copulation. It seems a little late in the season, but hopefully they're successful. The more cuckoos, the better. These birds in particular were very active and close enough to get some reasonable photos.

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