LOWER EASTERN SHORE (mostly Virginia, except Nov. 8-9), NOVEMBER 8-14, 2012. A 3-snake trip.
GAZETTEER and ABBREVIATIONS. BCNH - Black-crowned Night Heron. Blackwater National Wildlife Refuge, Dorchester County, MD. Box Tree Road E of Machipongo, Northampton County, VA. CBBT, Chesapeake Bay Bridge & Tunnel. cormorant, “understood” as Double-crested Cormorant. d.o.r., dead on the road (requiescat in pavement). Egypt Road, Dorchester County, MD. ESVNWR, Eastern Shore of Virginia N.W.R. KSP, Kiptopeke State Park, Northampton County, VA, the center for fall birding activity in Cape Charles area. The “platform,” the hawkwatch at KSP. Ramp Lane, at the S end of ESVNWR. Rigby’s Folly, Armistead property, Talbot County, MD. Taylor Pond at KSP, acquired through the generosity of singer James Taylor. Willis Wharf, Northampton County, VA, E of Exmore, (sometimes fondly called Willets’ Wharf). X = species seen but #s not recorded.
NOVEMBER 8, THURSDAY. Eleven deer off Route 301, mile 101.5. Rigby’s Folly, late afternoon only. Clear, NW 15, 52°F. Northern Gannet 7, some plunge-diving, as late in the day as 15 minutes after sunset. Never used to see them here in the fall. 38 Wood Ducks in 6 flocks. 22 Buffleheads. Has dried out considerably since Hurricane Sandy, can drive around the lawn w/o leaving ruts. Finish winterizing things. A bat out over the Choptank River. Re-hang the communal Bufflehead driveway sign, which Sandy dislodged from one of its hooks. Five deer in Field 4 (4 does and an 8-point buck), 2 Gray Squirrels. Twenty-five robins. No terns.
NOVEMBER 9, FRIDAY. Rigby’s Folly, 7:15-8:30 A.M., 45°F., NW 20, clear. Pretty good landbird flight: 85 Pine Siskins, 95 waxwings, 215 robins, 850 Red-winged Blackbirds, 3 flickers, 5 bluebirds. Also: 26 cormorants, 6 Buffleheads, a Common Loon, 2 Sharp-shinned Hawks, a Bald Eagle.
CALHOUN M.E.B.A. (Route 33, Talbot County): 1 Snow Goose with c. 200 Canada Geese. Soy bean harvesting going on all over the Peninsula today, resulting in many gray-brown, dense, clouds of fine dust.
2 MILES NORTH OF TRAPPE: 4 imm. Bald Eagles stretching away in a row from the road attracted by a dead deer.
EGYPT ROAD: 9:30-10:30 A.M. A good place to be today – 9 Black & 22 Turkey vultures, 12 Bald Eagles, 2 harriers, 1 sharpy, 8 Red-tailed Hawks, 2 kestrels, 3 Greater Yellowlegs, 325 Ring-billed Gulls, 1 Pileated Woodpecker, 2 Horned Larks, 34 bluebirds, 25 robins, 4 American Pipits, 9 Pine Siskins, and an immature White-crowned Sparrow.
BLACKWATER N.W.R. 10:45 A.M.-12:30 P.M. Tundra Swan 8, Gadwall 3, American Wigeon 1♂, black duck 30, Mallard 125, shoveler 40, pintail 265, Green-winged Teal 70, Ring-necked Duck 285 (Pool 1), Lesser Scaup 3, Hooded Merganser 3, Ruddy Duck 115, Bald Eagle 11, harrier 5, Cooper’s Hawk 1, Red-tailed Hawk 4, coot 4, Black-bellied Plover 2 (on the dike, flush reluctantly), Greater Yellowlegs 23, Forster’s Tern 55, Tree Swallow 20, bluebird 33, Chipping 5 & Savannah sparrow 1, House Finch 3, Pine Siskin 22, and goldfinch 6. So much to see in November, such an abundance. Pugnacious little 15” Northern Water Snake basking on the warmth of Wildlife Drive pavement, strikes at me continuously.
MAPLE DAM ROAD: 12:45 P.M. 25 bluebirds, 2 kestrels.
The remainder of this report concerns Virginia localities:
WILLIS WHARF: 3:20-3:35 P.M. Tide rising, get there just in time as the shorebirds are leaving. 150 each of Marbled Godwit and Willet (don’t look at me that way; these are both pretty careful estimates, counting by 5s). Ruddy Turnstone 35, Red-tailed Hawk 1, kingfisher 1, Bufflehead 3, Great Blue Heron 1, Common Loon 1, and goldfinch 2.
BALLARD POND PARK (Willis Wharf): Nice pond surrounded by an overhang of deciduous trees: black duck 4, Bufflehead 5, Hooded Merganser 4, kingfisher 1,
BOX TREE ROAD (Machipongo): Not much: a Cooper’s Hawk, 25 cormorants, 20 Tree Swallows.
RAMP LANE, ESVNWR. 4:40 – 5:20 P. With Bob Ake. Clear, winds @ 5, low 50s. White Ibis 132, Brant 40, Tundra Swan 2, black duck 6, Brown Pelican 2, Black Vulture 7, Bald Eagle 1 ad. (shoring up its nest, visually to the left of Smith Island light), sharpy 1, Ring-necked Duck 1, Great Egret 4, Tricolored Heron 1, BCNH 3, peregrine 2, Clapper Rail 25, Greater Yellowlegs 2, Great Horned Owl 1, kingfisher 1, Swamp Sparrow 15, and Boat-tailed Grackle 95 (almost all ♂). Also 1 doe and 3 dolphins. 39°F. at the campground, 8:30 P.M.
NOVEMBER 10, SATURDAY.
Wise Point, Bay overlook on the W side of Rt. 13: 2 ad. Bald Eagles perched on pound net stakes. 4 Common Loons. Scores of robins, Tree Swallows, waxwings, Myrtle Warblers, siskins/goldfinches, and blackbirds in the air over Wise Point, the early morning flight, with a few flickers and Blue Jays.
Make use of my spankin’ new CBBT birding research permit (and its accompanying, grotesque special photo ID), am on the CBBT for 7+ hours with Bob Ake as part of Todd Day’s Roundup. Other Roundup participants include Ned Brinkley, Steve Kolbe, Jim Fox, John Fox (unrelated), Gabrielle Mapel, Elisa Enders, et al. 57°F @ 11:45. Warm, clear, SE 5 near calm, air dirty with pollution from ships and “across the water.” Complete lists follow.
Island 4, 7:30 – 11:45 A.M.: scoter 200 (Surf c. 75% & Black c. 25%), Red-throated 2 & Common 18 loons, gannet 125, Brown Pelican 6, cormorant 225, Great Cormorant 3 imm., Great Blue Heron 2, (Peregrine Falcon 1 ad. ♀ perched on a lamp N of Island 4), Clapper Rail d.o.r., Sanderling 1, Laughing 20, Bonaparte’s 7, Ring-billed & Herring X & Great Black-backed 15 gulls, flicker 1, Tree Swallows 1000s, Barn Swallow 2, Red-breasted Nuthatch (clinging to the wall), starling 5, American Pipit 1, Myrtle Warbler many 100s, Savannah 1 and Swamp 1 sparrow, Slate-colored Junco 1, Red-winged Blackbird 150, Pine Siskin & goldfinch combined 200, and, perhaps the most unusual species (for here) HOUSE SPARROW 2, possibly new for the cumulative CBBT list.
Island 4 is a spectacle today with rivers of Tree Swallows streaming past and 100s of Myrtle Warblers on the pavements of the parking lots and even swarming over the intertidal zone on the wet rocks at low tide. Always impressive to see the great ships passing in the channels between the islands. One Orange Sulphur. The flight is mostly over by 9:30 A.M.
Island 3: 15 Surf & 30 Black scoters, 1 Red-throated Loon, 20 gannets, 2 Brown Pelicans, 45 cormorants, 1 turnstone, 26 Sanderlings, 4 Laughing, 30 Bonaparte’s, 30 Ring-billed, 10 Herring & 2 Great Black-backed gulls, 6 Tree Swallows, 1 junco, and a goldfinch.
Island 2, 1:45-2:30, winds SE 15, tide rising even though the flow of water is still going out, a curious phenomenon. 8 Surf Scoters, 25 gannets, 245 Brown Pelicans (resting, basking, preening on the rocks, 90% juveniles), 6 cormorants, 3 turnstones, 60 Great Black-backed Gulls, 1 Common Tern (late; sitting on a rock directly below us), 1 Royal Tern, 6 pigeons, 10 Tree Swallows, 2 Hermit Thrushes (foraging in the dense but very low grass), 1 Savannah & 1 Song sparrow.
Island 1: 2:45-3 P.M. 6 Surf & 9 Black scoters, 3 turnstones, 19 Sanderlings, 40 Ring-billed, 30 Herring & 10 Great Black-backed gulls, 26 pigeons, 15 Tree Swallows, and 1 cheeseburger (to go). Most of the Black Scoters seen today are ♀ plumaged.
The rest of the day we are at the platform and hear of others’ 14 American White Pelicans, 2 White-winged Crossbills, an Evening Grosbeak, 7 Red Crossbills et al, most, if not all, seen from the platform, where they have a 7 finch day, incl. 500+ siskins and 800+ goldfinches, 50 sharpies and 29 Coops. I see many but not all of the platform birds reported here during this sojourn.
NOVEMBER 11, SUNDAY. At the KSP platform best are 2 White-winged and a flock of 11 Red crossbills, a goshawk, 81 sharpies & 25 Coops. However, Jackie Catino emerges from the ladies restroom near the platform bringing a 2’ Eastern Hognose Snake she has captured inside there. Nothing special going on in the mens restroom. I’m on the platform 6:45 A.M. until 2:15 except for lunch at the Stinger. Clear, S5. One each of sapsucker, Merlin & Red-throated Loon plus 3 Common Loons, c. 45 Rusty Blackbirds, c. 600 robins, 1500 combo siskins & goldfinches, a singing Purple Finch, 3 Cloudless Sulphurs, 5 Snow Geese (I see them later in a field N of Sandy Hill Road), and a great spectacle of 1000s of blackbirds and Tree Swallows passing over.
Pond Drain, 3 P.M.: Rare habitat for here, a 0.5 mi.-long fresh water lake: 3 Ring-necked, 4 Ruddy & 12 Wood ducks, 11 Pied-billed Grebes, a ♂ Hooded Merganser, 11 cormorants, 2 Great Blue Herons, 6 Green-winged Teal, 4 Painted Turtles and a Redbelly Turtle. An aggressive 3’ Black Rat Snake on Arlington Road hardly compares in allure with Jackie’s splendid hognose snake, strikes at me 7 times.
Ramp Lane: 4:15-5:30 P.M. with Ernie Miller: 5 Canada Geese with one Snow, Boat-tailed Grackle 90, Clapper Rail 6, Lesser Scaup 85, black duck 31, White Ibis 29, Bald Eagle 1 ad., BCNH 1, harrier 1, Great Egret 3, Tricolored Heron 1, Greater Yellowlegs 7, Merlin 1, one black feral cat, one bat.
Bob Anderson & Thuy Tran drop in on the way home from the Easton Waterfowl Festival Weekend, where Bob is an exhibitor.
NORTHERN SAW-WHET OWLS. As of last night Zak Poulton has banded 143 of the little dears, 17 last night, and 3 nights of 40+, a good flight year for them, eh?, plus 3 screech-owls, 2 of those repeats.
NOVEMBER 12, MONDAY. KSP, platform. 92 sharpies, 22 Coops. Hawk counter alumna Jen Ottinger visits, is the counter at Cape Henlopen this fall. By 9:23 A.M. hawk trapper Jackie Catino has banded 16 raptors, 15 sharpies and 1 Coop, will finish the day with 28, 30 on Saturday. Todd sees 188 Brown Pelicans on the concrete ships, mostly adults in contrast to CBBT island 2. A flock of 23 Killdeer, balled up as if they are starlings, passes to the W. 43 American Crows in one flock. 6 Monarchs, 3 Cloudless Sulphurs, and a Buckeye. Many 1000s of Tree Swallows and Common Grackles go over in the morning flight. 20 Forster’s Terns. 3 Tundra Swans far to the E.
Am on the platform 8 A.M. – 4 P.M. Clear, 60s, SE 5-10. Bob Anderson has brought La Reine des Bois (The queen of the woods), a Chateauneuf du Pape red Rhône wine with a charming drawing of a Eurasian Woodcock on the label.
NOVEMBER 13, TUESDAY. An excellent day of birding in spite of the rain and wind but visibility often only 0.5 mi. Taylor Pond has 3 Pied-billed Grebes, 5 Ruddy Ducks, a ♀ plumaged Bufflehead, 4 meadowlarks, 3 unID’d turtles, a Merlin, and a GRASSHOPPER SPARROW, a late one, perched right in front of me on top of a PVC tube for a coupla minutes. 147 bluebirds during the day.
Ramp Lane, 9:50-10:30 A.M.: 13 Greater Yellowlegs, 3 black ducks, a NELSON’S SPARROW (unbanded, perches for minutes on end in some nearby Spartina alterniflora, a terrific view), a Semipalmated Plover, 5 Snowy Egrets, a Cooper’s Hawk, 20 Dunlin, a Tricolored Heron, a Bald Eagle, 2 Boat-tailed Grackles, 2 Black Vultures, a harrier, and a ♀ Hooded Merganser. Tide above normal high. In my experience some of the best views of the 3 marsh sparrow species are to be had if it’s overcast, foggy, and/or rainy with slight winds.
Magotha Road at Magothy Bay, 10:45-11, rain, winds 20 m.p.h. A Clapper Rail flushes, 2 Black-bellied Plovers, 13 Buffleheads, 4 Brant, a Great Egret. Back in the nearby wet, deciduous woods are clusters of Tickseed Sunflowers still in bloom.
2 mi. N of Capeville, 11:17, 3 imm. Bald Eagles at a deer carcass. 9 meadowlarks.
Lakewood Pond. 11:25. 7 Ring-necked Ducks, 6 cormorants, 210 Canada Geese, 1 Great Blue Heron.
Plantation Drive. 11:34. 9 Horned Larks.
Box Tree Road (Machipongo). 12:50. Rain. 1 each of Cooper’s Hawk, Great Egret, Pileated Woodpecker, and Greater Yellowlegs, 2 Hooded Mergansers. Low tide.
Red Bank: Often good songbirding – 50 robins, 20 bluebirds, 65 goldfinch/siskins, 1 each of kingfisher, Greater Yellowlegs, flicker, Red-bellied Woodpecker, and Bufflehead, 6 Hooded Mergansers, 40 Red-winged Blackbirds, and 2 Song Sparrows.
1.8 mi. S of routes 600 X 603, near Exmore. A CATTLE EGRET with horses. Late.
Willis Wharf. Very low tide. 1:45-2. 6 Marbled Godwits, 12 Willets, 10 Hooded Mergansers, 12 pigeons, 7 Buffleheads, 3 black ducks, and 3 Great Blue Herons.
1 mi. N of routes 600 X 603. 2:15. 390 Canada Geese in a field to the E.
Saxis Road. 4-4:30. A juvenile GOLDEN EAGLE 0.2 mi. E of Route 695 x Jenkins Bridge Road (Route 701), flushes off the N shoulder, flies in front of the car, and perches at close range in a pine on the other side of the road. One each of Pileated Woodpecker, Pied-billed Grebe, kingfisher, Common Loon, and Wilson’s Snipe, 14 black ducks, 4 Mallards, 3 harriers, and 8 Bald Eagles, the eagles roosting in pine hammocks way off in the distance. Splendid marshlands.
Give talk, “Christmas bird count boot camp,” for the Eastern Shore Bird Club in the Hermitage at Onancock. Many thanks to Joelle Buffa and Clyde Morris for all their work, including creating a PowerPoint show that makes the presentation much more vital than it would have otherwise been. Thanks to Bruce and Madi Hoffman for lodging me at their comfortable home on the N end of Chincoteague Island, where on Wednesday I see at their feeders: Red-breasted & Brown-headed nuthatch, siskin (lots), goldfinch, House Finch, Song & White-throated sparrows, Carolina Wren, Carolina Chickadee, and cardinal.
NOVEMBER 14, WEDNESDAY. Chincoteague N.W.R. High tide, 1.5’ above normal, impoundment waters very high. A 100’ breach allows the sea to break into Swan Cove. You oughta see the piles of branches and huge tree trunks thanks to Sandy. One Fox Squirrel.
Black Duck Marsh area. 105 Willets, 3 Marbled Godwits, 1 Tricolored & 9 Little Blue Herons (4 adults), 50 Brant, 1 Snowy & 6 Great egrets all seen SOUTH of the road, in the marsh. 115 Black Ducks, 55 shovelers, 45 Green-winged Teal, 3 sharpies, 2 ad. Bald Eagles, 200 Snow & 3 Blue geese, 1 Red-breasted Merganser, 32 Greater Yellowlegs, and 2 harriers.
Snow Goose Pool. 11 Tundra Swans, 175 Ruddy Ducks, 30 shovelers, 2 Pied-billed Grebes, 3 Great Egrets. 100s of unID’d ducks on the far side.
Chincoteague causeway: 700 Dunlin, 77 Forster’s Terns, 60 Black-bellied Plovers, 25 Greater Yellowlegs, 1 ad. Bald Eagle, 6 Great & a Snowy egret, 35 black ducks, 14 oystercatchers, 35 Boat-tailed Grackles, 4 shovelers, and 325 Brant.
Big falls of pine cones due to the storms. I never see Deodora cones fallen from the parent tree, but this time the KSP one has dozens of grenade-shaped cones blown off by the recent storms.
Best to all. – Harry Armistead, Philadelphia.
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