While birding at Terrapin Beach Park on Kent Island this morning I was very surprised to flush a female-type Least Bittern from the edge of the small pond there. The bird flushed very close to me and I got a good look with the naked eye as it flew across the pond and disappeared into the reeds on the other side. The bird was small (approximately the size of a Clapper Rail) but was clearly a bittern with a long yellow bill and pale tan / buff streaking on a white throat with a plain face and darker cap. The back was also tan-ish brown with a strongly contrasting dark bluish broad trailing edge, similar in color to the cap. It made a "kuk" sound when it flushed and some weird half purring half croaking sound when it skulked away that I never heard before. Here is a link with the coordinates of the pond: http://tinyurl.com/c9hcjes
Other highlights here included my FOY Blue-headed Vireo and House Wren, 4 Blue-winged Teal, 2 Wood Ducks, 6 Bonaparte's Gulls, a Snowy Egret, hoardes of Yellow-rumps and RC Kinglets, and several Hermit Thrushes.
I began the morning at Sandy Pt State Park when one of the first birds I saw on arriving was a Vesper Sparrow. It flushed from the short grass near the point and perched on a picnic table and then in a small planted tree, then in one of the trees near the bathroom, were I was able to photograph it. The previously-reported Red-headed Woodpecker is still hanging out in the first picnic area on the right after the entrance booth and was giving some good photo ops. Also of note here was my FOY (for MD) Spotted Sandpiper, at least four Caspian Terns, a couple Red-breasted Mergs, at least 15 Horned Grebes close to the beach in breeding plumage and several Blue-gray Gnatcatchers, Pines, Palms, and Yellow-rumps.
I also spent some time at Chesapeake Environmental Center (QA Co) where I had a single Least Tern among the more expected species. Also of interest was a large flock of Ruddy Ducks, many in breeding plumage that were accompanying about 100 Scaup sp. and a few Buffleheads; I estimated there were about 500 Ruddies. I tallied 78 species for the day.
Good Birding,
Frank Marenghi
Annapolis, MD
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