Date: Sat, 29 Apr 2000 21:07:54 -0400 Reply-To: Maryland Birds & Birding Sender: Maryland Birds & Birding From: Arlene Ripley Subject: Nanjemoy Creek Great Blue Heron Sanctuary Comments: To: MD-SMAS-GENERAL@LIST.AUDUBON.ORG Mime-Version: 1.0 Content-Type: text/plain; charset="us-ascii"; format=flowed Today (4/29) we were invited to join a Nature Conservancy field trip to the Nanjemoy Creek Great Blue Heron Sanctuary. This is normally a closed sanctuary in Charles County where an estimated 800-900 Great Blue Herons nest. We began the hike to the rookery around 10:30, not a very early start for birding, but better than not going in at all. Hooded Warblers (7) and Ovenbirds (8) were the most abundant warbler species at that time of the morning. A few Prairie Warblers were singing along the road near the entrance and 2 Louisiana Waterthrushes sang in the woods; a few Blue-gray Gnatcatchers here and there and the ever-present Northern Parulas and Red-eyed Vireos. Also heard my first Kentucky Warbler for the year. Pink azalea and Lady's Slipper orchids were found blooming along part of the trail. As we approached the rookery, very strange sounds began to emanate in the distance. We heard strange howling noises as well as the more familiar guttural croaks as the great creatures appeared overhead. A distinct fishy smell met our nostrils but the coolness of the morning thankfully kept it from becoming overpowering. Nests were three and four to a tree and were quite high up. The ground was not only littered with guano but with light blue egg shells -- evidence that the constant "kek, kek, kek" sounds were from the newly hatched young begging for a regurgitated meal. At the base of one beech tree, a small blue featherless body lay, evidence of the harsh reality of "survival of the fittest." It was quite a spectacle to be this close to such a large colony of birds and one not to be soon forgotten. We were a group of 14 including one 9 year-old. As we neared the end of the walk, the 9 year-old announced that she had found a nest on the ground with an egg in it back on the trail (we had all walked right by it--totally oblivious to its presence). She asked if I knew what it was and we went back to find it. I expected to find a fallen nest that had been either blown or knocked down from above. Instead, only a foot or so off the trail was a beautiful "oven-shaped" nest with a solitary egg in the "oven." Never thought I'd see an Ovenbird's nest! What a find and exciting conclusion to a great half-day excursion. ////// Arlene Ripley | || Calvert County, MD | 0 || aripley@nestbox.com | || http://www.nestbox.com || ======================================================================= To leave the MDOsprey list, send e-mail to listserv@home.ease.lsoft.com with the following message in line 1: signoff mdosprey ======================================================================= =========================================================================