Date: Tue, 22 May 2001 22:32:32 -0400 Reply-To: Maryland Birds & Birding Sender: Maryland Birds & Birding From: Arlene Ripley Subject: Calvert County Birding, 5/22 Comments: To: md-smas@yahoogroups.com Mime-Version: 1.0 Content-Type: text/plain; charset="us-ascii"; format=flowed Calvert County, 5/22 This morning while checking the boxes on one of the county bluebird trails at Twin Shields Golf Course in Dunkirk, I was amazed at the number of BLACKPOLL WARBLERS I heard as I made my rounds around the course. I estimated at least a dozen. Also seen were a YELLOW WARBLER and two SPOTTED SANDPIPERS. Arriving at Flag Ponds just after 11 AM, my main duty was to check the salamander traps. At this time of the year, one expects to find Marbled Salamanders and I had a few plus two Red-spotted Newts. Due to my late arrival, I wasn't expecting much in the way of birds and was amazed to find the lower trails (didn't walk the upper trails) very active and the beach teaming with shorebirds (Horseshoe crabs are still frequenting the beach). Most amazing were the numbers of COMMON YELLOWTHROATS -- 32! I wonder how many I would have counted had I walked all the trails? I observed a Luna Moth and the butterfly of the day was the Red Admiral -- they were everywhere! Oh, and the Blue Flag Iris are now in full bloom in the swamp. Total species: 65 HIGHLIGHTS: Wood Duck - 4 Great Blue Heron (at nest) - 1 Green Heron - 3 Osprey - 1 SPOTTED SANDPIPER- 35 SEMIPALMATED SANDPIPER - at least 100 LEAST SANDPIPER - at least 100 SANDERLING - 3 SEMIPALMATED PLOVER - 2 RUDDY TURNSTONE - 1 Killdeer - 5 ((the four eggs successfully hatched!) Forster's Tern - 2 Common Tern - 2 Ruby-throated Hummingbird - 1 Belted Kingfisher - 1 Red-bellied Woodpecker - 1 Pileated Woodpecker - 1 Eastern Wood-Peewee - 5 Acadian Flycatcher - 12 Great-crested Flycatcher - 2 Eastern Kingbird - 1 White-eyed Vireo - 2 Red-eyed Vireo - 10 Yellow-throated Vireo - 1 Eastern Bluebird -1 VEERY - 1 Wood Thrush - 2 Gray Catbird - 7 Blue-gray Gnatcatcher - 2 WARBLERS: Northern Parula - 16 CHESTNUT-SIDED - 1 Magnolia - 2 Black-throated Blue - 7 Yellow-rumped - 1 Yellow-throated - 10 Pine - 3 BLACKPOLL - 2 American Redstart - 9 Worm-eating - 1 Ovenbird - 3 NORTHERN WATERTHRUSH- 5 Louisiana Waterthrush - 1 Kentucky - 2 Common Yellowthroat - 32 Hooded - 1 Swamp Sparrow - 1 Summer Tanager - 5 Scarlet Tanager - 2 Starting this weekend, Flag Ponds will be open daily at 9 AM until Labor Day. //////// 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 ======================================================================= =========================================================================