Date: Mon, 11 Feb 2002 08:29:19 -0500 Reply-To: Maryland Birds & Birding Sender: Maryland Birds & Birding From: "Lovelace, Glen" Subject: Caroline & Dorchester 2/9 MIME-Version: 1.0 Content-Type: text/plain; charset="iso-8859-1" Hello All, Shelly and I spent the morning searching for Caroline Co waterfowl. The previously reported ducks on Smithville Pond were not present. {Off the subject, but are there cypress trees at the upper end of the pond when looking north from the boat ramp? Isn't that rather far north?} Just north of the boat ramp on Noble Rd, we had a nice flock that included WB Nut and a Pine Warbler. On to Line Rd, I flushed 3 Hooded Mergs off a ditch near the west end. In various woodland flocks, we had a Hermit Thrush, Fox Sp and another WB Nut. Still on Line Rd, west of 313, we saw a Red-Tail carrying a stick. Working on the nest? As far as waterfowl, additional stops at Williston, Martinak, Gilpin Pt Rd, Gainey's Wharf and Hog Island Rd all came up empty save Mallard. 4 eagles were seen (Martinak, Hog Island Rd, and 2 outside Choptank). On to Dorchester Co., we found 1 WW Scoter, 2 Surf Scoter, Oldsquaw, Goldeneye, 1 Gr Scaup, 1 Horned Grebe, 1 Common Loon on the river in Cambridge (stops at the fishing pier, boat ramp behind the hospital and Somerset St). Blackwater was quiet with the highlights being 1 female Common Merg and 4 Snipe. And 0 Snow Geese? A mudflat down Shorter's Wharf Rd had 3 Long-Billed Dows and Dunlin. BH Nuts in the adjacent pines and 5 eagles in view. Elliot's Island Rd had both swans on Savannah Lake, Lsr Yellows, Dunlin and more Long-Billed Dows on the opposite side and a beautiful dark-phase Rough-Legged Hawk around the sharp curve to the south. At dusk, from the 1st house, there was 1 very distant Short-Eared Owl off to the south and another that barked off to the east, but was never seen. In all, 82 species (18 waterfowl) and several county birds. :) Good Birding, Glen Lovelace III Seaford, DE ======================================================================= To leave the MDOsprey list, send e-mail to listserv@home.ease.lsoft.com with the following message in line 1: signoff mdosprey ======================================================================= =========================================================================