Date: Thu, 7 Mar 2002 21:56:39 -0600 Reply-To: Maryland Birds & Birding Sender: Maryland Birds & Birding From: "George M. Jett" Subject: Charles County Birds Comments: cc: Marshall , Jlstasz@aol.com, Greg Miller MIME-Version: 1.0 Content-Type: text/plain; charset="iso-8859-1" Content-Transfer-Encoding: quoted-printable Folks Today I was on administrative leave because our office is moving. = Consequently I had my first chance to go birding in Charles County this = year. I birded my deck, Rt. 228 ponds, Bryans Road old sewage treatment = plant, Pomonkey Creek, and Bumpy Oak Road. Best bird from the deck was a male Pine Warbler chipping and feeding in = a pine tree.=20 =20 After the coffee, four species of woodpecker (Downy, Hairy, = Red-bellied, and Yellow-shafted Flicker) and the usual suspects, I = headed out. =20 Rt. 228 had no waterfowl. I did have a nice collection of about 22 = Juncos and 12 Song Sparrows. The Green Heron have not returned at this = reliable location as of today. Off to Bryans Road old STP. This place has historically been good for = Sparrows but not today. Someone has put in an ATV trail. The only = sparrows I could fine on my way in were four Field Sparrows. It was not = until I was returning from Pomonkey Creek did I encounter a Song = Sparrow. It was next to the Bud Light can in the ATV path. The STP = also had three singing Eastern Phoebe, and good numbers of singing = Tufted Titmouse. It was unusually quiet, maybe a consequence of the ATV = trail. Such a disappointment to ruin another good birding location. The creek offered some nice waterfowl. The high-light was the 150+ = American Black Duck. Also observed were 30 flyover Tundra swan with one = large dark bird in the formation, 4 Gadwall, two American Wigeon, 200+ = Mallards,15 Lesser Scaup, two Blue-winged Teal, 22 Green-winged Teal, = and two female Common Mergansers. The only shorebirds were a couple = Killdeer. An adult Bald Eagle was resting when I arrived at the = overlook, but left promptly. =20 Woodpeckers along the way were a couple Pileated and one female = Yellow-bellied Sapsucker. Since I was missing only one of the normally = occurring Maryland Woodpeckers (Red-headed), and it was not quite 11 Am, = I decided to go to Bumpy Oak Wetlands (BOW). =20 BOW is one of the several good locations in Charles County for this = species. No sooner had I arrived and an adult Red-headed Woodpecker = began calling and insect hawking. Seven Maryland woodpecker species in = the morning is always a treat. I tallied five total birds before I = left. =20 BOW also had about 65 Canada Geese, a female Cooper's Hawk, two calling = Red-shouldered Hawk, three Eastern Towhee, and a single Eastern Phoebe. = No Green Heron here either at this reliable location yet. =20 Back to the cage tomorrow. Enjoy your birds. George =3D=3D=3D=3D=3D=3D=3D=3D=3D=3D=3D=3D=3D=3D=3D=3D=3D=3D=3D=3D=3D=3D=3D=3D=3D=3D=3D=3D=3D=3D=3D=3D=3D=3D=3D=3D=3D=3D=3D=3D=3D=3D=3D=3D=3D=3D=3D=3D=3D=3D=3D=3D=3D=3D=3D=3D=3D=3D=3D=3D=3D=3D=3D=3D=3D=3D=3D=3D=3D=3D=3D To leave the MDOsprey list, send e-mail to listserv@home.ease.lsoft.com with the following message in line 1: signoff mdosprey =3D=3D=3D=3D=3D=3D=3D=3D=3D=3D=3D=3D=3D=3D=3D=3D=3D=3D=3D=3D=3D=3D=3D=3D=3D=3D=3D=3D=3D=3D=3D=3D=3D=3D=3D=3D=3D=3D=3D=3D=3D=3D=3D=3D=3D=3D=3D=3D=3D=3D=3D=3D=3D=3D=3D=3D=3D=3D=3D=3D=3D=3D=3D=3D=3D=3D=3D=3D=3D=3D=3D =========================================================================