Date: Mon, 4 Nov 2002 17:46:55 -0500 Reply-To: Maryland Birds & Birding Sender: Maryland Birds & Birding From: Walter Ellison Subject: Horsehead Neck Sunday 3 Nov MIME-Version: 1.0 Content-Type: text/plain; charset="iso-8859-1" Content-Transfer-Encoding: quoted-printable Hi All, After several visits to Horsehead Neck in Grasonville for meetings and = little or no time to really look at the place beyond the exhibits Nancy, = Ian and I got down there yesterday for an extended visit. And a very = nice place it is. We had 59 species of birds on an afternoon walk featuring 15 waterfowl = species. Highlights for us were: 7 Common Loons including a one flying = over holding onto a lot of summer plumage; 166 Tundra Swans heading = south in small "vees" like angels playing celestial trumpets sunlit = against the blue sky; all three scoters; 4 Long-tailed Ducks; 4 Common = Goldeneye; a drake Hooded Merganser; 1000 Ruddy Ducks; two each of = Cooper's and Sharp-shinned hawk; a Royal Tern hanging-in; 25 Tree = Swallows; a Brown-headed Nuthatch hatching loblolly cones along the = entrance road in one of the small pine "islands" in the marsh; a Mrsh = Wren; a handsome adult male Pine Warbler visiting the nearly empty suet = feeder; and lots of sparrows including 57 Swamp Sparrows making the = marsh grasses go "cheep" at our spishing. Butterfiles included orange = sulphur, common buckeye, painted lady, and variegated fritillary. = November butterflies are a revelation for former New Englanders (it was = in the 20s in Nancy's hometown this weekend). It was nice being out. Good Birding, Walter Ellison MD-DC Atlas Coordinator - MOS 23460 Clarissa Road Chestertown, MD 21620 phone: 410-778-9568 e-mail: rossgull@crosslink.net "A person who is looking for something doesn't travel very fast" - E. B. = White (in "Stuart Little") =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 =========================================================================