Date: Sun, 7 Sep 2003 22:45:37 -0400 Reply-To: Maryland Birds & Birding Sender: Maryland Birds & Birding From: "George M. Jett" Subject: Weekend Birds Comments: To: SMAS Comments: cc: Miliff@aol.com, Mimosa MIME-Version: 1.0 Content-Type: text/plain; charset="iso-8859-1" Content-Transfer-Encoding: quoted-printable Folks On Saturday I took the opportunity to visit the banding station at Jug = Bay Wetland Sanctuary as part of a Southern Maryland Audubon Society = fieldtrip in Anna Arundle County, MD. Between rounds of the net = checking I wondered off and found a nice feeding flock. The collection = in the feeding flock included: Red-bellied Woodpecker Downy Woodpecker Eastern Peewee Acadian Flycatcher (heard) Great-crested Flycatcher Yellow-throated Vireo (heard) Carolina Chickadee Tufted Titmouse White-breasted Nuthatch Golden-winged Warbler - male Northern Paurla W. Chestnut-sided W. Magnolia W. Black and White W. American Redstart Ovenbird Summer Tanager (heard) Scarlet Tanager Northern Cardinal Baltimore Oriole Not a bad collection of birds. I am still looking for the great warbler = spot in Charles Co. I am not sure this is the spot in AA County but it = was fun. Other warblers in the nets included a Black-throated Blue, Northern = Waterthrush, and Common Yellowthroat. On Sunday, September 7 I had a calling Caspian Tern flyby the house = about 8 AM With the nice weather prevailing, I headed out and about 10 AM I found a = Least Flycatcher at a wetland along the Potomac River near the end of = River Road. This is private property but in the breeding bird atlas = block of Bob Lukinic, a local birder. Bob and I visited this spot twice = now. This is a really fine location that I expected Olive-sided = Flycatcher and anything neat migrating up and down the river. =20 While I was checking out the sharpness of the new scope I bought Gwen = (Swarovski 65 HD), Bob reported "a little bird bug catching". I = eventually found the animal. It was grayish on the back and pale on the = breast, a smallish empid with a very stubby black bill. I looked to see = the color of the lower mandible and it was as dark at the upper = mandible. The only orange color I could detect was at the base of the = bill between the upper and lower mandible. The bird appeared somewhat = big headed but the back color and bill where what got my attention. The = eye-ring was not bold but apparent and this bird had two white wing = bars. The flight feathers were fine but the body looked a little ratty. = The primary extension was equal to the undertail covert, and the lower = breast had only a slight hint of pale green yellow wash, but the throat = was pale like the breast. The stubby body gave this very small bird a = somewhat longer tail appearance but not substantially. =20 The Acadian Flycatcher, which breeds here, is more olive green than this = bird. My experience with both Willow and Alder is much the same. This = bird was not green on the back, was much too small for a Phoebe, and the = wrong shape overall for Phoebe. This bird did not tail flip like some = Empids and Phoebe. I observed the bird for about 30 minutes from about = 200+ feet between 20 and 60 power. I eventually got to less than 100 = feet, got good looks at the front and back during my visit. The bird = never vocalized. =20 The Least Flycatcher did chase another Empid around for a short period. = The other Empid was larger, and not identified to species, but I could = see in my binoculars the other bird had a bright orange lower mandible. = The Least would not let the other Empid rest long for me to observe it = in the scope. The other bird eventually left the area and the Least = preened itself carefully, hunted a few bugs, and eventually flew south. = The Least did not look to be in the best plumage. I took this to be an = adult bird. A county bird and my last likely Empid. =20 Other birds at this wetland were 4 Bald Eagle, male American Kestrel, = several Great Blue and Green Heron, Pileated and Hairy Woodpecker, and a = few Eastern Kingbirds. A pretty good day. Good birding. 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