Date: Fri, 9 Jan 2004 22:52:13 EST Reply-To: Maryland Birds & Birding Sender: Maryland Birds & Birding From: Mark Hoffman Subject: 2003 Chincoteague CBC-MD Sector Results MIME-Version: 1.0 Content-Type: text/plain; charset="US-ASCII" Content-Transfer-Encoding: 7bit MARYLAND SECTOR 2003 CHINCOTEAGUE, VIRGINIA, CHRISTMAS BIRD COUNT Stockton, MD. Dec. 29, 2003. Times: 0630-1730; owling 0515-0638. Freshwater ponds open, streams, salt marshes, bays and running water open. Observers: 6 in 3 parties. Total party-hours 26.0; 18.0 on foot, 8.0 by car. Total party-miles 64.5; 21.0 on foot, 43.5 by car. Owling party-hours 1.8; party-miles 3.7. All areas in Worcester County, Maryland, including E. A. Vaughn Wildlife Management Area-Central Area (areas south of Scarboro Creek and north of Pikes Creek), E. A. Vaughn Wildlife Management Area-Southern Area (areas south of Pikes Creek and north of George Island Landing Road), George Island Landing, Stockton, Big Mill Pond, Swans Gut, Greenbackville Road and Rabbit Knaw Road. All comments refer to the 13 years (1991-2003) for which complete data are currently available for this sector. Species in caps are new to the cumulative list. New highs are indicated. (X/13) means the species has been recorded on X of the 13 counts. All species recorded during 13-year period listed. Initials are given for species recorded by a single party. CW = count Common Loon 0 (4/13); Pied-billed Grebe 2 (10/13, MLH, Big Mill Pond); Horned Grebe 1 (6/13, MOB, LZ); Double-crested Cormorant 0 (1/13); American Bittern 0 (2/13); Great Blue Heron 24 (13/13); Great Egret 1 (4/13, ZB, BE, RFR); Tricolored Heron 0 (1/13); GREEN HERON 1 (1/13, ZB, BE, RFR); Black-crowned Night-Heron 0 (3/13); Black Vulture 11 (13/13); Turkey Vulture 174 (13/13); Snow Goose 3531 (13/13, 3520 white, 11 blue); Ross' Goose 0 (3/13); Canada Goose 731 (13/13); Brant 23 (7/13, MOB, LZ); Tundra Swan 4 (11/13, MOB, LZ); Wood Duck 1 (9/13, MLH); Gadwall 1 (6/13, ZB, BE, RFR); American Wigeon 0 (7/13); American Black Duck 137 (12/13); Mallard 282 (12/13); Blue-winged Teal 0 (1/13); Northern Shoveler 2 (5/13, MOB, LZ); Northern Pintail 0 (3/13); Green-winged Teal 2 (8/13, MOB, LZ); Ring-necked Duck 4 (3/13, MLH, Big Mill Pond); Lesser Scaup 0 (2/13); Oldsquaw 0 (1/13); Bufflehead 490 (13/13, MOB, LZ); Common Goldeneye 0 (5/13); Hooded Merganser 315 (13/13); Common Merganser 1 (3/13, MOB, LZ, George's Island Landing, same bird as in last 3 years?, rare in Worcester); Red-breasted Merganser 42 (12/13, MOB, LZ); Bald Eagle 10 (10/13, 2 ad., 7 imm., 1 unk.); Northern Harrier 12 (12/13, ties high); Sharp-shinned Hawk 8 (13/13); Cooper's Hawk 1 (9/13, MOB, LZ); Red-shouldered Hawk 0 (7/13); Red-tailed Hawk 14 (13/13); American Kestrel 5 (13/13); Merlin 0 (2/13); Peregrine Falcon 0 (3/13); Wild Turkey 4 (2/13, MLH, gobbling at dawn along Steele Pond Road, ties high); Northern Bobwhite 0 (11/13); Clapper Rail 0 (1/13); large rail (sp.) 0 (2/13); Virginia Rail 0 (7/13); American Coot 0 (1/13); Black-bellied Plover 1 (8/13, MOB, LZ); Killdeer 14 (13/13); American Avocet 0 (1/13); Greater Yellowlegs 11 (13/13); Lesser Yellowlegs 0 (8/13); Sanderling 0 (1/13); Western Sandpiper 0 (1/13); Least Sandpiper 0 (1/13); Dunlin 17 (11/13, MOB, LZ); Long-billed Dowitcher 0 (6/13); Wilson's Snipe 3 (8/13, MOB, LZ); American Woodcock 3 (13/13); Ring-billed Gull 528 (13/13); Herring Gull 87 (13/13); Great Black-backed Gull 8 (12/13); Rock Dove 26 (13/13); Mourning Dove 160 (13/13); Barn Owl 0 (2/13); Eastern Screech-Owl 23 (13/13); Great Horned Owl 15 (13/13); Barred Owl 1 (2/13, MOB, LZ); Long-eared Owl 0 (2/13); Short-eared Owl 1 (6/13, MOB, LZ, George's Island Landing); Belted Kingfisher 7 (13/13); Red-bellied Woodpecker 18 (13/13); Yellow-bellied Sapsucker 2 (11/13); Downy Woodpecker 19 (13/13); Hairy Woodpecker 11 (13/13); Northern Flicker 39 (13/13); Pileated Woodpecker 6 (13/13); Eastern Phoebe 11 (13/13); Blue-headed Vireo 0 (1/13); Blue Jay 44 (13/13); American Crow 313 (13/13); Fish Crow 9 (3/13, new high, prev. high 6, scarce here in winter); Horned Lark 28 (11/13); Tree Swallow 0 (2/13); Carolina Chickadee 31 (13/13); Tufted Titmouse 21 (13/13); Red-breasted Nuthatch 0 (4/13); White-breasted Nuthatch 2 (6/13, MLH); Brown-headed Nuthatch 7 (10/13, MLH, ties high); Brown Creeper 2 (12/13); Carolina Wren 117 (13/13); House Wren 1 (12/13, MLH, same privet hedge around old house as last year); Winter Wren 20 (13/13); Sedge Wren 1 (11/13, ZB, BE, RFR); Marsh Wren 3 (6/13, ZB, BE, RFR); Golden-crowned Kinglet 7 (13/13); Ruby-crowned Kinglet 15 (12/13, new high, prev. 14); Blue-gray Gnatcatcher 0 (1/13); Eastern Bluebird 55 (13/13); Hermit Thrush 51 (13/13); American Robin 1174 (13/13); Gray Catbird 4 (12/13); Northern Mockingbird 14 (13/13); Brown Thrasher 17 (12/13); European Starling 493 (13/13); American Pipit 121 (12/13); Cedar Waxwing 17 (11/13, MLH); Orange-crowned Warbler 0 (3/13); Nashville Warbler 0 (0/13); Yellow-rumped (Myrtle) Warbler 73 (13/13); Yellow-rumped (Audubon's) Warbler 0 (1/13); Pine Warbler 2 (10/13, MLH); Prairie Warbler 0 (1/13); Palm Warbler (yellow) 1 (3/13); Palm Warbler (western) 6 (4/13); Palm Warbler (total) 7 (10/13); Common Yellowthroat 0 (8/13); Yellow-breasted Chat 0 (2/13); (in Hoffman's core area, south of Rt. 366 and west of Rt. 12, Myrtles again came in third: Palm: 6, Pine: 2, Myrtle: 1). Eastern Towhee 27 (13/13); Chipping Sparrow 10 (8/13, MLH); Clay-colored Sparrow 0 (1/13); Field Sparrow 18 (13/13); Vesper Sparrow 4 (5/13, MOB, LZ); Savannah Sparrow 132 (13/13); Grasshopper Sparrow 0 (0/13); Le Conte's Sparrow 0 (2/13); Saltmarsh Sharp-tailed Sparrow 2 (7/13, ties high, ZB, BE, RFR); Nelson's Sharp-tailed Sparrow 7 (7/13, ties high, ZB, BE, RFR); sharp-tailed Sparrow (sp.) 0 (6/13); Fox Sparrow 21 (13/13); Song Sparrow 151 (13/13); Lincoln's Sparrow 0 (1/13); Swamp Sparrow 170 (13/13); White-throated Sparrow 670 (13/13); Harris's Sparrow 0 (1/13); White-crowned Sparrow 5 (5/13, MLH, ties high, Little Mill Road); Dark-eyed ("Slate-colored") Junco 66 (13/13); Dark-eyed ("Oregon") Junco 0 (1/13); Northern Cardinal 157 (13/13); Painted Bunting 0 (1/13); Red-winged Blackbird 2541 (13/13); Eastern Meadowlark 134 (13/13); Rusty Blackbird 9 (11/13); Brewer's Blackbird 0 (1/13); Common Grackle 244 (13/13); Boat-tailed Grackle 0 (7/13); Brown-headed Cowbird 184 (12/13); Purple Finch 3 (8/13, MOB, LZ); House Finch 7 (13/13); Red Crossbill 0 (1/13); COMMON REDPOLL 1 (1/13, MOB, LZ, flyover at Vaughn/South, record-setting "invasion" in the OC/Assateague area the day before); Pine Siskin 0 (1/13); American Goldfinch 89 (13/13); House Sparrow 113 (12/13). TOTAL SPECIES 104 (ties second best, high 112). 14,260 individuals. Cumulative species total (for count days) 148, 2 species added. PARTICIPANTS: Zach Baer, Bill Ellis, Mark L. Hoffman (MLH, compiler-7263 Norris Ave., Sykesville, MD, 21784, Mhoff36120@aol.com), Michael O'Brien, Robert F. Ringler, Louise Zemaitis. General party locations: Hoffman (Big Mill Pond and vicinity-areas south of Rt. 366 and west of Rt. 12, and areas south of 366 and east of Rt. 12); Baer/Ellis/Ringler (Vaughn WMA-Central Area); O'Brien and Zemaitis (Vaughn WMA-Southern Area and George Island Landing Road). Commentary: Near perfect weather, reaching a high of 58 F, light winds all day. Birding was good, but not great. Always a greatly enjoyable day! Mark L. Hoffman Sykesville MD Mhoff36100@aol.com ======================================================================= To leave the MDOsprey list, send e-mail to listserv@home.ease.lsoft.com with the following message in line 1: signoff mdosprey ======================================================================= =========================================================================