Date: Sat, 14 Feb 2004 21:56:39 -0500 Reply-To: Maryland Birds & Birding Sender: Maryland Birds & Birding From: "George M. Jett" Subject: House Sparrow in Waldorf; other Charles Co. birds Comments: To: SMAS Comments: cc: Miliff@aol.com, BlkVulture@aol.com MIME-Version: 1.0 Content-Type: text/plain; charset="iso-8859-1" Content-Transfer-Encoding: quoted-printable Folks This my seem ludicrous to some, but I had my first House Sparrows at the = house (outside of Waldorf, Charles Co., MD) in almost two years. The = last sighting was March 2002. Two males and one female appeared about 2 = PM at the back feeder station. Is this an invasion year for Passer = domesticus? # 44 for the year at the homestead. Other birds of interest today were: Allen's Fresh: White-crowned Sparrow (imm.)=20 Northern Shoveler (#109 for the big Charles Co. year)- two males, one = female. 16 Common Merganser=20 1 Ring-necked Duck=20 1 adult Bald Eagle=20 6 Tundra Swan (flying by) Breeze Point Sewage Treatment Plant: 200 Ring-necked Duck 30 Lesser Scaup=20 2 American Black Duck=20 1 Field Sparrow=20 2 Swamp Sparrow=20 6 Song Sparrow=20 6 Savannah Sparrow=20 20 Dark-eyed Junco=20 2 adult Bald Eagle Cobb Island Pumping Station: 2 Horned Grebe - (#110) 7 Surf Scoters=20 35 - Common Goldeneye=20 2 Canvasback=20 300+ Lesser/Greater Scaup=20 20+ Long-tailed Duck=20 Brown Thrasher - Gwen only Cedar Waxwings - ~20. We watched them all for their cousin. Nada! 1 Red-breasted Nuthatch - ditto 700+ Ruddy Duck - Wicomico River at the end of Wicomico Beach Point Road When Gwen and I got home, I took a few minutes to watch the feeder in = the front. I picked up one Fox Sparrow and one male Eastern Towhee = feeding in the front feeder station. A nine sparrow species day = (White-throated Sparrow seen at several locations). Not bad for putzing = around. Maybe we should have chased the Chipping and American Tree = Sparrows at Allen's Fresh. =20 The flock of Rusty Blackbirds is slowly dwindling. It is down to about = 60 birds today. I will participate the Great Backyard Bird count = tomorrow, and we will see what a few hours of concentrated attention = might produce. 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 =========================================================================