Norm's year wish list for St. Mary's County (long)

Tyler Bell (bell@say.acnatsci.org)
Mon, 17 Nov 1997 12:37:05 -0800


Norm:

Most of these birds would be quite difficult in St. Mary's for the whole
winter, much less a day or two around Thanksgiving. Your best bet for
some of these would require a trip to OC inlet, Indian River Inlet or
Cape Henlopen. Anyhow, here goes: 

Red-necked Grebe is not regular in the winter. Last year, I don't
remember any sightings from any of the active SMC birders, while the
winter before, they were at several locations near Pt. Lookout. Try
driving down Airedele Rd. just south of the junction of Rts. 5 and 235
in Ridge. We had one Saturday near the boat ramp at Conowingo.

King Eider - Patty Craig and Anne Bishop found a pair on last year's
Xmas count. They stayed near the fishing pier at Pt. Lookout for several
weeks. Maybe they'll be back?

Oldsquaw is a gimme. If you don't see one, something is seriously wrong
:) They should be on the Patuxent, Potomac or on the Bay from just about
anywhere. We had one on Saturday near the transformer on our way to
missing the Pacific Loon again :(

Harlequin Duck is a tough bird. They only show up ever other year or so.
Last year, Patty Craig had 3 at Pt. Lookout near the confluence of the
Potomac and the Bay. You might want to get in touch with Doug Lister
and/or Kyle Rambo and see if they have turned up any on their weekly
(Wed) waterfowl survey.

Iceland Gull - Last winter, there was one in a field at Solomons that
stayed for several weeks. They haven't harvested their soybeans yet so
no gulls yet. There are no SMC records yet. This particular bird flew to
the east pylon on the bridge before turning back to Solomons. Another
100 feet and it would have been there :(

Glaucous Gull - Jane and I found one that stuck around for about 30
minutes on Rt. 4 south of the intersection with Rt. 235. There is a
field just past the transfer station where the gulls tend to congregate
after feasting at the dump in the morning. Check that out for any odd
gulls, you never know what you might turn up. Patty Craig had one on
base for about the same duration. Her description was of a mature bird,
ours was a first winter. There are no records for Glaucous Gull for St.
Mary's but I think people hadn't been looking hard enough.

Eurasian Wigeon - Try looking in the pond at the end of Long Neck Rd.
south of Scotland. There has been one there for the last 2 winters
though it tends to show up late in the winter.

Barred Owl and Great Horned Owls - go out at night along some of the
side roads and listen. Should be fairly easy. There was a GHO nesting on
top of a light post at the marina at Pt. Lookout last winter. That was
an easy one since you could see the head sticking up over the bundle of
sticks that was an abandoned (for the winter) Osprey nest. Maybe it will
be back.

Winter Wren may be found just about anywhere. Not predictable.

Fox Sparrow can often be found around Ft. Lincoln at Pt. Lookout. Walk
across the road from the fishing pier and when you get to the fort, hang
a right and work the trails back there. Could be anywhere, tho.

The rest, good luck! If you find ANY of them, including everything else
from your wish list (except Oldsquaw), give someone a call. Or, if you
want some up to date tips, try calling Patty Craig. She birds almost
every day (lucky her!) and might have some better info than what I can
offer.

Common Eider
Northern Goshawk               
Little Gull - would be a 1st county record
Black-headed Gull - would be a 1st county record
Thayer's Gull - would be a 1st county record
Black-legged Kittiwake - would be a 1st county record
Barn Owl
Snowy Owl
Long-eared Owl
Northern Saw-whet Owl
Sedge Wren                     
Nelson's Sharp-tailed Sparrow
Lapland Longspur
Yellow-headed Blackbird        
Red Crossbill - would be a 1st county record (I think)
Common Redpoll                 
Evening Grosbeak


-- 
Good Birding!                  ...and all this science,
Tyler Bell                     I don't understand, It's
mailto:bell@say.acnatsci.org   just my job five days a week. 
California, MD                 Elton John (Rocket Man)
http://www.acnatsci.org/erd/berc/