DC Area, 4/28/98
scordle (scordle@tidalwave.net)
Tue, 28 Apr 1998 18:03:53 -0400
Hotline: Voice of the Naturalist
Date: 4/28/98
Coverage: MD/DC/VA/DE
Telephone: 301-652-1088
Reports (voice): 301-652-9188 x3101
(fax): 301-951-7179
(email): voice@capaccess.org
(deadline): midnight mondays
Compiler: Jane Hill
Sponsor: Audubon Naturalist Society of the Central
Atlantic States (independent of NAS!)
Transcriber: Steve Cordle (scordle@capaccess.org)
!!Now that migration season is in full swing, the volume of
bird reports is heavy, so please limit your reports to your top
ten sightings of the week!!
This is the Voice of the Naturalist, a service of the
Audubon Naturalist Society. This tape was made Tue, Apr 28, at
3:30 pm. Please consider joining the Society, especially if you
are a regular user of the Voice (Indiv.$30; Family $40; Nature
Steward $60; Audubon Advocate $100). The membership number is
above,the address is 8940 Jones Mill Road, Chevy Chase, MD 20815,
and the website is http://www.AudubonNaturalist.org.
Top birds this week are: ANHINGA and possible JACK SNIPE in
MD; WHITE-TAILED KITE and SANDHILL CRANE in VA; SEDGE WREN in DE;
and VESPER SPARROW in DC.
Other birds of interest include: LEAST BITTERN, YELLOW-CROWNED
NIGHT-HERON, SORA, COMMON MOORHEN, WHIMBREL, STILT and
WESTERN SANDPIPERs, hawks, RUBY-THROATED HUMMINGBIRD, ACADIAN
FLYCATCHER, COMMON RAVEN, RED-BREASTED NUTHATCH, AMERICAN PIPIT,
vireos, warblers, grosbeaks, sparrows, BOBOLINK, tanagers,
orioles, PINE SISKIN, RED CROSSBILL, and PURPLE FINCH.
A bird that may possibly be a JACK SNIPE, an Old World
species, was spotted with several Common Snipe in the bay marsh
at Assateague Island Natl Seashore, Worcester Co, MD [DeLorme Pg
35, D5], on Apr 24, 25, and 27. Birders are encouraged to look
for this bird, and to take photographs and careful notes to
document what could be a very rare sighting. Look for a bird
that is smaller than a Common Snipe, with a shorter bill, and
yellow stripes on a dark brown back. To reach this spot, take MD
Rt 611 to Assateague Is, and proceed south to the National
Seashore. Follow the directions to the Off-Road-Vehicle Zone,
given on pp. 194-195 of Claudia Wilds' book Finding Birds in the
National Capital Area. Take the Off-Road-Vehicle road south, to
Dune Crossing Number Six. Look for the bird in the shrubby
vegetation around the first ponds you see. You can also get to
this spot by hiking a back trail and following the signs to the
hunting blinds.
An adult WHITE-TAILED KITE was reported from along US Rt 13,
near Cheriton, Northampton Co, VA [DeLorme Pg 51, B5], on Apr 26;
this bird was first spotted at about noon on the opposite side of
Rt 13 from a Hardees Restaurant, and was then seen flying south,
crossing the highway near the turnoff for Cape Charles.
Four ANHINGAs were spotted flying over King's Landing Pk,
Huntingtown, Calvert Co, MD [DeLorme Pg 38, C2], on Apr 26. A
subsequent search of a pond in the nearby Lake Ridge subdivision,
where Anhingas were reported in 1996, was not productive,
however.
The SEDGE WREN seen in the Thompson Is area, Rehoboth Beach,
DE last week was there again over the weekend, according to a
secondhand report. This spot is located behind the Spring Lake
condominiums on DE Rt 1, between Rehoboth and Dewey Beach. Take
the trail from the townhouses through the woods, and look in the
first marsh you come to.
A SANDHILL CRANE was spotted from Oatlands Mill Rd as it
flew over Dulles Greenway Wetlands, Loudoun Co, VA, on Apr 26.
DC hosted a VESPER SPARROW, seen in weedy fields just south
of Kenilworth Aquatic Gardens, NE, on Apr 24. Also seen in these
fields that day were a GRASSHOPPER SPARROW and a BLUE GROSBEAK.
DC also hosted two BLUE-HEADED VIREOs, seen and heard in trees
near the Lincoln Memorial Reflecting Pool on Apr 27, and a single
WHITE-EYED VIREO, heard throughout the week at the DC War
Memorial, east of the Korean War Memorial, along Independence
Ave.
A LEAST BITTERN was still frequenting Flag Ponds Nature Pk,
Calvert Co, MD, this week, with reports for Apr 23 and 24; it was
heard at both Richardson's Pond and Duncan's Pond there. Four
early-arriving WESTERN SANDPIPERs were seen at Hart-Miller Is,
Baltimore Co, MD, on Apr 24. A SORA was observed at Huntley
Meadows Pk, Fairfax Co, VA, on Apr 22 and 25.
Seventy-five WHIMBREL were noted on the causeway from the
mainland to Chincoteague NWR, Accomack Co, VA, on Apr 24. Four
COMMON MOORHENs were spotted at Elliott Island, Dorchester Co,
MD, on Apr 23.
Thirty-one species of warblers were reported this week, as
migration progresses. Highlights included an ORANGE-CROWNED
WARBLER, seen near the entrance to Glen Carlyn Pk, Arlington, VA,
on Apr 23. New arrivals reported this week included BLACK-
THROATED BLUE, CANADA, CAPE MAY, CERULEAN, CHESTNUT-SIDED,
GOLDEN-WINGED, KENTUCKY, NASHVILLE, TENNESSEE, and WILSON'S
WARBLERs.
Other landbird arrivals this week included ACADIAN
FLYCATCHER, YELLOW-THROATED and WARBLING VIREOs, SCARLET and
SUMMER TANAGERs, ORCHARD and BALTIMORE ORIOLEs, ROSE-BREASTED
GROSBEAK, and BOBOLINK. RUBY-THROATED HUMMINGBIRDs are being
reported widely at area feeders. A LINCOLN'S SPARROW was seen
along Four-Mile Run, Arlington, VA, on Apr 24 and 27. A YELLOW-
CROWNED NIGHT-HERON was noted at Huntley Meadows Pk, Fairfax Co,
VA, on Apr 26.
A COMMON RAVEN was spotted at the Ft Smallwood Pk hawkwatch,
Anne Arundel Co, MD, on Apr 25; this may be the first record of
this species in the county. Also tallied by hawkwatchers there
that day were 365 SHARP-SHINNED HAWKs. Ft Smallwood is located
at the mouth of the Patapsco River, about 11 miles s of Baltimore
[DeLorme Pg 58, D3].
Notable birds seen far inland from their usual haunts were a
STILT SANDPIPER, spotted from Oatlands Mill Rd at the Dulles
Greenway Wetlands, VA, on Apr 26; and two OSPREY, seen along
Kerrs Creek, near Lexington, Rockbridge Co, VA [DeLorme Pg 53,
B7], on Apr 24.
Twenty-five AMERICAN PIPITs were observed in a plowed field
along Oland Rd, Frederick Co, MD, on Apr 22; this field is on the
right side if you approach from New Design Rd.
RED CROSSBILLs continued to be seen on Bolt's Pond, along
Charbon Ln, North East, Cecil Co, MD, during the week. PURPLE
FINCHes were on the move, with a flock of 45 noted at Huntley
Meadows Pk, VA, on Apr 26. EVENING GROSBEAKs are lingering in
the area, with reports from several locations. Other lingerers
include RED-BREASTED NUTHATCH and PINE SISKIN.
There will be a walk at Huntley Meadows Pk, VA, on Thurs,
Apr 30; call the leader, Ed Eder of Alexandria, at 703-360-7994,
to reserve your place. There will be a walk at Dyke Marsh, VA,
on Sat, May 2; call the leader, Len Alfredson of Arlington, at
703-416-2718, for information. There will be a reservations-only
walk at Battery Kemble Pk, DC, on Sun, May 3; call the leader,
Ottavio Janni of DC, at 202-244-6009, eves before 9 pm. There
will be a trip to Patuxent River Pk, MD, on Thurs, May 7; call
the leader, Paul DuMont of Arlington, at 703-931-8994, to reserve
your spot. There will be a walk at the Natl Arboretum, DC, on
Fri, May 8; call the leader, Virginia McNair of Arlington, at
703-820-6886, for information.
To report bird sightings you can FAX your report to ANS at
301-951-7179, or call 301-652-9188, extension 3101 for a
dedicated answering machine at all hours. Internet users can
email reports to: voice@capaccess.org. Thank you for calling,
and GOOD BIRDING.