Tree Sparrows and Gulls
GAIL@UMDD.UMD.EDU
Thu, 31 Dec 98 16:50:24 EST
Hi all and happy New Year's Eve!
We went over to Layhill Park today, the northern end, and saw that the American
Tree Sparrows reported during the Tridelphia CBC were still around, at least
6 of them were, along with a number of Field, Song and White-throats. Otherwise
the park was rather quiet, with the gently falling light snow. The sparrows
seem to be hanging out just past the beginning of the path which starts at
the NE corner of the soccer field.
In the afternoon we went over to Patuxent WRC Visitor's Ctr again to look at
gulls. We just missed the immature Glaucous that's being seen there, but
did see a Lesser Black-backed Gull (not the same individual we saw last
Saturday, this guy had less head streaking). Although there were a lot of
gulls on Lake Redington, I doubt it was 25% of the ones circling the distant
landfill, so waiting a while as birds fly in and out is rewarding. In case
folks aren't aware, one can watch the lake quite well from inside the center
through an observation window, which is equipped with a B&L Elite Scope. Very
comfortable!
Gail Mackiernan and Barry Cooper
Silver Spring, MD