[MDOsprey] Least Flycatcher - My 2 cents
Steve Sanford (tanager@bcpl.net)
Sat, 24 Jul 1999 20:21:18 -0400
For what it's worth, the discussion of Least Flycatchers reminded me of
a surprising summer sighting of a Least Flycatcher in Prince George's Co
a few years ago which I just looked up in my records.
We encountered a Least Flycatcher on a Balto Bird Club field trip,
06/26/94, at Merkle WMA, at the small boardwalk area along the Patuxent
a few hundred yards beyond where the Wildlife Drive almost doubles back
on itself. (An area that is quite good in spring for Yellow-throated
Warblers and deer ticks, by the way.)
We identified it as a Least Flycatcher mainly by its persistently
repeated, rapid "che-bek" calls over a period of several minutes. We
also did see it and, as I recall, it seemed small and gray without the
greenish tints we expect in an Acadian. [I did notice recently,
however, some Leasts (ID'd by "che-bek" calls), we saw in Garrett Co
last spring were rather greenish.]
The observers included Pete Webb and myself. This was probably reported
in our Chip Notes newsletter, but probably not otherwise because I was
less attuned to reporting then and we didn't have MDOsprey yet. I
recently noticed in the latest Yellow Book, Least Fly is shown as a
historical breeder in PG Co, but not in any other counties east or south
of there. Maybe we saw the last breeding Least Flycatcher in Prince
George's Co! Note I go to that spot 2 or 3 times every spring and have
not encountered a Least since then.
Steve Sanford
tanager@bcpl.net
Randallstown MD