Bill,

I read your account of grassland birds at Blank Road with interest. This area sounds like a potential Important Bird Area. Could you tell me how many Henslow's Sparrows you heard/saw. This would be a vital piece of information for reviewing the site for IBA status - HESP are Threatened species in Maryland.

Thanks.

Dave Curson

David Curson, PhD
Director of Bird Conservation,
Audubon MD-DC,
2437 Eastern Avenue,
Baltimore  MD  21224
Tel: (410) 558 2473
E-mail: 



-----Original Message-----
From: Maryland Birds & Birding [mailto:[log in to unmask]]On
Behalf Of Bill Hubick
Sent: Sunday, July 31, 2005 8:46 PM
To: 
Subject: [MDOSPREY] Garrett Atlasing; Allegany Grassland Birds and
Shorebirds


Hi Everyone,

I spent a great weekend in western Maryland, first atlasing in the
Kitzmiller NE block (7/30), then birding and looking at bugs with Hans
Holbrook (7/31). Atlasing was as excellent as I'd hoped, yielding 9 new
species for the block, 11 new confirmations via fledged young, and a total
of 32 upgrades/new quarterblock tics. The birds were fairly quiet, but
dedicating a day to patiently watching usually pays off!

Fledged young confirmations: MOURNING DOVE, EASTERN WOOD-PEWEE, EASTERN
KINGBIRD, CEDAR WAXWING, CHESTNUT-SIDED WARBLER, BLACK-THROATED GREEN
WARBLER, COMMON YELLOWTHROAT, SONG SPARROW, NORTHERN CARDINAL, ROSE-BREASTED
GROSBEAK, and INDIGO BUNTING.

Other nice finds: RED-SHOULDERED HAWK, RUBY-THROATED HUMMINGBIRDS (one very
agitated as I hiked a trail - I was scared for my life), a HAIRY WOODPECKER
(this has been a hard bird to find in the block), CAROLINA WRENS (5-6; by
far more common in this block than anywhere else I've found in the county),
many BLACK-AND-WHITE WARBLERS (certainly some young of the year, but a
little too old to apply the "FL" code - did you know they're ground
nesters?), and a WORM-EATING WARBLER (out of safe dates). I spent 10 minutes
relocating a Carolina Wren that had looked a little odd, waiting with bated
breath and hoping for a bird with clean plumage, a gray belly, and some
white corners on the tail. No Bewick's this time, just a plain ole Carolina.
But you can't find something if you're not looking for it! "The eye only
sees what the mind is prepared to comprehend." Of course, this is best
coupled with "The eyes are more than happy to see what the mind wants them
to see, so be careful."

The milkweed crop seems to be great in that part of Garrett County this
year, and I noted no less than 50 Monarchs over the weekend. Other insects
included my lifer Northern Pearly-eye, Pipevine Swallowtail, and Wandering
Glider; good numbers of Eastern Tiger Swallowtails, Spicebush Swallowtails,
Great Spangled Fritillaries, and Silver-spotted Skippers. 

I met up with Hans in the late afternoon, stopped to take in some HENSLOW'S
SPARROW song on Pea Ridge Road, then spent the night at Carey Run, where the
evening chorus is composed of the sounds of Barred Owls, Green Frogs,
Yellow-billed Cuckoos, and katydids (Or didn't she?). 

Hans and I started today on Blank Road in Allegany, the beautiful habitat
described lately by J.B., George, and others. We got there early enough to
see and hear the local residents singing up a storm. The SEDGE WREN was
perched prominently on the west side of the road, constantly singing a song
VERY reminiscent of Dickcissel. HENSLOW'S SPARROWS were also very vocal, and
many were perched at the tops of small bushes and grasses, allowing nice
scope views. Unfortunately, they were all too far for quality photographs.
Also present were numerous BOBOLINKS and at least one GRASSHOPPER SPARROW.
While we chatted with a couple cyclists that had been riding by, I saw what
I am pretty sure was a male DICKCISSEL flying across the field, far away on
the west side of the road. It landed and did not re-appear, and I won't
swear on the sighting. 

We then proceeded to North Branch to check for shorebirds. While numbers
weren't too high, there was a lot of diversity. The tally:

SEMIPALMATED PLOVER - 1
KILLDEER - ~20
LESSER YELLOWLEGS - 3
SOLITARY SANDPIPERS - 6
SPOTTED SANDPIPER - 2
SEMIPALMATED SANDPIPERS - 2
LEAST SANDPIPERS - 3
* WHITE-RUMPED SANDPIPER - 1
* PECTORAL SANDPIPERS - 5
Wood Duck - 1 hen
Green Heron - 1

Continuing up the canal a bit, we found an apparent young-of-the-year
PROTHONOTARY WARBLER.

A stop in eastern Allegany County yielded photo opportunities for two great
butterflies: Northern Metalmark and Silvery Checkerspot, both new for me. A
BARRED OWL hooted adieu as we prepared to leave.

Quite a satisfying weekend! I'll post some new photos to my site, mostly of
insects, but also of a few birds, probably tomorrow.

Have a great week,

Bill

Bill Hubick
Linthicum, Maryland

<www.billhubick.com>