Hi All,

Leaders Nancy Martin and Walter Ellison decided to choose Quaker Neck with an extension to Eastern Neck for a Kent County Bird Club trip on Saturday. We met local members Joe Rogers and Lynn Waite, and hosted two MOS members from acorss the Bay Bridge, Bob Ringler and John Hubbell at 7:00 AM and headed for our first stop at John Hanson Rd. We had a great outing tallying 86 species including 22 waterfowl species although it was obvious that the geese and Tundra Swans won't be with us much longer.

We started the trip by scanning the Chestertown Treatment Plant settling ponds from John Hanson Rd with Lesser Scaup, Ring-necked Ducks (on the back pond), and Ruddy Ducks. The best bird was only seen by Nancy as she spotted a young GREATER WHITE-FRONTED GOOSE in a small flock of northbound Canada Geese. The bird got by quickly and no one else was able to see it as the birds hightailed it over the horizon.

We made our way back to Quaker Neck Rd (MD-289) via Lover's Lane, a nice wooded road running from Airy Hill Rd to MD-289. Next to a small wooded pond we found Brown Creeper, FOX SPARROW, WINTER WREN, and Eastern Towhee. Heading south towards Pomona on MD-289 we saw Osprey (the first two of four for the day) on their nest atop a silo, had a quick look at a flying WILSON'S SNIPE, and flushed 400 Mallards and 8 black ducks from a flooded cornfield. These fields also held 8 Wood Ducks (back in some force with over 20 for the day) and 12 Ring-necked Ducks. On the way down to Quaker Neck Landing we hooted-up a Barred Owl that gave us all a lingering look into its deep brown eyes. We also encountered the first of 10 PINE WARBLERS for the day, and another singing WINTER WREN was detected by Bob. 

At Cliff City we found some Double-crested Cormorants, an earlyish Forster's Tern,  80 Greater Scaup and 60 Lessers, some Bufflehead, Common Goldeneye, another Osprey, and a Chipping Sparrow. North of Cliff City we had 40 Green-winged Teal on a shallow pond, a male American Kestrel, and a lone TREE SWALLOW headed north giving its liquid calls. We proceeded to Langford and went into the open fields along Pentridge Lane. Nancy commented on two Red-tailed Hawks divebombing a "vulture"; as soon a she said it we both locked onto the bird and it resolved into a one-year-old GOLDEN EAGLE who kindly passed in review over us on the road giving everyone an excellent view. Other birds around Langford included Whire-crowned Sparrows, 11 Eastern Meadowlarks, pintail, and Horned Larks.

At Chesapeake Farms there were Northern Shovelers, pintail, two more TREE SWALLOWS, White-crowned Sparrows, and a nice Bald Eagle show (at least three birds chasing each other, including some talon presentation). Joe and Lynn had to leave us at this point so Bob, John, Nancy and I headed on to Eastern Neck. At the narrows there were Red-breasted Mergansers, some Forster's Terns, and three BONAPARTE'S GULLS. Boxes Point Trail yielded a Hermit Thrush, Swamp Sparrows, at least three PINE WARBLERS, and finally, three BROWN-HEADED NUTHATCHES putting on a nice show, including inspection of cavities on some snags.  We also were treated to Horned Grebes and a Hooded Merganser at the end of the trail on the Chester River. We then went to Bogle's Wharf where we added Canvasback, Long-tailed Duck and American Wigeon (or Baldpate) on the river, and a GRAY CATBIRD in the thickets along the road.

It was a spelndid warm late winter day very much presaging the spring to come. Our complete list follows in paragraph form:
Greater White-fronted Goose; Snow Goose; Canada Goose; Mute Swan; Tundra Swan; Wood Duck; American Wigeon (Baldpate); American Black Duck; Mallard; Northern Shoveler; Northern Pintail; Green-winged Teal; Canvasback; Ring-necked Duck; Greater Scaup; Lesser Scaup; Long-tailed Duck; Bufflehead; Common Goldeneye; Hooded Merganser; Red-breasted Merganser; Ruddy Duck; Horned Grebe; Double-crested Cormorant; Great Blue Heron; Black Vulture; Turkey Vulture; Osprey; Bald Eagle (20 total); Cooper's Hawk (plus two Accipiter [species]); Red-tailed Hawk; Golden Eagle; American Kestrel; Killdeer; Wilson's Snipe; Bonaparte's Gull; Ring-billed Gull; Herring Gull; Great Black-backed Gull; Forster's Tern; Rock Pigeon; Mourning Dove; Barred Owl; Belted Kingfisher; Red-bellied Woodpecker; Downy Woodpecker; Hairy Woodepcker; Northern (Yellow-shafted) Flicker; Blue Jay; American Crow; Fish Crow; Horned Lark; Tree Swallow; Carloina Chickadee; Tufted Titmouse; Brown-headed Nuthatch; Brown Creeper; Carolina Wren; Winter Wren; Eastern Bluebird; Hermit Thrush; American Robin; Gray Catbird; Northern Mockingbird; European Starling; American Pipit (calling overhead unseen); Cedar Waxwing; Yellow-rumped (Myrtle) Warbler; Pine Warbler; Eastern Towhee; Chipping Sparrow; Savannah Sparrow (Airy Hill Rd); Fox Sparrow; Song Sparrow; Swamp Sparrow; White-throated Sparrow; White-crowned Sparrow; Dark-eyed (slate-colored) Junco; Northern Cardinal; Red-winged Blackbird; Eastern Meadowlark; Common Grackle; Brown-headed Cowbird; House Finch; American Goldfinch; House Sparrow.

Good Birding,

Walter Ellison

23460 Clarissa Road
Chestertown, MD 21620
phone: 410-778-9568
e-mail: 

"A person who is looking for something doesn't travel very fast" - E. B. White (in "Stuart Little")

"Are there *ever* enough birds?" - Connie Hagar as quoted by Edwin Way Teale in "Wandering through Winter"