Hi Everybody,

We could have used a few more birders on our May Count on Saturday the 13th, but we did manage to field five stalwart observers in four parties. Two parties covered limited areas in the morning around Fairlee (Joe Rogers) and in Rock Hall village (Meg Parry). Peter Mann covered east county, largely in the Golts area north of MD-330 and MD-313. Nancy and I did some owling from 2:30 AM to 5:15 AM, and worked southwestern Kent County including Eastern Neck Island (Meg Parry birded with us on E. Neck I.). Migrants were very scarce. We only had 14 warbler species for all parties with only *10* individuals ascribable to purely migratory species. The overall (unofficial) tally was 122 species and ca. 6000 individuals.

Among the highlights was decent owling including 5 Great Horned, 3 Barred and four E. Screech-Owls (one in daylight in response to playback). There were lots of shorebirds (11 species). These included *400* BLACK-BELLIED PLOVERS in the fields around Great Oak Pd, and a carpet of over *700* shorebirds at the Chesapeake Farms main pond, drained but not yet dry, including 190 Semipalmated Plovers, 270 Least Sandpipers, 140 Semiplamated Sandpipers, 80 Dunlin, 40 Lesser Yellowlegs, 12 Greater Yellowlegs, a WHITE-RUMPED SANDPIPER and a STILT SANDPIPER. [Today there was also a Pectoral Sandpiper there, but it seemed the Stilt Sandpiper and White-rump had left overnight. Today at the corner of Fish Hatchery and Handy Pt. Roads there were still 114 BLACK-BELLIED PLOVERS, and two RUDDY TURNSTONES (where were they Saturday? Probably way out in a field).] There was an early ROYAL TERN in Rock Hall Harbor. At Eastern Neck Narrows there was a calling CLAPPER RAIL (seen briefly in response to playback of King [!] Rail) and a singing SEASIDE SPARROW, as well as the vociferous local Marsh Wrens. With the full moon there was not much of a low tide. On E. Neck Island proper we had *seven* BROWN-HEADED NUTHATCHES. There are two pairs of nuthatches at the end of Boxes Pt. Trail, both with active nests in pine snags. One pair has a  second-year-age helper. We found a new pair along the Bogle's Wharf Rd (just beyond the spot where the marsh is on both sides of the road) taking food to a snag near the Duck Inn Trail.

The birds today seemed be telling us that we should have counted today instead of Saturday if we wanted more migrants. We had ten warbler species in our yard including at least three Blackpoll Warblers, a Chestnut-sided, and two Yellows. While we were on the back porch talking we had an adult PEREGRINE FALCON rush by overhead, the first we've had from our yard. I also had a new local high count of five SPOTTED SANDPIPERS flying around trying to find dry footing at high tide (very high it was again) at the landing below our house. They eventually landed on the dock on which I was standing. 

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"