Hi All,

Nancy and I spent much of yesterday (20 June) on our assigned blocks in 
the Sassafras valley in Cecil County. In particular we took the full 
walk around Grove Neck Sanctuary in Spesutie-SE and did a bit of atlas 
work in Earleville-SE which includes the village of Earleville. In 
between we did some incidental atlasing in Earleville-SW (which contains 
the Mount Harmon mansion among other locations).

There is a patch of fallow farmland at the corner of Grove Neck Rd and 
Cassidy Wharf Rd east of the lane to Mt. Harmon. We found two 
DICKCISSELS singing there, as well as a singing BOBWHITE. Also present 
were Horned Lark, Grasshopper Sparrow, and Orchard Oriole and Blue 
Grosbeak feeding young.

We had 63 species on Grove Neck including broods of Canada Goose, 
Mallard and Wood Duck. The pen Mute Swan was still on her nest as if 
incubating, I presume the eggs may have failed to hatch for some reason. 
We had singing Yellow-breasted Chats, confirmed Yellow Warbler, had a 
White-eyed Vireo gathering nest material, noted several Warbling Vireos 
(most along the river), there were lots of Bank Swallows, a Great Horned 
Owl  gave us a great look as "he" gave us a lingering parting glare, and 
Orchard Orioles were numerous with many fledglings and adults carrying 
food. A Carolina Wren feeding a fledgling cowbird was surprising, it's 
rare for cowbirds to parasitize cavity nesting birds. Elsewhere in the 
block we had Acadian Flycatcher, Kentucky Warbler, Northern Parula, 
phoebe, Scarlet Tanagers, Blue Grosbeak, a family of screech-owls, and 
White-breasted Nuthatches.

Today (21 June) we went on a boat trip to the islands of Susquehannah 
NWR, offered by the staff of Eastern Neck NWR to its volunteers. We 
could find nothing new for the well-covered Havre De Grace-CE block on 
Garrett Island. However almost the only land in Spesutie-NW's 
quarterblock two is tiny Battery Island where we had our lunch. We 
confirmed two swallow species (Tree and Barn), had a kingbird nest with 
young, fledgling Fish Crows, and nesting Red-winged Blackbirds. We also 
had lots of gulls and a couple of terns including Ring-billed, Laughing 
and Great Black-backed gulls, and adult Caspian and Least terns.

I wish I could get out and atlas more, the atlas project's biological 
clock is ticking.

Good birding & altasing,

Walter Ellison

23460 Clarissa Rd
Chestertown, MD 21620

phone: 410-778-9568

e-mail: rossgull(AT)baybroadband.net

"Nothing is as easy as you would like it to be, and nothing is as hard 
as you might fear"