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Subject:

Nesting season at MPEA

From:

Bill Hubick

Reply-To:

Bill Hubick

Date:

Thu, 15 Jun 2006 19:18:22 -0700

Hi Everyone,
 
I spent a couple hours hiking around Middle Patuxent Environmental Area (MPEA) in Howard Co. this afternoon (6/15). The understory is lush and dense, and many of the trails are quite overgrown. Insects are more abundant than during my last visit, but that's a good thing when you're looking for some of them. The woods I found to very quiet, as though its residents are way too busy stuffing hungry mouths to worry about defending territory. I'd walk 50 yards with hardly a song, then suddenly be chastized by angry parents. There was, however, enough song to verify the presence of most of the park's nesters.
 
Mourning Dove--ON
Yellow-billed Cuckoo--1
Ruby-throated Hummingbird--1
Belted Kingfisher--1
Red-bellied Woodpeckers--FY* see below :)
Eastern Wood-Pewees--3
Acadian Flycatchers--2
White-eyed Vireos--3
Red-eyed Vireos--3
White-breasted Nuthatches--FL
Carolina Wrens--A
House Wrens--5; A
Blue-gray Gnatcatchers--10+
VEERIES--2
Wood Thrushes--10+
(no Blue-winged Warblers)
Northern Parula--1
Ovenbirds--8
Louisiana Waterthrush--1
Kentucky Warblers--5
Common Yellowthroats--8; A/P
Scarlet Tanagers--10+
Eastern Towhees--4
Indigo Buntings--6
 
Atlas Abbreviations: ON - On Nest, FY - Feeding Young, FL - Fledged Young, A - Agitated, P - Pair
 
A personal highlight came when I suddenly heard loud, high-pitched begging noises far above me in the trees. I looked up to spot a Red-bellied Woodpecker feeding one of its eager young at the entrance to its nesting cavity. This alone is always fun, but the ingenuity of their home's design was what impressed me. They'd built the cavity directly under a large toadstool, which certainly provides some protection from heat, predators, and nasty weather. 
 
Insects:
Ashy Clubtail--1
Painted Skimmer--1
Widow Skimmer--1 female
Common Whitetails--5
Tiger Swallowtails--3
Red-spotted Purple--1
Hobomok Skippers--5
 
I've posted a few photos, including the woodpecker handiwork, to my site at http://billhubick.com/new_set.html.

Almost to the weekend!
 
Bill
 
Bill Hubick
Elkridge, MD
bill_hubick AT yahoo.com
http://www.billhubick.com