Rigby's Folly, Armistead property on Ferry Neck, Talbot County, MD, 25124
West Ferry Neck Road near Royal Oak but nearer still to Bellevue: 

Early evening of July 16:  3 Forster's Terns, a singing Indigo Bunting, 1
Yellow-billed Cuckoo.  

July 17.  As chance would have it I awaken at 2:10 A.M. to hear a Great
Horned Owl calling in the yard.  A big Red Fox on the driveway at 7:30 P.M.
 The temperature plunges from 95 to 91 between 5 & 6:30 P.M.  A hen Wild
Turkey with 2 small, downy poults near Goose Neck X Bellevue roads at 6:45
P.M.


Monday, July 17.  DORCHESTER COUNTY.

A big Red Fox along Egypt Road c. 6:00 A.M.  A quick drive through at
Blackwater N.W.R. c. 6:15 A.M. netted 7 Eastern Cottontails.  Impoundments
have filled up nicely with the rains of the past few weeks.  Pool 3 is
chock full of 100s Marsh Hibiscus with their big white blossoms, a sure
indication that summer's advancing.

NW Taylor's Island, Dorchester County, MD (Taylor's I. NW atlas block).  My
first vist this year.  7:15-11:15 A.M., 59 species.  An attractive area
with open Bay but not much marsh, a farm or 2, fallow fields, Loblolly Pine
as well as some mixed woodlands, a couple of old churches, and nice
prospects looking to the western shore, Oyster Cove, and James Island.

Clear, 77-95, winds NW 10 (refreshing) becoming nearly (phew!) calm.  Tide:
nice and high.  

This area includes the Jeff Foxworthy-worthy Taylor's Island Family
Campground, which is well-wooded and gives a terrific view of the Bay where
it is quite narrow opposite the high clay bluffs of the western shore and
the liquified natural gas facility.  The north end of this atlas block
includes, and I am not kidding, Wilde Ass Pointe Wildlife Refuge.    

5 Great & 1 Snowy Egret.  45 Canada Geese.  7 Bald Eagles.  1 American
Kestrel (early migrant).  3 Northern Bobwhite.  1 Least Sandpiper (a
not-so-early migrant).  40 Forster's Terns.  6 Yellow-billed Cuckoos.  3
Ruby-throated Hummingbirds.  1 White-eyed & 3 Red-eyed vireos.  2 Northern
Rough-winged Swallows (probably migrants).  only 1 Brown-headed Nuthatch. 
3 Blue-gray Gnatcatchers.  9 Eastern Bluebirds.  1 Cedar Waxwing.  
6 Blue Grosbeaks.  6 Indigo Bunting.      

COnfirmed breeding today of:  Canada Goose, Osprey, Hairy Woodpecker, Barn
Swallow, Carolina Chickadee, Tufted Titmouse, Eastern Bluebird, Pine
Warbler, Field Sparrow, Orchard Oriole & House Sparrow.

Some common birds seen late-on today:  Blue Jay (species 56).  Purple
Martin (58).  Northern Mockingbird (51).  Eastern Towhee (50).  

No signs (Low Flying Chimney Swifts, Killdeer Children Playing, Deaf Great
Blue Heron Area, Mute Swan Crossing) of several common species.    

Non-avian taxa:  4 Monarchs.  A 3-foot King Snake D.O.R. with 4 Turkey
Vultures chowing down (Roadkill Du Jour).  1 Red-spotted Purple.  1 Green
Tree Frog.  1 Diamondback Terrapin crossing Hooper Neck Road, fast, ouch
... that pavement's hot!  Lots of Fiddler Crabs.  

Other reason for today's trip:  to have Gootees Marine check my outboard in
the aftermath of its having hit a submerged Sherman Tank (1 of 4 here, 3 of
them submerged) off the NW side of Bloodsworth Island July 11.  The
outboard is fine.  I feel sorry for the tank.  

Off-topic but what the hay?  My atlassing is cut 1 hour and 1 mile short at
11:15 A.M. when the car doesn't start.  AAA jump starts it.  I don't get
back to Philadelphia until 11:15 P.M.  After parking with the boat and
trailer in front of Easton Police Headquarters to check e-mail at the
Easton Public Library it does not start a 2nd time.  St. Michaels
Automotive Center takes me and the boat/trailer back to Rigby with his big
Jerr-Dan tow truck.  Then installs new battery in the car.  

This man is vastly entertaining, knows a lot about fishing, hunting, the
goose season, Bay islands, local people and the history of the area, shows
me fig and peach trees at the estate he helps caretake, a lovely serpentine
fresh water pond he made there, is full of opinions on politics, race,
hunting & fishing regulations, most of which I agree with.  "This is where
we feed the Wild Turkeys."  The day of Mary's wedding he is the one who
pulls the caterer's truck out of the ditch.  I was impressed when, going up
our drive, he comments, is astounded even, by the damage done to our wild
rosebush leaves by the Japanese Beetles.  How many tow truck operators
would notice or care?  One of his ancestors married one of the children of
Gen. Lewis Addison Armistead, of Civil War fame, who was my great great
grandfather's nephew.  Just so you'll know.       

Best to all.-Henry ("Harry") T. Armistead, 523 E. Durham St., Philadelphia,
PA 19119-1225.  215-248-4120.  Please, any off-list replies to: 
harryarmistead at hotmail dot com  (never, please, to 74077.3176 ....)