Philadelphia. Thu., Jan. 25, first bird song I've noticed this year, a
Tufted Titmouse, we've turned the corner. Fri., Jan. 26, as so often
happens after a cold front, esp. if there's some snow, an influx of robins.
Sorry to be out of town on a weekend when Prince Charles and Garrison
Keillor (sp?) visit Philadelphia.
RIGBY'S FOLLY, Armistead property on Ferry Neck, Talbot County, MD, 25124
West Ferry Neck Road near Royal Oak but nearer still to Bellevue. FRIDAY,
JANUARY 26, 2007:
11 Mourning Doves. 2 Red-tailed Hawks. 55 Tundra Swans. 2 Redheads. 80
Buffleheads. 1 Field Sparrow. 4 goldeneyes. 325 Red-winged Blackbirds
with 50 Brown-headed Cowbirds mixed in; I look them over carefully enough
to see there are no rusties, grackles, or Yellow-headeds. Several hundred
Canada Geese in Field 6.
1 dead mouse in the traps since last weekend. A neighbor said it went down
to 17 degrees F. today. Pump House floor is 46 degrees at 2:30 P.M., 66
degrees at head level, 32 degrees outside. Very low tide with about 1/3
the cove frozen.
13 deer (12 does plus a small buck, the right antler with 3 puny ponts, the
left antler missing).
SATURDAY, JANUARY 27.
Rigby, 4:30 A.M., an Eastern Cottontail.
ELLIOTT ISLAND ROAD (EIR) from Vienna to McCready's Creek and Fishing Point
including Kraft Neck Road and the Route 50 borrow pit.
81 species. 5:45 A.M.-6:15 P.M. 78 miles by car, 3 by foot. clear
becoming fair, 25-55-46 degrees F., winds calm becoming SW 5-10m.p.h.,
tides above normal high to below normal low - big tidal swing - visibility
excellent. Most still waters in the saltmarsh frozen, tidal guts only
partially so. Before light 24 hunters' cars passed me, many trailering Jon
boats. One stopped to ask if I needed help.
17 waterfowl species, not especially good, but incl.: Wood Duck 1.
Gadwall 6. American Wigeon 34. Green-winged Teal 9. Canvasback 1,345 in
Fishing Bay. Ring-necked Duck 2 in the borrow pit. Lesser Scaup 285.
Hooded Merganser 2. Ruddy Duck 315.
Pied-billed Grebe 6. Horned Grebe 1. NORTHERN GANNET 1 seen from
McCready's Point, not that surprising but the first I've ever seen from
EIR. Double-crested Cormorant 2. Black-crowned Night Heron 6 at dusk.
RAPTORS. 12 species (the best I've ever done here): 8 Black & 40 Turkey
Vultures, 17 Bald Eagles (not an especially good count by recent local
standards), 3 Sharp-shinned, 1 Cooper's, 2 Red-shouldered, 4 Red-tailed & 1
Rough-legged Hawk, 6 harriers, 2 kestrels, 1 Merlin, and a male Peregrine
Falcon (hunting over a field on the S side of Kraft Neck Road).
1 Clapper Rail & 6 Virginia rails. 42 Killdeer in groupings of 19, 2 & 21.
26 Greater & 1 Lesser yellowlegs. 16 Dunlin.
3 screech & 7 horned owls (one of the Great Horned Owls called in response
to my screech-owl imitation at 1:17 P.M. on Kraft Neck Road, the first time
I've ever had that happen).
only 1 kingfisher. 2 Tree Swallows at Drawbridge on the Chicamacomico
River. 1 Winter Wren. 1 Ruby-crowned Kinglet. 1 Hermit Thrush. 2
catbirds. 1 thrasher. 30 American Pipits in the field just SW of Vienna.
12 waxwings. 1 Fox Sparrow. only 2 meadowlarks. 26 Boat-tailed Grackles
(good count in the context of recent years).
Interesting misses: Short-eared Owl, all woodpeckers except for 2 Downies,
Horned Lark, titmouse, Brown-headed Nuthatch, Savannah Sparrow, Gisele
Bundchen, junco, Common Grackle. A rather poor day for landbirds. Didn't
find one good mixed species foraging guild all day. Numbers of dabbling
ducks low with only 32 American Black Ducks. 90 Mallards, most in the
little tidal creek just S of Vienna.
Mammals: 2 deer (does). 1 Sika Elk. 1 Eastern Cottontail. Roadkills: 1
Sika Elk, 1 Raccoon.
SUNDAY, JANUARY 28.
Rigby's Folly. Overcast with light sprinkles, with rain or snow imminent.
8-9:45 A.M. only. 42 degrees F., winds light & variable. 245 Canvasbacks,
35 Ruddy Ducks, 2 Horned Grebes, 130 Mallards, 120 Surf Scoters, 4
goldeneyes, 1 ad. Bald Eagle perched on the spindle off Nelson's Point, 70
Tundra Swans, 55 Lesser Scaup, a male Red-breasted Merganser, 6 Redheads,
35 White-throated & 19 Song sparrows.
Also: 6 deer (does). Jimmy Olszewski left us a huge bag of grain, at least
150 lbs., on the front porch for distribution to the birds and animals, now
that his family's hunting season has ended, and also set up a
corn-dispensing barrel in Field 1.
BISON (i.e., Buffalo; almost out-gorillas the Gorilla's scientific name of
Gorilla gorilla, chipping in with: Bison bison). Thanks to Jared Sparks
for calling attention to these beasts. They're at milepost 108.1 just to
the E of Route 301 (and just S of Route 301 X Route 405), somewhat
concealed. At 11:13 A.M. there are at least 15 in a large pen including 2
calves. In the pen with them, or else perched on fence posts around it,
are 41 Black Vultures, a pretty large group for Delmarva. Not sure what
attracts them to the Bison area but it surely isn't quiche Lorraine. Our
GPS coordinates differ: Jared's read N39 05.455 X W75 57.910, mine N39
05.514 X N75 57.903. Jared's instrument is probably better than mine or
else he gave a reading for exactly where the animals are, mine was from the
highway edge.
CHESAPEAKE MARSHLANDS NATIONAL PARK. In my dreams. This region is worthy
of National Park status with its vast marshes, lovely stands of isolated
Loblolly Pine hammocks surrounded by extensive beds of Juncus roemerianus,
tortuous shorelines, and dozens of bays and tidal guts. The scenery alone
is worth a park. But in some respects IT IS ALREADY.
On private lands various codes and legislation mandate certain protections
of the marsh, waters, and wetlands in addition to its fisheries, hunting &
fishing regulations, and development strictures. On top of these are land
easements on some private properties. And in the marshlands of southern
Dorchester County, as well as Wicomico, Somerset, and, in Virginia,
Accomack County, there are numerous preserved areas, most of them public
lands:
1. National Wildlife Refuges: Blackwater (including Barren, Spring, and
Watts islands as well as Bishop's Head) & Glenn L. Martin (northern half of
Smith Island).
2. State of Maryland Wildlife Management Areas: Deal Island, Fairmount,
Ellis Bay, South Marsh Island, Maryland Marine Properties (anyone know why
this is called that?), Pocomoke Sound, Cedar Island, and Fishing Bay.
3. Janes Island State Park (MD).
4. State of Virginia Wildlife Management Area: Saxis.
5. Chesapeake Bay Foundation centers: Port Isobel (Tangier Island), the
Fox Islands, and the Noonan Center (Bishop's Head).
6. The Nature Conservancy also has various holdings, such as at Taylor's
Island and Parker's Marsh.
7. U. S. Navy. Bloodsworth and Adam islands. Although subject to various
military activities and shelling since the 1940s (but much less so reently)
these are still very wild places and the Navy has erected dozens of very
successful nesting platforms on Bloodsworth for Great Blue Herons.
This all adds up to a lot of area that is, at least in theory,
well-preserved, and I've probably left out some in the above list. Let us
be thankful so much is under good stewardship.
FAST FOOD NEWS. Mice seen the last 2 visits to the Mt. Airy Wawa (back by
the ATMs). Was told "You'll have to wait on the lid" for my coffee at the
Easton McDonald's on Sunday morning (and it wasn't even to go). My
Middletown, DE, salad, neglected for a week in the Rigby frige, tasted just
fine on Sunday. The "hostess" said I'd have to wait 20-30 minutes at the
Easton Denny's on Saturday night, with only 10 people seated there then.
Wawas are the only places where I've seen House Sparrows foraging long
before the first light, at any time of year. A Zebra Swallowtail on the
concrete at the entrance door to the Middletown Wawa once was only the 2nd
one I've ever seen on the Eastern Shore, although I guess they're common
enough in the Pocomoke. The Middletown Wawa at lunch time on Friday a sea
of contractors and workmen in Carhartts. I don't know what I, or they,
would do without these places.
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 ....) |