Friday, December 7 - Sunday, December 9, 2007.  

3 days of calm winds, mostly overcast, with periods of light rain
sometimes.  It seems as if the temperature is 41 everytime I look at the
thermometer.

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

Didn't do the old place justice these 3 days.  Present just a few waking
hours each day, if that.

Friday,  Day of Infamy, see below, "OFF TOPIC," first item.

Saturday, December 8.  An Eastern Cottontail and a Raccoon at 6:36 P.M. as
I return from Dorchester.  The Olszewskis kill 4 does today.  One is the
doe Liz and I had seen 2 weeks ago, whose left rear leg dangled, nothing
but bone at its base.  I suspect some irresponsible hunter shot at it when
it was running.  The gut piles from these deer are left in the middle of
the Big Field.  The Olszewskis also see 3 Red Foxes and a rabbit.  

Sunday, December 9.  7 deer (does).  An imm. Red-tailed Hawk and a Turkey
Vulture at the gut piles.  An ad. Red-shouldered Hawk perched on a snag at
Frog Hollow.  Take much-needed 2 hour nap in the afternoon.  

Please bear in mind, that, as usual, most of these numbers are approximate,
estimates.

Elsewhere: 

Friday, December 7:

A Cooper's Hawk flying across Route 50 1 mile N. of Trappe.

Egypt Road:  1 kingfisher, 1 Harrier, 1 kestrel.   1:45 P.M. 

Blackwater N.W.R.  A quick drive through at 2 P.M.:  14 Bald Eagles, 2
shovelers, 95 Green-winged Teal, 16 Tundra Swans, 1 harrier, 6 pintails, 3
Killdeer, 8 Great Blue Herons, 3 Ruddy Ducks, and 7 Tree Swallows.  Tidal
waters very low.  Lots of mud and quite a bit of ice also.

Golden Hill.  4 bluebirds at Gootees, where I leave 'the Mudhen' for winter
storage.  2:30 P.M.

Hooper's Island and Swan Harbor Road, 2:45-5 P.M.  Calm water and good
visibility compensate for my not having brought the scope:

6 Common Loons, 8 Horned Grebes, 3 Great Blue Herons, 3 adult Northern
Gannets (probably 3 or 4 miles out on the Bay), 3 Double-crested
Cormorants, 710 Tundra Swans (whooping it up on the east side of Barren
Island, a locale they often favor), 55 Ruddy Ducks, 71 Long-tailed Ducks
(beauties, hanging out, calling, under Narrows Ferry Bridge), 420
Buffleheads, 2 Surf Scoters, 3 Bald Eagles, 2 Sanderlings, 60 Dunlin, 170
Great Black-backed Gulls, 32 Rock Pigeons (at the bridge at Fishing Creek
[the creek, not the town]), 1 kingfisher, 3 Carolina Chickadees, 2
Red-breasted & 2 Brown-headed nuhatches (at the Birchmeiers' feeders), and
30 Cedar Waxwings.  No goldeneyes, terns, Laughing Gulls, or pelicans, and
none of the 5 pochards.

Saturday, December 8.  Overcast with light rain off and on in A.M., 38-52,
gloriously calm, clear in the afternoon, all water levels low.

Today there is a Maryland Ornithological Society board meeting at
Blackwater.  The following are here for that (I probably missed a few
names; if so, sorry; possibly misspelled some, too; my name is frequently
misspelled; in fact, I'm a little disappointed when it is spelled
correctly): Wayne Bell, Cathy Cooper, Jane Coskren, Karen Daren, Walter
Ellison, Ian Ellison, Maureen Harvey, Emmalyn Holdridge, Kevin Heffernan,
Russ Kovach, Nancy Martin, Janet Millenson, Helen Patton, Danny Poet,
Georgi Radcliff, and Lydia Schindler. 

A few of those are present on the birdwalk's early segment plus Jennifer &
Bob Elmer, Richard Tufts (cousin of Craig Tufts, the National Wildlife
Federation naturalist), and Linda Baker as well as Robert and Michael
Ostrowski.  After the M.O.S. meeting most of those present continue the
birdwalk, then we go to Shorter's Wharf Road and Cedar Creek Road.

Cambridge Wawa 6 A.M., 12 House Sparrows already actively feeding by one of
the entrance doors (Passer domesticus wawaensis).

At Blackwater 12 go on the bird walk.  71 species.  Seen 7 A.M. - 1 P.M.;
4-4:45 P.M.:

250 Snow Geese (mostly Blues, a change from recent years).  only 41 Tundra
Swans.  but 1 American Wigeon, a male.  30 shovelers.  275 pintails.  125
Green-winged Teal.  8 Hooded & 30 Common Mergansers.  1 flyover
Red-throated Loon, unusual for here.  an adult Golden Eagle, seen 3X, the
first time hunting low, harrier-like, over the Pool 5 dike to the north of
Wildlife Drive, a manner of hunting unlike a Bald Eagle's.  

40 Bald Eagles (29 in sight simultaneously).  5 harriers.  2 Cooper's
Hawks.  5 Virginia Rails (2 seen, one very well and repeatedly as it
foraged by prrobing, almost dowitcher-like).  125 Dunlin.  2 kingfishers. 
1 sapsucker.  2 Pileated Woodpeckers.  1 Eastern Phoebe.  6 Tree Swallows. 
1 Red-breasted & 1 Brown-headed nuthatch.  1 Winter Wren.  7 Golden-crowned
& 3 Ruby-crowned kinglets.  1 American Pipit, a flyover.  1 Pine Warbler. 
4,000 Red-winged Blackbirds.  1 Pine Siskin.  

We looked hard for, but did not see, the Lark Sparrow, white pelicans, and
Cave Swallow.

Also: 1 Gray Squirrel, 1 Eastern Cottontail.  

Shorter's Wharf Road,1:15-2:30 P.M.:  12 black ducks, 1 Short-eared Owl
(well seen by all for minutes on end, close and in good light).  10 Bald
Eagles.  2 harriers.  

Robbins (S of Shorter's Wharf).  An obligatory stop to see the Trumpeter
Swan, of very doubtful provenance, present for several years; suspiciously,
it oversummers).  30 Tree Swallows.  2 Sika Elk in the late afternoon.  

Cedar Creek Road, 2:45-3:45 P.M.:  3 Short-eared Owls (1 tangles with a
harrier).  80 Mallards.  10 black ducks. 2 Red-tailed Hawks.  55
Green-winged Teal.  6 Bald Eagles.  5 harriers.  15 Tree Swallows.  For
about 10 minutes we watch a Ring-billed Gull repeatedly chase a Bald Eagle.
 A few Savannah and Swamp sparrows.  Try as we do, alas, no Rough-legged
Hawk anywhere today.  

Sunday, December 9.  Overcast, light rain off and on, esp. from 11 A.M. on,
39-44 degrees F., calm, water levels continue low.  

Blackwater N.W.R.  7:15 A.M. - 10 A.M.  No one showed for the bird walk.  I
think this has only happened 2 other times in 24 years, presumably due to
the poor weather, unless word of my 4 molestation indictments has, finally,
come to light.

So ... I decide to mostly just count eagles along Wildlife Drive plus the
Rt. 335 Blackwater River bridge, and the Sewards area at the Little
Blackwater River bridge = 51 Bald Eagles.  The adult Golden Eagle is seen
again perched in a dead loblolly south of the drive opposite Pool 5.  7
Pine siskins on the shoulder of Key Wallace Drive along with beaucoup
American Goldfinches.  A Yellow-bellied Sapsucker at the Visitor Center. 
One Double-crested Cormorant out on the Blackwater River.  32 Mourning
Doves on the wires.  A Cooper's Hawk.  123 Tundra Swans uttering their soft
contact calls:  "KOO."     

Cambridge, "on the waterfront" from the Malkus Bridge to Oakley Street and
"Wigeon Pond." 10:15-11:30 A.M. =  10 species of waterfowl.  22 American
Wigeon, 70 Mallards, 18 Canvasbacks, 1 male Redhead, 3 Lesser Scaup, 44
Surf Scoters, 9 Long-tailed Ducks, 25 Buffleheads, 10 Common Goldeneyes,
and 19 Ruddy Ducks.  Also: 1 Double-crested Cormorant, 3 Common Loons, and
a Horned Grebe.

LIFE (and a little death) IN THE FAST LANE.  Friday: Only an inch or so of
snow but birds are already at risk either right ON the road or close by on
the shoulders availing themselves of uncovered seeds, grit, and sand,
especially these seen on Route 481:  groups of 6, 4, 30, and 25 Horned
Larks (plus 16 at milepost 121 on Route 301), 3 Killdeer, 1 kestrel,
Mourning Dove (groups of 6, 3 and 11), 90 starlings, 1 goldfinch I almost
hit, and 2 meadowlarks, plus an adult male Northern Harrier and an immature
Bald Eagle out over a field.  Also see 3 unID'd passerine roadkills and
several dead deer.  On the way down 8 Red-tailed Hawks, all perched on
poles or lamp posts, reluctant to fly in the calm, dead air.  Sunday: go in
to the Blackwater Visitor Center for a few minutes Sunday morning.  In just
that short time someone has hit a Fox Squirrel right in front of the V.C.
entrance from Key Wallace Drive.  I take it, return to the V.C., and give
it to Tom Miller.  Years ago on a November day George A. and I found 3
roadkills in one morning here.     

OFF TOPIC:

1.  SNOOPY INVICTUS.  On Friday an old, somewhat overweight Beagle is
snooping around the edge of the yard at 12:36 P.M., and later 0.3 mi. down
the driveway at 12:50, presumably on the trail of a bunny, rabbit dog that
it is.  Beagles are my favorite dogs.  For want of a better word, they're
cute, and I love to hear them howl.  If I ever move to Rigby I want to get
2 beagles, but if so I will not let them run free, especially on someone
else's property.  Am only at Rigby for a few minutes during daylight today,
long enough to do some quick chores and hook up my boat to trailer it down
to Dorchester.  

2.  THANKSGIVING IN PHILADELPHIA.  On the way out from center city daughter
Anne sees the season's last Woodchuck.  Raked leaves.  On my first swipe
uncovered a Little Brown Snake here in the NW part of the city.  Formerly
known as DeKay's Snake, they are quite common in our yard.  Our cats used
to bring them in regularly.  Once while I was writing a chapter for a
forthcoming book on animals that get into our houses, a warm day with the
door open, one appeared, fortuitously, on the kitchen floor 8 feet from
where I was sitting at the computer table.  

3.  EAST PARK RESERVOIR, PHILADELPHIA.  Visited here on December 6 with Bob
Lukens, Bob Wallis, Keith Russell, and others courtesy of the Philadelphia
Water Department.  This is apparently slated to become an Audubon education
center.  The largest impoundment, 43 acres, is favored by waterfowl.  We
see 5 Pied-billed Grebes, 33 Canvasbacks, 1 male Common Merganser, 300
Canada Geese, 5 Hooded Mergansers, a Red-tailed Hawk, 45 Ring-billed Gulls,
and 2 Mallards.  Keith, an authority on birds of this city, says there are
often several 100 birds on the reservoir waters.

4.  NEWS FROM THE ANTIPODES.  Son, George A., returned recently from the
Southern Ocean, a trip visiting 6 or 7 small island groups, notable for
their endemic albatross and penguin species among other unique fauna, south
of New Zealand.  During a period of a couple of days waves reached 40 feet,
the wind 50 m.p.h.  One of his clients, an 86-year-old lady, was apparently
O.K. but 3 crew members were injured.  One bird seen was a Magenta Petrel. 
There are only 100 or so and sightings such as this away from their
breeding grounds are rare.  In fact I thought I heard this was only the 2nd
one ever.  The Magenta Petrel is named after a ship, not a color.  Another
rarity was the Black Robin, of which there are only 100 or so of them also.
 At one point Black Robins were down to 5 individuals, including just one
female.

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 ....)