Hi All,

The Kentish Plovers sat for eight and a half hours beginning at 6:30 AM 
on the platform at the west end of the Tubby Cove Boardwalk. Full-time 
Plovers were Walter Ellison and Nancy Martin and we were joined by 
part-time Plovers Meg Parry and Kathleen O'Connor for parts of the day. 
We had 67 species from the Big Sit circle. Highlights were a Virginia 
Rail that sounded-off in the marsh at dawn; the hooting Great Horned Owl 
that greeted our arrival; five warbler species featuring Nashville and 
Tennessee; pipit, lark and Bobolink passing overhead; a fair diversity 
of raptors including 18 omnipresent Bald Eagles and a Peregrine Falcon 
soaring east of the platform; eight waterfowl species including 
early-ish Lesser Scaup; a Common Loon flying by; and three Royal Terns. 
The weather was also splendid, always a plus in mid-October. I have 
appended our complete e-bird report below.

Good birding,

Walter Ellison

23460 Clarissa Rd
Chestertown, MD 21620

410-778-9568

Location: Eastern Neck National Wildlife Refuge
Observation date: 10/12/08
Notes: Other observer: Nancy Martin. We were joined by Meg Parry from 0930 to 1200, and by Kathleen O'Connor from 1230 to 1400. This was a Big Sit count conducted from the old viewing platform at the west end of the Tubby Cove trail.
Number of species: 68

Canada Goose     2500
Mute Swan     17     One dark morph juvenile.
American Black Duck     52
Mallard     2
Northern Pintail     3
Green-winged Teal (American)     3
Lesser Scaup     2
Ruddy Duck     4
Common Loon     1
Double-crested Cormorant     48
Great Blue Heron     10
Black Vulture     10
Turkey Vulture     44
Osprey     1
Bald Eagle     18     1 sub-adult, 10 immatures, 7 adults.
We saw four individuals catch large fish on their first attempt.
Northern Harrier     3
Sharp-shinned Hawk     4
Cooper's Hawk     3
Red-tailed Hawk (Eastern)     5
American Kestrel     1     Female
Peregrine Falcon     1
Virginia Rail     1
Killdeer     9
Laughing Gull     120
Ring-billed Gull     30
Herring Gull (American)     26
Great Black-backed Gull     7
Caspian Tern     7
Forster's Tern     3
Royal Tern     3     Two adults and one juvenile.
Great Horned Owl     1
Belted Kingfisher     1
Red-bellied Woodpecker     4
Downy Woodpecker     2
Hairy Woodpecker     1
Northern Flicker (Yellow-shafted)     5
Eastern Phoebe     1
Blue Jay     55     Several small flocks of migrants. Most were seen leaving the island.
American Crow     5
Fish Crow     134     Large migratory flock of 121 passed overhead just after dawn.
Horned Lark     1     Calling in flight.
Tree Swallow     14
Carolina Chickadee     1
Tufted Titmouse     1
Carolina Wren     5
Marsh Wren     2
Golden-crowned Kinglet     14
Ruby-crowned Kinglet     25
Eastern Bluebird     4
American Robin     2
Northern Mockingbird     5
European Starling     29
American Pipit     1     Calling in flight.
Cedar Waxwing     10
Tennessee Warbler     1     First fall female. With Nashville. It's not often you get to call out "Nashville...Tennessee!" with these two lately.
Nashville Warbler     2
Yellow-rumped Warbler (Myrtle)     70
Palm Warbler (Western)     4
Palm Warbler (Yellow)     8
Common Yellowthroat     2
Eastern Towhee     3
Savannah Sparrow (Eastern)     6
Song Sparrow     16
Swamp Sparrow     10
White-throated Sparrow     2
Northern Cardinal     1     Only species not seen from Big Sit circle.
Bobolink     2
Red-winged Blackbird     40
American Goldfinch     3