Hi Everyone,

I spent a few hours this afternoon (9/17) birding Browns Bridge and Brighton Dam. The flats at Browns Bridge continue to host a small collection of shorebirds, and the Montgomery side of Brighton Dam held the best migrant numbers I've encountered in the county. My highlights were a PHILADELPHIA VIREO and a calling ALDER FLYCATCHER in Montgomery Co., my closeout MAGNOLIA WARBLER in Montgomery Co., and my 200th Howard Co. bird - SEMIPALMATED SANDPIPER - at Browns Bridge. Here are the abridged lists for the two sites.

Rocky Gorge Reservoir--Browns Bridge
* all birds in Howard Co. only except where noted.

Mallard--13
Great Blue Heron--2
LITTLE BLUE HERON--1 immature (both counties); presumably continuing
Green Heron--2 (1 in Mont.)
BLACK-CROWNED NIGHT-HERON--1 immature; flushed by a fly-fisherman and landed in a tree along the river long enough for me to ID it by wing pattern
Osprey--1 (both counties)
Killdeer--9 (2 in Mont.)
Solitary Sandpiper--3 (1 in Mont.)
Semipalmated Sandpiper--1; Howard Co. bird #200
Least Sandpiper--9

Triadelphia Reservoir--Brighton Dam (Montgomery County)
* Hiked south along the river, encountering two nice flocks of migrants. Picked up an unexpected FOUR county birds. Only a few incidental, unexciting sightings on the Howard side.

Double-crested Cormorant--2
Great Blue Heron--1
Belted Kingfisher--2
Hairy Woodpecker--1
Pileated Woodpecker--1
Eastern Wood-Pewee--4
ALDER FLYCATCHER--1; identified to Traill's by plumage details, but it soon began vocalizing its diagnostic 'pip' calls at length
Eastern Phoebe--2
Yellow-throated Vireo--1
PHILADELPHIA VIREO--1
Red-eyed Vireo--5
House Wren--1
Blue-gray Gnatcatcher--1
Northern Parula--4
Chestnut-sided Warbler--2
Magnolia Warbler--2; my county closeout (#112)
Black-throated Blue Warbler--2 females; one first noted by its "mini-junco" call note, which is actually very distinctive
Black-throated Green Warbler--1
BLACKPOLL WARBLER--1; my first of the season
Black-and-white Warbler--4
American Redstart--5
Common Yellowthroat--1
Chipping Sparrow--2
Rose-breasted Grosbeak--1; molting adult male

Five county birds on a weekday afternoon. I love September.

Good birding!

Bill

Bill Hubick
Pasadena, Maryland

http://www.billhubick.com