Hi Everybody:

     Since there was little wind this morning I decided to go into work later in the morning and try some birding in the rain. I made a quick visit to Viollette's Lock and scanned the Potomac River. There were 3 Wood Ducks and 1 Pied-billed Grebe. There were 2 Phoebes on the logs at water's edge and quite a few Tree Swallows active on the river.

     My next stop was Hughes Hollow and I was there from 8:30 to 10 AM. There was significant activity. Highlights included:

   Great Egrets     5
   Great Blue Heron     4
   Lesser Yellowlegs     1
   Marsh Wren    1   SINGING UP A STORM for about 5-10 minutes...in the impoundment on the right about 80 feet out 
                               from the gate.
   Winter Wren    1
   Palm Warblers   16   (9 Yellow and 7 Western)
   Swamp Sparrow   12             Conservative#...could have been twicw as many
   White-crownrd Sparrow   1 (imm.)
   Rusty Blackbirds     20


My last stop was at the end of Sycamore Landing Road. I scanned the river and hundreds of TREE SWALLOWS were moving low over the water. There was one FORSTER'S TERN circling and feeding upriver. I also saw 29 A. COOTS & 2 PIED-BILLED GREBES. On the way out I saw 2 more SWAMP SPARROWS and 2 YELLOW-BELLIED SAPSUCKERS.


Jim Green
Gaithersburg, MD

work in moderation, BIRD IN EXCESS!!!