Hi Everyone,

Jim Brighton and I spent the morning searching Kent Island, Queen Anne's Co., for wind-blown water birds. They were tough to find! 

The best bird of the morning was an AMERICAN TREE SPARROW at Terrapin Nature Park. This was only my second on the Eastern Shore. My only other was a chased bird at Pickering Creek on 3/18/2005. Dan Small also had two American Tree Sparrows at Terrapin on 11/21. The habitat in the large field looks perfect for holding a couple for a while. Our largest concentrations of ducks were 194 Ruddy Ducks and 85 Surf Scoters at Horsehead (CBEC). 

Here are the abridged lists:

Kent Narrows

Greater Scaup--1; flew by with four Lessers. Coincidentally, one of the nicest in-flight, side-by-side comparisons of the two species one could request. The difference in extent of white in the wing was obvious, as was the slight size difference.
Lesser Scaup--4
Greater/Lesser Scaup--18
dark-winged scoter sp.--2
Long-tailed Duck--6
Bufflehead--21
Double-crested Cormorant--2
American Coot--5
Ring-billed Gull--13
Herring Gull (American)--22
Great Black-backed Gull--15
gull sp.--50
American Pipit--2

Matapeake--Too windy. Nothing of note during two short visits except a starling feeding like a Purple Sandpiper on a rock jetty. Rotten creature.

Romancoke

Tundra Swan--3
Long-tailed Duck--12
Common Goldeneye--2
Common Loon--11
Bonaparte's Gull--103
Ring-billed Gull--4
Herring Gull--14
Great Black-backed Gull--12
Northern Flicker (Yellow-shafted)--1
American Pipit--1
Dark-eyed Junco (Slate-colored)--2

Terrapin Nature Park

Mute Swan--2
Bufflehead--34
Hooded Merganser--3
Red-breasted Merganser--3; Jim only
Ruddy Duck--3
Pied-billed Grebe--1
Bald Eagle--1
Sharp-shinned Hawk--1
Cooper's Hawk--1
Ring-billed Gull--118
Herring Gull (American)--35
Great Black-backed Gull--7
Yellow-rumped Warbler (Myrtle)--8
AMERICAN TREE SPARROW--1; * Scarce on the Eastern Shore. County bird for me and Jim.
Field Sparrow--8
Song Sparrow--18
Swamp Sparrow--2
White-throated Sparrow--8

Chesapeake Bay Environmental Center (Horsehead)

Cackling Goose (Richardson's)--1
Canada Goose--88
Mute Swan--2
Surf Scoter--85
scoter sp.--20
Bufflehead--15
Ruddy Duck--194
Pied-billed Grebe--1
Bald Eagle--1
Sharp-shinned Hawk--1
Ring-billed Gull--3
Hairy Woodpecker--1
Golden-crowned Kinglet--1
Ruby-crowned Kinglet--4
Eastern Bluebird--1
Yellow-rumped Warbler (Myrtle)--11
Eastern Towhee--1
Song Sparrow--9
Swamp Sparrow--3
White-throated Sparrow--8
Dark-eyed Junco (Slate-colored)--16

Cabin Creek

American Black Duck--3
Mallard--2
Surf Scoter--2
Long-tailed Duck--7
Bufflehead--19
Hooded Merganser--4
Great Blue Heron--1

Good birding!

Bill

Bill Hubick
Pasadena, Maryland

http://www.billhubick.com