Harry,
Some alternative abbreviations that I use are CWAX for Cedar Waxwing, SHOV for Shoveler, and CACK for Cackling Goose. For the others you noted you would probably write out the name of the rarer species anyway.
Bob Ringler
Eldersburg MD
----- Original Message -----
From: "Harry Armistead" <>
To:
Sent: Monday, February 22, 2010 2:22:33 PM GMT -05:00 US/Canada Eastern
Subject: [MDOSPREY] Dorchester County & Ferry Neck, February 17-21, 2010: lots of Redheads & Bald Eagles.
DORCHESTER COUNTY & FERRY NECK, MD, February 17-21, 2010. Lots of BALD EAGLES and REDHEADS. Common Grackles are very widespread and abundant but not in huge numbers. There are far fewer Red-winged Blackbirds. Numbers of passerines on the road shoulders seem to have declined from a week or more ago.
WEDNESDAY, FEBRUARY 17. 88 Turkey Vultures on the way down from Philadelphia. Lunch at the 301 Plaza in Middletown, DE, where we see a pair of adult Bald Eagles 3 times plus, from the car, at least 4 others nearby. Middletown, in the midst of rampant repaving, building, traffic jams, and a plethora of gas stations, stores, and other enterprises, the roofs, wires, and parking lots are attractive to Fish Crows.
Road shoulder birds along routes 481 & 309 from 481 X 301 to 309 X 50: Horned Lark 112, Wilson’s Snipe 2, cardinal 15, mockingbird 1, flicker 2, Mourning Dove 1, junco 94, starling 6, Blue Jay 1, Sharp-shinned Hawk 1, kestrel 1, and 72 White-throated, 1 Chipping & 6 Song sparrows. 3 Hooded Mergansers at the “headwaters” of the Tred Avon River (routes 33 X 322).
Rigby’s Folly: Put out 2 buckets of corn c. 3:30 P.M. and around sunset this attracts, seemingly from out of nowhere: 3 cardinals, 2 Red-bellied Woodpeckers, a Gray Squirrel, a Song & 8 White-throated sparrows, 2 deer, and c. 105 Canada Geese, all less than 100 feet from the front door. Coming up the drive at 3:15 we saw none of these. Out in Irish Creek are 40 Canvasbacks and 15 Buffleheads. Present from 3:15 until dark only. Fair becoming overcast, 35-37, WNW 15.
THURSDAY, FEBRUARY 18. Dorchester County, 7 A.M. – 6:30 P.M., 131 miles by car. Fair becoming clear, west 15-25, 32-43 degrees F. Ditches mostly unfrozen with an actual current due to the excessive precipitation. Tidal areas very low. Circa 8 inches of snow over everything except the highways. Marshes burdened with this snow and much ice. Broad water areas unfrozen. Ponds mostly frozen. I miss all of the “good” birds that will be seen by the Talbot Bird Club on Sunday, February 21.
ROAD SHOULDER BIRDS. This is an unsuccessful trip to look for Lapland Longspur but turned into a Bald Eagle chase. Birds of the roadsides: Horned Lark 109, junco 35, Red-winged Blackbird 35, Rusty Blackbird 1 (Maple Dam Road), bluebird only 4, cardinal 8, Killdeer 6, robin 160, starling 110, Myrtle Warblers 3, mockingbird 3, kestrel 2, American Pipit 2 (1 at Elliott Island, 1 Greenbrier Road), Song 11, White-throated 20 & Savannah 2 sparrows.
BALD EAGLE 169. Any count such as this should have some explanation so I don’t end up sounding like an insufferable hot dog. Here goes. They spaced out like this:
lower Egypt Road-Sewards-Blackwater N.W.R. Wildlife Drive-Route 335 bridge over the Blackwater River (Gum Swamp) 81; Shorter’s Wharf Road (mostly to the east side) 15; upper Maple Dam Road (mostly to the east side) 4; Bucktown (adjacent to the poultry houses) 10; Transquaking River at Bestpitch 8; Griffith Neck Road next to the “Eurasian Teal Pond” (small fresh water pond on the north side where Claudia Wilds once saw a EUTE) 7; Drawbridge, Chicamacomico River (mostly looking to the north) 6; Lewis Wharf Road where it deadends at the Nanticoke River 9; Upper Elliott Island Road 1 mile or more north of Lewis Wharf Road and well south of Vienna 3; Vienna (looking east) 5; Elliott Island Road well south of Lewis Wharf Road 21.
Most of these locations are a couple of miles apart. I tried to eliminate possible duplicate sightings, since a soaring eagle can be ID’d at distances of several miles with a good scope. Circa half again as many as the 169 I did not count. Today’s total is the result of very intensive scope work and energetic scanning with binoculars. Several dozen eagles are probably incubating and not seen. The one on the refuge videocam I did not count. This is my best eagle day ever, perhaps double any previous one. But if I’d gone on to extreme southern Dorchester and Hooper’s Island I bet the count could surpass 200. A lot of ice and snow seems to make for a very good eagle day.
Cambridge: an adult male Northern Harrier.
Blackwater N.W.R. (including Shorter’s Wharf Road) 7:45-10:45: Snow Goose 4060 (en masse in Pool 3B all morning), Blue Goose 140, shoveler 1 male, Tundra Swan 315, Northern Harrier 7, pintail 10, Great Blue Heron 3, Lesser Scaup 40 (in the Blackwater River), Common Merganser 79, Black Vulture 7, and Fish Crow 5.
Transquaking River (Bestpitch): a kettle of 17 Black Vultures.
Griffith Neck Road: a dead Great Blue Heron off to the side; I bet it’s a starvation victim.
Lewis Wharf Road: a male Northern Bobwhite, all by itself.
Upper Elliott Island Road: groups of 2 and 14 Wild Turkeys, a small covey of 5 bobwhite.
Hog Farm at Indiantown X Jones Thickett roads: 1 Cooper’s Hawk and 1230 Ring-billed Gulls plus numerous starlings and Black Vultures availing themselves of the repulsive, disgusting filth and ordure.
Petersburg Road near Brookview: A Cackling Goose in a flock of 65 Canada Geese.
Elliott Island Road (marsh areas): 1 Black-crowned Night Heron (6:30 P.M.), 10 Tundra & 2 Mute swans, 220 Dunlin (lined up on the bulkheads at McCready’s Creek), 2 Great Blue Herons, 30 Ruddy & 55 black ducks. I dipped on Short-eared Owl and haven’t seen a Rough-legged Hawk all winter.
Day’s totals include 8 Red-tailed Hawks and 13 Northern Harriers.
MAMMALS: 1 Raccoon right out in the open, Maple Dam Road, at 11:02 A.M. Kuehnle Tract (BNWR) entrance road, 2 Sika Deer. Elliott Island Road 2 Sikas & 1 Raccoon after sunset, another ‘coon in broad daylight.
FRIDAY, FEBRUARY 19. Mostly a leisurely day to Gootee’s Marine to discuss with Jenny Witten options for either repairing my damaged outboard or, as is more likely, buying a new Yamaha, 60HP, 4-stroke engine. The delicious lunch at Old Salty’s on Upper Hooper’s Island is also leisurely.
Fair becoming clear, 35-46, WNW 15-25. At Swan Harbor there are c. 140 Dunlin on the sandbars.
REDHEADS. At Hoopers’ Island: Circa 1,030 plus 70 Canvasbacks, 45 Lesser Scaup, 10 Common Goldeneye, 14 Cedar Waxwings, 75 Tundra Swans, and 4 Red-breasted Mergansers. The Redheads are in 2 flocks, a huge one just S. and W. of Old Salty’s, a smaller one S. and E. of Narrows Ferry Bridge.
In fields along Egypt Road: 95 Tundra Swans. Groups of Horned Larks: 7 Swan Harbor, 1 Gum Swamp, and 4 at Narrows Ferry Bridge. With all the snow and ice I’m seeing them in places such as these where I usually don’t.
SATURDAY, FEBRUARY 20. Rigby’s Folly. Clear, WNW 15, 36-47. We’d thought of returning to Philadelphia today but there is so much damage in the yard to the boxwood, magnolia, some cedars, and a locust that we work until 2:30 P.M. to cut branches, haul them away, and gently rake ice and snow off the boxwood. Earlier in February some of the icicles from the front porch roof were 3’ long.
Finally I take a 2 –mile walk afterwards out the driveway all the way past Gunner’s Range and see: a Hermit Thrush, 49 robins, 18 Turkey & 3 Black vultures, 2 adult Bald Eagles, a Red-tailed Hawk, 30 Tundra Swans, 13 Fish Crows, 55 Canvasbacks, 4 Ruddy Ducks, and 3 Wild Turkeys. A cardinal sings and a Myrtle Warbler keeps me company as I rake some of the heavy snow off the roofs of the back and front porches and the garage. Fifty pounds of corn put out yesterday afternoon has completely disappeared. In our fields are c. 640 Canada Geese. See 6 deer, 1 Gray Squirrel.
FEBRUARY NAPS. Around 5 it’s nice to lie on my back in my mother’s rococo bed, which has black wood festooned with birds, elaborate flourishes, curlicues, and accents – all in vivid gold - under a thick quilt, pleasantly exhausted from the day’s exertions, waking up every few minutes, nevertheless, to enjoy without leaving the bed the dimming, golden western sky behind and above the stand of 30-foot Loblolly Pines across the Big Field. Finally the sky turns vermillion and then the darkness sets in. All the while there’s the peaceful clamoring of hundreds of fowl and no sounds at all of neighbors, cars, or even aircraft. A perfect prelude to a strong martini. Then a nice fire but one log is a sparks factory, some of them penetrating through 3 screens and onto the carpet. Starting several years ago I began to feel a sadness with the passing of winter.
SUNDAY, FEBRUARY 21. Clear, calm, 35. We close up the house and leave. 4 Gray Squirrels at the corn. Road shoulder birds along the routes 309-481 stretch: 5 Killdeer, 29 Horned Larks, 1 Cooper’s Hawk (on the wires right over the car; didn’t budge), 700 grackles, 30 Red-winged Blackbirds, 65 starlings, 3 juncos, 4 bluebirds. Near the little pond south of the routes 309 X 481 intersection are 670 Snow (and apparently no Blue) geese plus 1500 CGs. Along Route 301 from Route 481 to the Delaware line are 3 Horned Larks and a stricken Red-tailed Hawk in the northbound lanes.
LAKE ERIE. On Tuesday, February 16, the network news stated that Lake Erie in its entirety was frozen solid. Perhaps that will bring some Red-necked Grebes and other interesting fowl our way.
CANADA GEESE. Delightfully almost-tame, gathering where there is southern exposure next to hedgerows, yards, woodlands, and field edges to take advantage of the exposed grass and unfrozen water. Now that hunting is over it’s nice to enjoy what it’s almost tempting to call their companionship. We see so many of them so often I think we take them too much for granted. If such a person as Bernd Heinrich can celebrate them so, as in his The geese of Beaver Bog (HarperCollins, 2004, 217 pages), perhaps the rest of us mere mortals should give them a second, and a third, thought, too. They’re beautiful birds, their calls resonate through the long winter, and they have a certain dignity as they amble around in our fields (and yards). Heinrich writes of one he took under his wing:
“Her long and gracefully curved neck was jet-black and felt velvety to the touch … her face was adorned on each side with an immaculate white patch that had, if you looked closely, a unique individually identifying pattern. Her prominent dark brown eyes … seemed ever alert … She kept her great wings neatly folded and tight against her back. They shielded her from the cold, the rain, and the sun, which was most of the time … Like all geese she was equally adept in the sky … on the water, and on dry land. Her legs were set widely apart, which gave her a gentle swagger when she walked … When on the water she drifted forward smoothly.” (p. xii)
FOUR LETTER ABBREVIATIONS help when one is jotting down notes while in the field. The sometimes unorthodox way I do them results in a few conflicts with species I’m not likely to see in this region. These include CEWA (Cedar Waxing but could be Cerulean Warbler), CAWR (Carolina Wren but could be construed as Cactus or Canyon wrens), TRSW (Tree Swallow but could be Trumpeter Swan), BTGW (Black-throated Green Warbler but could be Black-throated Gray Warbler), NOSH (Northern Shoveler vs. Northern Shrike), and, most recently, CAGO (Canada Goose but could be Cackling Goose).
Best to all. – Harry Armistead, Philadelphia.
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