-----Original Message-----
From: Steve Cordle [mailto:[log in to unmask]]
Sent: Tuesday, March 30, 2010 11:59 AM
To:
Subject: DC Area, 3/30/10
Hotline: Voice of the Naturalist
Date: 3/30/10
Coverage: MD/DC/VA/DE
Telephone: 301-652-1088 option 1
Reports (voice): 301-652-1088 option 2
(email):
Compiler: Lydia Schindler
Sponsor: Audubon Naturalist Society of the
Central Atlantic States (independent of NAS!)
Transcriber: Steve Cordle ()
Please consider joining ANS, especially if you are a regular user of the
Voice (Individual $40; Family $50; Nature Steward $75; Audubon Advocate
$150). The membership number is 301-652-9188, option 12; the address is 8940
Jones Mill Road, Chevy Chase, MD 20815; and the web site is
http://www.AudubonNaturalist.org.
This is the Voice of the Naturalist, a service of the Audubon Naturalist
Society. This report was completed Tuesday, March 30, at 10 AM.
Top birds this week are EURASIAN WIGEON in DE, TUFTED DUCK* in MD, VARIED
THRUSH in VA, and PAINTED BUNTING in MD.
Other birds of interest include COMMON TEAL, COMMON EIDER, RED-THROATED
LOON, NORTHERN GANNET, AMERICAN WHITE PELICAN, herons, BALD EAGLE, SOLITARY
SANDPIPER, gulls, CASPIAN and FORSTER'S TERNS, ROUGH-WINGED and BARN
SWALLOWS, PURPLE MARTIN, BLUE-GRAY GNATCATCHER, BROWN THRASHER, warblers,
sparrows, and RUSTY BLACKBIRD.
A male EURASIAN WIGEON was found March 25 in a pond along the entrance road
to Bombay Hook NWR, DE; on March 27 a EURASIAN WIGEON, presumably the same
bird, was seen at the refuge's Shearness Pool.
The male TUFTED DUCK* found March 16 in Queen Anne's Co, MD, was still
present March 29. He is among scaup and other ducks in a pond alongside the
Holiday Inn Express near the Kent Narrows. The hotel has posted a display in
the lobby, and the manager invites birders to use the deck as an observation
platform.
After a hiatus of two weeks, the male VARIED THRUSH reappeared March
23 at the same Herndon VA backyard, and there it has been seen almost daily
through March 29. Call the homeowner, Steve Bershader, at 703-264-8860 in
the evening for an update or if you wish to come to see the bird.
A PAINTED BUNTING continues to frequent a feeder on Wakefield Lane in Bowie,
Howard Co, MD, with the most recent report from March 28.
A EURASIAN (COMMON) GREEN-WINGED TEAL found March 22 near Snow Hill,
Worcester Co, MD, was seen again March 23; it was in a small impoundment off
Rte 12 east of Rte 113.
On March 25, the Inlet at Ocean City, Worcester Co, hosted 3 COMMON EIDERS,
2 males and a female.
A RED-THROATED LOON was spotted March 27 in the Potomac near the new
National Harbor Complex in Oxon Hill, Prince George's Co, MD; it was seen
again March 28, from pull-offs across the river along the GW Parkway in
Northern VA.
On March 25, a dozen NORTHERN GANNETS were observed from Kent Island as they
plunge-dove into Crab Alley Bay. On March 26, some 30 NORTHERN GANNETS were
seen from the James River Bridge near Newport News, VA.
A flock of 39 AMERICAN WHITE PELICANS was tallied at Blackwater NWR,
Dorchester Co, MD on March 27; these pelicans were seen again March 29.
As for returning herons, GREAT EGRETS were reported from several locales; on
March 27 a SNOWY EGRET was seen at Middle Hooper Island, Dorchester Co,
while a TRICOLORED HERON was present at Skimmer Island in Ocean City. A pair
of CATTLE EGRETS was found March 28 along Dutch Neck Rd at Bombay Hook.
BLACK-CROWNED NIGHT-HERONS were found March 27 at the LBJ Grove (Columbia
Island, DC), to the left of the footbridge, and on March 28 at Ben Brenman
Park in Alexandria, VA. Also on March 28, BLACK-CROWNED NIGHT-HERONS were
observed at Bombay Hook's Bear Swamp.
On March 23, a BALD EAGLE was observed flying over Silver Spring, Montgomery
Co, MD; on March 24, a BALD EAGLE flew over the Tidal Basin, SW DC. Nesting
BALD EAGLES were reported over the Potomac River, about one-quarter mile
south of National Harbor, and in Arlington, VA, from a trail of the
Palisades below Terrace Rec Center.
A SOLITARY SANDPIPER was noted at Oxbow Lake, Laurel, Anne Arundel Co, MD,
on March 26.
A LAUGHING GULL joined the gull flocks at Hains Point, SW DC, March 29. In
Baltimore, on March 27, a LITTLE GULL was spotted off Island Point Rd, while
several hundred BONAPARTE'S GULLS were seen from Diamond Point Rd.
A CASPIAN TERN was found at Ben Brenman Park March 28. A FORSTER'S TERN was
reported from Accotink Bay, Fort Belvoir, Fairfax Co, VA, on March 25.
Other harbingers of Spring enlivening our area included ROUGH-WINGED and
BARN SWALLOWS, PURPLE MARTIN, BLUE-GRAY GNATCATCHER, BROWN THRASHER,
YELLOW-THROATED WARBLER, PINE WARBLER, LOUISIANA WATERTHRUSH, EASTERN
TOWHEE, CHIPPING SPARROW, and FIELD SPARROW.
Five VESPER SPARROWS were found at Sky Meadows SP, Fauquier Co, on March 28;
they were near the start of the Bridle trail.
A pair of RUSTY BLACKBIRDS was noted on Roosevelt Island, NW DC, on March
25. Some 30 RUSTY BLACKBIRDS were seen at during the weekly Monday morning
bird walk at Huntley Meadows Park, Fairfax Co, on Mar 28.
Some of this week's reports have been gleaned from the MDOsprey, VA-Bird,
and DE-Birds list servers.
The Audubon Sanctuary Shop (301-652-3606,
http://www.audubonnaturalist.org/default.asp?page=511) is an excellent
source for guidebooks and many other nature-related titles.
To report bird sightings, e-mail your report to
or call 301-652-1088 and select menu option 2. Please post reports before
midnight Monday, identify the county as well as state, and include your name
and a Tuesday morning contact, either e-mail or phone.
Thank you for calling, and GOOD BIRDING.
*Of interest to the records committee |