Greetings.  This morning I did a sky watch for about an hour (9-10am), hoping to spot a fly-by migrant loon or something uncommon at Jug Bay.  Although I had no luck with that, I did enjoy this beauty of a spring morning!  Highlights included 2 FOY birds, plus a nice flock of Bonies.  A Louisiana Waterthrush was singing down in the swamp, and I heard a soft trill which I didn't recognize right away (Chippie? Junco?) ... until I saw the bird and went Ohhh Yeah...  a Palm Warbler!  There were two Yellow Palm Warblers foraging in one of the trees, and they were very colorful and active, a joy to see; yard bird # 100 for the year!   A flock of 36 Bonaparte's Gulls was around briefly at the mouth of Western Branch and then left, headed toward the Chesapeake Bay.  I looked, but they were too distant to see the underwings well enough to look for something else.

I have to mention a really cool non-avian experience today.  I was in Calvert County at a lacrosse game with my kid, at the County Park off Cove Point Rd, and heard a Pine Warbler so I went to the woods next to the field to have a look.  I found two or three Elfin butterflies there.  This is a lifer species for me, but I did not know which one I found.  Luckily I had my pocket camera so I got some photos.  I did not look at the photos until I got home and got out my guide; I was doubly surprised to see that I found two Elfin species - Brown and Frosted!  A two-fer!!

Cheers-
Jeff Shenot
Croom Md