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Subject:

Western MD and the Near Shore, 12/4-5

From:

Robert Ostrowski

Reply-To:

Robert Ostrowski

Date:

Tue, 7 Dec 2010 08:33:52 -0500

This weekend my brother Mike and I birded Garrett and Allegany counties on
Saturday and Dorchester and Talbot Counties on Sunday. It was cold in
Allegany and even colder in Garrett where there was an inch or two of snow
on the ground. We thought it would be warmer when we headed to the eastern
shore on Sunday, but if anything, with the 30mph winds, it was even colder.
Birds weren't easy to come by, especially passerines, but all-in-all it was
a good weekend.

Here are some of our abridged lists:

Location:     Piney Reservoir (full list!)
Belted Kingfisher     1

Location:     Cumberland--Terminus
Canada Goose     40
Mallard     28
Hooded Merganser     8
Great Blue Heron     1
Rock Pigeon     30
American Crow     3
Song Sparrow     2

Location:     C&O Canal--North Branch
Mallard     9
Winter Wren     1
Cedar Waxwing     9
American Tree Sparrow     1
Field Sparrow     1
Song Sparrow     9
White-throated Sparrow     2
White-crowned Sparrow (Eastern)     3
Rusty Blackbird     1  - A somewhat unexpected bird found skating on the ice
in the canal, looking for whatever food it could find.

Location:     Rocky Gap SP
Mallard     11
Ring-necked Duck     1
Hooded Merganser     1
Ruddy Duck     30
Pied-billed Grebe     1
American Coot     19
Killdeer     6

Location:     Pinto Pond
Mallard     41
Redhead     1

Location:     Jennings Randolph Lake--Mount Zion Road (MD)
Mallard     9
Ring-billed Gull     1
Blue Jay     1
Common Raven     1
American Goldfinch     1

There were also 10 Canada Geese and 1 Bald Eagle on the WV side of the
reservoir.

Location:     Deep Creek Lake--McHenry
Mallard     2
Canvasback     1 female drifting with the Ruddy Ducks
Redhead     1
Lesser Scaup     15
Bufflehead     5
Ruddy Duck     123
Pied-billed Grebe     4
Horned Grebe     3
American Coot     266
Bonaparte's Gull     1

Sunday:

Location:     Bestpitch
Tundra Swan     3
Hooded Merganser     1
Bald Eagle     6
Northern Harrier     4
Greater Yellowlegs     1
Dunlin     1
Wilson's Snipe     1
Laughing Gull     10

Location:     Blackwater NWR--Key Wallace Dr
White-breasted Nuthatch     2 - Mike's Closeout. Visiting a feeder.
Brown Creeper     1

Location:     Hooper Island
Canada Goose     63
Bufflehead     85
Ruddy Duck     3
Common Loon     5
Northern Gannet     2
Brown Pelican     30     A very good count and there may even have been
more. They mostly stayed on or close to the water far out in the bay.
Eventually, many of them took flight and formed a swarm over the water
similar to a gull feeding frenzy.
Double-crested Cormorant     3
Great Blue Heron     3
Bald Eagle     4
Ring-billed Gull     1
Herring Gull     5
Great Black-backed Gull     56
Belted Kingfisher     1

Location:     Blackwater NWR--Wildlife Drive
Snow Goose     3
Canada Goose     1200
Tundra Swan     16
Mallard     300
Northern Shoveler     40
Northern Pintail     143
Ruddy Duck     2
Pied-billed Grebe     1
Great Blue Heron     6
Bald Eagle     11
American Coot     9
Greater Yellowlegs     2
Ring-billed Gull     45
Tree Swallow     2
Song Sparrow     3

 Location:     Black Walnut Point
Greater/Lesser Scaup     10
Surf Scoter     37
White-winged Scoter     1
Black Scoter     2
scoter sp.     20
Long-tailed Duck     40
Bufflehead     75
Common Goldeneye     1     FOS
Common Loon     1
Northern Gannet     1
Brown Pelican     13

Location:     Pickering Creek Audubon Center
Canada Goose     315
Tundra Swan     5
Mallard     20
Green-winged Teal (American)     15
Lesser Scaup     1
Bufflehead     2
Hooded Merganser     5
Ruddy Duck     75
Winter Wren     1
Fox Sparrow (Red)     2

Rob Ostrowski
Crofton, MD