Hi All,

Betsy Bangert and I were dying to get out and see some birds, especially
after having to work during the rescheduled OC CBC.  We met Jim Stasz at
Bayside Point early Thursday (6 Jan) morning.  Birding was slow at the point
but soon we got a call from Stasz telling us of a NORTHERN SAW-WHET OWL he
relocated roosting in a cedar up Bayberry Dr on his way out.  He gave us
good hint as to its location but made us find it on our own.  A minute or
two later I saw a few tail feathers and located the little guy (it was a
male) sitting next to a vertical branch underneath some accumulated dead
leaves.  We got a few photos then left him alone.  A RED-BREASTED NUTHATCH
was also calling in the vicinity of the owl.  We then headed back to Bayside
Campground to look for the shrike which was seen the day before.  Driving by
Loop A we found the NORTHERN SHRIKE immediately perched at the top of a tree
within the loop.  I obtained one photo from the car before the bird flew
North.  Betsy and I parked at a campsite then walked around looking for the
bird.  We relocated it about 100 yards out in the marsh and it soon flew
further out.  We then checked out the Assateague State Park to look for a
Dovekie.  We only succeeded in finding a few flocks of scoters flying out in
the ocean.

The CCSparrow was our next target in a yard at the corner of Rt 113 and
Mason.  We wandered around the abandoned parking lot next door and came up
empty so we headed to Bayside Development.  There we found five Gadwall,
seven REDHEAD, and nine Ring-necked Ducks in the pond.  We then went out to
the marsh where we had ten Black Ducks, a Greater Yellowlegs flying around,
and a few Great Blue Heron.  Ten Black Vultures were circling over the
neighborhood as we left.

Castaways Campground overlooking the flats held 280 Brant, 13 Black-bellied
Plover, 140 Dunlin, 1 Ruddy Turnstone (on Assateague), some Red-breasted
Mergansers, and other miscellaneous birds.
The Ocean City Inlet held all the usual suspects but Betsy and I were unable
to locate the Dovekie.  By this time, we received word that the Clay-colored
was just seen so headed back to the vacant parking lot.  We ran into one of
the tenants of the house and he gave us permission to walk about looking for
the bird.  We first found the CLAY-COLORED SPARROW in the back yard, viewed
from the vacant lot on the South side of the abandoned building.  It then
frequented some tangles on the perimeter of the yard allowing for
documentation photos.
As for the rest of the day we hit Truitt's Landing and George's Island
Landing.  At Truitt's we picked up good numbers of Green-winged Teal and
Black Ducks.  There was about 35 or so Dunlin working the area in the back
where the Teal were seen.  A Great Horned Owl called several times from the
North.  A single Sharp-shinned Hawk and a single TREE SWALLOW were found
flying overhead.  We had a SEDGE WREN half way down the road and one at the
end to the right in the higher vegetation.  Two NELSON'S SPARROWS were also
found at the end of the road near the second Sedge Wren.  For sunset,
George's Island produced eight BLACK-CROWNED NIGHT-HERONS coming from a
roost and then a single SHORT-EARED OWL seen far to the South almost at
dark. (Stasz had two the night before)


On Friday (7 Jan) we started at Rum Point Golf Course to have a look.  Betsy
and I found 41 American Wigeon, eight Mallard, six Gadwall, four American
Black Ducks, and four GBHs.

We then hit Bayside Development again.  This time we arrived a little
earlier in the day.  We had another TREE SWALLOW fly over by the dock and
about the same assortment of ducks on the pond as the day before.  Near the
end of our stay we walked down the long boardwalk.  We had a Ruby-crowned
Kinglet and two Pied-billed Grebes in the canal.  While trying to get Betsy
on the grebes, she noticed a warbler she was unfamiliar with working the
water bushes.  Sure enough, an ORANGE-CROWNED WARBLER popped to the top,
allowing views for 10 seconds, then jumped the canal to the other side where
the houses are.

A little before noon, we hit the Ocean City Inlet again.  There was a GREAT
CORMORANT sitting next to a double-crested on the Assateague jetty.  After a
bit of scanning, I found a DOVEKIE almost straight out off the North jetty.
The bird was actively diving but I was able to locate it three different
times in about 10 minutes.  Unfortunately, I was never able to get Betsy on
the bird.

West OC Pond held its usual assortment of ducks.  After that stop we headed
to Crisfield.  We cruised around on the roads South of Crisfield but didn't
find too much besides some Great Blue Herons and Boat-tailed Grackles.  As
we were moving to the North to head to Fairmont we took River Rd and had a
decent flock of RUSTY BLACKBIRDS.  The birds were working each side of the
road and we counted at least 38 individuals with about 30 Red-wings with
them.  Across from the Fairmont Fire Company there was a Red-shouldered Hawk
on a power line.  Betsy and I then birded for a while at the West
impoundment of Fairmont WMA.  There were six Mute Swans with some Tundras.
We had two calling LESSER YELLOWLEGS and a EASTERN MEADOWLARK which were
flying around while we hiked.  Four WILSON'S SNIPES flushed off the dike.

We then tried to get back to OC before dark to try and get Bets a Dovekie.
We hit Skimmer Island first and picked up four WESTERN SANDPIPERS.  They
were in great light.  Nearby Dunlin and Sanderlings provided a great
comparison.  No luck on the Dovekie at the Inlet but there were some
Bonaparte's Gulls working the middle of the inlet near sunset but nothing
more interesting with them.


Saturday morning (8 Jan), we started at Truitt's at 7:35am.  There was a
little rain in the beginning but that soon dwindled.  61 Tundra Swans were
before making an amazing sound as they took flight to spend their day
elsewhere.  Two Brown-headed Nuthatches calling in the pines around us and
15 Greater Yellowlegs working the impoundment in front of us.  I took out
the scope to check the teal flock and I found a COMMON TEAL!  A long, bright
white horizontal stripe was very apparent, with no vertical stripe present.
We were able to relocate the bird every time we tried.  This long awaited
lifer was a pleasant surprise.  Other birds present include seven Great
Blues, 110 Dunlin, and a SEDGE WREN that Betsy found.

I wanted to try Castaway's one more time to look for rarer shorebirds so we
drove back North.  No luck at finding anything different but there may still
be a Piping Plover around...  Our last Worcester stop was Ocean Pines which
held five Shovelers, 19 Ring-necks, 72 Canvasbacks, 35 Mallards, 5 Hooded
Mergansers, and the common gulls.

On Key Wallace Dr, the AMERICAN WHITE PELICAN was at its usual spot.  We did
a quick loop around the wildlife drive at Blackwater but did not have
anything unusal.  We were going to look for Ross's in the large flock of
Snow Geese but we got word of one at Turney's Pond in Harford, so we headed
that way.  We were successful in our chase and had the ROSS'S GOOSE at 4531
Harford Creamery Rd, along with a single RICHARDSON'S GOOSE.  That was it
for Saturday birding.


On Sunday, we kept birding short since we are looking for a new place to
live and had a lot errands to run.  In the morning, we picked up the RUFOUS
HUMMINGBIRD in College Park which showed itself at 8:09am.  Thanks you again
for hosting, Rick!  We then tried for Mikey and Joanna's Oregon Junco but
came up empty.

All in all, it was a great few days birding with my girlfriend Betsy!  Sorry
for the belated report but I've been suffering from a lack of time the past
few weeks..

Cheers and good birding,
Mike Burchett
Bel Air, MD