Hi All,
 
Today was a strange day for birding. In the morning I went to Kenilworth Aquatic Gardens (KAG) in DC with Paul Pisano and the birding was VERY SLOW!?!  We came in search of the Marsh Wrens, Northern Harriers, Sandpipers, and assorted Warblers recently seen by dedicated DC birders.  What we got was virtually nothing.  We were lucky enough to find a nice male RUSTY BLACKBIRD, but apart from that, nothing much else of note.
 
Later in the day, my wife asked me if I wanted to go for a walk to see the flowering trees at the National Arboretum.  Sure!  Not expecting much we walked around and marveled at flowering cherry, magnolia and lilac trees.  We also found a singing male NORTHERN PARULA,  and BLACK-THROATED GREEN WARBLER deciduous forest.  In a small tree nursery just to the east of the conifer collection we found a pair of VESPER SPARROWS among a very large flock of chipping sparrows, american robins and northern flickers.
 
Lots of bird were soaring over the Anacostia river including - NORTHERN HARRIER, BALD EAGLE, OSPREYs, and ACCIPITERS.
 
I don't know if the birding was just bad all around DC during the morning hours and improved in the afternoon as it warmed and cleared, or if we just got unlucky at KAG.  
 
After the poor morning at KAG I theorized:   Saturday's good south winds let all of the migrants move north, but as thunderstorms moved through southern Virginia, it acted as a barrier that keep migrants from the south from moving into DC and Maryland last night.  While the better birding at the National Arboretum hurts my theory somewhat, I wonder if it would have been even better with the thunderstorms!?!
 
Jason Berry
Washington, DC
 

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