FERRY NECK & BLACKWATER N.W.R., NOVEMBER 25-28, 2011. Liz & Harry Armistead.
NOVEMBER 25, FRIDAY. Sixty-six Turkey Vultures on the way down. Liz has excellent eyesight, sees way more birds in this kind of situation than I do. At the Easton McDonalds storm drain there is a Great Egret hunting, getting late for them away from the big marshes. Lots of ground water, the property rather soggy. Soy beans remain unharvested. Four boats return up Irish Creek after fishing for Rock.
Present at Rigby¡¦s Folly only from 4 P.M. on. Buffleheads: 85 of the little dears right in the cove, most ever seen there. Clear, Calm, 60-56¢XF. Jupiter high in the E after sunset, 4 moons easy to see through the 32X scope. Venus somewhat high in the W.
A good ¡§sea watch¡¨ out at Lucy Point at the Choptank River mouth: 820 Ring-billed Gulls, all flying out of Irish Creek, going to roost a mile or so out on the ¡¥tank, flying low, 1-2¡¦, over the water¡¦s surface. 85 Bonaparte¡¦s Gulls actively feeding in a dense group, dipping down to the water¡¦s surface far offshore, sometimes resting on it, as they will be seen twice tomorrow, too, in the same manner. Five Common loons, one with a Hogchoker. 650 Buffleheads. 225 Surf Scoters. 3 Tundra Swans.
NOVEMBER 26, SATURDAY. Fair, calm or else a light zephyr from the S, 49-60¢XF. Excellent visibility.
Do 2 more ¡§sea watches¡¨ from Lucy Point. The 1st is from 11-1 and results in: 2 adult Northern Gannets, a Horned Grebe, 20 Common Loons, 2 Double-crested Cormorants, 20 Long-tailed Ducks, 300 Buffleheads, 175 Surf Scoters, 6 Common Goldeneyes, 235 Ruddy Ducks (a flight consisting of 15 flocks headed S), 1 immature Bald Eagle, 2 Great Black-backed, 7 Ring-billed & 85 Bonaparte¡¦s gulls, 9 Forster¡¦s Terns, 10 Tundra Swans and plenty of Canada Geese.
The 2nd sea watch is from 4-5:15: 1 adult Northern Gannet, 1 ¡ñ Mallard, 65 Long-tailed Ducks (calling, garrulous), 975 Buffleheads, 660 Surf Scoters, 1 adult Bald Eagle, 80 Ruddy Ducks, 320 Ring-billed & 1 Herring gull, and 1 Forster¡¦s Tern. Note the big increase of Buffleheads and Surf Scoters, which must have been out of sight upstream during the morning (?).
NOVEMBER 27, SUNDAY. Liz, from our second floor bedroom, sees a Great Horned Owl go shooting through the yard at 12:42 P.M. in broad sunlight, headed east, a flightline I¡¦ve seen several times, but at dusk. At 1:42 P.M. I see a Great Blue Heron at the Waterthrush Pond, a place surrounded by rather dense, woodsy vegetation. Three Gray Squirrels.
Otherwise I spend the day at Blackwater N.W.R. on a birdwalk (14 of us) with: Ellen & Tom Cimino, Geoff Edgar, Scott Eleff, Deatra & Jim Imler, Kate Murphy, Johnnie Ramos, Carlos Repreza, Tom Schwab, Arnold Simon, Hillel Steinberg, and Levin Willey. Clear becoming fair, calm to SE 5-10, 49-65¢XF. 7:15 A.M. ¡V 12:45 P.M. (birdwalk is from 8-12:15).
Several participants have major photographic equipment lense barrels that look like the Stanley Cup - and acquire good photographs of the birds. The Cooper¡¦s Hawk would not have been added to the list except that I am shown the photograph taken this morning. One Fox Squirrel, spotted by Arnold. Some of these birds are seen before or after the official birdwalk:
Tundra Swan 30. Canada Goose 2000. Green-winged Teal 200. American Black Duck 8. Mallard 300. Northern Pintail 600 (flocks flush repeatedly). Blue-winged Teal 1. Northern Shoveler 5. Hooded Merganser 3. AMERICAN WHITE PELICAN 2. Double-Crested Cormorant 2 immatures. Great Blue Heron 4. Great Egret 1. Turkey Vulture 20. Bald Eagle 16. Northern Harrier 3. Sharp-shinned 1, Cooper¡¦s 1 & Red-tailed 5 hawks. American Kestrel 2. Peregrine Falcon 1. Virginia Rail 1. Greater Yellowlegs 4. Lesser Yellowlegs 1. Dunlin 45. Laughing 1 adult, Ring-billed 95, Herring 6 & Great Black-backed 4 gulls. Forster¡¦s Tern 20.
Belted Kingfisher 1. Red-headed 2, Red-bellied 1, Downy 1 & Hairy 1 woodpeckers. Yellow-bellied Sapsucker 1. Northern Flicker 3. Blue Jay 2. American 10 & Fish 6 crows. Tree Swallow 20. Carolina Chickadee 1. Brown-headed Nuthatch 2. Carolina Wren 3. Eastern Bluebird 2. American Robin 9. Northern Mockingbird 2. European Starling 85. Cedar Waxwing 70. Myrtle Warbler 2. Palm Warbler 1. Song 3 & White-throated 3 sparrows. Red-winged Blackbird 300. Eastern Meadowlark 11. Brown-headed Cowbird 14. American Goldfinch 3. House Sparrow 12.
I maintain that the Tundra Swans and Snow Geese are late this fall. However, Levin Willey recently (yesterday?) saw c. 2,000 swans up at Hurlock Wastewater Treatment Plant. But the question is, when did they arrive?
NOVEMBER 28, MONDAY. Fair, 57-70¢XF., SE5. Leave at 12:15 P.M. after talking with the caterer, Garden and Garnish, for Anne and Derek¡¦s wedding on May 19. Am sick with sore throat and weariness so do no birding. There is, however, a Brown Thrasher and 2 Carolina Wrens foraging along the edge of the shoreline on the lawn. One Gray Squirrel. Along Route 481 S of Ruthsburg are 290 Tundra Swans about 100 yards away resting in a winter wheat field. Across the road an adult Bald Eagle takes off close by from a hedgerow at low altitude. Eighty-one Turkey Vultures on the way home.
Best to all. ¡¥til the next time. ¡V Harry Armistead, Philadelphia.
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