Hi Everybody:
I started out this morning in Baltimore County at Robert E. Lee Park. As I approached the pavilion I ran into Tom Field. We first heard and then saw one of the immatured RED-HEADED WOODPECKERS. We spent a short time looking for the mannakin but had no success. There were 4 Hooded Mergansers just above the dam.
I then parted ways with Tom and headed up to Irvine Nature Center. I walked down to the meadow and field areas hoping to find some sparrows. I walked to my left and then walked on the wetland side of the leftmost hedgerow and about 2/3 of the way down I flushed 2 WILSON'S SNIPE (a county closeout). The snipe landed about 100 feet in front of me in the cattails and one of them evidently startled another bird which lifted up briefly, disappeared in the cattails and then proceeded to give its identity away by calling. It was a VIRGINIA RAIL! Sparrows seen during the rest of my walk included Field, Swamp, Chipping, Song and White-throated.
I stopped by the Hunt Valley Best Buy parking lot and there were only 3 gulls there - all Ring-billed. I know that Tom F. had seen the Black-headed Gull earlier after we left the Rd-headed woodpecker location. I drove over to Paper Mill Flats. There were no gulls there and the only waterfowl I saw were 4 Hooded Mergansers. I then drove back to the Best Buy parking lot. This time there were 8 gulls there- once again all Ring-billed.
I then drove west and entered Carroll County. My first stop was the Cranberry Reservoir near Westminster. Among the Canada Geese I saw 13 Black Ducks, 4 Hooded Mergs (the third time today I had seen 4 of them together during the day) and 1 Pied-billed Grebe. My next stop was the wetland area on Brown Rd. and since it was raining I did a slow drive down the road and just birded from inside the car. The best bird here was a single White-crowned Sparrow. The pond on Study road contained 230 Canada Geese, 46 Mallards and 2 Black Ducks.
I finished the day (meeting up with Ron Gutberlet) near Taneytown on Bull Frog Road. At about 4:15 we first heard a SHORT-EARERD OWL vocalizing and then shortly after that we enjoyed at least 20 minutes of watching 2 owls flying back and forth until it was too dark to see.
Jim Green
Gaithersburg, MD
work in moderation, BIRD IN EXCESS!!!
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