Hi Everyone,

Thanks very much to Dan and Maren for getting the word out about their great find!  I was able to chase this afternoon and relocated the BARNACLE GOOSE in a very large flock of Canada Geese along Rt 291 (= Morgnec Rd).  The flock was on the opposite side of the road from the large white building (appears to be abandoned) with a sign that says Chestertown Foods.  This spot is a short distance (1/4 mile?) southwest of Buckingham Rd and shows up well on Google Earth.

Even though the goose flock was huge, the line of cedars along the road kept it mostly hidden.  The geese also seemed to be pretty alert and seemed like they might fly if I got out of the car.  So... I drove along the line of cedars and scanned through the gaps until I got lucky!  I even managed to get a few digiscopes through the car window.

There were other smaller goose flocks in other fields near Rt 291, so I guess cruising Rt 291 and scanning the flocks is a reasonable strategy for those trying to relocate the Barnacle Goose tomorrow.

Coincidentally I just saw my first Barnacle Goose in the ABA area this past Saturday on a great trip to New England with Jim Brighton and Jared Satchell.

Thanks again to Dan and Maren!  Have fun,

Ron Gutberlet
Salisbury, MD




________________________________________
From: Maryland Birds & Birding [] On Behalf Of dan small []
Sent: Monday, January 09, 2012 1:16 PM
To: 
Subject: [MDOSPREY] Barnacle Goose -- Kent Co.

While doing our weekly Chester River waterfowl survey from Chino Farms today, Maren Gimpel and I found a Barnacle Goose roosting on the Chester on the Kent County side. Within 5 minutes it took off with 12 Canada Geese, leaving about 1200 other geese behind. Luckily and without much trouble we were able to re-find the Barnacle Goose in a horse pasture along Rt 291. The bird along with roughly 2000 Canada Geese was feeding in the field at the intersection of Buckingham Rd and Rt 291. After about forty minutes of observation the entire flock took off and flew towards the river. There is a public landing at the end of Buckingham Rd that is a good place to view the Chester. Before the flock took off  Walter Ellison, Joe Hanfman and Jeff Culler were able to enjoy the bird with us. Distant digiscope photos were taken.


Dan Small
Chestertown, MD


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