I visited the area where the bird had been seen and met with Steve briefly
this afternoon. Steve showed me the area where he and two other people have
seen the suspicious bird. I walked and then slowly drove the area for about
45 minutes this evening with no signs of the bird. Since it is only a short
drive from my house, I will try to visit the area a couple of times a day
over the next couple of days. I will have my camera ready in case the bird
shows itself. The area that was a nice dry agricultural field on Saturday
now has a lot more water so if was a corn crake, maybe it will show up in a
dry area along the road. The area where it was last seen was on a private
drive and we talked to the landowner who knows what we are looking for. If
anything comes of the sighting, I will let people know as soon as practical.
Dave Palmer
-----Original Message-----
From: Ross Geredien
Sent: Sunday, April 22, 2012 12:57 PM
To:
Subject: Re: [MDOSPREY] Corn Crake
Hi Steve and everyone,
Corn Crake would truly be a mega-rarity. Do you have any additional
documentation? Were all other rails ruled out? Has anyone else tried to
verify this?
Ross Geredien
Edgewater
Sent from my iPhone
On Apr 21, 2012, at 7:47 PM, Steve Long <> wrote:
> I saw one this morning, but was not sure what it was until I was able to
> get home and consult a bird book. Since the book says that they are rare
> vistiors from Europe, I am posting this in case others would like to try
> to see it, too.
>
> It was in the grass on the side of Otwell Road, by the ditch between Quiet
> Entry and the first Otwell gate. When it saw me (actually, all it saw
> was my car), it walked into the ditch and along the ditch under the Otwell
> fence, sticking its head up to look at me at intervals. It then came up
> on the other side of the ditch and walked into the Otwell field,
> paralleling the tree line between the field and the Quiet Entry driveway.
> Although I turned my car into Otwell gate, it did not flush or run fast.
> But it sure gave me a good look. I could easily see that it was not a
> Yellow Rail by its plumage as well as its size.
>
> I took a quick look at the same location when returning this evening, but
> did not see the Corn Crake. There were several Turkeys in the field,
> however. (Those are currently quite common around here.)
>
> I guess there is a possibility that Chip Akridge has released Corn Crakes
> for hunting in this area. When I found a "stupid" Woodcock sitting in the
> middle of Otwell Road (unhurt) a few weeks ago, Akridge's employees later
> verified that some had been released a few months before and were too
> domesticated to be concerned about people, cars or foxes. Still, it was a
> pretty bird, and it let me drive within a few feet and then walk back to
> within about 10 feet before it flew off the road. Even then, it stayed
> within easy view at the base of a tree about 10 feet away from me. Not
> typical behavior for a wild Woodcock, so I did not bother to post it.
> But, the Corn Crake seemed to be acting the way the bird book says it
> should. So, maybe this one really is a wild visitor.
>
>
>
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