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14 May WISSSAHICKON WATERSHED PROGRAM 5/16 AT WYNCOTE AUDUBON [Clifford Hence ] 14 May Red-necked Phalarope and Whip-poor-will at Broadkill Beach (Pics) [JEFFERY DAVIS ] 13 May Next Two Days [Ed Sigda ] 13 May Fowler Beach Update [Ed Sigda ] 13 May Wood Sandpiper relocated [Bill Fintel ] 13 May Nelson's Sharp-tailed Sparrow ["Roger J. Masse" ] 13 May Wood Sandpiper - No; Red Phalarope - Yes [Ed Sigda ] 13 May Re: Bobolinks - Abbott's Mill [Bill Stewart ] 13 May Bombay Hook NWR Bird Sightings:May 5 thru May 11, 2008 [tina watson ] 13 May Bobolinks - Abbott's Mill [Jason Beale ] 12 May Wood Sandpiper Video [JEFFERY DAVIS ] 12 May May 10th @ Prime Hook Trip from MD [David Smith ] 12 May DOS Spring Roundup [John Janowski ] 12 May Wood Sandpiper present at 1:20 pm [Ed Sigda ] 12 May Spring Count Report - West of Seaford, North of Nanticoke River ["Lovelace Glen (DelDOT)" ] 12 May Wood Sandpiper Guest Book Redux [Liz Gordon ] 12 May Not 1, but 2 Dickcissels, West of Seaford ["Lovelace Glen (DelDOT)" ] 12 May Wood Sandpiper at Prime Hook NWR Guest Book [Liz Gordon ] 12 May TEST ONLY!!! DELETE PLEASE [Gardner Marie CE US ] 11 May Birding with the Knots, 5/10 [Derek Stoner ] 11 May Wilmington Big Day ["sally o'byrne" ] 11 May Re: Wood Sandpiper still present at 5:30 pm [Kurt Gaskill ] 11 May Re: Wood Sandpiper 5:20 am Sunday [Kurt Gaskill ] 11 May Just starting out [Denise LaMont ] 11 May Wood Sandpiper still present at 5:30 pm [Ed Sigda ] 11 May Re: Wood Sandpiper 5:20 am Sunday [Kurt Gaskill ] 11 May Bobolinks on Mother's Day [Bill Stewart ] 11 May From Prime Hook to Sandy Hook (long)--Wood Sandpiper, Cape May Warbler etc, PICS [JEFFERY DAVIS ] 11 May Wood Sandpiper 5:20 am Sunday [Bill Fintel ] 10 May Wood Sandpiper [Scott Baron ] 10 May Gordons Pond Spring Round-up + Prime Hook [Chris Bennett ] 10 May Wood Sandpiper still present at 5:00pm [Ed Sigda ] 10 May More Wood Sandpiper photos, plus 5/7/08 Big Day report [Steve Collins ] 10 May Wood Sandpiper [Sharon Lynn ] 10 May Wood Sandpiper present at 5:30 am (Saturday) [Ed Sigda ] 9 May Wood Sandpiper present until 6:30 pm [Ed Sigda ] 9 May Wood Sandpiper photos on DOSBirds.org [Homsey ] 9 May Wood Sandpiper present Fri 10:30 AM - 2:30 PM [Rick Cheicante ] 9 May Waterthrush on a wet day [Derek Stoner ] 9 May Re: Wood Sanpiper [ksnyder ] 9 May Wood Sandpiper present at 1:30 - please be safe [Ed Sigda ] 9 May Wood Sanpiper [Chris Starling ] 9 May RBA: Birdline Delaware, May 9th, 2008 [Andy Ednie ] 9 May Wood Sandpiper - Yes - 9:00 AM Friday [] 9 May Re: directions to Broadkill Beach Rd.? [Ed Sigda ] 8 May directions to Broadkill Beach Rd.? [Scott Baron ] 8 May Prime Hook [Lin Just ] 8 May Wood Sandpiper still present at last light [Ed Sigda ] 8 May Wood Sandpiper Seen at 5:20 pm today [Marcy Stutzman ] 8 May Big Day list - 5/8 [Forrest Rowland ] 8 May ALERT - DOS Bird-A-Thon Honorary Birdwalk at Mt. Cuba 5/9 [Bill Stewart ] 8 May Wood Sandpiper and Yellow Rail [Jay K ] Subject: WISSSAHICKON WATERSHED PROGRAM 5/16 AT WYNCOTE AUDUBON From: Clifford Hence <cwhenceiii AT AOL.COM> Date: Wed, 14 May 2008 09:34:20 -0400 “THE WISSAHICKON WATERSHED” by Jamie Stewart will be presented on Friday, May 16th by the Wyncote Audubon Society at 7:30PM at the Plymouth Meeting House, Germantown and Butler Pike in Plymouth Meeting. Jamie is active with the Wissahickon Valley Watershed Association, and recently co-authored the photo book “Wissahickon: Worth Preserving.” Proceeds from the book go to WVWA. Jamie’s talk will focus on the Wissahickon Watershed, and will feature images of familiar spots, as well as on current efforts by WVWA to acquire more land for preservation. This program is free and refreshment will be provided. There will be a BIRDING FIELD TRIP on Saturday, May 17th to White Clay Creek, Del. Meet 6:30AM at the McDonald's on Rte 896. This is a good time of year for late migrants and breeding warblers. For more information call the leader: Rick White at 215-483-9321. Note: There is a parking fee at this site.Subject: Red-necked Phalarope and Whip-poor-will at Broadkill Beach (Pics) From: JEFFERY DAVIS <jwdjwd67 AT MSN.COM> Date: Wed, 14 May 2008 09:07:37 -0400 In an effort to achieve a clean sweep of the Phalarope in a week... without a boat (I had seen a Wilson's in Nazareth, PA on Sunday), Amy and I lit out from work in Devon, PA at 4:30pm and headed for Prime Hook with dreams of seeing the Red-necked and Red Phalaropes reported earlier in the day. After a 3 hour drive (with Traffic) we had about 20-30 minutes of usable light to try and find what would surely be a badly backlit view of the Phalaropes. Our best chance in the dim light was in flight and I managed to get on a likely suspect and trailed it to landing about 20 feet in front of us as luck would have it. We had a nice look at a RED-NECKED PHALAROPE (Photo) but unfortunately the light was too low for anything except a dim photo. We struck out on the Red but we did hang around a little while to listen for rails and others and did hear a WHIP-POOR-WILL calling. If anyone sees the Red Phalarope please let us know b/c we are game for another mad run to DE. :) Our photos are here: http://www.flickr.com/photos/21068017 AT N07/ regards jeff Checkout our bird photos at the link below: http://www.flickr.com/photos/21068017 AT N07/Subject: Next Two Days From: Ed Sigda <sigdae AT PRIMEHOOKBIRDING.COM> Date: Tue, 13 May 2008 22:11:55 -0400 I will be away for the next two days so I will not be able to post updates on the Wood Sandpiper and/or Red Phalaropes (at least 3 were there today). I know a field trip will be in the area tomorrow so they should be able to get the word out if the birds are still present. Ed Sigda Milton, DE www.primehookbirding.comSubject: Fowler Beach Update From: Ed Sigda <sigdae AT PRIMEHOOKBIRDING.COM> Date: Tue, 13 May 2008 21:51:59 -0400 I was finally able to get into the Fowler Beach area this evening as the waters finally began to reside a little. Even then I needed to drive through several spots about a foot deep to get to the bridge at Slaughter Canal were I was able to take some photos. As I expected the dunes in the vicinity of the parking area are gone. It's hard to say when this area will get back to normal again. Amazingly it looks like the roadway still exists under the water. I have created the following web page for the photos I took this evening: http://www.primehookbirding.com/fowlerbeach/fowler_beach_may_2008.htm Ed Sigda Milton, DE www.primehookbirding.comSubject: Wood Sandpiper relocated From: Bill Fintel <avian2 AT CE.NET> Date: Tue, 13 May 2008 18:23:54 -0400 I just rec'd a call from Ed Sigda that he, and Jeff and Liz Gordon, have re-found the Wood Sandpiper about 5 minutes ago (6:20 pm, 5/13). The bird was close to the road on the north side just opposite the 2nd (largest) pull-off. Bill Fintel Lewes, DESubject: Nelson's Sharp-tailed Sparrow From: "Roger J. Masse" <rmasse08 AT DESU.EDU> Date: Tue, 13 May 2008 16:56:11 -0400 Found this afternoon in a meadow along Blackbird Creek in the Blackbird Component of the DNERR. RogerSubject: Wood Sandpiper - No; Red Phalarope - Yes From: Ed Sigda <sigdae AT PRIMEHOOKBIRDING.COM> Date: Tue, 13 May 2008 14:00:58 -0400 So far no report of the Wood Sandpiper today, but there were two Red Phalarope and 24+ Red-necked Phalarope present on the north side of the road. It is quite possible that the Wood Sandpiper is still present but most of the habitat is now gone due to the storm. The habitat that does exist is now covered with other shorebirds that have been displaced. There were about 15 birders present when I stopped over at noon so there are people looking for the bird. I will try to get back out later today to look again as the water levels should begin to drop some this afternoon. Ed Sigda Milton, DE www.primehookbirding.comSubject: Re: Bobolinks - Abbott's Mill From: Bill Stewart <hcf2 AT EARTHLINK.NET> Date: Tue, 13 May 2008 10:22:44 -0400 Morning, To continue Jason's thread on Bobolinks, there still remains as of this morning a very vocal group along Ramsey Rd. at the bottom of the hill right at the turn. They have been hanging around the southern woodlot or in the Sycamore treetop in the middle of the field. Just out of curiosity, are these bo-bo-links or bob-o-links? Plo-ver or plov-er? Bill Stewart On May 13, 2008, at 8:43 AM, Jason Beale wrote: Hi, A small flock of bobolinks is currently in the barley field at the corner of Abbott's Pond and Lindale Road. They are singing and males are chasing other males. The area they seemed to be concentrated at is the far end of the field. Head up Lindale to where the houses start on the left. The field on the right is recently plowed. There is a small puddle in this field where 4 least sandpipers are feeding. Other flooded fields in the area have had more leasts and black-bellied plovers. Immediately adjacent is the barley where the bobos are. Please park on the farm field sides if you come so as not to disturb the residents on the housing side. Other notes from the past few days: The female Bufflehead that has been seen since last wednesday was not sighted in a few scans of the pond. However, with the increasing spatterdock, visibility is limited in some areas, so she may still be around. Johnson's Branch boardwalk has high water, parulas, ovenbirds, and acadian flycatchers. A blackpoll was singing in the pine woods on sunday. Rose- breasted Grosbeak, Magnolia Warbler, and Black-throated Blue Warbler are other recent sightings. Jason Beale Abbott's Mill Nature Center Milford, DESubject: Bombay Hook NWR Bird Sightings:May 5 thru May 11, 2008 From: tina watson <tinawatsonde AT YAHOO.COM> Date: Tue, 13 May 2008 05:56:43 -0700 NOTICE: DUE TO STORM DAMAGE THE AUTO-TOUR ROUTE AROUND RAYMOND AND SHEARNESS
POOL IS CLOSED. YOU CAN ENTER THE AUTO-TOUR ROUTE FROM ROUTE 9, ALLEE HOUSE
ENTRANCE, AND GO TO FINIS AND AROUND BEAR SWAMP LOOP.
> Here are the bird sightings for Bombay Hook for the week May
> 5 thru May 11, 2008.
>
> American Bittern
> Osprey
> Merlin
> Ring-necked Pheasant
> Black-bellied Plover
> American Golden Plover
> Black-necked Stilt
> American Avocet
> Spotted Sandpiper
> Ruddy Turnstone
> Eastern Kingbird
> Sedge Wren
> Eastern Bluebird
> Wood Thrush
> Gray Catbird
> Yellow Warbler
> Black-throated Blue Warbler
> Yellow-rumped Warbler
> Black-throated Green Warbler
> Blackburnian Warbler
> Black-and-white Warbler
> American Redstart
> Prothonotary Warbler
> Ovenbird
> Northern Waterthrush
> Common Yellowthroat
> Hooded Warbler
> Wilson's Warbler
> Canada Warbler
> Yellow-breasted Chat
> Scarlet Tanager
> Blue Grosbeak
> Indigo Bunting
> Brown-headed Cowbird
> American Goldfinch
Tina Watson
Bombay Hook NWR
Subject: Bobolinks - Abbott's MillFrom: Jason Beale <jaybirdbeale AT YAHOO.COM> Date: Tue, 13 May 2008 08:43:42 -0400 Hi, A small flock of bobolinks is currently in the barley field at the corner of Abbott's Pond and Lindale Road. They are singing and males are chasing other males. The area they seemed to be concentrated at is the far end of the field. Head up Lindale to where the houses start on the left. The field on the right is recently plowed. There is a small puddle in this field where 4 least sandpipers are feeding. Other flooded fields in the area have had more leasts and black-bellied plovers. Immediately adjacent is the barley where the bobos are. Please park on the farm field sides if you come so as not to disturb the residents on the housing side. Other notes from the past few days: The female Bufflehead that has been seen since last wednesday was not sighted in a few scans of the pond. However, with the increasing spatterdock, visibility is limited in some areas, so she may still be around. Johnson's Branch boardwalk has high water, parulas, ovenbirds, and acadian flycatchers. A blackpoll was singing in the pine woods on sunday. Rose- breasted Grosbeak, Magnolia Warbler, and Black-throated Blue Warbler are other recent sightings. Jason Beale Abbott's Mill Nature Center Milford, DESubject: Wood Sandpiper Video From: JEFFERY DAVIS <jwdjwd67 AT MSN.COM> Date: Mon, 12 May 2008 23:31:22 -0400 I was finally able to upload the 20 sec. Vidiscoped Video I took Saturday of the Wood Sandpiper in DE. If you are interested check it out below. Make sure your volume is low. It was WINDY. :) http://www.flickr.com/photos/21068017 AT N07/ regards jeff Checkout our bird photos at the link below: http://www.flickr.com/photos/21068017 AT N07/Subject: May 10th @ Prime Hook Trip from MD From: David Smith <dcs_wamphyri AT YAHOO.COM> Date: Mon, 12 May 2008 20:09:23 -0400 Sorry for the delayed post-- new to Delaware Birds List and had to sign up. I, like so many others, traveled to Prime Hook to see the Wood Sandpiper. I don't bird Delaware often enough because of the distance, so this was actually my first time to Prime Hook NWR. I enjoyed my visit, though it was cut short due to other obligations. I thought I would post my list of 83 birds that I saw in a relatively short period of time, in case others were in the same boat as me and wanted to know what else they might find. Obviously, the highlight was the WOOD SANDPIPER, but I also had 13 warblers, including FOY NORTHERN WATERTHRUSH and BLACKPOLL, as well as a FOY SWAINSON'S THRUSH on the Blue Goose Trail. I also met some nice local birders who were participating in the Birdathon-- I unfortunately didn't catch their names- a man and 2 women. (If you're out there, I'd love to know your final day's count-- we talked at the Broadkill Beach area around 11AM on Saturday, and passed each other on the Blue Goose Trail later where I mentioned the Swainson's Thrush. Reply offline, if you'd like.) Anyway, I'll be sure to revisit Prime Hook again soon-- enough rambling, here's the birds: Canada Goose Wood Duck Mallard Northern Shoveler Northern Pintail Green-winged Teal Lesser Scaup Double-crested Cormorant Great Blue Heron Snowy Egret Turkey Vulture Osprey Semipalmated Plover Killdeer Black-necked Stilt - 2 Spotted Sandpiper Greater Yellowlegs Willet Lesser Yellowlegs Wood Sandpiper - 1 Least Sandpiper Dunlin Short-billed Dowitcher Laughing Gull Common Tern - 1 Forster's Tern Black Skimmer Mourning Dove Great Horned Owl - 1 Ruby-throated Hummingbird Red-bellied Woodpecker Northern Flicker Acadian Flycatcher Eastern Phoebe Great Crested Flycatcher White-eyed Vireo Blue-headed Vireo - 1 Red-eyed Vireo American Crow Fish Crow Purple Martin Tree Swallow Barn Swallow Carolina Chickadee Tufted Titmouse Carolina Wren House Wren Blue-gray Gnatcatcher Veery - 1 Swainson's Thrush - 1 American Robin Gray Catbird Northern Mockingbird European Starling Northern Parula Yellow Warbler Magnolia Warbler - 1 Black-throated Blue Warbler Yellow-rumped Warbler Prairie Warbler Blackpoll Warbler - 1, heard only Black-and-white Warbler American Redstart Worm-eating Warbler - 1 Ovenbird Northern Waterthrush - 1 Common Yellowthroat Scarlet Tanager Eastern Towhee Chipping Sparrow Field Sparrow Savannah Sparrow Song Sparrow Swamp Sparrow - can't believe how many there were! Northern Cardinal Indigo Bunting Red-winged Blackbird Common Grackle Orchard Oriole Baltimore Oriole American Goldfinch David C. Smith Owings Mills, MD dcs_wamphyri AT yahoo.comSubject: DOS Spring Roundup From: John Janowski <jsbirders AT VERIZON.NET> Date: Mon, 12 May 2008 19:04:13 -0400 A big THANK YOU to all who participated in Saturday's Spring Roundup! We dodged a bullet in terms of weather. Look what a 24 hour difference can do. I'm glad Woody stuck around, and Ed, if this your area, please document your sighting for the Ornithologist. Speaking of shorebirds, it's not every day that you can see displaying Spotted Sandpipers strut across the road or a Solitary Sandpipers defending its territory. Agricultural fields in my area from Reedy Point south to Odessa had a number of shorebirds this year. Good Birding! John Janowski Port Penn, DESubject: Wood Sandpiper present at 1:20 pm From: Ed Sigda <sigdae AT PRIMEHOOKBIRDING.COM> Date: Mon, 12 May 2008 15:51:00 -0400 I was able to briefly relocate the Wood Sandpiper today at 1:20 for about a minute on the north side of the road between the north and second pullout. I then spent another hour trying to relocate with another birder but it never came out from behind the vegetation. Needless to say it was miserable out with the high winds and rain. I need to go back to work on Tuesday, but will try to get out around noon on Tuesday. Ed Sigda Milton, DE www.primehookbirding.comSubject: Spring Count Report - West of Seaford, North of Nanticoke River From: "Lovelace Glen (DelDOT)" <Glen.Lovelace AT STATE.DE.US> Date: Mon, 12 May 2008 11:28:31 -0400 Hello All, My day began with nearly hitting a skunk waddling down the road about a mile from the house. With that disaster averted, I began birding at first light. It started to rain at my second stop. Sigh. But in the rain I had my only BTB warbler of the day and Louisiana Waterthrush at a new location. I arrived at Pete Gum Wildlife Area about 6:30AM and the rains let up. But then I discovered that I had forgotten my boots. Instead, I had an old pair of shoes, so I put them on knowing I would get soaked getting to the river. It was worth it as I recorded my only DC Cormorant, Yellow-throated Vireo, Yellow-throated Warbler, Brown-headed Nuthatch, Summer Tanager, Rose-breasted Grosbeak and White-throated Sparrow of the day. For those of you that do not make it to this part of Delaware very often, you really should make the effort to visit Pete Gum sometime (Woodland Church Rd at the state line between Woodland and Galestown, MD). It is the northern-most spot on the Nanticoke! to find Brown-headed Nuthatch and is home to all of the southern DE goodies. By 9 AM, I was soaked to the knees from walking through wet grass and a heavier shower came through, so I went home to dry off and warm up. After the rain, I checked the ponds on the farm. No shorebirds, but I found my only Baltimore Oriole in the yard, only Wild Turkey in the back field and my first Vesper and Grasshopper Sparrows of the day. Then I hit the fields described in the previous post. By now, my "schedule" was turned completely on its ear. I decided to make no attempt to salvage it and just birded where I was and wound up birding some different spots that yielded new birds (such as a mixed flock at Woodland Ferry x. Ellis Mill Rd with the day's only B&W Warbler or a 1PM Barred Owl below Woodland). Woodland itself yielded House Wren (locally uncommon, only two reliable spots), a single Ring-billed Gull, Forster's Tern, and a surprise LA Waterthrush. The stretch of woods below Woodland and Chapel Branch Wildlife Area proved to be lackluster, but was probabl! y more a symptom of visiting between 1-3PM. The balance of the afternoon was spent scrounging around for puddles in fields (which remained scarce despite 1.5" rain), searching retention ponds and filling in some holes (Pigeon, Red-tail). First shorebird was a Greater Yellow in my ponds; the Solitary and Least on Neals School Rd in two miniscule puddles; all of the above plus Spotted in the retention ponds at Clearbrooke; and finally, 2 more Spotteds at Mearfield retention pond. Throw in a single Rough-winged Swallow at Hearns Pond and I had 99 species when I went home for supper around 7PM. My night birding started with the Swift roost at the Middle School (only 105, formerly >300) and another unsuccessful search for Nighthawk (circa 2000-1 they were easy in multiple spots around town, but they seem to have disappeared). I then headed back downriver toward Woodland listening for nightjars and owls. I heard nothing, even at proven spots, for almost an hour. I had myself convinced it was too cold despite the moon now shining brightly (as it had cleared late afternoon), no wind and excellent listening conditions. Finally, I heard a Whip at 9:45PM on the south end of Bowman Rd. From then on, there was something at almost every stop until 11PM. I totaled 8 Whips, 1 Chuck (which I heard over 1 mile away!), 2 Screech Owl, another Barred Owl, and, finally, a distant GH Owl at home as I was calling it a day. I totaled 103 species (average is right at 100), over 100 for the first time since 2004. I thought this excellent for a day with bad weather, a blown schedule and very little migration. Numbers of some common species suffered from the schedule (not singing by the time I got to their strongholds), but others were well represented (i.e. 5 Vesper Sparrows). Misses were Kestrel, Bobwhite, Flicker, Blackpoll Warbler, Yellow Warbler, Savannah Sparrow, with Blackpoll being the worst. Also, just from sightings incidental to counting, I tallied about 20 breeding confirmations. Most were easy ones (Starling, Grackle, Robin), but the Horned Lark and a Red-Shouldered Hawk carrying food were excellent. Good Birding, Glen Lovelace III Seaford, DESubject: Wood Sandpiper Guest Book Redux From: Liz Gordon <elizabird AT MAC.COM> Date: Mon, 12 May 2008 10:54:10 -0400 Hello, The last note was sent before I meant it to be. Sorry. Jeff Gordon and Sharon Lynn and I felt it important to gather information ourselves to speak of the value to tourism from birding in Delaware...I started a collection of names at Broadkill Beach's wood sandpiper spot, on a post with a sharpie and a plastic paint board. After talking to George R. Parsons, Professor from the College of Marine and Earth Studies & Department of Economics at the University of Delaware--who was unable to send grad students to collect names for him on the spur of the moment--I felt the information should be collected in more useable fashion than our kiosk. Please if you missed filling in valuable information...such as your e-mail or snail mail address. Please take the time to give us that info and your consent to share it with Prof. Parsons. Using new technology I found I could have the spreadsheet fill out itself when someone answers the questions at the link provided below http://spreadsheets.google.com/viewform?key=pO-QP66H7Lzj3lRWCnkl2Tw&email=true The information helps us in our quest to protect habitat by making birding habitat valuable in non birder's eyes. Thanks for your help. Liz Gordon Lewes, DESubject: Not 1, but 2 Dickcissels, West of Seaford From: "Lovelace Glen (DelDOT)" <Glen.Lovelace AT STATE.DE.US> Date: Mon, 12 May 2008 09:05:21 -0400 Hello All, For the Spring Count on Saturday, I covered my usual area (since 1995) north of the Nanticoke River, west of Seaford. A full account will follow, but I wanted to first post about the birds of the day. Directions first: Take DE 20 west from Seaford toward Reliance. At Reliance, turn left/south onto Woodland Ferry Rd (at Gethsemane Church) and go south about 1 mile until you see a lush pasture on the left/east side. The fields on both sides are part of an organic cattle operation. There was a Dickcissel here last May (through Memorial Day), but it did not seem to stay into June. At this spot, there were about 40 Bobolinks (many singing - R2D2 with wings), 2 Meadowlarks and 5 Grasshopper Sparrows. Dickcissel #1 was hanging out on the north end of the irrigation. There was also a Cooper's Hawk jostling with a crow over the distant woods. I'm not sure who was harassing who. Continuing down the road to the pasture before the intersection with Woodpecker Rd, there were more Grasshopper Sparrows, a Vesper Sparrow, and Horned Larks feeding young. I noticed a distant bird on a pole, so I moved east on Woodpecker Rd to get a closer look. It was a Grasshopper and then I discovered Dickcissel #2. It was sitting on the powerline, singing away, in front of the easternmost house on Woodpecker Rd (about 5-6 houses in a row from the crossroads). Dickcissel #1 can also be seen from the opposite side of the field at the sharp corner in Old Carriage Rd (which is one road east, about 1 mile, of Woodland Ferry on DE 20). It is a closer view of the irrigation, but you cannot see as much of the whole field. Whoever has this atlas block should really try to confirm Dickcissel!! (Btw, it is my block) Good Birding, Glen Lovelace III Seaford, DESubject: Wood Sandpiper at Prime Hook NWR Guest Book From: Liz Gordon <lizzibird AT GMAIL.COM> Date: Mon, 12 May 2008 05:55:35 -0700 Thanks you for visiting and filling in this form. This as
confidential information.
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Subject: TEST ONLY!!! DELETE PLEASEFrom: Gardner Marie CE US <marie.gardner AT CIBA.COM> Date: Mon, 12 May 2008 08:44:39 -0400 Testing only!! Please delete. Thanks all !!!Subject: Birding with the Knots, 5/10 From: Derek Stoner <derek AT DELAWARENATURESOCIETY.ORG> Date: Sun, 11 May 2008 23:42:05 -0400 5/10/08 - 4:30am - The parking lot of the Super 8 Motel in Milford, DE Bill Stewart, Judy Montgomery and I meet up with an excited group of youth birders and their parents from Baltimore. Members of The Friends of the Red Knot, these enthusiastic kids came to Delaware for the weekend to take part in the Spring Roundup and compete in the youth division of the Delaware Bird-A-Thon. Our adventure begins on Big Stone Beach Road in the midst of the always-wild Milford Neck Wildlife Area. We immediately hear peenting American Woodcock and a few distant Whip-poor-will's. The kids chuckle at our attempts to woo a Screech Owl with whinnies and trills. Further up the road, a Chuck-will's-widow sings its name dozens of times before flying over our heads and landing in the road. Illuminated in the car headlights, the obliging nightjar gives everyone a "life look" at a new bird. This is the first night birding anyone in this group of 12 has ever done! Dawn along Big Stone Beach is always a treat and this morning does not disappoint. We see Blue Grosbeaks, Wood Ducks, Great-horned Owls, Ospreys, Black Skimmers, Eastern Kingbirds, and all sorts of other birds. Little hands, ages 7 to 12, frantically spin the focus wheels on binoculars. Rain showers at Mispillion Harbor do not dampen the enthusiasm of the group, as the kids queue up in front of the scopes for looks at American Oystercatcher, Dunlin, Black-necked Stilt, Least Sandpiper, and many other shorebirds. Of course, we also find a flock of their favorite bird- the Red Knot. Around noon Jason Beale graciously leads us through the trails at Abbott's Mill Nature Center, where we observe the lingering female Bufflehead and enjoy incredible scope views of Prothonotary Warbler, Indigo Bunting, Orchard Oriole, and other colorful songsters. Assessing the kids' Bird-A-Thon list in the early afternoon, 12 year-old team captain Mike Hudson discovers that they have observed 96 species. With the magical century mark in such close reach, we tell Mike that it is time to head to a very special place: Prime Hook NWR. Arriving at the now-even-more-famous Broadkill Beach Road, we help the kids locate Northern Shoveler, Blue-winged Teal, and Red-breasted Merganser in the south impoundment. Turning our attention to the north, we cross the road(very carefully with a group of 15 people!). I plop the Leica scope in front of Mike, directing it at the patch of marsh that contains a very special bird. Passing up the offers of other birders to look through their scopes, Mike(a very sharp-eyed birder) picks out the Wood Sandpiper on his own. This young man actually begins twitching with excitement as he shares such a wonderful bird with friends and family. "That's species number 100!" Mike proudly announces. A Northern Bobwhite sounds off to make for a fun 101st species. But number 100 will always be a special bird for this group of young birders. Reaching a century on their first-ever Big Day and seeing a mega-rarity cannot be topped. In an appropriate stroke of fortune, the Wood Sandpiper sighting plays a pivotal role in these young conservationists' efforts to help preserve more land in the Prime Hook region for these remarkable shorebirds. Reaching 100 is a goal that they achieved, and we are proud to help them out. Thank you to all who took part in a very exciting week of birding in Delaware. The incredible reports of Bird-A-Thon teams, the scintillating discovery of a rare bird(thank you Sharon!), and the great tradition of the Spring Roundup combined to make this a very memorable moment for birders in the First State. Good birding, Derek Stoner Hockessin, DESubject: Wilmington Big Day From: "sally o'byrne" <salobyrne AT GMAIL.COM> Date: Sun, 11 May 2008 22:23:05 -0400 Mike Smith and I did our Big Day Bird-A-Thon on Saturday with the help of Jim Lewis and Pete Ziegler, limiting our area to our Spring Round up area. Our goal was to hit 100 species in the Geographic region of Wilmington and North. Starting at 3:15 am looking for rails (getting sora and Virginia rail) at Russ Peterson refuge and ending at Ramsey Road with a Yellow throated vireo at 8 pm, we hit 102. And though we can't count it in any official way, we found a cockatiel in the woods at Russ Peterson, which was a first for that refuge and for me as well. We spent the majority of our time at Russell Peterson and Alapocas, but also hit Brandywine Creek State Park, Ramsey Road, and the landfill. Needless to say, our numbers don't compare to some of the reports from earlier in the week, but we were very pleased to get at least two birds not reported by Forrest and Steve. We got a bobolink in the vacant lot next to the Riverfront outlets, while a regatta and barbeque was going on close by, and we got a kingfisher as bird #101 along the Brandywine near Ramsey Road. Our memories of last year were that it was a peak day for migration and warblers were plentiful. Not so this year - we worked hard for every warbler. The Russ Peterson refuge had a good variety of shorebirds, however, with a quite high numbers of solitary sandpipers, spotted sandpipers, and semi palmated plovers, both yellowlegs and a variety of peeps and dunlin. We saw a number of chicks - goslings at Blue Ball barn, Wood duck chicks at Brandywine Creek, and an incredibly cute killdeer chick at Fox Point. There was a lingering gadwall and ruddy duck at the sewage treatment ponds, and the peregrine obliged us by sitting on his nest box on the Brandywine Building. We guestimated 6000 (?) laughing gulls at the dump. As far as the BBA goes, copulating laughers confirmed their breeding many times over ( and the one on top always seemed to be laughing) All in all, a productive and fun day, and not a bad way to raise funds for a good cause. Kudos to all who spent a day in the field for the Bird-A-Thon, and we can hold our collective breath to see if we reached our goal of $40,000. Start collecting those pledges! Sally O'Byrne p.s. our complete list available from Mike Smith by request.Subject: Re: Wood Sandpiper still present at 5:30 pm From: Kurt Gaskill <KurtCapt87 AT VERIZON.NET> Date: Sun, 11 May 2008 21:32:05 -0500 Ed, At least he identified the bird's name correctly! Kurt "OUCH!" Gaskill -----Original Message----- From: Delaware Birding [mailto:de-birds AT Princeton.EDU] On Behalf Of Ed Sigda Sent: Sunday, May 11, 2008 5:37 PM To: de-birds AT Princeton.EDU Subject: [de-birds] Wood Sandpiper still present at 5:30 pm After a bit of early morning birding and a 3 hour nap I headed over to Broadkill Road at 3:30 for some lunch and watched the Wood Sandpiper until a little after 5:30. During my stay I also got to spend some time with a visiting birder that stepped out of his car with the keys in the ignition and then got locked out when his dogs ran to the window and locked the doors. Several attempts were made to get the dogs to unlock the doors, but eventually this task was up to the local locksmith to perform. I did notice during my stay that the bird has extended it's range to the area north of the second pull out. Of course if the weather goes as planned for the next 24 hours the habitat along Broadkill Road is going to change as another 1-2 inches of rain is expected. I would expect that the available habitat to the south will decrease further and increase on the north side of the road. With the current forecast, and the need for some sleep, I will not be out early Monday morning, but I will try to get out later in the day to look for the bird. The highlight of this morning's outing was a Reeve is a flooded field along Fowler Beach Road across from the refuge information kiosk. Ed Sigda Milton, DE www.primehookbirding.comSubject: Re: Wood Sandpiper 5:20 am Sunday From: Kurt Gaskill <KurtCapt87 AT VERIZON.NET> Date: Sun, 11 May 2008 21:28:43 -0500 Bill, Mea Culpa - Please let me claim the excuse of complete and utter lack of sleep. It is, of course, a Wood Sandpiper! My humble apologies to all - and yes Barry, do not wake up early! Sheesh! Talk about your embarrassments! I will now act like an Ostrich and bury my head into the sands of the Kalahari! Kurt "oh no, not again!" Gaskill -----Original Message----- From: Bill Stewart [mailto:hcf2 AT earthlink.net] Sent: Sunday, May 11, 2008 3:52 PM To: Kurt Gaskill Subject: Re: [de-birds] Wood Sandpiper 5:20 am Sunday Kurt, Just out of curiosity, why are you calling the Wood Sandpiper a Marsh Sandpiper? I'll let you explain. Bill Stewart On May 11, 2008, at 5:24 PM, Kurt Gaskill wrote: Delaware Birders, Sherman Suter and I re-found the Marsh Sandpiper near 8am pretty much near the spot described by Ed (below and in previous posts). The bird was unseen for about 45 min. Near 8am, Sherman and I found a suspicious tringa along the SW edge of the south pond and it flew into the vegetation near the cars - yet remained unseen! We thought it may have slipped away, walking the edge towards ocean side. Sherman started searching in that direction. Me? I had a bit of water and leaned back against the car with the scope. I looked and saw the Marsh Sandpiper leave the brown vegetation and muddy habitat and walk into the small bit of water near the white pole. I got everyone on the bird and it posed for a few minutes, and then flew, apparently to the backside of the island of taller green and brown vegetation (near the white pole) which cannot be seen from the road. We soon left for other locations. As for plumage characteristics, in brief, it was very close to the adult summer painting in nearly every way (crown, nape, face, bill, back, scapulars, legs, throat, breast and belly as well as in flight) found in Mullarney, Svensson, Zetterstrom and Grant, "Birds of Europe" Princeton University Press, 2004 (a fine guide for Eurasian birds by the way). We saw Ed Sigda later and filled him in. Later in the morning we met a fellow who saw the bird later than us, perhaps after 9am or so. The events of this morning suggest a pattern and future observers may wish to check the south pond as they wait out the bird. Otherwise, nothing too much unusual at Broadkill Beach Rd. Perhaps 3 pairs of Gadwall, several American Black Ducks, a few Mallards, 3 Northern Pintail, a Northern Shoveler, many Green-winged Teal, 3 Blue-winged Teal, and 3 Lesser Scaup. Overflying Bobolink observed and "blinks" were heard throughout our stay. We found 18 Red Knots on Fowler's Beach Rd and another 30 at Mispillion (sp?) inlet. Royal and Caspian Terns at Fowler's Beach. 2 Pectoral Sandpipers at the south pond on Broadkill Beach Rd. If you let us tally Black Skimmers as honorary shorebirds/waders, we ended our short day with 19 species in the group. Thanks to Sharon Lynn and Ed and Frank and everyone else on finding and staying on top of the Marsh Sandpiper. Good birding to you all, Kurt Gaskill -----Original Message----- From: Delaware Birding [mailto:de-birds AT Princeton.EDU] On Behalf Of Bill Fintel Sent: Sunday, May 11, 2008 7:08 AM To: de-birds AT Princeton.EDU Subject: [de-birds] Wood Sandpiper 5:20 am Sunday Ed Sigda called to report that the Wood Sandpiper was present at 5:20 this morning on the North side of Broadkill Beach Road in the pool near the first white PVC post. This is where it has been observed most frequently in recent days. Bill Fintel Lewes, DESubject: Just starting out From: Denise LaMont <lamontde AT GMAIL.COM> Date: Sun, 11 May 2008 19:44:18 -0400 Hello all, I have been interested in birding for the past two years, it is only now that I am taking myself seriously. When I tell my friends that this is a serious interest of mine I get "the look." I suppose there aren't many 25yr old birding enthusiasts? Anyway, right to the question: I really don't know where to start. Does anyone have any ideas for me? Perhaps a book they recommend? Is there a proper way and improper way to go bird watching. Anything that I can do to make the experience as gratifying as possible? All I know is, when I drive my car, I almost wreck it some days because I'm trying to follow a bird take flight. I think something more constructive would make other drivers and myself more safe. Denise Bear, DE lamontde AT gmail.comSubject: Wood Sandpiper still present at 5:30 pm From: Ed Sigda <sigdae AT PRIMEHOOKBIRDING.COM> Date: Sun, 11 May 2008 18:37:18 -0400 After a bit of early morning birding and a 3 hour nap I headed over to Broadkill Road at 3:30 for some lunch and watched the Wood Sandpiper until a little after 5:30. During my stay I also got to spend some time with a visiting birder that stepped out of his car with the keys in the ignition and then got locked out when his dogs ran to the window and locked the doors. Several attempts were made to get the dogs to unlock the doors, but eventually this task was up to the local locksmith to perform. I did notice during my stay that the bird has extended it's range to the area north of the second pull out. Of course if the weather goes as planned for the next 24 hours the habitat along Broadkill Road is going to change as another 1-2 inches of rain is expected. I would expect that the available habitat to the south will decrease further and increase on the north side of the road. With the current forecast, and the need for some sleep, I will not be out early Monday morning, but I will try to get out later in the day to look for the bird. The highlight of this morning's outing was a Reeve is a flooded field along Fowler Beach Road across from the refuge information kiosk. Ed Sigda Milton, DE www.primehookbirding.comSubject: Re: Wood Sandpiper 5:20 am Sunday From: Kurt Gaskill <KurtCapt87 AT VERIZON.NET> Date: Sun, 11 May 2008 16:24:36 -0500 Delaware Birders, Sherman Suter and I re-found the Marsh Sandpiper near 8am pretty much near the spot described by Ed (below and in previous posts). The bird was unseen for about 45 min. Near 8am, Sherman and I found a suspicious tringa along the SW edge of the south pond and it flew into the vegetation near the cars - yet remained unseen! We thought it may have slipped away, walking the edge towards ocean side. Sherman started searching in that direction. Me? I had a bit of water and leaned back against the car with the scope. I looked and saw the Marsh Sandpiper leave the brown vegetation and muddy habitat and walk into the small bit of water near the white pole. I got everyone on the bird and it posed for a few minutes, and then flew, apparently to the backside of the island of taller green and brown vegetation (near the white pole) which cannot be seen from the road. We soon left for other locations. As for plumage characteristics, in brief, it was very close to the adult summer painting in nearly every way (crown, nape, face, bill, back, scapulars, legs, throat, breast and belly as well as in flight) found in Mullarney, Svensson, Zetterstrom and Grant, "Birds of Europe" Princeton University Press, 2004 (a fine guide for Eurasian birds by the way). We saw Ed Sigda later and filled him in. Later in the morning we met a fellow who saw the bird later than us, perhaps after 9am or so. The events of this morning suggest a pattern and future observers may wish to check the south pond as they wait out the bird. Otherwise, nothing too much unusual at Broadkill Beach Rd. Perhaps 3 pairs of Gadwall, several American Black Ducks, a few Mallards, 3 Northern Pintail, a Northern Shoveler, many Green-winged Teal, 3 Blue-winged Teal, and 3 Lesser Scaup. Overflying Bobolink observed and "blinks" were heard throughout our stay. We found 18 Red Knots on Fowler's Beach Rd and another 30 at Mispillion (sp?) inlet. Royal and Caspian Terns at Fowler's Beach. 2 Pectoral Sandpipers at the south pond on Broadkill Beach Rd. If you let us tally Black Skimmers as honorary shorebirds/waders, we ended our short day with 19 species in the group. Thanks to Sharon Lynn and Ed and Frank and everyone else on finding and staying on top of the Marsh Sandpiper. Good birding to you all, Kurt Gaskill -----Original Message----- From: Delaware Birding [mailto:de-birds AT Princeton.EDU] On Behalf Of Bill Fintel Sent: Sunday, May 11, 2008 7:08 AM To: de-birds AT Princeton.EDU Subject: [de-birds] Wood Sandpiper 5:20 am Sunday Ed Sigda called to report that the Wood Sandpiper was present at 5:20 this morning on the North side of Broadkill Beach Road in the pool near the first white PVC post. This is where it has been observed most frequently in recent days. Bill Fintel Lewes, DESubject: Bobolinks on Mother's Day From: Bill Stewart <hcf2 AT EARTHLINK.NET> Date: Sun, 11 May 2008 13:23:15 -0400 Good afternoon and Happy Mother's Day to all the moms who read DE-Birds, Running out quite early this beautiful morning to hit DBBA Block #2, I started at the turn on Ramsey Rd. My first impression was the morning chorus was just rockin', something I haven't heard in a while. Trying to divide the songs into species proved to be a challenge due to number of birds singing and the proverbial American Redstart's playing with their inconsistent repertoire! With great delight, I heard that wonderful tinkling, R2D2 song of the Bobolink. I counted nine before they flew off to the huge Sycamore tree next to Ramsey's Farm driveway. Other birds of note are listed below: PEREGRINE FALCON CAPE MAY WARBLER Kentucky Warbler Green Heron Veery (love that song) Louisiana Waterthrush Prairie Warbler Brown Thrasher Finished the hour long survey with 55 species. Good birding, Bill StewartSubject: From Prime Hook to Sandy Hook (long)--Wood Sandpiper, Cape May Warbler etc, PICS From: JEFFERY DAVIS <jwdjwd67 AT MSN.COM> Date: Sun, 11 May 2008 10:04:43 -0400 Long story about our long day of birding yesterday. Here goes: Yesterday morning, we got up "dark and early" at 3:00 am so we could make it to Prime Hook by first light to see the little brown and white wader that has become such a celebrity. While Jeff drove, I used the dashboard light to work on the final paper I'd sworn that no migrant, no matter how far off course, would distract me from. Two hours, seventeen minutes, two big cans of RockStar and half a page later, we arrived at Broadkill Beach Road where several other birders had already set up scope, and immediately got us on the WOOD SANDPIPER! (Thanks again!). We watched him energetically searching out his prey, traversing the long shallow pools and providing us with side-by-side comparisons with a SOLITARY SANDPIPER and a LESSER YELLOWLEGS, bobbing his little back end as he went. While Jeff snapped a couple hundred (mostly very blurry) pictures through the scope, I followed the songs of a BLUE GROSBEAK and NORTHERN BOBWHITE, but didn't get any looks. Finally, guiltily, I went back to the car where I managed to write another half a page before going back out to watch the sandpiper until the rain finally chased us away around 8:00 am. Some other species seen/heard at Broadkill Road were (in order of appearance): COMMON GRACKLE, COMMON YELLOWTHROAT, RED-WINGED BLACKBIRD, CANADA GOOSE, OSPREY, NORTHERN SHOVELER, HERRING GULL, LAUGHING GULL, AMERICAN BLACK DUCK, AMERICAN CROW, GREAT EGRET, GREATER YELLOWLEGS, SEMIPALMATED PLOVER, GREEN HERON, WILLET, SONG SPARROW, GLOSSY IBIS, SPOTTED SANDPIPER, BARN SWALLOW, LEAST SANDPIPER, FORSTER'S TERN, NORTHERN CARDINAL, WILSON'S SNIPE, MALLARD, YELLOW WARBLER. Having gotten our "Big Get," we decided to push our luck and head to Sandy Hook NJ to try for the Wilson's Phalarope (a nemesis bird for us) and the Loggerhead Shrike that had been seen (our decision was partly based on the premise that the New Jersey Turnpike was the perfect distraction-free study location.) We needed to re-stock our supplies so we hit up the Wawa outside of Dover for some study aids (aka caffeine and sugar)--and saw a sad sight. Laid out on top of the trash can there was a dead Common Yellowthroat, presumably a window fatality. After Jeff convinced me not to bring him with us (a friend of mine is a taxidermist), we were off. Four hours, two bottles of Diet Mountain Dew, one paragraph and a weary, teary-eyed throwdown (over barbecue!) later, we arrived in Sandy Hook, where we found that the birders far outnumbered the birds. Neither shrike nor phalarope had been seen. However, we were told that there were two CAPE MAY WARBLERS seen on the Fisherman's Trail, so that's where we headed. Pointed in the right direction by another helpful birder (Thanks again!), we spent about 45 minutes trying to find the warblers, and finally we did (at least, one of them)! We watched him feeding among the white (plum?) blossoms, his beak covered in pollen, and happily, Jeff got a few "glamour shots" of him. He was just gorgeous, and he was our second lifer for the day! Other species seen/heard on Fisherman's Trail included: EASTERN TOWHEE, AMERICAN ROBIN, WHITE-THROATED SPARROW, GRAY CATBIRD, MOURNING DOVE, BARN SWALLOW, HERRING GULL, HOUSE WREN, NORTHERN CARDINAL, CAROLINA WREN, YELLOW WARBLER, OSPREY, HOUSE FINCH, RED-WINGED BLACKBIRD, LAUGHING GULL, GREAT BLACK-BACKED GULL, TREE SWALLOW, WHITE-EYED VIREO, WILLET, COMMON TERN, FIELD SPARROW, HOUSE SPARROW, and a warbler with a yellow rump which may or may not have been the second CAPE MAY reported (only Jeff got a too-brief glance at it). Finally, we went back to the Audubon Center, where we watched the feeder birds, and others, which included: HOUSE FINCH, HOUSE SPARROW, RED-WINGED BLACKBIRD, COMMON GRACKLE, EUROPEAN STARLING, WHITE-CROWNED SPARROW, SONG SPARROW, ROSE-BREASTED GROSBEAK, INDIGO BUNTING, AMERICAN OYSTERCATCHER, BRANT, HERRING GULL, AMERICAN ROBIN, AMERICAN CROW, RUBY-THROATED HUMMINGBIRD, BROWN-HEADED COWBIRD, CEDAR WAXWING, DOUBLE-CRESTED CORMORANT, RING-BILLED GULL, CHIPPING SPARROW, GREAT BLACK-BACKED GULL, COMMON TERN and OSPREY. Jeff got some nice pictures of the grosbeak, White-crowns and waxwings. All pics are posted at http://www.flickr.com/photos/21068017 AT N07/ and I am working on uploading a video of the Wood Sandpiper (without much success--if I get it I'll post again). Regards, and happy birding, Amy and Jeff Davis Downingtown, Chester County, PA Checkout our bird photos at the link below: http://www.flickr.com/photos/21068017 AT N07/Subject: Wood Sandpiper 5:20 am Sunday From: Bill Fintel <avian2 AT CE.NET> Date: Sun, 11 May 2008 08:08:01 -0400 Ed Sigda called to report that the Wood Sandpiper was present at 5:20 this morning on the North side of Broadkill Beach Road in the pool near the first white PVC post. This is where it has been observed most frequently in recent days. Bill Fintel Lewes, DESubject: Wood Sandpiper From: Scott Baron <brnpelican AT yahoo.com> Date: Sat, 10 May 2008 21:24:02 -0700 The Wood Sandpiper at Prime Hook National Wildlife Refuge was still present at 7pm when I left the area. It was feeding in the marsh about 75' from the left side of Broadkill Beach Rd. if you are coming from Rte. 1. For birders who haven't been to this spot, there is a wide shoulder on the left side of the road which gives you more room to set up a scope and look straight out into the marsh. Lingering waterfowl in the marsh on the other side of the road were a pair of Northern Pintail, 2 male Northern Shovelers and 3 scaup sp. Thanks to Ms. Sharon Lynn for finding this bird. Scott Baron Fairfax, Va. ____________________________________________________________________________________ Be a better friend, newshound, and know-it-all with Yahoo! Mobile. Try it now. http://mobile.yahoo.com/;_ylt=Ahu06i62sR8HDtDypao8Wcj9tAcJSubject: Gordons Pond Spring Round-up + Prime Hook From: Chris Bennett <cb2564 AT AOL.COM> Date: Sat, 10 May 2008 21:58:36 -0400 Dave Keck and I birded Gordons Pond, along Henlopen Avenue in Rehoboth and the Cape Henlopen Lands west of the Lewes-Rehoboth Canal (primarily Wolfe Neck Road area) between 5:30 am and 3:30 pm today for the DOS Spring Round-up.? While the weather was fairly atrocious for most of the day - we found a nice collection of birds.? We ended our day with 118 species and just over 2000 individuals.? Highlights included 14 species of Wablers - Northern Parula, Yellow, Black-throated Blue, Yellow-rumped, Black-throated Green, Blackburnian, Pine, Prairie, Blackpoll, Black and White, American Redstart, Ovenbird, Common Yellowthroat and Yellow-breasted Chat), 16 species of Shorebirds, 10 Species of Sparrows (Eastern Towhee, Chipping, Field, Savannah, Grasshopper, Saltmarsh Sharp-tailed, Seaside, Song, Swamp and White-throated), 75 Northern Gannet, 2 Rose-breasted Grosbeaks, both Orioles, 2 Merlins and a Peregrine.? Noteworthy were at least two species that went un-recorded - though I must admit I'm a bit embarassed to divulge them - Northern Mockingbird and Indigo Bunting.? I was unsatisfied with 118 so made a few quick stops on the way home at Prime Hook and picked up an additional 16 species - Wood Sandpiper, Northern Pintail, Green-winged Teal, Northern Shoveler and Lesser Scaup (dabbling with the shovelers) at Broadkill Beach Road, Mute Swan (1), Red-breasted Merganser, American Avocet, Sanderling, White-rumped Sandpiper (1) and Great Horned Owl at Fowlers Beach, Prothonotary Warbler along Deep Branch Road, Red Knot at Slaughter?Beach (4)?and finally (!) both Northern Mockingbird and Indigo Bunting. Complete list for Cape area is below. 2????????? SNOW GOOSE 37??????? CANADA GOOSE 1????????? AMERICAN BLACK DUCK 16??????? MALLARD 4????????? NORTHERN BOBWHITE 7????????? COMMON LOON 75??????? NORTHERN GANNET 60??????? DOUBLE-CRESTED CORMORANT 2????????? GREAT BLUE HERON 5????????? GREAT EGRET 25??????? SNOWY EGRET 1????????? TRICOLORED HERON 3????????? GREEN HERON 45??????? GLOSSY IBIS 1????????? BLACK VULTURE 10??????? TURKEY VULTURE 8????????? OSPREY 1????????? NORTHERN HARRIER 2????????? MERLIN 1????????? PEREGRINE FALCON 6????????? CLAPPER RAIL 36??????? BLACK-BELLIED PLOVER 27??????? SEMIPALMATED PLOVER 1????????? PIPING PLOVER 1????????? KILLDEER 6????????? AMERICAN OYSTERCATCHER 2????????? BLACK-NECKED STILT 20??????? GREATER YELLOWLEGS 210????? LESSER YELLOWLEGS 2????????? SOLITARY SANDPIPER 15??????? WILLET 23??????? SPOTTED SANDPIPER 1????????? RUDDY TURNSTONE 122????? SEMIPALMATED SANDPIPER 65??????? LEAST SANDPIPER 150????? DUNLIN 180????? SHORT-BILLED DOWITCHER 47??????? LAUGHING GULL 13??????? BONAPARTE'S GULL 2????????? RING-BILLED GULL 20??????? HERRING GULL 20??????? GREAT BLACK-BACKED GULL 6????????? COMMON TERN 25??????? FORSTER'S TERN 20??????? LEAST TERN 2????????? BLACK SKIMMER 2????????? ROCK DOVE 17??????? MOURNING DOVE 1????????? EASTERN SCREECH-OWL 3????????? RUBY-THROATED HUMMINGBIRD 1????????? BELTED KINGFISHER 6????????? RED-BELLIED WOODPECKER 2????????? DOWNY WOODPECKER 3????????? NORTHERN FLICKER 5????????? EASTERN WOOD PEWEE 6????????? GREAT CRESTED FLYCATCHER 1????????? EASTERN KINGBIRD 3????????? WHITE-EYED VIREO 1????????? BLUE-HEADED VIREO 4????????? RED-EYED VIREO 10??????? BLUE JAY 10??????? AMERICAN CROW 2????????? FISH CROW 10??????? HORNED LARK 3????????? PURPLE MARTIN 14??????? TREE SWALLOW 60??????? BARN SWALLOW 35??????? CAROLINA CHICKADEE 20??????? TUFTED TITMOUSE 5????????? RED-BREASTED NUTHATCH 10??????? BROWN-HEADED NUTHATCH 5????????? CAROLINA WREN 1????????? MARSH WREN 7????????? BLUE-GRAY GNATCATCHER 1????????? VEERY 3????????? WOOD THRUSH 60??????? AMERICAN ROBIN 35??????? GRAY CATBIRD 2????????? BROWN THRASHER 16??????? EUROPEN STARLING 4????????? NORTHERN PARULA 1????????? YELLOW WARBLER 2????????? BLACK-THROATED BLUE WARBLER 29??????? YELLOW-RUMPED WARBLER 3????????? BLACK-THROATED GREEN WARBLER 2????????? BLACKBURNIAN WARBLER 12??????? PINE WARBLER 1????????? PRAIRIE WARBLER 2????????? BLACKPOLL WARBLER 5????????? BLACK AND WHITE WARBLER 2????????? AMERICAN REDSTART 7????????? OVENBIRD 51??????? COMMON YELLOWTHROAT 1????????? YELLOW-BREASTED CHAT 1????????? SCARLET TANAGER 20??????? EASTERN TOWHEE 4????????? CHIPPING SPARROW 4????????? FIELD SPARROW 16??????? SAVANNAH SPARROW 2????????? GRASSHOPPER SPARROW 2????????? SALTMARSH SHARP-TAILED SPARROW 20??????? SEASIDE SPARROW 1????????? SONG SPARROW 1????????? SWAMP SPARROW 3????????? WHITE-THROATED SPARROW 25??????? NORTHERN CARDINAL 2????????? ROSE-BREASTED GROSBEAK 2????????? BLUE GROSBEAK 75??????? RED-WINGED BLACKBIRD 4????????? EASTERN MEADOWLARK 15??????? COMMON GRACKLE 1????????? BOAT-TAILED GRACKLE 20??????? BROWN-HEADED COWBIRD 3????????? ORCHARD ORIOLE 3????????? BALTIMORE ORIOLE 2????????? HOUSE FINCH 17??????? AMERICAN GOLDFINCH 10??????? HOUSE SPARROW Chris Bennett Milford, DESubject: Wood Sandpiper still present at 5:00pm From: Ed Sigda <sigdae AT PRIMEHOOKBIRDING.COM> Date: Sat, 10 May 2008 18:32:56 -0400 The Wood Sandpiper was still present at 5:00pm when I stopped by before heading home for the evening after a long day of birding. Ed Sigda Milton, DE www.primehookbirding,comSubject: More Wood Sandpiper photos, plus 5/7/08 Big Day report From: Steve Collins <dcollins AT UFL.EDU> Date: Sat, 10 May 2008 14:35:51 -0400 If youre interested in seeing even more Wood Sandpiper photos I have posted some photos from Friday afternoon here, including an in-flight shot showing the white rump. http://www.flickr.com/photos/odephoto/archives/date-taken/2008/05/09/detail/ If a long Big Day narrative is not the kind of thing that interests you, then please stop reading now. Forrest Rowland invited me to do a Big Day on Wednesday (5/7/08) in my favorite birding destination: Delaware. I obviously could not refuse, so I took off work and headed to DE at 12:30am to meet up with Forrest at 2am. We birded from 2am to 8pm and got 199 species - tying the Delaware Big Day Record set in 1997. There were a few misses (ahem, Belted Kingfisher!!), but we lucked out and had a really great day birding. We started the day (night?) in Thousand Acre Marsh, where we quickly realized the night was likely to be a good night. Winds were 3-4 mph out of the southwest and listening conditions were good. We heard Canada Goose, Great Blue Heron, Virginia Rail and American Coot (our only coot of the day). At another location Sora and Common Moorhen sounded off within minutes of our arrival. One could say that Griers Pond was especially quiet. Actually it wasnt quiet at all, as the Swamp Sparrows and Marsh Wrens were singing up a storm and a Barred Owl called, but it was Least Bittern quiet. We spent at least 15 minutes here, cocking our ears in every conceivable angle in hopes of hearing the classic ku-ku-ku of the Least Bittern. After giving each side of the pond time, we were thinking about where else we could possibly get Least Bittern and were about to leave. Then we both heard it! Success! While driving south on Route 9, six inches of water on the road caused some excitement, as we barreled directly through it. It was definitely due to the tide, and we were in a low spot: why not try for King Rail? While sitting in the middle of the road, we both jumped out of the car and lo and behold, a King Rail sounded off. Serious luck. To say that the Bullfrogs and Green Frogs at Finnis Pool are loud is like saying that a diesel truck engine is loud: Loud may be an inadequate word. Luckily we were able to pick out a calling Eastern Screech-Owl, distant twittering of an American Woodcock, and flyover American Redstart and Blackpoll Warblers. Birds were on the move. Port Mahon was almost rail-less with the exception of Virginia. Clapper Rails were quiet. Weird. Seaside and Swamp Sparrows, Marsh Wrens and a distant Yellow-breasted Chat were singing. A flyby Black-crowned Night Heron let out a single kaw, and a Wood Thrush, Black-throated Blue, Blackburnian, and several Palm Warblers called while flying overhead. The promise of neotropical migrants in the morning was exhilarating. We were hoping for Black Rail at Pickering Beach, where Andy Ednie and I had heard them on Saturday night, but they may have moved on. We did pick up Tree Swallows flying around the towns lights, a flyover Swainsons Thrush (our only of the day) and another Yellow-breasted Chat. Milford Neck was our nightjar spot, and it did not disappoint. Chuck-wills-widows and then Whip-poor-wills were calling from several locations. American Woodcocks seemed to be everywhere twittering away while a few were peenting. The mosquitoes were voracious and kept us dancing around. Dawn was approaching and we headed toward the marsh, where even more mosquitoes greeted us. Boat-tailed Grackles were immediately apparent, and then Northern Bobwhite and Wild Turkey called from the woods edge. Yes! After a quick tally, I realized we had 62 species already by dawn. Not a bad night. Milford Neck was really birdy, and Im glad we picked this as our dawn-chorus spot. Nelsons Sharp-tailed Sparrow, Ruby-crowned Kinglet and Sedge Wren called from the short marsh, all three being our only birds of the day. The woods were alive with birdsong, and here we picked up Kentucky, Nashville, Yellow-throated, Prairie, and Black-and-White Warblers, plus Ovenbird and Northern Waterthrush. A certain vireo sounded interesting and Forrest suspected Philadelphia. It sang; we listened. It sang and we played the song for comparison: it was dead-on. Wow! By 6:15 we had 94 species, and we moved on to Mispillion Lighthouse. The idea was that we could get Saltmarsh Sharp-tailed Sparrow while they were still singing. The idea backfired. The marsh was filled with sparrows . . . Seaside Sparrows. There were likely hundreds singing from all areas around the marsh, which unfortunately muffled the sounds of any potential Saltmarsh Sparrows. The Seaside Sparrow spectacle was immediately overshadowed by the shorebird spectacle. Shorebirds moved in waves across nearly every exposed mud surface: Greater Yellowlegs, Willets, Semipalmated Plovers, Semipalmated and Least Sandpipers, Short-billed Dowitchers, Dunlin and a few Black-necked Stilts. While scoping from the DuPont nature center, we found Sanderling, Ruddy Turnstone, Red Knots, American Oystercatchers, and a White-rumped Sandpiper among the thousands of Dunlin. We couldnt pick out any Lesser-black Backed Gulls, and after spending too much time enjoying this scene, we needed to move. The grasslands in the vicinity of Hunting Quarter Road proved a wise morning destination: Grasshopper, Savannah and Vesper Sparrows, Eastern Meadowlark and Horned Larks were singing. No Bobolinks, but we couldnt complain about our luck so far. Redden State Forest held the targeted Red-headed Woodpeckers and Summer Tanagers, in addition to Worm-eating, Black-throated Green, Yellow-throated, Kentucky, Pine, and Black-and-White Warblers, Cedar Waxwings, and Hairy and Pileated Woodpecker. Two flyover Common Loons were a surprise. 131 species by 8:24am. We switched up the plan, and headed to Prime Hook instead of doing that in the afternoon. While changing the schedule could spell disaster, the morning Prime Hook run was excellent. We had Veery standing in the middle of the road at the entrance. I told Forrest to stop the car, I heard something similar to a Hooded Warbler. We waited, while only a Red-eyed Vireo sang. I started to doubt myself, and we were about to move on when it sang out, Wheet-o, Wheet-o, Wheet-ee-o. Forrest replied, Oh, so you mean the bird that sounds exactly like a Hooded Warbler! The boardwalk trail produced a few good birds, most notably a beautiful adult White-crowned Sparrow (thank you!), Blue-headed Vireo, Prothonotary, Chestnut-sided, Blackpoll and Magnolia Warblers. The Broadkill impoundment was in bad light, so we started IDing distant ducks mostly by shape: Gadwall, Mallard, Black Duck, Green-winged Teal, Northern Pintail, Red-breasted Merganser. These turned out to be some of the only waterfowl of the day, but where were the Blue-wings? While scoping shorebirds, I noticed an unusual shorebird in the far southeast corner of the southern impoundment with the Green-winged Teal. It looked similar in shape to a yellowlegs, but the bill wasnt right for either. I asked Forrest to take a look, and he quickly realized it was a Ruff. I took another look and the beige-y color, posture, and bill shape all were spot-on for Ruff (Reeve). Excellent! We actually didnt notice the Wood Sandpiper, nor did we know about it, though in hindsight, I cant eliminate the possibility that we were looking right at it as we drove by. We hoped for diving ducks in the bay. The bay was empty with the exception of Laughing Gulls, though we did hear a Song Sparrow singing, our first (and only?) of the day. We headed to Cape Henlopen with 155 species. No Yellow-crowned Night Heron at a brief stop in Lewes on the way, and no Bufflehead in the ponds near the entrance. Drat. Herring Point was mostly birdless, though after a few minutes we did luck out with Common, Least and Royal Tern flybys. The jetty below had three Spotted Sandpipers. I got a kick out of watching Forrest fight with the no-see-ums. We made a quick stop at the campground, though besides a Pine Warbler and some Robins, it was quiet. I guess Forrest forgot his Crossbill pheromone. At the nature center, the feeders were empty, so we walked the trail behind them. Quiet, though it was midday. I was thinking some Red-breasted Nuthatches might still be hanging around, since I had heard one in Baltimore Co the day before. After a few minutes both Brown-headed and a Red-breasted Nuthatch sounded off. Serious luck. At the Point we found a huge flock of Brant hugging the icebreaker, and we scoped Common, Forsters and Royal Terns near the point. We tried to turn one of the Royals into a Caspian, but it wasnt to be. Piping Plover was notably absent. We walked down to the bayside fence. Still no Piping Plover. We knew time was critical, but I knew we would be kicking ourselves if we left without the plover, so we hiked to the ocean side. Again, this turned out to be a great decision. We had a flyover Merlin, Red-throated Loon and flyby Black Scoters. While squinting into the heat haze for the hoped-for Piping Plover, Forrest noticed the 2nd-year Lesser Black-backed Gull at our feet. Then after a few minutes time, a Piping Plover came into view. We headed south to Indian River inlet with 170 species before noon. At Savages Ditch rd, we found our first Great Egret of the day, though no Little Blue or Tricolored Herons. The inlet proved to be full of boaters and was almost a wasted effort if it werent for two juvenile Great Cormorants swimming around the north jetty. No Bonapartes Gull and no Saltmarsh Sparrows or Tricolored Heron on the bay side. We stopped by New Road on the way north hoping for a bay duck of any kind, though we only had a breeding-plumaged Common Loon. Silver Lake had Mallards and a few Canada Geese and one female Ruddy Duck. It was starting to get difficult to add new birds. Fowler Beach did not produce the hoped-for Belted Kingfisher or any new ducks, though it did have a considerable number of Black-bellied Plovers, with at least 2 American Golden-plovers mixed in. The Great Horned Owl chicks on the platform are getting rather big. The north pond at Ted Harvey did not have Bonapartes Gull or Tricolored Heron, though it did have Pectoral Sandpiper. At Bombay Hook, we had a number of necessary targets and we got nearly all of them: Saltmarsh Sharp-tailed Sparrow, American Avocet, Ring-necked Pheasant, and Yellow-crowned Night Heron. This is when we heard about the Wood Sandpiper, but we both agreed we would rather finish the Big Day with the planned route. Woodland Beach had the Snow Geese and Greater-white Fronted Geese. Excellent. 182 species by 4:01pm. I was telling Forrest that I have had Bank Swallow at the first of two bridges over Appoquinink Creek and suspected they may breed somewhere in the area, so we stopped there. Cliff Swallows were readily evident, when a Bank Swallow flew high over us. 184. We headed back to Thousand Acre Marsh hoping for Peregrine Falcon, an attempt that proved unsuccessful when Forrest tried last year. We scanned the bridge over the canal from all angles without any birds. When we had nearly given up and were ready to leave, a Peregrine Falcon flew directly over our heads. We had very little time to spare, but we decided to risk a run to Dragon Run park for Mute Swans. Dragon Run was Mute Swanless, but we did have flyby Wood Ducks and then an adult Little Blue Heron flew high overhead. I couldnt believe our luck. We headed to White Clay Creek, lucked out with Cattle Egrets on the way, and had 188 species by 5:15pm. I dont think we could have had better luck at White Clay Creek; it seemed like someone was throwing all of our target birds at us. We got Louisiana Waterthrush, Yellow-throated Vireo, Northern Rough-winged Swallow, and White-breasted Nuthatch all of which we expected. The lucky birds were a flyover Sharp-shinned Hawk, an adult Coopers Hawk racing through the woods directly in front of us, and Warbling Vireo. At one point we thought we had Cerulean Warbler singing, and Forrest pointed out that the cadence was right. It was almost dead-on. Almost. I wasnt convinced, and we waited to get a look at the bird. It had a wing bar, but also had a yellow and orange throat: It was a Parula. I wonder if after years of unscrupulous birders taping for Cerulean Warbler, the local Parulas didnt pick up and try to imitate. While at Tweeds Mill Rd, I pondered, What else is left that we could possibly still get? How about Rose-breasted Grosbeak? A Rose-breasted Grosbeak responded by singing. How about Blue-winged Warbler? A few minutes later a Blue-winged Warbler was singing. It was almost creepy. The last two birds of the day were an almost unexpected Willow Flycatcher, and at least two very unexpected Gray-cheeked Thrushes. 199 species by 7:15pm. While walking back towards the car, the only thing left was Belted Kingfisher. We waited until sunset at 8pm, though the Kingfisher never obliged. This photo was taken at 8pm in White Clay Creek when we called it quits. http://www.flickr.com/photos/odephoto/2476484919/ Below is our bird list for the day and some summary totals: 25 Shorebird sp. Vireo, Nuthatch, and Swallow sweep. 26 Warbler sp. 12 Sparrow sp. only 14 Waterfowl sp. It's hard to find waterfowl in May - this probably hurt us the most. Red-throated Loon Common Loon Double-crested Cormorant Great Cormorant Least Bittern Great Blue Heron Great Egret Snowy Egret Little Blue Heron Cattle Egret Green Heron Black-crowned Night-Heron Yellow-crowned Night-Heron Glossy Ibis Black Vulture Turkey Vulture Greater White-fronted Goose Snow Goose Canada Goose Brant Wood Duck Gadwall American Black Duck Mallard Northern Shoveler Northern Pintail Green-winged Teal Black Scoter Red-breasted Merganser Ruddy Duck Osprey Bald Eagle Northern Harrier Sharp-shinned Hawk Cooper's Hawk Red-tailed Hawk American Kestrel Merlin Peregrine Falcon Ring-necked Pheasant Wild Turkey Northern Bobwhite Clapper Rail King Rail Virginia Rail Sora Common Moorhen American Coot Black-bellied Plover American Golden-Plover Semipalmated Plover Piping Plover Killdeer American Oystercatcher Black-necked Stilt American Avocet Greater Yellowlegs Lesser Yellowlegs Solitary Sandpiper Willet Spotted Sandpiper Ruddy Turnstone Red Knot Sanderling Semipalmated Sandpiper Least Sandpiper White-rumped Sandpiper Pectoral Sandpiper Dunlin Ruff Short-billed Dowitcher Common Snipe American Woodcock Laughing Gull Ring-billed Gull Herring Gull Lesser Black-backed Gull Great Black-backed Gull Royal Tern Common Tern Forster's Tern Least Tern Black Skimmer Rock Dove Mourning Dove Yellow-billed Cuckoo Barn Owl Eastern Screech-Owl Great Horned Owl Barred Owl Chuck-will's-widow Whip-poor-will Chimney Swift Ruby-throated Hummingbird Red-headed Woodpecker Red-bellied Woodpecker Downy Woodpecker Hairy Woodpecker Northern Flicker Pileated Woodpecker Eastern Wood-Pewee Acadian Flycatcher Willow Flycatcher Eastern Phoebe Great Crested Flycatcher Eastern Kingbird White-eyed Vireo Yellow-throated Vireo Blue-headed Vireo Warbling Vireo Philadelphia Vireo Red-eyed Vireo Blue Jay American Crow Fish Crow Horned Lark Purple Martin Tree Swallow Northern Rough-winged Swallow Bank Swallow Cliff Swallow Barn Swallow Carolina Chickadee Tufted Titmouse Red-breasted Nuthatch White-breasted Nuthatch Brown-headed Nuthatch Carolina Wren House Wren Sedge Wren Marsh Wren Ruby-crowned Kinglet Blue-gray Gnatcatcher Eastern Bluebird Veery Gray-cheeked Thrush Swainson's Thrush Wood Thrush American Robin Gray Catbird Northern Mockingbird Brown Thrasher European Starling Cedar Waxwing Blue-winged Warbler Nashville Warbler Northern Parula Yellow Warbler Chestnut-sided Warbler Magnolia Warbler Black-throated Blue Warbler Yellow-rumped Warbler Black-throated Green Warbler Blackburnian Warbler Yellow-throated Warbler Pine Warbler Prairie Warbler Palm Warbler Blackpoll Warbler Black-and-white Warbler American Redstart Prothonotary Warbler Worm-eating Warbler Ovenbird Northern Waterthrush Louisiana Waterthrush Kentucky Warbler Common Yellowthroat Hooded Warbler Yellow-breasted Chat Summer Tanager Scarlet Tanager Eastern Towhee Chipping Sparrow Field Sparrow Vesper Sparrow Savannah Sparrow Grasshopper Sparrow Nelson's Sharp-tailed Sparrow Saltmarsh Sharp-tailed Sparrow Seaside Sparrow Song Sparrow Swamp Sparrow White-throated Sparrow White-crowned Sparrow Northern Cardinal Rose-breasted Grosbeak Blue Grosbeak Indigo Bunting Red-winged Blackbird Eastern Meadowlark Common Grackle Boat-tailed Grackle Brown-headed Cowbird Orchard Oriole Baltimore Oriole House Finch American Goldfinch House Sparrow Cheers, Steve Collins Towson, MDSubject: Wood Sandpiper From: Sharon Lynn <slynn001 AT COMCAST.NET> Date: Sat, 10 May 2008 10:31:46 -0400 The Wood Sandpiper has been present all morning. Several birders saw it near the white pole on the left side of Broadkill Beach RD(North side). Sharon Lynn Rehoboth BeachSubject: Wood Sandpiper present at 5:30 am (Saturday) From: Ed Sigda <sigdae AT PRIMEHOOKBIRDING.COM> Date: Sat, 10 May 2008 06:19:03 -0400 Wood Sandpiper located on North side, several birders already present. Ed Sigda Milton, DE www.primehookbirding.comSubject: Wood Sandpiper present until 6:30 pm From: Ed Sigda <sigdae AT PRIMEHOOKBIRDING.COM> Date: Fri, 9 May 2008 21:00:08 -0400 The Wood Sandpiper was present until 6:30 pm this evening when it flew off to parts unknown. Ed Sigda Milton, DE www.primehookbirding.comSubject: Wood Sandpiper photos on DOSBirds.org From: Homsey <homsey AT COMCAST.NET> Date: Fri, 9 May 2008 20:57:28 -0400 If anyone wants to see photos of the Wood Sandpiper, there are several on the DOS website, in the photogallery (www.DOSBirds.org/photogallery). Chris Bennett and Kirsten and Hal Snyder have kindly uploaded some nice shots. -Andrew Homsey Kennett SquareSubject: Wood Sandpiper present Fri 10:30 AM - 2:30 PM From: Rick Cheicante <rickcheicante AT CS.COM> Date: Fri, 9 May 2008 19:55:01 -0400 The Wood Sandpiper showed well, and rewarded many this Fri. from 10:30 AM - 2:30 PM. It worked the south impoundment along the shore from the west end to about three-fourths the distance to the east end. The bird also made two flights to the north impoundment landing and feeding in the exposed muddy areas at the west end. All near the road and very viewable. At 10:30, the Wood Sandpiper appeared mainly with a Lesser Yellowlegs, eventually joining numerous Least and Spotted (particularily in the west end). At 11:30 AM, I was the only person there as heavy rains hit the area. After the rains (and deluges)(...and drying of optics), the number of shorebirds increased dramatically (Greater Yellowlegs, Dunlin, Semipalmated Plover, dowitchers, etc...and Solitary Sandpiper). Finding the bird during brief lapses became funner with the extra shorebirds about. By noon, folks started arriving again and the Wood Sandpiper was very cooperative staying along the shore of the south impoundment. The bird seemed less skiddish than earlier, providing close-ups, and some short flights showing the white rump. Does quite a bit of Spotted Sandpiper-like "tail- bobbing" too. The bill and lack of extension in the primaries are quite evident. In today's poor to OK light, the legs appeared a dullish green, particularly when standing next to either of the yellowlegs. To incoming birders, please heed Ed's advice regarding the roadway. Park well off the road, and definitely don't stand or form groups in the road. Nice chatting with you Ed S.- good luck to all this weekend! Rick Cheicante Harford County Bel Air, MDSubject: Waterthrush on a wet day From: Derek Stoner <derek AT DELAWARENATURESOCIETY.ORG> Date: Fri, 9 May 2008 16:56:55 -0400 Today at the Ashland Nature Center, two male Northern Waterthrush sang throughout the day from the wet woods alongside the marsh. We watched these birds chase each other and establish temporary territory boundaries, perhaps defending the best concentrations of tasty water-logged caterpillars. A Louisiana Waterthrush calling from along the Red Clay Creek allowed for a nice comparison of the two Waterthrush vocalizations. A pair of Ruby-throated Hummingbirds actively fed at the nectar feeders, frequently puffing up and shaking off their rain-soaked feathers. The male performed the frenetic U-shaped courtship flight above the perched female, with his bright red gorget flashing in the otherwise gloomy low light. Good birding, Derek Stoner Hockessin, DESubject: Re: Wood Sanpiper From: ksnyder <sny AT bee.net> Date: Fri, 9 May 2008 15:10:25 -0400 We headed down to Prime Hook after work on Thursday and got to see the Wood Sandpiper. While the light was fading and the bird was apparently more distant than it had been during the week, we were thrilled to see it. We have just posted some (sorry, rather poor) pictures to DOS (pics may be up this evening) but hopefully every view is helpful, especially for those who can't make it to Prime Hook. As for Chris Starling's question about east coast records, "Shorebirds" by Hayman, Marchant, Prater says it was see in New York State October,1907 and the Islands of Bermuda and Barbados October, 1955. What a treat for us! It also says, JFYI, "Often abundant in Sub-Saharan Africa and India." Please remember good birding ethics in the field so that others can enjoy our Delaware birds! All the best, K SnyderSubject: Wood Sandpiper present at 1:30 - please be safe From: Ed Sigda <sigdae AT PRIMEHOOKBIRDING.COM> Date: Fri, 9 May 2008 13:52:37 -0400 The Wood Sandpiper was still present at 1:30 today in the same general area as the past few days. Please note that due to the rain the amount of habitat on the south side has decreased, but it has increased on the north side so it might expand it's range. Please be safe while observing the bird. I heard of a near miss this morning from a local resident when a birder ran across the road "for his bird book" without looking first. Needless to say the locals are quite interested in whats going on. While they are used to lots of stopping cars during the winter months with the Snow Geese, they can't necessarily see what the event is this time. Please take the time to let any of the locals know what's going on. The ones that I have talked to so far seemed to like knowing that they have a celebrity in town. Let's keep that positive attitude going. Ed Sigda Milton, DE www.primehookbirding.comSubject: Wood Sanpiper From: Chris Starling <beltedkingfisherchris AT HOTMAIL.COM> Date: Fri, 9 May 2008 12:53:42 -0400 The Broadkill Beach Wood Sandpiper was being seen in the south impoundment at the west end when I left the bird around 1030AM. There were a lot of people there when I left. It seemed like the majority of them had come over on the ferry from Cape May (this is world series weekend). I met a lady from Minnasota and saw license plates from all over the east coast! Does anyone know if there are other east coasts records of this species? -Chris Starling North East, MD _________________________________________________________________ Windows Live SkyDrive lets you share files with faraway friends. http://www.windowslive.com/skydrive/overview.html?ocid=TXT_TAGLM_WL_Refresh_skydrive_052008Subject: RBA: Birdline Delaware, May 9th, 2008 From: Andy Ednie <ednieap AT VERIZON.NET> Date: Fri, 9 May 2008 10:46:56 -0400 RBA
* Delaware
* Statewide
* May 9, 2008
* DEST0805.09
*Birds mentioned
Greater White-fronted Goose
Brant
Black Scoter
Surf Scoter
Bufflehead
Red-breasted Merganser
Common Loon
American Bittern
Least Bittern
Little Blue Heron
Green Heron
Yellow-crowned Night Heron
Swallow-tailed Kite
Northern Harrier
Sharp-shinned Hawk
Cooper's Hawk
Merlin
Yellow Rail
Black Rail
King Rail
Clapper Rail
Virginia Rail
Sora
Common Moorhen
American Golden Plover
Semipalmated Plover
Piping Plover
American Oystercatcher
Black-necked Stilt
American Avocet
Wood Sandpiper
Red Knot
Pectoral Sandpiper
Ruff
Bonaparte's Gull
Black Tern
Black Skimmer
Yellow-billed Cuckoo
Black-billed Cuckoo
Chucks-will-widow
Common Nighthawk
Barred Owl
Belted Kingfisher
Red-headed Woodpecker
Willow Flycatcher
Blue-headed Vireo
Cliff Swallow
Red-breasted Nuthatch
Brown-headed Nuthatch
White-breasted Nuthatch
Ruby-crowned Kinglet
Sedge Wren
Veery
Swainson's Thrush
Gray-cheeked Thrush
Nashville Warbler
Cape May Warbler
Chestnut-sided Warbler
Magnolia Warbler
Black-throated Green Warbler
Black-throated Blue Warbler
Blackburnian Warbler
Bay-breasted Warbler
Yellow-throated Warbler
Pine Warbler
Palm Warbler
Prothonotary Warbler
Black and White Warbler
Worm-eating Warbler
Northern Waterthrush
Kentucky Warbler
Wilson's Warbler
Hooded Warbler
Yellow-breasted Chat
Summer Tanager
Blue Grosbeak
Rose-breasted Grosbeak
Savannah Sparrow
White-crowned Sparrow
Dark-eyed Junco
Bobolink
Hotline: Birdline Delaware
Date: May 9, 2008
Number: 302/658-2747
To Report: Andy Ednie 302-792-9591 (VOICE)
Compiler: Andy Ednie (ednieap AT verizon.net)
Coverage: Delaware, Delmarva Peninsula, nearby Delaware Valley, Southern
New Jersey, Maryland
Transcriber: Andy Ednie (ednieap AT verizon.net)
For, Friday, May 9th this is Birdline Delaware, from the Delaware Museum of
Natural History in Greenville. The unofficial Delaware State Year List now
stands at 285 species, up 25 birds from last week. ROSE-BREASTED GROSBEAKS
were reported coming to feeders throughout the state. Two species still
missing are CANADA WARBLER and BANK SWALLOW.
A new bird to the Delaware State List was a WOOD SANDPIPER found at the
impoundments at Broadkill Beach, part of Prime Hook NWR . Found by Sharon
Lynn of Rehoboth Beach, that bird was seen for the last three days mostly on
the south side by the second pullout. It has also been seen on the north
side. This is the first East Coast record since the Rye, New York bird found
by Tom Burke on October 31, 1990. Related to our Yellowlegs, in flight this
Eurasian wader flies like a SPOTTED SANDPIPER. A RUFF was also reported at
Broadkill Beach on Wednesday morning.
To get to the Broadkill Beach impoundments to find the WOOD SANDPIPER, turn
east at the light for the Rt 16 and Delaware Rt 1 intersection, east of
Milton. The turn is marked by a sign for the Prime Hook NWR. From the turn
to the refuge headquarters, go straight down the Broadkill Beach Road
another 2.2 miles. Drive to the sharp left turn with the dirt road and
yellow gate at Island Farms. Check the impoundments and marsh east of this
sharp turn. Please sign in at the log book at the second pullout on the
south side of the road.. Parking may be an issue; you may want to park at
the gate to Island Farms and walk east along the edge of the impoundments.
YELLOW and BLACK RAIL was also reported along the Broadkill Beach Road this
week. Another BLACK RAIL was calling last Saturday morning at 1:30 am along
the Pickering Beach Road. That bird was looked for again on Wednesday
without success. VIRGINIA and CLAPPER RAIL were heard at Port Mahon, along
with SEDGE WREN.
There were two SWALLOW-TAILED KITES reported in the state this week. One was
seen over Trap Pond State Park last weekend. The second was at the Cape
Henlopen Hawk Watch on Tuesday. MERLIN, NORTHERN HARRIER, SHARP-SHINNED and
COOPER'S HAWK were also reported this week.
RED-HEADED WOODPECKER was reported at Redden State Forest, along State
Forest Road 1.3 miles south of Wilson Hill Road, just north of Georgetown.
There was no report of RED-HEADED WOODPECKER along Deep Branch Road, but
SUMMER TANAGER was seen there.
A good fallout of warblers and other passerines was reported at Prime Hook
this week. 18 species of warbler on Saturday, including: NASHVILLE,
MAGNOLIA, BLACKPOLL and NORTHERN WATERTHRUSH. This week, BLACK-BILLED CUCKOO
was seen along the Boardwalk Trail. Other birds reported included
BLACKBURNIAN and WILSON'S WARBLER, and WHITE-CROWNED SPARROW.
BLACK-BILLED CUCKOO was also seen in Milford this week, along with CAPE MAY,
BLACKBURNIAN, and BLACKPOLL WARBLER. A WHITE-BREASTED NUTHATCH was also
reported, a bird rare in Delaware below the piedmont. Abbott's Mill had
HOODED and PROTHONOTARY WARBLER, BARRED OWL and BUFFLEHEAD. Johnson Branch
had BLUE-HEADED VIREO, MAGNOLIA WARBLER and RED-BREASTED NUTHATCH.
17 species of warbler were found along Big Stone Beach Road on Saturday,
including BAY-BREASTED, BLACK-THROATED BLUE, BLACK-THROATED GREEN,
WORM-EATING, MAGNOLIA, CHESTNUT-SIDED, and YELLOW-BREASTED CHAT.
RUBY-CROWNED KINGLET and BROWN-HEADED NUTHATCH was also reported.
DuPont Nature Center at the Mispillion Inlet had 300 RED KNOTS, AMERICAN
OYSTERCATCHER, and BLACK-NECKED STILT. TRICOLORED HERON, SEASIDE and SALT
MARSH SHARP-TAILED SPARROW were found along Lighthouse Road.
PIPING PLOVER was also reported at Cape Henlopen State Park this week.
Goatsuckers there included CHUCKS-WILL-WIDOW and COMMON NIGHTHAWK. DUCKS off
the point included; SURF and BLACK SCOTER, RED-BREASTED MERGANSER, and
BRANT. AMERICAN BITTERN was found at Indian River Inlet.
RED KNOTS continue to be seen at Bombay Hook along with AMERICAN GOLDEN
PLOVER, SEMIPALMATED PLOVER, AMERICAN AVOCET, BLACK-NECKED STILT, and
PECTORAL SANDPIPER. YELLOW-CROWNED NIGHT HERON continues to be seen at Bear
Swamp, SAVANNAH SPARROW was seen along the dike at Raymond Pool, and
PROTHONOTARY WARBLER was seen at Finis Pool.
The GREATER WHITE-FRONTED GOOSE was again seen this week behind Tony
Florio's at Woodland Beach WMA. YELLOW-THROATED and PINE WARBLERS were found
along the Pickering Beach Road at the powerline cut through the pine trees.
There have been no further reports of the WHITE-WINGED TERN or LITTLE GULL
at the Logan Tract this week. BONAPARTE'S GULL, BLACK TERN and BLACK SKIMMER
were seen at the north pond this weekend. AMERICAN AVOCET was reported on
the south side of the Logan Tract. BELTED KINGFISHER was also seen here on
Sunday, sorry Forrest I had to throw that in!
CERULEAN WARBLER was reported this week at White Clay Creek State Park. Two
were singing along Creek Road, south of Hopkin's Bridge, before the little
wooden bridge along Creek Road. WILSON'S MAGNOLIA, CHESTNUT-SIDED,
BLACK-THROATED BLUE and GREEN, were also reported. WILLOW FLYCATCHER, VEERY,
SWAINSON'S and GRAY-CHEEKED THRUSH were reported along the creek on
Wednesday.
Brandywine Creek State Park had an impressive 23 species of warbler on
Sunday. Reports included NASHVILLE, MAGNOLIA, CHESTNUT-SIDED, BLACK-THROATED
BLUE, and GREEN, BLACKPOLL, PALM, WORM-EATING, HOODED, PROTHONOTARY,
YELLOW-THROATED and NORTHERN WATERTHRUSH. 5 species of VIREO were also
found. YELLOW-BILLED CUCKOO was calling in the park this week, and a
DARK-EYED JUNCO was at the Nature Center. The later bird is very rare in
Delaware in May.
7 flyover COMMON LOONS were seen at Ashland Nature center on Thursday.
PROTHONOTARY WARBLER was seen along Red Clay Creek south of the nature
center. BLUE and ROSE-BREASTED GROSBEAKS were also reported.
Birds reported at Lums Pond State Park included BLACK-THROATED BLUE,
BLACK-AND-WHITE, and KENTUCKY WARBLER, ROSE-BREASTED GROSBEAK, plus LITTLE
BLUE, and GREEN HERON
BOBOLINKS were found at the Huguenot House off Rt 9 south of Odessa. CLIFF
SWALLOWS continue to be seen at the Rt 9 Bridge. LEAST BITTERN COMMON
MOORHEN, SORA, KING and VIRGINIA RAIL were all reported at Thousand Acre
Marsh this week.
And now for this week's special feature from 1450 WILM News Radio. You can
hear Birdline Delaware on your radio on Wednesday at 5:55 and 8:55 am and
again at 6:55 pm. Here now is this week's feature:
As April warms into May, the spring migration reaches its peak. Spring
warblers are arriving daily. Wave upon wave of migrate birds are arriving,
after flying all night. Birds like the PRAIRIE WARBLER, (SFx) whose song is
an ascending trill in perfect scales, are back in Delaware. To understand
where these birds come from and when to look for them is to understand
migration and weather patterns.
Neotropical migrants nest in the arboreal forests of North America and
winter in the neotropics. There are three different strategies for their
spring migration: Trans-Caribbean migrants, like the BLACK-THROATED BLUE
WARBLER journey straight up the East Coast via the Florida peninsula after
wintering in the Caribbean Islands. Others, like the NASHVILLE WARBLER
circum-navigate the Gulf of Mexico from Central America. The most dangerous
route is the Trans-gulf migration. From the Yucatan Peninsula, birds like
the BAY-BREASTED WARBLER, flying non-stop, 500 miles to the Gulf Coast,
arriving noontime at places like High Island, Texas or the Dry Tortugas
Spring migration weather patterns are the exact opposite of those
experienced in the fall. In the fall, watch for migrants after a cold front,
as the northwest wind pushes birds eastward. Conversely, a southwest wind
with an approaching cold front is better in the spring. A warm front that
forms to the north, creates a cloud barrier that causes the birds to drop,
creating a wave of migration.
Doppler radar has demonstrated the decline of neotropical migrants. It also
clues us in to when the next wave will hit. Birders have been accused of
taping the Weather Channel to document migration.
I've been listening to a MAGNOLIA WARBLER singing outside my window here in
Claymont while typing this report. Special thanks to the Sharon Lynn, Bill
Fintel, Steve Collins and Derek Stoner for their reports. To report
sightings or add birds to this year's state year list call me at
302-792-9591 or email to ednieap AT verizon.net. Thanks for calling, until next
time good birding.
-end transcript.
Subject: Wood Sandpiper - Yes - 9:00 AM FridayFrom: ROHRBAF AT AOL.COM Date: Fri, 9 May 2008 09:00:08 EDT Bruce Peterjohn called and reported that the Wood Sandpiper is present and feeding on the north side of the road at 9:00 AM in front of the white pole across from the pull offs on Broadkill Beach Road. Frank Rohrbacher Wilmington, Delaware **************Wondering what's for Dinner Tonight? Get new twists on family favorites at AOL Food. (http://food.aol.com/dinner-tonight?NCID=aolfod00030000000001)Subject: Re: directions to Broadkill Beach Rd.? From: Ed Sigda <sigdae AT PRIMEHOOKBIRDING.COM> Date: Fri, 9 May 2008 00:27:15 -0400 Please check out the following link for directions to Prime Hook: http://www.primehookbirding.com/directions.htm. Broadkill Road is Route 16. The location of the bird is 2.2 miles past the entrance road to the refuge headquarters. Ed Sigda Milton, DE www.primehookbirding.com Scott Baron wrote: > Hi, > > Can someone please provide directions to the Wood Sandpiper area? I'm not familiar w/ the Broadkill Beach area. > > Thanks very much, > > Scott Baron > Fairfax, Va. > > > ____________________________________________________________________________________ > Be a better friend, newshound, and > know-it-all with Yahoo! Mobile. Try it now. http://mobile.yahoo.com/;_ylt=Ahu06i62sR8HDtDypao8Wcj9tAcJ > >Subject: directions to Broadkill Beach Rd.? From: Scott Baron <brnpelican AT yahoo.com> Date: Thu, 8 May 2008 20:18:43 -0700 Hi, Can someone please provide directions to the Wood Sandpiper area? I'm not familiar w/ the Broadkill Beach area. Thanks very much, Scott Baron Fairfax, Va. ____________________________________________________________________________________ Be a better friend, newshound, and know-it-all with Yahoo! Mobile. Try it now. http://mobile.yahoo.com/;_ylt=Ahu06i62sR8HDtDypao8Wcj9tAcJSubject: Prime Hook From: Lin Just <crazy4wildbirds AT YAHOO.COM> Date: Thu, 8 May 2008 21:31:56 -0400 My husband Jim and I enjoyed the afternoon of birding at Prime Hook, especially the famous WOOD SANDPIPER. Thanks to Derek Stoner and friends, we were able to obtain great looks at this bird. Thanks again Derek! After Derek's group departed, I was determined to see the bird in flight with his white rump pattern. He would make short flights but I would always seem to miss it when he did. After Jim decided to look at the sign up book to see if he recognized any names, the bird did take to flight, flew across the road and right in front of me! It was all it took for me to contain myself from shreaking to my husband but I kept quiet since I didn't want to scare the bird! What a thrilling experience! We left the bird foraging on the side of the road between both parking areas. After basking in this excitement, we decided to bird the headquarters area. We walked the boardwalk trail seeing BLUE GROSBEAK as a FOY bird. We then walked the Blue Goose Trail, seeing BLACK-BILLED CUCKOO, NORTHERN WATERTHRUSH, COMMON YELLOWTHROAT and heard BLACK-THROATED BLUE WARBLER. Good birding! Lin Just crazy4wildbirds AT yahoo.com Colora, MdSubject: Wood Sandpiper still present at last light From: Ed Sigda <sigdae AT PRIMEHOOKBIRDING.COM> Date: Thu, 8 May 2008 21:24:01 -0400 The Wood Sandpiper was still present along the north side of Broadkill Road at last light (8:30pm). Unlike last night when the bird stopped feeding around 7:30, tonight it continued to feed right up to the point when the light faded. The bird was feeding in a small area of water just in front of the north side pull out. Ed Sigda Milton, DE www.primehookbirding.comSubject: Wood Sandpiper Seen at 5:20 pm today From: Marcy Stutzman <marciastutzman AT NETSCAPE.NET> Date: Thu, 8 May 2008 21:06:27 -0400 Jay Sheppard refound the Wood Sandpiper today at 5:20 p.m. It was very cooperative offering long looks. Several birders got the opportunity to see the bird. From the sign-in book, look across the road and slightly to the left. See the big white pole sticking up near the road. The sandpiper was in the marshy area in front of and to the right of the white pole. Marcy Stutzman Russett, MD marciastutzman AT netscape.netSubject: Big Day list - 5/8 From: Forrest Rowland <rowbird2005 AT YAHOO.COM> Date: Thu, 8 May 2008 19:52:39 -0500 Hello all,
Here's the list from the Big Day Steve Collins and I conducted yesterday. I've
highlighted some of the "Good" birds
Red-throated Loon
Common Loon
Double-crested Cormorant
Great Cormorant
Least Bittern
Great Blue Heron
Great Egret
Snowy Egret
Little Blue Heron
Cattle Egret
Green Heron
Black-crowned Night-Heron
Yellow-crowned Night-Heron
Glossy Ibis
Black Vulture
Turkey Vulture
Greater White-fronted Goose
Snow Goose
Canada Goose
Brant
Wood Duck
Gadwall
American Black Duck
Mallard
Northern Shoveler
Northern Pintail
Green-winged Teal
Black Scoter
Red-breasted Merganser
Ruddy Duck
Osprey
Bald Eagle
Northern Harrier
Sharp-shinned Hawk
Cooper's Hawk
Red-tailed Hawk
American Kestrel
Merlin
Peregrine Falcon
Ring-necked Pheasant
Wild Turkey
Northern Bobwhite
Clapper Rail
King Rail
Virginia Rail
Sora
Common Moorhen
American Coot
Black-bellied Plover
American Golden-Plover
Semipalmated Plover
Piping Plover
Killdeer
American Oystercatcher
Black-necked Stilt
American Avocet
Greater Yellowlegs
Lesser Yellowlegs
Solitary Sandpiper
Willet
Spotted Sandpiper
Ruddy Turnstone
Red Knot
Sanderling
Semipalmated Sandpiper
Least Sandpiper
White-rumped Sandpiper
Pectoral Sandpiper
Dunlin
Ruff
Short-billed Dowitcher
Common Snipe
American Woodcock
Laughing Gull
Ring-billed Gull
Herring Gull
Lesser Black-backed Gull
Great Black-backed Gull
Royal Tern
Common Tern
Forster's Tern
Least Tern
Black Skimmer
Rock Dove
Mourning Dove
Yellow-billed Cuckoo
Barn Owl
Eastern Screech-Owl
Great Horned Owl
Barred Owl
Chuck-will's-widow
Whip-poor-will
Chimney Swift
Ruby-throated Hummingbird
Red-headed Woodpecker
Red-bellied Woodpecker
Downy Woodpecker
Hairy Woodpecker
Northern Flicker
Pileated Woodpecker
Eastern Wood-Pewee
Acadian Flycatcher
Willow Flycatcher
Eastern Phoebe
Great Crested Flycatcher
Eastern Kingbird
White-eyed Vireo
Yellow-throated Vireo
Blue-headed Vireo
Warbling Vireo
Philadelphia Vireo
Red-eyed Vireo
Blue Jay
American Crow
Fish Crow
Horned Lark
Purple Martin
Tree Swallow
Northern Rough-winged Swallow
Bank Swallow
Cliff Swallow
Barn Swallow
Carolina Chickadee
Tufted Titmouse
Red-breasted Nuthatch
White-breasted Nuthatch
Brown-headed Nuthatch
Carolina Wren
House Wren
Sedge Wren
Marsh Wren
Ruby-crowned Kinglet
Blue-gray Gnatcatcher
Eastern Bluebird
Veery
Gray-cheeked Thrush
Swainson's Thrush
Wood Thrush
American Robin
Gray Catbird
Northern Mockingbird
Brown Thrasher
European Starling
Cedar Waxwing
Blue-winged Warbler
Nashville Warbler
Northern Parula
Yellow Warbler
Chestnut-sided Warbler
Magnolia Warbler
Black-throated Blue Warbler
Yellow-rumped Warbler
Black-throated Green Warbler
Blackburnian Warbler
Yellow-throated Warbler
Pine Warbler
Prairie Warbler
Palm Warbler
Blackpoll Warbler
Black-and-white Warbler
American Redstart
Prothonotary Warbler
Worm-eating Warbler
Ovenbird
Northern Waterthrush
Louisiana Waterthrush
Kentucky Warbler
Common Yellowthroat
Hooded Warbler
Yellow-breasted Chat
Summer Tanager
Scarlet Tanager
Eastern Towhee
Chipping Sparrow
Field Sparrow
Vesper Sparrow
Savannah Sparrow
Grasshopper Sparrow
Nelson's Sharp-tailed Sparrow
Saltmarsh Sharp-tailed Sparrow
Seaside Sparrow
Song Sparrow
Swamp Sparrow
White-throated Sparrow
White-crowned Sparrow
Northern Cardinal
Rose-breasted Grosbeak
Blue Grosbeak
Indigo Bunting
Red-winged Blackbird
Eastern Meadowlark
Common Grackle
Boat-tailed Grackle
Brown-headed Cowbird
Orchard Oriole
Baltimore Oriole
House Finch
American Goldfinch
House Sparrow
---------------------------------
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Subject: ALERT - DOS Bird-A-Thon Honorary Birdwalk at Mt. Cuba 5/9From: Bill Stewart <hcf2 AT EARTHLINK.NET> Date: Thu, 8 May 2008 20:28:45 -0400 To DOS Honorary Members, Fellows and Officers, Due to the potential of some nasty morning weather, I want to send out a few guidelines. If we are experiencing drenching downpours and/or thunderstorms, the walk will be cancelled. If we are experiencing showers and birdable weather, we will go for it. Either way, I will be at Mt. Cuba by 8:00 to assess the situation and make a determination and greet participants. If you would like to call and get an up to the minute status, please feel free to call me at 610 864 0370. Let's hope the weathermen are wrong.........again. Bill StewartSubject: Wood Sandpiper and Yellow Rail From: Jay K <azure.jay AT earthlink.net> Date: Thu, 8 May 2008 17:20:35 -0400 Hello DE-Birders, I heard about the Wood Sandpiper when most others did last evening, and was immediately dismayed realizing I couldn't do anything about it. I had a busy day scheduled in the office the next day (in Washington DC) and have plans to be out of town for the weekend. What's a NUT JOB birder to do? Well, it's to hop in the car at 2 AM after 2 hours of sleep and drive to Prime Hook to see the bird at first light. That's exactly what I did, and got into the office at a reasonable time and handled it all! I arrived at the refuge at just about 4:30 AM, and headed right for Broadkill Beach Rd. I was driving slowly with the windows down listening for night critters and had MARSH WREN, WILSON'S SNIPE, and a couple of others. As I drove farther, I heard the "song" of the BLACK RAIL so immediately found a small pulloff to listen for it again. This pulloff is actually just before the bridge that is just before the left-hand bend in the road near the area where the Sandpiper is being seen. This informal pulloff is marked with a "P" sign and is on the right as you head east. I sat here for perhaps 30 minutes overall (sunrise was still far off), and after about 15 minutes, I began to hear some odd, quiet sounds coming from the grasses quite close to the road that I did not recognize. After several minutes of this, the distinctive tic-tic tic-tic-tic of the YELLOW RAIL fired off a couple of phrases, confirming the identity of the creature making those unusual sounds. After this, ! it repeated the tics once and went back to the other sounds. Amazing! At this point the sky was starting to turn that deep blue-purple color, so I headed for the second pulloff after the bend. Here I sat in silence for a long while in my car until I could start to make out some shorebird shapes outside my window. At one point after it got lighter, I could clearly see that the two birds I was looking at were a LESSER YELLOWLEGS and a WOOD SANDPIPER. The two standing side-by-side made it remarkably easy to differentiate the Wood SP from the Lesser. After a while, two birders from NJ arrived (Frank and Frank - did not get their last name) and we immediately found the bird, this time it was alone. It was interesting how seeing the bird alone made it seem like a tougher ID. I squinted to make sure it was the bird but the thing that stands out is its foraging behavior as compared to a Yellowlegs, along with its supercilium and other features. After just a couple of minutes, the bird flew off, giving its high-pitched call and we could not locate it again before I had to depart back to DC. A truly memorable and fantastic trip, perhaps my last before I move away at the end of the month. I will certainly miss my regular visits to Delaware. Take Care, Jay Keller, Arlington, VA |