Week Ending November 30, 2014

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Thanksgiving week has arrived! After working a 6-day week this past week, and only getting out for about an hour to Back Bay on Sunday, this week is getting here just in time. On Monday, we in Southeastern Virginia were treated to the first ever recorded sighting of a Crested Caracara, which was spotted Sunday by Julie Coari & Karen Roberts in Virginia Beach near the intersection of Blackwater Road & Hungarian Road. Over the next couple of days many individuals went out and observed the bird. By Thanksgiving Day though, it had left the area, and hasn't bee reported again since. While seeking out the Caracara, Keith Roberts also located what might be either a Couch's or Tropical Kingbird, but it was also unable to be re-found. I did not get the chance to see either bird, being that I had a full time job and this time of year, the sun is pretty much down on my way to and from that job, so it really kills any weekday birding for me. On Wednesday evening, Ruth & I traveled down to Charleston, South Carolina to visit her sister, nephew and visiting mother for the holiday weekend. The drive took about 7.5 hours, and we arrived around 11 PM. I went pretty much straight to bed, then got up at 6 on Thursday morning to get out hiking. We had made this same trip last year for the first time so I had at least an inkling of where I wanted to get out hiking. My first stop was to the I'on Swamp Trail, part of nearby Francis Marion National Forest, and a short 2 mile or so loop trail. I quickly realized while walking this trail that it is not the right time of year to be walking through thick woods. The only wildlife I saw here was a couple of Chipping Sparrows, which, were neat, but I think this spot might be a spring/fall stopping point for migrating songbirds more than it is a wintering spot, probably due to lack of feed (bugs) this time of year.

Great Egret seen against the marshes at Shem Creek Park, South Carolina.

I decided to also walk another nearby trail, a piece of the Swamp Fox Spur of the Palmetto Trail that runs about 50 miles through the forest. The part I did was about a 6 mile out and back, and I had the same issues that I encountered along the I'on Swamp. I found a Hermit Thrush, a Northern Flicker, and a Ruby-crowned Kinglet, but that was about it over the couple hours of hiking. Clearly, the thick woods are not where the most species are this time of year, but if I ever come back to visit family in the spring, I will definitely key in on this location.  So after walking about 8 miles, it was still early, about 10 AM, and so I decided to hit a couple more spots that were along the coastline, and could potentially hold many more species than the woodlands. I drove back to Mount Pleasant, and then went to a place called Shem Creek Park, which is near Patriot's Point. This park has about a half mile or so of elevated boardwalks that allow you to walk through a tidal marsh and along the creek. Last year, Ruth & I had a nice surprise here when a Bottlenose Dolphin surfaced in the creek just feet away from where we were standing. While this time I didn't find any dolphins, I did get to see a number of wading birds (Great/Snowy Egrets, Tricolored/Great Blue Herons), Ibis and Pelicans were also present, and a Belted Kingfisher flew past as well. After walking the mile or so out and back, I drove over to Pitt Street Causeway, another birding hotspot that I found on eBird last year.

The beautiful Marbled Godwit, seen at Pitt Street Causeway, Mount Pleasant, SC!

Also located along a tidal marsh, this spot is an old roadbed and bridge that has been converted to a walking path and observation boardwalk on the intercoastal waterway.  It just so happened that I hit the spot right at high tide, and the heavy winds were bringing in quite a swell of waves. Because of the wind & tide, there were no shorebirds present. In South Carolina, the tides can change about 8 feet between low and high, something I'm not used to here in Virginia where the standard is about 3 feet only. With such a drastic change, the only time you're going to find shorebirds is right around the low tide when the maximum area of mudflats are exposed. Pretty much all I saw this trip was a Turkey Vulture, and a number of Boat-tailed Grackles. I did hear a number of Clapper Rails calling from the marshes, but never got sight of any of them. Some Hooded Mergansers were also present. On Friday, I again got out early, about 6:30 AM to spend the morning hiking off the food I'd eaten the day before at Thanksgiving lunch/dinner. This time, I knew the low tide would be close so early, so I did the reverse of what I had done yesterday. I went to Pitt Street Causeway first and found much better birds this time. Marbled Godwits and White Ibis were present. Willets, Black-bellied Plover, and Dunlin were seen as well on the mudflats. Like before, Clapper Rails were calling from all directions, and all the common gulls were also present. I walked out to the end of the boardwalk, getting some good photographs of a Belted Kingfisher as it moved from railing to railing cackling along the way. The godwits were the highlight of the outing, seeing them up close with their beautiful colors and long bill is always neat.

The very common, but very beautiful in the right light, Boat-tailed Grackle male!

After walking out and back on the path I headed over to Shem Creek Park. As with the prior outing, wading birds were present in good numbers and a pair of Snowy Egrets was sitting up a creek right near the boardwalk. When I'd reached the main creek, a beautiful Horned Grebe was right in close to shore diving under chasing fish and then swimming on the surface briefly before diving back down again. While I was watching the grebe, a Belted Kingfisher flew very close to me, hovering in midair looking for surfacing fish, and then sped off past me. It was there long enough though for me to get some decent photographs of it. After heading back again to the car, I decided that even though there was a lack of wildlife in the national forest, that I needed to get some exercise so I went back to the same parking spot on the Palmetto Trail, and walked 6 miles in the opposite direction. I've now done about 22 miles on this trail, and each year I plan to cut off a little bit more of it til I've walked the whole thing. This section of the trail was a bit more scenic, and I did see more birds, including what I believe was a female Purple Finch, which would be the first of the species that I've ever photographed. I'm currently waiting on confirmation from fellow birder, Ron Furnish, as to what he thinks about the photograph I snapped of it (Update: confirmed, new lifer for me!). In addition to this bird, I saw an Eastern Phoebe, and plenty of Yellow-rumped Warblers. But, little else was flying around on yet another cold, windy day, though at least the sky was perfectly clear as it was the day before. I headed back around lunchtime, and grabbed another full plate of leftover turkey, mashed potatoes, green bean casserole and gravy...my favorite time of the year. 

A Horned Grebe showing off it's winter plumage at Shem Creek Park.

On Saturday, I made it out for the 3rd straight day! First thing in the morning Ruth & I, along with her sister Heather & her nephew Christopher went out walking, first to Pitt Street and then to Shem Creek, for my 3rd visit in 3 days to each of the areas. At Pitt Street we again got to see the fairly low tide, so lots of White Ibis, Willet, Dunlin, Black-bellied Plover were present. Also, a Semipalmated Plover was seen at the end of the walkway, and several Pied-billed Grebes also. As we were walking, we heard a storm of cackles come from out of the nearby marsh, and as I turned around I saw 2 Clapper Rails come running out of the marsh reeds on a mudflat. They ran back and forth cackling at each other and then disappeared just as fast as they'd showed up. It was a very neat sightings, after having heard the rails at both locations the last two days, to finally see them, and get off a couple photographs felt great. This outing I noticed a pair of American Oystercatchers up right along the edge of the walkway, so I took Christopher out of their vision and had him sneak up on them to see up close. He was able to get just a few feet away before his shadow crossed over onto the water and was visible to the birds. They immediately took to the air and landed out on the mudflats. I don't typically like to disturb wildlife, but teaching a kid about birds, its going to happen. These birds are fairly used to people, as the walkway is a commonly used path for walkers, joggers, and dog walkers alike, so I don't feel too too bad.

An adult White Ibis out on the mudflats at Pitt Street Causway.

After Pitt Street, we headed to Shem Creek where we walked all the boardwalks again. Yet again, we found 1 Clapper Rail in the marsh, that was moving very slowly about 20 feet away, just enough to where we could see the reeds moving and be able to catch a glimpse as it moved through the thick marsh grasses. When we reached the main creek, a Snowy Egret and a Great Egret were hunting side by side, making for an excellent opportunity to see the size differential between the two species. Ruth & I continued on down to the end of the boardwalk, where she spotted a Dolphin surfacing out near the mouth of the creek! It began surfacing in an ever-closer line moving upstream, so we walked back along the boardwalk and waited for it to come in close. It made about 5 or 6 rises out of the water within about a hundred feet or so, giving great views, but proving tough to photograph due to the sun being directly in its way. Either way though, it was a great cap to our trip. The rest of the day, we spent walking around the city of Charleston, an absolutely beautiful southern city. While eating lunch on the water, I got to see a Yellow-crowned Night-Heron also, always nice to see them since they've left the Hampton Roads region behind for the winter and won't return til the end of March. So it was a successful trip to Charleston, and we made it home by 1 o'clock on Sunday after leaving about 6:15 AM. Ready to start another week!

Great Blue Heron in flight over the marshes at Pitt Street Causeway.

Week Ending November 23, 2014

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This was a busy, busy week for me! Monday, was my 31st Birthday, and more importantly, it was the day Ruth & I finally got to get our cat, Buster, in to the vet to have his neck-cone removed after having been fixed about 10 days prior. I was very excited to see our little guy in full happy mode for the first time in a couple weeks! Tuesday through Friday, no hiking for me, and to make this the most difficult week of the year for me, Saturday I had to spend in my office at work. My company gives us the option to work the Saturday before Thanksgiving, in order to get the Friday after it off as a holiday. So its a no-brainer for us to work one day to get a 4 day weekend, however, it makes for a rough week, and one that started with my birthday nonetheless! On Saturday, Ruth's sister Heather and her nephew Christopher had also come up to visit so they all spent the day together. After I left work at 3 on Saturday, I did a quick stop off at Kings Grant Lake and the surrounding ponds to try and photograph some of the waterfowl that has recently showed up in the area. There was a good number of Hooded Mergansers, Mallard, Wood Ducks, American Wigeons, Northern Shovelers, and Ring-necked Ducks present on the lakes, as well as comorants, gulls, and Canada Geese. I was able to get a few OK shots before meeting up with the family for some food. Christopher ended up staying at Ruth & I's apartment so I could take him out hiking the next morning. Being 7 years old, animals I might find interesting, might not be as interesting to him. But, we ended up heading out to Back Bay NWR at 7 AM (I was proud he was up early). I was really hoping to find an Eastern Cottonmouth to show him, because what's cooler to a kid than having their soon-to-be uncle putting them right in front of a venomous snake? (At a safe distance).

Ring-necked Ducks are just one of many species to be showing up at local ponds for the winter!

Well we never got our chance, though someone on Facebook posted one not too long after we'd been there, so we could have walked right past it, though I was looking at the ground the whole time just in case. We did find a good number of bird species for only being out about an hour. We saw a massive flock of Common Grackles / European Starlings moving across the sky in a 'murmuration'. As we headed towards it along the Bay Trail, we took a quick look around the small pond, hoping to spot the American Bittern, but to no avail. Many, many ducks and geese, and swans were seen out on the bay offshore of both the Kuralt Trail, and the Bayside Trail. I didn't notice it until I had gotten home, but I found a Redhead, and at least 3 Canvasbacks in one of my photographs, both being first of the year for me in Virginia Beach, and the Canvasbacks being both the first I'd ever photographed, and the first I've ever recorded sighting, so a new lifer to my list! Along the Bay Trail, near the large pond at the west end, we got great looks at a Great Blue Heron that was perched over us on the trail, Christopher really enjoyed getting to see this one. We also saw a high number of Yellow-rumped Warblers, and a few Swamp Sparrows, to which he giggled at the nickname of "butterbutts", which the warblers are commonly referred to as thanks to their big yellow rump spot. After walking out to the end of the Bay Trail, we headed back towards the visitor center and then up around the Bayside Trail boardwalk back to the parking area. Waterfowl including Tundra Swans, Canada Geese, American Coots, American Wigeon, Gadwall were the most numerous out on the bay, and we did get a flyover of a pair of adult Bald Eagles, hopefully another very neat sighting for Christopher to see in the wild! When we left the park, we headed back towards Kings Grant, thinking the sightings were done for the day.

Hooded Merganser drakes are one of the most beautiful species of waterfowl that can be found in our region!

However, I decided to pull off at Kings Grant Lake onto Edinburgh Drive, hoping to show him some of the ducks that winter there. As we were watching a group of Hooded Mergansers in the shallows, they suddenly disappeared under the water's surface in unison, with splashes going everywhere. As we watched, a Cooper's Hawk flew in right over top of them towards the road, carrying an Eastern Gray Squirrel in its talons! It flew out over the road, banked to the east, and landed up in a tree at the next intersection. We drove down and parked across the street, then slowly walked up near the tree, me with the camera, and Christopher with my binoculars that I set to the proper distance for him. We both got to watch for about 5 minutes as the hawk (a juvenile bird) stood atop it's catch. After snapped a number of photographs against the overcast skies, we parted ways and headed home. Now, for being the very first time I've taken Christopher out looking for wildlife, if finding a Cooper's Hawk with a squirrel dinner doesn't make me his favorite soon-to-be uncle, I don't know what will! At home, I had to get changed and head back out to meet a couple friends to watch the Sunday NFL games. On my way out to watch the games, I passed by the Kings Grant Lakes area yet again, and this time, I saw a Juvenile Tundra Swan sitting right up on shore next to the road. It seemed so weird to me that I actually called Ron Furnish, an extremely knowledgeable birder who just so happens to live nearby, and as he was already headed out to Back Bay to bird, he swung by and took a look to confirm. Sure enough, it was a lone juvenile, all by itself, so hoping that it was OK, and not injured in any way. But, what a great way to end a weekend that seemed so short at the beginning, but served up so many good birds. This coming week is Thanksgiving, and Ruth & I will be heading south to Charleston, South Carolina on Wednesday, and returning on Sunday, so my next blog will not be locally based, but I'll try to mix in some sightings from the area.

A juvenile Cooper's Hawks rests atop it's captured meal of Eastern Gray Squirrel. I love my squirrels, but, this was a breathtaking sighting to witness with my soon-to-be-nephew, Christopher!

Week Ending November 16, 2014

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Since I now cannot get out hiking after working hours Monday through Friday thanks to lack of sunlight, my first outing was on Saturday. With my 31st birthday coming up on Monday, Ruth & I decided to go down to the Outer Banks very early Saturday morning with plans to hike our way south towards Hatteras, and then stay overnight around Nags Head so we could do some more hiking on Sunday morning. We left home about 6:30 AM and were in the Outer Banks around 8 AM. We made our first stop at Bodie Island Lighthouse which is a few miles south of Nags Head, and a couple of miles north of Oregon Inlet, the large water crossing between the peninsula containing Kitty Hawk / Nags Head / and Currituck County and Hatteras Island to the south. The lighthouse has a short boardwalk the goes out onto an observation platform overlooking a freshwater marsh. We must have been the first ones there on the crisp & breezy morning since all the waterfowl and wading birds were still tucked close in to the platform. Slowly walking up, we flushed a few Song Sparrows, and then immediately noticed a large group of adult White Ibis just beyond the reeds. As we crept on them, a few Green-winged Teal took to the air, and as they did, so did all the other birds, which included some Northern Pintails and American Black Ducks, and many Tundra Swans. After flushing all the close-in birds, I didn't expect many good photographs, but we did get to add a Red-tailed Hawk to our list as it flew along the tree line to the north. After exiting Bodie Island, we crossed the Bonner Bridge over Oregon Inlet, and from the bridge it was immediately obvious that there was an immense gathering of birds in the vicinity.

Tundra Swans in flight over Oregon Inlet, NC!

It must have been around low tide, probably about 8:45 AM or so when we crossed. Many mud flat islands were visible to the south and west. These islands were completely engulfed by a moving mass of Double-crested Cormorants and Brown Pelicans. Thousands upon thousands of the cormorants were in the air as well, and also on the surface of the water. I've never seen so many in one area in my entire life, it was breathtaking. We crossed the bridge, and pulled off the road into the parking area, then walked the catwalk on the southbound side of the bridge as far as it goes. Along this catwalk, you get great views looking southwestward. Tons and tons of pelicans and cormorants were feeding on the surface, so there must have been a shoal of baitfish present. In addition to the birds, a pod of 3 or 4 Dolphins was also surfacing out in the middle of the action. They turned and headed right towards us on the bridge jumping out of the water along the way. We ran up to where they would hit us perpendicular, and they then dove under the bridge and stayed under on their way back out to sea. Another incredible experience that I had never predicted being a part of on the day. With all the wildlife activity already, I was surprised to find no ducks of any kind around the Oregon Inlet vicinity. Last February, there was tons of Scoters, and a group of Harlequin Ducks, but nothing was found this time, perhaps its just to early in the season. We walked back to the parking area (bringing a whole slew of plastic garbage along with us that careless fisherman just throw on the ground), and then walked the jetty that heads along the shoreline towards the ocean itself. Along this, we got some Savannah Sparrow, a Black-bellied Plover that was on the beach with a Sanderling, and we also got a look at a Northern Harrier as it flew up and over a sand dune, only to catch the wind and disappear quickly southward.

A Black-bellied Plover at Oregon Inlet showing off it's nonbreeding plumage.

We kept on southward, stopping at Pea Island National Wildlife Refuge's visitor center, and walked the mile or so long trail out to the observation platform between the "North" and "South" ponds. Here, we had the wonderful surprise of find quite a few American White Pelicans, probably 30-40! In addition to the Pelicans, along the marshes we could see plenty of American Black Ducks, Canada Geese, loads of Tundra Swans, Great Blue Heron, a Tricolored Heron and a Great Egret, Buffleheads, a group of Hooded Merganser, large groups of American Coots, the list goes on and on. The area was just full of bird life. Yellow-rumped Warblers were also very numerous in the brush on the sides of the trail, trying to no doubt stay out of the wind. We had one American White Pelican fly right over us, but unfortunately a cloud was blocking the sun at the time so my photographs weren't as good as they could have been! After walking back from the tower to the parking area, we crossed the highway and went up and over the dunes to the beach. I was hoping to catch some Northern Gannets or Bonaparte's Gulls, but none were seen, again perhaps too early in the season for them this far south. Continuing southward from Pea Island NWR, we drove through all the town of Rodanthe, Waves, Avon, and finally reached Buxton. At Buxton, we went into the Cape Hatteras Lighthouse area where there is a pond that fills up with waterfowl. Apparently though, again we are too early in the season and only a couple of what appeared to be American Black Ducks were present. We drove further towards the lighthouse,  where we saw a pair of White-tailed Deer out in a field. I pulled the car around and crept up from behind some foliage to get some good photographs of them.

Part of the flock of 30-40 American White Pelicans currently taking refuge at Pea Island NWR!

Afterwards, we drove near the campground area, and actually had a buck and a younger deer walking right down the shoulder. When we stopped, the younger deer actually walked across the road towards us. Seeing them up so close was amazing, but it sort of took away from the effort I'd put in to photographing the earlier deer, now realizing that the population must be extremely used to being around people. I almost consider it cheating to photograph these, as they're wild animals, but have basically become pets to those in the campgrounds. Either way though, very neat to see the beautiful animals up close. After this, we stopped at the Diamond Shoals Restaurant in Buxton, where I got my favorite spicy tuna salad wrap and sweet potato fries for lunch, this being the 3rd time we've driven down to eat here! About noon, and after eating, we started driving back northward, stopping at all the same locations all over again. I figured by the end of the day I walked between 7.5-8 miles probably. On the second outing at Pea Island NWR, I got a group of Willets and Marbled Godwits flying together across the trail, and got great views of the cloud of cormorants to the north.

The beautifully colored Killdeer, seen at Pea Island NWR!

The pelicans were all still present as well. I never did find any American Avocets, one of my hopeful birds for the trip, but, someday I'll find them here, since from eBird reports, they're definitely seen during winter here. On the second pass at Oregon Inlet, we again spotted a Northern Harrier, just after I'd told Ruth to me on the lookout for one. It flew across the dunes, and over the marsh to the jetty, but unfortunately kept going northward across the inlet. Savannah Sparrows were out along the Jetty, and we did see a number of fresh Raccoon tracks in the sandy marsh soils, but never found the responsible party. We crossed north on the Bonner Bridge and stopped again at Bodie Island. This time, with the sun shining, some Tundra Swans flew close enough in to get a nice flight photograph of them. Also, Green-winged Teal and Northern Pintail were still present in good numbers. Afterwards, we decided that since it was only 3 PM, that we didn't really need to spend the extra money to stay the night. Instead, we headed back up north to the populated areas of the Outer Banks (seeing what I believe was a Rail, and a Northern Harrier, perhaps the same that had left Oregon Inlet, along the way). We drove back home to Virginia Beach, partly for the money & time, and mostly because we both wanted to see our cat Buster, who is currently a bit subdued after getting fixed about 8 days prior. Hopefully he'll only be wearing the plastic cone around his neck for a couple more days!

An adult Brown Pelican showing off how beautiful their coloring really is!

Having opted to return to Virginia Beach Saturday evening awarded me the ability to get out hiking locally on Sunday morning.  I went up to Pleasure House Point in the morning, at around 8 o'clock, initially getting out a little later than I'd wanted just because I thought the overcast skies and chilly weather might keep the birds down. Boy, was I wrong. Low tide was about 9 AM or thereabouts from my observations, and the mudflats were packed with the typical species of gulls. I didn't notice any terns/skimmers/or Oystercatchers, but there were a large number of Sanderlings out there as well. The Chesapeake Bay Foundation's new headquarters building (the Brock Center) had it's grand opening (invite only) on Friday, and this morning was its first open house. The center is a mixed bag amongst the wildlife community, but I maintain that it was a small price to pay for the City of Virginia Beach setting aside Pleasure House Point as a natural area preserve instead of it being completely developed into condos/townhomes like it very almost did during the Indigo Dunes days with the Sandler Company. Walking around the sandy patch of the park and along the starts of the interior creeks, I found 1 Greater Yellowlegs along the shoreline, and also got my first American Bittern at the park that wasn't in-flight. This one was feeding and I got to watch it catch a meal. Clapper Rails were heard several times, but I never got any looks, which is typical of these birds here. There are good numbers of Hooded Mergansers and Buffleheads out on the tidal creek, but my big surprise with ducks came on one of the interior ponds when I stumbled upon a group of 6 magnificent Wood Ducks. I took several photographs from 100 yards out and when I took one step closer, they took to the air. I was behind dense foliage, and am just amazed at how weary they were! I haven't yet seen any Gadwall show up to the park though they are very common in winter on the stormwater pond near the east end, as well as the ponds at the west end. One lone Common Loon flew overhead also. There wasn't many songbirds present in the park but I did find a flock of Yellow-rumped Warblers that had several Pine Warblers in it as well.

Tundra Swans (adults at top and bottom, juveniles in the middle) flying past the Bodie Island Lighthouse. 

This was the first time since spring that I've actually photographed a Pine Warbler, and right in its namesake tree to boot. I had no luck with tracking down the now commonly seen (though eBird still calls them rarities) Nelson's Sparrows today, which is the first time in probably my last 5 or 6 outings that I haven't found any. I did however, find a Savannah Sparrow, and many Song Sparrows, so if you're seeking sparrows in general, this is a great place to find them without walking too far. Carolina Wrens were also seen in the dense underbrush along the trail. I did also get a good sighting of a small Sharp-shinned Hawk flying overhead, which I initially thought was a Kestrel or a Merlin, but was able to tell from the photographs that it had banding on the stomach. I never realized just how small the Sharp-shinned Hawks are in comparison to their larger cousins, the Cooper's Hawks, which I see more frequently here in the suburban areas of Virginia Beach. This was the only true raptor I saw, though I did spot a single Osprey that must be over-wintering in the area like last year. I ended up getting home rather early, about 10:30 AM or so, which doesn't usually happen, but after all day out on Saturday, it was nice to catch a bit of a break. Tomorrow, sadly a Monday, and back to work, also happens to be my 31st birthday! Unfortunately this coming week, my company works Monday through Saturday, and then gives us the following Thursday & Friday off for Thanksgiving without docking us personal time off usage. So I'll be working 6 days this coming week, hopefully making it out next Sunday in an attempt to continue my blog for the week, and to hopefully see some neat wildlife. I may have to rely on reports that others have passed on to me to give my blog some meat next week, but check it out anyway when you get the time!

Pine Warbler sitting in its namesake tree at Pleasure House Point!

Week Ending November 9, 2014

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With Daylight Savings Time coming to a close this past weekend, it was a rough work week to get through, knowing that I couldn't make it out birding at all in the evenings. I was beyond ready to get out the door this morning, and hit Back Bay's parking area right around 7 AM. Temperatures were down in the 30s around Hampton Roads over night, and it stayed nice and cool this morning, which really seemed to cut down on the number of visitors to the park. By the time I left around 10 AM, there was still only 4 or 5 vehicles in the main lot, which is great for viewing wildlife. The waterfowl have started showing up now to the park, and the main impoundments are now closed off to the public. I saw a mixed group of Wood Ducks, Ring-necked Ducks, Pied-billed Grebes, and Buffleheads off the Loop Road near the West Dike gate. There was also Northern Pintail, Gadwall, Mallard, American Black Ducks in the area northwest of the parking area. Out over the water, the massive blob of Tree Swallows that have taken up residence at the park could be seen swirling back and forth, and eventually they overtook the entire parking area, it was incredible to see and hear them all streaming by continuously. The Bay Trail was packed with Yellow-rumped Warblers, and should stay this way for a while. Also along the trail I saw a couple of Golden-crowned Kinglets (one showing a good amount of red in addition to it's Golden crown), Carolina Wren & Chickadee, and standard Red-winged Blackbirds. A few Tundra Swans were visible from the very end of the trail, probably a mile or so south on the bay. The Loop Road held a number of Chipping Sparrows, which added to the Swamp and Song Sparrows I'd see near the visitor center.

A Chipping Sparrow sporting its nonbreeding plumage at Back Bay National Wildlife Refuge.

A pair of White-tailed Deer also showed up as I was walking this stretch. It's really nice now that the dikes are closed, and there is basically no foot traffic along the gravel roadways leading up to the gates. I'd initially planned to walk the beachfront south towards False Cape, but I'd neglected to think about just how directly the sun in the early morning shines right at your face walking south. So I opted out of this and just did about a half hour sit, seeing numerous groups of ducks streaming south (a bit too far out for my camera to help me ID, though they looked like Green-winged Teals). Northern Gannets have also returned and a few strayed close to shore. Royal & Forster's Terns were seen, though I believe the Royals will be moving southward out of the area pretty soon. While heading back towards the parking area, I finally caught up with the American Bittern that has showed itself over the last several years in the same spot. After I'd found the Bittern, I ran back to the end of the Bay Trail where a couple of other birders were set up with spotting scopes. The one had mentioned he was hoping to find a bittern, so I wanted to give him a shot at doing so. After I got them on the bittern, I asked if they used listserver or eBird and introduced myself. The first gentleman knew who I was from my postings and turned out to be William Leigh (who I'd later realize is actually the current #2 eBirder in Virginia with about 280 species, the American Bittern being a new one!). The other birder also turned out to be Andrew Baldelli, which I found very amusing since he'd corrected some of my sparrow sightings just that week (Nelson's versus Saltmarsh). I wish I could have stayed out all day today, it was a beautiful one, and lots of species can be tallied at the park now with all the variety of bird families that have showed up! If you've never been, now is a great time to head to Back Bay.

Our most common winter warbler, the Yellow-rumped Warbler!

After a beautiful day yesterday in the region, clouds came in over night and made it a tougher morning for birding than Saturday was. With overcast skies I opted not to go back down to Back Bay NWR since it is about a 40 minute drive (and with questionable skies, it is hard to get excited for the long drive). Instead, I went up to Pleasure House Point (a 20 minute drive) in the hopes of catching some birds just after the low tide had hit earlier in the dark hours of the morning. A good number of species, and individuals were present, the most interesting sighting (to me at least) was a flyover of a beautiful American Bittern as I was talking to fellow Lisa Rose. Just prior to this I'd had a Clapper Rail come flying out of the marsh and land nearby, but it hid under the reeds and I never got another look at it, just the continuous cackles filling the air. The Nelson's Sparrows that are being continually seen were very numerous right at the high tide line of the salt-marshes. Getting photographs of them however was much tougher, though a few did stay up on their respective reeds long enough for an identifying shot. Thankfully, out of a lot of photographs, a few did come out good enough to post. Waterfowl have really started showing up around the region in the last week or so, and about 10 or so Buffleheads, and another dozen Hooded Mergansers were present along Pleasure House Creek up near the northwest end of the park.

The famous American Bittern of Back Bay National Wildlife Refuge has returned!

Also, a group of 4 American Black Ducks was situated along the creek near a settlement of Great & Snowy Egrets. A pair of Osprey that has overwintered in the area was also seen overhead in this area, and a Great Blue Heron added to the species. Tree Swallows in large numbers (though much less than the group at Back Bay) were also present, and it was fun to watch them drinking along the surface of the creek and then perching off in the marsh grasses. I had one flyover of a beautiful Cooper's Hawk, though it arrived right out of the sun, and immediately banked across the creek when it saw me on the trail. I got one identifying photograph as it made it's final turn up into a tree to perch about 100 yards away. Other birds along the hike included a pair of Clapper Rails flushing from their marshy hiding spot, and numerous Yellow-rumped Warbler, though that was about it for the songbirds. After leaving the “Point”, I drove up to the first island of the Chesapeake Bay Bridge-Tunnel complex and walked around the first island (South Thimble Island). I was hoping to find a few species of ducks, but I may be a bit early on that. However, I was excited to find a lone Wood Duck sitting out on the water west of the fishing pier, which was very surprising to me. I expected scoters, mergansers, bufflehead, long-taileds, and other sea faring ducks, not a dabbling species that would much rather be sitting on a small backwater pond protected by surrounding woodlands.

A Double-crested Cormorant fly-by at Pleasure House Point on Sunday morning!

Seeing one way out in the middle of the Chesapeake Bay's mouth was definitely unexpected. I did get a flyover of 3 Black Scoters also, but that was really it for the birds, no Purple Sandpipers, and only a lone Ruddy Turnstone was the only shorebird that I was able to find. I did have a lone Yellow-rumped Warbler flying around and landing on the chain linked fence as well, another bird I was not expecting to see all the way out there on the exposed island. It was still worth the $13 toll just to have the information that the main duck species have not yet showed up. I'm looking forward to seeing folks post their sightings when they do! Over the weekend also, a Western Kingbird was sighted up on the Eastern Shore, and I heard of a Scissor-tailed Flycatcher that had showed up somewhere around Yorktown as well. So the birds are really showing up around the region now, so hopefully this next week will be a good one though I again expect to only get out hiking on the weekends from here on into about March of 2015 with the sun setting so early in the day and me being stuck in the office until that time anyway Monday through Friday. I'm starting to plan for taking my first Pelagic outing on one of Brian Patteson's trips out of Hatteras, North Carolina. These trips are all in February, and this past year, a Yellow-nosed Albatross was among the birds that was seen. Hopefully I'll get signed up for that in the next week or so, so many opportunities for adding to my life list are on the horizon. 

My mother's favorite bird (kind of), this is a Carolina Chickadee in front of some of our beautiful fall foliage. (Her favorites were technically Black-capped Chickadees but we don't have those here).