Birding With Kyle

Franklin's Gull!- Oct. 16, 2011

This afternoon I traveled to Jordan Lake to the Fearrington Point Road Bridge to search for the Franklin's Gull. After locating the huge gull flock it only took me a quick scan before I spotted the FRANKLIN'S GULL, a lifer for me! The bird was sitting on the spit with the other gulls, spending most of its time preening. I had terrific views of the bird through my scope, but due to the distance from me to the gull, my pictures were only ok. I also got a video of the gull preening, but again this is at a distance. In addition to the Franklin's Gull, I also saw 1 SANDERLING, 2 LAUGHING GULLS, 1 FORSTER'S TERN, and 2 CASPIAN TERNS, all of which of course had been seen earlier. After admiring the Franklin's Gull for some time, and even showing my dad it through my scope, I headed back home. Below are some of the photos I took. The second photo is pretty cool because all of the good birds are in the same picture.

Falls Lake Big Sit: Oct. 9, 2011

Today, from 4:30 am to 7:30 pm, I joined Brian Bockhahn at Sandling Beach, Falls Lake, for the Big Sit. We had some pretty good birds for the day, such as a Merlin that I found perched on a tree along the lake shore. But for me, the best part was the two waves of warblers we had, one in the morning and one in the evening. Highlights, for me, were Cape May Warbler, Black-throated Green Warbler, Blackburnian Warbler (first I've actually seen in the state), and Blackpoll Warbler (first fall form I've seen), all of which I was able to get pictures of. Below is the list of species we had, for a total of 11 species today.

Morning Wave: 7:30-9:00

Northern Parula- 3

Black-throated Blue Warbler- 2

Yellow-rumped Warbler- 15

Pine Warbler- 30+

American Redstart-2

Evening Wave: 5:00-6:30

Northern Parula- 25

Cape May Warbler-2

Black-throated Blue Warbler-2

Yellow-rumped Warbler-3

Black-throated Green Warbler- 1

Blackburnian Warbler- 3

Pine Warbler- 20

Blackpoll Warbler- 1

American Redstart- 1

Merlin

Black-throated Green Warbler
Blackburnian Warbler
Blackpoll Warbler
Cape May Warbler

Rail Stomping, RUFF, and more: Oct. 7, 2011

On the morning of October 7 myself, Brian, and three other birders met down at North River marsh to search for Yellow Rails. Our search was not successful unfortunately, even though we covered the marsh very effectively, and Brian and myself recovered at dusk where we began in the morning. There were lots of Virginia Rails calling, and we flushed a few, about a dozen Soras calling (though we were not able to flush or see any), and we heard a couple Clapper Rails in the morning. But we did flush an American Bittern, which was probably the best bird for the marsh. We saw lots of sharp-tailed sparrows, though could only identify two of those as being Saltmarsh. Several candidates for Nelson's, but those sharp-tailed sparrows do not stay out in the open for long! Around dusk Brian and I also had 2 female Bobolinks in the marsh, an ABA bird for me.

But our luck did not disappear in the marsh. Instead we found a bird we were not expecting at all. While looking for Curlew Sandpipers at Cedar Island, Brian and I found a male RUFF, in breeding plumage. We were sorting through the turnstones behind the ferry terminal pond at the horse pasture when suddenly a Ruff dropped out of the air and landed in the pasture. We immediately knew this was a bird different from all the turnstones. The bird had a long neck and long legs, and had a small bill, but not as small as a turnstone. Brian and I both had different observations of the appearance of the bird due to observing it at different positions. I noticed the bird had the sides of the front of its breast black, with white separating these two black patches. Brian saw the side of the bird, which was heavily spotted with black. The bird appeared similar in overall size and shape to an Upland Sandpiper. We did not have long though to gaze at the bird, and after maybe 5 to 10 seconds, the Ruff had walked off (still showing its long neck) into the brushy vegetation. We traveled to the other side of the pond to try to relocate the bird, but were not successful. Ruff was a lifer for Brian and an ABA bird for me. And (obviously!) this was the best bird of the trip.

Below is a list of birds that we saw, as well as a picture of one of the Bobolinks.

 

North River Marsh, Carteret, US-NC
Oct 7, 2011 8:00 AM - 12:00 PM, 5:30 PM - 7:00 PM
Protocol: Traveling
5.0 mile(s)
51 species (+1 other taxa)

Double-crested Cormorant 15
American Bittern 1
Great Blue Heron 15
Great Egret 15
Tricolored Heron 2
White Ibis 100
Turkey Vulture 1
Osprey 2
Bald Eagle 1
Northern Harrier 1
Sharp-shinned Hawk 1
American Kestrel 1
Clapper Rail 2
Virginia Rail 20
Sora 12

Semipalmated Plover 1
Killdeer 1
Willet 1
Lesser Yellowlegs 2
Ruddy Turnstone 1
Wilson's Snipe 2
Laughing Gull 10
Ring-billed Gull 30
Herring Gull 5
Caspian Tern 5
Royal Tern 5
Mourning Dove 8
Red-bellied Woodpecker 2
Downy Woodpecker 1
Northern Flicker 1
Blue Jay 6
American Crow 15
Tree Swallow 30
Carolina Chickadee 2
White-breasted Nuthatch 1
Brown-headed Nuthatch 1
Carolina Wren 1
Marsh Wren 12
Eastern Bluebird 1
Northern Mockingbird 2
Northern Waterthrush 1
Yellow Warbler 1
Yellow-rumped Warbler 6
Saltmarsh Sparrow 2
Nelson's/Saltmarsh Sparrow 20 Flyin

Seaside Sparrow 12
Northern Cardinal 5
Bobolink 2
Red-winged Blackbird 1
Eastern Meadowlark 2
Boat-tailed Grackle 20
House Finch 1

Cedar Island Ferry Terminal, Carteret, US-NC
Oct 7, 2011 1:30 PM - 3:30 PM
Protocol: Traveling
2.0 mile(s)
23 species

Mallard 3
Brown Pelican 20
Little Blue Heron 1
Green Heron 1
Semipalmated Plover 1
Killdeer 10
Lesser Yellowlegs 1
Ruddy Turnstone 25
Sanderling 5
Semipalmated Sandpiper 3
Western Sandpiper 2
Pectoral Sandpiper 2
Ruff 1 Male, in breeding plumage. Bird dropped out of the air and landed on the horse pasture behind the pond. The bird had a long neck and long legs, much different from the turnstones in the same pasture. The bird had the sides of the front of its breast black, with white separating these two black patches. It was heavily spotted with black on the sides, and it had a small bill, but not as small as a turnstone. Appeared similar in overall size and shape to an Upland Sandpiper. Bird was not relocated after initial sighting.
Ring-billed Gull 10
Herring Gull 2
Great Black-backed Gull 1
European Starling 5
Magnolia Warbler 1
Savannah Sparrow 2
Northern Cardinal 1
Boat-tailed Grackle 5
Brown-headed Cowbird 12
House Sparrow 5

Harker's Island- Museum Trails, Carteret, US-NC
Oct 7, 2011 4:00 PM - 5:00 PM
Protocol: Traveling
2.0 mile(s)
26 species

Canada Goose 3
Pied-billed Grebe 1
Brown Pelican 20
Snowy Egret 2
White Ibis 2
Ring-billed Gull 20
Great Black-backed Gull 1
Common Tern 2
Rock Pigeon 8
Eurasian Collared-Dove 5
Mourning Dove 2
Belted Kingfisher 2
White-eyed Vireo 1
Carolina Chickadee 3
Carolina Wren 1
American Robin 2
Gray Catbird 3
Northern Mockingbird 2
Brown Thrasher 2
European Starling 8
American Redstart 2
Magnolia Warbler 1
Northern Cardinal 5
Blue Grosbeak 1
Boat-tailed Grackle 15
House Finch 2

Female Bobolink

Fall Migrants: October 2 - Black-throated Blue Warbler

Went looking for migrants this evening along my creek. Below is my list.

Oct 2, 2011 3:15 PM - 6:15 PM
Protocol: Traveling
3.0 mile(s)
13 species

Chimney Swift 5
Red-eyed Vireo 2
Ruby-crowned Kinglet 2
Swainson's Thrush 2
Hermit Thrush 1
Wood Thrush 8
American Redstart 4
Northern Parula 1
Magnolia Warbler 3
Chestnut-sided Warbler 1
Black-throated Blue Warbler 1
Scarlet Tanager 2
Rose-breasted Grosbeak 3

This report was generated automatically by eBird v2 (http://ebird.org)

Black-throated Blue Warbler

Fall Migrants: October 1- Scarlet Tanager

I was seeing several migrants foraging near our bird feeders, such as Ovenbird, Black-throated Blue Warbler, and Magnolia Warbler, so I decided to go outside along my creek this morning for a couple hours. I was hoping that the cold weather had pushed some different stuff into the area, but I didn't see much different than what I had been seeing. The male Black-throated Blues were 'new' for the creek this fall, as I hadn't had any males yet. The best bird in my opinion, and newest addition this fall, was a Ruby-crowned Kinglet foraging in the trees. It appeared to be a female to me. Looks like the first winter birds are showing up. Below is my list of migrants for the day.

-

White-eyed Vireo-1

Red-eyed Vireo-1

Ruby-crowned Kinglet-1

Gray-cheeked Thrush-4

Swainson's Thrush-10

Wood Thrush-10

Ovenbird-1

American Redstart-5

Northern Parula-1

Magnolia Warbler-3

Black-throated Blue Warbler-2

Scarlet Tanager-3

Rose-breasted Grosbeak-1

Scarlet Tanager

Fall Migrants: September 29

Went outside this afternoon for a little more than an hour, exploring my creek. Had a pretty decent showing of migrants, with the highlight being Rose-breasted Grosbeaks. Below is the list of migrants/warblers I had this afternoon.

-

Chimney Swifts-2

Eastern Wood-Pewee-1

White-eyed Vireo-2

Red-eyed Vireo-1

Veery-1

Gray-cheeked Thrush-2

Swainson's Thrush-6

Hermit Thrush-1

Wood Thrush-8

Black-and-white Warbler-1

Common Yellowthroat-1

American Redstart-4

Magnolia Warbler-2

Chestnut-sided Warbler-1

Black-throated Blue Warbler-2

Pine Warbler-1

Scarlet Tanager-2

Rose-breasted Grosbeak-3

Fall Migrants: September 28- Thrushes

This afternoon I went outside and birded along my creek for about an hour. I didn't encounter many warblers, but I went to my special spot and was able to have some very good thrush action. This spot is where several dogwood and other berry trees are located, and the thrushes have a blast here (as do other migrants, such as the Scarlet Tanagers I had last week). I had 6 thrush species here today, including one Hermit Thrush; I guess maybe an early arrival? Below is the list of migrants I had:

-

Chimney Swift

Eastern Wood-Pewee-1

White-eyed Vireo-2

Swainson's Thrush-3

Hermit Thrush-1

Wood Thrush-5

Veery-1

Gray-cheeked Thrush-2

Chestnut-sided Warbler-2

American Redstart-3

Swainson's Thrush
Gray-cheeked Thrush
Veery

Fall Migrants: September 24

After it stopped raining this morning I went outside and explored the area along my creek. I encountered several decent-sized groups of migrants. Below is a list of all the migrants and warblers that I saw.

 

Acadian Flycatcher

White-eyed Vireo-1

Red-eyed Vireo-2

Veery-1

Swainson's Thrush-2

Wood Thrush-8

Northern Parula-3

Chestnut-sided Warbler-2

Magnolia Warbler-1

Black-throated Blue-Warbler-1, female

Pine Warbler-1

American Redstart-6

Ovenbird-1

Common Yellowthroat-5

Scarlet Tanager-2

And for those interested in dragonflies, I had Common Green Darner, Russet-tipped Clubtail, and Autumn Meadowhawk.

Fall Migrants: September 21

After I got home from school I went outside for a couple of hours to see what migrants I could find and if I could be of any help for the Falls Lake Fall Bird Count. My friend Brian had told me that a lot of migrants were passing through today, and I was hoping to find a Nashville Warbler like him.

There was indeed a lot of birds out. Too many birds in the canopies of trees for me to identify all of them, but I had a pretty good couple hours. The two best birds, for me, were Scarlet Tanager and Tennessee Warbler. I had three female Scarlet Tanagers flying around in a forest opening, one of which was giving its lovely call. And it was about time that I saw a Tennessee Warbler. I had never seen one in the U.S. before, though I had heard them in the mountains and have seen them in the tropics. I was just about to exit the forest when I heard the leaves above my head moving, and looking up there was a Tennessee Warbler in the tree right next to me, working the leaves.

Below is the list of birds I had on the 21st.  

 

 

Sep 21, 2011 4:20 PM - 6:25 PM
Protocol: Traveling
2.0 mile(s)
35 species

Red-shouldered Hawk  1
Mourning Dove  2
Barred Owl  2
Chimney Swift  6
Ruby-throated Hummingbird  2
Red-bellied Woodpecker  2
Downy Woodpecker  4
Northern Flicker  1
Pileated Woodpecker  1
Eastern Wood-Pewee  2
Acadian Flycatcher  3
Red-eyed Vireo  3
Blue Jay  3
American Crow  5
Carolina Chickadee  25
Tufted Titmouse  35
White-breasted Nuthatch  5
Carolina Wren  4
House Wren  1
Blue-gray Gnatcatcher  2
Veery  1
Swainson's Thrush  1
Wood Thrush  3
American Robin  6
Brown Thrasher  1
Black-and-white Warbler  3
Tennessee Warbler  1
American Redstart  8
Northern Parula  6
Magnolia Warbler  1
Pine Warbler  5
Scarlet Tanager  3
Northern Cardinal  15
House Finch  3
American Goldfinch  4

This report was generated automatically by eBird v2 (http://ebird.org)

Tennessee Warbler- ABA first for me!

Fall Migrants, September 20:

After I got home from school I went outside and explored my backyard along the creek for more than an hour, seeing what migrants I could find. Not too much species wise. I did see several groups of migrant flocks, mixed with chickadees and titmice, but they consisted mostly of American Redstarts. There were some warblers that wouldn't allow me to study them long enough to get an id. At one point I was very sure I heard a Willow Flycatcher, as I heard an Empidonax give several call notes that did not resemble Acadian and were more along the lines of a Willow call. But when I went to the spot where I had heard the bird calling, all I could find was an Acadian Flycatcher. Also saw some lone Chimney Swifts.

Below is my list of migrants I had today.

 

-Great-crested Flycatcher-1

-Acadian Flycatcher-2

-mystery Empid- Willow like call note, but could not find the bird

-White-eyed Vireo-1

-Red-eyed Vireo-1

-Blue-gray Gnatcatcher-1

-Magnolia Warbler-1

-American Redstart-10, predominantly female

-Hooded Warbler-1, immature male