[Date Prev][Date Next][Thread Prev][Thread Next][Date Index][Thread Index]

Mourning Warbler -NOT relocated



Birders,

On Saturday 14 July 01, Lex Glover and I arrived at the Mourning Warbler 
spot on Roan Mt. (thanks to John Wright for posting excellent directions) 
around 8am.  It was cold (50) and windy.  The cold temps were fairly 
manageable, but as anyone who has ever looked for skulkers or marsh birds 
in the wind knows, the winds were a major deterrent.  

We spent over three hours searching for the bird and DID NOT FIND IT.  
After an hour, Wade Fuller, and Richard and Susan Boyd (I hope I got the 
names right), showed up and joined in the searching efforts.  They spent 
another hour or two searching after Lex and I left, and I don't know if 
they found the bird then or not.  

The bird could easily still be around (Wade heard a couple of suspicious 
chip notes), but if so, will be very hard to locate for two reasons.  
First, the "singing" season is over, so it will be mostly silent.  
Second, it's a skulker and there's lots and lots of thick, thigh-high 
vegetation of Rubus and Alder into which a birder cannot see.  If the 
bird doesn't sit up, you won't see it!  The best bet for seeing this bird 
at this point (if it's still around) is either pure luck or come early 
next June when it'll be singing again!

BTW, as John Wright noted, the scenery alone is worth a visit and we had 
a spectacularly clear day.  And as an added bonus, we saw several 
individuals of Gray's Lily, a rare species of lily named after the famous 
botanist Asa Gray and endemic to just a few mountain ranges in NC, TN, 
and VA.

^^^^^^^^^^^^^^^^^^^^^^^^^^^^^^^^^^
Jeff Pippen   	 				 jspippen@duke.edu
Biology Dept. Box 90338				
Duke University, Durham, NC  27708		PH: (919) 660-7278
^^^^^^^^^^^^^^^^^^^^^^^^^^^^^^^^^^