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Fort Fisher, NC
- To: carolinabirds@duke.edu
- Subject: Fort Fisher, NC
- From: Stephen Perry <stevep@receptor-biol.duke.edu>
- Date: Mon, 22 Apr 2002 10:23:33 -0400
- Sender: carolinabirds-owner@acpub.duke.edu
Hi Folks,
Had a great time down at Fort Fisher on Sat and Sun, with the time
fairly evenly split between hunting down a few local birds and
cooling off in the ocean.
A total of 48 species in about 6 hours of birding with no efforts to
increase this with early starts (I didn't start birding until after
noon on either day) or any sea scoping (wind was a bit too high to
risk sand scratches to the lens). But my real target was to see a
male painted bunting, which I finally managed on Sunday in the scrub
behind the aquarium parking lot: he was gorgeous and singing like a
mad man! There is also a "brancher" great horned owl in a pine in
this scrub. It was absolutely still and silent and I only saw it
because I happened to look up as the shadow of a white ibis passed
over me. Another lifer for me was a loggerhead shrike present on both
days in the windswept trees along the road side at the fort itself.
Specifically, in the two or three trees on the left as you walk
around the side of the welcome center, right opposite the large fort
earthworks. It was busy catching insects and beating the live out of
them on the tree branches. Also of note was a single glossy ibis
among mobs of white ibises, prairie warblers, a pair of ospreys and I
think I saw an anole running up a tree.
I passed up on the GT towhee, by the way. Sorry if anyone was wanting
to know if it was still there...
--
Steve Perry
Receptor Biology Lab, Duke Uni Med Center, Durham, NC
stevep@receptor-biol.duke.edu