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Marion Cty, SC & Horry Cty landfill




Hi Carolinabirders,
	Sorry for the late post of this report.  On Tuesday, Feb. 1 Gary Phillips
and I birded just inside the Marion Cty line on the first road which leads
to the Pee Dee Sand Plant going sout and west on RT 378. We would have
liked to get further along the road but just past the Sand Plant the road
was flooded.  So about Noon we went for some lunch and then headed over to
the Horry County landfill.  
	The sand plant road and adjacent cut over fields were alive with tons of
sparrows. My estimates are conservative.  The landfill had as many gulls as
I have ever seen there about 7,500.  Both areas were interesting. The first
number is Marion County, the second number is the landfill.

Ruddy Duck-0-4
Black Vulture-0-3
Turkey Vulture-2-25
Bald Eagle-0-1 immature-1st or 2nd yr bird
Red-tailed Hawk-0-1
N. Harrier-1-0
Am. Kestrel-1-0
Wild Turkey-8-0
Killdeer-5-3
Laughing Gull-0-1
Bonaparte's Gull-0-1
Ring-billed Gull-0-7,125 about 70% immatures mostly first winter birds,
rest adults
Herring Gull-0-225 mostly first winter birds
Lesser Black-backed Gull-3 including one bird which both Gary and I believe
was not of the sub-species Graellsii. It was the darkest backed individual
of this species I have ever seen.  A description was sent to two gull
experts and one replied and told me some things to look for. We went back
yesterday and found two Lessers but they did not have as dark a back as the
bird on Tuesday.  Just as we were preparing to leave, I saw a white-winged
gull which I showed to Gary but the bird was only briefly in view before it
got swept up in a group of gulls flushed by some equipment and we lost it.
Didn't get a good enough handle to id the bird.
Blue Jay-1-0
Am. Crow-1-0
Carolina Chickadee-1-0
Tufted Titmouse-1-0
Carolina Wren-2-0
Ruby-crowned Kinglet-1-0
Yellow-rumped Warbler-20-0
Palm Warbler-1-0
N. Cardinal-3-0
E. Towhee-2-0
Chipping Sparrow-100-0
Field Sparrow-25-0
Vesper Sparrow-12-0
Savannh Sparrow-0-4
Song Sparrow-75-0
Swamp Sparrow-70-0
White-throated Sparrow-600
Dark-eyed Junco-150
Common Grackle-50-0

Incidentally, yesterday there were about 2,500 fewer gulls at the landfill
than on Tuesday. 

	"Don't forget sometime you have to look up"

    


Jack Peachey
Conway,SC
ppaw@sccoast.net