Weekend Birding

[Amalie Lewis Tuffin <amaliet@ix.netcom.com>]

I got to spend the entire weekend birding, and had a blast.

On Saturday I had hoped to join the New Hope Audubon Society on its tour
of the Brickhouse Road area, but just couldn't roust myself out of bed
in time after being up late the night before, so instead I hit Mason
Farm and, briefly, Little Creek.

Mason Farm was relatively quiet, but it was a very nice walk.  Indigo
buntings and blue grosbeaks were everywhere, as were singing red-eyed
vireos.  Not too many warblers, however.  I did see pine warblers, a
yellow-breasted chat and numerous common yellowthroats.

I ran into Judy Murray and a gentleman named Ted from Wake Audubon, who
reported finding the Kentucky Warbler.  I neither saw nor heard it on
Saturday.  I did see a beautiful male summer tanager shortly before
running into Judy and Ted, but not much else (other than two redbelly
watersnakes) until I ran into Stephen Perry.  It was a pleasure to meet
him, and reading his earlier post I now know why his eyes lit up when I
was able to tell him exactly where I had seen a summer tanager!  After
meeting in the middle of the most heavily wooded part of the walk,
Steven and I each continued on our way, him to see his lifer summer
tanager, me to see my lifer prothonotary warbler.  (Being a birder for
shortly over a year puts me in the same "not been in the US of A for
long"-type category as Steven in terms of number of life birds still out
there.)  We crossed paths again on the way out, each casually telling
each other what we had seen - neither mentioning we had never seen it
before - lol!

I briefly stopped at Little Creek to see if the snowy egret was still
hanging around.  It wasn't in sight, but I did see the green heron and a
spotted sandpiper.  (And for Alex, who was asking me about turtles, so
far I have seen eastern box, eastern painted and a common snapper at
Little Creek.  Haven't had a chance to go back and try with the scope
and guidebook in hand, though.)

Today I went and spent the day at Brickhouse Road.  It didn't start out
auspiciously.  The day was cold, very windy, and it kept seeming like it
would rain. I'm glad I stuck it out though - I ended up spending 8 hours
there, getting several lifers and close to 60 different species (even
without much birding by ear ability.)

I started out heading down to the Brickhouse impoundment, and took the
road to the left to its end and back.  I didn't see much for the first
hour or so - the best bird was a belted kingfisher.  I did get to see a
northern watersnake and a beaver swimming into its den, though, both of
which were interesting sights.  After that, the birding picked up a
little bit and I saw an acadian flycatcher, heard several northern
parula, and heard a barred owl that sounded quite close, although I
never managed to see it.  I also saw a ruby-throated hummer and got to
pick up a yellowbelly slider.  (I may have made a mistake in picking up
the slider to try and see its plastron so I could figure out what it was
- it had dug a hole into the gravel road and the hole was muddy.  Could
it possibly have been trying to lay eggs there?  Seems like an awfully
weird spot, although there was an artificial creek all along the road at
that point.)

On my way out of the impoundment, I heard some illegal hunters.  I
shouted really loud at them, pointing out that among other things it was
Sunday, which stopped them long enough for me to get past.  They started
up again as I was headed up the hill towards the parking lot - let's
just say it took some self-restraint not to vandalize the morons' truck
on my way out . . . .  (I would never do anything like that, but
sometimes I really want to!)

I then drove up the hill from the first Brickhouse impoundment parking
lot to the lot at the top near the depot.  On my way I got to see my
life orchard oriole, an immature male that had me scratching my head for
a while.  I eventually decided that was what it must be - it looked much
like the Sibley drawing, with the very notable exception of having a
much larger black cap which went about halfway up its head over its
eyes.  (I was thinking I would have to have a "do I count it or not?"
quandary when I got home, but a while later I pished up an unmistakable
adult make orchard oriole.  Quandary solved!)

After parking the car, I got out and saw what I first took to be a very
large vulture that was flying weird.  Then I got my bins on it - it was
an immature bald eagle!  That was the first one I have seen in the Falls
Lake area, although I have seen them at Jordan Lake and down in
Florida.  Definitely a highlight of my day.  I also saw kestrel,
red-tailed hawks, red-shouldered hawks and an accipiter sp. at various
points in the day.

The next bird after the bald eagle was also a lifer - I heard my first
bobwhite from one of the fields on top of the hill.  I never got to see
it but that is one I am comfortable calling on its song alone.  At about
the same time I also heard what sounded exactly like a chuck wills widow
singing away - at least it sounds just like the one on my CD - but since
it was 2:45 I am not going to count it.  I will have to go back some
evening soon and "see" what I can hear, though.

I then started walking up towards the house and the depot buildings, and
saw several eastern kingbirds (first of the year), field sparrows, and
eastern phoebes.  There were many white crowned sparrows (and a lone
white-throated), indigo buntings, blue grosbeaks, common yellowthroats,
barn swallows and northern-rough winged swallows as well.

While at the impoundment, I took two long walks along what I believe is
called the Beaver Dam impoundment, once part way around in one
direction, and once the whole loop (which I didn't realize was a loop
when I started out on it) from the other direction.  There were vultures
everywhere!  The first time through, I set a flock of about 20 (mostly
black) wheeling up into the air several times.  I also practically ran
over a turkey vulture at one point - I don't know which of us was more
startled, it or me.  It was on the other side of one of the wooden
impoundment structures, and did not notice me until I stepped on the
structure and was about 3 feet from it.  We both freaked when it took
off!  This part of the impoundment has LOTS of very large, very trapped
fish (see below for more).  I also scared away what I believe was a
solitary sandpiper from a mud flat before turning around.

On my way around the impoundment loop from the other side, I figured out
what was causing all of the vulture activity when I set a flock of at
least 50, quite possibly more, into the air.  There were numbers of dead
fish - a passerby said they were carp - concentrated in one area of the
impoundment, and the vultures were going to town.  It was quite
something, and a heck of a note to end my day on, as I didn't see
anything new (other than a killdeer) from that point until I got to my
car.

Amalie Tuffin
Durham, NC