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Belated Falls Lake Report (9/8/02)



This is a belated birding report from Falls Lake for anyone considering a
trip in that direction this weekend.

Sunday, September 8, 2002, was a pretty good day for shorebirds and raptors.
Les Todd and I spent much of the day birding some of our regular haunts on
Falls Lake. We met at 7:30am at the Hickory Hill Boat Ramp. Unfortunately,
the fog at that time was too thick for us to determine water levels or the
amount of exposed mudflats. Based on the experiences of past years, and on
Les' visit to the area the previous weekend, we decided to head to Ellerbe
Creek (the area to the  NW of the I-85 bridge). Also worked into our
calculation to go there was the thought that by the time we walked out to
the area with the best potential for productive mud flats, the fog would
have lifted sufficiently to offer good visibility. Fortunately, our
instincts were rewarded with a great morning of birding.

A partial list of species seen is listed below, and walking directions to
the area are given after the list of birds. This list only includes birds
seen along Ellerbe Creek.

Little Blue Heron        (1)
Great Egret              (178)
Great Blue Heron       (78)
   (The waders were seen all together in a single pool/mudflat.)

Virginia Rail               (1)  flushed twice on our hike through the grass

Turkey Vulture           (7)
Black Vulture             (1)
Northern Harrier         (1)
Bald Eagle                 (1)
Cooper's Hawk           (1)
Red-shouldered Hawk  (1)
Red-tailed Hawk         (1)
Merlin                       (1) exceptional looks at this bird, both in
flight and perched

Semipalmated Plover         (9)
Killdeer                           (3)
Lesser Yellowlegs             (65)
Spotted Sandpiper           (1)
Sanderling                      (3)
Semipalmated Sandpiper    (45)
Western Sandpiper           (75)
Least Sandpiper              (185)
White-rumped Sandpiper   (37)
Baird's Sandpiper             (1)
Pectoral Sandpiper           (80)
Short-billed Dowitcher     (5)
Stilt Sandpiper                (12)

Upon our return to Hickory Hill, we discovered water levels much higher than
previous weeks, limited mud flats, and very few shorebirds. Cheek Road
bridge, in fact, was not even worth a stop.

To reach the Ellerbe Creek mudflats: from Durham, drive north on I-85 and
exit onto Redwood Road where you will loop around going underneath the
interstate (this is the opposite direction from Hickory Hill boat ramp). In
about a mile you will reach a point where Redwood Road comes to a 90 degree
turn to the left. Here you will see a small parking area next to a cleared
field encompassed by a white wooden fence. Park in the small parking area
beside the fence. Walk straight through an obvious and cleared path through
the hedgerow for a short distance until you come to the railroad tracks.
Turn right and walk along the railroad tracks. Just before you get to the
railroad trestle (it is here that the railroad tracks cross Ellerbe Creek),
turn right and walk down the stone embankment and across the extensive open
area (wet, grassy fields). Walk underneath the power lines and continue
walking north until you see the mudflats.

If you go, you should be prepared for a long walk, much of it through thick
grasses which are chest high in places (and that is chest high on Les and
me, both of whom are over 6 feet tall). The walk can be challenging. In
addition, be prepared for wet feet, as this whole area is usually under
water. On a positive note, Les and I did not encounter any areas of soft,
deep mud (and by deep, I mean where one might sink into the mud more that
2-3 inches).

Good luck and good birding,

Bert Fisher
Durham, NC