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

stormbirds at Roanoke Rapids and Gaston Lakes, Sept.19-21,2003




The eye of Isabel passed near or over Roanoke Rapids Lake.


On Friday September 19, 2003, Elisa Enders visited the dam there and the Gaston Dam as well as the Thelma and Vultare boat landings and Eaton's Ferry bridge, making a clockwise loop around the lakes, starting at about 7:30 AM. On Friday afternoon Elisa, Mary and Frank Enders visted the RR dam, and on Sunday noon, Elisa, Franz and Mary checked out the RR dam.
Basically there were lots of seabirds at the dams, early th first day,and by Sunday everything had gone. Coastal birds were seen heading downstream on both visits on Friday, mainly scores of terns. Wilson's Petrels remained on Friday but were gone by Sunday.


The best bird was a White-tailed Tropicbird seen by Elisa early on Friday. It was soaring over the norhern corner of the lake by the dam, presumably subsequently going downstream.
A Manx Shearwater was sitting on the water at the Gaston Dam.
3 Storm-petrels were at each lake's dam in the morning; and six, which we decided must be Wilson's in the PM at RR dam. These mostly sat on the water in the southeast corner of the lake, within 600 feet of the corner. Possibly some or all were Band-rumped Petrels.


Other rare species included an immature Black Skimmer, a few Laughing Gulls, several Caspian Terns, over a hundred Royal Terns (most counted going downstream over the RR dam), tens of Sandwich Terns (some going downstream with the Royals), scores of Forster's Tern (some flocks seen going downstream), one Arctic Tern (perched at Thelma), some Common Terns, and 1-2 Bridled Terns.

Most of this is a secondhand report. Elisa may write in to correct stuff. She lives in Portsmouth, VA, and there was heavy damage there; she was ready to visit the RR dam because she had evacuated from Portsmouth.
My son in Roanoke Rapids got cable (my computer Internet access) back only two days ago and my first post of this failed.


I guess the seabirds stayed in the 40-mile wide eye, and settled down as the storm broke up near the Virginia border or just hunkered down in the storm when they found lakes. I guess the petrels moved coastal at night; they can find breeding islands in the dark, so why not the ocean at night?
Elisa was worried they were to die on the lakes.


There must have been lots more seabirds inland that birders did not report/find, considering the stream of terns going downstream. I have seen Royal Terns as far up the Roanoke River as the US 258 bridge, but they are unusual there, some 20 miles downstream from the dam.

-Frank Enders, Halifax, NC

_________________________________________________________________
Share your photos without swamping your Inbox. Get Hotmail Extra Storage today! http://join.msn.com/?PAGE=features/es