Morehead City CBC--Lifer Weather!!

["John Fussell" <jfuss@bmd.clis.com>]

I've read the comments of a couple of participants on inland counts this
past Sunday complaining about the weather.  Trust me--your weather was
certainly nice compared to the weather on the Morehead CBC.  About 6am, we
were greeted with really violent thunderstorms and torrential
rains--probably a couple of inches fell in about two hours.  I was driving
on US 70 at 7am when a lightning strike hit a transformer next to the road
right when I went past.  It was only about 50' from me.  When the lightning
hit, I was temporarily blinded.  Then there was a fireworks like shower
coming down all around me.  Wow!  During an earlier thunderstorm, Jim
O'Donnell was waiting outside an automatic gate which doesn't usually open
until 6am, hoping that it would open early.  There was a flash of lightning
and the gate opened!!

The winds during the day were about 20-40mph, southerly in the early
morning, and working around to west in the afternoon.  At least it was very
mild early (about 70), but by sunset, the wind chill value was pretty
vicious.

Needless to say, birding conditions were less than ideal.  Looking for small
landbirds was work, real work.  I understand that the ocean was nothing but
white water as far as one could see.

We ended up with about 140 species, which I think is really good
considering.  Our best birds were a White-breasted Nuthatch (new to count
last year, there is apparently now a small resident population in the
extreme northern fringe of the count circle), 4 Wild Turkeys (have been in
the count circle a few years, but this is the first for count day), and 2
tardy Sandwich Terns (about 10 days late).  We also had several
Ruby-throated Hummingbirds.

The strangest sighting that I heard about was a Herring Gull persisently
pursuing a Merlin!

Special commendations are due for Jim O'Donnell who was owling at 5:30am
(although I have to wonder why) and the five birders who covered Bird Shoal
(and who got caught by the last thunderstorm of the morning).

The last count in which we had winds like this (up to 40mph) was the 1978
count.  I remember that on that day there was a Wright Brothers celebration
and a planned commemorative flight and that was the case again this year.
Note to myself--DO NOT PLAN A COUNT FOR THE DAY HAVING A WRIGHT BROTHERS
CELEBRATION!

                                     John Fussell
                                     Morehead City, NC
                                      jfuss@bmd.clis.com