Today was wet to say the least. Despite pouring rain and high winds for most of the day, I made my way back and forth between the Magee Boardwalk and parts of Ottawa NWR. The boardwalk held most of the same species as it did yesterday, although I noted fewer numbers of most, which is to be expected considering the weather. However, I did get a Wilson's Warbler near the east end of the boardwalk, around marker 23, which I did not have yesterday. This, and my lifer Yellow-headed Blackbird (a female, which I got on Krause Road by Ottawa NWR) proved to be the biggest highlights of the day for me. Despite the lousy weather, I still managed to crack the 80 species barrier for the day. In addition, I saw two Mink. I also ran into a couple of friends from Moore County again this afternoon (I saw them yesterday too), as well as a fellow I birded a lot with in Florida during the Space Coast festival in January. Listened to a great talk by Kenn Kaufman this evening on the patterns of bird migration. It really helped give some insight to the distribution of many of these neotropical migrants during the spring and fall, and why some species are more prone to vagrancy than others.
If this rain moves out tonight like it's supposed to, then the birding tomorrow could shape up to be great since it is supposed to be a bit warmer as well. Hopefully there will be some turnover in the migrants that have been around, and some new things will come in. Tomorrow I'll meet up with Mecklenburg Audubon and check out the boardwalk in the AM, and possibly drop by BSBO to check out a banding demo. They have a huge bird banding program during migration here, in which they band thousands of birds every spring. I plan on heading to Ottawa NWR and Metzger Marsh in the afternoon to search for shorebirds (white-rumped, bairds, turnstones, SB dowitcher, etc. that have been seen), some recently observed American White Pelicans, along with waterfowl and more open country birds such as Grasshopper Sparrow. Since I don't have a lecture to attent tomorrow evening, I plan on heading to the BSBO's Gallager trail about 20:00 to check out the often-talked about woodcock displays. Off to bed very early tonight, sleep deprivation is kicking in already...
About Me
- Mike McCloy
- I'm Mike McCloy, a recent graduate from the Natural Resources Conservation and Management program at Western Carolina University who currently works as an Ecologist for an environmental consulting firm in Lawrenceville, Georgia. I have dabbled in seasonal/temporary ornithological field work through the lower 48 states in locations as diverse as Washington, North Dakota, South Dakota, Colorado, Missouri, Tennessee, and North Carolina. I was raised in a small town in eastern North Carolina and have been an avid birder and curious naturalist since I was a wee little chap of about five years old. Unsurprisingly, birding is the primary motivation behind most of my travels. However, I am becoming increasingly fascinated with other cultural aspects of international travel as and aim to incorporate more of these experiences into my travels and writings in the future. In addition, I hope to use this blog to inspire other travelers (particularly birders and nature enthusiasts) to pursue their dreams both professionally and along the road as well as provide helpful trips and tricks for traveling on a shoestring budget (as I often seem to do!).
What a great day of birding in spite of the rain! I wish that I could have shared your views of the Wilsons Warbler and Yellow-headed Blackbird (among all of the other bird species). I enjoyed seeing your posted photos very much.
ReplyDeleteWell, tomorrow is appears that you will be seeing many new species as shorebirds at Metzger Marsh. Good luck there and also seeing the woodcocks along Gallager Trail. Do you wish that your bird banding internship was here instead of Missouri? (only kidding). Say hello to the folks of Mecklenburg Audubon for me. You need to fill me in on what you learned about bird vagrancy the next time I see you.
Your Dad