This weekend was a great one for seeing plenty of birds (and a few other little critters)!
Here is an update containing the highlights from the end of last week and the weekend!
Thursday, 9/19
On Thursday we had good cool weather and a steady flight throughout the day. There were 673 raptors in total, composed of a good mix of the different species we see here. There were 71 Broad-winged Hawks, 191 Sharp-shinned, 54 Cooper’s Hawks, 161 American Kestrels, 80 Merlins, and 88 Ospreys.
Juvenile Red-Tailed Hawk (Megan Murante)
Merlin (Megan Murante)
Friday, 9/20
The raptor flight in the morning was a little slow, but thankfully there was a nice group of Common Yellow-throats that kept us entertained. They were very close to the platform, hopping around finding insects in the dog fennel field. The accipiter flight picked up in the afternoon, and we ended up having 135 Sharp-shinned Hawks and 20 Cooper’s Hawks. We had a few very interesting pairs of visitors on this day. Two wheel bugs were on the platform in the afternoon, and two Turkey Vultures landed at the same time on the T-pole close to the platform.
Common Yellow-throated Warbler (Megan Murante)
Pair of Turkey Vultures on the T-pole (Megan Murante)
Mating Wheel Bugs (Megan Murante)
Saturday, 9/21
On the weekly Saturday morning Nature walk, some of the birds we saw included a Northern Flicker, a Red-eyed Vireo, a Black and White Warbler, a Swainson’s Thrush, and a Pine Warbler. A boy scouts troop joined me for the walk, and they were very eager to find the birds rustling high up in the trees. In addition to listening for and spotting the birds, they were able to help me find a praying mantis, several Fowlers Toads and Spiny backed Orb-weaver spiders. It is great when we have groups coming to the platform and participating in our programs!
Red-eyed Vireo (Megan Murante)
Swainson’s Thrush (Megan Murante)
Pine Warbler (Megan Murante)
Sunday, 9/22
We had a really good flight of American Kestrels and Sharp-shinned hawks on Sunday. There were 123 kestrels and 147 sharp-shins. Some of the birds were really low on this day, providing good views. We also saw a long-tailed Skipper, which isn’t very common on the Eastern Shore. Lately our hummingbird feeder has been attracting more than just hummingbirds. The Cloudless Sulfurs are confusing the hummingbirds by taking their spots on the feeder. In addition to the butterflies, titmice have been visiting them as well! We were finally able to take a photo of the titmice that have been drinking the water from the ant traps above the feeders!
Sharp-shinned Hawk (Megan Murante)
Long-tailed Skipper (Megan Murante)
Cloudless Sulfur and Ruby-Throated Hummingbird (Megan Murante)
Tufted Titmice (Megan Murante)
Titmouse taking a sip from the ant trap (Megan Murante)
A now quenched titmouse (Megan Murante)
-Megan
