Volume 14 Number 4

August 2001

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"Acquainting folks to the wild birds and birding life of Harford County"

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CONTENTS

Annual Picnic at Capa Field
'01 - '02 Membership Renewal
Summer Socialites were California Dreamin'
Conservation at Perryman Woods
Calendar of Events
May Count 2001
Summary of Executive Committee Meeting: July 10, 2001
Birdwatchers
Vacation Essays
Computer Birding
Harford Birdlife May 16 - July 15, 2001
Field Trip Reports
FIELD TRIPS August - November 2001
PICNIC RESERVATION FORM

The Harford Bird Club's annual picnic will take place at Capa Field in the Edgewood Area of Aberdeen Proving Ground on Saturday, September 29. The picnic gives old and new members alike a chance to meet and socialize at this wonderful and pleasant waterfront location. And please, don`t forget to bring all of your summer birding stories and experiences to share.

Tom Congersky, Randy Robertson and crew will prepare all of your picnic favorites. Additional foods will be potato salad, cole slaw, baked beans, corn-on-the-cob, crab soup [yummy!], rolls, watermelon and cake. All utensils and paper goods will be provided. Do bring the beverage of your choice. Those who wish to attend the picnic and bring their own food are welcome to do so.

This year's picnic will be held on Saturday, September 29 from 2:00 to 6:00 p.m. Food will be served at 3:00 p.m. There will be a bird walk later in the afternoon. Please return the reservation form at the back of the newsletter by Friday, September 14.

Directions to Capa Field are as follows: From Bel Air and the I-95 interchange, take MD Route 24 south and proceed through the military entrance. Continue straight through the first traffic signal and turn right at approximately 1 mile at the 4-way stop sign. Follow the signs to Capa Field and the pavilion. *Do obey the posted speed limits*

If you have any questions, please call Tom Congersky at (410) 676-6489 or Randy Robertson at (410) 273-9029

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Annual membership dues are now due for the club year from September 1, 2001 through August 31, 2002. This year the membership form has again been combined with the return envelope. Please fill out the form, enclose your check made payable to HARFORD MOS and mail it to our treasurer, Joyce Gorsuch. We would like to have all dues paid by November 1, 2001. You may pick up your membership card at the picnic or at the November dinner meeting. *Please do not send dues with the picnic reservation form*.

Go to the online membership form.

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The Summer Social at the Anita Leight Estuary Center was enjoyed by about 40 club members. A raffle was held with giveaways of bird seed, an Estuary shirt, as well as some other items. And as if this could really happen, but, Les Eastman actually won his own hat - well sort of, but you would have to of been there to understand. It was a hoot! The evenings' entertainment was an excursion through southern California, presented by Spike Updegrove and assisted by Russ Kovach. Spike careened us through southern Cal. with his own on-board video photographer. We were jutted down desert "washboard", trekked to summit ridges, taken out to sea, and dragged through the brush (literally!). Spike delivered pure, raw adventure.

Carol Flora presented the annual Harford Bird Club awards. Birders of the Year were Hammond and Thirza Brandt for their consistent reporting of interesting birds. Bird of the Year was the Rough-legged Hawk seen at BGE's Perryman Woods. Mr. John Strawbridge of BGE was present to except the award. Rookie of the Year went to Dana Burrough for her enthusiasm. Volunteers of the Year include Rick Cheicante ,Lorna Wortman, and John and Linda Ireland. -Carol Flora and R. L. Cheicante

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This year's Harford Bird Club awards were announced at the Summer Social on July 20. I was away at that time, but I would like to talk about one award in particular, given for Bird of the Year. The bird was the Rough-legged Hawk spotted during one of many forays onto the wildlife-rich Perryman peninsula led by Field Trip Chairperson Dave Powell. The property the bird club uses is owned by Baltimore Gas & Electric, The Constellation Energy Group, and is often referred to as Perryman Woods.

In recent years this property has become known as "the golf course site." I feel I can inform the club that the proposed golf course, which would have destroyed the natural, permeable soils of roughly 250 acres and cleared about 20 acres of woodland, is "off the table," meaning, it is no longer a proposal Harford County government is pursuing. Even though the future of the site is not yet written on a conservationist's stone, I feel that Constellation Energy will, in the not too distant future, be ready to place a conservation easement on this wonderful bit of land where wild birds thrive.

Last February, John Bernstein, executive director of the Maryland Environmental Trust, and myself met with Frank Wankon, community relations director for Constellation Energy and the Perryman site manager to tour the property and to talk about the prospects for conserving the land. The mood was positive and I believe conservation will get the nod at some point. Meanwhile, there will be some expansion of the present generating plant, but the expansion will occur between the front of the plant and the road, and will not affect the woodland or fields to the back.

When this property is conserved, it will protect some significant natural features. The woodland is referred to as a "flatwoods," a deciduous woodland with vernal pools, only present in the county's coastal plain. With all the development in this region, our flatwoods are greatly fragmented and becoming rare. The Perryman woods is believed to be the best remaining example of this type of woodland in the county.

When I first began to talk to county officials about protecting this property, and saying no to the golf course, I asked bird club field trip leaders to tell me what birds they had seen at this site, and the mentions were notable. Among the finds: Mark Johnson found breeding Kentucky Warblers, eagles, Killdeer and Horned Larks, as well as some Upland Chorus Frogs he said were uncommon in Central Maryland. David Webb said N. Bobwhite had been routinely seen there before the generating plant was built, and that the area was good for Eastern Meadowlark and Grasshopper Sparrow. Of course, this is a favorite bird club spot for seeing the American Woodcock, and in addition to the Rough-legged Hawk, Dave Powell has seen pheasant, Short-eared Owl, White-crowned and A. Tree Sparrows, and Bobolinks "in numbers you do not see elsewhere in the county." Common Snipe and Northern Harrier were also reported.

While I can't make any promises about the future of this property, I am feeling pretty positive about it, and at Jean Fry's urging, decided to inform the bird club of my current conclusions, even though I cannot represent any official position of Constellation Energy or the county government at this time. If any of you have questions or want to discuss this further, please feel free to call me at 410 692-9741 or email me at bowerspub@hotmail.com. - Debbie Bowers

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The North American Migratory Bird Day or "May Count" occurred during relatively pleasant weather in Harford County this year. A total of 23 observers saw a combined total of 148 species and 8264 individuals. Nine ADC map blocks (out of 32) were covered, with most of the covered area in the south, north, and east, respectively. Aberdeen Proving Ground was covered most completely, with the area in the Susquehanna State Park, Conowingo, Pylesville, and other northeastern areas covered also. No data were available from most of central and western Harford County.

Since this week in May occurs during one of the most active migration periods of the year, species totals are often quite high. This year, however, it seemed that many species were not as numerous than in previous years. Few species of shorebirds were recorded, as were ducks and herons and especially egrets (no Great Egrets reported). Few warblers, as compared to other previous years, were reported also. No Nashville, Tennessee, or Wilson's Warblers were sighted, and only 5 Black-throated Green Warblers were reported. Blue-winged Warblers were also rare (2 reported), and no Pine Warblers sighted. Common warblers were Yellow (90) and Common Yellowthroats (137). A total of 26 species of warblers were sighted.

More Eastern Bluebirds (110) were sighted than Northern Mockingbirds (74), and Wood Thrush were more common than Carolina Chickadees (108 vs. 57). White-eyed just edged out Warbling Vireos (51 vs. 22) with Red-eyed Vireos way ahead (151). Other species of interest include a total of 14 Pileated Woodpeckers that were recorded. The wonder team of Webb and Ziolkowski found 1 Chuck-wills widow and 49 Whip-poor-wills at APGEA, thanks to their almost around-the-clock efforts. Les Eastman recorded the only Northern Goshawk, and Northern Bobwhites were only found at Aberdeen Proving Ground (20); 5 Wild Turkey were seen county-wide.

Thanks go out to all the observers who made my job easy by tallying their totals in our spreadsheet format. Next year, a more standardized format will be used to help automate the compilation even more. Anyone wanting more information or wanting to count next year please call Mark Johnson at 410-692-5978. The May Count occurs on the second Saturday in May (May 11 next year) and you can count anywhere you like. Best of all it is free. Just please call to coordinate to minimize overlap. Observers this year include: David Webb, David Ziolkowski, Jean and Larry Fry, Deidre DeRoia, Susanne Procell, Rick Cheicante, Dave Larkin, Vita Kencel, Bill Pfingsten, Les Eastman, Scott Guzewich, Dave Powell, Duvall Sollers, Lisa Sollers, Glenn Randers-Pehrson, Christopher B. Randers-Pehrson, K. L. Updegrove (and four unnamed students). - Mark Johnson

See the final May Count results here.

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• The Education Committee received a $250 grant from the MOS to use for presentations.
• The new web page is up and running.
• John Wortman will be given posthumous recognition at the State Convention in August.
• A memorial for John Wortman is being discussed.
• The Harford County Bird Checklist is still being revised.
• Club by-laws are also being reviewed for revision.
• Dennis Kirkwood will oversee the reporting of bird counts.
• Dennis K. will write-up official descriptions for annual awards.
• A proposal was made to recognize Sue Hesselton's contributions to Harford County birding.

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Don't forget, Wrenderings is always available for Harford Bird Club members to contribute and share vacation reports, birding essays, poems, and other pieces of written work. - R. L. Cheicante Jr.

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The Harford Bird Club web site now has its own domain name! The URL for the new web site is now http://www.harfordbirdclub.org. The old site at harfordhasit.com will still be operational for a while, but it will not be updated anymore. The new site includes a search utility that has been added to the menu. This should make finding the secondary pages easier. Also included with the site is the capability of setting up simple mailing lists. I have set up 2 lists.

The first is the Harford Bird Club Information mailing list. This mailing list is for the dissemination of information and announcements pertaining to the Harford Bird Club to its members. All Harford Bird Club members who have an email address should subscribe to this list. To join this list, send an email to subscribe-info@harfordbirdclub.org. You do not need to put anything in the Subject or body of the message. You will receive an email back welcoming you to the list.

The second list is the harford birds mailing list. This mailing list is for the discussion of birds in Harford County, MD and reporting notable bird sightings. Anyone interested in what birds are being seen in Harford County should subscribe to this list. To join this list, send an email to subscribe-harfordbirds@harfordbirdclub.org. You do not need to put anything in the Subject or body of the message. You will receive an email back welcoming you to the list.

I intend for these two mailing lists to replace the email lists I now maintain manually. Instead of someone sending an email to me, which I then send to the appropriate list, that person can now send it directly. Please sign up for one or both lists now so that I can phase out the manual system. If you have any problems subscribing, please let me know and I can do it for you.

If you have any questions about the new web site or the mailing lists, don't hesitate to ask. My email address is webmaster@harfordbirdclub.org. - Les Eastman

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There were several good warbler sightings in the early part of this time period, and then there seems to have been a lull in the reports. Usually from late June until mid-August is the slow time in birding. Shorebird migration picks up the slack in August. This column contains a few reports from early May that were received after the last one was completed. Guess I was too fast for everyone. Please don't forget to jot down your observations; I don't want Larry's and mine to dominate the writing.

A Double-crested Cormorant was present at Lake Mitten in Pylesville on 6/26 (JLF). This was only the second sighting in twenty-five years at that site. RC spotted a Great Egret at Lakeside on 7/13. There seems to have been a paucity of Green Herons in our area, but one was seen at Lake Mitten on 5/24 and 6/1, and three were observed there on 7/2 (JLF).

DP reported seeing a Long-tailed Duck at Lapidum on 4/12. LF saw a female Wood Duck with eight ducklings at the bridge over Broad Creek on Heaps School Road on 6/24.

MJ saw an adult Cooper's Hawk being mobbed by crows at his house in Baldwin on 7/7. LF spotted a Northern Harrier soaring near Lake Mitten on 6/8 and 7/1.

DK had a new yard bird when a Wild Turkey passed through his yard on 5/5 and again on 5/9. One of my neighbors had a Wild Turkey in his back yard on Ridge Road during the second week of July. Now I'm waiting for one to visit us for a new yard bird.

A Solitary Sandpiper was seen by RC at Harford Glen on 7/13. Seven Spotted Sandpipers were found by LF at Lake Mitten on 5/24, and one was seen there on 7/1.

Five Least Terns were reported by DP at Bush River near Route 40 on 6/3, and they continued at Lakeside on 7/13 (RC).

DB found a Yellow-billed Cuckoo in Street on 5/9, and RC saw one at Harford Glen on 6/9.

LE sent the following update on his Ruby-throated Hummingbirds at his home near Havre de Grace on 6/19: "The hummer wars have started at my house. Up until now, hummingbird activity has been pretty slow, with only occasional interactions between adult males, and the birds have been skittish. When the Japanese honeysuckle started blooming recently, activity at the feeders almost ceased entirely. Suddenly, in the last two days, activity has increased dramatically. Both last night and this morning, I could see at least six birds at once jostling over the feeders on my back deck and I could hear even more. They also allow close approach now with one adult male even landing to feed on a feeder I was holding. The first immature birds have also appeared with (what I presume to be) newly fledged males clashing with the adults. The numbers should keep increasing until about the end of August. It's great fun sitting in the gazebo with squadrons of hummers buzzing around your head but it can be quite disconcerting to those who aren't expecting it. They think they are being attacked by giant bees." If you haven't been to the Hummingbird Happy Hour that the Eastmans host in August, make it a point to go this year. They devour many pounds of sugar each summer (the hummingbirds, that is).

There were only two reports in the flycatcher category. MJ caught and banded the first Least Flycatcher at Eden Mill on 5/14. RC reported a Willow Flycatcher at Harford Glen on 6/9.

Tree Swallows, Barn Swallows, and Bank Swallows were found at APG by RC on 7/14.

DW had three Swainson's Thrush and one Veery for good yardbirds at his home in Webster Village near Havre de Grace on 5/20. RC had a Brown Thrasher visiting his Bel Air feeder for most of June.

There are some wonderful warbler reports starting with a Tennessee and a male Bay-breasted seen by DW at his home in Webster Village on 5/20. RC had a super day on 5/18 at Rock Run Mill when he tallied the following: Wilson's, Canada, Worm-eating, Kentucky, Cerulean, Louisiana Waterthrush, Black-throated Blue, Black-throated Green, Magnolia, Northern Parula, Ovenbird, Yellow, Common Yellowthroat, and American Redstart. Way to go! RC also reported a Hooded continuing to be seen in Creswell on 7/13, while DB in Street had a singing Hooded from 7/8 until 7/12. DB found a nest of Ovenbirds on Rocks Ridge from 5/30 until 6/3 when they were found by a predator. RC heard Ovenbirds calling at Harford Glen on 7/13. JLF had an Ovenbird that called relentlessly all day long in the woods above their home on Ridge Road in Pylesville from 5/16 until 5/24, through most of the month of June, and into early July.

On 6/23 at Eden Mill RC heard a Yellow-breasted Chat calling and had an excellent view of the bird. He also heard Prairie Warblers in the cedar fields and Worm-eating on the wooded slopes along Deer Creek that same day. LF saw a Yellow-breasted Chat on 6/18, 6/19, and 6/22 at the bridge at Broad Creek on Heaps School Road. JF was not so lucky!

MJ reported sighting the first Bobolinks at his home in Baldwin on 5/12. DK had a flock of about one hundred Bobolinks at his father's farm and his lane in White Hall from 4/29 through 5/17. On 5/26 RC found two Rusty Blackbirds along the bank of the Susquehanna River at Rock Run.

On 7/13 RC saw a Blue Grosbeak at Creswell. On his big warbler day (5/18) RC also spotted a Scarlet Tanager, a female Rose-breasted Grosbeak, and both orioles at Rock Run Mill. Scarlet Tanagers have been much more vocal than I remember from other years and have been calling daily in the woods above our home on Ridge Road.

Contributors to this column were: Debbie Bowers (DB), Rick Cheicante (RC), Les Eastman (LE), Jean and Larry Fry (JLF), Mark Johnson (MJ), Dennis Kirkwood (DK), Dave Powell (DP), and Dave Webb(DW). Thanks for your submissions.

The next deadline for submissions is September 16 for the period of July 16 to September 15. Please send your sightings to Jean Fry. E-mail address is: ffryjl@aol.com. Mailing address is: 1202 Ridge Road, Pylesville, MD 21132. Phone: 410-452-8539. Don't take a vacation from birding. Send me your observations.

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Five persons went to the Broad Creek Scout Camp on June 8, 2001 in search of Whip-poor-wills and owls. The trip started at about 7:30 p.m. while it was still daylight. When we walked down the road just outside the camp, we were amused and delighted to watch four fledgling and two adult House Wrens taking prolonged dust baths at the edge of the road. Farther down into the wooded area along the road, we had good looks at two male Scarlet Tanagers and an Acadian Flycatcher. As darkness approached we proceeded toward the gazebo above the lake. Although we listened and played recordings, we did not hear or see any owls or Whip- poor-wills. We did see some scouts apparently being initiated into the Order of the Arrow. They were lighting firepots and had taken a vow of silence. A total of 26 species was seen, not counting the scouts. - Jean Fry

On July 15th. seven of us made the trip to Bombay Hook. An atypical July day , cool with little humidity anticipated a pleasant day. Our first stop were the ponds on Delaware Rte 9 which had an abundance of shorebirds; Semipalmated sandpipers , Western sandpipers (a few), Short and Long (a few) Billed Dowitchers, American avocets, Least sandpipers, Black-necked stilts etc. Herons and egrets were also plentiful including an immature Little blue heron. At Bombay Hook Raymond pool had little water but large flocks of peeps most notable several Wilson's Phalaropes. The other ponds, in particular Bear Swamp, had an abundance of water but few birds. Flying low over fields on either side of the road to Allee House were huge flocks of swallows, Barn, Bank and Rough winged. At the Allee House were had good views of Blue Grosbeaks . All in all a good day made more pleasant by the absence of mosquitoes.- Dave Larkin

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Here are the Harford Bird Club field trips for the next few weeks. If you would like further information about a particular field trip, please contact Dave Powell.

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Please return to Tom Congersky at 2418 Sycamore Lane, Edgewood, MD 21040 
by Friday, Sept. 14, 2001.

		__________ Number of adults ( at $11.00 each )
		__________ Number of children 12 and under ( at $5.00 each )

		Make checks payable to Harford County MOS.

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			 Print your name(s)

Include address and phone number if you would like transportation to the
picnic.
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Please send any comments to Les Eastman.
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