Volume 17 Number 4 |
July - August 2004 |
Our annual picnic will be Saturday September 11 from 2 p.m. to 6 p.m. at Broad Creek Boys Scout Camp. We will be in Camp Saffran Pavilion. Once again Tom Congersky and Randy Robertson will serve up their delicious roast beef and corn on the cob. The baton for Jean Fry's favorite crab soup has been passed to Eileen Fry. If you would like to volunteer to make a salad please contact Carol Flora (410-638-8220). If desserts are your thing, contact Jean Wheeler (410-879-7424). Utensils and paper goods will be provided. Bring the beverage of your choice. The picnic is always a fun event. We will have our usual raffle and a post picnic bird walk. This is a great location and we could find some good birds. For directions to the Camp see the HBC Field Notes on page 3. Please send your reservation form to Eileen Nack by Friday September 3.
The summer has flown by! I hope you have been enjoying the out of doors and have been refreshed by a fun summer vacation. Please share your birding adventures with the Club by submitting a brief narrative to Wrenderings editor Rick Cheicante for publication in the next newsletter.
I know many of you have been out and working in your Breeding Bird Atlas territories. I have been totally dismayed at the development in my area that includes parts of Bel Air and Forest Hill. There is so little undisturbed habitat, just bits and pieces. We are fortunate in this county to have an organization that is attempting to preserve habitat from development, The Harford Land Trust. This volunteer organization is attempting to do what the Nature Conservancy does, only on a local level. It only seems natural that our Club and the Harford Land Trust, which both have an interest in preserving habitat for plants and wildlife, would consider a partnership that is mutually benefiting. The President of the Harford Land Trust is Bird Club member Ann Helton. Our long-time member Dr. Dennis Kirkwood is also a member of their board. Please read Dennis' article describing The Land Trust and his proposal for raising our awareness of this local organization that is working to preserve at least some of the county for nature. - Jean Wheeler
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Since its inception in 1991, The Harford Land Trust has helped preserve significant tracts of land by establishing conservation easements and, when necessary, by purchasing property. Its mission is to keep Harford's natural beauty and agricultural heritage intact while advocating for wise land use and a conservation ethic. This year the Harford Bird Club will partner with the Trust to promote each other's interest to the general public. We will schedule field trips to properties owned by the Trust and other properties that they have been instrumental in preserving. Each of these field trips will be specially designated in our field trip agenda. Bird Club members play an active role in the Trust as the current president is Ann Helton and Dennis Kirkwood is one of the members of the volunteer Board of Directors. Annual membership to the Trust is $25 per individual or family. Donations toward their mission are always appreciated. For more information, check their website at landtrust@harfordhasit.com or call David Miller, Executive Director at 410-836-2103. - Dennis Kirkwood
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Annual membership dues are now due for the club year running from September 1, 2004 through August 31, 2005. 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, 2004. You may pick up your membership card at the November meeting or it will be mailed to you. *Please do not send dues with the picnic reservation.
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The compiler of the Mid-Winter Count regretfully acknowledges that the data from the party of Jean Wheeler, Eileen Frey, and Marjie Heagy was initially not reported in the results due to a communications error. They counted in the Perryman area. Their contributions increased the total number of individuals counted from 10589 to 12320 and increased the total number of species from 81 to 84. They were the only party to report Northern Bobwhite, Gray Catbird, and Ruby-crowned Kinglet. Kudos go out to these fine bird-watchers for beating the bushes in the Perryman area and for letting us know when their contributions were not reported. Thanks! - Mark Johnson
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The number of Canada Geese in North America dropped off dramatically early in July. The decrease is not the result of disease, natural disaster, and mass reproductive failure, but rather the 45th Supplement to the American Ornithologists' Union Checklist. The AOU Checklist is the governing document which all local checklists follow in determining common bird names, and taxonomic order. Based on ornithological research, the AOU also dictates the species "splits and lumps" that drive us crazy every couple of years or so. The 45th Supplement has nearly two dozen changes, but the only one that directly impacts our local avifauna is the decision to split Canada Goose into two species - Cackling Goose and Canada Goose. Around here Canada Geese will still be the overwhelmingly more abundant of the two species, as Cackling Geese tend to winter near the gulf coast of Texas and Mexico. But if in the past you ever came upon a large flock of Canadas feeding in a winter cornfield, and noticed one or two that were smaller than the others, then you may have been looking at a Cackling Goose. In the next issue of Wrenderings we'll include more ID tips for this new addition to our local birds. - Dave Webb
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The mind lives on the heart. - Emily Dickinson
Before I even departed for Hog Island, Maine I had so much to learn. As an English professor come late to the study of natural history, I've been playing catch up for three years now, birding with experts, hiking with naturalists. But mostly I've been reading. It's what I do best, so it's what I did to prepare for my trip six states north. I read about the geologic events that created the rocky points that jutted out of the water along the state's southern coast, how their thin soil now supported few trees outside of spruce and evergreens. I read about the tidal pool homes of various rockweed, arthropods, sea stars, eels, crabs and other shellfish. I read about Hog Island's human history of hosting pigs for early settlers' food supply when it was too cold to harvest fish and lobster and the rocky land prevented successful farming. I read about Mabel Loomis Todd who summered on this 333 acre spot of forest and determined to leave it to a conservation group who would ensure its preservation. I read about John Wortman, birder and naturalist, whose memorial scholarship had been bestowed on me to attend this Natural History of the Coast of Maine camp run by Audubon Maine. Lastly, I read directions and maps, loaded my car, and headed north.
The eleven-hour journey gave me much anticipation time. From the information packet I sensed I was going to love this whole week; the What To Bring list indicated nothing electric, no hair dryers, radios or TVs. A whole week free of references to reality shows, rock celebrities and the latest hair-do trends? True nirvana for this anti-pop culture soul. All the words of great naturalist writers rang through my thoughts. I realized I was not striking rough camp in the wilderness, but I did feel I was going, as Henry David Thoreau wrote, "to learn to reawaken and keep ourselves awake, not by mechanical aids, but by an infinite expectation of the dawn." I was looking forward to expertly led walks, lectures, expeditions and good old camp camaraderie, grown-up style. I had no idea how truly unprepared I was to have my expectations surpassed.
The hilly terrain, light fog and sea air welcomed me to the dip from the mainland to the boat dock. As my bags were loaded onto the transport boat, I received my name tag and peered through a scope at my first life bird of the stay, a Black Guillemot, calmly bobbing among the lobster trap buoys. Minutes later the first arriving group of campers boarded the Puffin IV only to disembark a few hundred yards away. Sheets and towels all around and we tramped off to various accommodations, mine being the distant Crows' Nest, an open cabin slowly filling with single women. After our first of many fresh, homemade dinners, all 43 campers were immersed in our first activity: preparing various rockweeds to be pressed onto watercolor paper, cooking down some to thicken vanilla pudding, adding some to cucumber for seaweed salad.
Over the next few days, we walked a bird trail originally taken by Hog Island's first ornithology teacher, Roger Tory Peterson; I tried to feel his painterly empathy with the nesting Eastern Kingbird, the flitting Ruby Throated Hummingbird. I imagined the osprey we saw were descendants of those saved by Rachel Carson's Silent Spring, her wake-up call to the effects of DDT. We hiked to a cabin where Mabel Loomis Todd worked on the first three editions of poems by her Amherst neighbor, Emily Dickinson. I never stopped seeing, from Harris' Checkerspot butterflies, to the little cone middens of buzzy red squirrels. All in all, we spent the week watching birds, or rather looking for them, at 6 each morning, hearing all five of the breeding warblers on the island and seeing many of them: Black Throated Green, Blackburnian, Yellow-Rumped, Northern Parula, and Magnolia. We climbed rocky shores and waded in the bay to find fish, crabs, mussels, dogwhelk and periwinkles. We learned about butterfly mimicry, the migration of monarchs and our human way of tagging and tracking their yearly orange streams north and south. We devoured cookies hot from the oven after standing in fields catching and identifying insects, examining frogs and young eels from the far-off Sargasso Sea. We learned the significance of each cup of coffee, its relation to the Amazon Rainforest and the wintering grounds of so many of our own summering warblers and other passerines. We boated through Muscungus Bay to visit now famous Eastern Egg Rock, an eight acre island where Atlantic Puffins have been re-introduced to nest by pioneering Steve Kress and his team of steadfast workers.
On our last night, drinking wine and eating lobster, we stood around on the still-wet grass and watched the sun slipping down over what Maine writer Sarah Orne Jewett called The Country of the Pointed Firs in her famous novel. We had become quite a talkative, chummy crew, from the 20 somethings who worked as Park Naturalists, to the Moms taking some time for themselves, to the couples enjoying a learning vacation. One couple was even there as a gift from their children and grandchildren, celebrating their 60th wedding anniversary. We had come from Florida, Connecticut, Washington state, Ohio, New York, from jobs, from families, from houses with the demands of daily duty. Some of us had never seen a warbler, some could bird by ear, some hated bugs, some willingly placed butterflies on our noses. But no matter our starting place, together, we learned so much from phenomenal instructors who never failed to inspire.
I am not sure what the other 42 took home, but I know what is etched in my bones, in my awareness. The sound of a Black Throated Green warbler singing away at the foggy stillness, the serene presence of Sea Bird Sue who spent five summers on Egg Rock monitoring puffins, the green significance of ferns, lichen and moss, the relaxed exuberance of Mark who reels off insect orders and swings his butterfly net, the quiet circle of kingfisher feathers from a hawk's kill, the perseverance of Bonnie who has returned to Equador for 18 years to study the Rainforest birds, carrying what Terry Tempest Williams calls "the grief that dares us to love once more," the call of a solitary loon amid morning lobster boats, the patience of Tom answering each of my myriad questions, "yes, Colleen, the oscines can learn songs," with detail and care, the glaring whiteness of a Roseate Tern as it returns to its nest. I have learned to see more in this world and to love it better. I learned I have a lot more to learn, but realize I am rewarded already when I remember Maine writer Henry Beston's words from 80 years ago:"The world today is sick to its thin blood for lack of elemental things, for fire before the hands, for water welling from the earth, for air, for the dear earth itself underfoot." I may not have lived alone on the Cape Cod shore for a year, but I went to a cabin on an island and I forged a bridge from the wild to my tame heart. I am so grateful for this thickening of my blood that I will be a long time leading others to wildness. - Colleen Webster
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| September 11 | Picnic at Broad Creek |
| September 16 | Deadline - Harford Birdlife |
| September 18/19 | Fall Count |
| September 23 | Deadline - Wrenderings |
| November 5 | Dinner Meeting |
| December 27 | Christmas Bird Counts |
| January 14 | Winter Meeting |
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Welcome New Members - The Harford Bird Club would like to extend a warm welcome to our newest members:
Checklist Committee 2004 - If anyone has eyewitness recollections, supporting documentation (photos/videotape/ sketches, original field notes), or even anecdotal information on any of the following old rarity sightings from Harford County, please contact any of the following persons serving on the ad hoc Checklist Committee: Rick Cheicante, Les Eastman, Matt Hafner, Mark Johnson, Dennis Kirkwood, Bill Pfingsten, Dave Webb, or Dave Ziolkowski.
Wild Bird Marketplace - Special thanks to Club members and owners Linda and John Ireland of Wild Bird Marketplace for their support. Many raffle items are donated by the Irelands. In addition Bird Club members receive a 10% discount on all purchases. Remember Wild Bird Marketplace for birdseed, feeders and gifts. Located in the Amyclae Shopping Center at Rte 22 & 543. Jean Wheeler
Picnic Directions - Rt. 136 to Peach Orchard Rd. to Susquehanna Hall turn Right. Proceed down to the lower parking lot past the pool. The Pavilion is behind the lot about 100 meters in the woods.
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The spring of 2004 will be remembered for the return of Magicicada septendecim, a.k.a., the Periodic Cicada, a.k.a., the Seventeen-Year Locust. The longest living of all insect species began emerging from Mid-Atlantic soils around May 8. For the ensuing six weeks, the deafening drone of hyper-hormonal males and tree trunks dotted with empty larval exoskeletons provided fodder for water-cooler conversationalists and local news media. The cicadas also caught the attention of birds, who seized upon the opportunity of a lifetime to feast upon a seemingly endless supply of winged quick-energy bars. Here in Harford County, it was not too difficult to find songbirds chasing after cicadas on the wing. GF witnessed aerial predation by a male Northern Cardinal at Joppatowne on May 17; at Harford Glen on May 26, PP and a group of captivated fifth-graders watched a female Red-winged Blackbird pluck a cicada from the air and fly off with it into a patch of cattails. Sometimes the battle was not just between bird and insect - on May 22 in Belcamp, MoH spotted a Northern Mockingbird and American Robin fighting over a cicada (the mockingbird won). A robin at Carsin's Run ten days later had it easier, as he ate his cicada uncontested (JK). MJ described how on Jun 19 at Gunpowder SP a male Scarlet Tanager peeled off first the wings and then the legs with its bill before starting his meal. From the smallest to the largest, other passerine cicadavores included House Wren (DZ), Chipping Sparrow (JM), House Sparrow (JW), Eastern Bluebird (DW), Song Sparrow (DZ), Eastern Kingbird (DW), European Starling (DS), Gray Catbird (DZ), and Common Grackle (DW). Songbirds weren't the only benefactors from the cicada outburst: DZ reported a Yellow-billed Cuckoo munching on one at APG-EA, and DS even came across a Red-bellied Woodpecker with a cicada in its bill.
Also of note for the period was the confirmation of a new breeding species in the county, and a probable breeding attempt by a rarity. Summer Tanagers have been suspected of breeding - but never confirmed-at Aberdeen Proving Ground for many years. This season, a male was first heard "pik-i-tuk"-ing near the headwaters of Delph Creek on Jun 4, and by Jun 20 a female had joined him. Then on Jul 4, DW saw a male feed a large grub to a recently fledged bird to substantiate their breeding status. On May 31, DK found a pair of Dickcissels in an alfalfa field at Bradenbaugh (see field trip report on page 8). The male sang from the tops of several weedy patches while the female appeared to gather nest material. The pair was recorded on a near-daily basis until Jun 28 when the alfalfa was harvested.
Elsewhere around the county…
WATERFOWL: Late migrants were located on May 19 in Havre de Grace (CW), with a Snow Goose seen in the bay off of Tydings Island and a Red-breasted Merganser on the Susquehanna River near Hutchins Park. At Swan Harbor, a male Blue-winged Teal seen on May 22 (MH) did not stay into the breeding season, but Mallards (hen with 10 eggs on nest, Jun 3, DP & DvS) and Wood Ducks (hen with one chick, Jul 1, JG) did. The only other Wood Duck reported was a lone hen on Lake Mitten (Jun 22, JLF). LE stumbled on an adult male Common Merganser at the mouth of Deer Creek on Jun 22, raising the possibility this species is breeding in the Lower Susquehanna Valley.
GAMEBIRDS: Juvenile Wild Turkeys, known as poults, were noted on three occasions near the Michaelsville region of APG including 9 on Jun 3, 1 on Jun 18, and 8 on Jul 14 (DW). Also in this area, two male Northern Bobwhite were seen on Jun 8 (DW); the only "off-post" bobwhite was a lone male calling at Mill Green (Jun 10, MH & MB).
GREBES & HERONS: For the second year in a row, Pied-billed Grebes were confirmed breeding at Swan Harbor when on Jun 3 DP & DvS spied an adult with 3 recently hatched chicks. An adult male was still calling on Jun 23 (CW); and then on Jul 1, JG counted 5 chicks with their parents! A canoe outing on Jul 8 in the Gunpowder Delta yielded memorable encounters with Least Bitterns for DZ. He heard 3 calling males and eventually saw two foraging birds. To top it all he found an adult bittern feeding nestlings. On May 19, CW located 5 active Great Blue Heron nests at Tydings Island. On Jun 11, a total of 4 chicks could be seen in two of these nests; eight days later another 4 chicks were discovered. Single Green Herons showed up at Tydings Island (May 22, CW) and Swan Harbor (Jul 1, JG), and another was seen on its nest at a Level farm pond (Jun 10, DW). Post-breeding dispersal for Great Egrets began on Jul 8, with three birds observed near the mouth of Foster Branch (DZ); another three flew over Michaelsville the next morning (DW).
RAPTORS: JH photographed an Osprey in flight near Concord Cove on May 23. What made this bird unusual was its payload - a bright orange carp estimated at 14" long. CW reported on Jun 21 that a very vocal Osprey was carrying nesting material to a platform near the Amtrak bridge in Havre de Grace. A Northern Harrier recorded on May 20 at Michaelsville (DW) was probably a late migrant.
RAILS: King Rails were on territory at Michaelsville, with singing males calling on May 20 and Jun 8 (CW). A King Rail calling at Swan Harbor was one of the most surprising finds of the period (Jun 23, DW). A Sora was photographed there on May 22 (MH), and two others were heard on Jun 3 (DP & DvS) raising hopes of nesting.
SHOREBIRDS & TERNS: Reports of waders were scanty, probably due to a lack of birders looking for them. CW saw a Spotted Sandpiper teetering along the edge of Tydings Island on May 19. Three days later, MH found a Whimbrel at Tydings Island and the following shorebirds at Swan Harbor: 3 Least Sandpipers, 2 Greater Yellowlegs, and one each of Semipalmated Plover, Solitary Sandpiper, Semipalmated Sandpiper, and a winnowing Wilson's Snipe. An extremely late snipe flushed from Swan Harbor on Jun 3 (DP & DvS) became the latest spring record for the county, and the second latest in Maryland. Dispersing Caspian Terns were first reported on Jun 26, with 4 at the Tydings Island mudflat (CW). DZ watched a flock of 21 Caspians fly over Joppatowne the next day, and on Jul 8 he found 3 adult Least Terns in the Gunpowder Delta.
CUCKOOS: Perhaps a consequence of the Periodic Cicada emergence, the spring of 2004 was one of the best in recent memory for cuckoos. JLF found 5 Yellow-bills and one Black-billed Cuckoo in their Pylesville neighborhood on May 19. Singles of this latter species, usually reported locally only a couple of times each spring, were also reported from Glen Elyn (May 29-30, MJ & BP), Little Deer Creek (May 31, DK), and Mill Green (Jun 10, MH & MB). Near the headwaters of APG's Mosquito Creek, up to 3 Black-bills were consistently noted over a 5-week period starting on Jun 2 (DW). Finally, on Jul 11, their breeding status was verified when an adult bird carried a mashed caterpillar to its young.
OWLS, GOATSUCKERS & HUMMINGBIRDS: JLF heard a pair of Barred Owls on the evening of May 19, and DW heard one near Northridge on Jun 17 at sunrise. The best owl report came from DB - for three consecutive mornings starting Jun 19, she was entertained by two juvenile Barred Owls perched on dead branches at wood's edge making nasal, wheezy cries. Meanwhile the parents hunted for small mammals at a nearby hillside, and eventually one delivered a meal to the hungry youngsters. Could Chuck-will's-widow be breeding at APG? Perhaps, as one was heard was heard calling on May 30 at Church Creek, the same location where a "Chuck" was calling three weeks earlier (DW). LE's residence near Susquehanna SP secured claim as the Hummingbird Capital of Harford County, when an amazing 15 to 20 Ruby-throats visited the feeders stationed there on Jun 24. The next day, JdG of Fallston was lucky enough to find a female Ruby-throated Hummingbird sitting on a nest in her backyard dogwood tree.
KINGFISHERS & WOODPECKERS: The only Belted Kingfisher report was of a single bird flying over the Susquehanna River near Hutchins Park (May 22, CW). JLF found a Pileated Woodpecker on May 21 at their home in Pylesville, a reliable spot for this species. dW confirmed breeding Red-bellied Woodpeckers at Webster Village on Jun 19 when he noticed the parents delivering food into a tree cavity.
SWALLOWS & WRENS: Confirmations of breeding swallows included adult Purple Martins bringing food to two apartment colonies at a Havre de Grace waterfront backyard (Jun 19, CW); Northern Rough-winged Swallows feeding their young at the Deer Creek and Rock Run mouth bridges (Jun 22, LE); and a Barn Swallow nest containing 4 chicks under a dock at Tydings Marina (Jun 19, CW). DZ spotted a mixed flock of 30 Purple Martins and 80 Barn Swallows feeding over the Gunpowder Delta on Jul 8. From the phragmites of the delta, he also heard a dozen singing Marsh Wrens and discovered two active nests. Carolina Wrens are known for their resourcefulness when selecting nest sites. For example, JLF found on their Pylesville property a nest atop a push broom in a storage shed (Jun 8), and another one in a hanging basket of geraniums (Jul 2). While the geranium nesters were still going strong as of press time, the broom nesters lost out to a Black Rat Snake.
THRUSHES, MIMIDS, & WAXWINGS: On May 18 at Pylesville, JLF found a Wood Thrush carrying nesting material; and on Jun 12, they witnessed the courtship behavior of a male Cedar Waxwing feeding berries to a female. JLF found a Brown Thrasher in their neighborhood on Jun 21 and Jul 12; another thrasher showed up at Swan Harbor (Jun 3, JG).
WARBLERS: The only warblers reported during this period were those that nest in the county. GF shot a male Cerulean Warbler at Fisherman's Park on May 17 (don't worry, he used a camera). Normally a canopy dweller, this one was actually aground feeding on spiders. Ceruleans were still singing from atop Rock Run Ridge on Jun 22 (LE), and even as late as Jul 11 (dW). A male Hooded Warbler was singing near Walters Mill on Jun 10 (MH & MB). Three fledging Ovenbirds and their parents were discovered near Phillips Airfield (Jun 13, DW), and a week later a female American Redstart was observed feeding a boisterous fledging at Michaelsville (DW). On Jun 22, LE saw a Prothonotary Warbler go in and out of a drain hole beneath the Deer Creek mouth bridge, apparently in search of insects. Near Mosquito Creek, DW saw an adult Yellow- breasted Chat feeding a youngster on Jul 14.
TANAGERS, SPARROWS & GROSBEAKS: While monitoring the progress of the Bradenbaugh Dickcissels, DK came across another pair of rare birds attempting to nest - Savannah Sparrows! Although the pair was determined to be on territory, it could not be fully verified as breeding. On Jun 20, DW watched a male Scarlet Tanager feed one of its young, while in the same tree the female fed a young Brown-headed Cowbird! Two hundred yards away that same day, a pair of Blue Grosbeaks delivered food to a fledgling (DW).
BLACKBIRDS: Three Red-winged Blackbird nests were uncovered in the dense marshes of the Gunpowder Delta on Jul 8 (DZ). Common Grackles were confirmed as breeding on Tydings Island when CW noticed an adult carrying away a fecal sac (Jun 19), the same date that she heard an Orchard Oriole singing on the island. The last reported northbound Bobolink was a male singing at Michaelsville on Jun 2 (DW).
EXOTICS: Imagine the surprise and delight of seeing a beautiful blue male Common Peafowl as you drive the roads of Harford County. Well, it actually happened twice in an eight-day span! The first peacock was seen alongside the Prospect Mill Road rotary (May 29, AH), and the second turned heads at the Riverside exit of I-95 (Jun 6, MnH).
And finally, … fishermen at Havre de Grace's Hutchins Park have recently befriended some of the local herons. Fish too small for the anglers to keep get thrown over a chain-link fence onto a grassy strip where a Great Blue Heron and Black-crowned Night Heron stand patiently awaiting the next free meal. CW spoke with the fishermen on Jun 21 (and informed them that the night-heron was not a baby Great Blue), who said that the friendship began about a week earlier. On a visit four days later, CW noticed an immature Black-crown had joined the handout line!
CONTRIBUTORS: Andy Hughes (AH), Debbie Bowers (DB), Mike Burchette (MB), Rick Cheicante (RC), June Mundis (JM), Les Eastman (LE), Jean & Larry Fry (JLF), Greg Futral (GF), John Gallo (JG), Judy Gnade (JdG), Matt Hafner (MH), Monroe Harden (MnH), Jim Hirvonen (JH), Mark Johnson (MJ), Dennis Kirkwood (DK), John Kineke (JK), Bill Pfingsten (BP), Dave Powell (DP), Phil Powers (PP), Duvall Sollers (DvS), Don Soubie (DS), Jean Williams (JW), Daniel Webb (dW), Dave Webb (DW), Colleen Webster (CW), and Dave Ziolkowski (DZ).
Please email your sightings of the usual and the unusual to porzana@comcast.net, or snailmail them to Dave Webb, 4141 Quail Way, Havre de Grace, 21078. Please remember to include the date, location, and (approximate) number of birds observed. The timeframe for the next column is July 16 thru September 15.
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FIELD TRIP SCHEDULE
August - October 2004
Saturday, August 21 Harford Shorebirds. Join experienced shorebirder Dave Webb to see that southbound shorebirds, such as Semipalmated Plovers, Solitary, and Pectoral Sandpipers aren't all plain brown. Beginners interested in learning the basics of shorebird identification and experienced watchers searching for rarities will enjoy this morning trip to Havre de Grace and neighboring sites. Scopes are helpful, although not necessary. Meet at the Tydings Marina at 7:00 a.m. and call trip leader Dave Webb at( 410-939-3537) for details.
Saturday, August 28 Butterflies and Dragonflies of Harford County. Join Rick Cheicante for this very leisurely half day foray to one of Harford County's local butterfly and dragonfly haunts. Butterflies may include the showy swallowtails, Monarch, and Viceroy as well as the diminutive hairstreaks and challenging grass skippers. Odonate hopefuls include Common Green Darner, Eastern Pondhawk, Black Saddlebags and the resplendent Halloween Pennant. Call Rick at (410-803-2712) for all the details. Sunny day only!
Saturday, September 4 Harford Glen. Join co-leaders Lynn Davis and Betsy Reeder on a trip though the marshes, fields, and forests of this perennial club favorite. Always a productive location, Blue-winged Teal, Veery, Magnolia, Black-throated Green, and Chestnut-sided Warblers are likely with Empidonax flycatchers a note worthy possibility. Meet at the upper lot at 7:00 a.m. Contact Lynn at (410-569-0504) for more information.
Sunday, September 12 Eden Mill. Grab a glimpse, and a handful, of southbound warblers, vireos, and thrushes as these migrants catch a meal and some rest in this scenic park along upper Deer Creek. Biologist Mark Johnson demonstrates the art and science of handling migratory birds while Dave Larkin follows up with a guided tour and instruction on how to identify confusing fall birds through binoculars. Meet at the lower lot below the Mill House at 7:00 a.m. Contact leader Dave at (410-569-8319) for details.
Saturday/Sunday, September 18/19 Fall Count. Contact Fall count coordinator Mark Johnson (410-692-5978) to secure your ADC Map block(s). All levels of experience are asked to participate, so don't be afraid. Lead, assist, tally - there's something for everyone on count day!
Saturday, September 25 Hidden Valley, Falling Branch, and the Harford Land Trust's newest purchase - the Gulch. Come explore this collection of properties that the Harford Land Trust has helped preserve for both people and birds. See late migrating warblers, early 'cold weather' migrants, and woodpeckers. Meet at the north end of Madonna Road at Deer Creek. at 7:30 a.m. Contact Dennis Kirkwood at (410-692-5905) for details.
Sunday, September 26 Turkey Point Hawkwatch. Quickly gaining popularity among Harford birders, join co-leaders Russ Kovach and Spike Updegrove for a visit to this great Elk Neck site for Red-headed Woodpeckers and migrating hawks. Timed specifically to coincide with the peaks of Broad-wing Hawk and falcon migration, trip-goers can expect to see large numbers of Broad-wing's and Kestrels. Merlin and Peregrine Falcon are likely to make an appearance. Meet at the MD 155 and I-95 park-n-ride at 8:00 a.m. Contact Russ at (443-386-4787) for more information
Saturday, October 2 Susquehanna State Park. Another one of the club's perennial favorites this trip sends off the last of the fall migrants and welcomes the arrival of some "cold weather" residents. See thousands of Tree Swallows amassed over the river on their southbound journey and search the forest for Gray-cheeked and Swainson's Thrushes, Blue-headed Vireo, creepers & kinglets. Meet leader Les Eastman (410-734-6969) at 7:00 a.m. at the Rock Run Mill.
Wednesday, October 6 Harford Glen. Join Phil Powers in an effort to find Swainson's Thrush, Palm & Yellow-rumped Warblers and Lincoln's Sparrow both in the hand and in the bush. Early morning look at the forest and wetland edge banding operation followed by a leisurely bird walk along Harford Glen's well maintained trails. Meet at the upper lot at 7:00 a.m. Contact Phil at (410-679-4116) for more information.
Monday, October 11 Waggoner's Gap. The club once again returns to this fantastic locale near Carlisle, PA for close views of migrating raptors and beautiful overlooks of fall foliage. While all eastern raptors (including Merlin and Northern Goshawk) are possible, this site has a reputation for being the leading watch on the East Coast for Golden Eagles. All-day, stationary watch; bring lunch. Meet at 7:30 a.m. at the MD 152 and MD 147 park-n-ride. Must confirm you attendance prior to trip date by contacting leader Mark Johnson at (410-692-5978).
Return to Table of ContentsPlease return to Eileen Nack, 8 Cresmont Drive, Aberdeen MD 21001 by Friday September 3, 2004. __________ Number of adults ( at $12.00 each ) __________ Number of children 12 and under ( at $5.00 each ) Please make checks payable to Harford County MOS. _______________________________ Print your name(s) Include address and phone number if you would like transportation to the meeting. _______________________________ _______________________________ _______________________________ TEL:___________________________ PICNIC RESERVATION FORM