Loudoun Wildlife Conservancy

This past Sunday we had our first amphibian foray of the year and headed over to Algonkian Park to explore the amazing network of seasonal waters and swampland that is over there.

The good news about all that snow that we had this year is that the swamp area and the vernal pools that run through Algonkian were full! We compared photos from last year at some of the same points along the trail and the comparison was dramatic. A vernal pool last year that was no bigger than a bathtub spanned over 100′ this year. It was great to see the water levels back up and the ground properly saturated.

Along our walk, Mike Hayslett, our field trip leader and director of The Virginia Vernal Pools Program, talked about soils, seasonal wetland habitats, lifecycles of the amphibian life found in these habitats, and other cool nature facts.

We did a bit of netting to try to find evidence of Marbled Salamanders as well.  Marbled salamanders lay their eggs in the fall in the dry leaf litter. The female then waits and protects the eggs until the fall rain comes and fills the pools. The eggs then hatch and develop through the winter. At one of the pools we did find a Marbled salamander tadpole. It was not alive but we could still make out the markings to identify it. Salamander tadpoles are easier to find at night because they are nighttime predators….moving through the water column in search of tasty insects.

Other critters that showed up in our netting were various freshwater insects – isopods, coepods – as well as clams. It was really fun to explore these swampy waters and learn about the lifecycles of the animals that use them. 

As soon as we have our first “Big Night” rainfall of the spring, the swamp will be crazy with activity from Wood Frogs, peepers, and other salamanders. Looking forward to that rain, hopefully this week!

I posted a few photos from our walk on our Facebook page – feel free to check them out.

On January 23rd, sixteen of us ventured out along the back roads of Loudoun in search of raptors! And we found quite a few – 49 in fact, not including the vultures (at least 50)!

We consolidated ourselves into just four cars and had our walkie talkies ready so we could call out our sightings along the way. The day was great for this – a slight chill in the air but overall sunny and calm.

Here’s our list of Raptors from the trip and a few notes from our encounters:

Bald Eagles (3): At first, we saw just a lone juvenile sitting in a tree. Then an adult came flying in and usurped the position (it must have been a good look out spot). The adult stayed in the spot for a good while as we got our spotting scopes out to get even better looks. For the whole time we were at this spot, we kept scanning the big Bald Eagle nest for activity. The pair had been seen recently tending to the nest, making preparations for nesting. As we were about to go (yea, we had the scopes all put away and started to drive off), the pair flew into the nest! So, we backed up and got our scopes back out so we could spy on them a bit. It was great to see the male and female in there, fixing things up and getting ready for the egg laying. This pair of Bald Eagles seems to lay eggs a little later than others in the area but have been very successful with their fledglings. We look forward to watching them raise their 2010 brood.

Northern Harriers (4) and Red-tailed Hawks (29): At one of the fields we stopped at we had at least 8 Red-tailed Hawks hunting mice over a field.  They liked to perch on posts in and along the field which gave us great opportunities to focus in on them. As we watched, two Harriers came in, coursing low over the grass, looking and listening for field mice (really voles). Their white rump patch was a give away as we saw them flying. The ones we saw were either females or juveniles, as we didn’t see any of the Grey Ghosts (males).

American Kestrels (3): One of the kestrels we found was in a tree on a road where we could pull out the spotting scopes for a good look. It was a male in full fabulous color.

Red-Shouldered Hawks (6), Coopers Hawks (2), Sharp-Shinned Hawk (1):The other raptors we saw were mostly while driving but we got some great views. Driving slow along the back roads, we were able to watch a Red-Shoulder sitting on a dead tree, maybe 30 feet away from us. We also watched a Red-tailed hawk feed on a deer carcass (see the fun we have! ) The Coopers Hawks and Sharpie were pretty much seen in flight but one sat out on a wire giving us good views as we slowly drove by.

All in all, an excellent day. Owls were missing but we know they were out there watching us. We did hear one Barred owl calling at the wetlands….”who cooks for you?”

We also had a large kettle of about 50 Black Vultures soaring near Evergreen Mills Rd.

I posted a few photos to our Loudoun Wildlife Facebook page so you can check them out there.

Our January 9th, the Loudoun Wildlife Conservancy and Northern Virginia Birding Club teamed up to lead a walk at Banshee Reeks. While chilly, they did get in some good birding. Here’s the report from our leaders, Andy and Gerco:

Surprisingly, it was nice weather until about 10am when the winds picked up. We found several locations where the birds were very active–mostly sunny spots that were out of the wind. Many sparrows were foraging in the shrubs and the various hawks were calling and flying over. We were rather startled to see many mallards and a single black duck flying up from the ponds. Some open water was there. Once the wind picked up, we decided to leave.

Highlights of the walk included an Eastern Phoebe, American Black Duck, Field Sparrow, Brown Creeper, and Yellow-bellied Sapsuckers.

Our total tally was 39 species:

American Black Duck 1, Mallard 47, Great Blue Heron 1, Black Vulture 1, Turkey Vulture 2, Bald Eagle 1, Red-shouldered Hawk 2, Red-tailed Hawk 4, Ring-billed Gull 3, Mourning Dove 2, Red-bellied Woodpecker 3, Yellow-bellied Sapsucker 3, Downy Woodpecker 4, Hairy Woodpecker 1, Northern Flicker 7, Pileated Woodpecker 1, Eastern Phoebe 1, Blue Jay 5, American Crow 11, Carolina Chickadee 2, Tufted Titmouse 4, White-breasted Nuthatch 3, Brown Creeper 1, Carolina Wren 2, Golden-crowned Kinglet 1, Ruby-crowned Kinglet 1, Eastern Bluebird 9, American Robin 30, Northern Mockingbird 2, European Starling 27, Yellow-rumped Warbler 2, Eastern Towhee 3, Field Sparrow 2, Song Sparrow 4, White-throated Sparrow 25, Dark-eyed Junco 20, Northern Cardinal 4, Brown-headed Cowbird 5, American Goldfinch 2

Banshee Reeks Nature Preserve is definitely one of Loudoun’s Great Places for wildlife and nature explorations. Hike the trails, breathe in the fresh air, enjoy the wild sights and sounds! More information can be found on our page highlighting Banshee Reeks.

I’m posting this really really late (I was away on vacation at the time of this excellent December bird walk) but I wanted to send it it out anyway since it’s such a great bird sighting. Anyway, here’s the report from Joe:

The highlight of an all-day Audubon Naturalist Society/Loudoun Wildlife Conservancy field trip on December 6th in central Loudoun County was a WESTERN KINGBIRD.  The bird, well-seen and photographed by the 13 participants in the walk, was seen about 2:45 pm as we were leaving the Dulles Greenway Wetlands Mitigation Project. 

While the wetlands is private property, the bird, if it hangs around, was close to the gate (2nd from Rte 15) to the wetlands on Oatland Mills Rd.  It was seen in the grove of young trees inside the gate for awhile, flew over the road to Oatlands side, where it perched on top of a tree and then flew back to the other side of the road.  It was part of a mixed flock comprised mostly of Eastern Bluebirds.

Finding the bird was a nice highlight to a beautiful day, most notable up to then, for a lot of raptors.  The bright yellow on its belly jumped out at us in the grayness of the winter landscape and was a nice contrast to that and the several inches of snow on the ground.

Shortly before seeing the Western Kingbird we enjoyed watching a first-year Northern Harrier hunting over the wetlands as well as the two adult Bald Eagles working on their nest (one added a stick to the nest while we watched).

Other highlights included several WHITE-CROWNED SPARROWS on Hibler Rd in the Lucketts area, another juvenile Northern Harrier in the same area, and at least a dozen different Red-tailed Hawks in a number of different locations.

Following is a list of the species seen:

Number of species:     48
Canada Goose, Mallard, Bufflehead, Hooded Merganser, Great Blue Heron, Black Vulture, Turkey Vulture, Bald Eagle, Northern Harrier, Cooper’s Hawk, Red-shouldered Hawk, Red-tailed Hawk, American Kestrel, Ring-billed Gull, Rock Pigeon, Mourning Dove, Great Horned Owl, Red-bellied Woodpecker, Yellow-bellied Sapsucker, Downy Woodpecker, Northern Flicker, Pileated Woodpecker, Western Kingbird, Blue Jay, American Crow, Fish Crow, Carolina Chickadee, Titmouse, White-breasted Nuthatch, Carolina Wren, Golden-crowned Kinglet, Eastern Bluebird, American Robin, Northern Mockingbird, European Starling, Yellow-rumped Warbler, Field Sparrow, Fox Sparrow, Song Sparrow, Swamp Sparrow, White-throated Sparrow, White-crowned Sparrow, Dark-eyed Junco, Northern Cardinal, Red-winged Blackbird, House Finch, American Goldfinch, House Sparrow

On October 10th, 23 people found 41 species of birds during the monthly bird walk at Banshee Reeks.  The highlights of several different raptor species included a single Merlin. We were surprised by how few sparrows there were; we also didn’t find a single warbler in sprite of visiting several suitable locations for both.  

There were a lot of Northern Flickers, Blue Jays, and American Robins moving around throughout the preserve as well as at least six dif. Eastern Phoebes.  We did find two thrushes along a stream near the Goose Creek that we were unable to identify as we never got to see their faces.  Both were dull and appeared to be either Gray-cheeked or Swainson’s.

Here’s the full species list: Canada Goose, Wood Duck, Black Vulture, Turkey Vulture, Osprey (1), Bald Eagle (1), Sharp-shinned Hawk, Cooper’s Hawk, Red-tailed Hawk, American Kestrel, Merlin (1), Rock Pigeon (2), Mourning Dove, Chimney Swift (6), Belted Kingfisher (1), Red-bellied Woodpecker, Downy Woodpecker, Northern Flicker, Pileated Woodpecker, Eastern Phoebe (6), Blue Jay, American Crow, Tree Swallow (1), Carolina Chickadee, Tufted Titmouse, White-breasted Nuthatch, Carolina Wren, Ruby-crowned Kinglet (2), Eastern Bluebird, American Robin, Gray Catbird (1), Northern Mockingbird, European Starling, Cedar Waxwing, Eastern Towhee (3), Field Sparrow, Song Sparrow, Northern Cardinal, Brown-headed Cowbird, American Goldfinch

I’m very tardy in posting this but still wanted to send it out for those tracking our local and migrating birds.

From Joe Coleman:

Nine birders saw 54 species, including 8 species of warblers and one very large and distant flock of blackbirds, at the Blue Ridge Center for Environmental Stewardship (BRCES) in northwestern Loudoun Co, near Harper’s Ferry, WV, this morning.  We started at the large field at the end of Sawmill Rd where we not only watched a large and distant flock of blackbirds dance in mass over the ridge, a flock of Tree Swallows passed overhead.  We walked both the Sweet Run Loop trail and the power line cut to the top of the ridge to the Appalachian Trail (and looked into West VA). Along the way we came across three or four groups of migrants.  One group, where the power line crosses Sweet Run, included both our first RUBY-CROWNED KINGLET for the season (the first of at least six) and a WHITE-THROATED SPARROW. The other groups included a variety of warblers, esp. one along Sweet Run where we found at least 7 different species of warblers, including a FOS YELLOW-RUMPED WARBLER, as well as the Gray-cheeked Thrush and Swainson’s Thrush.  The Bald Eagle, a juvenile, was seemed from the parking lot as well as the first of several flocks of Cedar Waxwings.  A pair of Common Ravens flew over us on the power line cut near the ridge.  While there were a number of Magnolia Warblers and Common Yellowthroats in the scrub under the power lines most of the warblers were in a heavily wooded stretch along Sweet Run where there were a lot of grapes.  The Cedar Waxwing flocks popped up in a number of locations.

Information on the Blue Ridge Center for Environmental Stewardship can be found at http://www.blueridgecenter.org.   Information on the Loudoun Wildlife Conservancy and its many free public activities can be found at www.loudounwildlife.org.

Joe Coleman, near Bluemont, Loudoun Co

Location:     Blue Ridge Center for Environmental Stewardship – MFF01
Observation date:     9/26/09
Notes:     We started at the large field at the end of Sawmill Rd and walked both the Sweet Run Loop trail and the power line cut to the top of the ridge to the Appalachian Trail. Along the way we came across three or four groups of migrants.  One included both our first Ruby-crowned Kinglet for the season and White-throated Sparrow. The others included a variety of warblers, esp. one along Sweet Run loop where we found at least 7 different species of warblers as well as the Swainson’s & Gray-cheeked Thrushes.  The Bald Eagle, a juvenile, was seemed from the parking lot as well as the first of several flocks of Cedar Waxwings.
Number of species:     54

Canada Goose, Black Vulture, Turkey Vulture, Osprey 2, Bald Eagle 1, Sharp-shinned Hawk 1, Red-shouldered Hawk 2, Red-tailed Hawk 1, American Kestrel 2, Mourning Dove, Chimney Swift 1, Ruby-throated Hummingbird 2, Belted Kingfisher 1, Red-bellied Woodpecker, Downy Woodpecker, Hairy Woodpecker 1, Northern Flicker, Pileated Woodpecker, Eastern Wood-Pewee 1, Eastern Phoebe 1, Red-eyed Vireo 1, Blue Jay, American Crow, Common Raven 2, Tree Swallow 30, Carolina Chickadee, Tufted Titmouse, Carolina Wren, House Wren 2, Ruby-crowned Kinglet 6, Eastern Bluebird, Gray-cheeked Thrush 1, Swainson’s Thrush 1, American Robin, Gray Catbird, Northern Mockingbird, Brown Thrasher 1, European Starling, Cedar Waxwing, Chestnut-sided Warbler 1, Magnolia Warbler 8, Black-throated Blue Warbler 3, Yellow-rumped Warbler 1, Bay-breasted Warbler 1, Black-and-white Warbler 4, American Redstart 1, Common Yellowthroat 8, Eastern Towhee1, Song Sparrow, White-throated Sparrow 1, Northern Cardinal, Rose-breasted Grosbeak 1, Indigo Bunting 10, blackbird sp. 250, American Goldfinch

I’m a bit tardy in posting this field trip report that Mary Ann Good sent in (I was away on vacation) but given the rarity I wanted to be sure to pass on the news. This is how many of us start out as casual birders, watching the backyard birds and then get hooked:

Seventeen birders, led by Joe Coleman and Mary Ann Good on Sept 7, were treated to spectacular views of a fresh winter-plumaged STILT SANDPIPER which Jon Little first picked out from among several Lesser Yellowlegs.  The up-close-and-personal looks and the proximity to the Lessers gave opportunity to see every distinctive detail of this bird that was a lifer for many of us.

We saw several other shorebirds but few migrant passerines.  The species we observed and approx. counts are:

Great Egret – 1, Green Heron – 5, Turkey Vulture – 4, Canada Goose – 1, Mallard – 8, Bald Eagle – 1 adult, Red-shouldered Hawk – 1 adult, Red-tailed Hawk – 1 juv., Virginia Rail – 1 calling from the marsh, Killdeer – ~35, Greater Yellowlegs – 2, Lesser Yellowlegs – 8, Solitary Sandpiper – 1, Spotted Sandpiper – 1, Semipalmated Sandpiper – 2, Least Sandpiper – 6, STILT SANDPIPER – 1, Mourning Dove – 6, Chimney Swift – 2, Belted Kingfisher – 1, E. Wood-Pewee – 1, Willow Flycatcher – 1, E. Phoebe – 2, Blue Jay – 3, Am. Crow – 3, Barn Swallow – 4, Car. Chickadee – 2, Tufted Titmouse – 1, Carolina Wren – 3, E. Bluebird – 2, Am. Robin – 1, Catbird – 5, Eur. Starling – 3, Cedar Waxwing – 2, Common Yellowthroat – 4, Song Sparrow – 2, No. Cardinal – 3, Am. Goldfinch – 4

On Sept 13th, we had our Swift Night Out event and it was phenomenal!  I was away on vacation so I missed it (darn!)but wow what an event it was!  Mary Ann Good and Phil Daley organized the event for us and Mary Ann sent over this great report. I can’t wait till next year’s show! I’ll be reporting our sightings to Driftwood Wildlife Associationwhich tracks chimney swift populations and migrations. If you know of other locations in Loudoun where the Chimney Swifts congregate let us know!

From Mary Ann:

The first few chimney swifts were just beginning to gather in the skies overhead at 6:45 p.m. as 7 people converged on a historic building in Lincoln, toting lawnchairs, binoculars, and snacks for the wait.  As we chatted, munched, and listened to chimney swift lore to the accompaniment of the first chants, buzzes, and chirps of the evening insect chorus, swifts continued to arrive from all directions. 

By 7:15 the numbers had swelled to hundreds, and the birds, no longer darting erratically, joined in a huge circular swirling pattern over and around the chimney they would soon enter.  At 7:30 we saw the first one drop from the swirl into the chimney, then another and another, then several in quick succession, until we could no longer keep track of the numbers. 

The great swirl continued, then gradually began to lessen as the swifts dropped into the chimney where together they would roost for the night and the next several nights, until the moment arrives for them to begin their migration south to South America. 

As the final stragglers disappeared into the chimney 10 minutes later, we witnessed the changing of the guard, as the daytime contingent was replaced by the nighttime contingent of bats fluttering and swooping over our heads.  We estimated the numbers of swifts to have been between 400 and 500, and left in amazement at one of nature’s awesome spectacles.

The Snickers Gap Hawkwatch season officially begins September 1 and will continue until December 1. Counters are needed as the watch still has many days not currently covered by volunteers. Both volunteers with experience and those willing to learn are welcome.

If you are interested, contact Joan Boudreau or Bob Abrams at 703-734-1238 or icepeep@aol.com or just come on up (if no one is watching when you arrive start counting!). The Hawkwatch is about 10 minutes west of Purcellville where Route 7 crosses the Loudoun-Clarke County line and the Appalachian Trail (AT) on the Blue Ridge Mountains near Bluemont (formerly Snickersville). The watch is adjacent to the highway (take a left at the top of the ridge on Rte 601 and an immediate right into the parking lot) and is conducted from the parking lot serving both commuters and AT hikers.

The Snickers Gap Hawkwatch is manned solely by volunteers and is one of several official watch sites in the Blue Ridge Mountains of Virginia. It is affiliated with the Hawk Migration Association of North America (HMANA), which compiles the migration data of over 200 such sites located in the United States, Canada, and Mexico.

Typically, about 12,000 raptors are counted here each season.  The highest seasonal count was over 23,000 in 1998. The birds are generally observed traveling in a southwesterly direction either directly over the ridge line or just off to either side, at varying heights and distances depending on weather conditions. Many can be seen with the naked eye, but binoculars and a spotting scope are required for identification and, when possible, age and sex determinations.

For more information on the Hawkwatch, visit: http://mysite.verizon.net/rest39yt/virginiaareahawkwatchsites/index.html.

Joe Coleman led our bird walk at the Blue Ridge Center on Saturday and sent over this report with the highlights:

Eleven birders found 45 species on the regular monthly (every 4th Sat.) bird walk at the Blue Ridge Center in northwestern Loudoun County yesterday morning.  While it was pretty damp and foggy when we started due to the high humidity & the 2″ of rain that had fallen in the previous 36 hours, the rain held off though the sun never came out. 

The species we found included a Cerulean Warbler which was associating with one of several flocks of very active Cedar Waxwings that were busy eating fruit and fly catching, a few Eastern Meadowlarks around the farm, and several young Common Yellowthroats.  We started off in the scrubby fields around the Visitor Center, took the Farmstead Loop to the Piney Run Spur, crossed Piney Run on the Little Turtle Trail bridge, and then forded Piney Run where the Old Bridge Trail crosses it for a total of about 2.5 miles.
 
It was a pleasant walk where our biggest problem was that many of the birds stayed high in the canopy and those of us with eye glasses kept having them fog up.  Because of the heavy cloud cover there weren’t nearly as many butterflies as the week before.  However, we did find a fascinating caterpillar with long white hairs right after we crossed the Old Bridge Trail ford.  It turns out it was an early instar of a Black-waved Flannel.  The Princeton Field Guide to “Caterpillars of Eastern North America” writes “although they appear soft and harmless, flannel moth larvae are among our most well-defended insects.  Beneath the soft outer hairs are warts fortified with hollow, poison-filled stinging spines” – glad we were careful while looking at this fascinating insect.
 
Information on the Blue Ridge Center for Environmental Stewardship can be found at http://www.blueridgecenter.org.   Information on the Loudoun Wildlife Conservancy and its many free public nature program can be found at www.loudounwildlife.org.

Here’s the full list of birds seen:

Green Heron, Black Vulture, Turkey Vulture, Cooper’s Hawk, Red-shouldered Hawk, Mourning Dove, Yellow-billed Cuckoo, Chimney Swift, Ruby-throated Hummingbird, Red-bellied Woodpecker, Downy Woodpecker, Northern Flicker, Pileated Woodpecker, Eastern Wood-Pewee, Acadian Flycatcher, Eastern Phoebe, Red-eyed Vireo, Blue Jay, American Crow, Barn Swallow, Carolina Chickadee, Tufted Titmouse, White-breasted Nuthatch, Carolina Wren, House Wren, Blue-gray Gnatcatcher, Eastern Bluebird, American Robin, Gray Catbird, Northern Mockingbird, Brown Thrasher, European Starling, Cedar Waxwing, Cerulean Warbler, Common Yellowthroat, Eastern Towhee, Chipping Sparrow, Field Sparrow, Song Sparrow, Northern Cardinalm Indigo Bunting, Eastern Meadowlark, House Finch, American Goldfinch, House Sparrow