Date: Wed, 22 May 2002 11:29:28 -0400 Reply-To: Maryland Birds & Birding Sender: Maryland Birds & Birding From: Henry Armistead <74077.3176@COMPUSERVE.COM> Subject: part 5, Dorchester May count analysis MIME-Version: 1.0 Content-Transfer-Encoding: 7bit Content-Type: text/plain; charset=us-ascii Content-Disposition: inline Part 5 (of 5 parts). Species abundance changes, 1966-2002, on 70 May counts in Dorchester County. House Finch. 0/18. Still somewhat scarce in much of SDC although there are plenty in Cambridge and some on Hooper's Island. However, it is now to be had on every May count, although usually only 4-12 or so. One winter day after they had started to occur commonly throughout much of the Delmarva Peninsula in winter I awoke and said to my wife, Liz: "I am going down to Cambridge to get the first Dorchester County record of House Finch." That was easily done and not much of an accomplishment. Somewhat later House Finches began breeding in the county, esp. in areas where there are large, non-native evergreen trees. Rufous-sided Towhee. 18/18. Average 48. Towhees have become scarcer throughout much of the East and that is so here with 8 to 20 much more the norm now. Grasshopper Sparrow. 18/18. Average 3. So much publicity has been given to the decline of grassland birds. However, recently Egypt Rd. and fields around the c. part of BNWR have been excellent for GRSP's, such that now we often get more than the old average of 3. This is one of the hardest species for me to hear but by scanning appropriate habitat it is quite easy to see singing birds in the higher weeds or to catch them as they make little flights in their favored habitat. Locally, I believe there are more than there used to be. Henslow's Sparrow. 14/18. Average 3. Now there are apparently none and it has been that way for over 10 years. Soon after they disappeared from the 2 places n. of Savanna Lake on EIR those spots became overgrown with vegetation too high for their liking ... anyway. For a few years they held on in marginal habitat around the w. and n. side of that lake. Good early counts were 8 on May 4, 1968, and 7 on May 1, 1976. Somewhat later we had counts of 10 or more sometimes, such as 15 on May 7, 1977, by Floyd Parks (FLP) and myself, 12 on May 12, 1979 (Ed W. Marshall & HTA), and 11 on May 12, 1979 (FLP,HTA). Used to be I'd bump into them unexpectedly at other places in the 1960's or earlier, in e. Talbot County, Fairmount W.M.A. in Somerset Co., and Dorchester in the Andrews and Henrys Crossroads Rd. areas. Sic transit gloria mundi: thus passes away the glory of the world. Saltmarsh Sharp-tailed Sparrow. 16/18. Average 2. By way of contrast this species seems to have increased. It is now easy to see 10 or more in certain of the Spartina patens meadows along the EIR, especially towards dusk when they pop up and make little sallies or flights, then drop back down into the salt meadow hay. It is much less frequently seen at other places, such as the Shorter's Wharf Rd. marshes near to Shorter's Wharf. Much commoner on the 2nd weekend. At the height of the breeding season a couple of times when we made a concerted effort we have seen over 100 in one afternoon in marshes of the EIR. By now it is well-known that this species does not sing, the males are not territorial, and they play no role in nest-building, incubating, or raising the young - the ultimate MCP's. A sharp-tailed sparrow heard singing in May is going to be a Nelson's Sharp-tailed Sparrow, or, even more likely, a misidentified Seaside Sparrow. I am still waiting but am told it does happen occasionally ... that a Nelson's will be heard singing in our region in late spring. Field Sparrow. 18/18. Average 18. Much less common now with 3 to 7 or 8 more the norm. However, with all the recent logging going on there are "fields" full of pine saplings and young Sweet Gum, such as just n. of the Old Field Rd. X Egypt Rd. T-junction, and numerous other sites that are ideal Field Sparrow habitat. Best to all.-Harry Armistead, 523 E. Durham St., Philadelphia, PA 19119-1225. 215-248-4120. Any off-list replies, please, to: harryarmistead@hotmail.com. Afterword on warblers. SDC sometimes seems like a warbler-free zone in the early spring. On the May counts what I refer to as the northern, montane, and/or spruce forest warblers are at best occasional. On the first 18 counts considered here this is the number of times they have been found: Golden-winged 1, Tennessee 1, Nashville 5, Magnolia 3, Cape May 2, Blackburnian 1, Chestnut-sided 2, Bay-breasted 1, Canada 4, and Northern Waterthrush 7. Most of these are probably regular for someone living in the county and active in the field in the 2nd and 3rd weeks of May. P.S. My apologies for not having replied to several recent MDOSPREY queries (which have since been answered by others). I have been out of town and incommunicado. ======================================================================= To leave the MDOsprey list, send e-mail to listserv@home.ease.lsoft.com with the following message in line 1: signoff mdosprey ======================================================================= =========================================================================