Date: Wed, 14 Aug 2002 16:14:40 -0400 Reply-To: Maryland Birds & Birding Sender: Maryland Birds & Birding From: Michael Bowen Subject: DC, VA sightings on 8/14 Comments: To: va-bird@freelists.org, Voice of the Naturalist Comments: cc: Mary Paul Mime-Version: 1.0 Content-Type: text/plain; charset="us-ascii"; format=flowed Here are some sightings made in the District of Columbia, Arlington County, VA, and the City of Alexandria, VA, today, Wednesday, August 14: The previously reported TUNDRA SWAN is still at a very accessible location on the Arlington side of the Potomac, just downstream of the Roosevelt Bridge. I saw it at 2:30 p.m. this afternoon, dozing in the company of Canada Geese and lots of eclipse plumage ducks. It is an apparent adult bird, with no visible bands or wing restraints. Its bill is all black with short but visible slivers of yellow on both sides running from just below the eyes. Its head and neck are lightly colored red from mud. It seemed alert and well and walked around, feeding from time to time, when I got a bit too close to it. It did not fly, but when I left it was swimming just off shore. To see this bird at this location, take the GW Parkway NORTH from the Memorial or Roosevelt Bridges and exit into the parking lot for Roosevelt Island. Park as close to the walkway to the Island as you can. Do NOT take the walkway, but proceed downstream about 1/2-mile down the bike path (which is mostly a pleasantly shaded boardwalk in this section) and look for the swan near where another small arm of the river enters from the Arlington side. This location is in the District of Columbia. Obviously the bird must move around a bit, but the place described is very close to where the bird has been seen previously. Other DC sightings today were made this morning at around 11 a.m. on the Anacostia River near the Langston Golf course, just north of Benning Rd., NE. (the so-called Kingman Lake area) Highlights: 50-60 KILLDEER 4 GREATER YELLOWLEGS 5 SPOTTED SANDPIPER 2 SEMIPALMATED SANDPIPER 2 LEAST SANDPIPER 1 PECTORAL SANDPIPER 2 GREAT EGRET 1 OSPREY 2 RED-TAILED HAWK Amazingly, some people were playing golf in 95 degree heat. And they say birders are crazy! Over in Virginia, I visited the mouth of Hunting Creek in Alexandria. As it was coming up to high tide, there was no visible mud and no peep to be seen. About 50+ LESSER YELLOWLEGS were still around though. Best birds here were about 40 CASPIAN TERNS (with 3-4 juveniles in attractive, brown-flecked plumage) and 6 FORSTER'S TERNS. Most of the gulls were Ring-billed, and 2 of the few Laughing Gulls were dark juveniles. Cameron Run in Alexandria, along Eisenhower Avenue, lived up to its billing after so many Virginia birders reported in sightings from there in the past week. I had one group of mixed GREATER and LESSER YELLOWLEGS that had 114 birds in it, mostly Lesser. Other sightings at Cameron Run: 12 SEMIPALMATED PLOVER 20 KILLDEER 20 SEMIPALMATED SANDPIPER 6 LEAST SANDPIPER 4 WESTERN SANDPIPER (one a gorgeously plumaged juvenile) 20+ PECTORAL SANDPIPER 4 probable SHORT-BILLED DOWITCHER They did not fly or call, however. 1 BELTED KINGFISHER There may well have been more birds and even more species here, but at 1 p.m. it must have been close to 100 degrees with no shade in sight. I quit. These birds were al seen in a stretch of Cameron Run between Bluestone Drive and Cameron Run Park, by the way. A belated thank you to these Virginia birders who made it possible for us northerners to know where to look for and then, happily, get to see, the beautiful Swallow-tailed Kite in western Fauquier County last week. A gorgeous bird indeed. Good birding! Mike Bowen Bethesda, Maryland D.H. Michael Bowen 8609 Ewing Drive Bethesda MD 20817 Tel.: (301) 530-5764 ======================================================================= To leave the MDOsprey list, send e-mail to listserv@home.ease.lsoft.com with the following message in line 1: signoff mdosprey ======================================================================= dhmbowen@yahoo.com =========================================================================