Manassas Battlefield/Loons, Vesper Sparrow 15 APR 99

BlkVulture@aol.com
Thu, 15 Apr 1999 13:23:06 EDT 

Hello all,

Sue Heath and I birded the Battlefield today , 15 APR 99, from 6:45 to about 
9:45.  We began in the area around the NPS Stables, working south toward the 
wet field along US 29.  Temps started out about 50, and might have warmed to 
the high 50's when we were done.  The wind was light, and west.  The sky was 
gray, and most of the birds were late getting up.  

Loons started moving early, with the first group of nine before 7:00.  
Cormorants were up early too with a couple dozen moving around the same time. 
 Our first pass through the area around the stable yielded little, a few 
sparrows and a couple thrashers.  It was when we returned to the same area 
around 7:45 that we picked up the Vesper.  This was a different area from 
where I had had them two days prior.  

The other area that we birded was the Unfinished Rail Road, along Featherbed 
Road.  This is also part of MNBP.  We got to this area a little after 8:00, 
and other than a couple kinglets and pine warblers, we didnt add much new.  

Also, unrelated, Whip-poor-will returned to my yard last night.  

The List:

Common Loon (22)
DC Cormorant (48)
Canada Goose (6)
Turkey Vulture (2)
Red-shouldered Hawk (1)
Wild Turkey (1)
Killdeer (1)
Common Snipe (8)
Rock Dove (1)
Mourning Dove (6)
Chimney Swift (3)
Belted Kingfisher (1)
Red-bellied Woodpecker (2)
Downy Woodpeker (1)
Northern Flicker (5)
Pileated Woodpecker (1)
Eastern Phoebe (1)
Tree Swallow (10)
Barn Swallow (8)
Blue Jay (8)
American Crow (10)
Carolina Chickadee (6)
Tufted Titmouse (4)
White-breasted Nuthatch (1)
Carolina Wren (1)
Ruby-crowned Kinglet (3)
Blue-grey Gnatcatcher (6)
Eastern Bluebird (12)
American Robin (4)
Northern Mockingbird (2)
Brown Thrasher (7)
Starling (80)
Yellow-rumped Warbler (7)
Pine Warbler (3)
Palm Warbler (2)
Northern Cardinal (8)
Eastern Towhee (6)
Chipping Sparrow (9)
Field Sparrow (40)
Vesper Sparrow (1)
Savannah Sparrow (4)
Song Sparrow (4)
Swamp Sparrow (1)
White-throated Sparrow (5)
Dark-eyed Junco (15)
Red-winged Blackbird (10)
Eastern Meadowlark (5)
Common Grackle (20)
BH Cowbird (4)
House Finch (6)
American Goldfinch (20)

Todd Day
BlkVulture@aol.com
Jeffersonton, VA