Howard County Bird Club
A Chapter of the Maryland Ornithological Society
Blackwater National Wildlife Refuge
| Trip leader: Kurt Schwarz Redorders: Meg & John Harris |
Date of trip: January 11, 2020 |
| Location: Blackwater NWR | Number attending: 9 |
| Details: The day proved to be mostly cloudy, with temps starting on the 40s but rising into the 60s. Winds increased during the day, building to 20-25 mph by end of the day. The waterfowl were not super abundant on the Choptank but several species of diving duck were seen. Oakley Street put on a very nice show, with Canvasback, Lesser Scaup, American Wigeon at close quarters, with one Redhead and the long-standing and handsome Redhead X Canvasback hybrid also present. Blackwater had abundant waterfowl, with Canada Geese, Tundra Swans, and Northern Pintails predominating. The Tubman Museum grounds were unproductive, but wind did not help that. The trip down to Hooper’s Island did not yield much, aside from some Horned Grebes and Black Scoters. As we drove north a surprise Northern Gannet flew across the causeway in front of us, but only the leader saw it, unable to get the others in the caravan on it. The last stop at Bestpitch Bridge did not produce the hoped for Short-eared Owls, though Northern Harriers were present. A steady stream of Red-winged Blackbirds at Bestpitch awed the group, with a guess of 10,000 probably too low. | |
Snow Goose 100
Canada Goose 4,185
Tundra Swan 425
Northern Shoveler 14
Gadwall 2
American Wigeon 30
Mallard 74
American Black Duck 2
Northern Pintail 712
Canvasback 650
Redhead 1
Canvasback x Redhead (hybrid) 1
Lesser Scaup 80
Surf Scoter 16
Black Scoter 17
Long-tailed Duck 8
Bufflehead 33
Common Goldeneye 5
Red-breasted Merganser 2
Ruddy Duck 61
Horned Grebe 2
Mourning Dove 2
Greater Yellowlegs 1
Ring-billed Gull 305
Herring Gull 4
Great Black-backed Gull 22
Common Loon 1
Double-crested Cormorant 26
American White Pelican 1
Great Blue Heron 8
Black Vulture 7
Turkey Vulture 18
Northern Harrier 5
Cooper’s Hawk 1
Sharp-shinned/Cooper’s Hawk 1
Bald Eagle 25
Red-shouldered Hawk 1
Red-tailed Hawk 1
Belted Kingfisher 2
Downy Woodpecker 2
Hairy Woodpecker 1
Northern Flicker 1
American Kestrel 1
Merlin 1
Peregrine Falcon 1
Blue Jay 2
American Crow 5
Fish Crow 24
Carolina Chickadee 4
Tree Swallow 3
Golden-crowned Kinglet 1
Brown-headed Nuthatch 6
Marsh Wren 2
Carolina Wren 2
European Starling 64
Northern Mockingbird 2
Eastern Bluebird 6
American Robin 1
House Sparrow 4
Savannah Sparrow 3
Song Sparrow 10
Eastern Meadowlark 20
Red-winged Blackbird 10,370
Common Grackle 2
blackbird sp. 20
Northern Cardinal 6