Family Get-Together Trip Nets 4 Additions to my District of Columbia List, April 9-12, 2026

As an April 2026 family get-together in Maryland neared, of course I checked my eBird Needs Alerts in the area to see if there might be some state birding potential.  Lo and behold, my Virginia Alert revealed something even better: a Red-flanked Bluetail, first found on New Year’s Day, was still being seen.  A life bird is better than a state bird any day!  So I set up my flights and hotel to add an extra couple days to the trip to look for the Bluetail. 

Unfortunately, my key target was last seen a couple weeks before the trip.  (Why didn’t I go after it sooner?)  So, now my focus was back to possible state birds.  I grew up in the mid-Atlantic region so my Needs Alerts for states like MD, VA, DE, and PA had few likely targets.  But then I checked the Washington DC Alert and found several possibilities –

Wild Turkey – seen at several locations, especially Theodore Roosevelt Island

Golden-Plover – rarity found at the mouth of Four Mile Run

Blue-headed Vireo – a first few sightings of this early spring migrant

Common Raven – nests found in a couple locations, flybys seemingly everywhere

Cliff Swallow –just returning to their historical nesting sites

Vesper Sparrow – found at Kenilworth Park, though the records were getting old

Eastern Meadowlark – found at Kenilworth Park

With this many target species, it was obvious where I should focus my attention.  I was off to DC!

April 9 – Kenilworth Park

This park consists of about 55 acres of old soccer or football fields that basically look like a large pasture.  As a result, it is THE spot, in fact the only spot, to look for Meadowlarks in DC.  Though I’ve looked for them at Kenilworth numerous times over the decades without any luck. 

There were also a number of week-old sightings of Vesper Sparrow at the park.  With 2 key targets, I made this my first stop.  Within an hour of landing at BWI I was walking the Kenilworth fields hoping to flush a Vesper or a Meadowlark but to no avail.  Though I did find a couple flocks of Savannah Sparrows that kept me on my toes.

April 10 – Mouth of Four Mile Run

With excellent directions from a local birder, I was able to access the mouth of Four Mile Run to look for a rare American Golden-Plover reported there for several days.  Unfortunately, the only shorebird I found during my stop there at low tide was a Killdeer.  The Plover was last reported 2 days before my visit.

East Potomac Park – Hains Point

Targets reported recently at this park included Raven and Vesper Sparrow, and several older waterfowl sightings.  But once again I struck out.  The birding highlight was a flock of breeding plumage Bonaparte’s Gulls feeding near shore on the Potomac River.  And as a bonus, I was treated to some nice views of the blooming cherry trees.

Theodore Roosevelt Island

Wild Turkeys have recently colonized the greater DC area, and are perhaps most reliable on this island.  Plus Cliff Swallows were reported for the first time this spring the day before my visit – most likely the nesters returning to the footbridge to the island.  I spent quite a bit of time standing on the bridge hoping for a fly-by Swallow to no avail.  And I walked virtually all the trails on the island without finding a Turkey.  Though it was mid-day and there were lots of tourists there likely keeping the Turkeys well hidden.

C&O Canal – Chain Bridge

The attraction at this stop was a pair of Common Ravens likely nesting under the bridge.  This one sounded like a sure thing based on recent eBird reports – I was due (overdue?) for my luck to change!  It took a while to find where to park and how to access the area under the bridge, but I eventually made my way to the river below.  And once I got to the right area I quickly picked out a large corvid sitting under the bridge – it was indeed a Common Raven. 

Later a second adult flew in, and I also spotted this juvenile down below.

Luckily the Ravens chose to nest near the eastern end of the bridge, because the western end is actually in Virginia.  They were barely in DC – just 500 feet from the VA state line.  And about 2,000 feet from the MD state line.

My statebird map for Common Raven is inserted below.  The light blue states are those where I've seen this species in its regular range.  The one cross-hatched state (NJ) is the last one in its regular range where I've yet to see it.  And the 2 dark blue states are those where I've seen Common Raven as a rarity.

LBJ Memorial Grove – Columbia Island Marina

As I was heading back into DC on the George Washington Memorial Parkway I noticed a sign for the Columbia Island Marina.  I remembered that this was one of the spots where Cliff Swallows nested last year.  So on a lark I drove in and found the bridge where they likely nested. 

I stood at the edge of the bridge for a few minutes and as if on cue a Cliff Swallow flew by and disappeared under the bridge.  Now I had to figure out if I was still in DC or whether the Swallow was in VA airspace.  With a quick look on Google Maps I realized that the bird was indeed in DC, but just 50 ft from the VA state line. 

My statebird map for Cliff Swallow is now all filled in - except for Hawaii where Cliff Swallows are not expected.  

April 11 – Kenilworth Park

Now that my luck had improved I decided to go back to Kenilworth Park to make an early morning try for the Meadowlark.  I made a quick loop through the ballfields but came up empty.  Then I wondered about whether the adjacent running track and football field might be worth a try.  When I was there two days earlier there were many people walking and running around the track.  But now just after sunrise the track was empty.  Sure enough, as I neared the track I heard the characteristic song of an Eastern Meadowlark. 

I then followed the Meadowlark as it flew over to the soccer fields to get a better look.  And as I did I flushed a flock of sparrows feeding in the grasses.  All but 1 flew a short distance and dropped back in typical of Savannahs.  But the last bird departed from the flock and headed toward the neighboring brush.  As it did I noticed it had white outer tail feathers – I had a Vesper Sparrow!  And typical of Vespers, it landed on an elevated perch at the edge of the field instead of dropping back to the grasses.  Two new DC birds in the same field!

Later I took the trail to Kenilworth Gardens hoping to re-find a Blue-headed Vireo reported there the previous day.  The trail was quite birdy, including a singing Orange-crowned Warbler, but the Vireo was a no show.

April 12 – Theodore Roosevelt Island

Since my first trip to the island was midday with lots of noisy tourists, I decided to go back near sunrise to improve my chances of finding Turkeys.  Unfortunately, it didn’t make a difference as I struck out again.  Though another birder reported seeing a Turkey just an hour after I left.  A reason to go back I guess…

I added 4 birds to my Washington DC list, bringing my total to 188.  Not as good as getting a lifer, but still good results.

8 Georgia Statebirds Following a Trip to the Florida Panhandle, January 7-8, 2023

Late in December 2022 I noticed a post from a local birder where he mentioned he had just seen a White Wagtail in FL.  That would be a lifebird, one I missed back in 2016 practically in my backyard in NH because I was out of town.  Although I’ve had the eBird ABA Rarities alert turned on for years, I haven’t been checking it lately since I’m not doing much traveling during Covid.  So a Wagtail in FL wasn’t exactly on my radar.  But with some quick eBird searches I found out that the White Wagtail was being seen nearly daily in Tallahassee.  That seemed pretty far away, but with a drive time of “only” 7 1/2 hours, it was actually about the same amount of time it takes to drive to the NC Outer Banks.  The hunt was on!

In theory I could drive down to Tallahassee in one day, hopefully see the bird, and drive back the next day.  But why not add a couple days to the trip and look for some statebirds in the FL panhandle and in southern and central GA on the drive back.  So I started planning for a 4-day trip to try for the Wagtail as a lifebird and a number of statebirds in both states.

I first focused on potential statebirds in FL within a couple hours of Tallahassee.  All told I found a possible 14 targets in FL (including the Wagtail), which was a surprisingly high number given that my FL list was already at 320.  I realistically hoped to find perhaps 8 of them.

Then it was time to research targets in GA.  My statelist was only 258, so there would be lots of possible statebirds.  My route to and from Tallahassee would go through much of GA, way too much to bird effectively on this short trip.  Plus all my GA stops would have to be just on the way back home since I wanted to make a beeline for Tallahassee on the first day of the trip in search of my key target, the Wagtail.  So I needed to focus on potential targets that might be closer to my direct route home, thus minimizing drive times for side-trips.  That meant I wouldn’t be able to get to the coast, which was unfortunate since there were a number of my targets there.  And north of Atlanta would be out of bounds as well.  Despite all those constraints, I was still able to map out a route back taking me through the center of the state then heading northeast to Augusta that would give me 12 possible statebird targets.  I figured if I could find 6 of them that would make for a successful GA portion of the trip.

This post covers the GA portion of my trip, on Days 3 and 4 of the trek.  The previous blog post summarized the FL half of the trip.

Day 3 - January 7

The first stop of the day was the last one in FL – agricultural fields in the panhandle close to where AL, GA, and FL come together.  Luckily it didn’t take long to find my target Horned Lark there since I had a full day of GA birding (and driving!) planned.  In fact, I probably had more stops planned than I could bird successfully.  So soon after seeing the Larks I was back on the road heading northeast through southern GA. 

My first GA stop was an eBird hotspot called Standard Elevator Rd. in Sumter County.  The key target here was Say’s Phoebe that had been reported there twice in late December, though the most recent report was now 10 days old.  And complicating the issue was that no details on the location of the bird were provided.  This was a 3-mile-long road, and the hotspot was apparently the entire road.  Certainly lots of territory a single flycatcher could hide in.  The only clues were that the one checklist included photos of the bird on the ground on a dirt road, on a telephone wire, and on a telephone pole.  Recent reports from the hotspot also included a Pectoral Sandpiper, though ID details were limited on this species that would typically be in South America this time of year.  Plus there were occasional reports of 3 of my other targets, Sandhill Crane, and White-crowned and Vesper Sparrows, which were also seen at a number of other sites in this part of the state.  Lots of opportunity, though with limited time and directions, I wasn’t too overly optimistic.

As I pulled into the eastern end of the road I noticed a small roadside farm pond with mudflats.  I broke out the scope and picked up 15 Least Sandpipers, both Yellowlegs, and a Snipe, but no Pectoral.  That is assuming that this was the pond where the Pectoral had been spotted in the first place. 

Then I turned my attention to my key target, the Say’s Phoebe.  My first strategy was to try to find the area where the photos had been taken.  But the road was paved instead of dirt, and it was lined with 3 miles of telephone wires and poles.  This would be next to impossible.  I drove along a short distance and briefly got excited when I found a couple Phoebes but they turned out to be Eastern.  I had basically given up on the Phoebe and turned my attention to my Sparrow targets.  There was some nice brush along the roadside and I played some White-crowned tape to see if I could get lucky.  Amazingly an immature White-crowned almost instantly popped up – it was the first sparrow I saw along the road (GA statebird #1). 

My statebird map for White-crowned Sparrow is inserted below.  The blue-shaded states are those where I’ve seen this species in its regular range, which is basically the entire US.  The one cross-hatched location, Washington, D.C., is the last jurisdiction where I have not yet seen this species.

A short distance farther ahead I left the brushy area behind and came upon a dirt agricultural field.  I noticed some movement at the muddy edge and it was a Vesper Sparrow.  And then I realized there were actually 3 Vesper Sparrows foraging together (GA statebird #2).  Remarkably the first 4 sparrows that I saw along the road were a White-crowned and 3 Vespers.  Can’t ask for anything better than that.  Well I guess unless I saw the Say’s Phoebe too. 

Like White-crowned, Vesper is seen across the Lower 48 states, though I still need this one in 5 states plus DC.  (There aren’t too many good sparrow spots in DC I guess.)

I drove along a bit farther down the road and spotted a Phoebe flying nearby.  I quickly got out but it was just another Eastern.  But before I could return to the car I heard the bugling of a Sandhill Crane.  I looked up and there was a flock of 8 birds flying low overhead (GA statebird #3).  In my statebird map for this species that tan-shaded states are those eastern states where I’ve seen this species as a rarity.

The 2 Sparrows and the Crane had been reported at a number of my planned stops, so seeing them all so quickly meant I could spend less time looking for them on upcoming stops.  Plus 1 upcoming stop solely for Cranes could be eliminated altogether.  This gave me more time for my other targets.

And speaking of other targets, my thoughts came back to the Say’s Phoebe.  The place where I had parked was close to where farmer’s equipment had driven from the fields to the paved road, covering the road with large amounts of dirt.  Could this be what I thought was a dirt road in one of the pictures?  Then I started thinking about Say’s Phoebe’s preferred microhabitat – they especially like to forage and perch around farm buildings.  I could see a group of farm buildings up ahead near the western end of Standard Elevator Rd. – maybe I could re-find the bird after all.  I spent some time wandering around the buildings, seeing a number of perched birds like Mourning Doves and a Mockingbird, but not my target.

Then I remembered there were old farm buildings at the other end of the road as well.  I drove back there and just as I was getting out of the car noticed a telephone pole covered in poison ivy vines.  That reminded me that in the photo showing the Phoebe perched on a telephone pole the pole was also covered in vines.  Had I found the correct spot? 

Just when I started walking around the area near the pole a small flycatcher flew by and perched most cooperatively in a low tree – I had my Say’s Phoebe. 

GA was my 3rd eastern state finding this species as a rarity.

It’s most satisfying when my research and detective work lead to a successful chase!  And with 4 targets at my first stop I couldn’t have asked for a better start to my day.

Next I was off to the Dooly County Road Farm Pond hotspot where 2 Canvasbacks had been reported intermittently.  When I pulled up and did my first scan I didn’t see a single duck.  That wasn’t looking good.  But part of the pond was obscured by a small hill so I adjusted my viewing angle and noticed a group of 5 Hooded Mergansers actively diving.  And then 4 Cormorants swam into view.  But still no Canvasbacks though I picked out 2 rare continuing Long-billed Dowitchers.  I was now convinced that I could see the entire pond, and the Canvasbacks just weren’t there no matter how hard I tried.  But I had another spot for Canvasback on the next day so I wasn’t throwing in the towel on this species just yet. 

My next target was a Ross’s Goose reported twice in a small runoff retention pond in a suburban subdivision in Warner Robins.  Photos and a GoogleEarth view of this spot suggested the habitat was marginal, so I wasn’t too optimistic on this one.  But it was just a few miles off my route so worth the try.  When I arrived I realized that the pond was inside a gated community.  I tried driving around the outside of the community but fencing blocked my views.  I was tempted to just give up, but decided to try to talk my way into the neighborhood.  Luckily there was someone manning the gate, and they let me in to survey the waterfowl at the pond.  Just as I pulled in I spotted a couple Canadas - this was looking good.  But when I got a better view of the pond a small flock of Canadas were the only geese there.  In hindsight, with limited time available and more spots to bird yet that day, it would have been better to skip this spot altogether.

After a quick break to gas up, I was back on the road heading north to the Piedmont NWR to look for Red-cockaded Woodpeckers.  This one had not been on my radar screen until the night before when a report came through on my Needs Alert.  Then with some additional historical research I found out that Red-cockaded was actually regular on the refuge, presumably with active management for this endangered species.  If it hadn’t been for the previous day’s report I would have driven right past this spot.  But “shoe-horning” this additional spot in an otherwise already full schedule meant I had maybe just 90 minutes of birding time there.

After arriving at the refuge I went right to the location of yesterday’s report at the Wildlife Drive hoping the birds were still in the vicinity.  Foraging birds are often quite vocal, so I listened and watched intently.  I walked and drove along that section of the road, finding excellent managed habitat for Red-cockaded, but didn’t find my target bird.  Though I did see several marked trees the Red-cockaded was using for feeding or nesting.

I then went to nearby Cut-through Road where they had also been reported recently.  As before, I walked along the road through excellent habitat.  Several times I heard tapping but it turned out to be Red-bellies and Sapsuckers.  Then I heard more tapping and finally heard the characteristic “seep” calls of a Red-cockaded Woodpecker in the distance (GA statebird #5).  I briefly tried to track it down but realized the bird was pretty far away and my time was limited.  Not the most satisfying observation I’m afraid. 

After I got home, I realized that I could also have searched for Bachman’s Sparrow in this same habitat.  Although they are easier to find in spring and summer while singing on territory, they are still present in the winter months.  If I go back for the sparrow hopefully I’ll get some nice views of Red-cockaded Woodpeckers as well.

My last stop of the day was the Augusta regional airport where there had been recent sightings of both LeConte’s and Henslow’s Sparrows.  But those birds would have to wait till the next morning.  Today I wasn’t arriving at the airport until sunset when my targets would be Woodcock and Short-eared Owl.  Both species were only reported there once, and it was more than 2 weeks ago, but I was hopeful that the Woodcocks were local breeders and would be calling each evening.  I was a bit less optimistic for the Owl, but still worth the try.

I arrived at the end of General Perry Smith Parkway at the edge of the airport property at 5:34, one minute before sunset.  Skies were clear and there was no wind - excellent conditions to see or hear both species.  From my vantage point I could see most of the airport property as I hoped to see a Short-ear either sitting on a low perch, or flying low over the ground.  My initial scans came up empty, though a flyover late Bald Eagle was interesting.  As it got darker, I scanned even more intently but couldn’t come up with an Owl.  There’s a rule of thumb that Woodcocks start calling 20 minutes after sunset, so at 5:55 I crossed my fingers that the “timberdoodles” would soon start their courtship.  But at 6:00 there were still no calling Woodcocks and it was almost too dark to see a Short-ear even if it was there.  My hopes were waning.  Then finally at 6:02 I heard the first of 2 Woodcocks calling a short distance away (GA statebird #6).  It’s nice to shade in GA in my statebird map, but I still need this species in a number of states especially in the western portion of its range.

At 6:10 it was now too dark to try to see a Short-eared Owl, so I gave up on my nocturnal search and called it a day. 

Day 4 - January 8

At sunrise on the 8th I was back at the airport to try for the LeConte’s and Henslow’s Sparrows.  Both species had been found in a very small grassy area with some standing water and clumps of broomsedge a short distance from the spot where I had the Woodcocks the prior evening.  Although I had excellent directions to the wet area where the sparrows were found, I wasn’t too overly optimistic since the LeConte’s was last seen nearly 2 weeks ago, and the Henslow’s was last seen 5 days earlier.  I spent a fair amount of time trudging through the area but only found Songs and Fields.  I spotted similar habitat across the road at a retention pond and gave that a try too but only found Songs and Savannahs there.  It looks like I was too late for these little skulking targets.

My next stop was the Brickyard Ponds hotspot a short distance away where Canvasback was quite reliable and Black Duck was seen occasionally.  And there was even a recent report of Neotropic Cormorant there.  I traded e-mails with local birders who shared advice how to bird this spot, and they suggested that Canvasback was most likely to be seen in the Garden Pond.  After paying the small entrance fee at the bait shop I began the drive into the large complex of lakes of various sizes and shapes.  The first couple lakes had few waterfowl, but quite a number of Double-crested Cormorants.  I checked each one but couldn’t come up with the smaller Neotropic.  There were also multiple Anhingas nicely perched around the perimeter of each of the lakes. 

Then I reached the Garden Pond and it was absolutely covered in waterbirds.  Closest to the road were large numbers of Coots, perhaps 400 of them.  Then I looked farther out on the lake and the water was covered in diving ducks – certainly critical mass to find a Canvasback.  The flock was dominated by at least 500 Ring-necked Ducks.  Some of the closest Ring-necks flew off when I drove up; I just hoped the Canvasbacks weren’t with them.  Now it was time for a closer look to see what other species might be mixed in.  With a more methodical scan I was able to pick out 15 Redheads, 10 Buffleheads, and 15 Ruddy Ducks in with the Ring-necks.  I was starting to get worried until I finally found a pair of female Canvasbacks swimming far in the distance among the other ducks (GA statebird #7).  I just need Canvasback in 1 more state in the continental US.

With the Canvasback behind me, it was time to get back to looking for Black Duck and Neotropic Cormorant.  I birded the remaining lakes but unfortunately couldn’t come up with either of those long-shot targets.  Although I only got 1 of my targets, the Brickyard Ponds hotspot sure looked like a great birding site. 

My last stop of the trip was Lake Olmstead on the northern side of Augusta where a pair of Long-tailed Ducks were first spotted 2 weeks ago and were being seen almost daily.  It’s a small lake so I was cautiously optimistic.  The reports often mentioned that they were being seen off the boat ramp, though they were diving frequently.  I pulled into the parking lot at the boat ramp and instantly noticed movement out on the lake – it was the pair of Long-tailed Ducks!  (GA statebird #8)  That was easy.  They were indeed diving frequently, but I was able to get this passable phone-scoped photo.

Long-tailed duck 2 pic

Two days earlier I also added Long-tailed Duck to my FL list – nice to get this rarity back-to-back in these 2 southeastern states.

What a great way to end the trip!  My 8 new GA statebirds were 2 more than I hoped for, and it brings my statelist to 265.  And along with 10 new statebirds in FL (including a Lifer!), it was a great start to the 2023 birding year.

6 South Carolina Statebirds in November 2019

November was another great month of birding in South Carolina, focused not only on finding new birds for my SC list, but also on learning about hotspots within the “Upstate” (the higher elevation counties in western SC).  Along the way I teamed up with fellow Hendersonville birder Dave Minnich, who in turn introduced me to several Greenville County birders including Michael Robertson, Gary Harbour, and David Palmer.  And given my success with so many relatively easy birds, I prepared this monthly summary rather than individual blog posts for each trip – that will likely come in December.

11/4 – Tall Pines WMA

Dave Minnich and I had visited Tall Pines WMA in October and got a great introduction to the area with Michael’s, Gary’s, and David’s help.  When we came back on November 4^th, Dave, Michael, and I first headed to several fields that looked like they could have good sparrow habitat.  We had a few sparrows here and there, but not the good numbers, and good species, we hoped for.  When we reached the third field we headed to the far side that was flooded and found some nice weedy habitat.  And within just a few more steps we flushed a small sparrow which flew a short distance to a brushy perch.  It sat in the open for just a couple seconds which was just barely long enough for Michael and me to ID it as a rare inland Lincoln’s Sparrow, new for my SC list.  Unfortunately, Dave didn’t get on the bird in time. 

My statebird map for Lincoln’s Sparrow is inserted below – solid shaded states are those where I’ve seen this species; cross-hatched states are those where it is regular but I haven’t yet seen it.  Now that I’m living in the southeast maybe I can fill in some of those gaps for this species.

As we walked from the field we entered a brushy area along a stream and began to hear the chattering calls of a Winter Wren – target #2.  This one was more cooperative, sitting in the open for us all to see.  I just need this species in one more state in the southeast as a wintering bird, though several more as a breeder in the Midwest.

Next we headed to a nice mixed hardwood/pine woodland.  In our previous trip to Tall Pines we took this same trail and didn’t see much.  This time we all thought that the woodlands could be a good spot to find my next target – Brown Creeper.  As we slowly walked the trail, we admired the trees and plants in the undergrowth, but once again didn’t see many birds.  But then we heard a single high-pitched call from high in the woodlands, which we all thought was likely to be a Creeper.  It continued to call and we eventually got looks at this shy bird.  We later had 2 others in this same stretch of woods.  Nice when a prediction comes true.  Six more states to go to fill in my statebird map for this widespread species.

11/9 – Anderson County - Townville Area

This was an organized trip run by the Greenville County Bird Club to visit several hotspots in the Townville area in Anderson County.  The key targets were Vesper and White-crowned Sparrows, along with Snow Goose as a recently reported rarity.  I met Michael near Greenville and carpooled to the starting point of the walk.  There we met up with about a dozen other birders, and we started with some nice woodland birding at Beaverdam Creek WMA.  Key highlight here was a late Yellowthroat.  Then we were off to the farm fields at Dobbins Farm.  A pair of Snow Geese had been reported on a small farm pond at this site for several days, as recently as the day before our trip.  But despite our best efforts we found no white geese.  We even tried several other ponds nearby without success.  Our best find here was a distant flock of 7 small peeps that were just too far to identify.  Michael mentioned that this spot was also well-known for wintering Brewer’s Blackbirds – something to keep in mind for a future trip.

Next Michael and I decided to leave the main group and head directly to Prater Farm where he has had the best luck with our target sparrows.  We made our way to Tom Martin Rd. and stopped at a brushy edge that had been good for the sparrows in the past.  Just as we got out of the car we flushed a sparrow from the roadside which flew up to a cedar tree.  Hmm… - that’s very typical of Vespers which will fly up to a higher perch after being flushed.  We changed our angle a bit and got a view of the sparrow in the tree – it was indeed a Vesper.  Then we noticed more activity in the tree, and spotted no less than 4 more Vespers.  It was an amazing flock of 5 Vesper Sparrows – I don’t remember seeing anything more than individuals away from their breeding grounds.

After celebrating our experience with the Vespers we started walking a bit further down the road and flushed another sparrow – it was a young White-crowned!  We found five other White-crowns here, including at lead one singing adult.  I just need this species in GA and DC to complete my statebird map.

At this same spot we also had a large flock of 100 Pipits in an adjacent field, a Eurasian Collared-Dove, and a perched Loggerhead Shrike.  A nice stop, and a nice way to end the morning’s trip.  I’ll definitely have to come back here in the winter to look for Brewer’s Blackbirds.  And since this area is close to the GA/SC stateline, maybe a future trip could include some time working on my GA list as well.

11/19 – Northern Greenville County Lakes

The goal of this trip was to check out a number of the lakes in northern Greenville County that can have some nice waterfowl during winter.  We had no key waterfowl targets – it was just a scouting effort.  But then oh by the way, Michael suggested we might get lucky with Rusty Blackbirds at Lake Cunningham.  He’s had them there off and on this time of year.  As I pulled in to Lake Cunningham David and Michael were already at the lake doing a bit of birding.  And within just a couple minutes a few blackbirds flew into a nearby tree.  After a quick view we realized we had our first Rusty Blackbirds.  Within the next few minutes more Rusty’s flew in – I counted 160 birds in total.  But just as quickly as they arrived, virtually the entire flock had flown away.  A nice start of the day!  I just need this species in 5 midwest states as a migrant or wintering bird.  Though it’s nice to have seen this species as a rarity in CA as well.

We made stops at 6 other ponds and lakes that morning, finding a few waterfowl here and there, the best being 5 Horned Grebes at Lake Robinson.  We also made a quick stop at Jordan Pond where Common Goldeneyes have wintered the last couple years – something to keep in mind for a future trip.  And my last stop was at the Stamey Valley Road lake where I had a flyover flock of 20 Rusty Blackbirds.  A nice way to end the morning.

I ended November with 6 new statebirds for my SC list which now stands at a nice round number of 250.  That’s 18 new SC species since I moved to the area just over 2 months ago.  Although there have been a couple rarities, most have been pretty regular species.  And with a dwindling list of relatively easy target birds, I’m sure I won’t be able to keep up this pace for too much longer.

10 North Carolina Statebirds in October 2019

October was a great birding month for me in my new home in the mountains of western North Carolina.  I birded several days a week at nearby hotspots, and most every day just in my own yard.  I added 10 new species to my NC list in October, about half being rarities needing details in eBird.  Short summaries of each of my additions are provided below.

10/1 – Nashville Warbler, Philadelphia Vireo – Yard

My yard continues to be an excellent birding spot, with many migrants passing through the yard virtually every day.  The month started off with a bang with additions of both Nashville Warbler and a Philadelphia Vireo, the latter considered to be rare per eBird.  I had 1 or 2 Philadelphia’s in the yard each day for the next 3 days.  My statebird map for Nashville Warbler is inserted below – I’ve seen it in the shaded states, and still need it in the cross-hatched states where it is a regular species.

10/6 – Northern Waterthrush – Jackson Park

My first birding trip in the area was a birdwalk run by the local Elisha Mitchell Audubon Society (EMAS) at the Beaver Lake sanctuary.  A couple of the folks in my group spotted a Northern Waterthrush but I missed it.  Hence it was a bit of a nemesis bird for a couple months until I finally caught up with one on my first trip to Jackson Park.  It turned out to be the first of several I had in the month.

10/9 – Peregrine Falcon, Dickcissel – Warren Wilson College

A Dickcissel spotted in a sunflower field at Warren Wilson College provided my first opportunity to chase after a local rarity.  Luckily I had attended an EMAS field trip to this spot so I knew where the field was and how to bird the site.  I arrived early the next morning and met up with a couple other birders also searching for the target bird.  There were many Indigo Buntings, and a couple Blue Grosbeaks, but no Dickcissel.  Most of the birds would be seen either flying out of the field to the adjacent trees, or flying back into the sunflower field.  But in most cases the birds would frustratingly instantly disappear into the vegetation; only occasionally would a few individuals sit out into the open for even a quick view. 

After an hour of searching I thought about leaving the sunflower field and birding elsewhere, but decided to focus on my real target – the Dickcissel.  I continued to try to ID the birds coming and going from the field from various vantage points, and at one point spotted a Peregrine Falcon overhead – a nice consolation prize, but still not the target.  Then at the 2-hour point I again thought about calling it quits.  But then I realized that the Buntings that were flying into the field were changing their MO and were actually sitting in the open for a while – maybe the Dickcissel might do the same I thought.  And sure enough, just a couple minutes later the 2 other birders and I all spotted the Dickcissel perched atop a sunflower.  Then again it might not have been “the” Dickcissel – this bird seemed to be paler below than the one photographed the day before.  A second bird perhaps?  In any case, my strategy to focus on my target rarity, rather than to divert my attention to more general birding, proved to be the right one.  As shown in my statebird map below I’ve seen Dickcissel in most of its regular range generally in the central portions of the country, and have found it as a rarity in a number of eastern states.

10/10 – Connecticut Warbler – Jackson Park

Local birder Dave Minnich and I were planning a birding trip for the 10th, and decided to try Jackson Park based on a couple reports of a Connecticut Warbler there.  The bird had been reported near the southern end of the Warbler Trail, so that’s where we started our trip.  But it was pretty slow in that area, and we continued our walk along the trail all the way to its northern end.  Shortly after we turned around and started our walk south back down the trail we heard a set of odd chip notes.  And just then I spotted a Connecticut Warbler just off the trail.  This was perhaps a half mile from the earlier sighting so likely a different bird.  The bird was seen again later that day by several other birders, and in fact continued to be seen for over a week – though as is often the case with these skulkers, it was not seen by everyone.

10/12 – Warbling Vireo – Yard

During one of my nearly daily stints birding in my yard I spotted a Vireo that instantly caught my eye – brownish back, faint eyeline, white throat, and only a bit of yellowish wash on the flanks.  Earlier in the month I spent a lot of time watching Philadelphia Vireos to make sure they weren’t Warbling Vireos.  And today’s bird was definitely a Warbling and not a Philadelphia, or Red-eyed for that matter.  This species is not only rare for NC, but it was also quite late for one, so it was a nice find.  I just need to see this wide-ranging species in a couple more southeastern states. 

10/18 - Lincoln’s Sparrow – Warren Wilson College

My targets on this trip to Warren Wilson were fall sparrows.  Earlier in the month a Nelson’s had been reported from a wet ditch in the middle of the fields (why didn’t I chase it?), plus it was time for Lincoln’s to be arriving.  So a sparrow search was on!  I headed to the ditch as soon as I got to the site and soon had a number of Songs, Swamps and Savannahs.  Then in the distance a Lincoln’s popped out and gave nice views.  Later I had several other Lincoln’s there – I guessed at least 3.  I also had another at the nearby gardens, and 2 at the sunflower field.  Interesting that this species is considered to be a rarity in eBird.

10/24 – American Bittern, Vesper Sparrow – Hooper Lane

A Vesper Sparrow was reported at the sod farms at Hooper Lane, though without a specific location.  There are numerous weedy ditches throughout the site so I planned to work the ditches and hope I ran into the Vesper, or maybe I should say a Vesper.  But shortly after I arrived at the farm I heard a Greater Yellowlegs in the distance.  I located it in a wet area in the distance, and decided to get closer to it to grab a photo, and look for other shorebirds.  I snapped this passable photo holding my phone up to my binocs. 

A bit later I spotted a pair of shorebirds overhead which turned out to be a White-rumped Sandpiper and an American Golden-Plover – both eBird rarities.  But neither was new for my NC statelist.  Unfortunately, by the time I went back to looking for my target Vesper Sparrow I had run out of time.  Though the shorebirds were certainly a nice consolation.

So I was back a couple days later to give it another try.  This time I started at the southernmost ditch and started heading west, flushing sparrows along the way.  But it was just the regulars – lots of Savannahs, a few Songs, and a couple Swamps – so my interest started to wane.  I was just about to give up when I flushed an American Bittern from the ditch – this addition wasn’t even on my radar screen.  I still need this reasonably common species in quite a number of states across the country.

Later in that same ditch I spotted a sparrow in the distance with a white eye-ring.  I initially thought I had a Vesper, but realized it was too small.  Then it turned to face me and it had a buffy chest with no striping – a Grasshopper Sparrow.  Nice!  But still no Vesper.

Next it was on to another ditch, with more Savannahs and Songs.  Then I spotted another Grasshopper Sparrow – only my second and third I’ve ever found in fall migration.  And the hits kept coming – I turned to look at the pool where the Yellowlegs had been a couple days earlier and spotted 4 shorebirds.  I needed to get closer to identify them as Pectoral Sandpipers – my 6th shorebird species there that week.

I was out of time and started to head back to the car along the ditch I birded earlier.  I wasn’t watching the sparrows too closely since I had seen them all on my first pass.  But just then I spotted a larger sparrow fly into the ditch from the nearby field.  And after just a couple seconds it popped into the open and was a Vesper Sparrow.  Although it took me a while to finally get my target, I’m not complaining since I found so many other goodies along the way.



I ended the month with a NC statelist of 270 – I’ve added 19 new birds to my list since moving here just over 2 months ago.  I continue to be amazed at how many good birding spots there are within 45 minutes of my house.  And speaking of my house, my yard list as of 10/31 stands at an amazing 92 species.  This includes 22 species of warblers and 6 vireo species as the fall migration through my yard was outstanding.  What a tremendous start to my time here in the Carolinas!

Vesper Sparrow, South Kingstown, Rhode Island, February 2014

RI is the toughest New England state for Vesper Sparrow because it is the only one of the 6 states where it does not nest.  As a result it is typically seen in RI just as a fall migrant and occasionally in winter, and is reported in very small numbers most years.  So although rather rare, it is still one of the more common birds that was missing from my RI state list.  The first time I chased after Vespers was fall 2013 when a couple birds were seen reliably at a weedy field in southern RI.  But by the time I was able to get there they were gone.  That same day I was also unsuccessful in chasing after a Lark Sparrow in CT, though I did get the Calliope Hummingbird in NH – that was quite a day!  So along with the fact that I needed it in RI to sweep the New England states, Vesper Sparrow had become a significant target for me.

Late on a Saturday in February there was an e-mail reporting that 2 Vesper Sparrows had been found feeding along the edge of Card’s Pond Road in South Kingstown.  That’s an exceptional sighting in mid-winter!  But would they stick around?  Sure enough, another e-mail came through on Sunday that the birds were still present midday, with a very specific location provided.  A few minutes later I was on the road heading to Card’s Pond Road. 

It was mid-afternoon when I arrived at the spot but saw no sparrows feeding along the road edge – in fact I saw no birds at all.  So I turned around and drove along that stretch of road again with my windows open hoping to hear some sparrow chip notes.  Within seconds I heard several chips, and quickly found a couple Savannah Sparrows perched in some shrubs near the road.  I hopped out and soon found many more Savannah Sparrows, coming to a feeding station – I estimated 40 Savannahs.  I don’t think I’ve ever seen a Savannah come to a feeder, let alone such a large flock.  Then I found a second feeder at the neighboring house, with White-crowns, White-throats and Songs.  There must have been at least 60 sparrows total.  And all of this activity was within 100 feet of the spot where the Vespers had been reported.  Several other birders arrived and we all thought that the Vespers would be mixed in with the other sparrows.  So we spent the next 45 minutes staring at this nice diverse group of birds, but with no signs of the Vespers.  At one point a small group of sparrows came out to feed on the road edge.  We got all excited but they were just Savannahs.  Had the Vespers moved on?

Then one of the birders noticed some activity farther down the road.  It was too far away for an ID using just binoculars, but they were 2 pale sparrows feeding along the road edge.  These could be our targets.  I quickly ran back to the car and got out my scope and seconds later knew we indeed had the pair of Vesper Sparrows.  We watched the birds for the next several minutes and were amazed to see how tame they were – cars would drive right by them and they wouldn’t fly.  Although we probably could have gotten closer, we kept our distance and I was able to get these two phone-scoped pictures.

Vesper Sparrow was number 311 for my RI list, and it is the 225^th species I’ve seen in each New England state.  And although this bird is seen across the US, I still need it in a number of states especially in the southeast (see my statebird map below).