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CarolinaBirds for Saturday, September 2, 2006
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Subject: RE: hummingbirds
From: "Randy Dunson" <trdunson(AT)nc.rr.com>
Date: 2 Sep 2006 9:17am
Hello All!
Same story here... In fact, while I'm typing this there are 7 outside my
window fighting over one of the feeders! No Rufous sightings yet...I can
only hope. My pineapple sage also has bloom heads so I can't wait for the
display in the next couple of weeks or so.
Regards,
Randy Dunson
Hillsborough, NC (south of...)
-----Original Message-----
From: carolinabirds-owner(AT)acpub.duke.edu
[mailto:carolinabirds-owner(AT)acpub.duke.edu] On Behalf Of Susan Campbell
Sent: Friday, September 01, 2006 3:56 PM
To: Carolina Birds
Subject: hummingbirds
Dear Fred and All,
Yes--I still have good numbers of hummers here still--of all ages and sexes.
I banded five new adult males today (zeroing in on them since they will be
gone very soon). It is nothing like it was two weeks ago but there is
pretty steady action everywhere in the yard.
Got a call from Kay Anthony in no. Raleigh who spotted an adult male Rufous
there this morning. It'll be interesting to see how long he sticks around.
So far he has not been antagonizing the Ruby-throateds near the feeders.
This is a very different experience for them--unlike the incredibly
aggressive behavior of their famous male (with them four winters and one
summer).
Also noticed today that my Mexican bush sage (Salvia leucantha) and the
Pineapple sage both have tiny bloom heads showing now. Yup--fall is not
that far off...
Susan Campbell
Whispering Pines, NC
[ << | >> | ^^ ]
Subject: Ernesto remnants at Jordan Lake, Chatham Co
From: nathan.swick(AT)duke.edu
Date: 2 Sep 2006 9:32am
I went out to Jordan Lake this morning on the off chance that Ernesto may
have left something behind. Sure enough, I saw 3 WILSON'S STORM-PETRELS from
the Ebeneezer Church boat ramp. I initially spotted the birds looking north
from the tip towards the bridges and again looking SW towards the Vista Point
boat ramp.
Nathan Swick
Chapel Hill
[ << | >> | ^^ ]
Subject: Bobolinks this morning
From: jeff lewis <jlewis_obx(AT)yahoo.com>
Date: 2 Sep 2006 9:37am
Hi folks,
I am dismayed that I have to work this morning instead
of looking for left-overs from Ernesto! At least I did
hear several Bobolinks fly over a while ago. Fall is
here! Good luck to all the "chasers" this morning!
Jeff Lewis
Manteo, NC
__________________________________________________
Do You Yahoo!?
Tired of spam? Yahoo! Mail has the best spam protection around
http://mail.yahoo.com
[ << | >> | ^^ ]
Subject: Buckhorn Res 2nd Day
From: rdnc <rdnc(AT)earthlink.net>
Date: 2 Sep 2006 12:06pm
Hi Folks,
Spent the morning at Buckhorn Res in Wilson County, checking on Ernesto
birds the day after the storm. As expected, most of the stuff had
departed the lake. Very few birds compared to yesterday during the
storm, but did get another seabird species for the lake. Totals were:
Wilson's Storm-Petrel -3
LEACH'S STORM-PETREL -1
Semipalmated Plover -1
Lesser Yellowlegs -3
Sanderling -1
Least Sandpiper -5
Pectoral Sandpiper 2
Caspian Tern -3
Royal Tern -12
Sandwich Tern -4
Black Tern -18
Common Tern -10
Forster's Tern -5
The Leach's seemed to be the most tired, as it spent many minutes
sitting on the water. Hope it makes it. I expect that many or most of
these birds will trickle on out during the day. It has sure been fun
with these from this storm. I will admit though, that I would be happy
if we did not get any more coming our way - my yard is a mess, and water
is in the attic. I guess I can now try to clean up at home. Later, Ricky
Ricky Davis
Rocky Mount, NC
[ << | >> | ^^ ]
Subject: Wayne Co, NC birds this am
From: "Eric Dean" <wolfpackdeans(AT)earthlink.net>
Date: 2 Sep 2006 12:18pm
Hi all,
Checked the waste treatment plant and Cherry Hospital areas this morning
with Gene Howe. Most of the storm birds were gone. A sole Common Tern and
15-20 Black Terns remained. Saw 2 Moorhens at the wetlands and big numbers
of swifts. At Cherry Hospital we had Bobolinks and found Short-billed
Dowitchers, Pectorals, Least, Semipalmated Sandpipers, Lesser Yellowlegs and
a single Buff-breasted Sandpiper. Big flock of Bank Swallows with a few
Cliff and Barn mixed in. Also saw 3 Bald Eagles over Quaker Neck. Quite a
pleasant morning to be out!
Eric
Eric & Celia Dean
112 Armstrong Dr
Goldsboro NC 27530
919-736-7264 (home)
919-920-1542 (cell)
wolfpackdeans(AT)earthlink.net
http://home.earthlink.net/~wolfpackdeans/
".... I realized that if I had to choose, I would rather have birds than
airplanes." Charles Lindbergh
.
[ << | >> | ^^ ]
Subject: Black-billed Cuckoo at Riverbend Park!
From: Dwayne Martin <redxbill(AT)charter.net>
Date: 2 Sep 2006 2:13pm
I was out gathering trash this afternoon here at Riverbend Park (northern
Catawba Co.) when I saw a Cuckoo fly into a tree. I grabbed my binocs and sure
enough a Black-billed Cuckoo! This is a state bird sort-of for me. I have
heard them in NC, but have never saw one here until today. I think that is
species number 189 for the park.
Dwayne
*************
Dwayne Martin
Hickory, NC
redxbill(AT)charter.net
Catwaba County Park Ranger
Riverbend Park - Conover, NC
jdmartin(AT)catawbacountync.gov
http://www.catawbacountync.gov/depts/parks/
[ << | >> | ^^ ]
Subject: storm-petrels at Jordan Lake
From: jspippen(AT)duke.edu
Date: 2 Sep 2006 2:19pm
Birders,
Will Cook just called from Ebenezer Point at Jordan Lake in central NC
with a report of at least 11 storm-petrels sitting and pattering on the
water. He's positively identified several as Wilson's and a couple as
probably Leach's. It's 2:15pm and he's there now searching and studying
if anyone wants to run out there and join him. Wish I could!
Good birding,
Jeff
^^^^^^^^^^^^^^^^^^^^^^^^^^^^^^^^^^
Jeffrey S. Pippen
Nicholas School of the Environment and Earth Sciences
Rm A-241 LSRC Bldg, Box 90328
Duke University, Durham, NC 27708
PH: (919) 660-7278
http://www.duke.edu/~jspippen/nature.htm
^^^^^^^^^^^^^^^^^^^^^^^^^^^^^^^^^^
[ << | >> | ^^ ]
Subject: Bobolinks migrating 31 August, 2006
From: "Frank Enders" <fkenders(AT)hotmail.com>
Date: 2 Sep 2006 12:41pm
3.
Frank Enders, Halifax, NC
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Subject: Roanoke Rapids Lake Dam: No waifs at 2 PM Friday Sep 1
From: "Frank Enders" <fkenders(AT)hotmail.com>
Date: 2 Sep 2006 11:50am
Bad luck. Two Black Vultures gliding into the west wind. Some Turkey
Vultures farther east, but no stream of waterbirds going downriver.
Nothing. Hard-driven drizzle.
Frank Enders, Halifax, NC
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Subject: Wilson's Storm-Petrels at Jordan Lake
From: "Kent Fiala" <fiala(AT)ipass.net>
Date: 2 Sep 2006 4:48pm
Thanks for the tip, Will and Jeff. Over about the last half hour I've observed
at least 2, probably no more than 3-4, Wilson's Storm-Petrels flying amongst the
heavy boat traffic.
--
Kent Fiala
at Ebenezer Point
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Subject: Yes! Sept. 2nd - First Warbler
From: "KC Foggin" <KCFoggin(AT)sc.rr.com>
Date: 2 Sep 2006 6:51pm
and new yard bird: Yellow-throated Warbler high in my pine trees at around 6
tonight. :)
KC Foggin
Socastee
Myrtle Beach SC
www.birdforum.net
[ << | >> | ^^ ]
Subject: Storm bird timing
From: Michael Schultz <ross.gull(AT)verizon.net>
Date: 2 Sep 2006 7:02pm
Hi all:
I read with some chagrin that there were storm-petrels entertaining some
lucky folks at Jordan Lake this afternoon while I was frittering my time
away at work! I was free yesterday however, and did go to Jordan and
scanned from several points including Ebenezer. Except for one Caspian
Tern and a few swallows the lake was void of birds!
I also just had a call from Lois. She is at Oregon Inlet, also looking and
storm-petrels.
Arrgh!! After thirty years here, I still don't have the knack for chasing
these storm birds.
Mike Schultz
Durham, NC
[ << | >> | ^^ ]
Subject: nesting barn swallows
From: "George & Judy Halleron" <geojudyh(AT)hotmail.com>
Date: 2 Sep 2006 7:11pm
Thought you would enjoy the following story from Minnesota.
George & Judy Halleron
Marble, NC
"
"Hi-tech Barn Swallows
A couple of Minnesota Barn Swallows have raised the bar on
the scale of "Swallow IQ." For the past four years, a pair
of Barn Swallows has nested inside the lumberyard entryway
at the Home Depot store in Maplewood, Minnesota. At least
one pair has learned that if they fly a tight circle in
front of the motion detector above the double doors at the
entry to the Home Depot, the doors open. Each bird then
flies one more loop as the doors open and swoops inside
where the pair has built a nest atop a small pipe near the
ceiling. When a bird is ready to leave, it flies a tight
circle in front of the motion detector inside the doorway
and the doors again open for Home Depot's small avian
customers.
Keith Stomberg, a supervisor at the store, first noticed the
birds nesting inside in the summer of 2001. He was
fascinated by their apparent learned behavior and left them
alone to raise their families. It was a good place for the
swallows to raise their young because there were no
predators or bad weather. The pair typically raised two
broods each year. When the birds returned to nest in 2003,
he contacted the staff of the Non game Wildlife Program of
the Minnesota Department of Natural Resources.
Wildlife biologist Joan Galli observed the nesting swallows
and was amazed to see how the birds had adapted to the
unique setting in order to raise their families. "We
typically think of the crow family and the parrot family as
among the most intelligent of birds," accor d ing to Galli,
"but apparently the swallows have a few tricks of their own
that help us appreciate how birds are constantly adapting to
survive in novel human-created environments.
THE PRESS REPORT
"Birds Opening the Coop" -- Kermit Pattison in The St. Paul
Pioneer Press, 6/26/04:
Some barn swallows apparently have figured out how to
operate motion detector doors at the Home Depot store in
Maplewood in order to nest indoors safe from weather and
predators.
Wildlife biologists from the Minnesota Department of Natural
Resources are observing the birds as an unusual example of
learned behavior and adaptation to the human environment.
"I thought this is so unusual that it needs to be recorded
and put in the book of knowledge on barn swallows," said
Keith Stomberg, the Home Depot employee who first noticed
the phenomenon. "This takes deductive reasoning. The term
'bird brain' now has got to be modified."
Steve Kittelson, a DNR wildlife specialist, said it remains
unclear to what degree the swallows have "learned" to
trigger the motion sensors. Obviously, the birds have
figured out that if they circle outside, much as they would
instinctively do in front of a closed barn door, they will
eventually get through. The question is whether they realize
that their own presence actually triggers the door to open.
"It's very interesting and amazing to watch that they can
make this work to their advantage," Kittelson said. "It
certainly gives them a secure site for nesting. They've
eliminated a lot of predators and weather elements. They
even have air conditioning."
This year marks the fourth spring the swallows have taken up
residence inside the giant home improvement retailer at 2360
White Bear Ave. Now there are at least a dozen nests inside
various entrances, said store manager Gregg Barker.
"They'll operate all the doors," said Barker. "All of them
do. To get inside, they'll flutter right underneath these
sensors until it opens."
The cavernous store has become an attraction for
birdwatchers.
"One lady, she stops in once a week just to check them out,"
said Barker. "I had a couple groups bird watching who come
and set up videos to tape them."
Stomberg said he first noticed the unusual behavior about
three years ago while working at the contractor's desk near
a set of automatic doors.
He said the swallows would flutter by the motion detectors
until the door opened and even would do so as a courtesy for
birds on the other side who wanted to get through.
"One of the assistant managers locked the door early,"
Stomberg recalled. "The barn swallows weren't done yet. They
actually picked him and harassed him until he unlocked the
door like, 'Hey! Unlock the door dummy, I'm not done feeding
my kids!' "
Stomberg said he called the Department of Natural Resources
last year. The DNR officials who came to investigate last
spring initially were skeptical, he said, but then "picked
their jaws up off the floor" as they watched the birds.
[ << | >> | ^^ ]
Subject: Final Call for Summer Bird Sightings Reports
From: rdnc <rdnc(AT)earthlink.net>
Date: 2 Sep 2006 7:34pm
Hi Folks
This is a Final Call for your Summer Season (June 1 - July 31) Bird
Sighting Reports for North American Birds Southern Atlantic Region
(NC,SC,GA) and The Chat Briefs for the Files (NC, SC). Please get me
your reports and any photos you want to send NO LATER than Fri September
8, 06. Sending by email is best of course but you can also send by snail
mail if postmarked by Wed Sept 6. Also faxing will work, or calling if
you have a limited report. Thanks, and good birding, later, Ricky
Ricky Davis
NAB-Southern Atlantic Region
The Chat-Briefs for the Files
608 Smallwood Drive
Rocky Mount, NC 27804
[ << | >> | ^^ ]
Subject: at window
From: "barbara brooks" <brooksba(AT)visionet.net>
Date: 2 Sep 2006 7:41pm
I am at my "computer" window and think I am hearing a rather upset wood
thrush. Have to go back downstairs to check the frequency list. I am going
to Holden beach for a week and hope to see some Ernesto birds on the slim
chance they are there. barb brooks
Barb Brooks, poet
author of the chapbook
"The Catbird Sang"
Black cap, wings slate gray,
feathers dribbled with red.
[ << | >> | ^^ ]
Subject: Re: storm-petrels at Jordan Lake
From: Will Cook <cwcook(AT)duke.edu>
Date: 2 Sep 2006 9:49pm
Thanks to Nathan Swick for reporting the 3 Wilson's Storm-Petrels this
morning -- this was not only the first report of Wilson's for Jordan
Lake, but a record high count of any kind of storm-petrel there
(previous high: total of 2 after Hurricane Fran).
Hoping they might still be there in the afternoon, I headed down to
Ebenezer Point, set up my scope, and after about 5 seconds of scanning,
I saw the first storm-petrel fly by. As I followed it, another
storm-petrel appeared in the scope. These two did some pattering and
eventually landed on the water. I continued scoping and found another
pair, then a few more flying around. Following one of the flying ones,
I saw it land on the water next to a raft four other storm-petrels. At
this point I did a careful sweep and found groups of three, two, and a
singeton for a total of 11 individuals! There could have been a few more
that I missed on this sweep.
Watching them over the course of an hour, almost all that were close
enough to ID were clearly Wilson's Storm-Petrels, but I also picked out
one I feel confident was a Leach's. The Wilson's were doing a lot of
flying around and pattering on the water, but spent much of the time
resting.
Estimated totals:
10 Wilson's Storm-Petrel
1 Leach's Storm-Petrel (second report for Jordan Lake)
1 Caspian Tern (an expected migrant, but possibly storm-related)
No swallows at all or other possible storm-related birds.
At New Hope Overlook I saw one Wilson's Storm-Petrel, but it may have
been part of the group I'd seen from Ebenezer.
I also checked out Farrington Point, Crosswinds Marina, the Jordan Dam,
and Harris Lake, but found no storm waifs. Not even a single swallow or
tern.
One fun sighting at Harris Lake -- I saw a white-rumped bird flying low
over the water, but it was obviously much too big for a storm-petrel.
Put my binoculars on it -- a Northern Harrier!
I returned to Ebenezer around 5 pm, just as Kent Fiala was leaving.
There was less activity, but I saw 4 storm-petrels, 3 Wilson's, one
possible Leach's.
I wouldn't have guessed that the day after relatively weak Tropical
Storm Ernesto passed well to the east we'd see the highest number of
storm-petrels in Jordan Lake's history. Odd that there were none the day
before -- perhaps the storm-petrels were blown further off course the
day of the storm and just found the open water of Jordan Lake this
morning as they were trying to head back to the ocean.
--
Will Cook - Durham, NC
http://www.carolinanature.com
[ << | >> | ^^ ]
Subject: Storm-Petrels at Oregon Inlet Sept. 2
From: "J. BRIAN PATTESON" <patteson1(AT)mindspring.com>
Date: 2 Sep 2006 9:52pm
After hearing reports of many Leach's Storm-Petrels still at the mouth
of the Chesapeake Bay early this afternoon, I decided to take a look at
Oregon Inlet. When I arrived there were dozens of storm-petrels in
view, albeit mostly distant- not a problem if you have seen thousands of
Wilson's Storm-Petrel- but certainly not a great lifer look.
Eventually, a few of these birds came very close (ultimately 15 feet
away!) Lois Schultz and Jeff Lewis joined me, and together we saw two
or three Band-rumped Storm-Petrels as well, with a couple of good scope
studies of these. Prior to their arrival, I saw one or two Leach's, but
these birds never reappeared. There were probably over 100 Wilson's in
the area, which were mostly way out on the horizon. We were looking
westward from the south end of the Bonner Bridge. I suspect there will
still be many storm-petrels there tomorrow, but a lack of wind might
keep them on the water a bit more. Anyone in the area with a small boat
and a little fish oil could probably have a field day. Even a little
slick poured off the catwalk might produce if the wind and current are
right.
Brian Patteson
Hatteras
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