White Street Landfill
 Field Trip 1/6/07                                                                 By Louise Brown & Carolyn Allen

     Unseasonably warm weather made for a nice trip, led by Carolyn Allen. A sizable crowd of 25 PBC members and guests attended. Since this facility is no longer used for dumping household trash, the bird populations frequenting it have changed; the huge numbers of gulls and vultures have considerably dwindled. Established in the 1940’s and covering over 90 acres in all, there are large tracts where household garbage has been dumped for many years, and covered over with earth and now are quiet grassy hills. Areas of woods, streams and wetlands provide peaceful and diverse habitats. 
     A few ducks and water birds were on some of the ponds and streams. We saw a Pied-billed Grebe, a Great Blue Heron, Mallards, Ring-necked Ducks and Buffleheads. Raptors included Turkey and Black Vultures, and hawks. A pair of Red-tails has a nest in a back area of the landfill. A Sharp-shin swooped down and apparently nabbed a Mourning Dove for its lunch. Two American Kestrels worked a grassy hill, hunting for mice and insects. The Kestrel has a particular movement, called “kiting,” where it “treads air” with its wings to remain stationary as it looks for prey in the grasses below. We were excited to see a couple of Common Ravens, not particularly common in Guilford County.
     There was an interesting collection of sparrows: Field, Savannah, Fox, Song, Swamp, White-throated, and White-crowned. The Savannahs were on the side of a hill (as well as some Meadowlarks!), and the Swamp Sparrow was in a wetland area. Three White-crowned Sparrows were the first ones seen there, according to Carolyn Allen, who birds the area regularly during the Audubon Christmas and Spring Counts. The White–crowned Sparrow has become rare in Guilford County as the area becomes more and more developed, so we are grateful to George Wheaton who spotted the bird! We saw 39 species in all.
 

Pine Island
TGPAS/PBS Joint Field Trip
January 13-15, 2007

by Gregg Morris

      Our party of four reveled in the unseasonal weather at the Outer Banks.  On Saturday, at Bodie Island Lighthouse, there were lots of Tundra Swans on the pond, along with several American Avocets and many ducks, including Green-winged Teal and American Widgeon.  Tree Swallows patrolled overhead.   A Bald Eagle kept watch from it nest tree, and a Common Loon and several Red-breasted Grebes provided close-up looks on the sound. 
     Pine Island, an Audubon sanctuary in the Duck/Sanderling area, was first on Sunday morning’s agenda.  From there we went south to Pea Island.  A Tri-colored, an immature Little Blue, and Great Blue Herons were seen.  We had rafts of American Coots, Greater and Lesser Scaups, a moderate supply of Northern Shovelers, Ring-necked and Ruddy Ducks, and a few Buffleheads and Redheads.  There were lots of Tundra Swans and several Great and Snowy Egrets.  There was also a huge Snapping Turtle in the little pond by the boardwalk.  Next, we visited Cape Hatteras, where we saw several Willets and a rare, for January, Whimbrel, more Red-brested Grebes and some Northern Gannets.
     Monday morning, on the way home, we decided to visit Alligator River NWR.  There were more swans, about half the Northern Pintails in the world, two more Bald Eagles, several Northern Harriers, a Wilson’s Snipe, a Red-tailed Hawk, Pileated (several), Red-bellied and Downy Woodpeckers and, the bird of the trip, an immature, light-morph Swainson’s Hawk. Thanks for the tip, Lynn.
     In total, we counted 69 species, including all of the most common January gulls and terns, and many “backyard” birds.  Good trip.
 

Salem Lake
Jan. 20, 2007

     Dan Chambers led a field trip to Salem Lake, in Winston-Salem, on a sunny but chilly and breezy day, Jan. 20.  The birds were not plentiful, but we were excited to see several American Black Ducks, which are not very common.  Other water birds were Gadwall, American Coots, a single Bufflehead, a fair number of Pied-billed Grebes, Great Blue Herons and a Kingfisher.
             

JORDAN LAKE
 2/24/07
                                                                                                                           By Louise Brown

          Dan Chambers led a great trip to Jordan Lake with about a dozen club members. We saw forty-seven species there. On the wonderful Indian Creek Wildlife Trail, thanks to a number of sharp eyes, we saw a number of winter birds, including the elusive Brown Creeper and Hermit Thrush. There were Golden-crowned Kinglets, White-throated Sparrows, and Dark-eyed Juncos in abundance. At the edge of the lake we got a look at a distant Bald Eagle nest through a spotting scope, and could see presumably the mother sitting on it. A variety of water birds included a Horned Grebe, in its crisp winter plumage, Ring-necked Ducks, Hooded Mergansers, Double-crested Cormorants, a Great Blue Heron, and a Pied-billed Grebe. As we looped back to the parking area, Dan took us to an area flooded by a beaver dam where we had the good fortune to see a Red-headed Woodpecker in its element, lots of dead trees. We also spotted a Yellow Warbler and a Phoebe there. There was a marina at Ebenezer Church Point where we had lunch and watched Ring-billed Gulls.  After that the group went to Farrington Rd where they saw a White Pelican. Along the way we saw Red-tailed, Red-shouldered, and Cooper’s Hawks, Pine and Yellow-Rumped Warblers, Ruddy Ducks and Gadwalls as well as a host of “regular birds.”

    Carolyn Allen led the group to the lovely property of Trudy and David Whitacre in northwestern Guilford County. They were delightful and eager hosts, sharing their property with our Club again. The land provides a variety of habitats, open fields, lots of shrubs and trees, and a small pond. Adjacent to the Lake Higgins buffer, there was also a nice trail through the pine and mixed hardwood forest. We saw a variety of birds, newly emerging wildflowers, several kinds of fungi and other intriguing natural wonders. Our list included Great Blue Herons, Red-tailed and Red-shouldered Hawks, Yellow-bellied Sapsuckers, Northern Flickers, Eastern Phoebe, both Brown-headed and White-breasted Nuthatches, Juncos and Pine Warblers as well as a number of other more common birds. After a nice walk through the woods we had coffee and snacks provided by our hosts.
 

Greensboro Lakes
3/24/07
                                                                          by Elizabeth Link 

     We had a great turnout for the trip, and while some of the hoped-for waterfowl weren't to be found, we had a total of 57 species, including a Common Loon in breeding plumage, a surprise Great Egret and Green Heron, and of course the Bald Eagles and Osprey, tending nests.      Other notable species: Wood Duck, Northern Shoveler, Lesser Scaup, Bufflehead, Hooded Merganser, Ruddy Duck, Belted Kingfisher, Fish Crow, Purple Martin, Northern Rough-winged and Barn Swallows, Golden-crowned and Ruby-crowned Kinglets, Pine Warbler and Dark-eyed Junco.
 

Easter 2007 Trip to HBSP and Environs
4/6-8/07
                                                                                                                      By Emily Tyler

     Our annual trip over the Easter weekend for the second year in a row was to the Litchfield/Huntington Beach State Park/Georgetown area of coastal S.C.  There were twelve participants who made a very congenial group with a lot of expertise, not only in identifying birds but other animals as well as plants. Space will permit only a few highlights of the birds we saw. Friday morning was cool (about 40 degrees) and windy which had an impact on the number of birds seen and heard. We started bright and early at Huntington Beach State Park and spent most of the day exploring the various habitats there. Hanging out in a bare tree top near the Camp Store/Office was a flock of about 60 Cedar Waxwings warming themselves in the morning sun. They were magnificent. A walk along the Atalaya Trail produced a Black-crowned Night Heron along with a variety of shorebirds and passerines. After a picnic lunch half the group hiked the 1.2 miles to the jetty and were rewarded with Purple Sandpipers, lifers for some, as well as Common Loons and a Glossy Ibis. Others chose to spend the afternoon visiting different trails in the Park or Brookwood Gardens. Late in the afternoon we headed to nearby Waccamaw Middle School where we had fabulous views of a Red-cockaded Woodpecker excavating a nest hole just 30-40 feet off the road. What a great way to end the day’s birding.
     Saturday we went first to Georgetown’s Sewage Treatment Plant where there was nothing extraordinary but we enjoyed watching a pair of Wood Ducks, and an assortment of shorebirds and gulls and a distant Egret rookery (both Greats and. Snowies). We traveled on to the Samworth Wildlife Management Area north of Georgetown and picked up several warblers, including Perulas, Prairie, Palm, Pine (the 4 Ps), Yellow-throated and Black and White, and Yellow-throated and Red-eyedVireos as well as many Blue-grey Gnatcatchers including one pair building a nest. There also were Wild Turkeys and a Pileated Woodpecker to charm us.
     On the way back to the Litchfield area we had a great opportunity to study gulls and terns on a sandbar off the south end of Pauley’s Island. Several of us then returned to the Middle School before dinner to watch the same Red-cockaded Woodpecker continue her excavations.
     Sunday saw most of us at Brookgreen Gardens where we added some new trip birds including a Least Bittern and Marsh Wren. We saw an Anhinga flying over and a large flock of Tree Swallows showing a beautiful blue as they tipped their wings flying back and forth across the marsh. Another amazing sight was of three Wood Duck hens tending their broods of little Woodies. At one time we counted up to 25 ducklings.
     This became the trip of the almost-lost hats which were blown off a boardwalk and a bridge to the marsh below. Elsa Bledsoe was the brave and sure-footed soul who rescued Ann Walter-Fromson’s new Audubon hat by using a log and a board, moving one ahead of the other, and a stick for balance, to walk out gingerly across the marsh without
sinking in the mud.  While lying on the bridge Linda Langworthy used two long Phamites canes like tweezers to carefully lift Emily’s Cape May cap from the muck at Morgan Park. Just a little brushing after the mud dried and the two hats came out unscathed. How nice it is to have such resourceful people on our trips!
     Despite the weather which was most unspring-like and the fact that Easter this year was a week earlier than last year we felt very fortunate to have seen 111 species while birding as a group. Another five species were added by individuals or couples after the group split up Sunday afternoon and headed their separate ways, giving us a grand total of 116 species.

The Summit /Haw River SP 
4/21/07by Emily Tyler

     A record number of twenty birders turned out for this year’s early spring trip to The Summit on the Guilford/Rockingham County line. This was the Club’s first field trip to this site in two years as the 2006 trip was rained out. Since the 2005 trip, the date was moved a couple of weeks earlier in the season. That, in addition to the abnormally cold weather in early April (Easter), contributed to fewer migrants and summer residents, birds which breed here. Thus, the total number of species was down from previous trips, 42 compared with 58 in 2005.
     The temperature when we started down the trail to the lake was about 60 degrees. It was up to 75 when we left three hours later. The Great Blue Heron rookery seems to be growing. From the end of the boardwalk we could see them flying by every few minutes carrying twigs and other nesting materials.
     Some of the stand-out species sighted included Wood Ducks, Broad-winged Hawk, White-eyed and Yellow-throated Vireos, and the following warblers: Northern Parula, Pine, Prairie, Prothonotary, Hooded and the Common Yellowthroat.
     Some of the participants moved from The Summit to the Plainfield Marsh afterwards for a very pleasant couple of hours watching two American Bitterns, a Sora and Red-headed Woodpeckers. We were perched on the hillside off the road watching the marsh (one of us who shall remain nameless was perched in a tree for a better look!). The bitterns can be  right in front of you and you don’t see them, then you do. Every so often as they move slowly and methodically through the marsh, that long neck extends fully, grabbing a crayfish delicacy. Adding these new species to the day’s total, the number of species was 45 plus an unidentified accipiter sp.

Randolph County
4/28/07                                                                                                                                                              by Louise Brown

     Mark and Jane Lewis hosted yet another fine birding event at their home and property. They own 210 acres of land, providing a variety of habitats: woods of mixed hardwoods and pine, creek, pond, and open fields. They have maintained it as naturally as possible, keeping any improvements to house and outbuildings at a low-impact level on the environment. For instance, the house and outbuildings were built in areas that were already open. They are “off the grid” – having built their house to be powered completely by solar energy. The most major change (to the environment) they have made is to create a couple of ponds, a beneficial change, since both floral and faunal diversity has increased as a result.  It’s been especially beneficial for amphibians (9 species noted so far), quail, turkeys, wood ducks (one of which nested within a couple of weeks of adding a duck box), herons, raptors, and other passing waterfowl such as Hooded Mergansers. They have cut a number of hiking trails through the woods, but by removing only small trees and underbrush.
      There was a record turnout of participants, at least 30, mostly PBC members. The weather was perfect, sunny, but cooled by a nice breeze.    We saw many good birds, including quite a few warblers: Northern Parula, Magnolia, Prothonotary, Prairie, Black-throated Blue, Yellow-rumped, Black-throated Green, Yellow-throated, Hooded, Black-and-white, Ovenbird, Louisiana Waterthrush, Pine, Yellow-throated, Yellow-breasted Chat, American Redstart, and Worm-eating.
     Other spring migrants included White-eyed, Blue-headed, Yellow-throated, and Red-eyed Vireos; Rose-breasted and Blue Grosbeaks, Indigo Bunting, Scarlet Tanager, Great-crested Flycatcher, Blue-gray Gnatcatcher, and Swainson’s Thrush. Those who stayed until after dark were treated to the calls of Whip-poor-wills. The final tally was 66 species. This number was down a little from last year, several birds had not yet arrived. Cold snaps in mid-April had put quite a number of plants and animals up to a month behind schedule.
     Mark, who is a keeper at the NC Zoo, specializing in reptiles, added another dimension by discovering and sharing a Green Snake and a Worm Snake along the way. He also had captured two Corn Snakes and an Eastern Kingsnake the day before, so we got to look at, handle, and photograph them. (They were released afterwards.)
     We also enjoyed a number of wildflowers, including Jack-in-the-Pulpit, Wood Sorrel, May Apple and various ferns. People had brought a variety of dishes and foods so we shared a wonderful potluck lunch. Great people, great food, great birds! It can’t get any better than that!
 

Shorebirds Field Trip
8/4/07                                                                                                                                                              By Elizabeth Link

      On Saturday, August 4, an intrepid group of 14 PBC birders turned out for a sweat-drenched trip around the Greensboro lakes to look for migrating shorebirds. While recent rains had raised    the lake levels somewhat, we still managed to find enough birds, butterflies, and wildflowers to make us forget the heat for a while.  The total number of bird species seen was 32. We ended the trip with some great looks at the Mississippi Kites that were in the same general area off Kemp Road North where they were first discovered in 2004.    We were surprised to see the kites join some noisy crows in mobbing a Red-tailed Hawk soaring overhead.    
    Other interesting migrants included: Great Egret, White Ibis, Solitary, Spotted, Least and Pectoral Sandpipers, Chimney Swifts, Ruby-throated Hummingbird, Great-crested Flycatcher, Yellow-billed Cuckoo, Red-eyed Vireo, and Barn Swallows. Although an uncommon year-round resident, the Red-headed Woodpecker, seen in the Plainfield Marsh, is always a delight to see. The trails along Lake Townsend we birded were the Reedy Fork Trail and the West House Trail which is north of the Lake Jeanette spillway (access from Church Street).  

HAWK WATCH AT PILOT MOUNTAIN  

9/15-30/07                     by John Haire

     If this year's hawk counting could be summarized in a phrase, it might be "quality over quantity."  Broad-winged Hawks, the most numerous migrants during our count period, were down significantly from prior years’ average, 1,200 this year vs. 3,800.  This could be due to a couple of factors: that the birds simply may have been elsewhere, or that the weather conditions made hawk-spotting difficult.  Ideally, a fairly clear horizon and significant high cloud cover provide good background for seeing far-off birds, but that did not occur for more than a few hours over the 16-day count period.  Instead, there were generally clear blue skies overhead, often with haze on the horizon, and the few times there was significant cloud cover, it was so low that visibility was limited.
     Results were much better for the 11 other species of raptors.
While we tried to count only migrating raptors, it's possible that some of these birds are now local residents, which in itself could be significant, especially for Bald Eagle and Peregrine Falcon.  The final results are posted at www.hawkcount.org.
      Non-raptor observations included a possible Snowy Egret, flocks of Cormorants, several Red-breasted Nuthatches, Red-headed Woodpeckers, Wild Turkeys and a Great Horned Owl.  Sixteen species of warblers, often in good numbers, were observed: Tennessee, Northern Parula, Chestnut-sided, Magnolia, Cape May, Black-throated Blue, Yellow-rumped, Black-throated Green, Blackburnian, Pine, Palm, Bay-breasted, American Redstart, Worm-eating, Ovenbird and Hooded. Other migrant passerines included Ruby-crowned Kinglets, Rose-breasted Grosbeaks and Scarlet Tanagers.  Little Pinnacle seems to be an overlooked fall warbler hotspot, especially in afternoon, when the north side of the mountain gets cold, and the sun is still shining on the south side of the mountain.
     More than 100 birders signed in for a shift during the Hawk Watch and hundreds more casual walk-up visitors expressed interest.  Groups from the Reedy Creek Nature Center in Charlotte, the Sandhills Nature Preserve in Moore County, and the Piedmont Bird Club and Pearson Audubon Society in Greensboro came during field trips.
     Many thanks to all the volunteers who took a shift compiling or who signed up and helped observe.  There are too many to name, but special thanks to Forsyth Audubon President Phil Dickinson, previous season count coordinators Toby Gordon and Dan Chambers, data coordinator Shelley Rutkin, and day count coordinators and observers Phil Crisp, Linda Davis, Scott DePue, Jim Martin, Julien McCarthy, Gregg Morris, Ron Morris, Tara O'Leary, Ann Robertson and Sue Rupp.
     I hope everyone enjoyed their time at Little Pinnacle and that all will come back again next year!

POTLUCK TRIP TO HARVEY’S KNOB  

10/6/07                    by George Wheaton

     Two intrepid members of the PBC sallied forth to Harvey's Knob on the Blue Ridge Parkway north of Roanoke. A threatening gray and foggy morning turned into a warm and sunny afternoon. The birds responded accordingly, putting on a show in early to mid-afternoon. Highlights of the 56 species recorded (with the help of a little padding on the trip back to Greensboro) included: Peregrine Falcon, Yellow-billed Cuckoo, Olive-sided Flycatcher, Blue-headed Vireo, Red-breasted Nuthatch, and Ruby-crowned Kinglet. The find of the day, however, was a large (50 or more birds) mixed flock of migrating passerines that contained at least 11 species of wood warbler. These jewels included Golden-winged, Cape May (a few), Blackburnian, Bay-breasted (several), and Tennessee (many). A low canopy provided knock-out looks at these fall travelers. 

     This new “Potluck” field trip format involves the leader choosing the location at the last moment, hoping to pick up on birding that is “ripe” and not predictable in advance.

PILOT MOUNTAIN FIELD TRIP

9/22/07                         by Gregg Morris

      A small group of three bird club members, including one all the way from Fayetteville, took part in a joint PBC/TGPAS trip to Pilot Mountain to watch for (and count) migrating raptors.  The variety was decent, with nine species identified, but the numbers were disappointingly low, especially this close to the normal peak of fall Broad-winged migration.  We counted only 47 of these long-distance migrants, as well as five Sharpies, three Cooper’s, two Kestrels and one each Red-tailed Hawk, Red-shouldered Hawk, Northern Harrier, Bald Eagle and Osprey.  Fog early in the day limited visibility, and when the weather cleared, birds might have been lost in the deep, blue sky.  Alternatively, any number could have snuck by hidden in the haze obscuring the Blue Ridge.
     Fittingly enough, as warblers are also in migration at this time of year, the hawk watchers spotted several, including Hooded, Blackburnian, Black-throated Green, Black-throated Blue, Black and White and Bay-breasted.  A Pine Warbler and a Red-breasted Nuthatch provided excellent shows in the pines edging Little Pinnacle on the south.
     All in all, it was a good day, as most days at Pilot Mountain are, and it was nice to see old friends and acquaintances from Forsyth County and the Sandhills.

Bog Garden
November 11, 2007    By Louise Brown

     It was a beautiful day, not cold, but fairly breezy, which might be the reason a few species such as the kinglets were not seen (although I thought I heard some a couple of times.) Most of the winter birds were there - Sapsuckers, Northern Shovelers, Ring-necked Ducks, one very tame Hooded Merganser, and Yellow-rumped Warblers. There were a number of raptors seen in a variety of places - Cooper's, Red-tailed and Red-shouldered Hawks, and some Turkey Vultures.
     When I had gone on a scouting trip the day before, I had seen, much to my surprise and delight, a Rusty Blackbird, a Pine Siskin, and a Purple Finch (with photos to prove it!) I was only hoping we could be lucky enough to spot them again. Alas, we did not. As a few of us went over to the Bicentennial Garden to avail ourselves of the restrooms after most folks had left, wouldn't you know, two Rusty Blackbirds were feeding in a grassy area nearby! They were lovely, the sun making the "rusty" areas on their heads almost golden.
     A few of us went out to the Church Street crossings of Lake Townsend. At the first crossing we were charmed to see, thanks to Lou Skrabec's scope, a flock of about 14 American Pipits. We also saw Killdeer, lots of American Crows, Cormorants, and some Bluebirds. At the second crossing there were lots of birds, including nine Great Blue Herons, two Great Egrets, a large number of crows, a Kingfisher, and two Rusty Blackbirds. Then we went for a quick check at Plainfield Marsh, where we saw a lively bunch of Red-headed Woodpeckers, and a pair of Purple Finches, among others.
     There was a good turnout for this trip - almost 20 people. We observed 44 species of birds.
 

Memories of a Thanksgiving Fish Dinner, Nag’s Head 2007!
                                By Carolyn Allen
     The Outer Banks always provide excellent birding even in cold and wind and even when some of us who have been at this many years forget to take our heaviest coat! We had a grand “mix” of seasoned birders and some very new to this pursuit. Emily Tyler, Dierdre Poe, and Carolyn Allen formed one “cluster” for birding along with Rosemary Lancaster, a relatively new member of the Bird Club but a longtime birder during her years living in Florida, and her daughter Wendy Lancaster, whose experience was a nodding acquaintance with some backyard birds. Another “cluster” was made up of Phillip Kellam and his parents and Larry Gaspar. We had the privilege of birding together at South Pond because of the two volunteers, Neal and Pat Moore, who regularly lead field trips at the Pea Island National Wildlife Refuge. Though South Pond is closed to the public (where various scientists have on-going studies underway) the Superintendent gave us permission to go in with the Moore’s guidance.
      The following day the Moores provided us with a marvelous opportunity to drive, in their 4-wheel drive van, around Hatteras Point. Given the wind and temperature, we would not have seen many of the species that we enjoyed without their generosity. The two “big birds” of this swing were the Peregrine Falcon (carefully observing ducks in the salt-water pond below him) and the Brant. Neal Moore knew exactly where the Snipe was hiding, and again, without his leadership, we would not have seen this bird. For some of us this was the first opportunity to study a Lesser Black-backed Gull standing between Great Black-backed and Herring Gulls.
     The Tyler “cluster” saw 74 species.  I know that Phillip, his parents, and Larry saw a number of species that we did not including Marbled Godwits and several additional duck species.
 

Alamance County
December 1, 2007    By Lynn Moseley
     Saturday, December 1, began with temperatures below freezing, but warmed up nicely as the morning progressed.  A small but sharp-eyed group of five birders had an excellent day in Alamance County, where we concentrated on two sites:  Lake MacIntosh, in the western part of the county, and Cedarock Park, which combines trails through typical Piedmont forests and fields with an historical working farm representing rural life in the 19th Century.  By 12:00 noon, a respectable total of 52 species had been recorded.   Highlights included several nice species of waterfowl on the lake (including Green-winged Teal, Redhead, Hooded Merganser, and Ruddy Duck), a Horned Grebe, a three-year-old Bald Eagle that caught a fish right in front of us and took it to a tree where it ate the fish while we watched, and an excellent sighting of a Northern Harrier cruising low over an old field.
     Other birds of interest included Red-shouldered, Red-tailed and Sharp-shinned Hawks, Bonaparte’s Gull, Red-headed and Hairy Woodpeckers, Red-breasted Nuthatches as well as the other two more common species,  both Golden- and Ruby-crowned Kinglets, and Hermit Thrush.