The Goldfinch Newsletter of the Howard County Bird Club a Chapter of the Maryland Ornithological Society
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May/June 2019 Volume 47, Issue 5 The Goldfinch Newsletter of the Howard County Bird Club A Chapter of the Maryland Ornithological Society www.howardbirds.org Club Meeting - By Jane Geuder Inside this Issue: hursday, May 9, 2019 “Mongolia: Birding in the Footsteps of Genghis T Khan,” by Gail Mackiernan. To the naturalist, Gail’s June 2018 trip into immense grasslands, the vast Gobi Desert, wild mountains, and varied Club Meeting ......................... 1 wetlands is of great interest. The group recorded about 175 of the planet’s Winter Bird Records ............. 1 most wanted birds. Gail and Barry are club members. They have traveled Field Trips ............................ 2 on seven continents and have seen more than 6,000 bird species. Managing a Rare Bird ........... 2 Meetings are at the Robinson Nature Center, 6692 Cedar Lane, Columbia MD 21044. Hospi- May Count ............................ 6 tality at 7:00 p.m. Meeting with program begins at 7:30 p.m. There is no admission charge. Board of Directors Meeting ... 6 For further information call Mary Lou Clark at 410-465-4061. Mid-winter Count Summary .. 7 Website: http://www.howardcountymd.gov/RobinsonNatureCenter New Members ....................... 9 Potluck Thanks ................... 10 Birding Basics Class ............ 10 WINTER BIRD RECORDS: DECEMBER 1, 2018 – FEBRUARY 28, 2019 BY JOANNE SOLEM Birding in Mongolia he 2018-19 winter was typical for central Maryland with cold, snow, T ice, sleet, fog, rain, a polar vortex, and record heat! And with those dramatic weather changes came a Greater White-fronted Goose, Trumpeter Swans, and Iceland Gulls. The predicted invasion of boreal species enter- tained many feeder watchers; special species included one Evening Gros- beak and one Common Redpoll. Five Snow Geese were seen and heard over Jamina Downs, E. Col. on 2/19 (EHs). One dark form (blue phase) was spotted in a flock of ~300 Canadas by Gail Mackiernan at the Rhine farm, Old Frederick Rd the morning of 2/23 (FSh). Two of the other three reports (1/20; 2/3) were accompanied by photos which, unfortu- nately, revealed a domestic goose with some Snow characteristics. The third bird (2/4) was seen in flight. The sighting was accompanied by neither a photo nor a detailed description so species could not be determined. Gone are the days when any white goose with Canadas could automatically be considered a Snow. Now it is always necessary to eliminate Ross’s, as well as domestics, when reporting a white goose. A star of the season, a Greater White-fronted Goose, was picked out of a flock of ~1,000 Canada Geese in a Waterford field along Jennings Chapel Rd on Howard County Mid-winter Count (HCMC) 2/2 (TFe, ph., GKg). A few Cackling Geese can be expected Oriental Plover by Tony Quinn each winter. Seven, possibly as many as ten, were at the Springdale Rd (Records continued on page 3) 2 S PRING F IELD T RIPS B Y J OE H ANFMAN Field trips are a great way to improve birding skills, explore new places and meet other birders. Arrive at the meet- ing site ready to leave at the designated time with appropriate footwear and gear. Carpooling is strongly encour- aged. The leader may cancel due to inclement weather/hazardous driving conditions. Directions for trips not on ADC maps are on the Club’s website. Questions? Contact the trip leader or Field Trip Coordinator Joe Hanfman at [email protected]. HCBC members receive priority on trips that are limited by number of participants. No pets. WESTERN REGIONAL PARK Wildflower Walk May 5, Sunday, 8:00 a.m., 2-3 hours. Meet at first parking Late April/early May. Date and location to be determined by lot on left off Carr’s Mill Road entrance. Moderate walking weather and flowering. Check HCBC website during that along field edges and woodland trails. Opportunity for war- period. blers, sparrows, thrushes, and flyovers. Facilities available. Leaders: Bob and Jo Solem, [email protected] Leader – Anthony VanSchoor, [email protected] Dick Smith Memorial Butterfly Walk MAY COUNT September 1, Sunday, 10:30 a.m. 2-3 hours. Meet at Elkhorn May 11, Saturday. See article on p. 6. Garden Plots, Oakland Mills Rd opposite Dasher Ct. Enjoy searching for late-summer butterflies with instruction on PATAPSCO SCRUBLAND their identification. Easy walking on mowed paths around May 25, Saturday, 7:30 a.m. (half day). Meet at 735 River the community garden plots and Elkhorn meadow. We will Road (up long drive take right-hand split & park by house). continue on paved paths and mowed areas near the right-of- Starting in the scrubland, we’ll look for warblers, vireos, way alongside open, flowering, wet meadows and brushy thrushes, and other edge species. Depending on conditions, hillsides. Bring close-focus binoculars to view nectaring be- we may continue into the woods. Moderate to possibly dif- havior. Cancelled if raining or overcast. No facilities. ficult walking: steep trails with several stream crossings, so Leader – Linda Hunt, [email protected] wear appropriate footwear. Facilities available. Leader - Felicia Lovelett 301-802-1969 or Butterflies: Late spring/summer butterfly trips and work- [email protected] shops will be listed on the HCBC website under Natural History, Butterflies. Questions: Contact Linda Hunt [email protected] or Kevin Heffernan [email protected] _____________________________________________________________________ MANAGING A RARE BIRD – EVENING GROSBEAK BY JOE HANFMAN n January 2019 an Evening Grosbeak showed up at owner for allowing us to visit multiple times. I a private feeder in Howard County. Thanks to Sarah Romero working with the homeowner, the bird club The complete Managing a Rare Bird Procedures can be was able to schedule seven visits to the home. The found at: https://www.howardbirds.org/howard/ homeowner kept her dogs inside during our planned visits. The Evening Grosbeak was also photographed on the Mid-winter Count. On six of the seven trips the participants were successful in seeing the Evening Grosbeak. In order to give the greatest number of birders a chance to see the bird and respect the homeowners’ wishes, we conducted a slow release. The first step was to issue a Howard County Bird Club Rare Bird Alert. Field trips were scheduled and participants carpooled to the loca- tion. The second step was to issue an invitation to eve- ryone on the MD Birding Listserv. Additional field trips were then scheduled. The procedure worked very well with minimal concerns. Thanks go to Bill Hubick for writing the original rare bird procedures, the field trip leaders Mary Lou Clark, John Harris and Kurt Schwarz, and to Sarah Romero for coordinating with Evening Grosbeak by Kristin Trouton the homeowner. We are especially grateful to the home- 3 (Records continued from page 1) Quarry (Quarry) 1/22 (JHf), one of the all-time high counts. Two were reported on HCMC: one in the same Jennings Chapel Rd field as above (TFe, GKg) and one at a pond just west of West Friendship Park (WFRDP) (RRf). One was also present at the Rhine farm, Old Frederick Rd 2/23 (JHf). Eight Trumpeter Swans, the county’s fourth record, were noted on Wilde Lake at 7:00 a.m. on 2/17 (LGg). Many birders enjoyed and photographed them that day. The same morning ~9:00 a.m., the fifth record Trumpeter was photographed at Stone Lake (Gorman/ Stephens Rd) (FCg). On 2/18, just before 9:00 a.m., the The Font Hill Canvasback by Howard Patterson Wilde Lake group lifted off, circled a few times, and departed toward the east (HPt, MLC, BO, RTd, AAl+). counted at CENPK 2/19 (J&MH). One at Font Hill At 6:00 p.m. on 2/19, likely the same eight swans were Wetland Pk 2/4 was the first for that site (SMu). Red- noted flying over Tenthouse Ct, Anne Arundel Co heads peaked at 12 at the Quarry 1/31 (DSn); one at (JHw, KRn). Five Tundra Swans were reported from Forebay Pd 2/19 was at an infrequent location (JW). WFRDP 1/2 (AVS). Greater and Lesser Scaup were present sporadically on the central lakes and the Quarry. Photographs helped to sort out most records, sometimes after vigorous de- bate. One Long-tailed Duck was spotted at CENPK 12/9 (FSh); two were photographed there later that day (HPt, JHf). A female Bufflehead on the river at the Trumpeter Swans at Wilde Lake by Kelsey Wellons Open water at Race Road Wetlands produced a new all-time high of 23 Northern Shovelers on 12/18 (SRm) [12/26/16 R. Ruffing - 19]. Twenty-six Gadwalls were Long-tailed Duck at Centennial Park by Anthony VanSchoor counted there on 2/18 (MLC, MHr), 2/22 (SRm), and Middle Patuxent Environmental Area 1/30 was a new 2/26 (SRm, MLC); the species was also reported from species for that site (JHr). Common Goldeneyes sur- Centennial Pk (CENPK), Marriottsville Rd Pd, and prised birders with their scattered presence on ponds the Quarry. Twenty-five American Wigeon at the Mar- and lakes for much of the winter, unlike their usual lim- riottsville Rd Pd 2/22 (RRf) was the season’s maxi- ited appearances. Wintering waterfowl are often sus- mum. American Black Duck numbers topped out at 25 pected of moving among local bodies of water. This was at the Quarry 1/6 (ALw), often a favored winter loca- clearly established by two goldeneyes in a distinctive tion. A flock of 19 Northern Pintails over Underwood plumage photographed in a pond behind Lincoln Rd was unexpected 2/23 (FSh). Seven Green-winged School on Snowden River Pkwy 1/11 (DZk). At some Teal were present at Race Rd 1/1 (C&SPr).