Worcester and Somerset Counties 8/11 - 8/12

Photos: Palamedes Swallowtail, Willet, Royal Tern, Tern Flock, Abandoned House on Assateague Island.


Last Saturday I was supposed to go out on a pelagic trip out of Lewes, Delaware. Unfortunately the seas were running too high and the leaders decided to cancel the trip. So a group of Maryland birders and myself headed to Assateague Island to see what we could find. We started at the Bayside Campground parking lot. This is one of the premier sites in Maryland to witness Fall bird migration. It was a little early for migrants but we did see a few Yellow Warblers and a Baltimore Oriole. We then loaded into two vehicals and headed to the ORV Zone. Along the beach Sanderlings were by far the most numerous shorebirds. Also seen were Whimbrel, Western Willets, Ruddy Turnstones, Black-bellied Plovers, Semipalmated Plovers, Piping Plovers, and Oystercatchers. At Foxhill Flats on the bay side of the island we added Least and Semipalmated Sandpipers along with both Lesser and Greater Yellowlegs and Short-billed Dowitchers. There was a gull/tern flock that included Sandwich, Royal, and Caspian Terns. A Pintail flew over while we were scoping the shorebirds. While walking out to get better views of the terns I noticed a Salt Marsh Skipper. I was afraid I might have missed this butterfly so getting this photo was a major relief. Back out on the beach I managed photos of Common Tern, Sandwich Tern, and Caspian Tern, all new for the year. Also resting on the beach were many Lesser Black-backed Gulls of various ages. At the state line I photographed a young Brown Pelican sitting on a piling. Add another tick! From Assateague we moved south to check out the pond at E.A. Vaughn (north) WMA. There are usually shorebirds and waders present and if we were going to find a rare wader like a White or White-faced Ibis it would probably be here. When we arrived at the pond it was apparent that the were no unusual waders but Jim Stasz spotted a Long-billed Dowitcher. Another shorebird tick that could have been tricky. We then went to Deal Island WMA in Somerset County. Jim spotted a Yellow-crowned Night-Heron flying over which was a county bird for me. Yellow-crowns are really rare on the Eastern Shore of Maryland. They only nest on the bay islands and are very difficult to find. This was only the second Yellow-crowned Night-Heron I have ever seen on the Eastern Shore of Maryland.
On Sunday Tom Field, Jim Stasz, Ed Boyd, and myself went to Hickory Point in Worcester County to try to photograph Palamedes Swallowtails. Palamedes are rare in Maryland and Hickory Point in August is the best place to find them. While waiting for the swallowtails I photgraphed a beat up Great Blue Skimmer and a Seaside Dragonlet. Ed finally caught a Palamedes and carefully took it out of the net so we could get photographs. From Hickory Point we went to some ponds around Pocomoke City where we observed some really cool dragons and damsels. Since it is getting late in the season for damsels we were delighted to see Southern Sprites and Swamp Spreadwings still flying. Ed caught a Banded Pennent which was another bug I was afraid I might miss since it was getting late in the season. Then came a huge miss. Jim Stasz calls out he just saw a Martha's Pennent fly by. I have never seen a Martha's Pennent and while I know that they are rare breeders in Maryland never thought that they were even possible for the big year. With nets primed we waited for the bug to fly past again so we could capture it for photos. The pennent flew by one more time but too far out for our nets and was never seen again. So I probably missed my Martha's chance but that is OK because it was a great weekend with a lot of major photos taken so there are not any long faces.

Upland Sandpipers 8/2/07

Photo: Upland Sandpiper


Last Wednesday I received a phone call from Norm and Fran Sanders and they told me they had just spotted a small flock of Upland Sandpipers at the Cambridge Airport. This was exciting news. Upland Sandpipers are rare breeders on Delmarva but can be regular during Fall migration in large grassy areas but they can be very difficult to observe because of the inaccessible habitat. I arrived at the airport around 5:00pm and found two Uppies about 200 feet off the road. I tried to get close for better photos but the birds spooked and flew off. I was able to get a few distant flight shots. I drove side roads towards Vienna stopping along the roadside checking the flowering Dogbane for butterflies. I was lucky to find a pair of Clouded Sulphers. Unfortunately they would not sit still so I had to settle for a poor flight shot. Common Checkered Skippers are late season fliers and I found my first of the year nectering on clover. Because of the drought Higgin's Mill Pond just south of Linkwood has some expansive flats that held quite a few species of shorebirds. Right when I was getting out of my car a Bald Eagle swooped down out of a tree and tried to take a Mallard off the pond. The eagle spooked all the shorebirds out of camera range but I was able to get my Pectoral Sandpiper shot for the year.

The Summer months have been great!

Photos: King's Hairstreak, Pickerel Frog, Duckweed Firetail, Hognosed Snake


Hello everyone,

After a slight two month reprieve, the Delmarva Photo Big Year Blog is back up and running full speed. The summer has blown by amazingly fast with many great finds and photos taken. After the discovery of the first Maryland state record of Furtive Forktail in Worcester and Wicomico Counties I thought the state records were over for the year, but I was wrong. Hans Holbrook, Jim Stasz, and myself found Duckweed Firetails in Worcester County a few weeks later. Duckweed Firetails are beautiful bright red damselflies that live in shaded swamps. What is unbelievable is that the area where we found the firetails the most numerous odonates fying were Furtive Forktails and Attenuated Bluets! We also found a population of Atlantic Bluets in the same area as the firetails. Other than one record from last year on Hart-Miller Island (a spill island located in the Chesapeake Bay off of Baltimore), Atlantic Bluets had not been observed in Maryland for over 100 years! We found a pond that holds a very healthy population of Atlantic Bluets.

Damselflies are not the only exciting discoveries of the past couple months. In northern Worcester County, Maryland my friends and I located Marylands only breeding population of King's Hairstreak. King's Hairstreaks are rare over their entire range and haven't been seen in Maryland for years. Finding this rare butterfly was a real highpoint of the year. Also seen on the same day was a striking Striped Hairstreak, another rare butterfly on Delmarva. Between April and August I have photographed ten species of hairstreaks on Delmarva. If I hadn't missed Frosted Elfin I would have swept the hairstreaks. Sleepy Orange's occur regulary on Delmarva during post breeding dispersal. I was able to photograph one in Worcester County. Oranges and Sulphers are very difficult to photograph because they rarely sit still. Most of the time when you see a Sleepy Orange you see a small brilliant orange sulpher fly by which is usually enough for identification. I was lucky enough to have one land and get an exceptable photo.

Reptiles and amphibians have been slow. Unfortunately, I haven't had any great finds. Corn Snakes and Milksnakes have been eluding me but I haven't given up hope. I have tried a couple times for Carpenter Frogs in lower Dorchester and have come up empty. One amphibian highlight was photographing Pickerel Frogs in Caroline County. Supposedly Pickerel Frogs are present in all of the Delmarva counties but I have never seen one on Delmarva until this summer.

Bugs have taken priority over the past couple months but now that migration has started birds are now the priority. Unfortunately by focusing on Odes and Leps over the summer I might have missed a few of the breeders. I am running out of time for Kentucky and Worm-eating Warblers. I am going to need a little luck to get these birds. For the past couple weeks and for most of August I will be concentrating on shorebirds. I have recently photographed both Western Sandpipers and American Avocets at Bombay Hook. Stilt Sandpipers at E.A. Vaughn WMA in Worcester County were a great score and a photograph that I am very relieved to have. I mopped up a few other birds like Indigo Bunting, Chimney Swift, and Cliff Swallow -- all difficult to photograph.

The rest of the year is going to be very exciting so pull up a seat and hang on!