VOL. 40, NO. 1

VUowthroal

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FEBRUARY 2020
PAGES 12, 13

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Connecting Birders with Birds:
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Meet the Marvelous Marcia Watson

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THE MARYLAND YELLOWTHROAT

In This Issue

FEBRUARY 2020

The Maryland Yellowthroat

Publication of the Maryland Ornithological
Society, Inc.

Editor: Orietta C. Estrada

Editor's Note Z yellowthroat@mdbirds.org
President's Corner 3 Copy Editor: Kathy Brown
Maryland Bird Conservation Partnership 5 kathybrown07 @verizon.net
Education Pavilion Named after Chan Robbins 6 Calendar Editor: Marilyn Veek
Breeding Bird Atlas 7 mveekmos@yahoo.com
Maryland/DC Records Committee Status Report 8 Chapter Chatter: Jean Wheeler
YMOS News 9 jswheeler3 @verizon.net
Chapter Chatter 10 Mailing List: Maryanne Dolan
Meet the Marvelous Marcia Watson 16 maryanne.dolan@gmail.com
CALENDAR 20

Webmaster: Tom Strikwerda
webmaster@mdbirds.org
Submit to the editor by 4/1 for the May 2020 issue.
Illus. OM.Suzanne Probst

Editor’s Note

hat an incredible start to the year we've had in Maryland. Our great state's first Black-chinned Hummingbird arrived in

January (picture by George Jett on page 13) and many in the Maryland birding community have been given the opportunity
to view it. The community owes a debt of gratitude to Jane Kostenko and Tyler Bell for organizing these visits and coordinating with
the homeowners. Thank you, Jane and Tyler!

The Maryland Yellowthroat is now a quarterly publication. Please make note of the sponsor/material close dates, these are the
deadlines for submissions.

The Maryland Yellowthroat Editorial Calendar

Issue: February. Sponsor/Material Close: January 15.
Issue: May. Sponsor/Material Close: April 1.

Issue: August. Sponsor/Material Close: July 1.

Issue: November. Sponsor/Material Close: October 1.

We appreciate your patience while we work out the best solution for the paper calendar. In the meantime, please visit MdBirds.org
and check the online calendar for the most up-to-date information.

There's a lot to celebrate in this issue, especially one birder who has had such a tremendous
impact on our community—Barbara Johnson interviews Marcia Watson on page 16.

Orietta C. Estrada, Editor
The Maryland Yellowthroat
Yellowthroat@mdbirds.org

Question about your mailing list preferences? Contact Maryanne Dolan at maryanne.
dolan@gmail.com. Question about a calendar item? Contact Marilyn Veek at
mveekmos@yahoo.com. Do you have a membership question? Contact Tom Strikwerda
at webmaster@mdbirds.org.

President's Corner
A Birding Trip to Western Cuba: Endemics, Empty Roads, and Engaging People

W: were fortunate to go on an MOS-arranged field trip to the western end of Cuba in mid November 2019. Thirteen
of us (mostly MOS members) were led by Maryanne Dolan, while Holbrook Travel organized the itinerary and

logistics and provided our Cuban guides. Holbrook were very thorough and made sure that our paperwork, especially our
visas, were in order. Only group travel for special cultural/study purposes to Cuba is permitted.

We arrived at Havana's Hotel Sevilla on November 9 after a long drive through rainy, dimly-lit streets. The hotel had soaring ornate ceilings
and the muted décor of yesteryear but reverberated to a band playing energetically near the front desk. Dining on the top floor was in an
elegant setting reminiscent of past grand events while a quartet performed delightfully lively Cuban-theme music.

Holbrook guides met us at the hotel the following morning.
Alejandro Llanes Sosa would be our ornithologist and Osmin
Rivero would take care of our non-birding needs. We then boarded
our capacious bus, which was driven by the unflappable Eduardo.
We spent Sunday morning birding the nearby botanic garden of
Quinta de los Molinos (sadly it was mostly closed owing to the
recent rain and the resulting danger of falling fronds) where we
learnt to recognize the ubiquitous Red-legged Thrush and saw the
first of many Cuban Emeralds (endemic or E), a gorgeous green
hummingbird. Then on to the rocky, wind-blown Playa el Chivo.
Here we enjoyed great views of a peregrine, sanderlings, a solitary
sandpiper and other shore birds. For a change of pace, we spent
the afternoon wandering through elegant, yet often crumbling,
downtown Havana, with Osmin narrating the histories of the
buildings we passed. A red morph Cuban resident (American)
Kestrel landed on a gutter above us, its breast noticeably more
rufous than North American birds.

The following day we headed west, out into green open country
with few buildings and along nearly empty roads. We stopped to
bird some cow pastures and were rewarded with our first views
of Cuban Grassquits (E) as well as the more abundant Yellow-
faced Grassquits. Here we also saw Cuban Green (E) and West
Indian Woodpeckers for the first time; both are beautiful birds.
Loggerhead Kingbirds perched on an overhead wire and a Cuban
Pewee, with its distinctive pale sickle moon behind the eye, was
seen well. At our next stop we saw a feeder with a frenzy of both

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mdbirds.org

Cuban Tody. Image Credit: Hyacinth Todd.
species of grassquits feeding. We were treated to the appearance of a
Western Spindalis (regional endemic or RE)—a gorgeous bird, but a
briefly-glimpsed Cuban Oriole (E) eluded most of the group. Stops
near a fish hatchery yielded many water birds and some raptors,
notably Crested Caracara and Snail Kite. Here and elsewhere we
encountered Great Lizard Cuckoos (RE) which darted low from tree
to tree, trailing their long tails. On a more prosaic note, the Turkey
Vulture was the only species we saw every day. Clumsy Smooth-
billed Anis were seen on several days.

As we approached the Valle de Vinales in Pinar Del Rio Province,
the curious limestone hills known as mogotes appeared on the
horizon; they could have been taken from a Tolkien novel. We
stayed two nights at Hotel Rancho San Vincente. Here we learnt that
wifi access in Cuba is not easy, guaranteed or cheap. Early the next
morning we set off for Cueva de los Portales, a cave system where
Che Guevara had his HQ during the 1962 Missile Crisis. We were
joined by Cesar, a local guide who had an encyclopedic knowledge
of the area’s plants as well as its birds. We were treated to a Cuban
Solitaire (E) singing beautifully high up in a tree top. We also saw
more Cuban Emeralds, a lurking Cuban Trogon (E), and a glimpse
of a Cuban Tody (E) (a little gem of a bird). In the afternoon we
visited La Guira park for more birds and trees, including the
Olive-capped Warbler (RE), which reminded me of the congeneric
Yellow-throated Warbler. Later we visited the home of noted artist
and conservationist, Nils Navarro, the author of ‘Endemic Birds

of Cuba’ Nils explained how he created this elegant book. He also

THE MARYLAND YELLOWTHROAT

Cuban Green Woodpecker

briefed us on a scourge of Cuba's song birds: the trapping of males
for the caged bird trade. This is seriously depleting populations but
sadly the practice is still regarded as acceptable and not as being
harmful to wild populations.

Throughout the trip we were entertained by tiny Antillean Palm
Swifts that darted back and forth at great speed. They often nest in
thatched roofs. Before our departure the next day, Nils led us to see
a Giant Kingbird (E), which perched conveniently on a treetop, and
a Scaly-naped Pigeon high in a pine tree.

We then began the long drive east to the Zapata swamp in Matanzas
Province, punctuated by a typically generous Cuban style lunch and
a visit to a tobacco farm with demonstrations of rolling cigars and
crushing sugar cane. The country was open, green and delightfully
rural. Upon arriving at Playa Larga we visited the home of a

local man in whose backyard Bee Hummingbirds (E) and Cuban
Emeralds (E) frequent his feeders and flowering trees. We had
gorgeous close up views of these avian jewels. A Black-throated Blue
Warbler hopped about nearby (one of 16 wintering warbler species
seen or heard on the trip). We checked in at Hotel Playa Larga for
three nights, had another robust dinner, and got an early night as
Alejandro was committed to a 5:30am departure the next day.

We were on the road well before sunrise and reached Santo Tomas,
deep in the Zapata swamp, soon after. With the aid of a local guide,
we quickly saw a Zapata Sparrow (E) before following a rickety
boardwalk to a canal where three boats and local men awaited us.
Once in these boats, we were poled quietly further into the swamp.
After playing the song of the Zapata Wren (E), we were thrilled
when, eventually, one replied. Soon after, the bird alighted in a
bush nearby and sang in full view. As our boats returned we were
rewarded with a Yellow-headed Warbler (E) and a Cuban Bullfinch
(RE). Memorable birds! After lunch we visited Las Salinas, on

the Bay of Pigs, which has extensive mangrove swamps and large
ponds reminiscent of South Florida. Here we saw many water
birds, including Greater Flamingo, Roseate Spoonbill, White Ibis,
American White and Brown Pelicans, Great Blue, Little Blue, and
Tricolored Herons, Great and Snowy Egrets, distant West Indian
Whistling Ducks, and Cuban Black Hawk (E).

FEBRUARY 2020

As the evening sun sank, we got wonderful closer views of resident
‘Cuban’ Yellow and Prairie Warblers (the former a much richer
deeper yellow than the migrant birds). Earlier in the trip, we had
seen Eastern Meadowlarks and several of the group thought these
were also noticeably more colorful than those in the US.

The next morning saw us again up well before dawn for we had

to reach a special woodland glade before the sun’s first rays. Here,
aided by another local guide, we hid behind a purpose-built fence
and waited. Soon we were rewarded by the appearance of three
Blue-headed Quail-Doves (E), a Gray-fronted Quail-Dove (RE), and
a couple of Zenaida Doves, one seen better later in a nearby tree.
The birds walked towards us and began to forage quietly among the
leaf litter. We marveled at these gorgeous birds. The former species is
one of the first to disappear from areas where development occurs.
Our next stop brought Red-shouldered (E) and Tawny-shouldered
Blackbirds. Alejandro noted that the former is taxonomically close
to our Red-winged Blackbirds, but is a very scarce bird compared
with its northern cousin; the reason for this disparity is unknown.
We also saw Cuban Blackbirds (E) on several days, which are
common and widespread, unlike most of their fellow endemics.
Later that day we saw a Cuban Pigmy-Owl (E) perched in a tree
close to the road. It obligingly sat and watched us for many minutes.

That afternoon we searched in vain for the Fernandina’s Flicker (E).
But our local guide took us to a hollow dead tree in a wooded area,
which he gently shook until a Bare-legged Owl (E) peeped out. We
crept away to avoid flushing the bird, after a brief but delighted view.

We were invited to the Korimacao Community Project, a
government-sponsored program to encourage high school and
college age people to develop their talents in the visual and
performing arts. After an overview by the project's director, backed
by student artwork, we enjoyed performances by a small voice and
percussion ensemble followed by a dance group.

The final endemic was a superb one. At dusk we travelled to a cattle
pasture that was interspersed with low woods and bushes. After a
few recorded calls, our guide suddenly pointed—there, crouched
on a fence post was a Cuban Nightjar (E)! Apparently unfazed by
the flashlight, it calmly stared back at us. This is a widespread and
common, but rarely seen species, which has a marvelous call.

Over the course of the trip, our group saw or heard 128 species of
birds, with 34 being regional endemics and 18 Cuban endemics.

General notes

There are two currencies in use; Cuban pesos for residents and
Cuban convertible pesos (referred to as ‘cuks’). Tourists have to

use the latter. Credit cards are useless and US$ are technically the
least preferred currency (you are hit with a 13% reduction upon
conversion). However US$, are accepted as tips and in some tourist
shops.

Public restrooms can be challenging and it is best to take your own
toilet paper and be prepared to leave the attendant money (but it is
money well spent).

Food is inexpensive and plentiful when dining out; lots of rice,
beans, plantain, and meats, but very little in the way of green

4
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vegetables. Their small bananas are delightfully sweet and flavorful. I can

recommend the Crystal lager. Tipping is much appreciated.

Our weather was generally in the 80s, with no rain during most of our

excursions, but planning for rain is a good idea.

Our Holbrook guides were first rate. Alejandro has great patience and a deep
knowledge of Cuba's birds. Osmin, with his excellent command of English,
entertained and enlightened us on Cuba's history, culture, economics and

other matters. The local people we encountered were pleased to see our

rumpled group; one farmer even handed out cigars as we watched Eastern

Meadowlarks on his land.

So, I urge you: go birding in Cuba and boldly brandish your bins to show
Cubans how much their birds are appreciated! And keep an eye open for

future MOS-arranged trips.

Best wishes for the New Year,

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President, MOS

MARYLAND ORNITHOLOGICAL SOCIETY

Bee Hummingbird

References:

Garrido, O. H and A. Kirkconnell, Field Guide to the Birds of Cuba,
2000. Pub. Comstock Publishing Associate, Cornell Uni. Press

Navarro, N., Endemic Birds of Cuba: A Comprehensive Field Guide,
Including West Indian Endemic Residing in Cuba, 2015, Pub.
Ediciones Nuevos Mundos

Sainsbury, B. and C. McCarthy, Lonely Planet Cuba, 2017, Pub. Lonely
Planet Global Ltd.

Maryland Bird Conservation Partnership

MARYLAND

La Plata becomes first Bird City Maryland
applicant....and more from MBCP

ird City Maryland (https://birdcitymaryland.org/) accepted its
first application at the end of October. The Town of La Plata
submitted their application the day after the Town Council passed
and the Mayor signed a resolution supporting World Migratory
Bird Day. We are excited about a few other communities who
are actively working on their criteria to apply early next year!
In addition to writing the Feather Underground blog, our new
Sustainability Coordinator, Pamela Kellett, is assisting with Bird
City activities. Check out our newly unveiled logo.

Have you checked out our Feather Underground blog lately? The
second blog regales readers with the author’s experience on a boat

5

trip with Sora whisperer Greg Kearns of the Patuxent River Park. If
you know Greg, or especially if you dont, this is a most entertaining
read! Check out Feather Underground at https://marylandbirds.org/

feather-underground.

The second Maryland Bird Symposium was held Saturday, January
25, 2020, at the Patuxent National Wildlife Visitor Center in

Laurel. Keynote speakers for the event were: Mike Parr, President
of American Bird Conservancy, and Autumn-Lynn Harrison,
manager of the Migratory Connectivity Project at the Smithsonian
Migratory Bird Center. We focused on a recent article in the journal
Science that documents a 29% decline in North America’s bird

population since 1970. Visit https://marylandbirds.org/2020-bird-
conservation-symposium more information.

All proceeds from the symposium went to the Maryland Avian
Research and Conservation (MARC) Fund for Youth (https://
marylandbirds.org/about-the-marc-fund). Our goal this year is

to increase the Fund to $10,000. This will allow us to work with
youth on larger research, conservation, or community engagement
projects in Maryland or anywhere one of Maryland's 143 Species
of Greatest Conservation Need breed, migrate through, or winter.
To do this, WE NEED YOUR SUPPORT! We challenge each MOS
chapter to pledge $100 to help Maryland youth take their passion
for birds to the next level.

Chris Eberly director@marylandbirds.org

mdbirds.org

2

Education Pavilion at Patuxent to Be Named after Chan Robbins

iN existing environmental education pavilion on the South Tract
of Patuxent Research Refuge will be named “The Chandler S.
Robbins Outdoor Education Center” to memorialize Chan's lifelong
commitment to conservation and environmental education. The
pavilion will be enhanced with signage and displays honoring Chan's
lifework.

As many are aware, Chan, who passed away in 2017, was a world-
famous ornithologist who was employed for most of his life at the
Patuxent Wildlife Research Center. He was the lead author of the
venerable Birds of North America - A Guide to Field Identification
(aka The Golden Guide), as well as numerous scientific publications.
He developed the protocols for the Breeding Bird Survey and the
Breeding Bird Atlas (BBA), and was known for his landmark studies
on the effects of forest fragmentation and pesticides and for his
work on bird migration using bird banding.

Chan was also a leader within MOS from the organization's earliest
years: he served for three years as MOS President, for 50 years as a
chapter director, and for 67 years as the Editor of Maryland Birdlife.
Chan did much to promote the MOS sanctuary program, and after
his death, his family donated to MOS the land in Garrett County
that is now the Chandler and Eleanor Robbins MOS Sanctuary at
Red Run. To read more about Chan's contributions to MOS, see

the dedication penned by Jo Solem for MOS’s Birder’s Guide to
Maryland & DC, online at https://birdersguidemddc.org/about-us/
dedication/. Chan’s entire life and work are thoroughly documented
in a memorial website maintained by the Patuxent Wildlife Research

Center at https://www.pwrc.usgs.gov/robbins/index.cfm.

The pavilion being named after Chan is an open-air structure
located in a wooded area just northwest of the National Wildlife
Visitor Center on South Tract (see photo). The pavilion is used
for children’s education programs, but is in an area of the Refuge
that is currently off-limits to the public. That will change once the
trail leading to the pavilion is enhanced, and the new signage and
interpretive displays are in place.

The Friends of Patuxent, Refuge staff, and the Robbins family are
working together to develop plans for the signs and displays. The
project is being funded through the Chandler S. Robbins Memorial
Endowment Fund established by the Friends of Patuxent. The
Friends of Patuxent invites contributions to the fund. If you wish
to contribute, please send a check to: Friends of Patuxent, 10901
Scarlet Tanager Loop, Laurel, MD 20708, and indicate that your
donation is for the Chandler S. Robbins Memorial Endowment
Fund.

Marcia Watson

Breeding Bird Atlas
The Hummingbird’s Nest

he buzzed to the feeder and hovered, sipping the sugar-water.

She couldn't see her mate at the moment, but she knew he was
nearby, actively defending this feeder from other hummingbirds—
with more or less success. He had arrived almost a week before she
had to claim this territory, and she approved of his choice. She had
selected a nearby oak tree to build her nest in; there was a perfect
little fork, almost 20 feet up, with overhanging leaves. ‘These leaves
would shade her from the sun during the day, and provide her
with some insulation at night. Over the next week, she collected

dandelion down, spider webbing, and pine sap, gradually building
a cup around herself. She used her chin and chest in a pinching
motion to create the nest lip, and placed fragments of lichen on the
nest’s exterior. She settled her 0.1-ounce body—less than the weight
of a piece of paper—into the newly constructed cup. She would
incubate two smooth, white eggs for the next two weeks.

From her vantage point, she could see everything that happened

in the yard below. The Downy Woodpecker on the peanut feeder,
the Gray Catbird carrying vegetation to line its nest with, the

pair of Carolina Wrens who sang incessantly, and the people who
replenished her preferred food source. They were busy—two young
kids, a dog, a substantial garden—but they still found time each
morning to drink their coffee on the porch and scan the backyard
with binoculars.

They were looking for birds. More specifically, they were looking for
breeding birds, like herself. They were part of a community science
project documenting the distribution, abundance, and timing of
the area’ breeding birds. It was called the Maryland & DC Breeding
Bird Atlas 3, and they were clearly enjoying it. They had signed up
for a block—a 3 x 3 mile square—and were recording the behavior
they observed each bird doing, using a series of codes. The Downy
Woodpecker at the feeder was in habitat where it might breed, so

it was a code H: in the right habitat; the Gray Catbird was carrying
plant matter for its nest, so it was a code CN: carrying nesting
material; and the Carolina Wren duet so busily singing was a code
P: a male-female paivr.

The data they were collecting would be combined with hundreds
of other volunteers, and together these data would form a region-

wide map of where each species nested. This map could be linked
with habitat to show where the most important nesting locations
were; it could be compared to previous maps, and show whether
populations were increasing or decreasing; it could even be used

to show how the timing of nesting was changing. It was immensely
valuable information.

She watched the couple follow a bright yellow, black-winged bird
with their binoculars. It flitted into her oak tree.

“What is this yellow bird? Can you check the bird guide?” she heard
him say.

“Where?! Oh there! Let me see.... A Yellow Warbler? No wait. They
don't have black wings. A goldfinch? Oh totally! It’s an American
Goldfinch!”

“What a beauti—oh! Oh! Look at what I just found! See the fork in
the oak tree, maybe 20 feet high?”

The woman looked up, scanning for the fork. “I think so... oh my
gosh! It’s a Ruby-throated Hummingbird! On a nest!”

The couple chattered on excitedly about their new find; the
hummingbird ruffled her feathers and adjusted her eggs beneath
her. For the Atlas, she would go down as one data point among
millions, but, for this couple, she would remain an outstanding
observation that would excite them all summer long.

If you would like to get involved with the Atlas, you can learn more
on the website, ebird.org/atlasmddc, and on social media at @
mddcbba3.

Gabriel Foley, MDDCBBA3 Coordinator

Save the Date!

MOS is proud to announce the 73th MOS convention to be held May 15 - May 17, 2020 at the
Cumberland Ramada in Cumberland, Maryland. Please watch for future MOS newsgrams and
updates to our convention website (http://www.mosconvention.org) for 2020 convention details.

This convention will be special because it will celebrate our 75th year as an organization. MOS
hopes to see you there!

THE MARYLAND YELLOWTHROAT

Maryland/DC Records Committee Status Report

he Maryland/District of Columbia Records Committee (MD/

DCRC) reached the following record decisions since the
latest committee status report was published in The Maryland
Yellowthroat. This report covers MD/DCRC review package 182.
MD/DCERC accession numbers are shown in brackets. These
records will be addressed in additional detail in a future issue of
Maryland Birdlife. There were no new “state” species for MD or
DC in these decisions. The total number of species on the Official
Lists of the Birds of MD and DC remain 453 and 341, respectively.

More information on the MD/DCRC can be found on the
committee's web page at the following URL:

https://mdbirds.org/records-committee/

MD Records Accepted:

King Eider, Somateria spectabilis [MD/2017-086] Brighton Dam,
Brookeville, Howard and Montgomery Counties. 16-Dec-2017.
Two first winter males.

Piping Plover, Charadrius melodus [MD/2019-068] Poplar Island,
Sherwood, Talbot County. 23-Jul-2019 through 24-Jul-2019. One
bird.

Whimbrel, Numenius phaeopus [MD/2017-029] Peat Moss Road,
Accident, Garrett County. 26-Jun-2017. One bird.

Whimbrel, Numenius phaeopus [MD/2017-044] Mountain Farm,
Mount Savage, Allegany County. 29-Jul-2017. One bird.

Whimbrel, Numenius phaeopus [MD/2019-051] Violettes Lock,
Seneca, Montgomery County. 23-May-2019. One bird.

Whimbrel, Numenius phaeopus [MD/2019-088] Violettes Lock,
Seneca, Montgomery County. 29-May-2019. Three birds.

Whimbrel (European), Numenius phaeopus phaeopus [MD/2011-
158] Assateague Island National Seashore, Berlin, Worcester
County. 10-May-2011. One bird.

Hudsonian Godwit, Limosa haemastica [MD/2018-063]
Abingdon, Harford County. 21-Oct-2018 through 25-Oct-2018.
One juvenile.

Least Tern, Sternula antillarum |MD/2015-042] Fulton Pond,
Fulton, Howard County. 30-May-2015. Two adults.

Tropical Kingbird, Tyrannus melancholicus |[MD/2019-064]
Assateague Island National Seashore, Berlin, Worcester County.
15-Jul-2019. One bird.

Gray Kingbird, Tyrannus dominicensis |[MD/2019-077] Swan
Harbor Farm Park, Havre de Grace, Harford County. 27-Sep-
2019. One bird.

Savannah Sparrow (Ipswich), Passerculus sandwichensis princeps
[MD/1998-026] Cambridge Fishing Pier, Cambridge, Dorchester
County. 19-Mar-1998. One bird.

Savannah Sparrow (Ipswich), Passerculus sandwichensis princeps
[MD/2006-272] Poplar Island, Sherwood, Talbot County. 27-Nov-

FEBRUARY 2020

December 15, 2019
2006. One bird.

Savannah Sparrow (Ipswich), Passerculus sandwichensis princeps
[MD/2016-041] Poplar Island, Sherwood, Talbot County. 24-Nov-
2015. One bird.

Seaside Sparrow, Ammospiza maritima |MD/2016-025] Ken-Gar
Palisades Park, Kensington, Montgomery County. 26-May-2016
through 27-May-2016. One bird.

MD Records ID OK/Exotic:

Trumpeter Swan, Cygnus buccinator [MD/2019-045] Lakes Cove,
Crapo, Dorchester County (also observed, in transit, in Charles,
and, perhaps, Prince George’s Counties). 17-Dec-1997 through
~09-Mar-1998. Three immature females and two immature males.
[Followed an ultralight aircraft from Arlie, VA.]

Trumpeter Swan, Cygnus buccinator |MD/2019-046] Wildfowl
Trust of North America [now, the Chesapeake Bay Environmental
Center], Grasonville, Queen Anne’s County. 15-Dec-1998 through
~08-Mar-1999. Multiple (up to 18) immature birds involved.
[Followed an ultralight aircraft from Iroquois National Wildlife
Refuge, NY.]

Trumpeter Swan, Cygnus buccinator |[MD/2019-047] Wildfowl
Trust of North America [now, the Chesapeake Bay Environmental
Center], Grasonville, Queen Anne’s County. (also observed, in
transit, in Cecil County) 18-Jan-2001 through ~01-May-2001.
Twelve (or eight?) birds. [Followed an ultralight aircraft from
Iroquois National Wildlife Refuge, NY.]

MD Records Not Accepted:

Least Tern, Sternula antillarum |MD/2019-062] Lake Elkhorn,
Columbia, Howard County. 30-Jun-2019. One bird.

DC Records Accepted:

Nelson’s Sparrow, Ammospiza nelsoni [DC/2014-084] Anacostia,
NE, Kenilworth Park, Kenilworth Park 29-Sep-2014 through 30-
Sep-2014. One bird.

Taxonomy Changes. MD/DCRC data products have been
updated to conform to the latest MOS taxonomy standard, the
AOS North American Checklist, 60th Supplement, which was
published in July 2019. Only a few of the 40+ changes directly
affect our regional lists. Below is a summary of the regional
changes:

1. White-winged Scoter Split. The Old-World Asian taxon
[Stejneger’s Scoter Melanitta stejnegeri] and the Old-World
European taxon [Velvet Scoter M. fusca] were split from our
North American species. Our North American taxon retains
the common name White-winged Scoter, however, its scientific
species name changes to M. deglandi.

2. Common Ground Dove Name Change. Hypens were removed
from the common names of all Ground Doves, therefore,
Columbina passerina is now Common Ground Dove.

3. Storm-Petrel Genus Transfer. Some of our North Atlantic
Storm-Petrels were transferred to another genus. Leach’s Storm-
Petrel is now Hydrobates leucorhoa and Band-rumped Storm-
Petrel is now Hydrobates castro.

4. Dark-eyed Junco Placement. This taxon moved up, from
a position following Spotted Towhee to follow American Tree
Sparrow.

5. White-crowned Sparrow Placement. This taxon also moved
up, from a position following Swamp Sparrow to now follow the

MARYLAND ORNITHOLOGICAL SOCIETY

newly moved Dark-eyed Junco.

6. Oreothlypis Warbler Genus Split. The genus of Oreothlypis
warblers was split and some were changed to Leiothlypis. Four of
our regional species were affected: Tennessee Warbler, Orange-
crowned Warbler, Nashville Warbler, and Virginia's Warbler. These
species remain in the same list position, in the same order, but
with the changed genus.

Phil Davis, MD/DCRC Secretary

YMOS News

Announcing the Annual YMOS Birdathon

March 21-22, 2020

he youngsters in the Youth Program of the Maryland

Ornithological Society (YMOS) are already thinking spring.
The annual YMOS Birdathon will take place just after winter has
departed. The youth invite your pledges of $0.25, $0.50, or $1.00
per species seen over their two days in the field. The shorelines,
marshes, woods, and fields of Maryland’s Eastern Shore will be
stirring in the early days of the new season. But will they offer up
at least 100 bird species?

The Birdathon is the principal fundraiser to underwrite expenses
for representing the MOS in the World Series of Birding (WSB),
the world’s foremost birding competition organized by New
Jersey Audubon, in early May. Our young birders really did well
in 2019, winning every Division: Elementary, Middle School,
High School, and Carbon-free kids (motorized vehicles not
allowed). Birding skill notwithstanding, it is the cooperation
and camaraderie that makes the YMOS so special. These young
birders are super ambassadors of the MOS and you.

The Birdathon is not just an attempt to run up a species list. In
addition to the challenges posed by the weather and the birds

themselves (90% of the participants must see or hear each
species recorded), the youngsters construct an advance list of
100 “Must-See” species. The list is always a mixture of easy and
difficult species and there has never been a Birdathon in which
all Must-See’s were seen. Their final results require that they
record two additional species to make up for any Must-See miss.
Overcoming all these challenges requires planning and decision-
making coupled with a high level of collaboration and sharing.

You can pledge any time prior to the Birdathon by emailing
George Radcliffe (radclifg@gmail.com) or Wayne Bell (wbell2@
washcoll.edu). Those who pledge will receive an advance copy of
the Must-See list. After the Birdathon, you will receive a report
of all species identified and the amount you owe based on the net
species total after any penalty deductions for Must-See misses.
And will someone please direct any Gray Catbirds to the Eastern
Shore in March; this has become our nemesis species.

Thank you in advance for your encouragement of this remarkable
group of youngsters and, of course, the parents and coaches who
rise early and drive long hours to make it all happen. In the end, it
is all about having fun together.

George Radcliffe and Wayne Bell

Know a Youth Birder?

Hidden around the state are young people with a passion for nature, the outdoors, and birds. Likely they know
of no one in their school or neighborhood with an equal passion, and that interest often fades as they mature.
Please connect them with the YMOS group, where they can join youth with a similar passion. That child often
feels like an “oddball” as their interest may run counter to what most of their peers are doing, but in YMOS, they
can share and learn with peers sharing their interest. There is no “joining” YMOS; just show up on one of our

regular trips around the state. There is no charge for any trip, and we can lend binoculars and field guide to any
interested student. Our youth range from age 7 on up, and parents/families are always welcome.

Interested students can contact George Radcliffe at radclifg@gmail.com for more information. Trips and
related information are found in the Young Birders section of the MOS website (mdbirds.org). You can make a
difference in a young persons life by connecting them with this fabulous and talented group of Maryland youth.
Make this a New Year's resolution, to search out that child in your area with the same passion as you.

mdbirds.org

THE MARYLAND YELLOWTHROAT

BALTIMORE
Costa Rica Trip

Thirteen Maryland birders, mostly members of the Baltimore Bird
Club or other MOS chapters, visited Costa Rica during April 20

- 29, 2019. The trip was organized by Kevin Graff and guided by
Mario Cordoba of Crescentia Expeditions. To take advantage of a
nonstop flight from BWI airport on Saturdays, we flew to San Jose a
day early and thus had more time to bird in the gardens at the Hotel
Bougainvillea. Kevin led us through the gardens on the first day and
identified various birds for us.

Areas visited included Arenal Volcano and Lodge, Cerro Lodge,
Carara National Park, the Tarcoles River, the Savegre Valley,

the Talamanca Mountains and Site KM70 (described in Barrett
Lawson's guidebook). Throughout the trip we were impressed by
Mario’ ability to find hard-to-see birds and get them in the spotting
scope for us. He was also able to use his birding contacts to get us to
a place where a pair of Resplendent Quetzals was nesting. We also
had a group full of good spotters.

We had a diverse group of birders with a variety of interests, so

each person no doubt had their own highlights and favorites. As
first-time birders in Costa Rica, some of Linda's and my highlights
included the Black-and-White Owls, the Thicket Antpitta and the
Great Potoo near the Arenal Lodge, the variety of Hummingbirds at
the Hummingbird Observatory, the Scarlet Macaws at Cerro Lodge,
the Boat-billed Herons and three different Wrens at Carara National
Park, the Turquoise-browed Motmot, Magnificent Frigatebirds and
Bare- throated Tiger-Heron on the Tarcoles River boat trip, Acorn
Woodpecker, Flame-colored Tanager and American Dipper in the
Savegre Valley, and a pair of Resplendent Quetzals at Site KM70.
After waiting over an hour for the male Quetzal to appear, getting
some good photos was a nice way to end the trip.

At the farewell dinner Kevin reported that we had over 330 species
for the trip. The group thanked him for his efforts in organizing
the trip, answering questions and serving as a guide on arrival day.
Jim Highsaw and Linda Prentice (See page 12 for photos Turquoised-
browed Mot Mot.)

CARROLL COUNTY
Trip to Patuxent River Park: A Sora Experience, and More

Have you ever met Greg Kearns? If you have, you know how
dedicated he is to preserving habitat for birds, particularly the sora
rail, at the Patuxent River Park Jug Bay Natural Area. Members

of the Carroll County Bird Club found out how enjoyable and
informative he can be when we joined members of the Baltimore
County Bird Club on a BCBC-arranged trip to the Park. September
21 was a beautiful day, with weather much milder than expected.
As Greg piloted the pontoon boat through the calm waters of the
Patuxent at Jug Bay, he talked with us excitedly about the recent
radio telemetry project that he has been conducting to track soras
on their yearly migration.

Greg has been tracking the movement of soras on and off for
many years. New technology has now enabled the development

FEBRUARY 2020
of transmitters small enough to be fitted
on soras, and extended battery life allows by Jean

tracking a given transmitter for up to 400

days. Over time, throughout the US and

beyond, monitoring towers have been built to
enable tracking larger birds; now that soras can
be fitted with transmitters, their movements too
can be monitored, and the opportunity to learn
about their migratory patterns has substantially
increased. With money donated from a private
source, Greg has been able to fit more than 50 birds with the
transmitters, and tracking has begun.

The pontoon boat was a pleasant way to move across the water, and
it was comfortable for birdwatching and listening to Greg talk about
his experiences over his many years as a Park naturalist. But the
focus of the trip was really to see first-hand what is now happening
at the Park with the soras. There are a series of rail traps, which
Greg designed and improved over the years, located in the marsh
grasses lining the river. At a number of points during our trip,

Greg pulled the boat in close to water’s edge, where the traps had
been placed out of sight in the grasses. His graduate assistant Kyra
donned wader overalls, stepped off the boat and onto the slatted
“paths” to the traps, and disappeared into the marsh to see if any
birds had been caught overnight. While we waited, everyone on the
boat peered into the grass to look for soras. We listened carefully
for their calls, trying to distinguish between the birds themselves
and the recordings that Greg uses to attract them to the traps. If
there were none, Greg slapped the water with a paddle or made
other loud noises—a process that sometimes flushes them or at least
causes them to call. He also used a hand-held monitoring device
and, if a bird called, he could point out approximately where it was
and even tell us by name (well, number, really) which bird it was.
Very impressive!

At some of the stops we did see soras, along with such other
denizens as marsh wrens, Carolina wrens, and red-winged
blackbirds. Some of us saw one or two soras, others saw many more.
Regardless of the number, it was rewarding to see the little birds
tripping through the grasses.

Rewarding, yes—but not nearly as exciting as each time the assistant
walked gingerly back to the boat, carrying the specially designed
box that is used to bring back birds found in the traps, and gave

the “thumbs up” to let us know a bird was in the box! Greg gave
everybody on the boat the opportunity to hold one of the little
rails. Worrying that I would squeeze it too hard and cause it harm,
I politely declined the chance. But others, braver than I, couldn't
resist, and there were many happy birders holding a rail for the first
time! You can see from this picture that Dave Harvey took that at
least this rail, though not obviously “happy’, didn't seem to be too
terribly distressed. Who knows what one would have looked like
had that been my hand in the picture!

There was more to be done at these stops, though, than just pass
a bird around. Greg and Kyra weighed each bird they caught,

10

measured its tarsus, recorded the measurements, and then

banded the bird. Greg did not fit any of the birds we saw with the
transmitters. He prefers to use only birds of a certain weight (about
60 grams), and these birds generally weighed less. In addition, to
protect the bird, the fitting is only done inside a building. He did,
though, show us a transmitter, and he explained how the harness
that holds it fits around the bird. It was hard to imagine a bird that
small carrying a backpack!

While seeing the soras was the highlight of the trip, we did see a
number of other birds: lots of wood ducks and great egrets, and even
an American bittern who flew obligingly close as it passed the boat.
Of course, there were great blue herons; Jo Morrison shared this
photo of one of the graceful birds we glimpsed on our trip.

As we made our way back to shore, Greg told us about another

part of the project that will help not only him but others tracking
migratory birds. Recent research has shown that many birds—
certainly more than previously imagined—actually wind up in
Bermuda as a stopping point on their migration. No one knows
exactly which birds wind up there and why, because there has been
no way to track migratory birds on the island. Until now, that is!
Greg and his team, using a donation from a private foundation,
planned and then executed the erecting of a monitoring tower in
Bermuda this past summer. He shared stories about the process and
some of the practical difficulties they faced. He also described the
damage to the tower that Hurricane Humberto inflicted, just months
after the tower was raised. Fortunately, while the antenna was
damaged, the damage did not appear to have affected its workability,
so tracking should continue as expected until they can repair the
tower.

Greg shared lots of information with us, but one item was an
unexpected and welcome bit of information about an invasive
species that grows in the marshes. Most of us know it as mile-a-
minute vine, but Greg and his colleagues prefer to call it “tear-
thumb’, a reference to the almost razor-sharp stems that can result
in painful fingers if the plant is handled carelessly. Mile-a-minute
stands are usually not a pleasant sight. However, it turns out that
the vines actually fruit after most of the other plants have stopped
fruiting, and Greg told us it also turns out that many birds enjoy the
fruits! This means that visiting birds can get nourishment even after
the fruits and seeds of the native plants have disappeared—a happy
circumstance in the face of an otherwise unhappy invasion of non-
natives.

After the enjoyable and informative boat trip, many of the group
joined in a bird walk around the Park. I was not able to participate,
but the eBird list I later saw told me the walk was definitely a
positive adjunct to the main activity of the morning. CCBC
members thank the BCBC and staff of the Patuxent River Park for
making the trip available to us.

Back to my question at the beginning: Have you ever met Greg
Kearns? If the answer is no, I suggest you get down to Patuxent River
Park and seek him out. Whether you've met him or not, however,
you are invited to the next meeting of the CCBC, on December 4,
when Greg will be giving all our members a talk about this exciting

11

MARYLAND ORNITHOLOGICAL SOCIETY

project he’s undertaking and how it’s going so far. We'll be happy to
see you in Westminster, and you'll be happy you came! CJ McAuliffe
(See photos on page 12 of a Great Blue Heron and a Sora.)

CECIL COUNTY
Africa

In March Ken and Kimberleigh Drier joined up with Overseas
Adventure Travel for three weeks in Kenya and Tanzania on safari.
After a 14 hour non stop flight from JFK in New York they arrived
in Nairobi, Kenya. For Ken the birding started right at the Jomo
Kenyatta International Airport in Nairobi while waiting for the
shuttle to the hotel. Pied Crow and Red-winged Starlings were the
first birds to be noted. A relaxing first day around the hotel pool in
the middle of town getting over the stress of jet lag produced such
marvels as the Variable Sunbird, Spectacled Dove, Marabou Stork,
Spectacled Mousebird, White-browed Sparrow Weaver and several
others.

The next day the group, nine persons in all, took a small plane

out to Masai Mara for the first real adventure. Leaving the airport
which was a dirt strip with a picnic shelter Ken spotted the turkey
sized Southern Ground Hornbill strutting across the plains. Kim
and Ken were there with their Maasai guide George, who wore

his traditional tribal clothing, for four days. By the second day the
group had already found the so called Big 5. This consists of the
lion, leopard, elephant, black rhino and Cape Buffalo. Besides the
Big 5, the group was treated to 5 cheetahs out on a hunt, a cheetah
mom with 4 Cubs. The group was not particularly into birds. While
everyone would be snapping napping lions with their cameras Ken
was finding White-bellied Bustards, beautiful Lilac-breasted Rollers,
Greater Blue-eared Starlings and several more birds with colors in
their names.

Next up was Lake Nakuru National Park. The group stayed nearby
on the water at Lake Elmenteita. Flamingos, African Spoonbills and
Purple Grenadiers were highlights seen from the cabin porch. Lake
Nakuru was productive with three more Black Rhinos, Saddle-
billed Stork, both Red and Yellow-billed Oxpeckers on the backs of
buffalos, Green Wood-hoopoe and the long tailed African Paradise
Flycatcher, one of Kim’s favorites from a previous trip to South
Africa.

Heading into Tanzania going toward Amboseli National Park,
Mount Kilimanjaro could clearly be seen in the distance. The snow
capped peak was the focal point of Kim and Ken's view from their
tent while at Amboseli. This park is known for its elephants and
they did not disappoint. Several large family groups were observed
moving across the plains and swampy areas. Kim’s favorites were
the babies which could be found playing in the water and then
mud. Gray-crowned Cranes, Meyer's or Brown Parrots, Little Bee-
eaters, Crimson-rumped Waxbill, Blue-capped Cordonbleu and
two species of Firefinch convinced the group that they needed to
pay attention to the birds as well as hippopotamus. Cameras began
turning up into the trees for pictures and Ken obliged giving names
to all that they were seeing.

Tarangire National Park hosts the largest concentration of breeding

mdbirds.org

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poh, SD wit r
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Turquoise-browed Motmot. Image Credit: Jim Highsaw.

Bill Adams.

Sora. Image Credit: Dave Harvey.

Submit Your Photos!

For more information visit: : :
Great Blue Heron. Image Credit: Jo Morrison.

http://mdbirds.org/publications/the-yellowthroat/

D.H. Michael Bowen
contributed the following
photos on this page:

Winter Wren (Great Falls,
Montgomery County,
Maryland. 11/19) Top.

Hooded Warbler (male)
(Indian River County,
Florida, 10/19)Center.

Limpkin with apple snail
(Osceola County, Florida,
10/19) Bottom.

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Top-right. Image: George
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THE MARYLAND YELLOWTHROAT

bird species of any place in the world. The rest of the wildlife was
pretty spectacular as well. The day started with 10 lions feasting on a
Buffalo carcass while the giant White-backed Vultures sat silently in
the Baobab trees. These birds are twice the size of Turkey and Black
Vultures. Families of elephants gathered at the waterholes to cool
off and play. They were joined by the African Jacana, Blacksmith
Plovers, Scared and Hadada Ibis and Black-headed Herons. Large
herds of zebras stampeded into the lake and a Tawny Eagle kept
watch. As did the four foot long Monitor Lizards.

The UNESCO World Heritage Site, the Ngorongoro Crater was

the next stop. This is a huge volcanic crater about 1500 feet high
that houses a whole Noah’ ark array of African animals from

Black Rhinos, to hippos, to elephants and gazelles and then of
course birds. African Fish Eagle, flocks of both Greater and Lesser
Flamingos, as well as both the spectacular Superb and Hildebrant’s
Starlings were some of what was found. As the group made their
way down into the crater a Secretary-bird was out hunting and seen
catching a mouse and eating it. The Kori Bustard is the heavyweight
of the avian world. Weighing up to 35 pounds it is the heaviest of all
flying birds. One bustard performed for the group prancing about
all puffed up in its breeding plumage similar to our prairie chickens.
Everyone was a birder now.

The finale was four days in the Serengeti. Kim and Ken were tenting
in the Mbugani Camp in the middle of the plains. Serengeti means
endless plains in the Swahili language. There were places where
from horizon to horizon there would be no trees or bushes in sight
but at the same time one could view thousands of wildebeest, zebras
and impalas. ‘Three species of cuckoos, Fischer’s Lovebirds and a
great variety of thirteen eagles, harriers and vultures kept things
interesting. The last three nights armed guards were needed to
escort the group back and forth from the tents to the dinning hall as
hippos, buffalo and lions wandered through the camp after dark.

Kim was hoping to see baby elephants on the trip and she did. She
also was able to watch a baby Thompson's Gazelle being born and
taking its first steps, baby giraffes and lion and cheetah cubs as well.
Ken was hoping to see 200 species of birds. It was a good estimate.
He tallied 198 with 105 being life birds. It was an experience to be
relived for a long time and never to be forgotten. Ken Drier

HARFORD COUNTY
Exploring Costa Rica

On 1 July 2019, Mark Johnson marshaled together the following
HBC spouses and friends: Denise Johnson, Susan and Bob

Hood, Suzanne and Larry Procell, Maya and John Paul, and Tom
Congersky/Bob Werrlein (the odd couple). With binocs and cameras
in tow, and target-species in mind, we boarded Southwest Air, and
headed off to explore the birds and natural wonders of Costa Rica.
In San Jose we met Max Vindas, an exceptionally gifted naturalist
and photographer, appointed by Horizontes Nature Tours to assure
the success of our adventure. After a quick lunch at a roadside
“Sodas” we headed northeast on Guapiles Highway driving up

into the Central Cordillera. The twists and turns of the winding
road occasionally provided spectacular views of waterfalls, and of

FEBRUARY 2020

lush rain and cloud forests contained in the open hollows of these
rugged volcanic mountains. At dusk we arrived in Braulio Carrillo
National Park where we deployed for a brief time to stretch our
limbs, and commune with the indigenous life-forms inhabiting this
vast (185 sq. mi) wilderness. Almost immediately, the shadowy form
of a White-nosed Coati crossed our path and vanished in the jungle
undergrowth. In the leafy canopy above, 3 Keel-billed Toucans, 2
Collared Aracari, and a Yellow-throated Toucan bounced about
restlessly seeking suitable perches for the night ahead. Meanwhile,
a nearby Wedge-billed Woodcreeper was busy foraging for an end-
of-day snack. In the fading light of our solar day, Max led us to an
open woodland thicket to experience the audio-visual “zooming”
activity of forest hummingbirds. In all, 5 species: Rufous-tailed,
Violet-headed, Snowcap, Bronze-tailed Plumeleteer, and Stripe-
throated Hermit were engaged in an aerobatic cotillion of in-and-
out, to-and-fro feeding among limited but concentrated clusters of
wild flowers. Much later, on a dark jungle trail, a guttural sounding
“wk-wk-wuUUrrr” helped us to locate a majestic Crested Owl
overhead in full-frontal view showing its long, white, conspicuous
V-shaped ear tufts. Playing “Hide and Seek” among the large, moist
plant leaves, and along the forest floor, we uncovered a mating pair
of Red-eyed Tree Frogs (a target species), a translucent-looking
Tink Frog, a Vine snake, and a veritable parade (200+ meters long)
of Leaf-cutter ants hauling clipped vegetation to be composted in
their fungus farms for feeding the entire colony.

On day 2 (first full day in CR), 2 Crested Guan, a Laughing Falcon,
and a Great Potoo, graced our way to La Pavona (a maritime port)
where we boarded a “Panga” (an outboard-powered water taxi)

and headed to Tortuguero, one of the most remote, wildlife-rich
areas in CR. The breathtaking biodiversity along these serpentine,
riparian waterways was raw nourishment for the soul, and pure,
savory input for our cameras. We saw: Green Ibis. Bare-throated
Tiger Heron, Spider monkeys, Anhinga, Spectacled caiman, Rufous
Motmot, White-faced Capuchin, Great Green Macaw (endangered),
Scarlet Macaw, Little Blue Heron, King Vulture, Ringed Kingfisher,
Montezuma's Oropendola, Green Iguana, Russet-naped Wood Rail,
Slaty-tailed Trogon, etc. etc., recording 74 bird species on day 2; and
297 during our 10 days of travel. Arguably, the “bird of this trip”

a Resplendent Quetzal was seen by all, and photographed (many
times) from a cafe balcony on a rainy day in Savegre, Los Santos.
Thank you Max Vindas.

Please note: There is unbridled pleasure in stating that we have
been witness to CR’s wildlife conservation, and commitment to
ecotourism. Everyone should try it, at least once. Bob Werrlein

MONTGOMERY COUNTY

Bill Adams sent this trip report and photo: “During July of this

year I took a VENT tour to the Choco Region of Colombia led by
the famed author of guides to Colombia and also Venezuela, Steve
Hilty, It was co-led by Colombian guide, Cristian Daza, of Manakin
Tours. The Choco region is known for its regional endemics and is
one of the wettest and least visited and most coveted regions in the
American Tropics. Those birds that I saw included the Sooty-capped
Pufftbird, Dusky Pigeon, Tooth-billed Hummingbird, Brown Wood-

14

Rail, Rose-faced Parrot, Black-tipped Cotinga, Stub-tailed Antbird
and Baudo Oropendola. But surely the highlight of the trip occurred
while I was resting in my cabin and my next door neighbor shouted,
“Bill, you better get out here!” And amazingly, right above our
cabin, was a Harpy Eagle perched in full view. Everyone hurried
over to see it but that turned out to be unnecessary as it remained
on that perch for at least 30 minutes allowing for multiple photos. It
was holding a partially eaten Mantled Howler Monkey in its talons.
Spectacular!” (See page 12 for a photo of a Harpy Eagle.)

TALBOT COUNTY
Talbot County Birding Fun at the Roslund Home

Wednesday morning, Nov 13", a family group of two adult Black
Vultures and one juvenile were seen quietly perched on a horizontal
branch of a large River Birch tree close to our house beside Leeds
Creek. The young bird had hatched this year in a 100-year-old
wooden barn on our property. We had seen him with the female
(Mom) regularly for the past six weeks. As the three basked in the
sun, a local Bald Eagle swooped down to the site carrying a partly
eaten fresh fish. The eagle, with fish, lit on the muddy (low tide)
shore line about 30 feet from the vultures and continued to take a
few more bites from this breakfast delicacy. In a few minutes, the
Eagle, perhaps filled with enough fish, flew up to a familiar feeding
perch high in a large Oak tree about fifty yards from the fish carcass.
Within less than a minute the three vultures dropped from their
perch, coasted to the remnants of the carcass, and made short work
of it, leaving no sign of the fish or eagle having ever been there. The
only thing they left behind was the set of vulture footprints and
some scratch marks in the mud.

My wife, Carolyn, and I had watched the entire sequence of these
events. Other witnesses included a newly arrived group of 32
migrant Canada Geese and a single Great Blue Heron. I had heard
the geese arrive during the previous night. Their vocalization and
behavior differed from that of the 400 other geese that have been
loitering on Leeds Creek since early November. During the vulture
clean up activity, the 32 geese swam silently past in single file,
looking on the scene as if they had never previously seen vultures
in such activity. The heron had stared silently from the far side of
the creek. He seemed to be making it clear that he preferred to eat
only the live fish from this creek that he had caught himself, and
had absolutely no interest in competing for trashy remnants left by
an eagle. What really happened here? Was this eagle doing breakfast
delivery for the vultures? Was this a special gift to welcome the
coming out of this darling little vulture? Or why on earth did the
eagle go to the trouble of flying to our shoreline from where ever
the fish had been caught? Most likely we will never know. After the
vultures left, the eagle left also, leaving us to revel in the joy of just
another happy autumn birding experience here in beautiful Talbot
County. Les Roslund, Easton, MD

TRI-COUNTY

In July, Bob and Marcia Balestri went to New Mexico and Arizona
for a little birding and to visit family and friends. In Tucson, they
met with former MOS member, Mick Welsh, to scour southeast

15

MARYLAND ORNITHOLOGICAL SOCIETY

Arizona for a few life birds like Black-capped Gnatcatcher, Mexican
Whip-poor-will, and Buff-collared Nightjar as well as more of those
lovely western birds.

At the end of August, Marcia Balestri joined Kathy Calvert in Alaska
for an 18-day trip with Wings to the Pribilofs and Gambell. They
arrived a few days early in Nome to bird that area before joining the
group. Kathy picked up many new birds including Emperor Goose
and Bristle-thighed Curlew, and Marcia added Arctic Warbler and
Steller’s eider to her list. First stop on the tour was Gambell where
slogging through the “lettuce” was a little tough in the beginning,
but rewarding in the end with White Wagtail, Sharp-tailed
Sandpiper, Brambling, and Red-throated Pipit. At the sea watch
they saw steady streams of Alaskan specialties such as Parakeet,
Least, and Crested Auklets, Fork-tailed Storm-Petrels, and Short-
tailed Shearwaters. Due to weather, they were stranded an extra
day on Gambell, but were able to travel the next day to Anchorage
where they picked up Willow and White-tailed Ptarmigan. On to
the Pribilofs where they were treated to good looks at Jack Snipe,
Gray-tailed and Wandering Tattler, and Red-legged Kittiwake.
Marcia Balestri

Marylee Ross and Paul Bystrak went “Leaf Peepin” in the northern
Adirondacks in early October. Half the time was spent at Asgaard
Farm, an organic goat dairy, in a nice guest house on the farm
grounds. It was interesting to see that the bird flock seen each day
in the field close to the porch consisted of chipping sparrows, pine
warblers and bluebirds, the same mix they see from their porch in
Salisbury each day. In both places, there was one phoebe mixed

in as well. It seemed odd to see so many pine warblers near the
northern edge of their range. Oh, and the leaves were nice, too! Paul
Bystrak

The Tri-County Club’s October field trip to Assateague National
Seashore was featured on WBOC’s Sunday Morning News on
Nov. 17. WBOC Chief Meteorologist, Dan Satterfield, who recently
joined the club, presented an enthusiastic review of the trip, which
included interviews with club president Mike Walsh and member
Marcia Balestri. Dan called the trip a “real eye opener” which
introduced “a whole world of wildlife’ he had been previously
missing. He called Delmarva “One of the best places anywhere to
observe birds” and encouraged folks to check out their local bird
club. Thanks, Dan, and we look forward to you participating in
future club trips! Ellen Lawler

WASHINGTON COUNTY
First Year Birding and Thanks

I declared myself a novice birder when I purchased binoculars for
myself last Christmas. My desire was to be more physically active,
and I’ve admired birds for a long time; so what could be a better
combination? Birding gave me an excuse to get outdoors. I had no
idea at the time how much this new hobby would enrich my life.

In the dead of winter, I enhanced my backyard birding experience
by adding additional feeders to the one I already had. I especially
wanted to attract woodpeckers and provide a feeder exclusively for
the goldfinches that always seemed put off by larger birds. With four

mdbirds.org

THE MARYLAND YELLOWTHROAT

feeding stations in the yard, I could provide a variety of foods to
attract the local bird population. My little suburban yard attracted
the usual backyard birds: cardinals, blue jays, chickadees, titmice,
wrens, robins, finches, downys, red-bellies, nuthatches, juncos, and
sparrows. Warm weather added catbirds to the mix. What I didn't
notice, however, were the occasional migrants passing through. I
didn't even know to look for them.

I never thought I would see a warbler, but two Magnolia Warblers
visited my yard for half a day in the Spring. I was elated! Then on
my own I also “discovered” Yellow Warblers and Yellow-rumped
Warblers at a nearby park. And in the fall a Black and White
Warbler and a Northern Parula visited my bird bath, along with a
Ruby-crowned Kinglet, several days running.

Throughout the year I was privileged to join some bird walks led
by members of Potomac Valley Audubon Society and Washington

FEBRUARY 2020

County Bird Club (where Iam now a member). In every case

I got to see birds that were firsts for me: Eastern meadowlarks,

green herons, blue-gray gnatcatchers, northern parulas, ovenbirds,
thrushes and thrashers, phoebes, bluebirds, kestrels, wood pewees,
killdeer, belted kingfishers and red-eyed vireos, to name a few. These
outings taught me where to look, and I began to find some of these
species and many others during my solitary outings.

These walks with knowledgeable birders have been instrumental to
my growth and pleasure in birding as a hobby. They taught me to see
with new eyes. Because of this, I want to give a shout-out to these
great people for their kindness, generosity and patience: Deb Hale of
Potomac Valley Audubon Society, and these folks from Washington
County Bird Club: Larry Zalesky, Doris Berger, Mark and Heather
Abdy, Bruce and Linda Field, Anna Hutzell, Shirley Ford. Each of you
has made my first year of birding memorable and special. Thank
you! Susan Haberkorn

Connecting Birders with Birds: Meet the Marvelous Marcia Watson

arica Watson, President of the Patuxent Bird Club, talks with
Barbara Johnson about her entry into MOS and the new
Birder’s Guide to Maryland & DC website.

https://birdersguidemddc.org/

Marcia Watson's seemingly innumerable contributions to MOS
include a comprehensive pictorial history of MOS sanctuaries, and
a relaunch of the online Birder’s Guide to Maryland and DC. We
asked about her background and her extensive volunteer work with
MOS.

Marcia’ father sparked her childhood interest in nature, taking her
for long walks and on hunting trips, where she learned to identify
waterfowl. During summer vacations in Stone Harbor, NJ, they
would visit an enormous tern rookery by day, and at dusk watched
as scores of birds roosted in the refuge.

From the University of Delaware, Marcia earned a BA in psychology
and a PhD in biological sciences. Joining UDE’s faculty, she taught
courses including human physiology, and conducted research.
Volunteering for a child care agency in Newark, she honed her
administrative skills. She served as assistant provost at UDE for six
years, then worked in Student Advisement, visiting every Delaware
high school each year. In 2010 she moved to the provost office of the
University of Maryland University College. She retired in 2015.

A newspaper column by Gary Griffith attracted Marcia to a group of
birders that would become the Cecil Bird Club (CBC). When CBC
joined the state organization in 1994, Marcia’s long membership in
MOS began.

Marcia met Gene Scarpulla (Editor of Maryland Birdlife) while
birding at Conowingo Dam. Later, unbeknownst to them both, they
were assigned to co-lead an MOS Conference field trip by a match-
making Janet Shields. Janet’s hunch paid off: Marcia and Gene
married in 2017. Marcia has an adult son who lives with his wife in
Japan.

Currently, you serve the Patuxent Bird Club as president and

webmaster. What was your first MOS volunteer effort? I was

a founding member of the CBC. I succeeded Gary Griffith to
become the second CBC president, and automatically became a
member of the Board of Directors of MOS and began to attend the
quarterly meetings. I have served on the Scholarships Committee,
the Long-Range Planning Committee (including a term as chair),
the Budget Committee; and the MD/DC Bird Records Committee.
I have to tell you, I was eager to get involved on the state level with
MOS. Very early in my birding career, someone gave me a copy of
the Yellowbook (Field List of the Birds of Maryland), and I was very
impressed with that publication. It seemed to me the publication
represented an incredible amount of shared knowledge within MOS,
and I wanted to be part of that.

You presented a marvelous pictorial history of the MOS
Sanctuaries to every MOS chapter. What inspired you to take on
this project?

Several things came together as an inspiration for that project.

The immediate impetus came at the MOS retreat in 2017. The
discussions there had a couple of recurring themes: the desire

to develop a few “canned” slide shows that could be shared with

the chapters; the need to develop a management plan for the
sanctuaries; and the need to better publicize the resources that MOS
has to offer. In listening to the comments about the sanctuaries,

it became immediately apparent that most of the participants at

the retreat weren't prepared to make decisions about the future

of the sanctuaries, because they didn’t know much about them.

For example, most were only aware of Carey Run and/or Irish
Grove. People had no idea that, at the time, there were nine MOS
sanctuaries spread all over the state. I was aware of the existence of
the other sanctuaries, because that early version of the Yellowbook
had a list of all the sanctuaries in it. Could we have some way of
sharing information about the sanctuaries with a wide audience? I
remembered that Paul Bystrak, as a member of the Cecil Chapter in
the 1990's, had given presentations at a couple of chapter meetings
about the sanctuaries; his intent was to cover them one by one. But

16

he moved out of state before he could complete the series. So I
thought that Paul’s idea could be resurrected and that a slideshow
on all the sanctuaries could serve several purposes for MOS.

With my background in higher education, I had many years of
experience in designing and delivering presentations, so this was
right up my alley. I had never been a member of the Sanctuary
Committee, but I knew from reports at the Board meetings that the
committee members were always up to their ears in maintenance
needs at Carey Run and Irish Grove, so I joined the committee with
the expressed intent of focusing on publicity for the sanctuaries.

Tell us about creating and delivering the presentation.

The most fun part was reading through 60+ years of Maryland
Birdlife to research the history of the sanctuaries. Initially, I tried
just searching for “sanctuary” using the CD-ROM version of
Birdlife or the version online at SORA (https://sora.unm.edu/
node/132691), but I quickly realized I was missing a good deal

of material with that method. Fortunately, because my husband
Gene serves as Editor of Maryland Birdlife, we have a complete
printed set of the journal at home, so I started reading through the
printed copies, page by page, to glean the bits and pieces of how
the sanctuaries came to be. The challenge was to stay on point: I
came across many tantalizing articles that had nothing to do with
the sanctuaries, and I would call out to Gene: “Look at this!” I
remember one of the intriguing articles concerned an attempt by
Patuxent Bird Club member Woody Martin to wade into a wetland
to document breeding by Common Gallinule in Prince George's
County. But I had to set that article and others aside, to be enjoyed
at a later date.

In addition to reading Maryland Birdlife, the Yellowthroat,

and other published materials, I also reached out to Sanctuary
Committee members and to other members of MOS to request
photos and facts and anecdotes about the sanctuaries, and many
people responded: Dominic Nucifora, Brent and Mary Byers, Jan
Reese, Danny Poet, Gemma Radko, Sue Ricciardi, Paul Bystrak,
Wayne Bell, Dotty Mumford, and probably more that I am
forgetting. A very enjoyable part of the putting the presentation
together was that it really represents the contributions of a wide
spectrum of MOS members, and of course it portrays the work
of many people at the sanctuaries themselves. When reading
about the sanctuaries in Birdlife, | was extremely impressed with
the commitment and dedication of the MOS members who have
made the sanctuaries a reality. The fundraising alone has been an
incredible accomplishment.

The biggest challenge in developing the presentation was the fact
that I had WAY too much material. It was very difficult to whittle
the presentation down to a reasonable length to fit into a chapter
meeting. In fact, each time I have given it, I have cut out some
material. So many interesting stories and facts had to go! Now the
presentation is a much more manageable length, but that came

at the expense of some of the little anecdotes that brought the
sanctuary story to life. The narrated presentation can be viewed
via YouTube, under “Maryland Ornithological Society Sanctuary”.

https://www.youtube.com/watch?v=8IhSnRpY5X8&t=928s.
You also coordinate the Jug Bay Bird Christmas Count. What

17

MARYLAND ORNITHOLOGICAL SOCIETY

other projects do you work on outside of MOS?

Yes, I took on the Jug Bay Christmas Bird Count in 2017, when the
previous compiler, Sam Droege, had to go out of the country. I like
handling numerical data, and this project gives me that experience.
I also serve as a volunteer for the Maryland Bird Conservation
Partnership and MD-DC Audubon, by performing annual bird
monitoring at the Parkers Creek Important Bird Area in Calvert
County. This involves doing a point count of birds during breeding
season, similar to a Breeding Bird Survey route, except that it’s done
on foot, so one nice aspect is that I get good exercise on some of
the challenging trails at Parkers Creek. The objective of the project
is to document birds that are breeding at the site, with an emphasis
on birds that are threatened or declining. This work allows me to
use the song identification skills that I learned from David Holmes
when I used to be his note-taker for Breeding Bird Surveys in

Cecil County. I added another volunteer position in early 2019,
when I joined the board of Friends of Patuxent Wildlife Research
Center and Patuxent Research Refuge. The Refuge is an incredible
resource for our area and for the country as a whole. I think there is
opportunity for MOS and the Friends of Patuxent to work together
and I hope to foster that.

You've relaunched the Maryland/DC Birding Guide this past
January. Tell us about the guide, and the process of building it.

Oh yes, I’m very excited about the new look for what is now called
the Birder’s Guide to Maryland & DC, which has just launched at
https://birdersguidemddc.org/, Like the Yellowbook, the Birder'’s
Guide is another great example of all of the pooled knowledge of
MOS members being put to use for the good of birds and birders.
How it came to be is a long story, over ten years in the making.

In the early 2000s, a lot of states across the country launched
birding trail projects to showcase their birding sites, or in some
cases, there were ABA books that served as birding guides for a
whole state or a portion of a state. By the middle of that decade,
some members within MOS were feeling kind of left out because
Maryland didn‘ have a birding trail or birding guide publication
of its own. Marcia Balestri (the “other” Marcia) was a very strong
proponent of MOS developing a birding guide for Maryland. In
2006, Marcia B became President of MOS, and she didn't feel
she could take on the birding guide project. I agreed to chair a
committee to start exploring the idea.

We set up a very fine committee and established goals, objectives
and a plan of action that were approved by the MOS board.
Committee members have rotated on and off, and over the years
the committee has included Marcia Balestri, Wayne Bell, Mike
Bowen, Sarel Cousins, David Curson, Joan Cwi, Fred Fallon, Mary
Anne Fluke, Shirley Ford, Kevin Graff, Maureen Harvey, Barbara
Hopkins, Barbara Johnson, the late Mary LaMarca, Peter Lev, Helen
Patton, Colin Rees, Kurt Schwarz, John Taylor, and Robin Todd.

It was agreed that the birding guide should publicize MOS to the
larger birding community, and also showcase the birding habitats
and conservation challenges within the state. An early decision
was to include the best birding sites in every county in Maryland;
we werent going to simply cherry-pick the best sites in the state

mdbirds.org

as a whole. We didn't want to leave any counties out, because
every county has something unique to offer. We also agreed to
include Washington, DC, mostly because it seemed like no other
organization would take it on, but also because there has always
been a strong connection, historically and socially, between
Maryland and DC.

The initial concept was to have both a printed publication on the
order of a 100-page booklet, as well as a birding guide website,

and the committee developed a budget for both. After looking at
examples of birding trail materials from approximately 35 other
states, the MOS birding guide committee developed an outline of
what we wanted in each site description. The MOS chapters were
supplied with a “site nomination form,’ and Mike Bowen took on
the task of keeping track of submissions and organizing them. The
committee had a scoring system to prioritize the submissions from
the chapters: for example, we would not include birding sites that
were not open to the public (duh!) or that were unsafe in some
way. We also prioritized parks, hunting areas, sanctuaries and other
formally designated areas (that is, recognizable, named places), in
preference to roadside birding (for example, pulling up on a road
shoulder to scope a farm pond); we thought that roadside birding
has several inherent risks that made it less appealing for a project
aimed at the public. Nevertheless, the Birder’ss Guide today does
have a few selected examples of roadside birding.

So, as time went on, the committee assembled a great collection
of birding site descriptions representing almost every county as
well as DC. Some counties were still missing or under-represented
but we knew that could be addressed later. But there was one
important thing lacking, and that was funding. After all this time,
I don't remember exactly how much we projected was needed for
a print publication and website, but I think that we were talking
upwards of $25K or $30K. MOS simply did not have that much
money to commit to the project. Joan Cwi valiantly took on the
task of writing grant requests for outside funding, but the economic
downturn of 2008 and the following years made it impossible to
find external funding. Without funding, the project stalled for a
while, and meanwhile I relocated and took on a more demanding
job, and was unable to give any attention to the project.

Around 2010 or 2011, Joan Cwi stepped in to chair the committee,
and she made what I believe was a brilliant and strategic decision to
abandon the idea of a printed publication and concentrate solely on
a website. JB Churchill from the Allegany-Garrett Chapter agreed
to set up and run a website. A very spare budget was developed,
and JB set up the framework for the site. Joan began the prodigious
task of copying in the site descriptions that had been developed
with the chapters. Joan and JB did an incredible job building a
comprehensive website that presented all of the gathered material in
an organized and coherent fashion.

By about 2016, Joan had entered essentially all the available

site descriptions on the website (http://mdbirdingguide.com/),
representing about 175 different locations across the state.
Unfortunately, Joan’s husband John became critically ill, and Joan
could not take on the task of editing for consistency and style and
accuracy of details such as entry fees and operating hours. So |
stepped back into the project as editor of the website, and I’ve been
working on it ever since.

In addition to the basic editing and cleaning up of details, ’ve been

using the committee's list of “wanted” birding sites to add more site
descriptions, reaching out to solicit information from active local
birders that I find through eBird. We now have 192 site descriptions
online, with additional drafts in progress.

The website was attacked by malware early in 2019. At that time,
MOS officers began wondering if the birding guide website

could be redesigned to look and function more like the newly
overhauled MOS website. Over the summer of 2019, MOS
Webmaster Tom Strickwerda and I developed a new draft layout
for the website. We asked the MOS website designer Gabe Seiden
of Connect4Consulting to build out the new site and transfer the
content from the old site. Gabe has been great to work with: he took
our bare bones layout ideas and enhanced them using the latest
available technology, while paying great attention to appearance
and overall layout.

What are your favorite features of the guide?

I’m excited about the new website because it has some enhanced
features that make it fun and easy to use as well as attractive in
appearance. The beautiful Baltimore Oriole photo in the top banner
of the home page was contributed by Bonnie Ott of the Howard
County Bird Club. The colors of the website design are drawn

from the colors of the photograph, for a unified appearance. The
overall menu layout and navigation looks a lot like that on the
MOS website (https://mdbirds.org/), so that you immediately feel
that the two websites are related. There is extensive MOS branding
throughout the new Birder’s Guide website, to fulfill the original
objective of publicizing MOS. The MOS chapters are featured in the
footer of every page and are mentioned within the site descriptions
for their counties. In addition, there is a live feed from the MOS
website that displays upcoming field trips in the footer as well as

on a stand-alone calendar page, which can be reached from the top
menu.

Birding sites can be explored through an alphabetical list (handy
if you know the name of the place you want to visit), or by region,
by county, by type (e.g., state parks or hunting areas or local parks,
or hiker-biker trails, etc.), by habitat, or by features and amenities.
Want to visit a birding site that has a playground for your young
children? We've got you covered. Want to bring your dog? You
can look that up, too. Want to go to a place where you can launch a
boat? Yep, we can help with that. The Birders Guide is designed to
be a one-stop shop for people, both local residents and visitors, to
explore all the nooks and crannies of birding habitats in Maryland
and DC, while serving their other interests and needs.

The conservation theme that was part of the original planning for
the project is carried out in several ways. Most of the 42 Audubon-
designated Important Bird Areas in Maryland are included, and
their IBA designation is noted in the relevant site descriptions.
Other sensitive areas, such as state wildlands and natural areas,
are also described. The existence of habitat restoration projects
and pollinator gardens are called out. Other special areas are
noted, such as our three locations that are part of the Chesapeake
Bay National Estuarine Research Reserve. At this time, two MOS
sanctuaries are included, but eventually all ten will be represented.
The conservation focus is a running theme throughout the text.
We want birders to be aware that the birding sites they visit and the
birds they find are the intentional result of hard work, planning,
and dollars spent, with the underlying message that more can and

should be done.

Although I’m biased, I truly think that the redesigned website is
THE best state-level birding guide in the country.

MOS has benefitted immeasurably by your work. How has your
volunteer service been rewarding to you?

Simply said, my life would not be the same without MOS. MOS
has given me a network of friends throughout the state, as well as
a husband! It’s wonderful to be married to a man who shares my
values and goals. Beyond introducing me to like-minded people,

the MOS Conventions have introduced me to the beautiful places
where we can go birding, and visiting these places helps to keep
me physically fit. 've always found great peace and relaxation in
the outdoors, going back to those early walks with my dad, and my
work for MOS in many respects is a way to carry on my father’s
legacy. My projects for MOS also give me an ongoing outlet for

my scientific training as well as for my experience in organization,
project management, and publications. I think I would be
incredibly bored without MOS in my life!

Hog Island Audubon Scholarship winners for 2020
The Maryland Ornithological Society is happy to announce that it is awarding seven scholarships to the National Audubon Society’s Hog

Island camp in Maine for the summer of 2020.

The Anne Arundel chapter has two recipients represented. Kathryn Fuller is an Outdoor Educator teacher for the Prince George’s County
schools at the William S. Schmidt Outdoor Environmental Centre and also is an educator volunteer at the Smithsonian Environmental

Research Center in Edgewater, Md.

Rick Perry has taught many different science courses at Severna High School since 2004. He is a member of the Chesapeake Bay
Environmental Center and since taking a course there, has constantly taken his classes outdoors and has helped other teachers do the

Same.

The Baltimore chapter is sending three educators. April Hill is a fourth grade teacher at The Lamb of God School and a co-director of
the Nature Camp at Cylburn Arboretum. Jessica Jeannetta has worked as an environmental educator and is now a Naturalist at Oregon
Ridge Nature Center. Alison Moore is currently on sabbatical with Baltimore City Public Schools and part of her professional and self-
development plan for this year is to further her knowledge of birds to offer a bird class and club at Highlandtown Elementary/Middle

School.

The Howard County bird club has recommended Erin Eve who is a Park Ranger in Howard County. She recently worked at Robinson
Nature Center and now as a full-time ranger in the county plays an integral role in developing and leading interpretive programs.

Montgomery County bird club is awarding a scholarship to Stacey Flynn. Stacey is a media specialist at Greater Seneca Creek Elementary
School and has also been a Nature Camp Counselor at Black Hill Nature Center. Stacey has created a “NatureBrary” program at her school

which allows students to check out Explorer’s backpacks.

Congratulations to these 2020 Hog Island Campers and also to the chapters and colleagues who recommended them.

Anna Urciolo

Chair, MOS Scholarship Committee

Pin Contest

The 2020 annual MOS Convention will take place in Cumberland, Maryland at the Cumberland Ramada May 15 - May 17, 2020. The
deadline for the submission of entries for the pin design competition will be February 28, 2020. Competition rules will be sent to all artists
who have submitted entries in recent years and they also will appear on the MOS web site.

Briefly:

e The bird must be appropriate to the time of year and for the conference site: Cumberland, Maryland

e It must contain the phrases “MOS” and “2020”
e Entries must be in HARD COPY.

Again, the deadline for the 2020 Pin Design Contest is February 28, 2020, so, artists, start thinking NOW about birds that can be found

during the spring in the Western Maryland.

| CALENDAR

Host: Anne Arundel Bird Club. Contact Chris Barry, 410-897-7216 or rpbarrOO@aacounty.org.
8 AM — 12 PM |Birding Governors Bridge Natural Area}| Description: Located on the bank of the Patuxent River and operated as part of the Patuxent
River Park. Trails criss-cross the park, allowing a walk through all the different habitats.

Host: Patuxent Bird Club/PGAS Contact Bill Sefton at kiwisuits@msn.com. Description:
Monthly walk. Meet at the Natural Area parking lot on the south side of Governor Bridge Rd., 1
mile east of Route 301. No reservations needed.

7:30 AM—12 || Birding at Governor Bridge Natural
PM Area

Host: Baltimore Bird Club Leader: Debbie Terry, 443-578-8243 or dterry12@verizon.net and
Kevin Graff, keyweststyle2001@gmail.com. Description: Morning trip to see ducks, grebes,
coots, and other water birds. Meet at Loch Raven Point (public area on Loch Raven Drive, just
west of Bridge #1). Our second stop will be Loch Raven Dam. Scopes useful. Trip canceled in
snow, rain, or slippery conditions. RSVP required in case trip is canceled.

Loch Raven Point and Loch Raven
Dam birding.

Host: Howard County Bird Club. Leader Anthony VanSchoor, tonyvanschoor@gmail.com.
Description: Walk the trails along scrubland and woods. Sometimes non-winter birds over-
winter here. No facilities, boots recommended. Meet at the south end of Summer Hollow Ln,
Columbia.

8 AM-11 AM Birding at Blandair Park North

Host: Baltimore Bird Club Leader Bob Poscover, 410-882-1309. Alternate contact Wendy
Saturday Morning Monitoring Walk at Alexander, 443-204-3754. Description: Continuing survey of bird activity at the Fort.
Fort McHenry Telescopes useful. Canceled in bad weather. Meet outside of park front gates and park at lot
on left hand side.

8 AM —- 12 PM

Host: Carroll County Bird Club Leaders Dave and Maureen Harvey, 410-795-3117.
8 AM -— 12 PM Birding at Piney Run Park Description: Moderate walking around the lake. Meet at the parking lot outside the gate to
Piney Run Park on Martz Road off of White Rock Road.

Host: YMOS. Contact George Radcliffe, radclifg@gmail.com, at least 2 weeks in advance.
Description: Meet at 8 AM at the Visitor’s Center in Cambridge. We'll spend time looking at the
Dorchester County Bird Hunt large array of ducks, before heading south in the county to Blackwater Refuge and Shorter’s
Wharf to look for Short-eared Owls and the Rough-legged Hawk. Bring a lunch and money for
dinner and plenty of warm clothing.

8 AM — 5:30

Host: Audubon Society of Central Maryland. For more information contact Crystal Kunst,

Bie osefenlbaldaNatires sels hckunst@qis.net or 443-536-3071. Description: Bi-monthly naturalist-led walk.

Host: Washington County Bird Club. Contact Doris Berger, 301-739-8907. Description:
9 AM—- 12 PM Searching for Winter Waterfowl Half-day trip in search of winter waterfowl. We will stop at locations along the Potomac and
Shenandoah Rivers. Leave from the MVA parking lot, 18306 Col. Henry K. Douglas Drive

Host: Allegany/Garrett Bird Club Contact Raquel Ketterman, raquelketterman@verizon.net
or 301-256-6746, Bird walk on the Great Allegany Passage (GAP) Trail to count birds for the
Great Backyard Bird Count. All are welcome and information on counting birds for the bird
count will be explained for beginning birders. Meet at the Frostburg Trailhead at New Hope
Rd. Dress warm and boots recommended.

Bird Walk on the Great Allegany

10 AM
Passage

Host: Frederick Bird Club Leader: Tom Humphrey (240-793-2508). Description: A casual and

a clemn ho rconcua fun trip to visit some of the best birding spots on the east coast.

Host: Talbot Bird Club Leader Wayne Bell, 410-820-6002 or wbell2@washcoll.edu.
Description: Expect lots of sea birds, gulls, waterfowl and field birds on this trip. Depart Easton
All Day Birding Ocean City and Environs‘ i[Acme at 6:30 am OR meet leader at the Ocean City Inlet, south jetty parking lot at 8 am. Bring
lunch. Soup and warmth will be provided around noon at the leader’s condo apartment on

76th St. overlooking the beach.

Host: Patuxent Bird Club/PGAS Contact David Mozurkewich (mozurk@bellAtlantic.net) for
more information. Description: Semi-monthly walk. Wheelchair-accessible. Meet at 3 pm at
parking lot at intersection of Berwyn Rd. and Ballew Ave. in Berwyn Heights. No reservations
needed.

Birding at Lake Artemesia

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For more details about an event listed in the MOS Calendar, please visit: https://mdbirds.org/calendar/.

BIRDING ry |

Host: Kent County Bird Club. If you have questions, please contact leaders Walter Ellison and
Nancy Martin, 410-778-9568, e-mail: borealdee@gmail.com. Description: Prime waterfowl and
eagle country; pelicans and other surprises? Full day. Dress warmly & bring lunch. Meet at 8
AM at the “Dollar General” parking lot (off Philosopher’s Terrace) in Chestertown.

All Day Field Trip to Blackwater NWR

2/22/2020

Host: Baltimore Bird Club Leader: Kevin Graff, keyweststyle2001@gmail.com. Description:
A 3/4 day trip south along border of Calvert and Anne Arundel Counties to spot waterfowl
Winter Waterfowl at North Beach/ at North Beach Marsh, North Beach Boardwalk, Chesapeake Beach Railway Trail, and
Herrington Harbour. Herrington Harbour. We'll also look for winter residents such as sparrows, and raptors.
Optional lunch at local restaurant. Telescopes useful. Meet at Nursery Rd/Hammond Ferry Rd
P&R for car-pooling. Canceled if high winds, snow. Contact leader for more info.

Host: Baltimore Bird Club, Audubon and Maryland Zoo. To borrow binoculars, contact
Patterson Park Audubon Center at 410-558-2473 or baltimore@audubon.org. Description:
Join Audubon and the Maryland Zoo to explore this leafy city park! From forest to lake, a
variety of bird species await. Meet at 3001 East Drive to start the walk.

8 — 9:30 AM Birding at Druid Hill Park

Host: Talbot Bird Club Leader Dave Bent, 410-822-2113 or bentd72@gmail.com. Description:
With a diversity of habitat, expect lots of waterfowl, sparrows, and forest birds, and possibly
even a Golden Eagle. Breakfast hosted by Bobbie Wells, 410-924-2568 or wellsok@yahoo.

com, 9651 Unionville Rd, Easton. Meet at Pickering Creek at 8 am.

8 AM -— 12 PM Trip to Pickering Creek

Host: Allegany/Garrett Bird. Club Contact Melissa Hensel, mjhensel@yahoo.com or 240-362-
1086. Hike along the C&O Canal looking for waterfowl on the Potomac and to check on Bald
Eagle nest activity. Meet at the C&O Canal Terminus. Dress warm-there is often a strong wind
along this hike and waterproof boots may be necessary.

9-—11AM Bird Walk on the C&O Canal

Host: Howard County Bird Club. Leader Jay Sheppard, jaymsheppard95@gmail.com

(preferred) or 301-725-5559. Description: Two sessions, at 9:30 am and 1 pm. Possibility of
How to Find an Owl birding at dusk for owls and early woodcocks for those in afternoon group. Learn how to find
owls by habitat and signs. Contact Jay to sign up so participants can be advised of weather-

related changes and where to meet. Group size limited and RSVP required. No facilities.

9:30 AM and

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Host: Frederick Bird Club Contact leader Kathy Calvert (301-810-5677) for meeting time and

BING 2 ACR Halls, RESeIvalt location. Description: Bald Eagles and over-wintering waterfowl.

2/25/2020
v —_—
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Host: Anne Arundel Bird Club. Contact Alan Young, 410-991-8300 or alnmyoung@aol.com.
Birding at Beverly Triton Beach Park Description: Join Ranger Karen Jarbo and Lloyd Lewis as we will hike through a variety of
habitats, including bay shoreline, large freshwater lakes, woods, fields and marshes.

8-11 AM

2/26/2020

Host: Baltimore Bird Club and Audubon. For directions or to borrow binoculars, contact
Patterson Park Audubon Center at 410-558-2473 or baltimore@audubon.org. Description:
Birding at Patterson Park Join Audubon to explore this urban oasis in Southeast Baltimore. With more than 205 species
on record, the park is full of surprises. Meet at the fountain, near intersection of East Lombard
St and Patterson Park Ave.

8 — 9:30 AM

Host: Harford Bird Club. Leader Dave Webb (410-939-3537; porzana@comcast.net).
Description: Visit this Harford County gem with its commanding view of the bay and explore
Birding at Swan Harbor Farm Park the three impoundments, wooded trails and open fields. The farm, with its varied habitat,
has developed into a fine location for a broad spectrum of birdlife, including waterfowl, marsh
specialties, raptors and sparrows. Meet at the Agricultural Education Center parking lot.

8 AM —- 12 PM

2/29/2020

Host: Talbot Bird Club Leader Jeff Effinger, 410-443-5016 or jkeffinger55@gmail.com.
Description: Explore nearby landings in search of waterfowl, loons, grebes, and gulls. Explore
nearby landings in search of waterfowl, loons, grebes, and gulls. Depart Easton Acme at 6:30

am.

6:30 AM — 12 || Birding Western Talbot Landings and
Change Point Farm

3/1/2020

Host: Kent County Bird Club. If you have questions, please contact leaders Walter Ellison and

Nancy Martin, 410-778-9568, e-mail: borealdee@gmail.com. Description: Wintering waterfowl,

raptors (notably eagles), White-crowned and other sparrows. Half day, bring snacks. Meet at 8
AM at the “Dollar General” parking lot (off Philosopher’s Terrace) in Chestertown.

8 AM—- 12 PM

Birding at Chesapeake Farms

3/1/2020

21
mdbirds.org

For more details about an event listed in the MOS Calendar, please visit: https://mdbirds.org/calendar/.

BIRDING

Host: Howard County Bird Club. Leaders Richard and Renee Peters, richard@rrrrpeters.
8 AM—11 AM Birding at Centennial Park org. Description: Easy walking around the lake on paved path. Facilities available. Waterfowl
expected early migrant passerines possible. Handicap accessible. Meet at west end parking
lot.

Woodcock Watch Host: Frederick Bird Club Leader David Smith (443-995-4108). Description: Sign up for the
email list to be notified of the actual date (weather-dependent). Evening outing. Location TBD.

Host: Montgomery Bird Club For more info call leader Jim Green, 301-742-0036, Description:
Joint trip with ANS. We'll be checking out the Potomac River, Hughes Hollow and American
4:30-—7 PM Informal Late Afternoon Bird Walk Woodcock display if they are in the vicinity. Bring scope, flashlight and wear “muddy

conditions” footwear. Reservations are not required - all are welcome. Meet promptly at 4:30
pm at the end of Seneca Rd at Riley’s Lock “on the bridge.”

Host: Harford Bird Club. Leaders Tom Gibson (410-734-4135 or gibsonlld@aol.com) and Jane
Scocca (410-272-8870 or jane@scocca.org). Description: Meet at the I-95/155 Park and Ride.
6 PM-—8 PM Timberdoodle Hunt From there the guides will lead this evening trip to a well-known site for Woodcocks, one of

our most interesting and elusive birds. Hopefully you will see the fascinating Woodcock sky
dance mating display as well as hear their distinctive call notes.

Host: Talbot Bird Club Leader Paul Thut, 410-745-6657 or pfthut@gmail.com. Description: The
RING Stine aston Wastewater nearby WWTP is an ideal place for waterfowl, gulls, raptors and land birds. We may also hear
7 AM -12 PM g about plans to restore certain areas of the WWTP for Black Rail habitat. Breakfast: Hosted

ireatmentalant by Fred and Bettye Maki, 248-225-0724 or bjmaki04@gmail.com, 7448 Jeffrey’s Way, Easton.
Depart Easton Acme at 7 am.

Host: Howard County Bird Club. Leaders Richard and Renee Peters, richard@rrrrpeters.
8—11 AM Birding at Centennial Park org. Description: Easy walking around the lake on paved path. Facilities available. Waterfowl
expected early migrant passerines possible. Handicap accessible. Meet at west end parking
lot.

Host: Talbot Bird Club Leader Ron Ketter, 707-373-5532 or rgketter@gmail.com. Description:

This evening trip focuses on the flight of the Timberdoodle, aka the American Woodcock.
Pickering Creek: Woodcock Search {We'll assemble before sunset in hopes of hearing and seeing woodcocks (and perhaps an owl
or two) as they do their magic dances as the light fades from the sky. Meet at Pickering Creek

3/8/2020 3/8/2020 3/8/2020 3/4/2020 3/4/2020 3/1/2020 || 3/1/2020

at 6 pm.

6-8 PM
7_9PM Easton YMCA Multipurpose Room, 202 || Host: Talbot Bird Club Description: Our guest speaker will be Brian Prendergast talking on “Protec-
Peachblossom Rd tion from Insect-borne Diseases and West Nile Virus Effects on Birds and People”.

7_9PM College Park Airport Operations Build- |} Host: Patuxent Bird Club/PGAS. Description: “Duck Stamp History and Importance to Conservation”
ing, 2nd floor presented by Suzanne Fellows.

' A eee! Host: Allegany/Garrett Bird Club. Contact Raquel Ketterman at raquelketterman@verizon.net or 301-
iy Fike Ppostputa tats Uavg Room TED 268-6746. Katie Fallon will speak on her book "Vulture - The Private Life of an Unloved Bird”

7-9PM Robinson Nature Center Host: Howard County Bird Club. Description: Bonnie Ott will speak on Habitat Birdiing.

1 -2PM Blue Heron Genter Guiet Waters Park Host: Anne Arundel Bird Club. Contact Pamela Kellett, 443-534-6938 or coordinator@marylandbirds.
org. Description: “Gardening for Birds” with Virgil Davis.
730-9 PM Potomac Presbyterian Church Host: Montgomery Bird Club. Description: David Curson on Audubon MD-DC's Salt Marsh and
Coastal Resilience Work.

Questions? Contact the calendar editor: calendar@mdbirds.org

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fl 7:30-9 PM Caroline County Public. Library Host: Caroline Bird Club. ise es nee ee ee Involved with Maryland and DC

Host: Baltimore Bird Club. For information contact Kevin Graff at keyweststyle2001@gmail.com,
1 _4PM Cylburn Arboretum, Vollmer Center or Mark Linardi at 443-834-8413. Descupaon: 75th SUTIVCESAEY Covered Dish Dinner. Our main
speaker is Hank Kaestner, presenting “The Jewels of Ecuador.” To reserve a place and tell us what you

2/20/2020

2/23/20

will bring, please use the website PerfectPotluck.com.

Host: Tri-county Bird Club. Contact Ellen Lawler, 410-982-8695 or emlawler534@comcast.net.
7 - 9:30 PM MAC Education Center Description: “Acoustic Monitoring of Nassawango Creek Preserve-Implications for Management and
Birding Hotspots” presented by Gabe Cahalan, Conservation Steward, The Nature Conservancy.
7_-9PM Mita cena Navies Canter Host: Washington County Bird Club. Call 301-797-8454 for further information. Description: film
Big Birds Can't Fly”.
Host: Carroll County Bird Club. Contact CJ McAuliffe at cjhome@wildblue.net. Description: “Rise
7-10PM Carroll Nonprofit Center and Fall of Northern Goshawks in the Central Appalachians: Is there reason for conservation con-
cern?” by David Brinker.
Hy 7-9PM Homewood at Crumland Farms. Host: Frederick Bird Club. Description: Gail MacKiernan will tell us about birding in Madagascar.
| 7-9PM Churchville Presbyterian Church Host: Harford Bird Club. Description: Program TBA.

Host: Talbot Bird Club. Contact Bettye Maki, 248-225-0724 or bimaki04@gmail.com. Description:
10 AM - 12 PM E P hurch
A] ooscom ast SOY aC aute MOS Board Meeting. Volunteer contributions for brunch foods are requested.

Easton YMCA Multipurpose Room, 202 Host: Talbot Bird Club. Description: Dr. Wayne Bell and Ron Ketter will speak on “30% Fewer Birds
Peachblossom Rd in North America: What does that Mean for Talbot County and the Eastern Shore?”

Host: Allegany/Garrett Bird Club. Contact Raquel Ketterman at raquelketterman@verizon.net or 301-
7 - 8:30 PM Frostburg State University, Room TBD}! 268-6746. Description: Clair Nemes, will present the results of her research on "Population Ecology of
Bird and Free Roaming Domestic Cats".

Yet Another Adventure?

3/6/2020 || 3/5/2020 3/4/2020 | 2/25/2020 |} 2/24/2020

3/7/2020

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Northern Minnesota was the place to be in January with the MOS-sponsored trip consisting
of Scott Young and Evelyn Ralston (Montgomery), David Sandler (Howard), Ken Drier and
Maryanne Dolan (Cecil) and Ben Glick (a stray from Florida) under the able tutelage of Josh
Engel, Red Hill Birding. Josh got us great views of some 42 species overall. Notables were
Northern Goshawk; Ruffed, Spruce, and Sharp-tailed Grouse; Black-backed and Three-toed
woodpeckers; Boreal Chicadee; and Evening Grosbeak. The trip culminated with a 5-owl day
(Great Gray, Boreal, Snowy, Northern Hawk Owl, and Barred). High fives all around! Northern
Minnesota in winter. A great place to bird.

Have you joined an MOS-sponsored trip? They are great fun. Yucatan is scheduled for
November of 2020, while Trinidad and the Leatherback turtle nesting sites are again on the
agenda for April 2021. Panama is also being set for the spring of 2021 and maybe Montana for
June of 2021. Contact Maryanne Dolan (Maryanne.dolan@gmail.com) for details.

For more details about an event listed in the MOS Calendar, please visit: https://mdbirds.org/calendar/.

THE MARYLAND YELLOWTHROAT FEBRUARY 2020

POSTMASTER: TIME-DATED MATERIAL—PLEASE EXPEDITE
MARYLAND ORNITHOLOGICAL

SOCIETY, INC. Nonproft Org.
4915 Greenspring Avenue U.S. POSTAGE

Baltimore, MD 21209 PAID
Frederick, MD
Permit No. 625

New Rover BIRDING
& NATURE FESTIVAL

APRIL 27 - May 2, 2020

WWW. BIRDING WV.COM