DC Audubon Blog Has Moved

You can now find the latest information about DC Audubon events and conservation news at http://www.dcaudubon.org/blog.

Please join us there and change your bookmarks.

-John

Upcoming Field Trip to Rock Creek Park

DC Audubon field trip announcement: mark your calendars.

Next Sunday, Sept. 17, join DC Audubon's annual field trip to Rock Creek Park in search of Fall migrants. We'll be looking for those confusing Fall warblers, of course, but not neglecting any others. Meet by the Rock Creek Nature Center at 7 A.M. (5200 Glover Rd., N.W., about 1/4 mile south of the intersection of Glover and Military Roads). The Ridge and Maintenance Yard areas will get most of our attention, but we may visit others (within walking distance from the Center) at the leader's discretion. We should finish up by 11. Besides the trusty binocs & field guide, I recommend insect repellant, sunscreen, and waterproof footwear (not a bad idea to bring water & snacks as well).

Please RSVP to the leader, Paul DeAnna by telephone in the evenings after 6pm (202) 544-2680. Please include a phone number where you can be reached the evening before the trip, just in case a weather postponement becomes necessary. If you can offer a ride to a non-driving birder in your neighborhood, please let me know the general area you're coming from. I'll do what I can to put those offering rides in touch with those needing them. Detailed driving directions are available on the Park's website.

Rock Creek is also accessible by public transportation. Take the E2 bus to the intersection of Miltary Road and Glover Road (a.k.a. Oregon Ave), NW. From there follow the path at the southeast corner of the intersection to the Nature Center.

An announcement of this field trip is also posted on our website.

Trip Report: Delaware Marshes

Black Skimmer / Photo via NaturePicsOnline

Four Audubon members set out from Washington on August 12 to look for late summer birds. The day was perfect for birding: high around 80, clear, and breezy. We set our sights on Bombay Hook National Wildlife Refuge. This refuge, which sits at the edge of Delaware Bay, consists of close to 16,000 acres of tidal salt marsh, together with several freshwater impoundments and upland hardwood forest. The diversity of habitats makes it possible to find many species of birds, especially during migration. Bombay Hook is a fine place to bird in any season, but is at its best during spring and fall migration. For a Washington-based birder, the attraction of this refuge is the ability to see many species of shorebirds that are hard to find at inland locations.

Read More...

Field Trip This Saturday

Join DC Audubon on Saturday, August 12, for its annual late summer field trip to Bombay Hook National Wildlife Refuge and the Delaware Marshes. During this trip we hope to see herons, shorebirds, and terns as they end their breeding season and begin their journey south. In addition, the marshes and woods of the refuge boast many resident species. One can see purple martins and blue grosbeaks near the visitor center, and other Eastern Shore specialties like seaside sparrow and marsh wren breed along the boardwalk trail. On our May field trip this year, we saw over 100 species in and around Bombay Hook. We may not reach that total on this trip, but we should see many beautiful and interesting birds during our trip through the refuge.

For a more recent account of Bombay Hook by a local birder, see here.

For directions and RSVP information, see our webpage. (It is important that you contact the trip leader as soon as possible if you intend to come.)

Bombay Hook Trip Report Online

Eighteen enthusiastic participants joined trip leader Dhananjaya Katju for the DC Audubon Society's annual May field trip to Bombay Hook. This National Wildlife Refuge is one of the best birding spots within a day trip length drive from Washington, D.C. It combines woods, fields in various stages of succession, fresh water impoundments, tidal salt water marshes, and mudflats. The diversity and quality of habitats at Bombay Hook attracts a great diversity of birds. ... [read more]

Ruddy Turnstone / Photo by Peter Vankevich

If you missed DC Audubon's May field trip to Bombay Hook, you have another shot to watch shorebird migration with us. Watch our webpage for details on our upcoming field trip to the Delaware Marshes.

Waterlily Festival This Saturday

This Saturday, July 15, Kenilworth Aquatic Gardens is hosting its annual Waterlily and Founders Day.

Kenilworth Park and Aquatic Gardens

Annual Waterlily Festival

Saturday, July 15, 11:00 am to 2:00 pm

Park is open from 7:00 am to 4:00 pm 1550

Anacostia Avenue, NE (Anacostia Avenue and Douglas Street. NE)

Blooming lilies and lotuses

Storytelling and puppet show

Face painting

Gardening workshops

Pond and greenhouse tours

DC Audubon will be there and lead a bird walk in the gardens. Come meet some of our board members and field trip leaders. Look for our table in the picnic area near the visitors center. There is no need to RSVP for this bird walk; just meet up at our table at about noon.

This is a wonderful time of year to visit the Aquatic Gardens, since most waterlilies and lotuses will be at their peak. In addition to the flowers, the gardens attract a diverse array of breeding and migrant birds. The marsh and river trail offer additional birding opportunities.

Volunteer birders needed at Manassas!

Interested in being a volunteer birder for Manassas?!?!

Please contact Carolyn Williams at cwilliae@gmu.edu or 703.273.1961.

I coordinate the Northern Virginia Bird Survey (NVBS), The Audubon Society of Northern Virginia's breeding bird point-count now in its 13th year. (Until fairly recently ASNV was called the Fairfax Audubon Society.) This year we lost the services of three of our long-time master birders (team leaders) for Manassas National Battlefield Park (two moved from the area and another was overbooked). I am looking for several master birders (defined as one who can identify by sight or sound all the bird species one would expect to encounter in N. Va. during June) to replace them. Our count protocol is a simple one, a one-time, five-minute count at each 250-meter (about 0.15 mile) grid point. The count is done between dawn and about 8:30 a.m. in June.* Master birders can survey alone or with one or more assistants, but only the master birder identifies the birds to be logged in. Information collected includes species, number of individuals, evidence of breeding activity (using codes), date and time of the count, sky and weather conditions (using codes). Flyovers are indicated. Survey instructions, detailed field maps, and data sheets will be provided. About sixty points are involved, and of these twenty-nine have been GPSed. You can survey as many of the points as you like. I am pushing the GPSed points as they have been surveyed the longest. They are located in the north central part of the park.
*Under the circumstances, I think we can extend the deadline to at least July 7.
For further information contact Carolyn Williams at cwilliae@gmu.edu or 703.273.1961.
Thanks.
Carolyn

DC Audubon BIRDATHON 2006

Audubon Society of the District of Columbia
BIRDATHON 2006
May 13, 2006


Celebrate the diversity of resident and migratory bird species on International Migratory Bird Day (http://www.birdday.org/) by participating in a fund-raising Birdathon to benefit the Audubon Society of the District of Columbia.

The Birdathon counting is between 5:00 a.m. through midnight. Teams will count American Bird Association (ABA) recognized species of birds within the terrestrial and nautical boundaries of the District of Columbia. Birds seen on the boundary lines with MD and VA will count.

Rules are the same as the 2005 ABA Big Day Rules with the exception of the time of the Birdathon and each bird species must be seen or heard by 2/3 of the team members. If you are a team of only two members, you both must identify the bird.

To refer to the additional rules visit here:
http://www.americanbirding.org/bigday/2005bigdayform.pdf

All teams must seek pledges for donations to the Audubon Society of the District of Columbia. Non-residents of DC may participate. Non-members of the Audubon Society of the District of Columbia may participate. Participants are recognized when their lists are submitted no later than May 20. There is no entry fee. Please create a team name and enter it with your submission. We are operating on the honor system for sightings, but the Society has the right to question and challenge unusual sightings.

Typically, ask for a pledge per bird seen or heard and tell your donors how many species you hope to target.

Winners – everyone that cares about bird conservation is a winner, but the team with the most sightings will be recognized on the Audubon Society of the District of Columbia’s Web site. Please include a team picture and your names with your submission so that you may bask in the glory of your victory.

Make checks payable to the Audubon Society of the District of Columbia.
Submit checks, team information and final counts using the ABA form to the following:

Send checks to Audubon Society of the District of Columbia, c/o Denise Ryan, Treasurer
5726 Lockwood Rd, Cheverly, MD 20785
Participation or rules questions to Denise Ryan at savetheocean@yahoo.com

Trip Report: Cockpit Point Road

Sunday, April 30th, was the inaugural DCA trip to southeastern Fairfax County to Cockpit Point Road. Seventeen hardy birders turned up and the trip was successful although there were logistical snafus and ornithological disappointments. While trying to cut down the unneccessary number of cars the group split. Those who came with me and returned to the embarking spot at the entrance to Cockpit and Possum Point stopped at the power station on the ridge and were treated to great looks at Summer Tanager and Prarie Warbler with a Baltimore Oriole flying into the same tree for some coloration diversity. Orchard Orioles also flitted around to make their presence known. Below in the reservoir, several Bald Eagles held the point with some scurrying around by Spotted Sandpipers and Killdeer below. In the pines Yellow-rumped Warblers abounded and then a Yellow-throated Warbler gave an upclose demonstation of his song, breeding colors, and ownership of his section of trees. House Finches, Goldfinches, Song and Field Sparrows were singing along the shrubs by the power plant and an Osprey carried nesting materials to his perch amidst the power lines.... Read more

Field Trip to Hughes Hollow

We had a bright, clear day, if a chilly one, for DC Audubon’s annual “First day of Spring (one day early)” field trip to Hughes Hollow on Sunday, March 19. Fourteen participants met leader Paul DeAnna to visit this birdy wetland, located just off the western end of River Road in Montgomery County. Part of the larger McKee-Beshers Wildlife Management Area, which extends for several miles between the Potomac River and River Road, Hughes Hollow is a complex mosaic of open water, swamp, woods, hedgerows and open fields in various stages of succession. Such varied habitat offers fine birding in any month of the year, but I think the area really comes into its own in early Spring, when breeding birds and early migrants are just starting to drop in, but before most wintering species have returned North....

Read More

Upcoming Eagle Festival at Blackwater

This Saturday, March 11, Blackwater National Wildlife Refuge will host its Sixth Annual Eagle Festival.
The free event will include bird walks, lectures, and demonstrations
with live captive raptors. There will also be several hands-on
workshops and activities for kids. To reach the refuge, follow the directions here.

The Friends of Blackwater have set up webcams at the nests of an osprey and a bald eagles.

Blackwater is the site of DC Audubon's annual November fieldtrip. You can read about our last trip there at our website.

Dyke Marsh Film: Capital Wetlands In Crisis

The film, On the Edge: The Potomac River's Dyke Marsh has its World Premiere at the DC Environmentalist Film Festival. Dyke Marsh is one of the largest naturally-occurring freshwater tidal marshes in the national park system. A 380-acre wetland, Dyke Marsh is a remnant of the extensive marshes that once lined the river but have been lost to human activity. Congress preserved it in 1959, saying that here, wildlife values should be “paramount.” Naturalist Louis Halle wrote in the 1940s that Dyke Marsh was “the nearest thing to primeval wilderness in the immediate vicinity of the city [Washington].”

Like most vanishing tidal marshlands from Maine to Louisiana, it is disappearing as the result of a myriad of human abuses. As a safety buffer against hurricanes and floods, an ancient hatchery for bay and ocean fish and a focal point for migrating birds, Dyke Marsh affects all of our lives. This film provides a glimpse into the rich diversity of flora and fauna supported by the marsh and contrasts its health today to its condition in the past. The return of the Bald Eagle and the Osprey to the marsh is contrasted with the loss of habitat for most other resident species. Incorporating some of the marsh's historical lore, On the Edge, enlivened by an original soundtrack with Didgeridoo and rainforest percussion instruments, is a primal call to revive the diversity of life that provides sustenance and safety to the species that is destroying the country's tidal marshes–human beings.

The John F. Kennedy Center for the Performing Arts
The Atrium, Terrace Level, New Hampshire Ave. at Rock Creek Pkwy.
March 21 at 7:00 p. m
FREE

Old Town Theater
815 King Street, Alexandria
March 28, at 7:30 p.m.

Friends of Dyke Marsh is a volunteer group dedicated to preserving and enhancing Dyke Marsh, the last enduring substantial freshwater tidal marsh in the Washington, D.C. capital area, located on the Potomac River just south of Alexandria, Virginia. Dyke Marsh is administered by the National Park Service. Join Friends of Dyke Marsh.

Field Trip To Hughes Hollow

Hughes Hollow
March 19, 2006
RSVP, contact trip leader Paul DeAnna

DC Audubon will tour this noted birding hot spot, part of the McKee-Beshers Wildlife Management Area, located in Montgomery County Maryland. This is a mosaic of diverse wetland habitats interspersed with mature deciduous forest, hedgerows, and open fields in various stages of transition. The area is bordered on the north by deep marsh and open water in three impoundments covering about 60 acres, and on the south by the Potomac River and adjacent C&O Canal. Migrating waterfowl should be present. Red-headed woodpeckers are among the resident birds. We have timed the trip in hopes of witnessing the return of the tree swallows.

DIRECTIONS (Please consult a map since odometer readings can vary): From the Capital Beltway (495) take exit 39 for River Rd. (MD 190) 3.3 miles north to the 2nd traffic light in Potomac (intersection with Falls Rd.). Continue on River Rd. 7.9 miles to the T-junction with Rt. 112 (Seneca Rd.). Follow River Rd. to the left at this stop sign for another 4.4 miles to the intersection with Hughes Rd., turn left, and drive about 200 yards to the first parking area on the right, where a gated road divides the large impoundments.

Root For The Home Teams

It is a local rivalry in the making. Two Washington teams head to the World Series of Birding, but only one will come out on top.

The DC Audubon Society is sending their new team "City Flickers" to go up against the more seasoned team of ornithologists from the Smithsonian Institution called "The Bushnell-Smithsonian Woodpeckers." Bushnell. Sponsorship. Let's root for the new kid on the block.

May 13th is the 23rd annual World Series of Birding in Cape May, New Jersey. It is a 24 hour race to see the greatest number of species and some take it very seriously. Like any other modern day sporting event many of the teams have rallied sponsorship, not surprisingly the sponsors tend to be binocular, camera, and lens oriented. Cape May is one of the great birding areas in the U.S. as it is the first/last land point across the Delaware Bay for bird migrating north/last and at World Series in the past the winners have seen over 200 species.

Last year around 1,000 people, comprised of 98 teams including children and teenagers, registered for the event, including the Snow Birds from Canada, a Turkish team and the four-times winning Nikon Team and hit the fields, woods, and beaches of New Jersey.

The ground rules are simple. Teams start anywhere in New Jersey at at 12:01 a.m. Saturday and finish up the following midnight at the Cape May Lighthouse.

Ocean City Field Trip Postponed to Feb. 18th

Due to the snowstorm predicted for Saturday, February 11th, the DC Audubon Society is postponing its annual field trip to Ocean City and the Delaware coast to Saturday, February 18th. Please make note of the changed date if you plan to attend.

Except for the date, the schedule for the trip will remain the same. See our website for more details.

DC Audubon Christmas Bird Count

Thank you to all of the volunteers who gave up their day or weekend to participate in the many Audubon Christmas Bird counts. I hope it was enjoyable and everyone stayed warm.
We had some exciting results in the Rock Creek Park sector of the count this year. In all previous count years the record species total was 47. This year we had a 53 species!

Among some of the more unusual species include an American Turkey seen on the Rock Creek Park golf course, a Merlin also seen on the golf course, Red Breasted Nuthatch, Northern Harrier, Golden-Crowned Kinglet, Ruby-Crowned Kinglet, House Wren, Hermit Thrush, and all three species of resident owls (Eastern Screech, Barred and Great Horned).

We have not had a Great Horned Owl on the count in many years, so that is an exciting addition too. It is a lesson in persistence and patience. Keep trying for those resident species that should be present. You never know when one might turn up.

Good birding and good luck with the rest of the counts!

Denise Ryan

Sunday Field Trip To Rock Creek Park

On Sunday, September 18, join DC Audubon for a trip to Rock Creek Park to search for Fall migrants, including those confusing Fall warblers. We will meet at 7 a.m. in the Nature Center parking lot (the side nearest the Center; please note: the Center itself does not open until 9 a.m.).

If you do not drive, it is possible a ride can be arranged. Drivers willing to offer a ride to a non-driver in their neighborhood should indicate where they will be coming from.

The trip will run to about noon, and we will cover as many of the Park's hot spots we can in that time, including the ridge, the equitation field, the corrals and the maintenance yard. What we see depends on all of those unpredictable elements that make birding the Park so much fun. If you enjoy reading history, an account of last year's trip is online.

A supply of water, snacks, and insect repellant will certainly increase your staying power. I also highly recommend waterproof footwear. You don't know how much morning dew grass can hold until you've been on the ridge at Rock Creek.

The Nature Center is on Glover Road, approximately 1/4 mile South of its intersection with Military Road, in Northwest D.C.

*Detailed directions to the park.
*RSVP here

Owls Rails and Nocturnal Birds of KAG

BIRDS AT KENILWORTH AQUATIC GARDENS
NATIONAL PUBLIC LANDS DAY
September 24, 2005
1550 Anacostia Avenue NE, Washington, DC 202/426-6905
(RAIN or SHINE – severe weather cancels)

Announcing 2 bird watching walks to be followed by a volunteer service in a variety of projects for National Public Lands Day. Projects include litter removal, pruning trees and flowerbeds and removal of invasive and exotic species.

How to participate:

Sign up for a bird walk with Denise Ryan at (202) 454-4590 or denise_ryan@lcv.org:

Saturday, September 24, 2005

6:00 a.m. Owls, Rails and other Nocturnal Critters of KAG – all levels of birders welcome, space limited – meet in the parking lot – RSVP required
Sunrise at 6:58 a.m., low tide at 8:40 a.m.
Bring binoculars, scopes, flashlight, bug spray, drinks and snacks.
We’ll follow the sounds of the night to determine the area of the park to investigate. Bring a willingness to remain very quiet. To follow immediately with a work project – required to participate, bring gardening or work gloves if you own a pair.

8:00 a.m. Birds of KAG – all levels of birders welcome, space unlimited – please RSVP. Meet in the visitors’ center. We’ll look for fall migrants and local birds among the ponds and on the boardwalk on the marsh. Bring binoculars, scopes, hat, sunscreen, bug spray, drinks and snacks. To follow immediately with a work project – required to participate, bring gardening or work gloves if you own a pair.


1550 Anacostia Avenue NE, Washington, DC – 202/426-6905
The nearest Metro stop is Deanwood (on the Orange line)

To get to Kenilworth Aquatic Gardens by Metro…Take the Orange Line to the Deanwood Station. Take the Polk Street exit (to your left) and follow Polk to the pedestrian bridge... Cross over 295 and turn left on to Douglas Street, then proceed 2 blocks to Anacostia Avenue (you’ll see the big brown NPS sign guiding you to the Aquatic Gardens). Turn right on Anacostia Ave and walk 50 yards to the park entrance on your left.

Field Trip To Bombay Hook And Little Creek May 14th

On Saturday May 14, 2005, DC Audubon will take a field trip to Bombay Hook NWR to see the phenomenal migration of shore birds. This trip is a great opportunity to see thousands of sandpipers, plovers and avocets. One birder beautifully referred to this field trip, as “essential to truly enjoy the annual spectacle of migration” and when “birder’s hopes…are renewed every year at this time.”

Directions and tentative spots to visit:
Directions: From the DC area, get on Rte. 50 heading east. Cross the Bay Bridge. Once on the Eastern Shore, take Rte. 301 northeast (this splits off from Rte. 50). Go about 34 miles from this point and turn right on Rte. 300.which runs east through farmland. Go 15 miles to Kenton, Delaware. At the traffic light in Kenton go right on Del. 42, which ends after 9 miles in Leipsic, crossing Rte. 13 en route. (Be very careful in Delaware, there are lots of speed traps in these towns). Go left (north) in Leipsic on Rte. 9 1.5 miles to the Bombay Hook entrance sign and turn right. We will meet at the Visitor's Center.

After Bombay Hook, we will head south to Little Creek and in the town take a left at the Post Office onto Port Mahon Rd. The next stop farther south will be to Pickering Beach which is a few miles south and a left off of Rte. 9 onto Pickering Beach Rd.

If you have a car and can help carpool, please let me know. If you need a ride, please let me know that as well, so I can try to make sure everybody who needs a ride has one. For carpooling, we will meet at the Bread and Chocolate café/bakery on Capitol Hill at the corner of 7th and Pennsylvania Ave SE at 7 am. If you prefer to meet at Bombay Hook, we should be at the Visitor’s Center by 10 am. We will caravan from one place to the next over the course of the day.

Sunscreen and insect repellent will certainly add to your birding pleasure in these marshy areas. Lunch or snacks and plenty of water are a good idea, too.

If you plan to come or need more information call me at 202-277-1365 or e-mail me at mikekaspar@aol.com.

Field Trip To Pennyfield Lock

Photo from birdingamerica.com

Join DC Audubon on Sunday, May 1, for a visit to Pennyfield Lock on the C & O Canal. Meet at the lock parking lot at 7 a.m. Directions are below but please bring a map since odometer readings may vary.

We expect Spring migration to be in full swing by then, and we'll enjoy the song and color of Orioles, Tanagers, Vireos, Warblers, and others. Our walk will start from the lock parking area and proceed slowly up the canal towpath (west) to around milepost 21, the "Seneca breaks," where we'll pause to enjoy the view of the Potomac River. We'll return by the same route. Total walking distance is around 2.5 miles. Bring water and a lunch or snacks if so inclined. Insect repellant and sunscreen highly recommended; the path is level but can be rocky so sturdy footwear is advised. We should be back to our cars by around noon.

If you intend to participate, visit the DC Audubon Site to RSVP

All replies should include a phone number where you can be reached the evening before the trip, should a last-minute weather postponement be necessary. The leader will attempt to put those in need of rides in touch with those willing to offer them. Please indicate in your reply if you would be willing to offer a ride to a birder near you who needs one, and the general vicinity you'll be coming from.

DIRECTIONS: From the Beltway (I-495) take River Road (exit 39) west 3.3 miles to Potomac. From the intersection with Falls Road (2nd traffic light), continue on River Rd. another 5.1 miles to Pennyfield Lock Road on the left. Take this road to the very end, bearing left at the bottom of the hill, and continuing to a small parking lot where a gated road leads to the lock just east.