Date: 4/3/26 4:30 pm From: Andrew Ednie <000006be14ba5998-dmarc-request...> Subject: [de-birds] RBA: Birdline Delaware, April 3rd, 2026
RBA * Delaware * Statewide * April 3, 2026 * DEST 26.04.03
*Birds mentioned Brant Snow Goose Ross’s Goose Mute Swan Blue-winged Teal American Wigeon EURASIAN GREEN-WINGED “COMMON” TEAL Redhead Ring-necked Duck Lesser Scaup Black Scoter Surf Scoter White-winged Scoter COMMON EIDER Long-tailed Duck Common Merganser Hooded Merganser Red-breasted Merganser Ruddy Duck Wild Turkey Ruby-throated Hummingbird Sora Clapper Rail American Coot Sandhill Crane American Oystercatcher Black-necked Stilt American Avocet Black-bellied Plover Piping Plover Greater Yellowlegs Willet Lesser Yellowlegs Short-billed Dowitcher Long-billed Dowitcher Wilson’s Snipe Least Sandpiper Pectoral Sandpiper Caspian Tern Royal Tern Black Skimmer Black-headed Gull Bonaparte’s Gull Iceland Gull Glaucous Gull Pied-billed Grebe Horned Grebe Brown Pelican Northern Gannet Great Cormorant White Ibis Glossy Ibis Black-crowned Night Heron Yellow-crowned Night heron Snowy Egret Tricolored Heron Little Blue Heron Western Cattle Egret Great Egret Barn Owl Red-headed Woodpecker Peregrine Falcon Common Raven Red-breasted Nuthatch Brown-headed Nuthatch Northern House Wren Marsh Wren Ruby-crowned Kinglet Golden-crowned Kinglet Blue-gray Gnatcatcher Pine Siskin Vesper Sparrow Seaside Sparrow White-crowned Sparrow Rusty Blackbird Louisiana Waterthrush Orange-crowned Warbler Common Yellowthroat Pine Warbler Palm Warbler Yellow-throated Warbler
Hotline: Birdline Delaware Date: April 3, 2026 To Report: Andy Ednie 302-792-9591 (VOICE) Compiler: Andy Ednie (<ednieap...>) Coverage: Delaware, Delmarva Peninsula, nearby Delaware Valley, Southern New Jersey, Maryland
For Friday, April 3rd this is Birdline Delaware from the Delaware Museum of Nature and Science in Greenville. Happy Easter weekend, Passover and Full Moon to everybody! The Birdline is sponsored by the Delaware Ornithological Society (DOS). Statements made on the Birdline do not necessarily reflect the views of the sponsors. This is Andy Ednie, glad to be with you. The unofficial Delaware Annual List increased to 216 species this week. New additions included WESTERN CATTLE EGRET, GLOSSY IBIS, BLACK-NECKED STILT, PECTORAL SANDPIPER, SHORT-BILLED DOWITCHER, RUBY-THROATED HUMMINGBIRD, and LOUISIANA WATERTHRUSH.
This year, the first LOUISIANA WATERTHRUSH was found at the Jester Tract, Redden State Forest on Saturday. Since the initial sighting, WATERTHRUSH were found at Trap Pond State Park, Killen’s Pond State Park, Finis Pool in Bombay Hook National Wildlife Refuge, Wedgewood Road at White Clay Creek State Park, and Middle Run Natural Area near Newark. Other neotropical migrants arriving in greater numbers included NORTHERN HOUSE WREN, BLUE-GRAY GNATCATCHERS, both RUBY and GOLDEN-CROWNED KINGLETS plus PINE, PALM and YELLOW-THROATED WARBLERS.
The first WESTERN CATTLE EGRET was found along Dutch Neck Road near Port Penn. LITTLE BLUE HERON, SNOWY EGRET, CASPIAN TERN, and WILSON’S SNIPE was seen at Thousand Acre Marsh. SANDHILL CRANE, BLUE-WINGED TEAL and PIED-BILLED GREBE were seen at the Ashton Tract in Augustine Wildlife Area. AMERICAN COOT and MARSH WREN were found at the Port Penn impoundments. A late lingering REDHEAD, with HOODED MERGANSER, RING-NECKED DUCK and LESSER SCAUP were at Canal Pond off Cox Neck Road.
COMMON RAVENS are again nesting on the University of Delaware water tower at the Star Campus. Young in the nest was confirmed this week. The PEREGRINE FALCONS that are nesting on the Brandywine Building in downtown Wilmington are now incubating 4 eggs. You can watch the PEREGRINES on nest on the Falcon cam at DOSBirds.com.
The first BLACK-NECKED STILT of the year was seen at Bear Swamp at Bombay Hook National Wildlife Refuge Other shorebirds seen included AMERICAN AVOCET, BLACK-BELLIED PLOVER, GREATER and LESSER YELLOWLEGS, WILLET, SHORT-BILLED DOWITCHER, WILSON’S SNIPE and LEAST SANDPIPER. The previously reported EURASIAN GREEN-WINGED “COMMON” TEAL continues at Bear Swamp along with SANDHILL CRANES, SNOWY EGRET, BLACK-CROWNED NIGHT HERON, and a single early GLOSSY IBIS. Waterfowl reported included MUTE SWAN, SNOW GOOSE, RING-NECKED DUCK, LESSER SCAUP, RUDDY DUCK and HOODED MERGANSER. A VESPER SPARROW was photographed along the Raymond Pool loop. Both CLAPPER RAIL and SORA were reported in the refuge this week. RUSTY BLACKBIRDS were seen at Finis Pool. A WHITE-CROWNED SPARROW was reported by the new visitor center and a SEASIDE SPARROW was seen at the Leipsic River Bridge off Route 9 today.
A GLAUCOUS GULL was reported flying over the marsh at the main section of Little Creek Wildlife Area. YELLOW-THROATED WARBLER was seen along the central tower road and at the powerline cut off the Pickering Beach Road. There was LESSER SCAUP, AMERICAN WIGEON, COMMON MERGANSER and a big raft of 450 AMERICAN COOTS at the Mahon Impoundment in Little Creek Wildlife Area. A BARN OWL was flushed at Woodland Beach Wildlife Area. A late PINE SISKIN was seen at a feeder in Cheswold. A lingering ORANGE-CROWNED WARBLER was coming to a feeder near Milford.
BLACK-NECKED STILT, AMERICAN AVOCET, WILLET, LONG-BILLED DOWITCHER, PECTORAL SANDPIPER, FORSTER’S TERN and BLACK SKIMMER were seen at the Dike Trail in Prime Hook National Wildlife Refuge. SHORT-BILLED DOWITCHER was photographed off the Prime Hook Beach Road. A flock of SNOW GEESE at Fowlers Beach included 2 ROSS’S GEESE. WILD TURKEY and PECTORAL SANDPIPER was seen at Oyster Rocks Road.
A flock of 118 WHITE IBIS, plus GLOSSY IBIS, SNOWY EGRET and TRICOLORED HERON was seen flying past Herring Point in Cape Henlopen State Park. ROYAL TERN and BROWN PELICAN were seen flying offshore. PIPING PLOVER, AMERICAN OYSTERCATCHER, and ICELAND GULL were seen at Cape Henlopen Point. COMMON YELLOWTHROAT, RED-BREASTED and BROWN-HEADED NUTHATCHES were seen at the Seaside Nature Center. An immature BLACK-HEADED GULL with BONAPARTE’S GULL and a high count of 108 LESSER BLACK-BACKED GULLS along with PECTORAL and LEAST SANDPIPER were seen at Gordon’s Pond.
BROWN PELICAN and WHITE-WINGED SCOTER were seen at Rehoboth Beach. The previously reported COMMON EIDERS were at the Indian River Inlet plus BRANT, LONG-TAILED DUCK, SURF and BLACK SCOTER, RED-BREASTED MERGANSER, HORNED GREBE and GREAT CORMORANT. BRANT, SNOWY EGRET, and WHITE IBIS were seen at Burton’s Island in Delaware Seashore State Park. HOODED MERGANSER were seen at South Bethany Beach. A YELLOW-CROWNED NIGHT HERON was reported near Massey’s Landing. The first of the year RUBY-THROATED HUMMINGBIRD was a male reported coming to a feeder at Long Neck. RED-HEADED WOODPECKER was reported from Redden State Forest.
Thanks to all the people that make the Birdline possible, including Tom Dougherty, Hank Davis, Megan Kasprzak, Shireen Gonzaga, Les Dillard, Ed Patten, Aaron Reb, Bodo Stern, Shannon Kane, Walt Blackwell, Andy Jenkins, Will Krohn, Sharon Dounce, Rod Murray, Chris Rankin, Kent Raymond, Carolyn Holland, Mary Braun, Sue Gruver, Rob Blye, Greg Gough, Phil Misseldine, Richard Julian, Steve McInnis, Randy Vickers, Andrew Albright, Bruce Hoover, Natalie Cavalieri, Ellen and Jake Jacobson, Kevin Bronson, John Carter, Chris and Karen Bennett, Melissa Lafferty, Declan and Amy O’Neil, Jim and Amy White, Joe Sebastiani, Frank Rohrbacher, John and Andy Dunn, Wendy Caserio, Joe Francis, Mike Moore, Bruce Peterjohn, and Joe Swertinski. Special thanks to Joe Tricarico for list distribution to DOS members. Birdline needs your sightings. Please call your reports into 302-463-0113 or email <ednieap...> Until next week, this is Andy Ednie wishing you good birding!
