Date: 4/27/24 4:37 am From: Andrew Ednie <000006be14ba5998-dmarc-request...> Subject: [de-birds] RBA: Birdline Delaware, April 26th, 2024 (Revised)
My apology, forgot to send this out in plain text.
* Delaware * Statewide * April 26, 2024 * DEST 2024.04.26
*Birds mentioned BLACK-BELLIED WHISTLING DUCK Brant Snow Goose Black Swan Mute Swan Wood Duck Blue-winged Teal American Wigeon Gadwall Lesser Scaup Surf Scoter White-winged Scoter Black Scoter Long-tailed Duck Bufflehead Hooded Merganser Common Merganser Red-breasted Merganser Ruddy Duck Pied-billed Grebe Horned Grebe EARED GREBE Eastern Whippoorwill Chuck’s-will-Widow Yellow-billed Cuckoo Sora Virginia Rail King Rail YELLOW RAIL Common Gallinule American Coot Sandhill Crane American Oystercatcher Black-necked Stilt American Avocet Black-bellied Plover American Golden Plover Semipalmated Plover Piping Plover Whimbrel Ruddy Turnstone Spotted Sandpiper Solitary Sandpiper Willet Short-billed Dowitcher Long-billed Dowitcher Red Knot Semipalmated Sandpiper Pectoral Sandpiper Stilt Sandpiper Purple Sandpiper Wilson’s Snipe Wilson’ Phalarope Bonaparte’s Gull Lesser Black-backed Gull Least tern Caspian Tern Common Tern Royal Tern Common Loon Red-throated Loon Northern Gannet Brown Pelican American Bittern Least Bittern Great Egret Snowy Egret Little Blue Heron Tricolored Heron Cattle Egret Green Heron Yellow-crowned Night Heron Black-crowned Night Heron White Ibis Glossy ibis Osprey Bald Eagle Broad-winged Hawk Barred Owl Red-headed Woodpecker American Kestrel Merlin Peregrine Falcon Great Crested Flycatcher Common Raven Blue-headed Vireo Warbling Vireo Red-breasted Nuthatch Brown-headed Nuthatch SEDGE WREN Wood Thrush Pine Siskin Vesper Sparrow Grasshopper Sparrow White-crowned Sparrow Eastern Meadowlark Rusty Blackbird Baltimore Oriole Orchard Oriole Worm-eating Warbler Hooded Warbler Prothonotary Warbler American Redstart Black and White Warbler Blue-winged Warbler Nashville Warber Magnolia Warbler Yellow Warbler Yellow-throated Warbler Palm Warbler Pine Warbler Prairie Warbler Black-throated Blue Warbler Summer Tanager Scarlet Tanager Indigo Bunting Rose-breasted grosbeak Blue Grosbeak EVENNG GROSBEAK
Hotline: Birdline Delaware Date: April 26, 2024 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 19th, this is Birdline Delaware from the Delaware Museum of Nature and Science in Greenville. The Birdline is the rare bird alert for The First State sponsored by the Delaware Ornithological Society. Opinions expressed do not necessarily reflect the views of our sponsors. The unofficial Delaware State Year List increased to 271 species this week with 15 new additions. New birds this week included SEMIPALMATED, SPOTTED and SOLITARY SANDPIPERS, SUMMER TANAGER, GRASSHOPPER SPARROW, ROSE-BREASTED GROSBEAK and more! Please be aware that this is Race Weekend at Dover Downs Racetrack, expect extra traffic and possible delays.
Migrants arriving included GREAT CRESTED FLYCATCHER, BLUE-HEADED and WARBLING VIREO, WOOD THRUSH, NORTHERN PARULA, plus BLUE-WINGED, YELLOW, BLACK AND WHITE, PRIARIE, PALM, and YELLOW-THROATED WARBLERS. The first NASHVILLE WARBLERS were reported at First State National Historical Park off Ramsey Road and the Jester Tract in Redden State Forest. A HOODED WARBLER was seen at the Headquarters Tract in Redden State Forest. The first AMERICAN REDSTART was reported in Georgetown. PROTHONOTARY WARBLER was reported at Abbott’s Mill Nature Center in Milford, Bombay Hook, Killen’s Pond State Park, and the Naudain Tract in Blackbird State Forest. WORM-EATING WARBLER was reported the Oak Hill Tract of Blackbird. An early MAGNOLIA WARBLER was reported on Wednesday at Gordon’s Pond State Park. An early BLACK-THROATED BLUE WARBLER was heard at White Clay Creek State Park.
New this week was a YELLOW RAIL calling Saturday night at Bennett’s Pier Road. This bird was heard calling after dark intermittently all week. The YELLOW RAIL was heard just past the ditch on the south side of the road. SORA, KING and VIRGINIA RAIL were found at Big Stone Beach Road along with LEAST and AMERICAN BITTERN, EASTERN WHIPPOORWILL and CHUCKS-WILL-WIDOW. The previously reported SEDGE WREN continues to be seen at the little wooden bridge at Big Stone, in Milford Neck Wildlife Area.
SORA was also found along the Pickering Beach Road, Port Mahon impoundments of Little Creek Wildlife Area, Augustine Creek near Port Penn, and at Thousand Acre Marsh along Dutch Neck Road. KING RAIL was at Dragon Run along Cox Neck Road in Delaware City and at Prime Hook National Wildlife Refuge. The first COMMON GALLINULE of the year was seen at Turkles Pond in Prime Hook and photographed at the Port Penn impoundments in Augustine Wildlife Refuge. A surprising WHIPPOORWILL was heard calling at the Peterson Urban Wildlife Refuge on Sunday evening. CHUCK’S-WILL WIDOW was also heard at Cape Henlopen State Park and Angola Neck near Rehoboth Beach.
The previously reported breeding plumage EARED GREBE was last reported on Monday at the Harbor of Refuge from the fishing pier in Cape Henlopen, along with HORNED GREBE, RED-BREASTED MERGANSER, COMMON and RED-THROATED LOON. PARASITIC JAEGERS were seen from the Cape Henlopen Hawk Watch, along with BROWN PELICAN, NORTHERN GANNETS, LONG-TAILED DUCK, BRANT, plus SURF, and BLACK SCOTERS. A SANDHILL CRANE was seen flying over on Monday, after previously being seen at Cape May heading across Delaware Bay. AMERICAN OYSTERCATCHER, PIPING PLOVER, WHIMBREL, and SOLITARY SANDPIPER, along with LEAST, COMMON, and ROYAL TERN were seen at Cape Henlopen Point. BROWN-HEADED NUTHATCH was seen at the Seaside Nature Center. GREEN HERON, GLOSSY and WHITE IBIS were seen along the Gordon’s Pond. PURPLE SANDPIPER and LESSER BLACK-BACKED GULL were seen from the Cape May-Lewes Ferry.
BRANT, LONG-TAILED DUCK, NORTHERN GANNET, and BROWN PELICAN were seen at Indian River Inlet. A pair of YELLOW-CROWNED NIGHT HERONS were seen sitting on the posts along the Burton’s Island causeway, along with SPOTTED SANDPIPER, AMERICAN OYSTERCATCHER, and MERLIN. A TRICOLORED HERON was seen at Thompson’s Island in Delaware Seashore State Park near Dewey Beach.
A WILSON’S PHALAROPE in non-breeding plumage was found at Oyster Rocks Road in Prime Hook. Other shorebirds reported included BLACK-NECKED STILT, LEAST, STILT, and PECTORAL SANDPIPER, plus SHORT-BILLED and LONG-BILLED DOWITCHERS along with CATTLE EGRET, YELLOW-CROWNED NIGHT HERON and AMERICAN BITTERN. New for the year was a group of 4 BLACK-BELLIED WHISTLING DUCKS at a private pond near Harbeson. These are the only local WHISTLING-DUCK in the area besides a single bird in Lancaster. The first YELLOW-BILLED CUCKOO of the year was reported at Greenwood. PINE SISKINS are still coming to several feeders in Sussex Co. A RED-BREASTED NUTHATCH was found at Redden State Forest. VESPER and GRASSHOPPER SPARROW, BLUE GROSBEAK and AMERICAN KESTREL were reported at Ponders Road near Ellendale.
There was a big flock of 27 WILLETS reported at Mispillion Inlet from the DuPont Nature Center, along with the first SEMIPALMATED SANDPIPER and RED KNOT of the year. Other shorebirds seen included AMERICAN OYSTERCATCHER, BLACK-NECKED STILT, BLACK-BELLIED PLOVER, RUDDY TURNSTONE, CASPIAN TERN, BONAPARTE’S and LESSER BLACK-BACKED GULL.
RED-HEADED WOODPECKER and BROWN-HEADED NUTHATCH continues to be seen along the Big Stone Beach Road. AMERICAN AVOCET, GLOSSY IBIS, LITTLE BLUE and GREEN HERON were seen in the Big Stone marsh. The first SCARLET TANAGER of the season was seen at Killen’s Pond State Park. SUMMER TANAGERS were seen in Millsboro, Redden State Forest, Trap Pond State Park and Nanticoke wildlife area near Laurel. Waterfowl at the Port Mahon impoundments at Little Creek Wildlife Area included LESSER SCAUP, BUFFLEHEAD, RUDDY DUCK and a count of over a hundred GADWALLS along with BLACK-NECKED STILT and GLOSSY IBIS.
A BLACK SWAN was found at Bombay Hook National Wildlife Refuge near Smyrna on Tuesday. This might be the same bird that was seen near Harrington last month. A native of Australia, this bird I thought to be an exotic. There was a BLACK SWAN at Carousel Park near Wilmington about 10 years ago, but that bird was killed by vandals. Other waterfowl seen included MUTE SWAN, WOOD DUCK, SNOW GOOSE, COMMON MERGANSER, RUDDY DUCK, PIED-BILLED GREBE, and AMERICAN COOT. A SANDHILL CRANE continues to be seen in the field behind the new visitor’s center. Shorebirds seen included AMERICAN AVOCET, BLACK-BELLIED, SEMIPALMATED, and AMERICAN GOLDEN PLOVER, WILSON’S SNIPE, LONG-BILLED DOWITCHER, and WHIMBREL. There was a peak count of 49 BLACK-CROWNED and a single adult YELLOW-CROWNED NIGHT HERON at the Beaver Pond.
The Heron Census at Veteran’s Park in Delaware City on Wednesday evening reported 91 LITTLE BLUES, 157 SNOWY EGRET, 112 CATTLE EGRETS, 133 GREAT EGRETS, 43 GLOSSY IBIS along with BLACK-CROWNED NIGHT HERON, PEREGRINE FALCON, BALD EAGLE and OSPREY. SANDHILL CRANES were also seen at the Ashton Tract in Augustine Wildlife Area. Along with an AMERICAN WIGEON. BLUE-WINGED TEAL was seen at Thousand Acre Marsh. LITTLE BLUE AND GREEN HERON were at Greer’s Pond along Dutch Neck Road. CLIFF SWALLOWS were at Appoquinmink Bridge near Odessa. RED-HEADED WOODPECKER was at the Naudain Tract. EASTERN MEADOWLARK, GRASSHOPPER and SAVANAH SPARROW plus AMERICAN KESTREL were seen at Price’s Park in Middletown.
COMMON RAVEN was reported at the University of Delaware Ag Farm. BARRED OWL and INDIGO BUNTING were found at Middle Run Natural Area. PINE SISKIN and another RED-HEADED WOODPECKER was seen coming to a feeder in Newark. A hen HOODED MERGANSER continues at Glasgow Park. COMMON LOONS were seen flying over Ashland Nature Center. A remarkable report of 3 EVENING GROSBEAKS were seen at Cokesbury Village in Hockessin. A BROAD-WINGED HAWK was seen at First State. RUSTY BLACKBIRD was reported at Bellevue State Park. ROSE-BREASTED GROSBEAK was found at Winterthur Museum and gardens. A WHITE-CROWNED SPARROW was found at Cherry Island Landfill.
Thanks to the many people that make the Birdline possible including Chris Hinkle, Ben Filries, David Fees, Greg Gough, Lew Scharpf, Clive Harris, Patricia Deventer, Brooke Cherry, Gerry Teig, Barbara Conway, Katie Bird, Thuy Dong, Wendy Cesario, Sue Gruver, Nancy Cunningham, Richard Jullian, Alice Mohrman, Rob Blye, Lynn Gulla, Teddy Burke, Kevin Bronson, Chris Bennett, Frank Rohrbacher, Carolyn Holland, Rod Murray, Chris Rowe, John and Andy Dunn, Judy Montgomery, Sally O’Byrne, Jim White, Doug Batt, Dick Plambeck, Bob Edelen, Linda Rosenberg, Julia Tanner, Lynn Kohler, Ken Bass, David Weber, Cole Tiemann, Joe Francis, Melissa Lafferty, Kris Benarcik, Declan O’Neil, Mike Moore, Megan Kasprzak, Curt Davis, Bruce Peterjohn, Carol Ralph, and Joe Swertinski. Special thanks to Joe Tricarico for distributing the Birdline to DOS members. Birdline needs your sightings. Please call your reports into 302-792-9591 or email <ednieap...> Until next week, this is Andy Ednie wi! shing you good birding!
