Delaware Birdline

RBA * Delaware * Statewide * August 18, 2006 * DEST0608.18

*Birds mentioned Northern Pintail Northern Shoveler Blue-Winged Teal Common Merganser Least Bittern Tricolored Heron Yellow-Crowned Night Heron Pied-Billed Grebe Brown Pelican Virginia Rail Common Moorhen Black-Bellied Plover Semipalmated Plover American Avocet Black-Necked Stilt Hudsonian Godwit Solitary Sandpiper Willet Spotted Sandpiper Ruddy Turnstone Sanderling Semipalmated Sandpiper Western Sandpiper White-Rumped Sandpiper Pectoral Sandpiper Stilt Sandpiper Red-Necked Phalarope Wilson's Phalarope Lesser Black-Backed Gull Black Tern Black Skimmer Yellow-Billed Cuckoo Common Nighthawk Scissor-Tailed Flycatcher Cliff Swallow Brown-Headed Nuthatch Blue-Winged Warbler Chestnut-Sided Warbler Magnolia Warbler Blackburnian Warbler Kentucky Warbler Canada Warbler Blue Grosbeak Grasshopper Sparrow

- Transcript Hotline: Birdline Delaware Date: August 18, 2006 Number: 302/658-2747 To Report: Armas Hill, 302/529-1876 (VOICE) 302/529-1085 (FAX) Compiler: Andy Ednie () Coverage: Delaware, Delmarva Peninsula, nearby Delaware Valley, Southern New Jersey, Maryland Transcriber: Andy Ednie ()

For Friday, August 18th, this is Birdline Delaware, from the Delaware Museum of Natural History in Greenville. I'm Andy Ednie, glad to be back. Armas Hill is away this week.

The SCISSOR-TAILED FLYCATCHER that was reported here last week continues to be seen in southern New Castle Co. along Rt. 9, at Paddock Rd. That bird was seen today, sitting along the powerlines about a half mile north of the intersection. This bird has a deformed bill and a partially molted tail, but still is a stunning bird. This is about the 7th state record and 1st for New Castle Co.

Just down the road from the SCISSOR-TAIL, in Taylor's Gut at Woodland Beach Wildlife Area a pair of RED-NECKED PHALAROPES were seen on Tuesday, along with STILT SANDPIPERS, AMERICAN AVOCETS and BLACK-NECKED STILTS.

There is a multitude of shorebirds at Bombay Hook right now, including WILSON'S PHALAROPE, STILT SANDPIPER, and AMERICAN AVOCET. BLACK TERN and BLACK SKIMMER were also reported along with a 2 immature YELLOW-CROWNED NIGHT HERONS and a number of TRICOLORED HERONS. A female COMMON MERGANSER was seen in the tidal marsh opposite Shearness.

Both WILSON'S AND RED-NECKED PHALAROPE were seen at Broadkill Beach impoundments along with 27 BLACK-NECKED STILTS and 4 STILT SANDPIPER. A HUDSONIAN GODWIT was also seen there on Wednesday. Other shorebirds seen at Prime Hook include BLACK-BELLIED and SEMIPALMATED PLOVER, WILLET, SOLITARY, SPOTTED, SEMIPALMATED, WHITE-RUMPED and PECTORAL SANDPIPER. NORTHERN PINTAIL SHOVELER, and BLUE-WINGED TEAL were reported, along with TRICOLORED HERON.

An immature LESSER BLACK-BACKED GULL was at Prime Hook Beach. The marshes out to Prime Hook Beach produced PIED-BILLED GREBE, LEAST BITTERN, LITTLE BLUE HERON, VIRGINIA RAIL and COMMON MOORHEN,

5 BROWN PELICANS were seen at Cape Henlopen State Park from the Herring Point overlook. BROWN-HEADED NUTHATCHES were found at the Observation Tower and at the park entrance.

Birds at Mispillion Inlet included 4 AMERICAN OYSERCATCHERS, 57 LEAST TERNS, ROYAL TERN, SANDERLING, and RUDDY TURNSTONE.

The first COMMON NIGHTHAWKS of the season were seen flying down the Brandywine Valley from the hawk watch area at Brandywine Creek State Park on Tuesday evening.

BLUE GROSBEAK, GRASSHOPPER SPARROW, and YELLOW-BILLED CUCKOO continue to be seen at Brandywine Creek. 13 species of warbler were reported there over the week, including BLUE-WINGED, CHESTNUT-SIDED, MAGNOLIA, BLACKBURNIAN, KENTUCKY, and CANADA.

CLIFF SWALLOWS are still being seen at their nest site this year under the Fleming Landing Bridge at Rt. 9, over the Smyrna River.

The WESTERN REEF HERON that has been at Cape Breton, Nova Scotia has not been seen since August 2nd. But, this week there has been a report of anther WESTERN REEF HERON, possibly the same bird, in southeast Maine. If the bird is moving south, now would be a good time to keep on eye out for this Old World tropics species.

That's it for this week. I'll be here again next time so please call your reports into me at 302-792-9591 or email me at . Until next time, good birding.

-end transcript


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