Green Heron
I awoke to widespread, dense fog, but it was supposed to clear. I headed over to Crozet to see if I could find any warblers. At 9:00 I arrived at Mint Springs Park, but it was so foggy that there was a wet mist in the air, so I left and went over to the Western Ridge trail and lake. The fog was not as dense there, there was little to no mist, and the birds were just staring to get active. In 45 minutes I had 22 species, but no warblers. Highlight was my FOY Green Heron. The fog played havoc with all but the closest photos.
Green Heron
Eastern Kingbird
Solitary Sandpiper
Solitary Sandpiper
Spotted Sandpiper
Killdeer
Northern Rough-winged Swallow
First year male Northern Cardinal
Western Ridge list (22 species):
Northern Cardinal Solitary Sandpiper Spotted Sandpiper Killdeer Green Heron Kingfisher Red-winged Blackbird American Crow Common Grackle Canada Goose Mourning Dove Indigo Bunting Red-shouldered Hawk Downy Woodpecker Northern Mockingbird American Robin Catbird Northern Rough-winged Swallow American Goldfinch |
I then went back to Mint Springs Park and hiked a little ways up the Fire Trail, but it got foggier as the elevation increased. I added seven more species for the day: Eastern Bluebird, Yellow-rumped Warbler, American Redstart, Carolina Chickadee, Blue-gray Gnatcatcher, Cedar Waxwing, and Chipping Sparrow.
My last stop on this foggy morning was at the wetlands ponds at the King Family Vineyards. There were the ususal Canada Geese and Red-winged Blackbirds, but I also saw a Blue Jay, Mallards, three Green Herons, two Solitary Sandpipers, and a Lesser Yellowlegs. As I could not get close to the ponds, it was difficult in the field to identify the LY, but in the photos I could see that it was a bit larger than the nearby Solitary Sandpiper.
Lesser Yellowlegs (left); Solitary Sandpiper(right)
Lesser Yellowlegs (left); Solitary Sandpiper(right)
When I was about half way home, the fog completely cleared - naturally! There were three colorful Wood Ducks in the pond behind my house, and the Red-shouldered Hawk in my back yard was standing on the edge of her nest looking into the nest. I wonder if the her eggs are starting to hatch??
Wood Duck
Red-shouldered Hawk