Red Crossbills
Walt Childs and I took advantage of the 80 degree forecast and decided to look for rare Red Crossbills up on Reddish Knob. The four road intersection near the summit is one of the best places in Virginia to find this rare species, but driving up there during the winter months can be tricky. In previous years, I have seen this species at this site in the months of March, April, and August.
When we arrived at the reservoir at the base of the ascent a little after 10:00 a.m., the temperature was already 74 degrees. But we didn't see many birds there, only a few Dark-eyed Juncos. We made our way up Briery Branch Road, but didn't see any birds at all, and wondered if this trip would be a bust. Arounnd 10:30, we got close to the four road intersection, parked the car along the road about 100 feet below the site, and I hiked the remaining distance while Walt scanned the area with his binoculars. The temperature at this elevation was 66 degrees - not bad for a winter day in February!
We were not disappointed. We saw 14 Red Crossbills there, the most I have ever seen at that site. About half of them were on the ground ingesting gravel to aid digestion, and the rest were perched in nearby trees. There was an equal number of reddish males and yellow females. I was able to approach them to as close as about 20 feet away, and they only retreated to the trees when an occasional car drove by.
Red Crossbills
Red Crossbills
Red Crossbills
Red Crossbill - first year female?
Red Crossbill - first year female?
Red Crossbills
Red Crossbills
Red Crossbills
Red Crossbills
Red Crossbills
Red Crossbills
Red Crossbills
Red Crossbills
Red Crossbills
Red Crossbill
At that site, we also saw at least two Pine Siskins, an Eastern Bluebird, and a Common Raven near there on the way down to the reservoir.
Pine Siskin
We stopped at the reservoir, and this time saw two sub-adult Bald Eagles. One of them was a Basic IV - note the bits of black on its head and at the end of its tail feathers. The other one was a Basic III - note the yellow beak and mostly brown breast.
Bald Eagle
Bald Eagle
Bald Eagle
Bald Eagle
Bald Eagle
Bald Eagle
Bald Eagle
We made a quick stop at Hone Quarry, but all we saw there were some Song Sparrows, Canada Geese, Mallards, and American Goldfinches. Parts of the road to that resevoir had huge potholes and very muddy going. We made a another quick stop at Nazarene Wetlands, but all we saw there was a couple of Canada Geese, two Killdeers, and a single Ring-necked Duck.
Killdeer doing the hokie-pokie :-)
Ring-necked Duck
We had read reports of rare ducks at Silver Lake in Dayton, and it wasn't far from where we were, so we drove to that lake. We saw a rare White-winged Scoter and a rare Long-tailed Duck. Both of these species were females are rare in this part of Virginia, as they are usually found in open salt water. In addition to these species, we saw Mallards, Buffleheads, Redheads, American Coots, and a muskrat.
White-winged Scoter
White-winged Scoter
Long-tailed Duck
Buffleheads
Mallard
Mallards
Redheads
Muskrat
We made our way back along farm roads in Augusta County, and ended the day with close to 40 avian species. Not a bad day of birding!
American Kestrel
Red-tailed Hawk
Common Grackle
Horned Larks