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June 15, 2025 [LINK / comment]

Birding in Virginia, March 2024

NOTE: This is another "catch-up" blog post based on Facebook posts from March 2024. I aim to post one such monthly review blog post per day until I get caught up by the end of this month.

March 2: There were hundreds of robins around Bell's Lane, but what grabbed my attention were the Red-winged Blackbirds (FOY for me!) and Cedar Waxwings. Also appearing: Red-bellied Woodpecker, American Kestrel, and Yellow-rumped Warbler. White-throated Sparrows were out back, as usual.

(Bell's Lane & north Staunton, March 2)

March 3: Another late-afternoon excursion to Bell's Lane yielded a (mostly) different cast of characters compared to yesterday. Robins abounded once again, of course. Other highlights included a Yellow-bellied Sapsucker, a Downy Woodpecker, some White-crowned Sparrows, several Eastern Bluebirds, and most striking of all, an Eastern Meadowlark warily perched only a few feet away from an American Kestrel that was having dinner! I also spotted a pair of Red-tailed Hawks, but no Harriers or Short-eared Owls at dusk.

March 9: I saw my first Grackles of the season a couple weeks ago near Grottoes, and yesterday morning one showed up on our back porch. Their iridescent plumage is nice to behold. Blue Jays and a Red-bellied Woodpecker also showed up. As I was leaving my office in the afternoon, I heard and then saw a Yellow-rumped Warbler up in the trees, as well as a Cooper's Hawk overhead.

March 10: Back to Bell's Lane this afternoon, and I was happy to see two different Yellow-bellied-Sapsuckers: M & F! Also the usual American Robins by the dozen, Carolina Chickadees, Blue Jays, White-throated & White-crowned Sparrows, and a lone American Kestrel hovering over the fields.

(Bell's Lane, March 10)

March 12: I never saw my main target bird at Piney Grove nature preserve today, but I think I heard it, at least. "It" would be the famed (and elusive) Red-cockaded Woodpecker, of course. There were dozens of Pine Warblers singing up a storm all over the place, my first ones of the year. Also present were some Ruby-crowned Kinglets and Northern Flickers. But the big highlight of the day was seeing a group of Fox Sparrows at fairly close range, and I even managed to get a decent shot of one. (Some digital editing was required.) It has been well over a year since the last time I saw one of those. On the way back to Richmond in the afternoon I stopped at Dutch Gap natural area, where I saw some Yellow-rumped Warblers, an Osprey (FOY), large numbers of Black Vultures, and an Eastern Phoebe (FOY). Not a bad day at all!

(Piney Grove nature preserve, near Wakefield, VA, March 12)

March 13: Yesterday morning, Jacqueline called my attention to an unusual bird out back, and I was dumbfounded to realize that it was a Fox Sparrow -- the very same species I had seen the day before in the Piney Grove area of southeastern Virginia! Go figure.

March 15: Once again I was startled by an unusual bird in the back yard this morning: in this case a Pileated Woodpecker! In the afternoon along Bells Lane I spotted THREE Eastern Phoebes (recently-arrived, no doubt), some Tree Swallows up high (the first of the year for me), as well as some Yellow-rumped Warblers, Red-bellied Woodpeckers, etc.

March 22: This afternoon I finally made it up to the JMU Arboretum in Harrisonburg, along with Jacqueline, to see the Great Horned Owl nest. It's fairly easy to find, in a sycamore tree near the center of the Arboretum. Amazingly enough, I had not seen this species (in the wild) in at least 15 years! I waited about a half hour for the mother to return and feed the babies, to no avail. Maybe next time. Also present were some Red-bellied Woodpeckers and American Robins. Back in Staunton, we stopped at a few places along Bell's Lane in hopes of seeing Tree Swallows, but had to settle for a Yellow-rumped Warbler and a few Eastern Bluebirds.

(JMU Arboretum in Harrisonburg, March 22)

March 29: While strolling along the big pond at Dulles Airport early this afternoon I saw my first Chipping Sparrow of the season, and my second Field Sparrow. I saw at least 5 or 6 Yellow-rumped Warblers flitting around the bushes, while in the distance were three Double-crested Cormorants. On the way home I stopped at the JMU Arboretum to see the Great Horned Owl nest, and had nice views of a Yellow-bellied Sapsucker and a White-breasted Nuthatch.

Additional photos and montages, including individual photos of some of the birds in the above montages, will soon become available on the Wild Birds chronological (2024) page.

June 14, 2025 [LINK / comment]

Birding in Virginia, February 2024

NOTE: This is another "catch-up" blog post based on Facebook posts from [February 2024].

February 3: I got some much-needed exercise at Augusta Springs during the very pleasant afternoon, but there weren't as many birds as I had hoped. (I'm overdue for a big winter day.) Highlights included Hooded Mergansers (one adult male plus 3-4 others), some Swamp Sparrows, a Red-tailed Hawk, some White-breasted Nuthatches, a Downy Woodpecker, and a possible American Black Duck. (If not, then a Mallard.)

(Augusta Springs, February 3)

February 9: I was looking forward to enjoying the beautiful weather today, but a lengthy Zoom meeting kept me inside until 2:00, by which time the skies had turned overcast. At least I got some good exercise hiking to the top of Betsy Bell Hill, where I saw lots of Eastern Bluebirds and a White-breasted Nuthatch or two.

February 16: Allen Larner and I went down to Mount Pleasant, about 12 miles east of Buena Vista, in search of the Gray-crowned Rosy Finch that has been seen there recently. It was unfamiliar territory, and we hiked up the wrong trail, reaching the top of Cole Mountain, about two miles from where we should have been. A friendly hiker crossed paths with us up there, informing us of our mistake. Three wasted miles! So we retraced our steps, found the proper trail head, and started over on a hike of nearly six miles (round trip) to where the bird actually was, or had been. Along the way we met a birder from Honduras named Roger Medina, and later on, some other folks descending from the summit. They told us the target bird was not present, and we likewise had no luck after we finally made it to the top. We saw a few birds along the way, and heard a Barred Owl as we approached the trail head on the way back, but otherwise zilch. At least it was vigorous exercise in very scenic territory. A few days later the bird was sighted in that same area once again, so we were just unlucky that day. Darn it! I have never had a definite sighting of any of the Rosy Finches.

February 18: Nothing out of the ordinary for this year's Great Backyard Bird Count here at the Clem residence, but at least the sunlight made for some good photographs. I certainly saw a lot more birds from the comfort of my sofa today than I did while hiking to the top of "Mount Unpleasant" on Friday!

February 23: I squeezed in some time for a walk in Montgomery Hall Park this afternoon, and saw a Red-bellied Woodpecker, a Pileated Woodpecker, some Eastern Towhees, a few Tufted Titmice, and just as I was leaving a Hermit Thrush!

(Montgomery Hall Park, February 23)

February 25: I spent a bit of time on Bell's Lane for the first time in over a month late this afternoon. Highlights included a Red-bellied Woodpecker, Yellow-bellied Sapsucker, Red-tailed Hawk, an American Kestrel, many American Robins in the pastures, a distant Northern Harrier, and a few White-crowned Sparrows.

(Bell's Lane, February 25)

Additional photos and montages, including individual photos of some of the birds in the above montages, will soon become available on the Wild Birds chronological (2024) page.

June 13, 2025 [LINK / comment]

Birding in Virginia, January 2024

NOTE: This is yet another "catch-up" blog post based on Facebook posts from [January 2024]. (The last such post was October 31, 2024, covering the month of January 2024.) Note that I resumed teaching during the second week of the Spring 2024 semester, and with an extra course load, I really didn't have much time for birding until early May.

January 2: We had a Red-shouldered Hawk lurking in the tree tops out back for several hours last Friday, and it was remarkably indifferent to Jacqueline's attempts to shoo it away. Eventually it came down to a relatively low level suitable for a photograph, and I took full advantage of the opportunity!

January 4: I paid a brief visit to Montgomery Hall Park this afternoon, and was soon rewarded with very nice views of a Pileated Woodpecker and a Hermit Thrush. Later while walking along Bell's Lane, I saw a Red-bellied Woodpecker, a Northern Cardinal, a White-crowned Sparrow, and a Red-shouldered Hawk in the middle of a field, presumably eating. Given the location, my first impression was that it was a Northern Harrier.

(Montgomery Hall Park & Bell's Lane, January 4)

January 8: I had a few good views of raptors this afternoon. Decent weather for a change! The Red-shouldered Hawk was perched along the Rt. 262 bypass north of Staunton, the Great Blue Heron was at the pond behind Hardee's in Verona, the American Kestrel was above an open field nearby, the Song Sparrow was at the Mill Place trail, while the Red-tailed Hawk and Northern Harrier were both in the Bell's Lane area.

January 11: The weather has been awful for the past couple days, but I managed to get out on Thursday, and had a nice view of a Northern Harrier along Bell's Lane. It's probably the same one I have seen before, but this time it was patrolling a field along the southern portion, rather than the usual upland area farther north. The background scenery of a house is certainly unusual. I also had a nice closeup view of an American Kestrel on the way home, as well as a Red-bellied Woodpecker.

(Bell's Lane, January 11)

January 26: The much-improved weather coincided perfectly with my precious free time this afternoon, so I got caught up on my exercise by walking along Bell's Lane. Plenty of good birds, including a Yellow-bellied Sapsucker and some Cedar Waxwings, plus LOTS of American Robins every which way.

Additional photos and montages, including individual photos of some of the birds in the above montages, will soon become available on the Wild Birds chronological (2024) page. (I am in the midst of a major reorganization of my bird photos, so that they will be sorted year by year.)