Appalachian Trail: Shartlesville to Eckville, PA

Friday April 28, 2006: Encounter with a Tom

On making my way to Jenn's house for the first of three AT hikes, I slowed on Tilden road to look at two Wild Turkey hens that had crossed the road (right to left). As I slowed the car, a huge tom attacked my car from the right. Apparently, I was cutting him off from the hens and he was none too happy about it! He puffed out his feathers, spread his tail and waggled his waddle all the while gobbling quite loudly. I put the car in reverse to try to back away so he could cross the road, but he ran alongside the car and continued to attack it. He stretched his neck so that he could look into the car and continued gobbling. I put the car in drive and tried to drive past him, but he then ran in front of the car and stood his ground pecking at the bumper. Finally, he gave up and strutted back into the field, gobbling all the way. He was not giving up, he was walking away and I knew who the winner was!

The remainder of the day was comparatively uneventful, but yielded a few good birds anyway. We hiked from Eckville to Windsor Furnace and the weather was perfect: sunny, warm, not a cloud in the sky, with a very gentle breeze. We saw a few gorgeous Red-winged Blackbirds in the fields beyond Hawk Mountain, as well as Eastern Phoebe, Yellow-Rumped Warbler, Black-throated Green Warbler, Red-eyed Vireo, and Black and White Warbler. Three woodpecker species made themselves heard: Downy, Flicker and Pileated. The best looks for the day came from the Turkey and Black vultures gliding just below our vantage point at the Pinnacle. They were so close we could see their eyeballs. Well, we could see the feet on the Black vultures anyway no lifers for me, but several for Jenn.



Saturday April 29, 2006: Black and White Warbler Day

This was the best birding day of the weekend. We saw a total of 24 species between our hike from Shartelsville to Port Clinton and Jenn's backyard that evening. The day was overall a little cooler and breezier than Friday. We kept our jackets (and pant legs) on for most of the day. By far the best birds of the day were the Black and White Warblers. We must have heard 15 or 20 different birds as he hiked along the trail. Many allowed us good looks at them, especially at Auburn lookout where we spent close to two hours sunning ourselves and looking down on the black and whites (yours truly managed a short nap and got a bit sunburned- ouch!). Other birds on the trail include Turkey vulture, Blue Jay, Black-capped Chickadee, Ovenbird, Eastern Towhee, Pileated Woodpecker, Eastern Phoebe, Wild Turkey, Downy Woodpecker, Mockingbird, Goldfinch, Cardinal, Field Sparrow, Chipping Sparrow, Red-winged Blackbird, and American Robin. There were 2 birds of note at Jenn’s house. First was the Killdeer pair whose male displayed every time anyone got close to the side of the house. It was a great broken wing display (I'd heard about it, but never seen it before then). The other was a Northern Flicker who sat in Jenn's yard eating ants. The sun was starting to set and the light made the color of his red cap simply pop off his head.



Sunday April 30, 2006: Port Clinton to Winsdor Furnace

Although today's hike was the shortest of the weekend, we both felt it was the most difficult, partly because neither of us had hiked that section before and partly because we were really tired from the previous two hikes. It was also quite rocky, as is most of the AT in Berks. The weather was just a bit warmer than yesterday, but for whatever reason, there were many fewer birds today. There were two really good ones as we crossed Rt 61 and began the steep incline. The first was a Blue-gray gnatcatcher in the trees just over the overpass. He seemed to be passing through. He didn't pish and quickly worked his way from tree to tree around the mountainside. The other bird was a Wood Thrush that we saw very near the top of the ascent. He was very quite and was flushed by someone’s golden retriever. Other than those two, we heard only Black and white warblers, Black-throated Green Warblers and saw more Turkey vultures.

Birds on the Run

While running along the trails near the Reading Museum, Kim and I saw a magnificent specimen of Red-tailed Hawk. He had a gorgeous rust colored tail that he displayed as he flew to a tree top carrying a large stick. As we continued along the trails behind Wyomissing toward Lancaster Avenue, we heard quite a few other species, including Flicker, Red-bellied Woodpecker, Chickadee sp., Tufted Titmouse, Northern Cardinal, American Robin, Blue Jay, House Finch, Brown-headed Cowbird, Am. Goldfinch, and White-throated Sparrow.

Poor Man's Pelagic

After a rocky start (note to self: take photo ID when boarding the Cape May-Lewes ferry to avoid a high speed return to Yvonne's house for said ID), Yvonne and I joined the group from the CMBO as the very last passengers on the ferry Saturday morning. From the bow, we saw a Bonteparte's gull, a Bald Eagle, and a Northern Gannet - all before we were fully out of the dock. Along the way we got very good looks at both Black and Surf Scoters. There were literally hundreds of them at one point and we were sailing straight through them. It was nice to be able to see their little red feet running along the top of the water as they attempted to fly. We also got good looks at several Northern Gannets one of which followed the ferry for quite a while. A Peregrine Falcon flew right over our heads. Three Long-tailed Ducks were too far away for me to "own" them and thus I won't count them on my lifelist.

As we pulled into Lewes, we saw lots of Buffleheads, Brant, and Double-crested Cormormants plus one Pied-billed Grebe. Gulls on this side of the bay included Lesser Black-backed, Herring, Laughing and Ring-billed.

After debarkation, Yvonne and I when to Poverty Beach and the inlet near the Lobster House looking for Long-tailed Ducks. We didn't see any, but we did find several pairs of Common Mergansers and more Buffleheads and Brant.

Robin Song

Woke up to the sound of American Robins singing the rain song. A beautiful start to an otherwise crappy day.

Middle Creek in March

With the temperatures climbing to near 70, I took a half day of personal time and traveled to Middle Creek Wildlife Management Area in Kleinfeltersville. I also took an avid photographer with me who had a new digital camera to try out. We first stopped at the main building and took some pictures of the inside displays. We then headed to Willow Point where we found thousands of Snow Geese (≈ 95,000) and Tundra Swans (≈2,000). A couple of Bald Eagles caused the geese to lift off several times which resulted in fantastic displays of white, wings, and noise. Also present at the point were Common Mergansers, Black Ducks, Blue-winged Teal, Northern Shovelers, Killdeer, flocks of Red-winged Blackbirds, American Tree Sparrows, Dark-eyed Juncos, Turkey Vultures, Common Grackles, and House Sparrows.

As we headed out of the parking lot toward the dam breast, we pulled over to the side of the road where one to two hundred Snow Geese were grazing in the fields. Took more pictures and then found some shade to view them on the full-size tablet PC screen. Ah, technology - very cool! Later, we pulled around the dam breast and watched a Belted Kingfisher. He was in full breeding plumage and looking very spiffy!

Can’t remember the name of the restaurant we stopped at for dinner. It was originally just a bladder stop, but we stayed for a bite to eat. It was a diner/ dairy bar that was billed as “utter-ly delicious”. The grilled cheese was the tiniest sandwich I ever saw, but the banana milkshake was supreme!

Links for pictures: http://iwhipple.multiply.com/photos/album/3

Feeder Roving

This morning I drove up to PEEC since the northern finches are supposed to migrate from Canada in January and February. I was hoping to get Evening Grosbeak and maybe even a crossbill or two for my life list, but no such luck. It was very windy and there was ice covered snow on the ground around the feeders. There were 40-50 Dark-eyed Juncos, American Goldfinches, Pine Siskins (haven’t seen any of them since I was a child), Purple Finches (really nice species), Tufted Timice, a half dozen obnoxious Blue Jays, a pair of cardinals, American Tree Sparrow (1), White-throated Sparrow (1), and a Red-bellied Woodpecker. I waited around for something better, but eventually gave up. I must have been too early.

I then drove to Hawk Mountain and watched their feeders for a while. Additional species there included Downy Woodpecker, White-breasted Nuthatch and Carolina Wren. On the way home from there, I stopped at Lake Ontelaunee to catch a glimpse of the Snow Geese that have settled there. I think it’s a bit early for them, but the lake was completely open, so I guess they’re comfortable there.

Happy 2006

In my family there’s a belief that whatever happens to you on New Year’s Day will happen to you all year long and I have long believed that there’s some truth in that. I remember the year I was in 7th grade, my sisters and I stayed overnight at my aunt’s house and had pork and sauerkraut for lunch. When we got home that afternoon, mom was making pork and sauerkraut for dinner. At least once a week that entire year, I would come home to find that the dinner menu was exactly the same as the school lunch menu albeit better tasting. I don’t remember that happening any other year before that or since.

If this old belief is true, then it must be good (birding) luck to hear birds before one’s eyes are open on New Year’s Day. I pulled the shade on the window to see my very first birds of 2006: a pair of Tufted Titmice followed swiftly by a Blue Jay, a pair of Chickadee sp., and House Finches. That’s four species before my feet hit the floor! House Sparrows at the feeder and an American Crow in the crabapple tree rounded out the rest of the morning.

The trip to my aunt’s house in Allentown this afternoon (yes, still eating sauerkraut on New Year’s Day) yielded several raptors, including 2 Red-tailed Hawks, an American Kestrel and a Sharp-shinned Hawk. All were perched on utility lines or trees and sitting very still. We had some bad weather yesterday, so they were probably pretty hungry today. Also added Rock Pigeon, Slate-colored Junco, White-throated sparrow, Common Grackle, and Starling to the day list. New Year’s Day total for 2006… 14 species. OK, not stellar, but not a bad count for a non-birding day in early January. :-)