The Nature of Delaware

By Sally O’Byrne, Teacher-Naturalist…

Yesterday morning, 8 intrepid participants joined me and William (Bucktoe Creek Preserve Land Manager) on the weekly Monday morning bird walk at Bucktoe.    I took the group to the field where Joe and I had found a passel of sparrows and a very dull Pine Warbler last week.  The field was empty except for bluebirds perched on the dried milkweed.  Even the hedgerows seemed empty, so to entertain the crowds I had them look at the moon with their binoculars, which was silvery against the blue sky.

 We entered the woods and were treated to the cry of a Pileated Woodpecker.  Becky’s sharp eyes picked out one and then another, but they were very odd, hanging on tulip tree flower/seed heads – looking like black sacks in the tree.  American Robins and Cedar Waxwings soon chased them off the seed heads and the pileateds flew to tree trunks where woodpeckers are supposed to be.

 We finally found a few sparrows near the end of our walk and were treated to a Fox Sparrow hanging out with White-throated Sparrows – it hopped up to give us all good views.   A couple of other notable sightings included a Yellow-bellied Sapsucker fly-by, and at least two different Sharp-shinned Hawks – both hunting.  Quite a number of deer were seen, all avoiding hunters.

 Two hours of walking only scratched the surface of this property, but even so, we enjoyed a few distinct types of habitat – field, hedgerow, young forest, mature deciduous forest, coniferous woods,  river edge, and floodplain. Not a bad way to spend a Monday morning.  Thanks to Ron Sinclair for the photos!

 Sally O’Byrne

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A Hands-on Experience with Animals. Joe Sebastiani

First, we stopped in to Abbott’s Mill Nature Center since most of the kids had never been there.  It is different from Ashland Nature Center, in that there are lots of things to see indoors and live animals to enjoy, including the touch tank above.

Jason Beale, Abbott’ Mill Nature Center Manager, led everyone on a canoeing adventure on Abbott’s Pond.  With the wind whipping, we paddled to the other end of the pond.  It was quite a sight to see an adult Bald Eagle soaring overhead.  A kingfisher also thrilled a few of us as it angrily rattled its way past.   

Soon enough, we were mired in a shallow-water swamp and had to cross two beaver dams.  Sometimes it is the difficulty of a trip that makes it memorable.  It’s almost never as much fun when things are easy!  We eventually made it over or around both dams and paddled up Johnson’s Branch, a very small, winding stream in a beautiful Atlantic White-Cedar swamp.

Everyone really enjoyed the twisting, turning, and ducking!  Paddling a small Delmarva swamp-stream was something we hadn’t done before and everyone loved it! 

We had lunch at a landing in the swamp, and enjoyed being in a primitive, natural area.  Paddling back was just as much fun!  This is an adventure we should have done years ago. 

Joe Sebastiani, Members Program Team Leader

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The Hawk Mountain program left with a group of 8 from Ashland Nature Center yesterday morning.  The sun was shining brightly as we ventured north out of Delaware.  Wind was out of the northwest and hopes were high for a good hawk flight at Hawk Mountain.  I like going to this historical birding location in November.  There are fewer crowds, you really feel like the seasons are changing and that winter is barrelling in from the north.  You can see it in the brown leaves, feel it in the cold wind, and through the migrating raptors, it is alive.

As we approached Hawk Mountain, the typical gloom of an overcast November day descended as the sun retreated.  Would we really need the extra layers, gloves, and hats we brought?  Visions of birding in t-shirts (for most of us) were quickly disappearing. 

The view from the North Lookout at Hawk Mountain.  Soon after settling in, the first bird that came by was a Northern Goshawk.  I knew it would be a good day.

Golden Eagle is what comes to mind when I visit Hawk Mountain in November.  For the majority of people that go on this trip, it is the bird that is most hoped for.  This symbol of wilderness makes its way through the Pennsylvania Mountains now, heading south.  We saw three of these magnificent birds yesterday, two of them very closely, and all three were adults.

Here is the juvenile Golden Eagle model that hangs in the Hawk Mountain Visitor’s Center.  The adults we saw had virtually no white on the wings and tail.

The photo below shows the typical look we had of most birds yesterday, silhouetted against the dark clouds.

This Red-tailed Hawk flew past us at the north lookout with a backdrop of gray skies.  It was difficult to see field marks, so most identification was based on shape and flight styles.

As the cold wind whipped, all but one in the group was appropriately bundled up.   Thankfully, this crazy birder was warmed by the sight of lots of raptors! 

Below is a list of what we saw …

Sharp-shinned Hawk – 2 , Cooper’s Hawk – 3, Northern Goshawk – 1, Red-shouldered Hawk – 8, Red-tailed Hawk – 29, Golden Eagle – 3, Bald Eagle – 2, plus about 20 migrating Common Loons, a flock of 30 Pine Siskin, and some playful Ravens flying past. 

Joe Sebastiani, Members Program Team Leader

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The Bucktoe Creek Preserve lies just a few miles north of Hockessin, Delaware near the town of Kennett Square, PA.  It is a 300-acre private property where the Delaware Nature Society runs free weekly bird walks every Monday at 8am.

This morning, 8 participants showed up on a morning that was slightly cooler than normal.  After introductions and some gourmet coffee and tea, we set off to find birds. 

The morning started off quite well, with good views of Savannah Sparrow and Fox Sparrow had by all.  An Eastern Towhee was a life bird for someone in the group.  Eastern Towhee is such an impressive bird, that I really wanted it to come out of the brush so our one eager participant who had never seen one could get the experience.  She wasn’t disappointed.

Eastern Towhee

The walk turned out to be especially good for raptors.  It seemed like a good migration day, but these birds were low and probably hunting.  We had good looks at the neighborhood male American Kestrel.  The bird is probably the one that was here all summer and raised 3 young. 

Next, someone saw a raptor above the field we were in.  I saw a bird cruise right, which turned out to be a Merlin.  The group focused on a bird that went left, which was a Harrier.  They must have had a brief encounter in mid-air.  The Merlin flew past the perched Kestrel and I thought sparks would fly, but the Kestrel didn’t utter a peep.  Was is threatened?  I usually see Kestrels go crazy if a Cooper’s Hawk comes anywhere near them.   Other raptors seen this morning included multiple Red-tailed Hawks, two Sharp-shinned Hawks, a Cooper’s Hawk, and a close up adult Red-shouldered Hawk that glided past quickly. 

Not all program participants were human today.  Early in the walk, a cat found us and followed us for most of the remainder of the walk.  Unfortunately, it didn’t draw in any birds for close viewing.  This is probably a good thing, however, as I didn’t want us to witness a murder. 

Non-human program participant.

In all, it was another great walk on a beautiful brisk November day.  Come join us on a Monday in the near future if you are in the area.  The full species list is below. 

Joe Sebastiani, Members Program Team Leader, Delaware Nature Society

Canada Goose     100
Great Blue Heron     1
Black Vulture     10
Turkey Vulture     15
Northern Harrier     1
Sharp-shinned Hawk     2
Cooper’s Hawk     1
Red-shouldered Hawk     1
Red-tailed Hawk     3
American Kestrel     1
Merlin     1
Ring-billed Gull     10
Belted Kingfisher     1
Red-bellied Woodpecker     5
Downy Woodpecker     3
Hairy Woodpecker     2
Northern Flicker     5
Blue Jay     20
American Crow     15
Carolina Chickadee     6
Tufted Titmouse     6
White-breasted Nuthatch     5
Carolina Wren     6
Eastern Bluebird     20
American Robin     15
Northern Mockingbird     3
European Starling     20
Cedar Waxwing     30
Eastern Towhee     1
Savannah Sparrow     1
Fox Sparrow     1
Song Sparrow     12
White-throated Sparrow     30
Dark-eyed Junco     15
Northern Cardinal     12
Red-winged Blackbird     30
Common Grackle     100
House Finch     10
American Goldfinch     10

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Dear Delaware Nature Society Members and Guests:  Welcome to the new Delaware Nature Society Blog!  It is here that we will update recent field trips and show photos of our adventures, reveal interesting natural spectacles we come across, discuss the environment and conservation in Delaware, and generally discuss fun and exciting happenings within the Delaware Nature Society.  This includes our sites such as the headquarters, Ashland Nature Center, plus Coverdale Farm, Burrows Run Preserve, Flint Woods Preserve, Bucktoe Creek Preserve, Abbott’s Mill Nature Center, and the Cooch-Dayett Mills.  Lets get going…!

Today, the Birding Series walked the grounds at the Burrows Run Preserve, the Delaware Nature Society’s 352-acre gem near Centreville, DE.  We enjoyed a number of birds with the blazing yellow foliage of Tuliptrees as a backdrop.  Immediately, we had a flock of Eastern Bluebirds, a life bird for one of the participants.  Two Palm Warblers came through the meadow towards us soon after.  We got a good look at one of them and it turned out to be a very bland-looking western Palm Warbler with yellow only underneath the tail.  The walk took us up to Coverdale Farm, across the overlook, and back up the Ashland-Clinton Road.  We weren’t overwhelmed with birds, but we got good looks at some of the common species of the valley.  Other highlights included an adult male Yellow-bellied Sapsucker that squealed constantly as if something was really upsetting it.  We got good looks at the red on the forehead and chin.  All in all, it was a wonderful, warm, and colorful November morning.

Burrows Run Preserve

Burrows Run Preserve, DE

Birding Series looking at the Yellow-bellied Sapsucker

Here is the group staring at the male Yellow-bellied Sapsucker. 

Northern Mockingbird

Close up birds that didn’t move much were hard to find today.  This Northern Mockingbird was one of the few obliging characters we encountered.  It generally ignored us as it gorged on berries.

Joe Sebastiani, Members Program Team Leader

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