July Bird Walk report and an INVITATION for children!

The highlights of this morning’s regular monthly bird walk, sponsored by the Loudoun Wildlife Conservancy and the Friends of Banshee Reeks, were three (possibly four) Yellow-breasted Chats, three of which were well seen as they perched high in trees and chatted away; a Cooper’s Hawk carrying prey as it flew overhead; and two Eastern Towhees who perched high in shrubs and were singing away. Most interesting were the birds that have been common on previous July walks at Banshee Reeks that were absent, such as Red-shouldered Hawk, Yellow-billed Cuckoo, Eastern Kingbird, Starlings, and Cedar Waxwings. Del Sargent, co-leader of the walk, maintains a spreadsheet of birds seen at Banshee Reeks by monthly walk date, and all of these have been seen on five or more of the previous seven July walks at the preserve.

Birding and Butterflies together: Another hightlight was that the meadows are full of Common Milkweed, especially the area between the pond & Goose Creek, and while we found only one Monarch butterfly we were hopeful that there were many caterpillars hidden among the milkweed plants.

See below for complete eBird list of the birds seen at Banshee Reeks.  Also, please see the online events calendar for the regular monthly free bird walk (every 2nd Sat) at the Banshee Reeks Nature Preserve, sponsored by the Loudoun Wildlife Conservancy and the Friends of Banshee Reeks.

The next event is for CHILDREN and their FAMILIES, and we want to especially INVITE you to sign up for this wonderful event.

Birding Experience for Children
Friday, July 18, 6:00 p.m. – dusk
Blue Ridge Center for Environmental Stewardship.
Come learn about our bluebird trail monitoring by helping us do a weekly survey of the nest boxes, then join some of Loudoun Wildlife Conservancy’s birders for an evening stroll looking and listening for the birds and other interesting critters that call the Blue Ridge Center their home. Appropriate for children ages 8 to 12 and their families; limited to 18 participants.
Registration required: Sign Up Online. Questions: Contact Phil Daley at 540-338-6528 or pedaley@verizon.net.

Report by Joe Coleman
Edited & Posted by Sarah Steadman

Banshee Reeks Nature Preserve – MFF08, Loudoun, US-VA
Jul 12, 2014 8:00 AM – 10:20 AM
Protocol: Traveling
1.5 mile(s)
Total: 44 species

1. Green Heron  3
2. Black Vulture  1
3. Turkey Vulture  6
4. Cooper’s Hawk  1
5. Red-tailed Hawk  1
6. Rock Pigeon (Feral Pigeon)  1
7. Mourning Dove  6
8. Ruby-throated Hummingbird  1
9. Red-bellied Woodpecker  3
10. Downy Woodpecker  2
11. Northern Flicker  1
12. Pileated Woodpecker  1
13. Eastern Wood-Pewee  15
14. Acadian Flycatcher  3
15. Great Crested Flycatcher  1
16. White-eyed Vireo  2
17. Red-eyed Vireo  3
18. American Crow  3
19. Tree Swallow  2
20. Barn Swallow  2
21. Carolina Chickadee  3
22. Tufted Titmouse  2
23. White-breasted Nuthatch  4
24. Carolina Wren  1
25. Blue-gray Gnatcatcher  1
26. Eastern Bluebird  4
27. Wood Thrush  9
28. American Robin  25
29. Gray Catbird  2
30. Brown Thrasher  2
31. Northern Mockingbird  3
32. Ovenbird  2
33. Common Yellowthroat  6
34. Yellow-breasted Chat  3
35. Eastern Towhee  2
36. Chipping Sparrow  3
37. Field Sparrow  13
38. Song Sparrow  2
39. Scarlet Tanager  2
40. Northern Cardinal  6
41. Indigo Bunting  6
42. Brown-headed Cowbird  5
43. House Finch  3
44. American Goldfinch  15

View this checklist online at http://ebird.org/ebird/view/checklist?subID=S19080066

This report was generated automatically by eBird v3 (http://ebird.org)