Photo of the Day

The White-breasted Nuthatch is a familiar woodpecker-like songbird of deciduous forests, parks, and wooded suburbs.  It frequently descends the trunks of trees head first while searching the bark for insects.  Nuthatches visit feeding stations stocked with cracked corn, sunflower seeds, suet, or peanuts.

Photo of the Day

Nothing like a flock of nomadic Cedar Waxwings to brighten an otherwise gray and dismal November day.  To satisfy their appetites, waxwings are constantly on the move searching for berries.  In late summer, their assemblage disperses and mated pairs settle down to nest and raise young.  During the breeding cycle, the waxwing’s diet transitions to mostly flying insects, a protein-rich prey that they readily seize by darting from a perch like a flycatcher.  After the young are fledged, flocks form once again and begin roaming widely in search of a suitable supply of fruits to fuel their wanderings.

Photo of the Day

Eastern Bluebirds are found year-round in semi-open country and in suburbs throughout the lower Susquehanna River basin.  Their numbers swell during both the spring and fall migrations each year.  With autumn movements presently drawing to a close, some small flocks are beginning to settle in for winter, particularly where tree, shrub, and vine berries remain in abundance and where nest boxes or natural cavities offer roosting shelter.

Photo of the Day

A Pileated Woodpecker devours the dark blue berries of a Black Gum (Nyssa sylvatica). The Black Gum, also known as the Black Tupelo, Sour Gum, and Pepperidge, sports crimson leaves in the fall to attract birds to its fruit, thus assuring distribution of its seeds.  In 2021, the fruit is so abundant that it has outlasted the foliage, much to the delight of resident and migrating birds.

Photo of the Day

Dark-eyed Juncos, the easiest to identify of our native sparrows, are arriving throughout the lower Susquehanna valley for winter.  Formerly known as Slate-colored Juncos, they are sometimes called “snowbirds”.  Juncos like brushy habitat with an abundance of small seeds for food.  This one is munching on white millet scattered atop a large boulder.  Pines and other evergreens provide roosting sites for stormy nights.

Photo of the Day

A second-year Golden Eagle passes over the lookout at Waggoner’s Gap Hawk Watch north of Carlisle, Pennsylvania.  Do make plans to visit a hawk watch during the coming days.  The Golden Eagle migration through the lower Susquehanna region is peaking right now, so it’ll soon be last call for this fall.  Be sure to click on the “Hawkwatcher’s Helper: Identifying Bald Eagles and other Raptors” and the “Golden Eagle Aging Chart” tabs at the top of this page to learn more about your sightings.

A Visit to Bombay Hook National Wildlife Refuge

It’s surprising how many millions of people travel the busy coastal routes of Delaware each year to leave the traffic congestion and hectic life of the northeast corridor behind to visit congested hectic shore towns like Rehobeth Beach, Bethany Beach, and Ocean City, Maryland.  They call it a vacation, or a holiday, or a weekend, and it’s exhausting.  What’s amazing is how many of them drive right by a breathtaking national treasure located along Delaware Bay just east of the city of Dover—and never know it.  A short detour on your route will take you there.  It’s Bombay Hook National Wildlife Refuge, a quiet but spectacular place that draws few crowds of tourists, but lots of birds and other wildlife.

Bombay Hook National Wildlife Refuge is located just off Route 9, a lightly-traveled coastal road east of Dover, Delaware.  Note the Big Bluestem and other warm season grasses in the background.  Bombay Hook, like other refuges in the system, is managed for the benefit of the wildlife that relies upon it to survive.  Within recent years, most of the mowed grass and tilled ground that once occurred here has been replaced by prairie grasses or successional growth, much to the delight of Northern Bobwhite (Colinus virginianus) and other species.

Let’s join Uncle Tyler Dyer and have a look around Bombay Hook.  He’s got his duck stamp and he’s ready to go.

Uncle Ty’s current United States Fish and Wildlife Service Duck Stamp displayed on his dashboard is free admission to the tour road at Bombay Hook and other National Wildlife Refuges.
The refuge at Bombay Hook includes woodlands, grasslands, and man-made freshwater pools, but it is predominately a protectorate of thousands of acres of tidal salt marsh bordering and purifying the waters of Delaware Bay.  These marshes are renowned wintering areas for an Atlantic population of Snow Goose known as the “Greater Snow Goose” (Anser caerulescens atlanticus).  Witnessing thousands of these birds rising over the marsh and glowing in the amber light of a setting sun is an unforgettable experience.
Trails at various stops along the auto tour route lead to observation towers and other features. This boardwalk meanders into the salt marsh grasses and includes a viewing area alongside a tidal creek.  Our visit coincided with a very high tide induced by east winds and a new moon.
During high tide, an Eastern Cottontail (Sylvilagus floridanus) seeks higher ground near the boardwalk and the wooded edge of the salt marsh.
As the tide rises, fast-flying shorebirds scramble from flooded mudflats in the salt marsh on the east side of the tour road.
When high tide arrives in the salt marshes, shorebirds and waterfowl often concentrate in the man-made freshwater pools on the west side of the tour road.  Glaring afternoon sun is not the best for viewing birds located west of the road.  For ideal light conditions, time your visit for a day when high tide occurs in the morning and recedes to low tide in the afternoon.
A view looking west into Shearness Pool, largest of the freshwater impoundments at Bombay Hook.
Bombay Hook has many secretive birds hiding in its wetlands, but they can often be located by the patient observer.  Here, two Pied-billed Grebes feed in an opening among the vegetation in a freshwater pool.
One of Bombay Hook’s resident Bald Eagles patrols the wetlands.
American Avocets (Recurvirostra americana) gather by the hundreds at Bombay Hook during the fall.  A passing eagle will stir them into flight.
An American Avocet, a delicate wader with a peculiar upturned bill.
As soon as the tide begins receding, shorebirds and waterfowl like these Green-winged Teal begin dispersing into the salt marshes to feed on the exposed mudflats.
The woodlands and forested areas of the refuge host resident songbirds and can be attractive to migrating species like this Yellow-rumped Warbler.
For much of its course, the tour road at Bombay Hook is located atop the dike that creates the man-made freshwater pools on the western edge of the tidal salt marsh.  If you drive slowly and make frequent stops to look and listen, you’ll notice an abundance of birds and other wildlife living along this border between two habitats.  Here, a Swamp Sparrow has a look around.
Savannah Sparrows are common along the tour road where native grasses grow wild.
Bombay Hook is renowned for its rarities. One of the attractions during the late summer and autumn of 2021 was a group of Roseate Spoonbills (Platalea ajaja), vagrants from the southern states, seen here with Great Egrets and Snowy Egrets (Egretta thula).
Roseate Spoonbills and Great Egrets at Bombay Hook.

Remember to go the Post Office and get your duck stamp.  You’ll be supporting habitat acquisition and improvements for the wildlife we cherish.  And if you get the chance, visit a National Wildlife Refuge.  November can be a great time to go, it’s bug-free!  Just take along your warmest clothing and plan to spend the day.  You won’t regret it.

A Visit to the Post Office, for Just One Stamp

It’s been more than a year and a half since Uncle Tyler Dyer has been on one of our outings.  He’s been laying low, keeping to himself—to protect his health.  So he was quite excited when we made our way to the Delaware coast to have a look at some marine and beach life at Cape Henlopen State Park.

Uncle Ty hadn’t visited the Atlantic shoreline here for almost two decades, and he was more than a bit startled at what he saw…

Cape Henlopen State Park has spectacular wild dunes and pine forests, but notice how clean the high-tide line is on the beach.  This is not a good sign.  During our walks, we found not one mollusk shell (clam, scallop, snail, etc.), skate egg case, whelk egg case, dead fish, or other sign of benthic life from the adjacent surf and sea.
We found the remains of Mole Crabs (Emerita talpoida), also known as sand fleas, a crustacean that burrows into the surf-washed sands of the beach, but there were no signs of life from deeper waters.
One of a dozen or so Lesser Black-backed Gulls (Larus fuscus) observed consuming Mole Crabs. There was little else for these birds to eat.  Sanderlings (Calidris alba) and other shorebirds typically found foraging along the surf’s edge were totally absent.
Atlantic Ghost Crabs (Ocypode quadrata) live in the predominantly dry sands of the beach, above the high tide line.  Missing were the remains of aquatic crabs, including Atlantic Horseshoe Crabs (Limulus polyphemus), and other invertebrates that are often found washing in with the tide.
If you want to see an Atlantic Horseshoe Crab, you may have no better option than to visit the aquariums at the state park’s nature center.

A nearly sterile beach might be delightful for barefoot sunbathers and the running of the dogs, but Uncle Ty isn’t the barefoot type.  He likes his sandals and a slow peaceful stroll with plenty of flora and fauna to have a look at.  We could tell he was getting bored.  So we headed home.

Along the way, Uncle Ty asked to stop at the Post Office.  He wanted to get a stamp.  Thinking he was going to fire off a terse letter of protest to the powers that be about what he saw at the beach, we obliged.

Soon, Uncle Ty trotted down the steps of the Post Office with his stamp.

Uncle Tyler Dyer with his one stamp.  The 2021-2022 Federal Duck Stamp is available at most local Post Offices.  According to the United States Fish and Wildlife Service, ninety-eight percent of the $25 purchase price goes directly to acquiring and protecting wetland habitat.

Uncle Ty bought a duck stamp, so naturally we asked him when he decided to take up hunting.  He explained, “Man, I gave that stuff up when I was thirteen.  I’ve got the Thoreau/Walden mindset—hunting is something of an adolescent pursuit.”

It turns out Uncle Ty bought a duck stamp to support wetland acquisition and improvements, not only to benefit ducks and other wildlife living there, but to improve water quality.  In Delaware, tidal estuary restoration work is underway at both the Prime Hook and Bombay Hook National Wildlife Refuges on Delaware Bay.  These projects will certainly enhance the salt marsh’s filtration capabilities and just might improve the populations of benthic life in the bay and adjacent ocean at Cape Henlopen.

Uncle Ty tossed the stamp atop the dashboard and we were again on our way, but we weren’t going directly home.  We made a stop along the way.  A stop we’ll share with you next time.

Photo of the Day

A hatch-year/juvenile Red-tailed Hawk on its first southbound migration glides on an updraft created as northwest winds strike the slope of a hillside in the Valley and Ridge Province.  It’s a free ride, and this bird could easily cover one hundred miles or more in just one day of flying.

Photo of the Day

Those owl-faced Northern Harriers, formerly known as marsh hawks, are among the raptors and other migratory birds that will be rolling through the Lower Susquehanna River Watershed during the next couple of days.  A cold front is presently passing through the region and gusty northwest winds will follow.  This could be one of the best flights of the season, so make plans now to go to a hawk watch site atop a local ridge.  Don’t forget your field glasses!  And remember to click the “Hawkwatcher’s Helper: Identifying Bald Eagles and other Raptors” tab at the top of this page for a photo gallery of the vulture, hawk, eagle, and falcon species your likely to observe.

Photo of the Day

A Peregrine Falcon appearing to be equipped with a tracking transmitter passes the lookout at Second Mountain Hawk Watch in northern Lebanon County, Pennsylvania, today.  Note the antenna trailing behind the tail.  This individual appears to be a hatch-year/juvenile “Tundra Peregrine”.  An effort is currently underway to try to find out more about the bird and its travels.

Photo of the Day

The Woodchuck (Marmota monax), also known as the groundhog, gets no respect.  Shouldn’t it be the official state mammal of Pennsylvania?   After all, a nationally recognized holiday centers on the prognostications of the state’s favorite son, “Punxsutawney Phil”.  And think of all those state lottery tickets sold by that media groundhog, “Gus”.  Yep, only Pennsylvania would have an animal often named for a different state as its official mammal: the Virginia White-tailed Deity.

Photo of the Day

In the Lower Susquehanna River Watershed, the Common Yellowthroat is a summer resident that nests within brushy cover along stream courses and forest edges.  It is particularly fond of dense thorny growth in utility right-of-ways.  During spring and fall migrations, it is one of the most likely of the warbler species to be found visiting suburban shrubbery.

Photo of the Day

The Northern Slimy Salamander (Plethodon glutinosus) is a terrestrial denizen of steep forested slopes.  These amphibians are lungless, “breathing” air through their skin, so don’t touch or handle them.  In autumn, as freezing temperatures arrive in the lower Susquehanna region, Northern Slimy Salamanders seek a cozy subterranean shelter to pass the winter.

Photo of the Day

A juvenile Red-headed Woodpecker surveys the morning landscape.  In the lower Susquehanna watershed, Red-headed Woodpeckers are an uncommon summer breeder requiring large dead oak trees in semi-open habitat for nesting.  They can occasionally be found during winter in mature oak woods, appearing most frequently west of the river at places including Gifford Pinchot State Park.  Fall migrants are seen along local ridges in September and October.

Early Golden Eagles

Each autumn, Eastern Golden Eagles transit the Lower Susquehanna River Watershed as they make their way from nesting sites in eastern Canada to wintering ranges in the mountains of the eastern United States.  The majority of these birds make passage during late October and early November, so when a Golden Eagle is observed at a local hawk watch during the month of September, it is a notable event.  So far in 2021, both Waggoner’s Gap Hawk Watch north of Carlisle and Second Mountain Hawk Watch at Fort Indiantown Gap have logged early-season Golden Eagles, the former on the seventeenth of September and the latter just yesterday.

Two images of a distant Golden Eagle seen passing Second Mountain Hawk Watch on September 29th.  Plumage indicates it is a “before-third-year” bird.  Adult birds and birds born this year, the latter known as hatch-year or juvenile Golden Eagles, are the least likely to have already completed the journey from northern breeding territories to south-central Pennsylvania.  This individual is very likely an immature Golden Eagle in its second year, but a view of the topside of the wings would be necessary to eliminate a hatch-year/juvenile bird as a possibility.  Immature Golden Eagles, those birds in their second through fourth years, are the ones most at leisure to wander and show up as unanticipated visitors at unexpected times.

To learn more about identifying Golden Eagles and other birds of prey, be certain to click the “Hawkwatchers Helper: Identifying Bald Eagles and other Raptors” tab at the top of this page.

And for more specific information on Golden Eagles and how to determine their age, click the “Golden Eagle Aging Chart” tab at the top of this page.

Migration Update

Can it be that time already?  Most Neotropical birds have passed through the Lower Susquehanna River Watershed on their way south and the hardier species that will spend our winter in the more temperate climes of the eastern United States are beginning to arrive.

Here’s a gallery of sightings from recent days…

During the past two weeks, thousands of Broad-winged Hawks, including this adult bird, crossed the skies of the lower Susquehanna valley on their way to Central and South America for our winter.
A juvenile Broad-winged Hawk passes into the sunset during its first autumn migration.
Blackpoll Warblers are among the last of the Neotropical species to transit the region.  They’ll continue to be seen locally through at least early October.
Blue-headed Vireos are the October vireo during the fall, the other species having already continued toward tropical forests for a winter vacation.
The lower Susquehanna region lies just on the northern edge of the wintering range of the Blue-gray Gnatcatcher, a species found nesting locally among treetops in deciduous woods.  Look for their numbers to swell in coming days as birds from further north begin rolling through the region on their way south.
Sharp-shinned Hawks delight visitors at ridgetop hawk watches during breezy late-September and early-October days.  They allow closer observation than high-flying Broad-winged Hawks due to their habit of cruising just above the treetops while migrating.
A Sharp-shinned Hawk glides over a lookout.
Late September/early October is falcon time at area hawk-counting stations, the Peregrine Falcon often being the most anticipated species.
Pale “Tundra Peregrines”, a subspecies that nests in the arctic, are strictly migratory birds in the Mid-Atlantic States.  They are presently passing through on their way to South America.  Like Neotropical songbirds, their long flights provide them with the luxury of never experiencing a winter season.
This Carolina Saddlebags and other migratory dragonflies, which normally leave the area by mid-September, are still lingering in the lower Susquehanna region, much to the pleasure of the falcons that feed upon them.
An male American Kestrel in pursuit of dragonflies found swarming around the lookout at Second Mountain Hawk Watch in Lebanon County, Pennsylvania.
A male American Kestrel stooping on a dragonfly.
Osprey will be among the birds of prey passing hawk watch sites during the coming two weeks.  The first week of October often provides the best opportunity for seeing the maximum variety of raptors at a given site.  On a good day, a dozen species are possible.
Seeing cinnamon-colored juvenile Northern Harriers is symbolic of the October migration flights.
Bald Eagles always thrill the crowd.
In addition to raptors, resident Common Ravens are regularly sighted by observers at hawk watches and elsewhere during the fall season.
Hawk-counting stations sometimes log movements of Red-bellied Woodpeckers during late September and early October.  This species has extended its range into the Lower Susquehanna River Watershed only during the past one hundred years, making these seasonal migration movements a recent local phenomenon.
Blue Jays are currently on the move with breeding birds from the forests of Canada and the northern United States moving south.  Hundreds can be seen passing a given observation point during an ideal morning.
Blue Jays find a pile of peanuts to be an irresistible treat.  Provide the unsalted variety and watch the show!

Be sure to click on these tabs at the top of this page to find image guides to help you identify the dragonflies, birds, and raptors you see in the Lower Susquehanna River Watershed…

    • Damselflies and Dragonflies
    • Birds of Conewago Falls
    • Hawkwatcher’s Helper: Identifying Bald Eagles and other Raptors

See you next time!

Broad-winged Hawk Flights Underway

The smoke has cleared—at least for now—and Broad-winged Hawks are being seen migrating across lower Susquehanna valley skies.  Check out these daily counts from area hawk watches…

    • Rocky Ridge County Park Hawk Watch northeast of York, Pennsylvania: 475 Broad-winged Hawks on Saturday, September 18th—including 388 during the two hours between noon and 2 P.M.
    • Second Mountain Hawk Watch at Fort Indiantown Gap in Lebanon County, Pennsylvania: 300 Broad-winged Hawks on Wednesday, September 15th— one more than was tallied passing the site on the previous day.
    • Waggoner’s Gap Hawk Watch on Blue Mountain north of Carlisle, Pennsylvania: 1,211 Broad-winged Hawks on Tuesday, September 14th and 1,485 on Sunday, September 19th.
Broad-winged hawks in a “kettle” formation gaining altitude on a thermal updraft above Second Mountain Hawk Watch before continuing on their migratory journey.  “Kettling” can occur above any heat-generating surface on a sunny day, even a parking lot.
A migrating adult Broad-winged Hawk rising skyward.
A juvenile Broad-winged Hawk “feeding on the wing” consuming a dragonfly.

Additional Broad-winged Hawks are still working their way through the Mid-Atlantic States as they continue toward tropical wintering grounds.  And there’s more.  Numbers for a dozen other migratory hawk, eagle, and falcon species will peak between now and mid-November.  Days following passage of a cold front are generally best—so do get out there and have a look!

You can check the daily hawk count numbers and find detailed information for lookout sites all across North America at hawkcount.org

And don’t forget to click the “Hawkwatcher’s Helper” tab at the top of this page to see a gallery of photos that can help you to identify, and possibly determine the age of, the many species of raptors that occur in the Lower Susquehanna River Watershed.

A juvenile Merlin clutching a dragonfly takes a late-afternoon break from its migration flight.  Merlin numbers peak in early October.

Smoky Skies in the Lower Susquehanna Region

During the coming two weeks, peak numbers of migrating Neotropical birds will be passing through the northeastern United States including the lower Susquehanna valley.  Hawk watches are staffed and observers are awaiting big flights of Broad-winged Hawks—hoping to see a thousand birds or more in a single day.

During its passage through the Lower Susquehanna River Watershed, an adult Broad-winged Hawk sails over Second Mountain Hawk Watch in Lebanon County, Pennsylvania.
A hatch-year/juvenile Broad-winged Hawk gazes toward hawk watchers on the ground.

Broad-winged hawks feed on rodents, amphibians, and a variety of large insects while on their breeding grounds in the forests of the northern United States and Canada.  They depart early, journeying to wintering areas in Central and South America before frost robs them of a reliable food supply.

The Carolina Saddlebags (Tramea carolina), this one photographed at Second Mountain Hawk Watch on September 8th, is the rarest of the lower Susquehanna region’s migratory dragonflies.  Autumn Broad-winged Hawk movements coincide with southbound flights of the Carolina Saddlebags and the more numerous migratory dragonfly species: Common Green Darner, Wandering Glider, Twelve-spotted Skimmer, and Black Saddlebags.  “Broad-wings” will often eat these and other dragonflies during migration and can sometimes be seen catching and feeding upon them while still soaring high overhead.

While migrating, Broad-winged Hawks climb to great altitudes on thermal updrafts and are notoriously difficult to see from ground level.  Bright sunny skies with no clouds to serve as a backdrop further complicate a hawk counter’s ability to spot passing birds.  Throughout the Lower Susquehanna River Watershed, the coming week promises to be especially challenging for those trying to observe and census the passage of high-flying Broad-winged Hawks.  The forecast of hot and humid weather is not so unusual, but the addition of smoke from fires in the western states promises to intensify the haze and create an especially irritating glare for those searching the skies for raptors.

Smoke from fires along the California coast and in central Utah can be seen streaming east this morning.  (NOAA/GOES image)
Smoke from western fires and humid air creates a band of haze in Ohio, Pennsylvania, New Jersey, and states to the south this morning.   (NOAA/GOES image)

 

A migrating Broad-winged Hawk in the glare of a hazy sky.  In addition to visibility problems, swarms of Spotted Lanternflies above the treetops make distant hawks difficult to discern for hawk watchers scanning the horizon with binoculars.

It may seem gloomy for the mid-September flights in 2021, but hawk watchers are hardy types.  They know that the birds won’t wait.  So if you want to see migrating “Broad-wings” and other species, you’ve got to get out there and look up while they’re passing through.

Migrating Ospreys typically fly low enough and are large enough to be spotted even during the haziest of conditions.
Bald Eagles like this fourth-year bird can ascend to great altitude, but their size usually prevents them from sneaking past a lookout unnoticed.
Peregrines escape notice not due to hazy sky conditions, but because they pass by so quickly.  They’re being seen at local hawk watches now through October.

These hawk watches in the Lower Susquehanna River Watershed are currently staffed by official counters and all welcome visitors:

    • Rocky Ridge County Park Hawk Watch—3699 Deininger Road off Mount Zion Road (Route 24) northeast of York, Pennsylvania.
    • Second Mountain Hawk Watch—off Cold Spring Road on the grounds of Fort Indiantown Gap in Lebanon County, Pennsylvania.
    • Waggoner’s Gap Hawk Watch—where Route 74 crosses Blue Mountain north of Carlisle, Pennsylvania.

—or you can just keep an eye on the sky from wherever you happen to be.  And don’t forget to check the trees and shrubs because warbler numbers are peaking too!  During recent days…

Northern Parula at Chiques Rock County Park in Lancaster County.
Black-and-white Warbler at Rocky Ridge County Park in York County.
Cape May Warbler at Chiques Rock County Park in Lancaster County.
Bay-breasted Warbler at Rocky Ridge County Park in York County.

Warblers Passing Through the Lower Susquehanna River Valley

Neotropical birds are presently migrating south from breeding habitats in the United States and Canada to wintering grounds in Central and South America.  Among them are more than two dozen species of warblers—colorful little passerines that can often be seen darting from branch to branch in the treetops as they feed on insects during stopovers in the Lower Susquehanna River Watershed.

Being nocturnal migrants, warblers are best seen first thing in the morning among sunlit foliage, often high in the forest canopy.  After a night of flying, they stop to feed and rest.  Warblers frequently join resident chickadees, titmice, and nuthatches to form a foraging flock that can contain dozens of songbirds.  Migratory flycatchers, vireos, tanagers, and grosbeaks often accompany southbound warblers during early morning “fallouts”.  Usually, the best way to find these early fall migrants is to visit a forest edge or thicket, particularly along a stream, a utility right-of-way, or on a ridge top.  Then too, warblers and other Neotropical migrants are notorious for showing up in groves of mature trees in urban parks and residential neighborhoods—so look up!

A Black-and-white Warbler descends into the tangles of the forest understory to search for a morning meal of insects or creepy-crawlies.
Success!  Looks like a cranefly (Tipulidae).
A Black-throated Green Warbler high in the treetops.
Warblers often travel and feed in the company of other Neotropical species like this Red-eyed Vireo.
Get out and look for those Neotropical migrants now because, like this Canada Warbler, in just a few weeks they’ll be gone.

Be sure to visit the Birds of Conewago Falls page by clicking the “Birds” tab at the top of this page.  There, you’ll find photographs of the birds, including warblers and other Neotropical migrants, that you’re likely to encounter at locations throughout the Lower Susquehanna River Watershed.

Shorebirds at Middle Creek

Late August and early September is prime time to see migrating shorebirds as they pass through the lower Susquehanna valley during their autumn migration, which, believe it or not, can begin as early as late June.  These species that are often assumed to spend their lives only near the seashore are regular visitors each fall as they make their way from breeding grounds in the interior of Canada to wintering sites in seacoast wetlands—many traveling as far south as Central and South America.

Low water levels on the Susquehanna River often coincide with the shorebird migration each year, exposing gravel and sand bars as well as vast expanses of muddy shorelines as feeding and resting areas for these traveling birds.  This week though, rain from the remnants of Tropical Storm Fred arrived to increase the flow in the Susquehanna and inundate most of the natural habitat for shorebirds.  Those on the move must either continue through the area without stopping or find alternate locations to loaf and find food.

The draining and filling of wetlands along the river and elsewhere in the region has left few naturally-occurring options.  The Conejohela Flats south of Columbia offer refuge to many migrating sandpipers and their allies, the river level there being controlled by releases from the Safe Harbor Dam during all but the severest of floods.  Shorebirds will sometimes visit flooded fields, but wide-open puddles and farmland resembling mudflats is more of springtime occurrence—preceding the planting and growth of crops.  Well-designed stormwater holding facilities can function as habitat for sandpipers and other wildlife.  They are worth checking on a regular basis—you never know what might drop in.

Right now, there is a new shorebird hot spot in the Lower Susquehanna River Watershed—Middle Creek Wildlife Management Area.  The water level in the main impoundment there has been drawn down during recent weeks to expose mudflats along the periphery of nearly the entire lake.  Viewing from “Stop 1” (the roadside section of the lake in front of the refuge museum) is best.  The variety of species and their numbers can change throughout the day as birds filter in and out—at times traveling to other mudflats around the lake where they are hidden from view.  The birds at “Stop 1” are backlit in the morning with favorable illumination developing in the afternoon.

Have a look at a few of the shorebirds currently being seen at Middle Creek…

The Killdeer is familiar as a breeding bird in the lower Susquehanna region.  Large numbers can congregate ahead of and during migration on mudflats and gravel bars.
The Least Sandpiper is one of the “peeps”, a group of very small shorebirds.  This species is quite common at Middle Creek right now.  Note the plants beginning to grow in the mud.  Later in the fall, after the shorebirds are gone, raising the water level in the lake will flood these newly vegetated areas to provide an abundance of food for migrating waterfowl.  This cycle can be repeated annually to support transient birds during what is often the most vulnerable time of their lives…fall migration.
The Baird’s Sandpiper (Calidris bairdii) is an uncommon “peep” along the east coast during autumn migration.  On the lower Susquehanna it is most frequently encountered on the vegetated gravel bars in mid-river during the last days of August or first days of September each year.  The mudflats and shallows at Middle Creek are providing a suitable alternative for this juvenile bird.
Numbers of Lesser Yellowlegs are increasing as flocks drop by for a rest and refueling.  Bring your binoculars and your spotting scope to see the oddities that may be hiding among these groups of newly-arriving migrants.

The aquatic environs at Middle Creek attract other species as well.   Here are some of the most photogenic…

Wood Ducks atop the dam.
The migration of Caspian Terns coincides with that of shorebirds.  Just look at that blood-red bill; it’s unmistakable.  Two of these big terns are currently patrolling Middle Creek’s lake and shoreline.
A female American Kestrel creates a stir among the “peeps” as it passes by.  The larger falcons (the Merlin and Peregrine) can be expected to more readily take advantage of concentrations of shorebirds as a food supply.
Osprey migration is underway, and many will stop at Middle Creek while in transit.
Even if shorebirds aren’t your thing, there are almost always Bald Eagles to be seen at Middle Creek.  See you there!

Be on the Lookout for Mississippi Kites

Common sense tells us that Brood X Periodical Cicada emergence begins in the southern part of the population zone, where the ground temperatures reach 64° first, then progresses to the north as the weather warms.  In the forested hills where the lower Piedmont falls away onto the flat landscape of the Atlantic Coastal Plain in Maryland’s Cecil and Harford Counties, the hum of seventeen-year-old insects saturates a listener’s ears from all directions—the climax nears.

Periodical Cicadas, mostly Magicicada  septendecim, are well into their breeding cycle along the Piedmont-Atlantic Coastal Plain border right now.  Love is in the air.

With all that food flying around, you just knew something unusual was going to show up to eat it.  It’s a buffet.  It’s a smorgasbord.  It’s free, it’s all-you-can-eat, and it seems, at least for the moment, like it’s going to last forever.  You know it’ll draw a crowd.

The Mississippi Kite (Ictinia mississippiensis), a trim long-winged bird of prey, is a Neotropical migrant, an insect-eating friend of the farmer, and, as the name “kite” suggests, a buoyant flier.  It experiences no winter—breeding in the southern United States from April to July, then heading to South America for the remainder of the year.  Its diet consists mostly of large flying insects including beetles, leafhoppers, grasshoppers, dragonflies, and, you guessed it, cicadas.  Mississippi Kites frequently hunt in groups—usually catching and devouring their food while on the wing.  Pairs nest in woodlands, swamps, and in urban areas with ample prey.  They are well known for harmlessly swooping at people who happen to get too close to their nest.

Mississippi Kites nest regularly as far north as southernmost Virginia.  For at least three decades now, non-breeding second-year birds known as immatures have been noted as wanderers in the Mid-Atlantic States, particularly in late May and early June.  They are seen annually at Cape May, New Jersey.  They are rare, but usually seen at least once every year, along the Piedmont-Atlantic Coastal Plain border in northern Delaware, northeastern Maryland, and/or southeastern Pennsylvania.  Then came the Brood X Periodical Cicadas of 2021.

During the last week of May and these first days of June, there have been dozens of sightings of cicada-eating Mississippi Kites in locations along the lower Piedmont slope in Harford and Cecil Counties in Maryland, at “Bucktoe Creek Preserve” in southern Chester County, Pennsylvania, and in and near Newark in New Castle County, Delaware.  They are being seen daily right on the lower Susquehanna watershed’s doorstep.

Today, we journeyed just south of Mason’s and Dixon’s Delaware-Maryland-Pennsylvania triangle to White Clay Creek State Park along Route 896 north of Newark, Delaware.  Once there, we took a short bicycle ride into a wooded neighborhood across the street in Maryland to search for the Mississippi Kites that have been reported there in recent days.

Periodical Cicadas filled the treetops and the airspace just above them.
It wasn’t long before Mississippi Kites appeared over the trees along a hilltop clearing to snatch up cicadas for a morning meal.
This kite glides on autopilot as it holds a captured cicada in its talons and tears it apart with its hook-shaped bill.
At least ten Mississippi Kites have been seen simultaneously at this site or in nearby Newark during recent days. This morning, we saw six.
All the Mississippi Kites we saw today were second-year birds.  The banded tail is characteristic of both hatch-year (juvenile) and second-year (immature) Mississippi Kites.  Of course, at this time of year, hatch-year birds are still in the nest and not flying around pigging out on Periodical Cicadas.
The banded tail, gray underside, and white head of a second-year Mississippi Kite.  Though known as immature or subadult birds during their second year, there are records of Mississippi Kites successfully breeding at this age.  Recent wanderings into the Mid-Atlantic States and New England have led to a spotty expansion of the nesting range there.
Mississippi Kites in their second year undergo molt of their flight feathers. The timing can vary greatly among individual birds with diet among the factors affecting the process.  This bird is just beginning the replacement of its juvenile remiges and rectrices.
Tail molt beginning on this second-year Mississippi Kite.  These banded juvenile tail feathers will be replaced by a set of all-dark adult rectrices.
A second-year Mississippi Kite with an all-dark adult tail feather (rectrix).  An abundance of protein-rich cicadas should provide ample nutrition to keep the molt process going for this maturing bird, at least for another couple of weeks.  Relocating inland on the Piedmont could keep this and other kites well-nourished for even longer.

Will groups of Mississippi Kites develop a taste for our seventeen-year cicadas and move north into the Lower Susquehanna River Watershed?  Ah, to be young and a nomad—that’s the life.  Wandering on a whim with one goal in mind—food.  It could very well be that now’s the time to be on the lookout for Mississippi Kites, especially where Brood X Periodical Cicadas are abundant.

How to Remove a Mole in Just Five Minutes

Some consider them things of beauty.  Others reckon them hideous—better kept out of sight and out of mind.   They’re moles, and here’s how they’re removed in just five minutes.

Let’s begin…
…First Minute…
…Second Minute…
…Third Minute…
…Fourth Minute…
…Fifth Minute…
Red Fox (Vulpes vulpes) with an Eastern Mole (Scalopus aquaticus).

Moles—they’re an acquired taste.

Maximum Variety

You’ll want to go for a walk this week.  It’s prime time to see birds in all their spring splendor.  Colorful Neotropical migrants are moving through in waves to supplement the numerous temperate species that arrived earlier this spring to begin their nesting cycle.  Here’s a sample of what you might find this week along a rail-trail, park path, or quiet country road near you—even on a rainy or breezy day.

The Black-throated Blue Warbler is one of more than two dozen species of warblers passing through the Lower Susquehanna River Watershed right now.  Look for it in the middle and bottom branches of deciduous forest growth.
The Veery and other woodland thrushes sing a melodious song.  Veerys remain through the summer to nest in damp mature deciduous forests.
The American Redstart, this one a first-spring male, is another of the variety of warblers arriving now.  Redstarts nest in deciduous forests with a dense understory.
Adaptable inquisitive Gray Catbirds are here to nest in any shrubby habitat, whether in a forest or a suburban garden.
Blue-gray Gnatcatchers (Polioptilia caerulea) arrive in April, so they’ve been here for a while.  They spend most of their time foraging in the treetops.  The gnatcatcher’s wheezy call alerts the observer to their presence.
Look way up there, it’s a pair of Blue-gray Gnatcatchers building a nest.
The Eastern Phoebe, a species of flycatcher, often arrives as early as mid-March.  This particular bird and its mate are already nesting beneath a stone bridge that passes over a woodland stream.
Orchard Orioles (Icturus spurius) are Neotropical migrants that nest locally in habitats with scattered large trees, especially in meadows and abandoned orchards.
In the lower Susquehanna region, the Baltimore Oriole is a more widespread breeding species than the Orchard Oriole.  In addition to the sites preferred  by the latter, it will nest in groves of mature trees on farms and estates, in parks, and in forest margins where the canopy is broken.
The Warbling Vireo (Vireo  gilvus) nests in big trees along streams, often sharing habitat with our two species of orioles.
Eastern Towhees arrive in numbers during April.  They nest in thickets and hedgerows, where a few stragglers can sometimes be found throughout the winter.
The Yellow-breasted Chat (Icteria virens) is a migrant from the tropics that sometimes nests locally in thorny thickets.  Its song consists of a mixed variety of loud phrases, reminding the listener of mimics like catbirds, thrashers, and mockingbirds.
Thickets with fragrant blooms of honeysuckle and olive attract migrating Ruby-throated Hummingbirds.  Look for them taking a break on a dead branch where they can have a look around and hold on tight during gusts of wind.
The Eastern Kingbird, a Neotropical flycatcher, may be found near fields and meadows with an abundance of insects.  In recent years, high-intensity farming practices have reduced the occurrence of kingbirds as a nesting species in the lower Susquehanna valley.  The loss of pasture acreage appears to have been particularly detrimental.
Savannah Sparrows (Passerculus sandwichensis) can be found in grassy fields throughout the year.  Large parcels that go uncut through at least early July offer them the opportunity to nest.
Male Bobolinks have been here for just more than a week.  Look for them in alfalfa fields and meadows.  Like Savannah Sparrows, Bobolinks nest on the ground and will lose their eggs and/or young if fields are mowed during the breeding cycle.
Cattail marshes are currently home to nesting Swamp Sparrows.  Wetlands offer an opportunity to see a variety of unique species in coming weeks.
Shorebirds like this Solitary Sandpiper will be transiting the lower Susquehanna basin through the end of May.  They stop to rest in wetlands, flooded fields, and on mudflats and alluvial islets in the region’s larger streams.  Many of these shorebirds nest in far northern Canada.  So remember, they need to rest and recharge for the long trip ahead, so try not to disturb them.

Conowingo Dam: Cormorants, Eagles, Snakeheads and a Run of Hickory Shad

Meet the Double-crested Cormorant,  a strangely handsome bird with a special talent for catching fish.  You see, cormorants are superb swimmers when under water—using their webbed feet to propel and maneuver themselves with exceptional speed in pursuit of prey.

Like many species of birds that dive for their food, Double-crested Cormorants run across the surface of the water to gain speed for a takeoff.  Smaller wings may make it more difficult to get airborne, but when folded, they provide improved streamlining for submerged swimming.

Double-crested Cormorants, hundreds of them, are presently gathered along with several other species of piscivorous (fish-eating) birds on the lower Susquehanna River below Conowingo Dam near Rising Sun, Maryland.  Fish are coming up the river and these birds are taking advantage of their concentrations on the downstream side of the impoundment to provide food to fuel their migration or, in some cases, to feed their young.

Double-crested Cormorants, mostly adult birds migrating toward breeding grounds to the north, are gathered on the rocks on the east side of the river channel below Conowingo Dam.  A Great Blue Heron from a nearby rookery can be seen at the center of the image.
Bald Eagles normally gather in large numbers at Conowingo Dam in the late fall and early winter.  Presently there are more than 50 there, and the majority of them are breeding age adults.  Presumably they are still on their way north to nest.  Meanwhile, local pairs are already feeding young, so it seems these transient birds are running a bit late.  Many of them can be seen on the rocks along the east side of the river channel,…
…on the powerline trestles on the island below the dam…
…in the trees along the east shore,…
…and in the trees surrounding Fisherman’s Park on the west shore.

In addition to the birds, the movements of fish attract larger fish, and even larger fishermen.

Anglers gather to fish the placid waters below the dam’s hydroelectric powerhouse .  Only a few of the generating turbines are operating, so the flow through the dam is minimal.
Some water is being released along the west shoreline to attract migratory river herring to the west fish lift for sorting and retention as breeding stock for a propagation program.  The east lift, the passage that hoists American Shad (Alosa sapidissima) to a trough that allows them to swim over the top of the dam to waters upriver, will begin operating as soon as these larger migratory fish begin arriving.

The excitement starts when the sirens start to wail and the red lights begin flashing.  Yes friends, it’s showtime.

Red lights and sirens are a warning that additional flow is about to be released from the dam.  Boaters should anticipate rough water and persons in and along the river need to seek higher ground immediately.
Gates are opened at mid-river to release a surge of water through the dam.
The wake from the release quickly reaches the shoreline, raising the water level in moments.
Experienced anglers know that the flow through the dam gets fish moving and can improve the catch significantly, especially in spring when many species are ascending the river.

Within minutes of the renewed flow, birds are catching fish.

A Double-crested Cormorant with a young Channel Catfish (Ictalurus punctatus).
A Double-crested Cormorant fleeing others trying to steal its Channel Catfish.
Another Double-crested Cormorant eating a Channel Catfish.  Did you realize that Channel Catfish were an introduced species in the Susquehanna River system?
An Osprey with a stick, it’s too busy building a nest right now to fish.
Great Blue Herons swallow their prey at the spot of capture, then fly back to the nest to regurgitate a sort of “minced congealed fish product” to their young.

Then the anglers along the wave-washed shoreline began catching fish too.

This young man led off a flurry of catches that would last for the remainder of the afternoon.
Though Gizzard Shad are filter feeders that don’t readily take baits and lures, they are regularly foul-hooked and reeled in from the large schools that ascend the river in spring.
Gizzard Shad are very abundant in the lower Susquehanna, providing year-round forage for many species of predatory animals including Bald Eagles.
A Double-crested Cormorant swallowing a Gizzard Shad.
This angler soon helped another fisherman by landing his large catch, a Northern Snakehead (Channa argus).
The teeth of a Northern Snakehead are razor sharp.  It is an aggressive non-native invasive species currently overtaking much of the Lower Susquehanna River Watershed.  Anglers are encouraged to fish for them, catch them, keep them, and kill them at the site of capture.  Never transport a live Northern Snakehead  anywhere at any time.  It is illegal in both Maryland and Pennsylvania to possess a live snakehead. 
Northern Snakehead advisory sign posted at Exelon Energy’s Conowingo Fishermen’s Park.
A stringer of Northern Snakeheads.  This species was imported from Asia as a food fish, so it has excellent culinary possibilities.  It’s better suited for a broiler or frying pan than a river or stream.
Another stringer of Northern Snakeheads.  It’s pretty safe to say that they have quickly become one of the most abundant predatory fish in the river.  Their impact on native species won’t be good, so catch and eat as many as you can.  Remember, snakeheads swim better in butter and garlic than in waters with native fish.
This foul-hooked Shorthead Redhorse (Moxostoma macrolepidotum), a native species of sucker, was promptly released.
Striped Bass are anadromous fish that leave the sea in spring to spawn in fresh water.  They ascend the Susquehanna in small numbers, relying upon the operation of the fish passages at the Conowingo, Holtwood, Safe Harbor, and York Haven Dams to continue their journey upstream.  During spring spawning, Striped Bass in the Susquehanna River and on the Susquehanna Flats portion of the upper Chesapeake Bay are not in season and may not be targeted, even for catch-and-release.  This accidental catch was immediately turned loose.
After removal from the hook, this hefty Smallmouth Bass was returned to the river.  Many anglers are surprised to learn that Smallmouth Bass are not native to the Susquehanna basin.
This angler’s creel contains a Northern Snakehead (left) and a Walleye (right).  Did you know that the Walleye (Sander vitreus) is an introduced species in the Susquehanna watershed?
By late afternoon, anglers using shad darts began hooking into migrating Hickory Shad (Alosa mediocris), a catch-and-release species in Maryland.
Hickory Shad are recognized by their lengthy lower jaw.  They are anadromous herring that leave the sea to spawn in freshwater streams.  Hickory Shad ascend the Susquehanna as far as Conowingo Dam each year, but shy away from the fish lifts.  Downriver from the dam, they do ascend Deer Creek along the river’s west shore and Octoraro Creek on the east side.  In Pennsylvania, the Hickory Shad is an endangered species.
A Hickory Shad angled on a dual shad dart rig.  During the spring spawning run, they feed mostly on small fish, and are the most likely of the Susquehanna’s herring to take the hook.
Simultaneous hook-ups became common after fours hours worth of release water from the dam worked its way toward the mouth of the river and got the schools moving.  Water temperatures in the mid-to-upper-fifties trigger the ascent of Hickory Shad.  On the Susquehanna, those temperatures were slow to materialize in the spring of 2021, so the Hickory Shad migration is a bit late.
Catch-and-release fishing for Hickory Shad appears to be in full swing not only at the dam, but along the downstream shoreline to at least the mouth of Deer Creek at Susquehanna State Park too.
Many Hickory Shad could be seen feeding on some of the millions of caddisflies (Trichoptera) swarming on the river.  These insects, along with earlier hatches of Winter Stoneflies (Taeniopterygidae), not only provide forage for many species of fish, but  are a vital source of natural food for birds that migrate up the river in March and April each year.  Swallows, Ring-billed Gulls, and Bonaparte’s Gulls are particularly fond of snatching them from the surface of the water.
A Winter Stonefly (Taeniopterygidae) from an early-season hatch on the Susquehanna River at the Veteran’s Memorial Bridge at Columbia/Wrightsville, Pennsylvania.  (March 3, 2021)
Just below Conowingo Dam, a lone fly fisherman was doing a good job mimicking the late-April caddisfly hatch, successfully reeling in numerous surface-feeding Hickory Shad.
You may have noticed the extraordinary number of introduced fish species listed in this account of a visit to Conowingo Dam.  Sorry to say that there are two more: the Flathead Catfish (Pylodictis olivaris) and the Blue Catfish (Ictalurus furcatus).  Like the Northern Snakehead, each has become a plentiful invasive species during recent years.  Unlike the Northern Snakehead, these catfish are “native transplants”, species introduced from populations in the Mississippi River and Gulf Slope drainages of the United States.  So if you visit the area, consider getting a fishing license and catching a few.  Like the snakeheads, they too are quite palatable.

The arrival of migrating Hickory Shad heralds the start of a movement that will soon include White Perch, anadromous American Shad, and dozens of other fish species that swim upstream during the springtime.  Do visit Fisherman’s Park at Conowingo Dam to see this spectacle before it’s gone.  The fish and birds have no time to waste, they’ll soon be moving on.

To reach Exelon’s Conowingo Fisherman’s Park from Rising Sun, Maryland, follow U.S. Route 1 south across the Conowingo Dam, then turn left onto Shuresville Road, then make a sharp left onto Shureslanding Road.  Drive down the hill to the parking area along the river.  The park’s address is 2569 Shureslanding Road, Darlington, Maryland.

A water release schedule for the Conowingo Dam can be obtained by calling Exelon Energy’s Conowingo Generation Hotline at 888-457-4076.  The recording is updated daily at 5 P.M. to provide information for the following day.

And remember, the park can get crowded during the weekends, so consider a weekday visit.

Coming Soon, Very Soon: Brood X Periodical Cicadas

Yesterday, a hike through a peaceful ridgetop woods in the Furnace Hills of southern Lebanon County resulted in an interesting discovery.  It was extraordinarily quiet for a mid-April afternoon.  Bird life was sparse—just a pair of nesting White-breasted Nuthatches and a drumming Hairy Woodpecker.  A few deer scurried down the hillside.  There was little else to see or hear.  But if one were to have a look below the forest floor, they’d find out where the action is.

Not much action in the deer-browsed understory of this stand of hardwoods.
Upon discovery beneath a rock, this invertebrate quickly backed its way down the burrow, promptly seeking shelter in the underground section of the excavation.
A closeup of the same image reveals the red eyes of this Periodical Cicada (Magicicada species) nymph.  It has reached the end of seventeen years of slowly feeding upon the sap from a tree root to nourish its five instars (stages) of larval development.

2021 is an emergence year for Brood X, the “Great Eastern Brood”—the largest of the 15 surviving broods of Periodical Cicadas.  After seventeen years as subterranean larvae, the nymphs are presently positioned just below ground level, and they’re ready to see sunlight.  After tunneling upward from the deciduous tree roots from which they fed on small amounts of sap since 2004, they’re awaiting a steady ground temperature of about 64 degrees Fahrenheit before surfacing to climb a tree, shrub, or other object and undergo one last molt into an imago—a flying adult.

Here, approximately one dozen Periodical Cicada nymphs have tunneled into pre-emergence positions beneath a rock.  Seventeen-year Periodical Cicadas, sometimes mistakenly called “seventeen-year locusts”, are the longest-lived of our insects.
Note the wings and red eyes beneath the exoskeleton of this Periodical Cicada nymph. Within weeks it will join billions of others in a brief emergence to molt, dry, fly, mate, and die.
Adult (imago) Periodical Cicadas.  Brood X includes all three species of seventeen-year Periodical Cicadas: Magicicada septendecim, M. cassinii, and M. septendecula.  All Periodical Cicadas in the United States are found east of the Great Plains, the lack of trees there prohibiting the expansion of their range further west.  Seventeen-year life cycles account for twelve of the fifteen broods of Periodical Cicadas; the balance live for thirteen years.  The range of Brood X includes the lower Susquehanna basin and parts of Delaware, Georgia, Illinois, Indiana, Kentucky, Maryland, Michigan, New Jersey, Ohio, Tennessee, Virginia, West Virginia, and the District of Columbia.  (United States Department of Agriculture/Agricultural Research Service image)
The flight of Periodical Cicadas peaks in late-May and June.  Shown here is the Eastern Scissor Grinder, an “Annual Cicada” that emerges later in the season, peaking yearly during July and August.

The woodlots of the Lower Susquehanna River Watershed won’t be quiet for long.  Loud choruses of male Periodical Cicadas will soon roar through forest and verdant suburbia.  They’re looking for love, and they’re gonna die trying to find it.  And dozens and dozens of animal species will take advantage of the swarms to feed themselves and their young.  Yep, the woods are gonna be a lively place real soon.

Did you say Periodical Cicadas?  We can hardly wait!

Piebald Deer at Middle Creek Wildlife Management Area

Except for a few injured stragglers, Snow Geese have departed Middle Creek Wildlife Management Area in Lancaster and Lebanon Counties to continue their journey north to breeding grounds in Canada.  The crowds of observers are gone too.  So if you’re looking for a reason to pay a visit to a much quieter refuge, here it is—especially if you’re a devoted deer worshiper.

There is at least one white deer being seen on the refuge.  That’s right, a white deer.  Its unusual color is really becoming conspicuous as the landscape begins turning from shades of gray to various hues of bright green.

No, it’s not a reindeer.  This piebald White-tailed Deity was seen this afternoon on the west side of Kleinfeltersville Road north of the Middle Creek W.M.A. visitor’s center opposite the Willow Point Trail parking lot.  Those of you who are regular deer-watchers at Middle Creek are familiar with the location, and maybe this particular white-tail too.
Because it has brown eyes and a brown snout, we known this is not an albino deer.  A piebald deer possesses white pelage as the result of genetic inheritance of an uncommon recessive allele possessed by both parents.  Other anatomical mutations can accompany the receipt of the piebald variation, some of them crippling.  The pale young deer entering the picture from the right bears some resemblance to the piebald on the left.  We may be seeing ten-month-old twins foraging with their brown-coated mother.

If you go, you’ll need binoculars to pick out these uncommon deer.  And remember to be very careful when parking and observing along Kleinfeltersville Road.  The speeding cars and trucks there can be wickedly dangerous, so give them lots of room.

Forest vs. Woodlot

Let’s take a quiet stroll through the forest to have a look around.  The spring awakening is underway and it’s a marvelous thing to behold.  You may think it a bit odd, but during this walk we’re not going to spend all of our time gazing up into the trees.  Instead, we’re going to investigate the happenings at ground level—life on the forest floor.

Rotting logs and leaf litter create the moisture retaining detritus in which mesic forest plants grow and thrive.  Note the presence of mosses and a vernal pool in this damp section of forest.
The earliest green leaves in the forest are often those of the Skunk Cabbage (Simplocarpus foetidus).  This member of the arum family gets a head start by growing in the warm waters of a spring seep or in a stream-fed wetland.  Like many native wildflowers of the forest, Skunk Cabbage takes advantage of early-springtime sun to flower and grow prior to the time in late April when deciduous trees grow foliage and cast shade beneath their canopy.
Among the bark of dead and downed trees, the Mourning Cloak butterfly (Nymphalis antiopa) hibernates for the winter.  It emerges to alight on sun-drenched surfaces in late winter and early spring.
Another hibernating forest butterfly that emerges on sunny early-spring days is the Eastern Comma (Polygonia comma), also known as the Hop Merchant.
In a small forest brook, a water strider (Gerridae) chases its shadow using the surface tension of the water to provide buoyancy.  Forests are essential for the protection of headwaters areas where our streams get their start.
Often flooded only in the springtime, fish-free pools of water known as vernal ponds are essential breeding habitat for many forest-dwelling amphibians.  Unfortunately, these ephemeral wetland sites often fall prey to collecting, dumping, filling, and vandalism by motorized and non-motorized off-roaders, sometimes resulting in the elimination of the populations of frogs, toads, and salamanders that use them.
Wood Frogs (Lithobates sylvaticus) emerge from hiding places among downed timber and leaf litter to journey to a nearby vernal pond where they begin calling still more Wood Frogs to the breeding site.
Wood Frog eggs must hatch and tadpoles must transform into terrestrial frogs before the pond dries up in the summertime.  It’s a risky means of reproduction, but it effectively evades the enormous appetites of fish.
When the egg laying is complete, adult Wood Frogs return to the forest and are seldom seen during the rest of the year.
In early spring, Painted Turtles emerge from hideouts in larger forest pools, particularly those in wooded swamps, to bask in sunny locations.
Dead standing trees, often called snags, are essential habitats for many species of forest wildlife.  There is an entire biological process, a micro-ecosystem, involved in the decay of a dead tree.  It includes fungi, bacteria, and various invertebrate animals that reduce wood into the detritus that nourishes and hydrates new forest growth.
Birds like this Red-headed Woodpecker feed on insects found in large snags and nest almost exclusively in them.  Many species of wildlife rely on dead trees, both standing and fallen, during all or part of their lives.

There certainly is more to a forest than the living trees.  If you’re hiking through a grove of timber getting snared in a maze of prickly Multiflora Rose (Rosa multiflora) and seeing little else but maybe a wild ungulate or two, then you’re in a has-been forest.  Logging, firewood collection, fragmentation, and other man-made disturbances inside and near forests take a collective toll on their composition, eventually turning them to mere woodlots.  Go enjoy the forests of the lower Susquehanna valley while you still can.  And remember to do it gently; we’re losing quality as well as quantity right now—so tread softly.

The White-tailed Deity in a woodlot infested by invasive tangles of Multiflora Rose.

Snow Goose Numbers Peaking

It’s that time—Snow Goose numbers are peaking at Middle Creek Wildlife Management Area in Lancaster/Lebanon Counties.

Today, migrating Snow Geese arriving from wintering areas on the Atlantic Coastal Plain blanketed the ice-free half of the lake at Middle Creek.  There are probably in excess of 100,000 birds at the refuge right now.
The density on the lake is relieved as geese filter out to a nearby field to graze.
Periodically throughout the day, observers are thrilled by the sight of Snow Geese rising into the air in unison as a thunderously loud cloud of birds.
Open water is at a premium right now, so these Ring-necked Ducks and a Tundra Swan have to squeeze in where they can.
If you’re going to Middle Creek to see the Snow Geese, be certain to bring your camera and viewing optics.  If you want to miss the largest crowds, the Pennsylvania Game Commission recommends visiting during the morning or on a weekday.  For everyone’s safety, please remember to slow down and follow the posted parking directives.  And so that the wildlife isn’t disturbed by your visit, please heed the signs designating the no-entry and propagation zones.

Common Goldeneyes, Buffleheads, and Migrating Canada Geese

Spring migration is underway and waterfowl are on the move along the lower Susquehanna River.  Here is a sample of sightings collected during a walk across the Veteran’s Memorial Bridge at Columbia-Wrightsville this morning.

At the Veteran’s Memorial Bridge, the Susquehanna was cresting this morning after recent rains and accompanying snow melt.
An overnight breeze from the southwest and calm winds during the morning hours created ideal conditions for flocks of Canada Geese to begin migrating north from Chesapeake Bay through the lower Susquehanna valley.
These three Common Mergansers and a Common Goldeneye (right) are some of the hundreds of diving ducks presently gathered on the river in the vicinity of the Veteran’s Memorial Bridge.
Common Goldeneyes and a first-winter male Bufflehead (upper right).  All of the ducks seen today in the waters surrounding the bridge are benthic feeders, diving to the river bottom to pluck invertebrates from the substrate.
A male Common Goldeneye (Bucephala clangula).
A female Common Goldeneye.
A pair of Common Goldeneyes in flight.
A pair of Buffleheads in flight.
Common Goldeneyes repositioning for another series of feeding dives.
During the morning flight, thousands of Canada Geese were seen moving north in flocks numbering about 50 to 100 birds each.  The bird in the lower right was one of thousands of Ring-billed Gulls seen headed upriver as well.
As they pass over the lower Susquehanna region, migrating Canada Geese are typically observed flying much higher than flocks from the local resident populations, often reaching the cruising altitudes of aircraft.  Aviators are always alert for flights of resident geese around airfields.  But to prevent bird strikes during days like today when thousands of migratory geese traverse the airspace, air traffic controllers can become extra busy relaying the location and altitude of potential targets to pilots flying aircraft entering areas where birds have been reported.

This is, of course, just the beginning of the great spring migration.  Do make a point of getting out to observe the spectacle.  And remember, keep looking up—you wouldn’t want to miss anything.