Bob Riggs Presents BCBC
July Program
Bob Riggs of the Russell County Bird Club presented an
excellent slide program to BCBC members on Birds of Iraq on July 9.
Bob was able to take photos and study some of the birds in
Iraq, when he was stationed there for a year. His good photography and his
interesting story about his time there made for an intriguing
presentation.
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Peregrine Falcons Released
On July 12th David Raines and I went to the
Breaks Park in hopes of seeing one of the newly released young Peregrine
Falcons there. We were not disappointed. We were standing on the Clinchfield
overlook, when David said, “I hear a Peregrine” Sure enough, flying up the
gorge in front of us was a young Peregrine. I photographed it as it passed.
Fourteen young birds were released during June and July. More Peregrines are
planned for release again next year.
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BCBC Members Join RCBC For Annual Picnic
On August 30th Buchanan County Bird Club
members Fred & Janice Martin, Roger & Lynda Mayhorn, Richard &
Pam Kretz and Dave and Diana Worley, all of whom are also members of the
Russell County Bird Club, joined other RCBC members for their annual picnic
at Laurel Bed Lake at the Clinch Mountain Wildlife Management Area in Russell
County. It was hoped that eagles would be seen, as they often are in that
area, but none were found this year. A flock of Black Terns did fly up and
down the lake for several minutes. Despite the lack of birds everyone enjoyed
the get together and the good food.
(photo courtesy of Richard Kretz)
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 Enoch’s
Branch Park Outing
 Enoch’s
Branch Park near Grundy was the site for an evening outing of the BCBC on
September 10th. Birds were not plentiful, probably due to the heat
and the drought, but a Northern Harrier, a Barred Owl, a few Wild Turkeys and
an Eastern Kingbird were found. After the meal David Raines entertained
everyone with his exceptional talent on the Banjo and some folk songs. Jerry Thornhill drove from Rosedale, VA to
take part in the outing. Others in attendance were locals, Johnnie and Betty
Ratliff, Roger and Lynda Mayhorn and Sheldon and Orpha Woods.
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 Warbler
Day on Compton Mountain
Thirty-two people showed up at our place on Compton
Mountain on September 15th for our annual Warbler Day. The weather
was great. It had rained all day the day before and had cooled down the
temperature a bit. Birders from as far away as Virginia Beach to the east,
Cincinnati, Ohio to the west and Alabama to the south attended. Sixty species
of birds were counted for the day with 15 of those being warblers. Before a
great meal birders were taken on a bird walk by Ed Talbott III (see photo).
It was a fun day for everyone, and some birders got lifebirds; one lady got
three.
More photos can be found at http://www.pbase.com/mayhorn/migration_7
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 The
Mendota Hawk Watch
David Raines and I, Roger Mayhorn, volunteered to help Ron
Harrington of Bristol with the Mendota Hawk Watch on Sunday, September 16.
David (see right photo) and I, along with club members, Don Carrier, Mollie
McCutchen, Bonnie Atkinson (see left photo) and several birders from the
Bristol area counted nearly 900 hawks for the day. One of the exciting
aspects of the day was the 5 Bald Eagles that were seen flying over the area
throughout the day.
The Buchanan County Bird Club would like to welcome Bonnie
Atkinson (in red) of Alabama as a new club member. So far I believe that she,
of all of our members, lives the farthest distance from our meetings. Welcome Bonnie! We won’t expect you to
attend every meeting J.
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David Raines Birder of the Month for September
There was no Birder of the Month award given for August,
since nothing unusual was noted, but for the month of September David Raines
carries the day with his Western Kingbird sighting. With David’s extensive
knowledge of birds and his sharp eyes, he doesn’t miss much, and is deserving
of the award. Congratulations David!
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 Pine
Mountain Hawk Watch
David Raines and I joined Steve “Kip”
Sweeney and Tom, a friend of Kip’s on Pine Mountain near Whitesburg, KY on
September 20th for some hawk watching. The hawks weren’t very
cooperative and only 62 were counted for the day. Nevertheless, the four of
us enjoyed ourselves atop Pine Mountain with beautiful scenery, a pair of
entertaining Red-tailed Hawks and good conversation.
Pine Mountain is not as good a hawk watching site as the
neighboring Clinch Mountain range, probably because Pine Mountain is a much
shorter range, and the hawks can access the Clinch Mountain range much
farther north. The birds use the rising thermals along the ridges to help
gain lift in their southward migration.
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Bald Eagle in St Paul
On July 19th Richard Kretz saw a Bald Eagle,
while hiking the Sugar Hill area near St Paul, VA. To see one in the area
during the breeding season is unusual. Hopefully they are nesting in the
vicinity.
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Thousands of Swallows
On August 23rd, while driving his parents
through Burkes Garden, David Raines saw at least 8,000 Tree and Barn Swallows
in the area. The birds were probably gathering for their fall migration
southward. While flocks of that magnitude are not uncommon along the coast,
really large flocks are a bit unusual in our section of the country.
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 Golden-winged
Warbler
This male Golden-winged Warbler came in to bathe in our
stream here on Compton Mountain on September 26th.
This is a species that is getting harder to find because
of it being displaced by the Blue-winged Warbler. The last Golden-wing found
on our property here on the mountain was on August 21st of this
year, when one came in briefly to drink in our stream. Before that the last
Golden-wing recorded here was September 27th 2005, within one day of
being on the same day of September as this one. More photos can be found at http://www.pbase.com/mayhorn/migration_9
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Talbott Hikes
Ed and Michelle Talbott have made a few hikes during the
summer, and as usual, Ed and Michelle have made some great photos of objects
of nature along the way. Following is a list of some of the hikes and links
to their photos.
Caney Island Branch - June 30, 2007: http://www.pbase.com/aquilaet/caney12 Pine Mountain - July 1, 2007: http://www.pbase.com/aquilaet/pinemt2 Week-end Hikes September 29, 2007 http://www.pbase.com/aquilaet/breaks11
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Western
Kingbird Found in the Breaks