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The
Buchanan County Bird Club meets the Volume 2 Issue 9 September 2003 |
 August 11 Club Meeting:Instead of meeting at the usual place, the public library, members decided to have a picnic meeting at the Poplar Gap Park, then do some birding after. At the meeting President, Roger Mayhorn, presented an award to Johnnie & Betty Ratliff (right) for their hard work and donations to make the Buchanan County Bluebird Trail a success. The Breaks section of the trail was renamed “The Johnnie and Betty Ratliff Bluebird Trail” in their honor. The presentation caught Johnnie and Betty by surprise. A thunderstorm prevented birding after the meeting. |
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Bluebird Trail Update: The nesting season has ended. The last 4 Bluebirds fledged from a nest box on Compton Mountain during the week of September 1st. Those 4 bring the total of Bluebirds fledged from the first year of the Buchanan County Bluebird Trail to 78. Three Tree Swallows also fledged from one of the boxes and 5 fledged from gourds at Johnnie & Betty Ratliff’s House. 13 House Wrens fledged from two of the boxes in the Breaks area. Thanks to everyone for all of their hard work in assembling nest boxes and establishing the trail. Thanks to David Raines for monitoring the boxes of the Johnnie & Betty Ratliff Bluebird Trail in the Breaks. Thanks also to my sweet wife, Lynda, for helping me to monitor the boxes on Compton Mountain. |
 Roan Mountain Birding:In mid-August Ed Talbott (left) and Roger Mayhorn were invited to present a program on Magee Marsh to the Bristol Bird Club. The two decided to go early and do some birding at Sycamore Shoals in Elizabethton and then proceed to Roan Mountain, TN in hopes of finding Red-Crossbills, which had been seen there. At Sycamore Shoals these birders were able to find two  Yellow-crowned Night Herons, one of the few places in the area where they are known to nest. Later on Roan Mountain at an elevation of over 5000 feet the Red-Crossbills (right) were found. A small flock of 8 birds landed very close to the two guys, where Ed was able to get some good video from which this photo was taken. The Crossbills actually do have crossed bills. The tips of the bill points to either right or left. It is believed that this helps them open pine cones to extract the seeds, which make up a large part of their diet. The two Buchanan County Bird Club members had a good day of birding with 40+ species found.Roan Mountain Pictures: http://www.grundynet.net/talbott/birding/hikes/Sum03/Carvers.htm |
 Sabine’s Gull Found at Holston
Lake:Our own Ed Talbott, along with Rack and Sammy Cross of the Bristol Bird Club, found this very rare (for the interior U.S) Sabine’s Gull at Musick’s Campground on South Holston Lake on Sunday evening, September 7, 2003. Wallace Coffey and Janice Martin were called and arrived shortly thereafter. Ed was able to take some video of the bird using Janice Martin’s camera. This photo was taken from that video. Ned Brinkley, renowned Virginia shore birder, was sent photos of the bird and confirmed that it was indeed a juvenile Sabine’s Gull. The Sabine’s Gull nests in summer near the Arctic coasts of North America and spends the winters at sea, mainly in the Southern Hemisphere. It is rarely spotted from shore once nesting season is over. There are only 9 records of this bird being observed in Virginia and 2 or 3 in Tennessee. Congratulations to Ed Talbott and Rack and Sammy Cross for such a great find. Sabine's Gull Pictures: http://www.bcplnet.org/birdclub/events/SGull/SGull1.htm |
 Mayhorns’ Warbler Watch
9-6-03:The first part of the annual Warbler Watch held at Roger & Lynda Mayhorn’s home took place Saturday, September 6.8 Members of the Bibbee Nature Club of Bluefield attended. Jim & Janet Myers of Athens, WV arrived first, followed by Allen & Mindy Waldron of Beckley, then Jack & Helen Parris and Ann & Grady McCrae of Bluefield. 7 members of the Buchanan County Bird Club were there as well. In addition to the Mayhorns were Ed & Barbara Caudill, Johnnie & Betty Ratliff and Todd Perkins. Todd got a lifebird, when he  saw his first Blackburnian Warbler like the handsome one pictured here
(right). The early morning fog at first made birds a bit difficult to see, but the sun eventually shone through, and some great birding was under way. Birding slowed around noon so a lunch of hot dogs, chicken nuggets and baked beans was served by Lynda Mayhorn with several great desserts provided by the guests. After lunch several of the birders went for walks on the birding trails on the Mayhorn property. By the end of the day 48 species had been observed with 12 of those being warbler species. It was a fun day with everyone enjoying the beautiful fall weather. The second day of the Warbler Watch will take place at the Mayhorns’ on Saturday, September 13th, when members of the Russell County and Bristol Bird Clubs will come to see the warblers pass through the Mayhorns’ yard.
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Welcome New Club Member: The members of the Buchanan County Bird Club are glad to extend a warm welcome to new club member, Marie Miller. Marie is a retired Hurley High School teacher, and is interested in nature. After talking with Ed Talbott III at the public library she decided to attend one of our club meetings, where she became a member. The other members look forward to birding with Marie. |
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Ospreys: On the week-end of September 6 David Raines and his son Holden observed three Ospreys on the Levisa River near the KY state line. |
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Great Blue Herons: Club member, Jack Brown of Hurley, saw a Great Blue Heron near the Hurley High School on August 14. |
Migrating Warblers: The warblers, like this Yellow-throated Warbler photographed by Roger Mayhorn, and other migrants have been on the move during the last of August and the early days of September. Since the 15th of August, Roger Mayhorn has kept 17 days of records of the number of species that pass through his yard each day. As of September 3rd he has averaged 34.9 species per day with a high of 49 and a low of 27. He has observed over 277 warblers pass through his yard within 17 days of record keeping, which include 20 different warbler species. The warbler species are American Redstart, Bay-breasted, Blackburnian, Black-throated Blue, Black-throated Green, Black-and-White, Blue-winged, Cerulean, Cape May, Chestnut-sided, Golden-winged, Hooded, Magnolia, Northern Parula, Ovenbird, Tennessee, Yellow-breasted Chat, Yellow Warbler, Worm-eating and Yellow-throated Warbler. The migration will peak sometime in mid-September, so the numbers will most certainly go up. |
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Blue-winged Teal: Earlier this month Ed & Barbara Caudill saw a flock of about 15 Blue-winged Teal on John Flanagan Lake. |
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Nighthawks: Common Nighthawks have been migrating through the area since mid-August. However, the numbers seem lower this year than last. In one evening last year Roger Mayhorn counted 74 birds from his yard. This year he has seen only 12 Nighthawks in several evenings of watching.David Raines saw 13 of the birds feeding over the Kirby Farm near Richlands. The birds of course are not really hawks at all. They catch insects on the wing. They get their name from the fact that they resemble some hawks in flight. |
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Ruffed Grouse: Club member, Clarence Brown of Hurley, reported that he has seen some families of Ruffed Grouse in the mountains near his house this summer. One family had 5 chicks and another had 7. Let’s hope this means that the grouse population is on the rise. The numbers have been down within the county for several years. |
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More Warblers: The morning of September 9 Clarence and Jack Brown came to the Mayhorns’ house to watch the flocks of warblers pass through. They saw lots of beautiful birds and by day’s end 44 species had been seen with 12 species of them being warblers. |
 Chimney Swift Count:On the evening of September 10 some members of the Buchanan County Bird Club met at Grundy High School to count Chimney Swifts. The Swifts come to rest in the school chimney each night. The birds disperse during the summer months for nesting, then during late summer and early fall they begin to congregate before their long migration to South America. Sometimes there are thousands of these birds staying in the school chimney at night. Most people think they are bats. Present at the count were Roger & Lynda Mayhorn, Johnnie & Betty Ratliff, and new club member, Marie Miller. Roger video-taped the birds entering the chimney, so that later he could watch them in slow motion to get a more accurate count. The count data is forwarded to an organization that monitors the birds to see how the Swift population is faring. |
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Pine Warbler: Recently Michelle Talbott found a Pine Warbler on Guesses Fork of Hurley. This is the first of the species seen in that area. Being the fall of the year the chances are good that it is a migrant. |
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Ospreys Calling: On the night of September 9 Ed & Michelle Talbott heard two Ospreys calling to each other on the Levisa River behind their house at Weller Yard. Up to that point they had not seen nor heard many Ospreys on the river this summer. |
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