date and time: 19 October 2025, from 06:10 to 14:50, with a time out between 12:05 and 12:30 to take others back to the gate.
weather: clear, light variable breezes (mostly out of the E early and the W late), temps 44-79 degrees F.
route: entered at the old Nicolaus Farm gate and caravanned to the equipment pad, where we consolidated into two vehicles, then drove to the east side of Garcia’s Swamp, where we parked. We walked north to the southeastern corner of Johnson’s pastures and worked the ditch there, around the Love Shack area and back to Garcia’s Swamp. We then drove to the Accidental Forest, working first south to Middle Breach and then north in the overflow channel to the river; we then walked north on the east side of the Accidental Forest to the old logjam area on the river. We next returned to the equipment pad, whence we walked down Wood Duck Slough to the south end of Warbler Woods, cutting in there to the old road in the interior of those woods, then north; past the Tall Forest Giant to the west side road and back to the pad. We then caravanned back to the gate and I returned solo to the west side road, parking at the spur to Oak Island (this has a small tree fallen across it now, so is undrivable). From there, I walked south along the west side road, cutting in on the derelict track going to the tower pump, then bushwhacking my way to Tall Forest Landing. From the landing I went west on the overgrown berm paralleling the river about 150 meters, then turned north through the eastern bottoms to Oak Island, then east to my car. Then out to the Nicolaus Farm gate.
party of seven
birds:
greater white-fronted goose- 250
Canada goose- 45
cackling goose- 1 (pale-breasted, it would have been interesting to see this next to a reference species for size comparison; Richardson’s goose vs. Taverner’s goose?)
dark goose sp.- 450
wood duck- 35
mallard- 25
northern pintail- 12
duck sp.- 100
wild turkey- 65 (two big flocks late)
mourning dove- 20
common poorwill- 1
Virginia rail-
sandhill crane- 130
black-necked stilt- 2
killdeer- 8
long-billed curlew- 1
Wilson’s snipe- 1
greater yellowlegs- 1
gull sp.- 1
double-crested cormorant- 1
black-crowned night-heron- 5
great egret- 10
great blue heron- 3
turkey vulture- 20
white-tailed kite- 3
sharp-shinned hawk- 1
Cooper’s hawk- 1
northern harrier- 1
red-shouldered hawk- 5
red-tailed hawk- 6
American barn owl- 3
great horned owl-
belted kingfisher- 3
acorn woodpecker- 6
red-breasted sapsucker- 1
downy woodpecker- 12
Nuttall’s woodpecker- 15
northern flicker- 25
American kestrel- 4
black phoebe- 15
Say’s phoebe- 4
Hutton’s vireo-
California scrub-jay- 18
yellow-billed magpie- 28
American crow- 15
common raven- 4
oak titmouse- 30
tree swallow- 40
bushtit- 50
wrentit- 10
ruby-crowned kinglet- 60
golden-crowned kinglet- 10
cedar waxwing- 60
white-breasted nuthatch- 20
Bewick’s wren- 8
northern house wren- 10
marsh wren- 5
northern mockingbird- 4
European starling- 70
western bluebird- 8
hermit thrush- 25
American robin- 8 (low)
house finch- 25
lesser goldfinch- 20
American goldfinch- 4
lark sparrow- 1
fox sparrow- 3
dark-eyed junco- 2
white-crowned sparrow- 15
golden-crowned sparrow- 25
Savannah sparrow- 2
song sparrow- 20
Lincoln’s sparrow- 12
California towhee- 1
spotted towhee- 35
western meadowlark- 4
red-winged blackbird- 180
brown-headed cowbird- 2
Brewer’s blackbird- 150
blackbird sp.- 90
orange-crowned warbler- 18
common yellowthroat- 4
Audubon’s warbler- 30
black-throated gray warbler- 1
Townsend’s warbler- 12
western tanager- 1