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Oh my gosh--a wagtail!!



Howdy,

It was an exiting, surprising afternoon!! Because of the events falling
into place, we were at the right place, at the right time. Jill Froning
was scheduled to pick me up at 10 am this morning for a little birding
at Falls Lake SRA before the Partners In Flight (PIF) meeting at Blue
Jay Point County Park. Road construction problems delayed Jill, so we
didn't leave my house in Raleigh until 11:20. My goal for the day was to
look for loons on the lake. Jill has never birded at Falls Lake before.
We stopped at the Visitor Center to scan the lake (nothing), but saw
both kinglets, White-throated Sparrows, and Black-throated Blue Warblers
in the parking area. On to Sandling Beach where I was thrilled to see
six loons together, not too far from shore, with at least two more in
the distance. Jill spotted two ducks as I was admiring the loons. It
took awhile to identify them because of the distance, and neither one of
us had brought bird books!! Joe and I always have a book in the car, so
I wasn't prepared. At 12:20 pm I said we had 10 minutes to eat our lunch
in order to get to the PIF meeting. We sat on a bench to eat lunch and
Jill said what's that bird. It was along the edge of the water bobbing
it's tail, so I said probably a Spotted Sandpiper. We both lifted our
binocs and knew right away it wasn't a sandpiper!!! This bird looked
like a Mockingbird with a black V like a Meadowlark, and bobbing like a
Spotted Sandpiper!! Jill said is it a wagtail? Neither one of us had
seen one, and remember, we don't have a book!!! I called Joe at work who
only happens to have a Western Peterson book. We were getting pretty
excited about the possibility of a wagtail, and it was almost time for
the meeting. When we arrived at Blue Jay Park, we asked the park staff
for a bird book!! Turns out Denise (thank you!) had a Sibley Guide
(yeah!). That's when we knew for sure it was a wagtail. So, the meeting
had begun already, and I stuck my head inside looking for John Gerwin. I
didn't see him, but noticed Will Cook and Jeff Pippen. So now I'm trying
to get their attention without disturbing the speaker of course. Her
part of the program ended, and suddenly Will looked up at me and I
motioned him to the door. He gave me a puzzled look (CUTE!!), so I
motioned again. When I gave him the message, he got Jeff, told Dave Lee,
and we rushed back to Sandling Beach. Gosh, would it still be there,
will they believe us if it's not, where thoughts going through my head
(and I predict you too, Jill?). Jeff didn't have his binocs, but
thankfully Will had his digital camera. We pulled up and the wagtail was
still there!!! YEAH!!! Now we're all excited!! I said my heart is
beating so fast and Jeff shows me the goose bumps on his arm!! We knew
we were looking at a rare, special bird!! The bird continued  walking,
bobbing, and occasionally hopping up to catch bugs, back and forth on
the beach close to the shore. Two cell phones started getting a lot of
use calling up birders to spread the word. Harry, Derb, Ricky, Russ, Joe
(he finally made it, because we don't count a life bird until we both
see it!!), and Patricia came. Then the PIF meeting finished and Judy,
John, and Chris showed up. As Joe and I were leaving at 5:10 Josh and
Norm had just arrived, plus we think we saw Kent on our way out.

Sure do hope the wagtail stays around long enough for more birders to
see her. Jill talked to the staff at Falls Lake. Sandling Beach doesn't
open until 8 am, and you are not allowed to park your car outside the
park and walk in. By the way, if you look in Sibley's Guide on page 419,
the consensus so far was a first winter female White Wagtail. Will's
photos will be the proof we need for verification. THANKS FOR THE GREAT
DAY JILL!!

Happy birding! Karen Bearden
chickadeebirders@earthlink.net