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Wake lakes, Bald Eagle, gulls
- To: carolinabirds@duke.edu
- Subject: Wake lakes, Bald Eagle, gulls
- From: steven.shultz@unifi.com
- Date: Sat, 06 Jan 2001 11:49:38 -0500
- Sender: carolinabirds-owner@acpub.duke.edu
Tracy and I had intended to visit the CBBT this weekend, but my flight home from
Newark was delayed considerably last night so we decided to stay home at the
last minute (otherwise we would have joined the New Hope Audubon group at the
local lakes). I figured we might as well take a spin by the ice rinks and see
who was skating. Here is what we found:
1010 pond- mainly frozen, 3 Ring-necks
Greenview- frozen
West Lake- mainly frozen, no ducks
Yates Mill pond- mainly frozen, Mallards, 4 Ring-necks, 3 Bufflehead and some
hoodies
NCSU dairy pond- 7 buffles, 2 Mallard, Common Snipe, Palm Warbler (at the air
quality research unit, usually a reliable spot for palms)
Wheeler- Although large areas were covered with ice, Wheeler seems to be
attracting many of the ducks forced off other bodies of water. The fact that
the ice is keeping most boat traffic off the lake probably helps as well.
Wheeler had the highest concentration of Hooded Mergansers I have ever seen
(419). There were certainly more present, but we only counted the 419. I would
guess the total number to be around 500-600. We also noted American Wigeon and
Canvasback although the numbers are difficult to ascertain as the rafts were
keeping to the far shore.
Wheeler also seems to be the home of choice for a large number of gulls.
Amongst the hundreds of Ring-bills we noted an adult Great Black Backed and a
first year Herring. The ice has created a unique habitat for the local Great
Blue Herons. Several were noted standing in the middle of the lake on sheets of
ice. Very strange!
On the way back to the house we stopped at Crowder County Park and added a nice
adult Bald Eagle to the day's list. The bird was probably just moving through
as the local pond is not too large.
Have a great week! Should anyone be interested in joining us for the CBBT next
weekend let me know. We will probably go up Saturday morning, spend the night
in Virginia Beach and return Sunday mid-day.
Best,
Steve
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