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White Wagtail/Park Hours/Thanks



Hey C-birders!

How 'bout our latest visitor??
To paraphrase Mr. Gary Phillips of Conway, SC,
      "Woo! Hoo!"!!!!!!!!!!!!!!!!

Should have posted this earlier but my phone has been 
pretty busy.
I called the main office at Falls Lake to give them a
heads up 
about the number of birders that may be arriving to
see the Wagtail.

The gentleman asked me to remind birders that the park
hours are from  8 AM to 7 PM
and the gate will be closed going into Sandling Beach.

I specifically asked if it was OK to park outside the
gate and walk in prior to 8:00.
He said, "No. Please try to get the word out and let 
people know 
that they are not to be on park property
before 8 AM and after 7 PM".

The phone number for Falls Lake State Recreation Area
is 919-676-1027 for information about park hours or
directions.


Whew! What a day!?!

Karen Beardon and I were happy to find 8 Loons for her

(off Sandling Beach) on our way to the
Partners in Flight meeting.
For those of you who don't know Karen, the
compiler and senior editor of 
"Birding in North Carolina State Parks",
Loons run a very close second to Chickadees as her 
favorite birds.
We had about 20 minutes to inhale our lunch and get to
the meeting when Karen said, 
"Oh, look! There's a Spotted Sandpiper!"
I looked and thought I saw a Mockingbird with
a tail problem who had a touch of Meadowlark or
something.....but acted like a shorebird...???
Neither one of us brought a field guide.

That's when our day got REALLY interesting.

Thanks to her husband, Joe, for not falling out of his
chair laughing 
when I asked him to look up "Wagtails" on the
internet.

Thanks to the wonderful woman at Blue Jay Park who
had the only guide with Wagtails in it-
her own Sibley.

Thanks to Will Cook 
1) for not falling out of his chair laughing when
Karen pulled him out of 
the P.I.F. meeting to come help us ID "a Wagtail",
2) for grabbing Jeff Pippen (even if he didn't bring
binocs) as a cohort in crime and to man the "Bat
Phone" and start the phone tree, and
3) for having his digital camera that works 
nicely through my scope.

Thanks to Harry LeGrand, Ricky Davis and Derb Carter
for setting land speed records. 
Said records were later broken by Paula and John
Wright...
that was the sonic boom you heard around 4:30.

Thanks to all the rest of you who got the word out and
came flying to Falls Lake
to see this incredible bird.

And most of all, thanks, young (White) Wagtail for
gracing us with your presence.

Hope to see y'all there tomorrow-
especially the bird and 
Brian Bockhahn, a Falls Lake ranger who unfortunately
was off today.
Brian has worked tirelessly on behalf of our feathered
friends 
and has known something great would turn up soon at
"his" lake.



Jill Froning
s. of Chapel Hill/n. Chatham Co.






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