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Peregrines and more in NC mountains
- To: "CarolinaBirds" <carolinabirds@duke.edu>
- Subject: Peregrines and more in NC mountains
- From: "Robin Carter" <rcarter@sc.rr.com>
- Date: Sun, 2 Jun 2002 10:15:05 -0400
- Sender: carolinabirds-owner@acpub.duke.edu
Hi C-Birders,
Yesterday members of the Columbia Audubon Society went on our annual June
trip to escape the heat and find some birds in the North Carolina mountains
near Devils Courthouse on the Blue Ridge Parkway south of Asheville. We were
not disappointed. One young Peregrine Falcon was still in the nest on the
Devils Courthouse cliff face, easily visible from the parking lot. Birders
from all over the Carolinas watched as the young falcon tested its wings.
Occasionally the mother would zip by, feeding the young bird. It was quite a
show.
Another good show at the Devils Courthouse parking lot was put on by a local
raven, who, not to be shown up by our South Carolina Mississippi Kites, was
catching large insects on the wing -- quite an exhibition of flying skill
for a species that is not usually thought of as a flycatcher.
All in all we had a great day. We birded from Hooper Lane, in the flatlands
near the French Broad River, up the mountain via the North Mills River
picnic ground, through the Pink Beds, to US 276 and the Blue Ridge Parkway.
We also checked out the road to the Black Balsam trailhead.
Here is out day list. The species marked HL were seen only in the Hooper
Lane area and not up in the mountains:
Green Heron (HL)
Turkey Vulture
Broad-winged Hawk
Red-tailed Hawk
Peregrine Falcon
Northern Bobwhite (HL)
Killdeer (HL)
Mourning Dove (HL)
Eastern Screech-Owl
Chimney Swift
Ruby-throated Hummingbird
Belted Kingfisher
Northern Flicker
Acadian Flycatcher
Willow Flycatcher (HL)
Alder Flycatcher
Eastern Phoebe
Great Crested Flycatcher
Yellow-throated Vireo
Blue-headed Vireo
Red-eyed Vireo
Blue Jay
American Crow
Common Raven
Barn Swallow (HL)
Carolina Chickadee
Tufted Titmouse
Red-breasted Nuthatch
White-breasted Nuthatch
Brown Creeper
Carolina Wren
Winter Wren
Golden-crowned Kinglet
Blue-gray Gnatcatcher
Veery
Wood Thrush
American Robin
Gray Catbird
Northern Mockingbird (HL)
Brown Thrasher
European Starling (HL)
Northern Parula
Chestnut-sided Warbler
Black-throated Blue Warbler
Black-throated Green Warbler
Blackburnian Warbler
Black-and-white Warbler
Worm-eating Warbler
Ovenbird
Louisiana Waterthrush
Common Yellowthroat
Hooded Warbler
Canada Warbler
Scarlet Tanager
Eastern Towhee
Chipping Sparrow
Field Sparrow
Song Sparrow
Dark-eyed Junco
Northern Cardinal
Rose-breasted Grosbeak
Blue Grosbeak (HL)
Indigo Bunting
Red-winged Blackbird (HL)
Eastern Meadowlark (HL)
Common Grackle
Brown-headed Cowbird
House Finch (HL)
American Goldfinch
House Sparrow
Robin Carter
Columbia, SC
rcarter@sc.rr.com