Vertebrates at Pea Island NWR and Mattamuskeet NWR
(also Nags Head, Bodie Island Pond, Alligator River NWR, and en route)

November 18-20, 2005

Weather

  • November 19: clear, light NE wind, chilly
  • November 20: overcast, light NE wind on the coast, flat calm inland, Lake Mattamuskeet like glass
  • Drivers: Maureen McClung, Lisa Davenport, Minna Wiley

Some highlights and notes ...

  • Lake Mattamuskeet flat as glass under an overcast sky

  • Eighteen Bald Eagles, including three fighting over food east of Plymouth, and one near-adult almost filling our scope fields at Lake Mattamuskeet -- the highest number of Bald Eagles ever on a 72L field trip

  • Thousands of Gannets passing southward all day long, circling and diving for fish, gathering in flocks of hundreds around fishing boats.

  • Thousands of Black Scoters headed southward in long waving lines (often with a few Surf Scoters, Long-tailed Ducks or Buffleheads among them)

  • Three Lesser Black-backed Gulls in front of the Sea Foam -- stragglers from across the Atlantic, 8 White Pelicans at Pea Island NWR -- becoming a regular species here in winter

  • Flock of Yellow-rumped Warblers at Lake Landing with both kinglet species, Palm Warbler, Black-and-white Warbler, Orange-crowned Warbler, and Common Yellowthroat

  • Tundra Swans -- perhaps 10,000 in sight at once from north of the old lodge at Mattamuskeet -- not counting thousands in view from the causeway

In the lists below . . .

  • A = Alligator River NWR
  • N = Nags Head (near the Sea Foam Motel on the beach)
  • P = Pea Island NWR
  • B = Bodie Island Pond
  • O = Oregon Inlet (jetty and nearby beach and dunes)
  • M = Mattamuskeet NWR

Please send additions/corrections to Haven Wiley

Amphibia

Green Treefrog (Hyla cinerea)just one (M)

Reptilia

Yellow-bellied Slider (Chrysemys scripta)few (P, M)
Common Snapping Turtle (Chelydra serpentina)one (P)

Birds

Common Loonone flying over Oregon Inlet
Red-throated Loonone flying southward (N)
Pied-billed Grebe25 (P,M,ponds east of Plymouth)
Northern Gannetperhaps 5,000 total (N, P)
American White Pelican8 on North Pond and Middle Ground (P)
Brown Pelicanmany along the beach (P, N)
Double-crested Cormorant500 (N,P,M)
American Bittern2 chasing each other in flight and adopting neck-up postures in the grass (P)
Great Blue Heronmany along ditches and in ponds (A,P,M)
Great Egretmany around edges of ponds (P,M)
Snowy Egret2 (P), 1 (M)
Little Blue Heron10 including 4 immatures (B), 2 immatures (M)
Cattle Egretone (M)
Black-crowned Night-Heronheard after dark (A)
White Ibis25 (P,M)
Tundra Swan100 (P), 12,000 (M), many families with 1-4 young (M)
Snow Goose100, all white morphs (P)
Canada Goosescattered groups, perhaps 400 in all (P, M)
Green-winged Teal200 (P,B) and a few in scoter and pintail flocks flying southward (N)
American Black Duck400 many in pairs
Mallard10 (P,M)
Northern Pintail2000 (P,B), many in distance (M)
Northern Shoveler30 (P)
Gadwallperhaps 1000 often with flocks of wigeon
American Wigeon500 (P), 2000 (M)
Canvasbackat least 30 (M)
Redhead5 (P)
Ring-necked Duck400 (M)
Greater Scaup3 (P)
Lesser Scaup50 (P)
Long-tailed Duck8 (all females) flying southward over the ocean with scoters
Black Scoter5000 or so in large straggling flocks flying southward over the ocean (N,P)
Surf Scoter70 in flocks of Blacks (N)
Buffleheadone male and two females with Black Scoters (N)
Surf Scoter70 in flocks of Blacks (N)
Hooded Merganser4 on borrow pits east of Plymouth, also a pair (P)
Red-breasted Merganser20 flying southward over the ocean (N)
Ruddy Duck10 (P), 600 (M)
Turkey Vulturescattered few on the mainland
Ospreyone (P)
Bald Eagletotal 18 including 3 fighting for food east of Plymouth, one in close view at Mattmuskeet
Northern Harrier10 (A, P, M)
Red-tailed Hawk12
American Kestrel6
Peregrineone male in a pocosin east of Englehard
Northern Bob-whiteone calling (A)
King Railtwo calling (B)
Virginia Railone glimpsed in flight (B)
American Cootabout 5000 in dense flocks (M), otherwise scarce
Black-bellied Ploverone (P)
American Avocet100 (P)
Greater Yellowlegs20 (P)
Willet2 (P)
Ruddy Turnstone4 on Oregon Inlet jetty (P)
Sanderling40 on beaches (N, P)
Purple Sandpiper3 on Oregon Inlet jetty (P)
Dunlin50 (P)
Wilson's (Common) Snipe3 flying over the muddy field (M)
Laughing Gullabout 150 (N, P, M) -- the last to leave for the Caribbean and South America for the winter
Bonaparte's Gullnot a single one! -- still have not arrived from northwestern Canada for the winter
Ring-billed Gullthe most numerous gull, on the beach and inland, including hundreds feeding in freshly plowed fields
Herring Gullscattered (N, P, M)
Lesser Black-backed Gull3 on the beach or on the ocean just beyond the surf (N) -- stragglers from the other side of the Atlantic
Great Black-backed Gullscattered (N, P, M)
Royal Ternone (N)
Forster's Tern3 (M)
Rock Doveferal pigeons around highway bridges
Mourning Dovescattered on the coast and inland
Great Horned Owlone heard in distance (A)
Belted Kingfisher12, scattered
Yellow-bellied Sapsuckerone heard (M)
Northern Flicker10 scattered (P, M)
Eastern Phoebe3 (M)
Tree Swallow80 (M)
Blue Jay2 (M)
American Crowscattered inland
Fish Crowlots (N,P,M)
Carolina Chickadee2 (M) in chickadee-kinglet-warbler flock
Carolina Wren6 (P, M)
House Wrenone in thickets on causeway (M)
Sedge Wrenseveral called in short marsh (P)
Marsh Wren4 calling in cattails (B,M)
Golden-crowned Kingletone (M) in chickadee-kinglet-warbler flock
Ruby-crowned Kinglet5 (P,M), including one in chickadee-kinglet-warbler flock
Eastern Bluebird12 on power lines
American Robinfew en route
Gray Catbird3 (M)
Northern Mockingbird4 (P,M)
Brown Thrasherone (M)
European Starlingflocks everywhere!
Orange-crowned Warblerone male (M) in chickadee-kinglet-warbler flock
Yellow-rumped Warbler60 (N,P,M) including 25 in chickadee-kinglet-warbler flock
Palm Warbler15 (N,P,M) including one in chickadee-kinglet-warbler flock and 12 in a staggling flock on the causeway
Black-and-white Warblerone (M) in chickadee-kinglet-warbler flock
Common Yellowthroat6 (P,M)
Northern Cardinalone (M)
Eastern Towheefew (P,M)
Chipping Sparrow6 on way to Plymouth from Mattamuskeet
Song Sparrowfew scattered (P,M)
Swamp Sparrowfrequent in marshes (P,M)
White-throated Sparrowfew (M) including one singing
Dark-eyed Juncoone (P)
Red-winged Blackbirdscattered (P, M), also large flocks in freshly plowed fields
Eastern Meadowlark6 (P,M)
Boat-tailed Gracklemany (N,P)
Common Gracklescattered in flocks of other blackbirds
Brown-headed Cowbirdperhaps 400 in a large flock of Red-winged Blackbirds (M)
House Sparrow4 in Tarrboro and Nags Head
TOTAL SPECIES107

Mammals

Bottlenose Dolphinseveral pods heading southward (N)
Nutriaone near the point (M)
Gray Squirrelone (M)
Eastern Cottontailone (M)
White-tailed Deerseveral (M)