An Epic Finsh!

194. Ross's Goose

195. Vesper Sparrow

196. Common Ground-Dove

197. Horned Lark

198. Greater Scaup

199. Purple Finch

200. Eastern Screech Owl (Final Day of Year)

Winter Pickups....Down to the Wire!

188. Red-breasted Merganser

189. Tundra Swan

190. Common Goldeneye

191. Pine Siskin

192. Brown Creeper

193. Herring Gull

Fall Migration

August 24 - October 18

#176 -- Common Nighthawk

#177 -- Black Tern

#178 -- Bank Swallow

#179 -- Hooded Warbler

#180 -- Rose-breasted Grosbeak

#181 -- Gray-cheeked Thrush

#182 -- Blue-winged Warbler

#183 -- Barn Owl

#184 -- Wood Thrush

#185 -- Tennessee Warbler

#186 -- Bay-breasted Warbler

#187 -- Black-throated Green Warbler

Drought Ended!

August 15 -- Phinizy Swamp Nature Park

#174 -- Tricolored Heron

#175 -- Black-crowned Night Heron

Black crowned Night Heron -- Richmond Co. Yearbird #175

A new one

June 28-

Friend's House-


173. Great Horned Owl


(picture accidentally deleted)

Late Spring and Early Summer Birding

Phinizy Swamp--May 23

164. Yellow-billed Cuckoo



Phinizy Swamp--May 24

165. Black-bellied Whistling Duck

#165

166. Least Bittern

#166

Phinizy Swamp--May 29

167. Yellow-crowed Night Heron



Fort Gordon- June 22

168. Bachman's Sparrow

#168

#169

169. Prairie Warbler



Fort Gordon--June 24

170. Hairy Woodpecker

171. Kentucky Warbler

#171

172. Red-cockaded Woodpecker

#172

172 down. 28 to go.

Migration--Part 3

Pendleton King Park--May 3

149. Veery

#149

150. Swainson's Thrush

#150

151. Cape May Warbler

152. Magnolia Warbler

153. Chestnut-sided Warbler

154. Canada Warbler

#154

Phinizy Swamp--May 4

155. Snowy Egret

156. Green Heron

#155

157. Yellow Warbler

158. Yellow-breasted Chat

#158

My neighborhood--May 4

159. Northern Waterthrush

Bluff Plantation--May 10

160. Wild Turkey

#160

161. Wood Stork

#161

162. Prothonotary Warbler

#162

163. Swainson's Warbler

#163

Migration--Part 2

My Neighborhood--April 25

130. Spotted Sandpiper

# 130

131. House Wren 

132. Blue Grosbeak

#132

Phinizy Swamp Nature Park--April 25

133. Solitary Sandpiper

#133

134. Eastern Kingbird

135. Summer Tanager

#135

136. Painted Bunting

#136

Augusta Canal--April 26

137. Cliff Swallow

Fort Gordon--April 26

138. Northern Bobwhite

139. Eastern-wood Pewee

140. Acadian Flycatcher

141. Yellow-throated Vireo

#141

142. Blackpoll Warbler

April 27--Lock & Dam Road

143. Least Sandpiper

#143

144. Indigo Bunting

145. Bobolink

#145

#145

146. Eastern Meadowlark

147. Orchard Oriole

#147

#147

My Neighborhood--April 27

148. Broad-winged Hawk

Part 3 Next!

*note- all of these pictures were taken this year in Richmond Co.

Migration!

I don't seem to have enough time to keep this blog going at full speed, so I'm going to make it simpler now. I left off on April 3rd...............



Merry Bros. Brickyard Ponds - April 5


Horned Grebe--#118

Horned Grebe--Richmond Co. Year-bird #118

My Yard - April 5

Ruby-throated Hummingbird--#119

Westover Memorial Cemetery - April 14

Gray Catbird--#120

Pendleton King Park - April 19

Great Crested Flycatcher--#121

Red-eyed Vireo--#122

Ovenbird--#123

Ovenbird--Richmond Co. Year-bird #123

Worm-eating Warbler--#124

Black-and-white Warbler--#125

Black-and-white Warbler--Richmond Co. Yearbird #125

American Redstart--#126

American Redstart-- Richmond Co. Yearbird #126

Black-throated Blue Warbler--#127

Black-throated Blue Warbler-- Richmond Co. Year-bird #127

Scarlet Tanager--#128

Scarlet Tanager--Richmond Co. Year-bird #128

Brown-headed Cowbird--#129

Brown-headed Cowbird--Richmond Co. Year-bird #129

Brown-headed Cowbird--Richmond Co. Year-bird #129

                                                                              PART 2 NEXT.............

Late Success

     Well, March was an awesome month, now with migration about to hit its peak! I'll give you the rundown:



March 28-

    While out doing yardwork on a boring Saturday, I casually check my phone, to check my email. I read an email that reads: bla bla bla Red-necked Grebe bla bla bla Merry Bros. Brickyard Ponds bla bla bla. I am about to delete the email, thinking that another Georgia has just spotted another rare bird somewhere far away when I realize

         


Merry Bros. Brickyard Ponds is 20 minutes away!!!!!!!!!!!!!!!!!!!!!!!!!!!!!!!!


After a few hours of begging, I finally get out the door and am on my way, nervous and wondering if the bird is still there... Finally we arrive, find a SUPER SECRET (not really) dirt road to get closer, and find this:

Red-necked Grebe! Richmond Co. Year-bird #112

American Kestrel

We were also lucky enough to see lots of Common Loons in breeding plumage and a Kestrel! But the best part was the Grebe, which just happened to be LIFER # 250!

Common Loon

3 species

On the way back we stopped by a local horse barn and saw Purple Martins- #113 on the year for the county.

  

The next day I once again wen to Phinizy to try and pick up some of the migrants that had been seen, and was successful. However, the first bird I saw was the one I have been looking for all winter!

Rusty Blackbird - Richmond Co. Year-bird #114

I later saw a Little Blue Heron and a Cattle Egret, 2 FOTYs for the county.

Cattle Egret- Richmond Co. Year-bird #116

Little Blue Heron- Richmond Co. Year-bird #115

Also saw an Osprey apparently preparing to nest!

Osprey

Osprey













Finally, 2 nights ago, I heard then saw a Chimney Swift fly over my house, another year-bird.







So now, Richmond County Yearlist- 117

March-birding: A BIG MONTH!

      March has been my favorite month this year yet, getting lots of new county birds and now beginning to experience SPRING MIGRATION!  Here is some of the news from this current month:

March 1-

            Drove by Merry Bros. Brickyard Ponds on the highway and saw the Common Loon that has wintered here in Augusta through the window! No pictures, but county year-bird #100!!!  

After seeing that species, I realized that I was 50% through with my goal! I was a little bit behind my mark for that #, as I wanted to be at 100 by the end of January. But, I made up for the slacking with some good year-birds this month. Later that day at Bluff Plantation, I not only saw more Greater Yellowlegs, but also Lesser Yellowlegs! A year-bird!

Lesser Yellowlegs- Richmond Co. Year-bird #101

March 2- 

    I heard a Fish Crow call above my house, which meant #102.

March 9-

   Went to Phinizy Swamp and saw an American Bittern.

American Bittern- Richmond Co. Year-bird #103

March 22-  

         A beautiful Saturday, but no one to drive me anywhere. So, I decided to improvise, walking to one of my secret birding spots (which may or may not be on private property) near the neighboring golf course. I went in with 103 and came out with 105. 

     Blue-gray Gnatcatcher- Richmond Co. Year-bird #104
     Northern Parula- Richmond Co. Year-bird #105

   This was a sign that SPRING WAS HERE!!!!!





March 23- MOVING DAY


         Went to Phinizy Swamp on bikes with my Dad. Very birdy day with dozens of Northern Parulas, Yellow-throated Warblers, and White-eyed Vireos singing. Before even pulling into the park we saw what made us blink twice:  MISSISSIPPI KITE! The earliest record for Georgia EVER! Was seen circling in an airfield. This find pumped up our adrenaline for the rest of the day. We ended up seeing 3 new year-birds, but got pictures of none of them... Which didn't matter in the end. Cause' I finally got pictures of King Rails! After 3 straight trips with incredible looks at these super-secretive birds, and with no camera, I now was able to gets shots of them!

Pair of King Rails

King Rail Closeup

King Rail

I also got a good one of another American Bittern.

American Bittern

On another note, we also saw 16 different snakes, 3 different species, and 11 within 10 sq ft of each other!

-13 Cottonmouths

Baby Cottonmouth

Nasty Cottonmouth

-2 Rat Snakes

Rat Snake

           -1 Red-bellied Water Snake

Year-birds were: 

Mississippi Kite- Richmond Co. Year-bird #106

Tree Swallow- Richmond Co. Year-bird #107

Sharp-shinned Hawk- Richmond Co. Year-bird #108     (a crucial year-need picked up just in time)

March 26-

     On the way home from school I saw 2 Eurasian Collared-Doves.

Eurasian Collared Dove- Richmond Co. Year-bird #109

March 28-

       On a rainy afternoon, I went fishing in my neighborhood pond. I was surprised to see 5 Wood Ducks and 2 species of swallow. Both swallows were year-birds.

Barn Swallow- Richmond Co. Year-bird #110

Northern Rough-winged Swallow- Richmond Co. Year-bird #111

So, as of now, the Richmond Co. Year-list is at 111.

Thanks for keeping up with the blog! I promise to stay up to date!