Delaware 2/18-2/20

We spent the weekend in Delaware, 2 days going around Bombay Hook, and 1 day exploring farther south, including finally getting to Prime Hook. Bombay Hook, a little north of Dover, used to be a big trip for us from Brooklyn; now it is really close enough for us to make it a day trip.

All photos: Shari Zirlin

Bombay Hook is like Brigantine writ large--instead of one loop around consolidated impoundments, it is a meandering trail that leads from one huge impoundment to the next. The attraction in the summer is shorebirds, particularly stilts and avocets. This time of year it's ducks. But, happily, one Black-necked Stilt overwintered this year and we picked it out of the Raymond Pool almost immediately upon our arrival on Saturday. Shari was able to get this rather distant shot.

Another attraction at Bombay Hook is the eagles. We saw four the first day: One adult scaring up the ducks and coots in Bear Swamp Pool (the joke is that there is no bear, no swamp, and in the summer, no pool), then 3 immatures hunting making passes at ducks and gulls near Shearness Pool. But the most impressive sight and sound of the 3 day weekend was on Monday when we had returned to the trail to Bear Swamp Pool's observation tower.

At first it sounded like the wind in the blowing gently through the tops of the trees, but it became increasingly louder, taking on the sound and rhythm of an approaching locomotive and then it became very clear right before they appeared, that it was a gigantic flock of Snow Geese flying over head, thousands of them, all yelping their peculiar bark. It seemed like they passed over us for 5 minutes. Later we saw a huge flock across the water--they looked at that distance like a snow bank covering the low lying beach--hence the name.

Silly Goose

Sunday we drove down to Prime Hook, Bombay's somewhat neglected cousin refuge. Prime Hook has a number of access roads, so it isn't as contained as Bombay. But once we got the feel for the place it turned out to be a great spot, with plenty of passerines, including some bluebirds and lots of House Finches. Snow Geese are abundant there also. We found one, wandering in and out of traffic on the road alongside the southernmost impoundment.  Afterward, we drove up Ted Harvey WMA; American Avocets had been reported there and I was able to find 19 of them way back in the North Impoundment. Later, on the road out, we came across the proverbial mixed flock of blackbirds and grackles high in the treetops, making the forest sound like an enormous rattle. I listed a thousand blackbirds on eBirds, but that is a very conservative count. 

We also checked out a place called Little Creek where we came upon some Ring-necked Ducks and a small flock of Cedar Waxwings mixing with a much larger flock of robins, as well our first Swamp Sparrow & Willet of the year. 

Sunday we drove around Bombay Hook again, not finding anything new, though there was one avocet where the stilt had been a couple of days previous. A striking bird, even out of breeding plumage.

We always like to check the fields just outside the refuge for any foraging birds. We didn't come up with anything until we were a few miles away from the refuge on Fast Landing Road. There we got our FOY Horned Larks in one of the fields that has not been turned over to McMansions. A good way to end the trip.

57 species for the weekend. 

Species	Location
Snow Goose	Bombay Hook NWR
Canada Goose	Bombay Hook NWR
Tundra Swan	Bombay Hook NWR
Gadwall	Bombay Hook NWR
American Wigeon	Bombay Hook NWR
American Black Duck	Bombay Hook NWR
Mallard	Bombay Hook NWR
Northern Shoveler	Bombay Hook NWR
Northern Pintail	Bombay Hook NWR
Green-winged Teal	Bombay Hook NWR
Ring-necked Duck	Little Creek Wildlife Area
Bufflehead	Bombay Hook NWR
Hooded Merganser	Ted Harvey WMA
Common Merganser	Bombay Hook NWR
Red-breasted Merganser	Prime Hook NWR
Pied-billed Grebe	Bombay Hook NWR
Great Blue Heron	Bombay Hook NWR
Turkey Vulture	Bombay Hook NWR
Bald Eagle	Bombay Hook NWR
Northern Harrier	Bombay Hook NWR
Red-tailed Hawk	Bombay Hook NWR
American Coot	Bombay Hook NWR
Black-necked Stilt	Bombay Hook NWR
American Avocet	Ted Harvey WMA
Greater Yellowlegs	Bombay Hook NWR
Lesser Yellowlegs	Bombay Hook NWR
Dunlin	Little Creek Wildlife Area
Ring-billed Gull	Bombay Hook NWR
Herring Gull	Bombay Hook NWR
Great Black-backed Gull	Bombay Hook NWR
Mourning Dove	Little Creek Wildlife Area
Belted Kingfisher	Prime Hook NWR
Red-bellied Woodpecker	Bombay Hook NWR
Northern Flicker	Ted Harvey WMA
Blue Jay	Bombay Hook NWR
American Crow	Prime Hook NWR
Horned Lark	Fast Landing Rd
Carolina Chickadee	Prime Hook NWR
Tufted Titmouse	Prime Hook NWR
Carolina Wren	Little Creek Wildlife Area
Eastern Bluebird	Prime Hook NWR
American Robin	Prime Hook NWR
Northern Mockingbird	Bombay Hook NWR
European Starling	Prime Hook NWR
Cedar Waxwing	Little Creek Wildlife Area
Yellow-rumped Warbler	Little Creek Wildlife Area
Song Sparrow	Bombay Hook NWR
Swamp Sparrow	Little Creek Wildlife Area
White-throated Sparrow	Prime Hook NWR
Dark-eyed Junco	Prime Hook NWR
Northern Cardinal	Prime Hook NWR
Red-winged Blackbird	Bombay Hook NWR
Common Grackle	Ted Harvey WMA
House Finch	Prime Hook NWR
American Goldfinch	Bombay Hook NWR
House Sparrow	Bombay Hook NWR