Bird-counting tradition lives on

When Ruskin Freer moved to Lynchburg in the 1920s, he began keeping very detailed records of the bird population in our area. Over the past 90 years we have continued to add details and now have a substantial amount of information about the birds that live in or pass through the Lynchburg vicinity. In 2004, when the local bird club published the most recent annotated checklist of the “Birds of Lynchburg,” 286 species were listed.

By the end of 2008, we had increased the documented sightings to 293 and just since the beginning of the year have added two more species. This spring, Rexanne Bruno spotted an anhinga in Bedford County. Closely related to the double-crested cormorant, anhingas are normally found to the south of us. Her sighting was among the few that had been made in Virginia near or west of the Blue Ridge.

On Saturday, the Lynchburg Bird Club sponsored a field trip to Amherst County along Galts Mill Road where participants added yet another species to the records. Our group had spent part of the morning along the James River and had seen a nice variety of birds. One of the highlights was watching three immature bald eagles interacting with a large group of crows.

We went down Becks Creek Road and found a number of migrating songbirds. Along a brushy creek, we spotted a Connecticut warbler, a species that our trip leader, Mark Johnson, had never seen before. By the time we stopped near Brightwell Mill, everyone agreed that it had been a wonderful morning. It was then that we received the biggest surprise of the day.

We noticed a pair of birds circling high overhead. A quick look through the binoculars revealed that these were big birds with very long necks and broad wings. Of course, the initial reaction was that they must be swans. Then we saw that the legs trailed out behind and were equal in length to the neck. The light wasn’t good, and we all stood there, staring at the circling birds and struggling with identification.

Gradually it sunk in on us that, although sandhill cranes are not supposed to be here, we were looking at two of them. In more than 90 years of record keeping, we had never had a documented report of this species in the area. I’m so glad that the birds were obliging enough to give us a nice, long look before they soared away to wherever it was that they were trying to go. I’m even happier that I decided to go on that field trip.

News and Notes

The hawks have been moving over the past week and on Sept. 19, more than 1,800 broadwings were counted from Harvey’s Knob on the Blue Ridge Parkway. This Saturday the Lynchburg Bird Club will sponsor a hawk watch from Candlers Mountain here in Lynchburg.

People will begin to gather around 10 a.m. You will need to bring your binoculars, a chair, and something to drink. Contact Gene Sattler at 237-1832 for directions and parking instructions.