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MEETING DATES:
(this month and next)

Nov 12, Dec 10 Dec 17

Generally, the second Monday of each month. For more information, see the Meetings page.

Home page Welcome / About Us Meetings & programs Field trips Birding locations Conservation Club contacts Bird checklist Membership info Web links Photo archives Bird Seed Sale

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RECENT BIRD ALERT:

(AC) Two Cattle Egrets were seen in the uplands portion of Bell's Lane on November 1.

Due to a wave of spam attacks, this Web site feature has been disabled for the time being. Stay tuned for further announcements.

Augusta Bird Club members may submit rare bird sightings by using the Update page. For further information, or to report any unusual sightings, please contact the rare bird alert coordinator, Allen Larner.

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Blue Ridge Young Birders

www.blueridgeyoungbirders.org

Please support and/or spread the word!

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News

Last news update: 13 Nov 2018

PROGRAM FOR DECEMBER 17 MEETING:
(Note: One week later than usual!)

Holiday party!

Bring a casserole, side dish, dessert, etc. Beverages will be provided.

Our next "Birds & Brews, Wings & Wine" social hour will be: TBA at the home of Nancy Stevenson and Gil Nova, on Monday, October 29th.
Thursday, August 23 at 6:00 PM at Plaza Azteca in Waynesboro.
Thursday, June 28th, 5:30 p.m., at Table 44, located at 300 Church Street, near Sunspots Studio in Staunton.
Sorrel's Lounge in the Stonewall Jackson Hotel, Staunton on March 26 at 6:00 PM. RSVP to Peter Van Acker by March 22. 6:00 PM on Tuesday, February 27 at the Depot at 42 Middlebrook Ave, Staunton. Please RSVP by February 26 to Peter Van Acker.
6:00 PM on Tuesday, January 30 at the Fishin' Pig, 117 Apple Tree Lane, in Waynesboro. (It's just off I-64 next to the Best Western.)
Thursday, October 26 at the Yelping Dog, downtown Staunton, starting at 6:00 PM; please RSVP to Peter Van Acker. Stable Craft Brewery, 375 Madrid Rd, Waynesboro, VA 22980

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Field trip to Wild Oak Trail

Happy birders on the suspension bridge on the Wild Oak Trail in the George Washington National Forest, near Natural Chimneys, November 12. (Photo courtesy of Penny Warren.)

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Rufous Hummingbird!

An Augusta Bird Club member recently reported that a Rufous Hummingbird has been making regular appearances at her house in the Stuarts Draft area of Augusta County. According to Birds of Augusta County, it is the first such sighting in these parts since January 2013, in Middlebrook. Rufous Hummingbirds breed in the northwestern U.S.A. and Canada, but every year in the fall, some of them migrate to the eastern states before heading south for the winter.

Rufous Hummingbird (male) near Stuarts Draft, November 10.

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Field trip to McCormick's Farm

Wednesday, November 7 was a beautiful day to conduct a field trip to this wonderful area of southern Augusta County. Six members of the Augusta Bird Club enjoyed 34 species of great birds and good weather. Many special sightings of several species were most memorable. To see a Hairy, a Downy and Red-bellied Woodpecker on the same tree at the same time was fun. Along with the Ruby-crowned Kinglets and a Brown Creeper putting on a show, wow. Can't leave out the beautiful female Northern Harrier carousing the fields. My day was satisfying.

by Jo King

CLOCKWISE FROM TOP LEFT: Northern Harrier (F/J), Brown Creeper, Cooper's Hawk, Great Blue Heron, Hairy Woodpecker (M), Gadwall (M), Ruby-crowned Kinglet, and near center, Red-bellied Woodpecker. (November 7, 2018)

Grant Simmons, Tom Trykowski, Bonnie Hughes, Jo King, and Betty Gatewood
at McCormick's Farm, November 7.

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Field trip to Bell's Lane

On October 29, eleven club members, including two young birders, Ira and Eli Lianez, and guests joined in on the bird walk along Bell's Lane. (This was the second trip there during the month.) The weather forecast was uncertain, but it turned into a great morning: some sun, a little breeze, and just-about-right temps! We were treated with great looks of many of the 26 species that we tallied. The highlights were both Kinglet species, a Blue-headed Vireo, Cedar Waxwings, and a nice group of White- throated Sparrows foraging on the roadside. When we arrived at the top of the hill at Carolyn Ford's farm, we saw a Kestrel, then an adult male Harrier ("Gray Ghost"), and then another Harrier! At the beaver ponds we saw three Wilson's Snipes, along with three Killdeer and a Kingfisher. A group of probable White-crowned Sparrows was foraging along the road, and later in the day, a Vesper Sparrow was seen!

by Penny Warren

CLOCKWISE FROM TOP LEFT: Ruby-crowned Kinglet, American Kestrel, Northern Harrier (M), Belted Kingfisher, Wilson's Snipe, Cedar Waxwing, Wood Duck (M), Northern Harrier (F/J), and in right-center, Killdeer. (October 29, 2018)

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Want more news?

Download the latest Newsletter,

edited by Andrew Clem (as of April 2016).

Last update: 13 Nov 2018

(Sample image on the right is the January 2013 issue.)

(Portable Document Format / PDF; may require Adobe Acrobat Reader software.)

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