A Big Year at DNRT – March Recap

BY LINDA VANDERVEER, LAND MANAGER AND JAMES WARNER, LAND STEWARD

If you missed our last emails, DNRT’s Land Management team is making an effort to visit every DNRT reserve in 2026 and to document as many bird species as we can! New last issue – Development and Outreach Specialist Kendra Parker has dusted off a sketch book after many, many years (please be gentle with your criticism!) and, in an attempt to practice drawing, will be including a sketch of some of the birds that Linda and James has seen.

We are now a quarter of the way through our year and have reached a total of 55 different species! Last month we had a lot of spectacular sightings with 11 new species seen.

Our Ocean View Farm bird walk proved to be a huge success for those who attended. Before we could even start, an American Kestrel landed in the trees above the parking lot, allowing people to test their binocular and spotting skills. Once the walk got started, we saw our first Eastern Bluebird, Northern Mockingbird, and Great Egret – things we will see more as spring becomes more prominent. We were pleasantly surprised to see a pair of Northern Pintail fly over. Having seen one feeding in the water during our January trip to the Cowyards, it was great to see the distinctive “pin tail” that they are named after. Our standout for the walk was the lucky spotting of an American Woodcock! Considered by many to be a harbinger of spring, woodcocks can be found at dusk in March and April performing their special courtship flight over fields like those found at Ocean View.

On a return trip to Flag Swamp Bog we were able to see a juvenile Bald Eagle that put our skills (mostly Linda’s skills) to the test. Bald Eagles take 4 to 5 years to reach adulthood and get their distinctive plumage. We noticed the bird coming from the area near the Copicut Reservoir and initially thought it may be a Bald Eagle, but without the distinct white feathers around the head we had to check other identifiers like the color of the feathers on the back and how the mottling looked under the wings. Other birds in our area like Redtailed Hawks and Broad-winged Hawks also have different color plumage while juveniles that can make it more difficult to identify. Seeing a Bald Eagle in the area was a great reminder of why it is so important to have open space available
near rivers and reservoirs for the over wintering eagle populations.

Sometimes you get interesting visitors where you least expect them! We were given some information by a fellow birder during our Ocean View walk that a Horned Grebe was around the area of our Knowles Padanaram Reserve. Having not seen one in the vicinity before, we adventured out to see if we could spot it. We inevitably did get to see it farther off and took the bridge to get a closer look. At Helfand Farm after all the rain, we had a pair of Mallards hanging out in our small retention basin adjacent to the parking lot! Though they were already on our Big Year list, we had never spotted them before at Helfand. You never know what may end up in your backyard if you keep an eye out!

Click thumbnails to enlarge.