May 24, 2026 [LINK / comment]
December 8: I paid a visit to Bell's Lane as the sun was about to set, and was delighted to see THREE Northern Harriers swooping around! The adult male "gray ghost" shown below perched on a fence post was the best view that I had. Short-eared Owls had been reported in that area recently.
December 8, Bell's Lane
December 9: A quick visit to Verona proved very rewarding, as I spotted a dozen or so Hooded Mergansers on the pond behind Hardee's (the first ones of the season for me!), along with a Great Blue Heron, and a Belted Kingfisher -- probably the same one I saw there last week. Near the Mill Pond trail I heard a familiar loud PIT-PIT call, and soon located the Yellow-rumped Warbler that was making the noise.
December 14: Along Bell's Lane in the afternoon, I saw two Northern Harriers (adult male & female/juvenile), as well as a Yellow-bellied Sapsucker (1st-year male), White-crowned Sparrow, and the usual American Robins. There were more Robins back home, along with ten or so Cedar Waxwings in a Bradford pear tree.
December 15: I covered various parks and wooded areas in Staunton for the Christmas Bird Count, enduring bone-chilling sleet and snow for the betterment of Citizen Science! No really big finds, unfortunately.
December 17: Not only was the weather nice, but the raptors were plentiful in the Bell's Lane area! I saw a probable Red-shouldered Hawk as well as a Sharp-shinned Hawk early on. Then there were at least three Northern Harriers squabbling with a Red-tailed Hawk, as the sun began to set. Then I headed up to the gate at the high elevation point, where Scott Priebe was standing vigil, and just after sunset I was astounded to see a Short-eared Owl flying past.
December 19: Just like two evenings ago, the Short-eared Owls came out shortly after sunset, i.e. 5:00 PM. There were three once again, but this time were farther south, near that big red barn, and this time they perched in a tree so that I could get a recognizable photo. I also saw two Northern Harriers in a low-altitude tussle very close by, but my camera simply cannot deal with motion in low light.
December 26: The sun finally came out in the afternoon, and I got a few good views of birds here and there. A Red-tailed Hawk was perched alongside the bypass on the west side of Staunton. The rest of them were in the Verona area, including a Belted Kingfisher at the pond behind Hardee's and a Red-shouldered Hawk a few hundred yards to the south. In the cat-tail reeds by the Mill Place trail there was a lone Winter Wren, a nice surprise.
December 26, Mill Place, Verona
December 28: The sun came out this afternoon after much rain, so I headed over to Bell's Lane and saw a few good birds, including a Red-tailed Hawk that had been perching on a fence post and flew off. Also an American Kestrel in the distance.
December 30: I drove out to Swoope in hopes of seeing the Loggerhead Shrike that has been reported there, but did not succeed. I did, however, see my first Brown Creeper of the season, along the trail/road heading into the forest from the Boy Scout camp. It was on the same tree as a White-breasted Nuthatch. On the pond there was a Great Blue Heron but nothing else. I spotted American Kestrels at three different locations, but no other raptors.
December 31: Nothing really spectacular along Bell's Lane during a post-rain end-of-year stroll this afternoon, but I was mildly surprised to see an Eastern Towhee, which are much scarcer here during the colder months. It was in the bushes next to the house on the corner with the "Beware of dog" sign.
Additional photos and montages, including individual photos of some of the birds in the above montages, will soon become available on the Wild Birds chronological (2024) page. (I am in the midst of a major reorganization of my bird photos, so that they will be sorted year by year.)