MIDDLE ATLANTIC 
250 birds there 23 Jul (FS). The Long-billed 
Curlew seen in spring at Elkins Marsh, 
Northampton was relocated one km n. at 
Buckhorn Pt. 14 Jun (FS, BTr). Rare between 
mid-Jun and Aug, a Marbled Godwit was at 
Ocean City, Worcester 11 Jul (DCz); and 2 
birds each were at Castaways Campground, 
Worcester 15-18 Jul (SA et al.) and Georges Is- 
land Landing, Worcester 11 Jul (Ml), Nine 
flocks of 2-19 Red Knots were reported in 
Maryland from Assat., Hart, and Ocean City. 
Two Western Sandpipers at Assat. 24 Jun (SA) 
were early. Rare anywhere in Jun and Jul in 
the Region, particularly away from the coast, 
the 12 Dunlins that summered at Poplar (JR) 
were unexpected. A migrant Stilt Sandpiper at 
Summit Hall, Montgomery', MD 26 Jul (DCz) 
provided a rare Piedmont record. A scarce 
summer visitor and declining fall transient, 
an ad. female Wilson's Phalarope was at 
Chine. 27 Jim (GK&MAK); another was at 
Poplar 21 Jul (JR et al.). 
A South Polar Skua was an excellent Mary- 
land pelagic find 16 Jun (ES). 'Very rare in the 
summer, a Pomarine Jaeger 9 Jul (SA, MW) 
and a Parasitic Jaeger 24 Jul (BC) were both at 
Assat. Weekly surveys recorded a peak of 570 
Laughing Gull pairs at Grandview Beach Park, 
Hampton, VA 2 Jun (BW, SD, DR, BT) and 
2546 nests along the Hampton Roads Bridge- 
Tunnel 9 Jun (SD, DR, DT, BW). A second-cy- 
cle Franklin’s Gnll followed the James R. fer- 
r)’ between Jamestown, James City and Scot- 
land, Siiny, VA 12-15 Jun (ph. BT, AD, KK, 
FB). A Bonaparte’s Gull was at Poplar 20-21 
Jul (JR et ah). Lesser Black-backed Gulls 
peaked at about 200 birds at Back Bay/False 
Cape (GM, DH, RLA et ah). The Oyster, 
Northampton Glaucous Gull from the spring 
was still present 26 Jun (GL, MAK), establish- 
ing a 5th Virginia summer record. The Glau- 
cous Gull reported in late spring at Ocean 
City, Worcester remained through 21 Jun (JB et 
al.). Although a comprehensive survey was 
not conducted this season, it was evident that 
Gull-billed Terns continue to struggle in Vir- 
ginia. Only 10 pairs could be found on the Ac- 
comack and Northampton barrier islands, and a 
colony of 79 pairs on a marsh shell pile near 
Wreck 1. was washed out as eggs were hatch- 
ing. In Maryland, 1-2 Gull-billed Terns were 
seen regularly at Castaways, Worcester, 1-2 
birds were seen several times at North 
Vaughn, and a single bird was reported sever- 
al times in Ocean City. Royal Terns did not 
nest on any of the Virginia Atlantic barrier is- 
lands for the first time since at least 1935. 
However, 1 386 pairs nested at Hampton (BW 
et al), more than double the 633 pairs there in 
2008. At least 944 Royal Tern pairs bred on 
the Clump I. /Fox 1. complex, Accomack QW, 
HTA et al). The 11 Caspian Terns at Staunton 
View Park, Mecklenburg 31 Jul represented 
just the 2nd summer Piedmont record Obi). 
Injun, a Sandwich Tern pair was observed de- 
fending a space among Royal Terns on the 
Hampton Roads Bridge-Tunnel (BW et al.), 
then carrying food to the colony site 22 6ir 30 
Jul (DR, BT, DT). If the pair did nest, as the ev- 
idence suggests, it constitutes a first for 
Hampton Roads and a first for the Region 
away from the coastal barrier islands. A rare 
transient and summer visitor along the coast 
and the lower Bay, a Roseate Tern was a nice 
find at Assat. 9-29 Jul (m.ob.). One of the few 
onshore reports for this species, an ad. Arctic 
Tern was at Assat. 22 & 25 Jul (p.a., FJ, JLS); 
the species has been detected with increasing 
frequency in and around Long I., NY and oc- 
casionally coastal New Jersey though most 
have not been ads. in summer. Regional bird- 
ers on the outer coasts should look carefully 
for ''portlandica" (first-summer) Arctics at this 
season. Least Terns attempted to nest at 
Lynnhaven Mall, Virginia Beach for a 9th con- 
secutive year, with 41 nests (same as 2008) 17 
Jun (RBo). The colony was subsequently 
abandoned, perhaps because of Red-tailed 
Hawk predation. Least Terns failed to nest at 
Patrick Henry Mall this summer after three 
years of success (2006-2008). The 18 pairs at 
Grandview Beach Park 2 Jun (BW, SD, DR, 
BT) failed to produce young. There were 123 
ad. Least Terns at Craney 1 Jul (DR, DT), scat- 
tered among a loose aggregation of colony 
sites along the Elizabeth River. A late season 
VD.G.l.F count of Least Tern nesting activity 
in Mathews, VA yielded 13 active nests at New 
Pt. Comfort and 82 ads. with 18 active nests 
and 17 fledglings at Sandy Pt. 9 Jul (RBo). A 
Black Tern arrived at Craney 1 Jul (BW, DR, 
DT). The only inland Black Tern was at Vio- 
lette’s Lock, Montgomery, MD 23-26 Jul 
(DCz). Twenty-three of 59 ad. Black Skimmers 
at Hampton Roads Bridge-Tunnel 8 Jun (DR, 
DT) were incubating; a Grandview Beach Park 
colony peaked at 386 ads. 12 Jun (BW, SD, 
DR, BT). Black Skimmers nested in numbers 
on Skimmer I., Worcester after several years of 
low numbers there. 
Several observers reported Yellow-billed 
Cuckoos as being scarce this season (FA et 
ah). The 3 Short-eared Owls at Elliot L, 
Dorchester 11 Jun-18 Jul (DS, MG et al.) may 
indicate breeding activity. There have been no 
confirmed Short-eared Owl breeding records 
for the lower Eastern Shore in the last half- 
century. 
WOODPECKERS THROUGH FINCHES 
The Red-cockaded Woodpeckers at the Na- 
ture Conservancy’s Piney Grove Preserve had 
a successful breeding season: six pairs fiedged 
15 birds. The 9 females and 6 males that 
fledged in 2009 represent the highest produc- 
tion of young in the past decade (MWi et ah). 
Intensive habitat management by the Nature 
Conservancy and the translocation of Red- 
cockaded Woodpeckers from other popula- 
tions into the Preserve has seemingly secured 
this colony. There are now 43 Red-cockaded 
Woodpeckers at the Piney Grove Preserve. 
Two ad. Loggerhead Shrikes were feeding one 
young in Bedford 30 Jul (PLy). A Loggerhead 
Shrike in Greensville, VA 15 Jun (TDa, Jide 
WE) was notable, as most recent records of 
this species are from n. and w. parts of the 
state. The Purple Martin roost at Shockoe 
Bottom, Richmond, VA hosted about 3000 
r J\ One 25 Jun, Caro! and Ron Baker were surprised to see an apparent ad. male Violet-crowned Hummingbird defend- 
m) Ming a feeder also patronized by numerous Ruby-throated Hummingbirds at their bed & breakfast in Craig, Virginia. They 
forwarded photographs of the interloper to Bill Akers and Jerry Via, who visited 27 Jun and confirmed the bird's identification; 
the bird was last seen 28 Jun. This record is comparable to Brown Booby the Claytor Lake, Pulaski, VA in fall 2008 for its lack of 
continental precedence. 
Violet-crowned Hummingbird has strayed from its typical Mexico-Arizona-New Mexico locations into California a half- 
dozen times, reaching as far n. as Humboldt, and there is a Portland, OR sight record. Though it remains a great rarity in the state, 
Texas has seen an increase in Violet-crowned Hummingbird sightings: there are now about 16 documented records, including 
nine reported since spring 2007 (fide Mark Lockwood). Violet-crowned Hummingbirds have wandered much less than other 
southwestern hummingbird species in New Mexico, and there have been very few records outside Guadalupe Canyon, Hidal- 
go since the first state record (also the first U.S. record) occurred there in 1957. The summering population in the New Mexico 
portion of Guadalupe Canyon is small and has shown no detectable change in recent decades (Sandy Williams). These data sug- 
gest that Violet-crowned Hummingbird would be among the least-expected hummingbirds to visit the Middle Atlantic region. 
States e. of the Mississippi R. have records of Anna's, Costa's, Broad-billed, Buff-bellied, Blue-throated, Broad-tailed, and 
White-eared Hummingbirds, Green Violetear, and Green-breasted Mango, Though none of these species have been observed 
in Virginia, states adjacent to Virginia have recorded most (a Green Violetear was reported, though not photographed, in Cum- 
berland, Virginia). The Virginia record of Magnificent Hummingbird (Radford, 22-25 Oct 2003), in combination with this Vio- 
let-crowned Hummingbird record, may indicate that observers are seeing only the tip of the iceberg. 
580 
NORTH AMERICAN BIRDS 
