Date: 10/16/26 4:40 pm From: Andrew Ednie <000006be14ba5998-dmarc-request...> Subject: [de-birds] RBA: Birdline Delaware, October 16th, 2026
RBA * Delaware * Statewide * October 16, 2026 * DEST 26.10.16
*Birds mentioned Snow Goose Cackling Goose American Wigeon Redhead Black Scoter White-winged Scoter Surf Scoter Common Eider Ruddy Duck Wild Turkey Yellow-billed Cuckoo Common Nighthawk Ruby-throated Hummingbird Virginia Rail Sora American Coot Sandhill Crane American Oystercatcher Black-necked Stilt American Avocet Black-bellied Plover American Golden Plover Semipalmated Plover Marbled Godwit HUDSONIAN GODWIT Ruddy Turnstone Solitary Sandpiper Spotted Sandpiper Willet Short-billed Dowitcher Long-billed Dowitcher Wilson’s Snipe Western Sandpiper White-rumped Sandpiper Purle Sandpiper Pectoral Sandpiper Stilt Sandpiper Common Tern Caspian Tern Royal Tern Pomarine Jaeger Parasitic Jaeger Bonaparte’s Gull Common Loon Pied-billed Grebe Great Cormorant Double-crested Cormorant Brown Pelican Northern Gannet Black-crowned Night Heron Yellow-crowned Night Heron Little Blue Heron Tricolored Heron Western Cattle Egret Green Heron Glossy Ibis White Ibis Sharp-shinned Hawk Cooper’s Hawk Broad-winged Hawk Red-headed Woodpecker American Kestrel Merlin Peregrine Falcon Least Flycatcher Blue-headed Vireo Red-eyed Vireo Common Raven Horned Lark Tree Swallow Barn Swallow Brown-headed Nuthatch Red-breasted Nuthatch Swainson’s Thrush Gray-cheeked Thrush American Pipit Purple Finch Pine Siskin CLAY-COLORED SPARROW Saltmarsh Sparrow Seaside Sparrow Lincoln’s Sparrow Fox Sparrow White-crowned Sparrow Bobolink Yellow-breasted Chat Northern Waterthrush American Redstart Black and White Warbler Orange-crowned Warbler Nashville Warbler Tennessee Warbler CONNECTICUT WARBLER Northern Parula Northern Yellow Warbler Magnolia Warbler Cape May Warbler Blackpoll Warbler Pine Warbler Palm Warbler Prairie Warbler Black-throated Blue Warbler Yellow-rumped Warbler Black-throated Green Warbler Blue Grosbeak Indigo Bunting DICKCISSEL
Hotline: Birdline Delaware Date: October 16, 2026 To Report: Andy Ednie 302-792-9591 (VOICE) Compiler: Andy Ednie (<ednieap...>) Coverage: Delaware, Delmarva Peninsula, nearby Delaware Valley, Southern New Jersey, Maryland
For Friday, October 16th this is Birdline Delaware from the Delaware Museum of Nature and Science in Greenville. The Birdline is sponsored by the Delaware Ornithological Society (DOS). Statements made on the Birdline do not necessarily reflect the views of the sponsors. This is Andy Ednie, glad to be with you. The unofficial Delaware Annual List increased to 323 species this week.
A CLAY-COLORED SPARROW was reported at the “magic circle” behind the hawk watch at Ashland Nature Center on Monday. Downstate, a DICKCISSEL was photographed in Cape Henlopen State Park. An early FOX SPARROW, along with LINCOLN’S and WHITE-CROWNED SPARROW were found at the McCabe Nature Preserve near Milton. RED-BREASTED NUTHATCH was reported at Abbott’s Mill Nature Center, Cape Henlopen and Gordon’s Pond State Park. Some late lingering birds included COMMON NIGHTHAWK, RUBY-THROATED HUMMINGBIRD, LEAST FLYCATCHER, RED-EYED VIREO, BARN SWALLOW, BOBOLINK, YELLOW-BREASTED CHAT, SCARLET TANAGER, INDIGO BUNTING, and BLUE GROSBEAK.
A late push of warblers is still being seen, including a CONNECTICUT WARBLER at the Hunn Nature Preserve in south Dover. An ORANGE-CROWNED WARBLER was found in a private yead near Lewes. A total of 19 species of warbler were reported this week including NORTHERN WATERTHRUSH, AMERICAN REDSTART, NORTHERN PARULA, plus BLACK AND WHITE, TENNESSEE, NASHVILLE, CAPE MAY, MAGNOLIA, BLACKPOLL, PINE, PRAIRIE, PALM, YELLOW-RUMPED, plus BLACK-THROATED BLUE, and GREEN WARBLER.
A late GREEN HERON was seen at the Pumphouse Pond in White Clay Creek State Park, along with SWAINSON’S and GRAY-CHEEKED THRUSH. PINE SISKINS and PURPLE FINCHES were reported at Ashland Nature Center. COMMON RAVEN was reported at First State National Historical Park and the Ashton Tract in Augustine Wildlife Area. SANDHILL CRANE was reported in this latter site. LITTLE BLUE HERON continues to be seen at Thousand Acre Marsh. BONAPARTE’S GULL was seen at the Port Penn impoundments. A WILD TURKEY was found in a back yard near Boyd’s Corner.
RUDDY DUCK, CACKLING and SNOW GOOSE were found at Bombay Hook National Wildlife Refuge. Both MARBLED and a peak count of 8 HUDSONIAN GODWITS were seen, along with 400+ AMERICAN AVOCET, BLACK-BELLIED, SEMIPALMATED and AMERICAN GOLDEN PLOVER, SHORT and LONG-BILLED DOWITCHER, DUNLIN, plus WESTERN, WHITE-RUMPED, STILT, and PECTORAL SANDPIPER. Waders included TRICOLORED and LITTLE BLUE HERON, YELLOW-CROWNED and BLACK-CROWNED NIGHT HERON and SANDHILL CRANES. An immature RED-HEADED WOODPECKER was seen on Saturday. AMERICAN PIPIT and HORNED LARK were seen along Whitehall Neck Road.
BLACK-BELLIED PLOVER, SHORT and LONG-BILLED DOWITCHER, plus WESTERN and PECTORAL SANDPIPER were seen at Taylor’s Gut in Woodland Beach Wildlife Area. A pair of REDHEADS and 50 AMERICAN WIGEONS were seen at the Port Penn Impoundments of Little Creek Wildlife Area. AMERICAN COOT and PIED-BILLED GREBE were seen at the main tract tower. SEMIPALMATED PLOVER and ROYAL TERN were seen at Port Mahon. There was a flyby BLACK-NECKED STILT at the Dike Trail in Prime Hook National Wildlife Refuge, along with AMERICAN AVOCET, WILLET, and CASPIAN TERNS plus VIRGINIA RAIL were seen. WILSON’S SNIPE and WHITE IBIS were seen at Oyster Rocks Road.
PARASITIC and POMARINE JAEGER, BRANT, BLACK and SURF SCOTER, plus 2000 TREE SWALLOWS with a single BARN SWALLOW were reported in in Cape Henlopen State Park. AMERICAN OYSTERCATCHER, BLACK BELLIED PLOVER, COMMON LOON, NORTHERN GANNET, and BROWN PELICAN were seen at Cape Henlopen Point. There was a flock of 500+ WHITE and 5 GLOSSY IBIS at Gordon’s Pond this week, plus TRICOLORED HERON. Shorebirds seen included WESTERN and WHITE-RUMPED SANDPIPER. SALTMARSH and SEASIDE SPARROW were seen along the bike trail. Birds at the Lewes breakwater included a pair of COMMON EIDERS, AMERICAN OYSTERCATCHER, RUDDY TURNSTONE, SPOTTED SANDPIPER, and an early PURPLE SANDPIPER. A single GREAT CORMORANT was among the 600+ DOUBLE-CRESTED CORMORANT and 163 BROWN PELICANS.
COMMON and ROYAL TERNS were seen at Indian River Inlet. SORA and BONAPARTE’S GULL were found at the observation tower in Assawoman Wildlife Area. A flock of 16 WESTERN CATTLE EGRETS were seen at the love Creek Horse Farm off Route 24 near Angola Neck. A SOLITARY SANDPIPER was seen at Trap Pond State Park near Laural.
This is the halfway mark of Delaware Hawk Watches season. It was a rainout at both watches on Sunday. Ashland Nature Center had 34 AMERICAN KESTRELS, 8 MERLIN and 4 PEREGRINE FALCONS with 106 SHARP-SHINNED, 45 COOPER’S and 3 BROAD-WINGED HAWKS this week. A single COMMON LOON was seen flying over Ashland on Monday. Cape Henlopen had 15 PEREGRINE FALCONS today, with 14 AMERICAN KESTRELS and 16 MERLIN for the week. A WHITE-WINGED SCOTER was seen from the hawk watch yesterday. This might be the first Sunday in a month without rain, come on out and watch some hawks!
Thanks to all the people that make the Birdline possible, including, Hank Davis, Rachel Yurchisin, Jac Contrell, Melissa Lafferty, Jessica Shahan, Dorothy Paine, Ed Wrzcsiewski, Randy Fisher, Lucas Pittman, Rebecca Byrd, Wil Martens, Ann Dinkel, Judy Wilson, Debbie Blair, Nancy Cunningham, Steve and Susan McInnis, Martin Selzer, Lynn Jackson, David Thomas, Ed Patten, Sam VanHorne, John Carter, Chris Rankin, Kent Raymond, Carolyn Holland, Mary Braun, Sue Gruver, Rob Blye, Richard Julian, Alice Mohrman, Greg Gough, Phil Misseldine, Tom Stock, Chris and Karen Bennett, Anthony Gonzon, Will Krohn, Jim White, Laureen Eick-Benson, Chase Wilkinson, Kim Steininger, Lana Glass, John and Andy Dunn, Wendy Cesario, Joe Francis, Bruce Peterjohn, and Joe Swertinski. Thanks to our two hawk counters David Brown and Emma Hovland. Special thanks to Joe Tricarico for list distribution to DOS members. Remember, Birdline needs your support. Please call your sightings to 302-792-9591. Thank you fo! r your support. This is Andy Ednie wishing you good birding!
