Venture to Cleveland County, NC
February 21, 2004

We spent a beautiful, if very windy, day in Cleveland County on February 21 searching for birds of open country and we were not disappointed. We began the day by finding three Barn Owls in one building. Several folks had never seen a Barn Owl before, and to get good looks at three was a real treat. Another lifer for some was a Loggerhead Shrike, perched on a wire in a pasture. Red-tailed Hawks were in good numbers and we also found a couple of American Kestrels. Other birds of open fields included Eastern Meadowlark, Black and Turkey Vultures, White-throated, Swamp, Song, and Savannah Sparrows. Unfortunately, the wind got very gusty just before lunch, and the birds tended to stay in cover. Lunch under the picnic shelter was a real challenge, as the wind wanted to blow away everything in sight, including plates, cups, chips, and even slices of bread! After lunch we went to a sheltered area along a stream, where we flushed a single Northern Bobwhite in a weedy field nearby. We ended the day at one of the best places in the county for Red-headed Woodpeckers and were treated to scope views of an adult sitting in full sun--stunning! Everyone was a good sport about the difficulty in birding (and trying to eat lunch) in the wind and seemed pleased about the good birds we did see.

Jo Ann Martin