Venture to Cranberry Glades,
West Virginia
May 13 - 17, 2007
Greenbrier and Pocahontas Counties in West Virginia possibly contain some of the finest birding locations in the Appalachian Mountains. Picture peaceful pastoral scenes, rich cove forests and mountain woodland and rare northern bogs, all alive with a great selection of eastern woodland and open country birds and you have a birding trip to southeastern West Virginia. Highlights of our recent Venture had to include rich, unbroken forests stretching over the horizons, wildflowers in the shady forests and beautiful green vistas, and the birds? We had several Black-billed Cuckoos, an up-close and personal Mourning Warbler, even closer Red Crossbills, a daytime-roosting Eastern Screech-Owl, a Ruffed Grouse in the road, multiple Orchard and Baltimore Orioles and at least 22 warbler species seen or heard.
Our time at the General Lewis Inn was, as usual, relaxing and we took a little time to enjoy Lewisburg as well as collapsing after being out birding all day. Our time in Cass, however, was vastly different as hotels are very scarce (to non-existent in that part of the world!) and even restaurants were not easy to find. Still we managed! Like much of the Southeastern US, Cranberry Glades was very dry and spring had barely arrived. There were Canada Warblers and Northern Waterthrush singing in the thickets, but Alder Flycatcher had not yet arrived. It poured with much-needed rain while we were up at Spruce Knob (the highest point in WV), so our day out in the higher elevation meadows was cut short. Thankfully we had a morning walk around Spruce Knob Lake with a surprising 4 species of shorebird and a stray Ring-billed Gull. But Southeastern West Virginia is not stray gulls, it is rich forests and lots of warblers and we certainly, once again, experienced the area at its best.
| Bird Checklist | |
| Great Blue Heron | Carolina Wren |
| Black Vulture | House Wren |
| Turkey Vulture | Winter Wren (Heard) |
| Canada Goose | Golden-crowned Kinglet |
| Wood Duck | Blue-gray Gnatcatcher |
| Mallard | Eastern Bluebird |
| Osprey | Veery |
| Red-shouldered Hawk | Wood Thrush |
| Broad-winged Hawk | Hermit Thrush (Heard) |
| Red-tailed Hawk | American Robin |
| Ruffed Grouse | Gray Catbird |
| Wild Turkey | Northern Mockingbird |
| Killdeer | Brown Thrasher |
| Greater Yellowlegs | European Starling |
| Lesser Yellowlegs | Cedar Waxwing |
| Solitary Sandpiper | Golden-winged Warbler |
| Spotted Sandpiper | Northern Parula |
| Least Sandpiper | Yellow Warbler |
| Ring-billed Gull | Chestnut-sided Warbler |
| Rock Pigeon | Magnolia Warbler |
| Mourning Dove | Black-throated Blue Warbler |
| Black-billed Cuckoo | Yellow-rumped Warbler |
| Yellow-billed Cuckoo | Black-throated Green Warbler |
| Eastern Screech-Owl | Blackburnian Warbler |
| Barred Owl | Yellow-throated Warbler |
| Chimney Swift | Pine Warbler (Heard) |
| Ruby-throated Hummingbird | Prairie Warbler (Heard) |
| Red-headed Woodpecker | Cerulean Warbler (Heard) |
| Red-bellied Woodpecker | Black-and-White Warbler |
| Downy Woodpecker | American Redstart |
| Hairy Woodpecker | Ovenbird (Heard) |
| Northern Flicker | Northern Waterthrush |
| Pileated Woodpecker | Kentucky Warbler (Heard) |
| Eastern Wood-Pewee | Mourning Warbler |
| Acadian Flycatcher (Heard) | Hooded Warbler |
| Willow Flycatcher | Common Yellowthroat |
| Least Flycatcher | Canada Warbler |
| Eastern Phoebe | Scarlet Tanager |
| Great Crested Flycatcher | Eastern Towhee |
| Eastern Kingbird | Chipping Sparrow |
| White-eyed Vireo | Field Sparrow |
| Yellow-throated Vireo | Grasshopper Sparrow |
| Blue-headed Vireo | Song Sparrow |
| Warbling Vireo | Swamp Sparrow |
| Red-eyed Vireo | Dark-eyed Junco |
| Blue Jay | Northern Cardinal |
| American Crow | Rose-breasted Grosbeak |
| Northern Raven | Indigo Bunting |
| Purple Martin | Bobolink |
| Tree Swallow | Red-winged Blackbird |
| Northern Rough-winged Swallow | Eastern Meadowlark |
| Cliff Swallow | Common Grackle |
| Barn Swallow | Brown-headed Cowbird |
| Carolina Chickadee | Orchard Oriole |
| Black-capped Chickadee | Baltimore Oriole |
| Tufted Titmouse | House Finch |
| Red-breasted Nuthatch | Red Crossbill |
| White-breasted Nuthatch | American Goldfinch |
| Brown Creeper | House Sparrow |
|
Butterflies |
|
| Eastern Tiger Swallowtail | Common Buckeye |
| Pipevine Swallowtail | Pearl Crescent |
| American Lady | West Virginia White |
| Red Admiral | Duskywing sp |
|
Mammals |
|
| Gray Squirrel | Eastern Chipmunk |
| Fox Squirrel | White-tailed Deer |
| Red Squirrel | Black Bear |
| Groundhog | Eastern Cottontail |
|
Reptiles and Amphibians |
|
| Eastern Garter Snake | |
Eastern Screech-Owl
Black-billed Cuckoo
Red Crossbill
Cranberry Glades