Date:         Sat, 16 Aug 2008 18:28:26 -0700
Reply-To:     roam4birds@yahoo.com
Sender:       Georgia Birders Online <GABO-L@LISTSERV.UGA.EDU>
From:         Mark Freeman <roam4birds@YAHOO.COM>
Subject:      shorebird site in Jackson County
Content-Type: text/plain; charset=us-ascii

This afternoon I drove up to Jackson County to check out a wetland/pond near Jefferson. Jim Hanna of Athens told me he had been by there very briefly a few days ago and found a few egrets, and that it looked promising for shorebirds. So around 2pm today I visited the site. There's a long narrow pond with some smaller impounded areas upstream (mostly dried up) and a good amount of open mudflats on one side. Sort of a smaller version of the Huie ponds. Might be a good spot for shorebirds in Jackson County. Also some weedy fields, marsh vegetation, reeds, etc, that may be good this winter for Marsh and Sedge Wrens, sparrows.

It's on GA 82 about 1 mile north of downtown Jefferson, along Curry Creek (Delorme p22 E1, GoogleEarth 34.129258, -83.570346). There were also 2 Wood Storks soaring quite high overhead, to the north of the complex.

Wood Stork   2
Pectoral Sandpiper   2
Solitary Sandpiper   2
Spotted Sandpiper   2
Killdeer   44
Great Egret   2
Green Heron   3
Great Blue Heron   2
Belted Kingfisher   1
Mallard   7

I also made a quick run over to the small pond at the south edge of the Pendergrass Flea Market parking lot (US 129, just north of I-85 at exit 137). At this site there was another Great Egret and two first year Little Blue Herons.

Mark FReeman
Watkinsville, GA (Oconee County)
roam4birds@yahoo.com

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