On Monday, December 9, the Northern Neck Audubon Society will conduct a bird walk led by Joe Cooney at Hughlett Point and Dameron Marsh Natural Area Preserves in Northumberland County.  Both preserves lie on peninsulas jutting into the Chesapeake Bay. Hughlett Point offers a wonderful opportunity for viewing birds and wildlife as it includes coastal forest, shrub, salt marsh, and sandy beach habitats and a viewing platform.  Dameron Marsh offers views of the Chesapeake Bay, Mill Creek and Ingram Bay.  It also has a viewing platform, sand beaches, marshes and a large fallow field with scattered shrubs.

This will be a good time for bird watching as many migrating birds are still coming through the Atlantic flyway, and the waterfowl are still arriving.  Among possible sightings are pine and yellow-rumped warblers, Eastern phoebes, catbirds, swamp and white-throated sparrows, belted kingfishers, royal and Forster terns, brown pelicans, great egrets, American black ducks, mergansers, buffleheads, loons, tundra swans, gulls and bald eagles.

Meet at 9 a.m. at the parking lot at Hughlett Point, 5411 Balls Neck Road, Kilmarnock. Directions:  From Burgess, take Rt. 200 south.  Go approximately 8 miles and turn left (east) on Shiloh School Road (Rt. 606).  At the end of Rt. 606, turn right onto Balls Neck Road (Rt. 605).  Go approximately a mile and a a half.  The Hughlett Point parking lot will be on the left.   From Kilmarnock, take Rt. 200 north.  Go approximately 5 miles and turn right (east) on Rt. 606, Shiloh School Road.  At the end of Rt. 606, turn right onto Balls Neck Road (Rt. 605).  Go approximately a mile and a half.  The Hughlett Point parking lot will be on the left.   

There will be several pairs of loaner binoculars available.  IFor NNAS programs, activities, and information, visit the website at www.northernneckaudubon.org.  Northern Neck Audubon bird walks and programs are always open to the public.