The Stoneybrook Estates neighborhood would not merit an eBird hotspot at all, were it not for the fact that Virginia’s last known Monk Parakeet colony was at this location. The parakeets were present here since at least the early 2000s, with the last reports coming in 2010. During its heyday, the colony here was fairly robust – the parakeets’ raucous chatter, as well as their massive stick nests on utility poles, easily announced their presence. The exact reasons for the colony’s disappearance are not known, though it is probably that the nests were eventually removed by the power company, as is often the case with Monk Parakeet nests on powerlines. Since the parakeets disappeared, there is nothing to draw birders here, and the hotspot is essentially only used for historical data entry. It is worth noting that in 2008 a pair of Eurasian Collared-Doves, a fairly notable rarity in Newport News, was reported with photos from this location.
eBird Hotspot: Stoneybrook Monk Parakeet Roost
—Matt Anthony, August 2020