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Snow geese
Photo by Raymond Eichelberger on Unsplash
Saturday was the monthly bird outing at Lake Arrowhead State Park. The morning was beautiful. However, a
brisk wind, combined with 40 - 45 degree weather meant it was a little nippy to start. We had a new birder with
us this month. She said birding was on her retirement bucket list. I can't imagine anything better.
This time of year is the beginning of the spring migration (although April should be even better). Purple Martins
are back, and our winter birds are still here. There have been reports of some summer birds showing up very early
(a summer tanager, for example). The highlight of my morning was a small flock of snow geese that flew over
our heads. A neotropic cormorant was also a good sighting. We also saw a beaver, and I saw some white-tailed deer.
I got to the park a little early and also birded West Arrowhead Rd that runs just outside the park boundary for a
short time after we broke up, so my list includes those birds.
The birds I saw/heard included:
Canada goose
Snow goose
White pelican
Double-crested cormorant
Neotropic cormorant
Great blue heron
Ring-billed gull
Killdeer
Least sandpiper
Gadwall
Mallard
American Coot
Black vulture
Turkey vulture
Eastern phoebe
Ruby-crowned kinglet
Northern cardinal
Northern mockingbird
Carolina Chickadee
Eastern bluebird
Dark-eyed junco
Harris's sparrow
White-crowned sparrow
Field sparrow
Brown-headed cowbird
Great-tailed grackle
Red-winged blackbird
European starling
Overall, a very good morning. You're invited to come bird with us on the second Saturday of each
month. We start at 8:00 AM in the parking lot near the fishing pier. Beginners and kids welcome. We look
at more than just birds--plants, bugs, etc. This is a leisurely stroll of about 1 to 1.5 miles.
Good birding!
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