I suppose the morning could have been more perfect, but this morning at Lake Wichita between 7 AM and 9AM was wonderful. The weather was pleasant and there were some good birds. I walked the Chat trail, around the tank and took the trail to Murphy's Mound and then came back.
There are still one or two birds I am researching, in hopes of finding a recording of their sounds, since I didn't get a good look at the birds themselves, but here are the birds I am sure of: American kestrel, great egret, snowy egret, Canada geese, scissor-tailed flycatcher, northern cardinal, Carolina chickadee, ruby-throated hummingbird, black-chinned hummingbird, mallard ducks, blue-winged teal, red-winged balckbird, European starling, Eurasian collared dove, mourning dove, white-winged dove, pied-billed grebe, barn swallow, yellow warbler (somewhat early for this one), orchard oriole, Bullock's oriole, great-tailed grackle, killdeer, robin, and blue jay.
On my way home, I saw a flock of pigeons and some common grackles.
The poor blackbirds are looking bedraggled. Most have lost their tails to the fall molt and others have only one or two feathers sticking out at odd angles.
It appears there will be plenty of food for birds passing through or staying the winter. There are lots of sunflowers, thistles and other grasses, fruit trees, etc. The red-winged blackbirds were going crazy with the sunflowers today.
All in all, a super morning.
Good birding!
Sunday, August 30, 2009
Saturday, August 29, 2009
Fronts and Migration
Migration takes a lot of energy, so when possible, birds use weather fronts to give them a tail wind and help them along the way. Earlier this week we had a small front come through bringing a little rain (1/4 inch) and a cool front (100's before, low 90's after). When I drove into Midwestern State University, I saw a kettle of turkey vultures (TV) forming overhead, probably 25 or so when I first saw it, gathering more as it moved away. Turkey vultures are usually here in large numbers until late September--this could have been the first of our locals heading out or a group from further north passing through. I was reading up on Birds of North America Online and noted that TV migration is not well studied. It always amazes me what we don't know about fairly common birds.
Later that afternoon, I saw a group of about 30 common nighthawks forming up. This is about the time the vast majority leave the area--they are mostly gone by mid-September, although a few linger to the beginning of October. We received a newly hatched common nighthawk this week at Wild Bird Rescue, so I hope at least some adults linger longer--adults have to feed on the wing and handfeeding a bird for months over the winter is not a pleasant prospect.
Good birding!
Later that afternoon, I saw a group of about 30 common nighthawks forming up. This is about the time the vast majority leave the area--they are mostly gone by mid-September, although a few linger to the beginning of October. We received a newly hatched common nighthawk this week at Wild Bird Rescue, so I hope at least some adults linger longer--adults have to feed on the wing and handfeeding a bird for months over the winter is not a pleasant prospect.
Good birding!
Wednesday, August 26, 2009
Fall Migration Underway
There is no doubt the birds are beginning to move. There are very few Western Kingbirds left--I saw my last one over the past weekend. There may well be a few left in the area, but not many.
The purple martins are not gone, but the ones that nested around Wild Bird Rescue have dispersed. Usually someone finds the roost where the birds are staging before departure, but not so this year. It was a very poor nesting year for many of the colonies in the area, judging from the number of emaciated birds brought in to WBR this season.
One of my favorite birds is the chimney swift. It is time again for the "Swift Night Out," sponsored by the Driftwood Association, taking a census of chimney swifts congregating for migration. Instructions are on their web site.
Good birding!
The purple martins are not gone, but the ones that nested around Wild Bird Rescue have dispersed. Usually someone finds the roost where the birds are staging before departure, but not so this year. It was a very poor nesting year for many of the colonies in the area, judging from the number of emaciated birds brought in to WBR this season.
One of my favorite birds is the chimney swift. It is time again for the "Swift Night Out," sponsored by the Driftwood Association, taking a census of chimney swifts congregating for migration. Instructions are on their web site.
Good birding!
Sunday, August 16, 2009
Sunday Morning in Lucy Park
I haven't gone birding in Lucy Park in a while. Lucy Park is closer to my house than Lake Wichita Park, but when I leave the driveway, I turn more often to the lake and the Chat Trail, where it seems there are more birds. The last several times I have been to Lucy Park, the birding has been average, and comments from other bird club members makes me think they are having little luck there as well.
However, seeing the Northern Waterthrush yesterday got me excited about the possibility of seeing warblers on their fall migration, although it is a little early. Lucy Park should be perfect as it is a riparian woodlands habitat. I was obviously too early as I didn't see any warblers. Unfortunately, I didn't see much of anything. I used to bird Lucy Park almost every weekend and often saw good birds (which infers other birds are bad, which isn't the case, but fellow birders will know what I mean.)
Anyway, today I walked the circle trail and also the path to the waterfall. I didn't take the pathway to Williams Park today as it was getting just too hot for that long of a walk. What struck me was how quiet the woods were--there were not many birds singing this morning, with the exception of an exuberant Carolina wren.
I followed his call and of course, when I was close, he stopped singing. I sat down on one of the large flat rocks along the trail to drink some water and wait for him to sing again to get a look. A few minutes later, a little brown bird flew out of the cedar tree to another tree about 10 yards aways. I moved down the trail and was able to watch the wren sing away. When the wren moved, he must have crossed the line into another wren's territory, because less than a minute after he started singing, another Carolina wren came flying from the other direction and lighted on the same tree. He was obviously agitated and was giving the singing wren a piece of his mind.
Besides the wren, my walk was uneventful. I saw the following birds: mourning dove, white-winged dove, Eurasian collared dove, blue jay, cardinal, Mississippi kite, purple martin, pigeon, Carolina chickadee, mockingbird, European starling, robin, tufted titmouse, red-winged blackbird, house finch, and cattle egret.
There were lots of butterflies and dragonflies/damselflies. If I had been looking for those, it would have been a great morning. But it was nice to get out and get a little exercise before settling down to work on the computer the rest of the day.
However, seeing the Northern Waterthrush yesterday got me excited about the possibility of seeing warblers on their fall migration, although it is a little early. Lucy Park should be perfect as it is a riparian woodlands habitat. I was obviously too early as I didn't see any warblers. Unfortunately, I didn't see much of anything. I used to bird Lucy Park almost every weekend and often saw good birds (which infers other birds are bad, which isn't the case, but fellow birders will know what I mean.)
Anyway, today I walked the circle trail and also the path to the waterfall. I didn't take the pathway to Williams Park today as it was getting just too hot for that long of a walk. What struck me was how quiet the woods were--there were not many birds singing this morning, with the exception of an exuberant Carolina wren.
I followed his call and of course, when I was close, he stopped singing. I sat down on one of the large flat rocks along the trail to drink some water and wait for him to sing again to get a look. A few minutes later, a little brown bird flew out of the cedar tree to another tree about 10 yards aways. I moved down the trail and was able to watch the wren sing away. When the wren moved, he must have crossed the line into another wren's territory, because less than a minute after he started singing, another Carolina wren came flying from the other direction and lighted on the same tree. He was obviously agitated and was giving the singing wren a piece of his mind.
Besides the wren, my walk was uneventful. I saw the following birds: mourning dove, white-winged dove, Eurasian collared dove, blue jay, cardinal, Mississippi kite, purple martin, pigeon, Carolina chickadee, mockingbird, European starling, robin, tufted titmouse, red-winged blackbird, house finch, and cattle egret.
There were lots of butterflies and dragonflies/damselflies. If I had been looking for those, it would have been a great morning. But it was nice to get out and get a little exercise before settling down to work on the computer the rest of the day.
Saturday, August 15, 2009
Northern Waterthrush
When I came in to Wild Bird Rescue this morning, Bob told me he had heard a bird singing in the mulberry tree and couldn't ID the bird.
This afternoon, I went out to feed the Mississippi Kites in the outdoor aviary and saw a little warbler in the mulberry, so I stopped to watch in hopes that I could see it well enough for long enough to figure out what it was. Lo and behold, it was a northern waterthrush, bobbing his tail.
Although this is in their migratory pathway, they are not often seen, so I consider myself very lucky. Whether this is Bob's songster, I can't say, but they do have a pretty song, so it's possible.
Good birding!
This afternoon, I went out to feed the Mississippi Kites in the outdoor aviary and saw a little warbler in the mulberry, so I stopped to watch in hopes that I could see it well enough for long enough to figure out what it was. Lo and behold, it was a northern waterthrush, bobbing his tail.
Although this is in their migratory pathway, they are not often seen, so I consider myself very lucky. Whether this is Bob's songster, I can't say, but they do have a pretty song, so it's possible.
Good birding!
Article on Roadrunners
There was an interesting article on roadrunners on the MSNBC website, posted to Facebook. Thought I would share. I also posted the link to a species account (click on "roadrunners" in the previous sentence.)
Good birding!
Good birding!
Harrison Apartment Cattle Egrets
You'll recall earlier posts about the cattle egret rookery at Harrison Apartments. The babies are beginning to fall from the nests and showing up at Wild Bird Rescue. A large number die from impact with the concrete under the trees or the heat before they are brought in. Some have had to be euthanized because of severe injuries. A few have died from dehydration/emaciation soon after arrival. But others are recovering and will likely be able to be released in a few weeks. All of them seem to be well underweight--the parent birds are having to travel quite a ways into town to bring food. I hope they remember the trek next year and find a more suitable nesting location.
Egrets are pretty aggressive birds; fortunately for my fingers, most are beginning to self feed. Once we can release the birds in one of the outdoor aviaries, these guys can go outside and practice catching bugs.
Good birding!
Egrets are pretty aggressive birds; fortunately for my fingers, most are beginning to self feed. Once we can release the birds in one of the outdoor aviaries, these guys can go outside and practice catching bugs.
Good birding!
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