What a beautiful day for birding, or for just sitting on a park bench and soaking up the sun!! Had two new MilWALKee and combo BIGBY species. My MilWALKee BIGBY count is now up to 173 species, and my 2010 combo BIGBY count stands at 213 species.
Some highlights:
* While walking alongside McKinley Marina looking for waterfowl, I noticed another unfortunate sign that winter is drawing closer: http://bit.ly/aMFGf3
* Thayer's Gull. Very cool adult bird! It was perched on a wooden piling in the lake just off of the Bradford Beach parking lot. Great close-up views. MilWALKee BIGBY species #172. 2010 combo BIGBY species #212.
* Dunlin. Nervously working the extensive algae mat at the far south end of Bradford Beach. I say "nervously" because there was a steadily increasing number of people walking the edge of the beach in the nice weather. The bird gave up when someone came along with a dog. It flew out over the lake. Maybe the same bird that John Idzikowski saw later in the afternoon at North Point? MilWALKee BIGBY species #173. 2010 combo BIGBY species #213.
* Steve Lubahn reported a possible Pacific Loon off the shore of Lake Park near the rugby field and the water treatment plant. I didn't notice any loons while I was in that general vicinity today, but there were LOTS of Buffleheads, several Coots, maybe a dozen Gadwalls, a couple dozen Mallards, several Common Goldeneyes, and at least one Bonaparte's Gull mixed in with the Herrings and Ring-billeds.
* I walked back home through Lake Park and saw several Pine Siskins on a tree on the golf course.
Monday, November 8, 2010
Friday, November 5, 2010
Milwaukee lakefront, 11/4-11/5 - Three new BIGBY birds, first of year snowflakes
Ran across three new MilWALKee BIGBY species over the past two days. My list of MilWALKee BIGBY species now stands at 171. Two of these birds were also 2010 "combo" BIGBY species, bringing that count to 211 species.
Highlights from Thursday, 11/4:
* Wilson's Snipe. Flushed from the south end of Veterans Park lagoon. MilWALKee BIGBY species #169.
* Common Nighthawk(?). This seems REALLY late! I was by Discovery World and heard what sounded exactly like a Common Nighthawk "peenting" as it headed south. Couldn't make visual confirmation. The only other bird I know of that can make a sound like that is a displaying American Woodcock, and I'm pretty sure they only do that in spring. Not sure what to think.
* American Coot numbers seem to be gradually declining. Where I used to see hundreds, I'm now seeing dozens.
* Saw the largest flock of Canada Geese I think I've ever seen on the ground. 600+ birds just north of Veterans Park. The orange-collared goose from Hudson Bay is still hanging around. It's been there since at least October 11. There were also several Cacklers mixed in, although they weren't as small as the one I photographed earlier this week.
Highlights from Friday, 11/5:
* First really wintry day I've experienced this fall. And I saw several first-of-season snowflakes! I was out for 3+ hours with the temps in the mid-30s, and wind chills in the mid-20s. Lake Michigan was pretty rough, with some pretty big waves. I remember thinking "you could almost surf on these waves". Right on cue, when I got to Bradford Beach there was someone in the surf with a small (maybe 8-foot) board, trying to catch some waves. It chilled me to the core just to watch! This photo might give you a sense of how rough the lake was: http://bit.ly/dyaADK.
* Lots of duck activity off of Bradford Beach and North Point. Both Scaup species, Buffleheads, White-winged Scoter, Black Scoter, Ring-necked Duck. And, of course, lots of Mallards. Given the weather conditions, I was surprised by how much flying in and flying out was going on. There was quite a bit of turnover as I watched. I was also surprised to see sleeping ducks riding the rough surf with heads tucked under their wings.
* Ring-necked Duck was MilWALKee BIGBY species #170, and 2010 combo BIGBY #210.
* Black Scoter was MilWALKee BIGBY species #171, and 2010 combo BIGBY #211.
Bernie Sloan
Milwaukee
Highlights from Thursday, 11/4:
* Wilson's Snipe. Flushed from the south end of Veterans Park lagoon. MilWALKee BIGBY species #169.
* Common Nighthawk(?). This seems REALLY late! I was by Discovery World and heard what sounded exactly like a Common Nighthawk "peenting" as it headed south. Couldn't make visual confirmation. The only other bird I know of that can make a sound like that is a displaying American Woodcock, and I'm pretty sure they only do that in spring. Not sure what to think.
* American Coot numbers seem to be gradually declining. Where I used to see hundreds, I'm now seeing dozens.
* Saw the largest flock of Canada Geese I think I've ever seen on the ground. 600+ birds just north of Veterans Park. The orange-collared goose from Hudson Bay is still hanging around. It's been there since at least October 11. There were also several Cacklers mixed in, although they weren't as small as the one I photographed earlier this week.
Highlights from Friday, 11/5:
* First really wintry day I've experienced this fall. And I saw several first-of-season snowflakes! I was out for 3+ hours with the temps in the mid-30s, and wind chills in the mid-20s. Lake Michigan was pretty rough, with some pretty big waves. I remember thinking "you could almost surf on these waves". Right on cue, when I got to Bradford Beach there was someone in the surf with a small (maybe 8-foot) board, trying to catch some waves. It chilled me to the core just to watch! This photo might give you a sense of how rough the lake was: http://bit.ly/dyaADK.
* Lots of duck activity off of Bradford Beach and North Point. Both Scaup species, Buffleheads, White-winged Scoter, Black Scoter, Ring-necked Duck. And, of course, lots of Mallards. Given the weather conditions, I was surprised by how much flying in and flying out was going on. There was quite a bit of turnover as I watched. I was also surprised to see sleeping ducks riding the rough surf with heads tucked under their wings.
* Ring-necked Duck was MilWALKee BIGBY species #170, and 2010 combo BIGBY #210.
* Black Scoter was MilWALKee BIGBY species #171, and 2010 combo BIGBY #211.
Bernie Sloan
Milwaukee
Tuesday, November 2, 2010
Bradford Beach/North Point, 11/2 - Ducks, Snow Buntings
Covered the northern half of my Milwaukee BIGBY route today...
No new BIGBY birds, but some interesting highlights none the less:
* Snow Buntings. Had a fair number of flyovers along the lakefront. Almost stepped on one near the edge of the Bradford Beach parking lot. I was walking along when my eye detected some motion on the ground at my feet. Snow Bunting. It was hunkered low to the ground in short grass with one eye cocked towards me, checking me out. It was only five feet away at most, the closest I've ever been to one of these birds. After eyeballing me for about five seconds, the bird ran a short distance and then flew to the shoreline rocks. Pretty cool!
* Lots of ducks off of Bradford Beach and North Point. Nothing new, species-wise, but good numbers. There was a raft of 40-50 ducks just out of binocular range, bobbing up and down in the waves off of Bradford Beach. I saw them just enough to think it might have been a mix of scaups and scoters. Closer in, off of North Point, there were quite a few Buffleheads, and by far and away the most Common Goldeneyes I've seen so far this season. And along the shore there were dozens of Mallards.
Also saw two signs of winter, one of them literally a "sign" of winter:
http://bit.ly/bEHMJq
http://bit.ly/9WzjbW
No new BIGBY birds, but some interesting highlights none the less:
* Snow Buntings. Had a fair number of flyovers along the lakefront. Almost stepped on one near the edge of the Bradford Beach parking lot. I was walking along when my eye detected some motion on the ground at my feet. Snow Bunting. It was hunkered low to the ground in short grass with one eye cocked towards me, checking me out. It was only five feet away at most, the closest I've ever been to one of these birds. After eyeballing me for about five seconds, the bird ran a short distance and then flew to the shoreline rocks. Pretty cool!
* Lots of ducks off of Bradford Beach and North Point. Nothing new, species-wise, but good numbers. There was a raft of 40-50 ducks just out of binocular range, bobbing up and down in the waves off of Bradford Beach. I saw them just enough to think it might have been a mix of scaups and scoters. Closer in, off of North Point, there were quite a few Buffleheads, and by far and away the most Common Goldeneyes I've seen so far this season. And along the shore there were dozens of Mallards.
Also saw two signs of winter, one of them literally a "sign" of winter:
http://bit.ly/bEHMJq
http://bit.ly/9WzjbW
My 2010 BIGBY list now has 209 species
What's a BIGBY? See: http://bit.ly/cn3cbv.
What's a combo walking BIGBY? See: http://bit.ly/bUNmAv.
On October 19 I recorded my 200th combo walking BIGBY species for the year: Bufflehead.
Since then I have added nine more species to my 2010 BIGBY list:
* Henslow's Sparrow - #201
* Mute Swan - #202
* Surf Scoter - #203
* Snow Bunting - #204
* Greater Yellowlegs - #205
* Gadwall - #206
* Franklin's Gull - #207
* Cackling Goose - #208
* LeConte's Sparrow - #209
I'd really like to hit 220 species by year's end. That would be a great personal accomplishment...220 species of birds seen while walking from home.
What's a combo walking BIGBY? See: http://bit.ly/bUNmAv.
On October 19 I recorded my 200th combo walking BIGBY species for the year: Bufflehead.
Since then I have added nine more species to my 2010 BIGBY list:
* Henslow's Sparrow - #201
* Mute Swan - #202
* Surf Scoter - #203
* Snow Bunting - #204
* Greater Yellowlegs - #205
* Gadwall - #206
* Franklin's Gull - #207
* Cackling Goose - #208
* LeConte's Sparrow - #209
I'd really like to hit 220 species by year's end. That would be a great personal accomplishment...220 species of birds seen while walking from home.
Monday, November 1, 2010
Oddly quiet on the Milwaukee lakefront today (11/1)
I walked the southern portion of my BIGBY route today (Veterans Park and Lakeshore State Park). It was very quiet, both literally (the easterly breeze kept the city sounds pretty much at bay) and figuratively (not many birds).
The coots and geese numbered in the dozens, rather than the usual hundreds. The Mallards behind the art museum made themselves pretty scarce. Even the ubiquitous gulls were few and far between. I found myself wondering why.
There were a few highlights:
* Cackling Goose. See my earlier posting.
* Two Hooded Mergansers.
* One Pied-billed Grebe.
* Several Snow Bunting flyovers.
* An interesting mixed flock of American Tree Sparrows, White-throated Sparrows, and Dark-eyed Juncos. The most juncos I've seen this fall.
* Two accomplished European Starling impressionists. One was doing a cardinal, the other was doing a robin.
* A wildflower without access to a calendar. Apparently it doesn't know this is November...and Wisconsin! See: http://bit.ly/dix4gt. Looks like a coreopsis species?
* And, finally, a spruce tree with a bumper crop of cones. See http://bit.ly/dqYx9X and http://bit.ly/auJJJW
The coots and geese numbered in the dozens, rather than the usual hundreds. The Mallards behind the art museum made themselves pretty scarce. Even the ubiquitous gulls were few and far between. I found myself wondering why.
There were a few highlights:
* Cackling Goose. See my earlier posting.
* Two Hooded Mergansers.
* One Pied-billed Grebe.
* Several Snow Bunting flyovers.
* An interesting mixed flock of American Tree Sparrows, White-throated Sparrows, and Dark-eyed Juncos. The most juncos I've seen this fall.
* Two accomplished European Starling impressionists. One was doing a cardinal, the other was doing a robin.
* A wildflower without access to a calendar. Apparently it doesn't know this is November...and Wisconsin! See: http://bit.ly/dix4gt. Looks like a coreopsis species?
* And, finally, a spruce tree with a bumper crop of cones. See http://bit.ly/dqYx9X and http://bit.ly/auJJJW
Cackling vs. Canada Goose - Size comparision photos
I was strolling through Milwaukee's Veterans Park early this afternoon when, lo and behold, I ran across my nemesis bird again (Cackling Goose). This bird has been in the park since at least Friday. I saw it Friday morning on the big lawn east of the Veterans Park Lagoon. Paul Hunter's duck watch group saw it late Saturday afternoon in the same general area, and I saw it again today, by the lagoon, a little north of the paddleboat rental shed.
Remembering that I had my cell phone with me, I decided to try to take a few photos to document the size differential between the Cackler and the Canadas. The Cackler was a little skittish, and not as tolerant of human presence as the Canadas. In fact, when I stopped to watch, three Canadas walked up to within two feet of me looking for a handout.
Anyway, I couldn't get real close to the cackler without it scooting away. I stood there quietly waiting for the Cackler to get close enough to me and my cell phone, and for it to get close enough to a Canada for a size comparison.
Here are a few photos. Remember, I used a cell phone, so they aren't close-ups, but I think they do the job of demonstrating how much smaller the Cackler is. In fact, at one point a passerby said to her companion: "Look at the baby goose!" :-)
http://bit.ly/bGLZ31
http://bit.ly/a81CjK
http://bit.ly/a1F2Yq
http://bit.ly/bolERo
http://bit.ly/aKeV73
Remembering that I had my cell phone with me, I decided to try to take a few photos to document the size differential between the Cackler and the Canadas. The Cackler was a little skittish, and not as tolerant of human presence as the Canadas. In fact, when I stopped to watch, three Canadas walked up to within two feet of me looking for a handout.
Anyway, I couldn't get real close to the cackler without it scooting away. I stood there quietly waiting for the Cackler to get close enough to me and my cell phone, and for it to get close enough to a Canada for a size comparison.
Here are a few photos. Remember, I used a cell phone, so they aren't close-ups, but I think they do the job of demonstrating how much smaller the Cackler is. In fact, at one point a passerby said to her companion: "Look at the baby goose!" :-)
http://bit.ly/bGLZ31
http://bit.ly/a81CjK
http://bit.ly/a1F2Yq
http://bit.ly/bolERo
http://bit.ly/aKeV73
Sunday, October 31, 2010
Milwaukee lakefront, 10/28/10 - Possible Cave Swallows, two new BIGBY species
Wednesday on Milwaukee's lakefront was sunny and very windy. Thursday was a little less windy, colder, and I walked through a couple of bouts of light wind-driven rain. Another day when it's crazy to spend 4-5 hours outdoors birding...but the birding was kinda interesting.
* The day started with a HUGE highlight. I finally got this year's nemesis bird! I have spent many hours in Veterans Park scanning huge flocks of hundreds of Canada Geese looking for a Cackling Goose. So far, every time I've seen a small goose it turns out just to be a smallish Canada. But yesterday morning I noticed an especially small goose with a stubby bill. It was only about 30 feet away. Cackling Goose! It's kinda funny. When you first see a Cackling Goose it is so obviously a cackler that you wonder why you'd ever bothered looking at smallish Canadas. Definitely new to both my BIGBY lists!!
* Henslow's Sparrow. One bird, on the rocks, behind the art museum. Looked a little tired and dazed. Not a new BIGBY, but special none the less.
* Lincoln's Sparrow. Several, at the far east side of Veterans Park.
* LeConte's Sparrow. Fleeting views in the brush on the rocky shoreline just a little south of the water treatment plant. Also looked a little tired and dazed. New to both my BIGBY lists!!
* A fair number of swallows, which surprised me since I haven't seen a swallow in weeks: Barn (8-10), Northern Rough-winged (one), Tree (4-5), and a couple of birds that looked tantalizingly like Cave Swallows. As far as I'm concerned they were probable Cave Swallows, but since I can't rule out Cliff Swallow I can't count them as a BIGBY bird. Never thought I'd have a four-swallow-species day at the end of October. Just a testimonial to how strong the storm was...
* Finally, I had a very late female American Redstart in Lake Park! Haven't seen this species in several weeks. Interesting!
* The day started with a HUGE highlight. I finally got this year's nemesis bird! I have spent many hours in Veterans Park scanning huge flocks of hundreds of Canada Geese looking for a Cackling Goose. So far, every time I've seen a small goose it turns out just to be a smallish Canada. But yesterday morning I noticed an especially small goose with a stubby bill. It was only about 30 feet away. Cackling Goose! It's kinda funny. When you first see a Cackling Goose it is so obviously a cackler that you wonder why you'd ever bothered looking at smallish Canadas. Definitely new to both my BIGBY lists!!
* Henslow's Sparrow. One bird, on the rocks, behind the art museum. Looked a little tired and dazed. Not a new BIGBY, but special none the less.
* Lincoln's Sparrow. Several, at the far east side of Veterans Park.
* LeConte's Sparrow. Fleeting views in the brush on the rocky shoreline just a little south of the water treatment plant. Also looked a little tired and dazed. New to both my BIGBY lists!!
* A fair number of swallows, which surprised me since I haven't seen a swallow in weeks: Barn (8-10), Northern Rough-winged (one), Tree (4-5), and a couple of birds that looked tantalizingly like Cave Swallows. As far as I'm concerned they were probable Cave Swallows, but since I can't rule out Cliff Swallow I can't count them as a BIGBY bird. Never thought I'd have a four-swallow-species day at the end of October. Just a testimonial to how strong the storm was...
* Finally, I had a very late female American Redstart in Lake Park! Haven't seen this species in several weeks. Interesting!
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