Larry Lade
Moderator
Got up early this morning to a balmy 72 degrees F (with high winds from the west and light rain). Not good conditions for banding birds! So, I messed around home for a couple of hours and decided to take a tour around the oxbow lakes area south of Saint Joseph. I drove around the various lakes from 9 AM until Noon, under overcast skies, some rain and continually dropping temperatures. Also the wind was gusting up to 30 MPH and now coming out of the north. Burr! However, the birding (strangely enough) was not to bad. The AMERICAN AVOCETS on the west end of Lake Contrary were somewhat of a surprise. I initially saw one and thought, "Oh, good, an avocet!" I continued scanning and arrived at a total of 28 of them! I counted four or five times just to make certain I was seeing that many. I don't think I have ever seen that many at one time, here in Missouri! Below is my list for the day.
* When I got back home at noon the temperature was 44 degrees F.
Greater White-fronted Goose
Canada Goose
Gadwall
American Wigeon
Mallard
Blue-winged Teal
Northern Shoveler
Northern Pintail
Green-winged Teal
Pied-billed Grebe
American White Pelican, a couple of thousand, mostly on Lake Contrary
Great Blue Heron
Northern Harrier
Red-tailed Hawk
American Kestrel
American Coot
Killdeer
American Avocet - 28
Greater Yellowlegs
Long-billed Dowitcher
Ring-billed Gull
Rock Pigeon
Eurasian Collared-Dove
Mourning Dove
Red-bellied Woodpecker
Downy Woodpecker
Hairy Woodpecker
Blue Jay
American Crow
Horned Lark
Black-capped Chickadee
White-breasted Nuthatch
Eastern Bluebird
* Amazingly, I saw no robins! I do not know where they might have been!
European Starling
AMERICAN PIPIT, x 10 and my FOS. They were picking around the shore of Lake Contrary near the boat launch/swimming area.
Yellow-rumped Warbler
Chipping Sparrow - 2
Fox Sparrow - 2
Song Sparrow - 10
Lincoln's Sparrow - 1
White-throated Sparrow - 5
Harris's Sparrow - 15
White-crowned Sparrow - 5
Dark-eyed Junco - 5
Lapland Longspur - 4
** The high winds seemed to be keeping the more open territory sparrows hunkered down and I did not see any of them.
Northern Cardinal
Eastern Meadowlark
House Finch
American Goldfinch
House Sparrow
* When I got back home at noon the temperature was 44 degrees F.
Greater White-fronted Goose
Canada Goose
Gadwall
American Wigeon
Mallard
Blue-winged Teal
Northern Shoveler
Northern Pintail
Green-winged Teal
Pied-billed Grebe
American White Pelican, a couple of thousand, mostly on Lake Contrary
Great Blue Heron
Northern Harrier
Red-tailed Hawk
American Kestrel
American Coot
Killdeer
American Avocet - 28
Greater Yellowlegs
Long-billed Dowitcher
Ring-billed Gull
Rock Pigeon
Eurasian Collared-Dove
Mourning Dove
Red-bellied Woodpecker
Downy Woodpecker
Hairy Woodpecker
Blue Jay
American Crow
Horned Lark
Black-capped Chickadee
White-breasted Nuthatch
Eastern Bluebird
* Amazingly, I saw no robins! I do not know where they might have been!
European Starling
AMERICAN PIPIT, x 10 and my FOS. They were picking around the shore of Lake Contrary near the boat launch/swimming area.
Yellow-rumped Warbler
Chipping Sparrow - 2
Fox Sparrow - 2
Song Sparrow - 10
Lincoln's Sparrow - 1
White-throated Sparrow - 5
Harris's Sparrow - 15
White-crowned Sparrow - 5
Dark-eyed Junco - 5
Lapland Longspur - 4
** The high winds seemed to be keeping the more open territory sparrows hunkered down and I did not see any of them.
Northern Cardinal
Eastern Meadowlark
House Finch
American Goldfinch
House Sparrow
