Focus Shift

Spring migration is pretty much over; birds should now be on or near their nesting grounds.  It’s time to shift focus to insects and other species that spend the summer in Kansas.  Insects and spiders are attracted to lights, so almost every night, I turn outside lights on and check every fifteen minutes for new species.  I catch them, attempt to make the ID, then release them.  There are some amazing creatures outside, and my list of total insects and spiders is really growing.

 This is a very large Fishfly, which was attracted to the light by my back door.

 

 

Here is a Caterpillar Hunter, a large beetle that eats, you guessed it, caterpillars.

Fort Leavenworth

Sunday, after getting out of bed at what seemed to be the middle of the night, I joined the Kansas City Burroughs Audubon Society for a field trip at 6:30 AM to the military installation in Fort Leavenworth, KS.   After a very thorough security inspection, we were allowed onto the base, which includes many acres of undisturbed woodlands.   Many thanks to Dave Williams for leading the trip.  I added one new species, but it was a good one - Scarlet Tanager.

This Scarlet Tanager was singing at the top of a very tall tree.

Several Tiger Swallowtail butterflies were also observed on the trip.

Fantastic Saturday

The day started with a quick trip to Echo Cliff Park in Wabaunsee County where I found a pair of Acadian Flycatchers.  Next stop – Clarion Park where I ran into a birding friend, Linda Zempel, who helped me find a beautiful Painted Bunting.  On my way home, I had to make an another quick stop at Felker Park, where I ran into Jim Malcom.  It sure seems like there were lots of people out today.  There we found a Yellow-bellied Flycatcher, two Canada Warblers, and a female Blackburnian Warbler.  We also found a large Softshell turtle in Shunga Creek.  A great day to be out; and migration is still going strong.  After also adding a few new insects today, my year total is now 400 species.

 Check out this Painted Bunting that we located at Clarion Park.   

Mini Fallout

Weather conditions such as a strong north wind can force migrating birds out of the air, and some locations are famous for their migrant fallouts, but not my yard.  I noticed a lot of activity Wednesday in the trees and shrubs surrounding my house.  I grabbed my binoculars, sprayed myself head to foot with Deep Woods Off, and headed into the woods.  I found more migrating bird species in 30 minutes than I have ever found anywhere in that time frame.  There was a Chestnut-sided Warbler, Mourning Warbler, four Yellow Warblers, three Tennessee Warblers, four American Redstarts, one Veery, five Swainson’s Thrushes, two Magnolia Warblers, one Common Yellowthroat, two Catbirds, and two Rose-breasted Grosbeaks.   Thank you cool north wind.

This Gray Treefrog was attached to the side of my house.  I guess a house looks just like a big tree to a frog.  They have an ability to camouflage themselves by changing color from gray to green.

Western Wanderings

I just returned from a trip to western Kansas and southern Colorado, a 1,530 mile round trip.  It was hot, dusty, and windy, but I found 60 new species; mostly birds.   I left Monday morning and camped at Coldwater Lake.  Species found there were Black Tern, Marsh Wren, Western Grebe and Big Brown Bats.  Tuesday I traveled to Elkhart via State Lakes in Clark and Meade counties.  A wrong turn led me down a road in Clark County where I found Lesser Prairie Chicken, a species that has been in the news lately.  Also, I saw a Common Raven just a few miles from Clark State Lake.  Upon arriving in Elkhart, I quickly located a Plumbeous Vireo and an Olive-sided Flycatcher at the town cemetery.

I drove Morton County roads early Wednesday before dawn and found three Common Poorwills, many Kangaroo Rats, and a lumbering Porcupine that crossed the road right in front of me.  I then proceeded to Southern Colorado where I saw Pronghorn, Mule Deer, Bighorn Sheep, Greater Roadrunner, Long-billed Curlew, Canyon Towhee, and Canyon Wren.  Returning to Elkhart in the afternoon, I saw a Green-tailed Towhee and Ash-throated Flycatcher at the work station, and a Black-chinned Hummingbird and MacGillivray’s Warbler at the shelterbelt. 

A trip to Elkhart and Morton County is hard core, especially considering that the area is experiencing a three-year drought.  But the rewards are great and that place draws birders from all over the area.  The trip home included Cheyenne Bottoms and Quivira NWR.    The trip was great, but it is really nice to be back home where everything is green.

 

 I found groups of Yellow-headed Blackbirds in almost every county.

 

 Small groups of Pronghorn could be viewed frequently in rural Colorado.

 

 A Mule Deer that seemed to be as interested in me as I in it, also in Colorado.

This Bighorn Sheep was lounging right by the road in Baca County, CO.

 

 

 

 

 

 

Rare Bird Alert!

A Hooded Oriole is fairly common in Texas, but this isn’t Texas.  Well, one showed up at a personal residence near Lawrence, and the home owner was very gracious and invited people to see it.  I had to go see it.  I’m told that this is the first report of that species ever being documented in Kansas.  Jim Malcom and I hit Shunga Trail Saturday morning and found Gray-cheeked Thrush, Swainson’s Thrush, White-eyed Vireo, Northern Waterthrush, Sedge Wren, and Yellow-crowned Night Heron.  A quick trip to Perry State Park this evening quickly yielded calling Chuck-will’s-widows and Eastern Whip-poor-wills.  It was another super day to be outside.

A Hooded Oriole seen at a personal residence near Lawrence, Kansas.

This Ring-neck Snake was in my front yard.

An Orange-crowned Warbler getting ready to take a bath in my stream and goldfish pond.