Oklahoma Panhandle – Reportable and Then Some, September 2013

Over the last several years I’ve made a couple trips into Kansas and successfully reached the ABA reporting threshold there, though by just 1 bird.  While birding in the northwest portion of KS in March 2011, I coordinated with local birders who told me about regular breeding birds in the western edge of the state which were more typical of western states rather than eastern ones.  I had never birded western KS in summer, so all those western species would be new for my KS list.  As a result, since 2011 I’ve thought about a short summer birding trip there which would likely put me well over the ABA threshold in KS. 

How does this get us to a trip to Oklahoma you wonder?  Well, my OK statelist had been just 3 short of the ABA threshold since my last trip there in November 2011.  And speaking of pipedreams, ever since that trip I had fantasized about birding the OK panhandle for the first time to add many western species to my OK list.  So when a summer 2013 trip to Denver came up, I started to make preliminary plans to add some vacation days and bird both the OK panhandle and western KS.  Although that trip got cancelled, I did enough research to find out that to maximize my bird species I really needed to be in the far western end of the OK panhandle called the Black Mesa area, and the southwestern corner on KS near Elkhart.  And birding these areas in fall migration could get me not only most of the local breeders, but also some migrants both from the west and the east.  Luckily another trip to Denver came up in September, which could be perfect timing.  So with the help of some excellent birders in both states, I planned a trip which would not only get me to the reportable limit in OK, but hopefully well over the threshold in both OK and KS.  To reach my target of 15 over the thresholds in each state I needed 18 in OK and 14 in KS.

[This blog post is for the OK part of my trip – the next post is for the KS part of my trip.]

Day 1 – Arrival at Black Mesa

After a morning flight to Denver and the long drive to OK I didn’t cross the stateline until after 4 PM.  Unfortunately rainy conditions during most of the drive was a harbinger of things to come.  The first stop was at Castor Lake Playa north east of Boise City.  This low area is typically dry, but heavy rains in the area this summer had caused a large lake to form at this site, with quite a number of rarities reported there in the last couple weeks.  I met a local birder and we headed across muddy roads to get to the lake.  Along the way we spotted a Ferruginous Hawk (OK statebird #1), and the first of several Chihuahuan Ravens (#2).  I’ve now seen this species in every state where it is regular (see my statebird map below).

When we arrived at the lake the rain was really coming down which hampered our viewing, but we found hundreds of dabbling ducks (Pintails being the most common), and about 100 shorebirds (mostly Wilson’s Phalaropes).  Nothing unusual and nothing new for my list as best we could tell with wet and muddy optics.  Next stop was the Boise City wastewater treatment plant, and although there were only a few dabblers there, a perched Say’s Phoebe was OK statebird #3.  I had reached the OK ABA threshold – reportable state number 43 for me.  With a number of migrants in the area (Bullock’s Oriole and a mixed Eastern/Western Kingbird flock), I was hopeful that I could get some good migrants over the next couple days.  We stopped at one more playa, and had similar ducks and shorebirds, but nothing new.

Next I was off to my key OK birding site - the Black Mesa area.  The rain stopped along the drive, and I was able to take in some really nice views of the countryside.  As I gained elevation I left the prairie and started to get into pinyon-juniper habitat on rocky hillsides.  Numerous raptors were on power poles along the way – with Red-tails, Swainson’s, and Kestrels joined by one very cooperative Golden Eagle (#4).  And as I neared the end of my ride I noticed a long-tailed bird fly among the cholla – a Curve-billed Thrasher (#5).  Once I learned the “whit-whit” call of this bird I realized it was one of the more common birds in this habitat.  It’s interesting that I’ve seen this species in most of its regular range yet still need it in Texas where I have a very good list.

By dinnertime I arrived at the Black Mesa B&B, which backs up to excellent riparian habitat along the Cimarron River.  The owners really cater to birders at this well-known birding location.  A short walk along the dry (but very muddy!) river bed wasn’t too birdy, but easily yielded four new statebirds – calling Common Ravens (#6) up on the mesa, a pair of migrant Western Tanagers (#7), the first of many Western Wood-Pewees for the trip (#8), and a Black-chinned Hummingbird (#9) coming to the feeders at the B&B.  At dusk I came back to the woods to try for the key target for this spot – Western Screech-Owl.  And after playing just a little tape one responded and kept calling the whole time I walked back to the B&B (#10).  OK was only my 7^th state for this species – I still need it in quite a number of states as is the case for most of the nocturnal species.

Day 2 – Black Mesa Hotspots

I planned to start Day 2 pre-dawn looking for Poor-wills sitting on the roads, but when I woke up it was once again raining quite hard.  So instead I waited till dawn and headed for Black Mesa State Park, though it was still raining.  With umbrella in hand, I started walking through the park and heard quite a number of chip notes – it was likely a pretty good night of migration.  But it was still too dark to see very much.  So I headed up one of the canyons on a nature trail to look for birds more out in the open.  Unfortunately I had to turn around after a short distance when the canyon was flooded.  When I got back toward the car the trail was flooded there too – although only a foot deep the flash flood was still a surprise.  A couple wet feet later, I was back walking through the park and heard the first of several Ladder-backed Woodpeckers (#11).  It was now raining quite hard, and I decided to head out of the riparian part of the park and get views of Lake Etling.  En route I saw the first of many Cassin’s Kingbirds in the park (#12).  I still need Cassin’s in a couple of its regular western states, though I’ve seen it in MA as a rarity.

En route to the lake I headed to a prairie dog town to try for Burrowing Owls.  As I approached the dog town I saw a raptor fly by – an Osprey (#13).  Interesting to see an Osprey flying over the desert!  Later I had 3 others at the lake.  With all the recent rain the dog town was covered in vegetation which was certainly unusual.  And after a bit of scanning I found a Burrowing Owl perched in a cholla (#14).  The lake had 3 more Ospreys, a small group of cormorants (I tried to turn one into a Neotropic), a Forster’s Tern, and a small number of Blue-winged Teal.  Otherwise it was pretty slow.

The rain was slowing down so I headed back into the park to try for more passerines.  At my first stop I found a pair of buntings that turned out to be Lazulis.  I was surprised when the folks reviewing e-bird records requested details on these.  Now that the rain stopped the passerines seemed to be getting more active, with a number of Wilson’s and Yellow Warblers, and several Bullock’s Orioles.  On a rocky hillside I ran into a mixed flock of at least 40 Spizella sparrows that included Chipping, Clay-colored, and Brewer’s Sparrows (#15) offering nice comparisons.  I’ve now seen Brewer’s in all the states in its regular range. 

A short distance away I noticed an Empidonax fly into a small tree.  It gave me great views – yellowish wash on the sides, significant white eye-ring, large-headed, and short wings – a Dusky Flycatcher (#16).  I got brief views of two other Empids in the park that could have also been Dusky’s, but I had to put them down as Empid sp.  I also counted 7 Western Pewees throughout the park – a species that was also listed as a rarity in e-bird.  The only other notable migrant was a calling Black-headed Grosbeak (#17).  Then the skies opened and the rain came down about as hard as it could.  I gave it about 30 minutes, but the rains continued and there was standing water everywhere.  So I decided to leave the low area of the park, and it was just in time – I had to drive through a foot of water over the road at one point. 

After a short break I headed to the town of Kenton in the mid-afternoon and the well-known hummingbird feeder at the Jones’ house.  I knocked on their door to ask if I could watch the feeders from the alley behind the house, but since it was still raining, the nice homeowners offered for me to watch from their covered porch.  I sat in a chair just 6 feet from the feeder, and after a short delay they started to return.  And the first bird that arrived landed for only a second but it looked like it had red in the base of the tail feathers.  I waited for another 20 minutes for it to return but only saw Black-chins.  Then finally it came back and landed on the feeder for an extended time – a bit bigger than the Black-chins, longer tail than the Black-chins (and not pumping it), red at the base of the tail feathers, a bit of rufous on the sides, and fine streaking in the throat – a Broad-tailed (#18).  It also had different call notes than the Black-chins.  In the next 30 minutes this bird came back several more times, along with at least 10 Black-chins.  OK is pretty far east for Broad-tailed which is principally found in the Rockies – I’ve seen it throughout the Rockies as well as in LA and FL as a winter rarity.

With no more odd hummers, and the rain finally stopped, I decided to walk around the town to see what I could find.  The key target in Kenton was a pair of Vermilion Flycatchers that had been seen in spring and early summer (but not recently) at the Hitching Post B&B.  A June report mentioned they preferred the clothesline between the two buildings there.  So I walked over to the B&B and instantly got a brief glimpse of some movement and a flash of red – and there was a Vermilion Flycatcher perched on the clothesline just as in June (#19).  I’ve now seen this southwestern species in more states as a rarity than I have in its normal range.

 A couple doors down the road I found a seed feeder with a flock of House Sparrows and one longer-tailed bird that was a bit elusive but eventually came into the open and was a Canyon Towhee (#20).  But the town was pretty slow otherwise.

I decided to take advantage of the lack of rain and head to nearby Camp Billy Joe.  This spot has excellent pinyon-juniper habitat, and rocky canyons with a lot of target birds.  I arrived at the entrance road and birded the junipers, finding several more Canyon Towhees and in the distance I heard the first of several Rock Wrens (#21) calling from the canyon.  I drove up to the camp and started walking behind the buildings and one of the first birds I heard was a Western Scrub Jay (#22), and several Rock Wrens were joined by calling Canyon Wrens (#23) and a Bewick’s for good measure.  Otherwise it was pretty slow, perhaps due to the late time of the day.  So I decided that this location could be worth another stop at dawn tomorrow (if it wasn’t raining).  My statebird map for Scrub Jay is similar to the 2 wrens – pretty good coverage in all the states in their regular ranges.

Next location was a nearby spot where Lewis’ Woodpeckers had been seen recently.  En route I noticed some good habitat for Cassin’s Sparrows – grassland with scattered cholla.  Even though they are typically gone by mid-September (late date of 9/2), I decided to stop and play a bit of tape for this species which is very tape responsive.  Sure enough within a few seconds I heard a sparrow chip note and a Cassin’s Sparrow flew right in (#24).  That was a bonus bird I wasn’t expecting.  A short distance away I arrived at the cottonwoods where the Lewis’ had been seen.  Although I didn’t find any Lewis’, there were several Black-billed Magpies calling in the distance (#25).  Later that evening I ran into a flock of nearly 20 more magpies.

It had been a long and wet day, but a successful one.  And I had one more possible target – Poor-will.  Camp Billy Joe was supposed to be a good spot for them, but the big challenge was whether I could get there pre-dawn or after dark when it wasn’t raining.  I had just that evening and pre-dawn the next day to give it a try.  So since it was not raining that night I decided I should go that evening, and better not assume it will be dry the next morning.  After a short ride I got to a good spot along the entrance road, played just a couple seconds of tape and a Poor-will instantly responded (#26).  That was likely the easiest nocturnal statebird I’ve ever gotten.

Day 3 – One Last Morning in the Panhandle

Amazingly it wasn’t raining in the morning, and I started at first light at Camp Billy Joe to try to get some of the targets I missed the previous day.  Within seconds of getting out of the car I had 2 Poor-wills and a Great Horned Owl calling.  As it got brighter I once again birded the junipers along the entrance road but basically had the same birds as the day before.  In the rocky canyons behind the buildings I played some Rufous-crowned Sparrow tape and one eventually flew in and was most cooperative (#27).  That was my 6^th state for Rufous-crowned – still a few more to go to see this species in throughout its range.

More attempts for Ash-throated Flycatcher, Juniper Titmouse, and Bushtit were unsuccessful, so I called it quits and headed back to the B&B for a nice breakfast. 

My last stop in the Black Mesa area was along the road to the Easter Pageant spot which is well-known as the spot to find Black-throated Sparrows in OK.  As I drove along the road I saw some sparrow activity in the creosote bushes and stopped to check it out.  I first spotted some immature Spizellas, and then noticed some larger and darker birds.  It took me a while to realize they were immature Black-throated Sparrows (#28).  I watched the activity a bit longer and counted at least 6 immature birds along with 2 adults.  As I was just about to leave I noticed some yellow movement and it was a MacGillivray’s Warbler (#29).  Certainly not a typical habitat for this species.  I still need this species in a couple more western states particularly in its normal migration range.

As I headed east through the prairie I again saw a number of raptors, this time including a most cooperative Prairie Falcon perched on a pole (#30).  And the last stop was with a local Boise City birder who took me to an old homestead with a stakeout Barn Owl in the barn (#31).  What a great ending to the trip.

By the Numbers

I ended up with 102 species for the short OK part of the trip despite the very rainy conditions.  OK is now my 43^rd state above the ABA threshold.  And I greatly exceeded my goal of 15 over the threshold, ending up with 28 over threshold, giving me 265 for my OK statelist.