Southern Ohio Trip Nets 7 State Birds - August 23-25, 2024

Since moving to the southeast I’ve been looking for an excuse to get back to Kentucky to fill some gaps in my state list.  Then in late summer of 2023 I began to notice lots of good birds being reported at the Falls of the Ohio - a wetlands area in the Ohio River near Cincinnati.  I finally had my excuse to go birding in KY!   And although birding at the Falls could be my prime reason to return to KY, I could always try for other new state birds en route or nearby.  Plus, while I’m in the area I could cross over into Ohio and bird the southwest part of that state as well.  I last birded in OH in 2017 and that state total was at 228.  That meant I had lots of gaps in that state list too.  Unfortunately, I didn’t get my plans together early enough to make the trip in 2023, but there was always next year.

As Summer 2024 progressed I started to plan my KY and OH trip in earnest.  First of all, I scheduled my trip for the third week of August which historically was the week with the greatest number of targets for me at the Falls of the Ohio (based on eBird bar charts).  Then with the help of several local KY experts and lots of hours on eBird, I found 16 potential KY state birds in the region.  My eBird research revealed 7 reasonable targets on OH, 4 of which were late breeders, while the others were either waders or shorebirds.  But in order to pursue several of them I’d have to drive almost all the way north to Columbus, which was farther than my original plans. 

Planning the trip around the late summer peak times at the Falls of the Ohio meant that local breeders might be difficult to find so late in the breeding season.  But with recent reports for most of the breeders, I tried to stay optimistic. 

Given the timing of the trip for the breeders, I hoped for perhaps 9 new KY state birds plus 3 new birds in OH.  Though maybe I was being too optimistic.

This blog post summarizes the OH portion of my August 2024 trip, starting with Day 4 of the trip.  My previous post summarized the KY part of the trip.

Day 4 – August 23

I started the day birding in Louisville, KY, with my last stop being the Falls of the Ohio.  But since the Falls were quite slow, I didn’t stay there long and as a result, I finished the KY portion of my day earlier than expected.  So with extra time on my hands, I changed my strategy for that afternoon to bird a couple spots on tomorrow’s OH itinerary.  If I was able to find my targets, that would give me more time tomorrow for other stops.  And if I missed those target birds today, I could always come back for a second try tomorrow.

My first OH stop of the day was the GilmoreMetroPark in the northern Cincinnati suburbs where an adult and 2 juvenile Yellow-crowned Night Herons had been reported for some time.  Plus just the day before an Olive-sided Flycatcher was reported at the park, giving me a second target to pursue.  I arrived at the park mid-afternoon and after a short walk reached the overlook at the South Pond where the Herons were most often reported.  I had a Green Heron there on the far side of the pond, but no Night Herons.  I birded along nearly the entire edge of the pond finding 4 more Green Herons, but not my target.  I guess I’d have to come back the next day for a second try for this one.

Next I headed to nearby Cattail Marsh at the park to try for yesterday’s Olive-sided.  On my way I passed by an extensive brushy area that was bathed in the hot afternoon sun so I quickly made my way through the area.  That is until I heard a song that I instantly recognized as one I had played the previous day in KY – Bell’s Vireo.  That’s a really rare bird in OH, and one that had not popped up on any of my OH Needs Alerts.  The bird kept singing so I taped it for ID purposes using the Merlin app.  However, Merlin was calling it a Blue Grosbeak.  I know Blue Grosbeak songs well and this bird wasn’t a Blue Grosbeak.  Perhaps since Merlin knew my location it wasn’t even considering Bell’s Vireo as an option since it would be a rarity.  My tape of the bird in question is in my Bird checklist here –   ebird.org/checklist/S192514134    I was certain of my ID and very excited to have found a rarity.  Here’s a picture of the extensive brushy area where the Bell’s Vireo was calling from.

After hearing the Bell’s Vireo for several minutes I moved onto Cattail Marsh to look for the Olive-sided.  There were lots of tall dead trees and snags surrounding the marsh but unfortunately no perched Olive-sided.  I then turned my attention to the marsh which was nearly dry, exposing a broad mud flat that looked great for species like Baird’s and Buff-breasted Sandpipers.  I tallied 54 Killdeer, plus some Leasts and one Semi Sand, but nothing better.  Although I missed my 2 targets for the park, at least I found a Bell’s Vireo.

Next it was off to Ceasar Creek State Park in the southeast suburbs of Dayton where a Little Blue Heron had been reported for a couple weeks.  And to sweeten the pot, a Snowy Egret was found at the same spot the day before.  The birds were being seen from 2 different sides of Ceasar Creek - from Young Road which ends at a boat ramp to the west, and Mound Road to the east.  They seemed to be more easily seen from Young Road so I decided to go there first.

As I pulled up to the Young Road boat ramp I saw a couple birders with their scope trained on the wetlands to the north.  I scurried on over to them hoping that they had my targets but no such luck – they too were looking for those white waders unsuccessfully so far.  But then one birder mentioned that the eBird hotspot was not at the boat ramp but a short distance to the south.  Maybe we needed to search from there.  I found a trail through the woods and took a short walk to the south where the trail ended at the waters edge.  And due east, about a quarter mile across the river, was a small marsh and mudflat that appeared to be the Mound Road hotspot. 

I started to scan the area and quickly spotted a medium-sized white wader.  Even at that distance I could see the all dark bill, dark legs, and yellow feet of a Snowy Egret (OH state bird #1).  It’s barely visible on the left of the above picture.  And with a bit more scanning I noticed another white wader, a bit slighter than the Snowy.  And with a dark-tipped pale bill and green legs I confirmed it as a Little Blue Heron (OH statebird #2).

My state bird maps for Snowy Egret and Little Blue Heron are inserted below.  The blue-shaded states are those where I’ve seen these species in their regular range.  The cross-hatched states are those in their regular ranges where I’ve yet to see them.  The purple-shaded states are those where I’ve seen these species as a rarity.

 

Just before leaving the site we found a Philadelphia Vireo foraging in the brush.  A nice bird but not a new one for OH.

That evening I checked on eBird and found to my surprise that my sighting and ID of the Bell’s Vireo had been quickly accepted - based solely on the song.  (Boy was Merlin wrong!)  Not only that, but it was reported from the same spot earlier in the day.  And with a bit more research I found that 1 or 2 Bell’s Vireos had actually been at this same location since May.  Although I wasn’t the first person to find it, at least it would be an unexpected new bird for my OH list.  But then I started to wonder why it hadn’t popped up on any of my OH Needs Alerts.  A couple clicks later I found out that I actually already had Bell’s Vireo on my OH list from a sighting back in June 2011.  It was still exciting to almost discover it that day.

Day 5 – August 24, 2024

My first stop of the day was at the Huffman Prairie Flying Field at the edge of Wright-Patterson Air Force Base northeast of Dayton.  This field was used by the Wright brothers in the early 1900’s to perfect their flying machine.  A portion of this field is now managed as a natural prairie, and was home for 2 of my targets – Sedge Wren and Henslow’s Sparrow.  I reached out to local birder Steve Bell who had recently posted observations of both breeding species on eBird to get some advice for finding my targets.  Steve provided great tips on birding the site and excellent maps where he had seen them recently.  So although it was getting late in the year, now with Steve’s help, I was optimistic I’d be able to find my targets. 

Here’s a shot of the prairie when I arrived with the sun rising over the foggy fields.  The one-mile loop trail I would take through the prairie is barely visible in this shot beyond the information kiosk. 

Soon thereafter the fog lifted revealing this lush prairie vegetation.

A short distance down the trail I reached one of the locations Steve had recommended for Sedge Wren.  I stopped and listened for these typically vocal birds, and soon heard a set of chattering calls I didn’t quite recognize.  Merlin identified it as Sedge Wren.  Never one to rely on Merlin, especially given the Blue Grosbeak/Bell’s Vireo issue the day before, I waited a bit longer and one bird eventually came in close to me.  Finally, I had visuals of a Sedge Wren (OH state bird #3). 

I continued around the loop now especially listening for Henslow’s Sparrow.  Along the way I had single Sedge Wrens at two other spots in the prairie, again giving those chatter calls that I don’t think I’ve ever heard from Sedge Wrens.  A couple times I spished up single Savannah Sparrows that briefly got me excited, but they were just Savannahs.  Then finally I heard several “songs” of a Henslow’s not too far from one of the spots Steve had had them (OH state bird #4).  Although I’m happy to now have Henslow’s in 14 states, I still have a long way to go to find this elusive and declining species throughout its regular range.

I had several other possible stops for Sedge Wren nearby, but since I was successful with them at Huffman Prairie I could skip those other stops.  And that gave me extra time to head to the hotspot named “Battelle Darby Creek – Wet Prairie Restoration” close to Columbus.  Although there were no likely new state birds for me there now, the spot formerly had several that would have been new for me, like Common Gallinule, American Bittern, and Buff-breasted Sandpiper.  Maybe I’d get lucky with one of these or find something else.  Again, I reached out to Steve Bell for advice on this new spot, and once again his advice was most detailed and proved to be very helpful.

After a 40-minute drive I reached the parking lot for this hotspot and took the short walk to the wetlands.  It was a nice mudflat surrounded by cattails, and it was full of shorebirds.  There was a nice mix of the regular species there, but no rarities.  I had just found one in the distance that I was trying to make into a Baird’s when all the shorebirds took off.  I looked up and there was a Peregrine passing by.  I waited a while for the shorebirds to return but after 10 minutes the mudflats were still bare.  It was time to move on.  It was a nice stop, but as expected, nothing new.

Next I turned to searches for Eurasian Collared-Doves.  I had 2 possible stops for this species, and even though the reports at both sites weren’t very recent, I was still optimistic.  In my experience with ECDs, once they are discovered at a given location they often stick around for quite a while.  My first stop was in South Charleston where they were reported at grain elevators at the south end of town.  I’ve often found ECDs at grain elevators, so I liked my chances at this spot.

I drove up to the area of the most recent report and found several sets of grain elevators.  Where to start?  

I pulled into the parking lot between two sets of silos and immediately flushed a Collared-Dove from the lot (OH state bird #5).  That was easy.  I’ve seen this species throughout its regular range, and now OH is the 8th Midwest and northeast state where I’ve seen it as a rarity.

My look at the bird as it flushed was pretty brief, so I was hoping to get some better views.  I parked along Woodward Street which ran along the north side of the industrial complex and had numerous shade trees that looked like good perches for the Doves.  Within a few minutes another ECD flew up from the parking lot and landed in one of the tall trees.  But it disappeared in the leaves.  Just then I heard a Dove singing, and eventually located it perched on top of a nearby telephone pole.  Here's a couple digi-binned shots of this cooperative bird.

My last stop of the day was back at Gilmore MetroPark for a second try at the Yellow-crowned Night Herons.  After my failed attempt the previous afternoon (in the heat), I did some more research on eBird and noticed that most of the recent reports were either in the early morning or late evening.  So I checked into my hotel early that afternoon and delayed my try for the Herons till after dinner. 

I had a nice picnic dinner at a shaded picnic table at the park, then started my walk to South Pond at 6:15.  As I got to the overlook I noticed a wader perched on the far side.  Did I have my bird, or was it another Green Heron?  Then with a quick binocular view it was easy to see I had the adult YCNH.  Delaying my search until late in the day must have done the trick.  Check out the Wood Ducks photo-bombing this shot of the Heron.

Day 6 – August 25, 2024

I had just one target for the last day of the trip – Broad-winged Hawk.  There were reports of nesting Broad-wings at numerous sites around greater Cincinnati earlier in the summer, though in most locations there were just one or two sightings.  The exception seemed to be an area in the southwest corner of OH called Shawnee Overlook, where there were numerous reports going back to the spring at a couple trails.  I chose to hike the Little Turtle Trail since it had the most July and and August reports this year.  Though with just 3 reports the last 2 months you couldn’t exactly say that Broad-wings were common there.  Ironically, during my working days, I had a project site just a couple miles from Shawnee Overlook which I visited many times though didn’t bird at the Overlook.

The Little Turtle Trail made a 2-mile loop through nice mature deciduous woodlands.  About a mile along the trail I very fittingly found this little (box) turtle crossing the path. 

Another half mile along I started to hear a number of species typical of dense deciduous forests including Pileated Woodpecker, Yellow-billed Cuckoo, and multiple Acadian Flycatchers.  I said to myself that the only species I was missing was the Broad-wing.  And just a couple minutes later I heard the first of several high-pitched calls of a Broad-winged Hawk (OH state bird #7).  I just need this species in 4 more states in its regular range.

It’s always great to end your trip by finding your last target!

That gave me 7 new OH state birds – an excellent result given that I expected just 3.  And that brings my OH total to 235.   

Now a bit of a postscript regarding the significance and context of my OH total –

Early in my birding career I set a goal to see at least half of the birds on the official state lists of each state in the Lower 48 and DC.  The genesis of this goal comes from the American Birding Association (ABA).  Back in the day, the ABA would publish your state totals but only if you had observed at least half of the total ever recorded in that state.  The ABA last published birders’ totals in this way in 2011.  Later they went to a digital format where all your totals would be published without any threshold.  And of course, eBird has taken that approach as well.  But my goal remained – to be able to meet the ABA reportable threshold in each state.  And in 2023, with a birding trip to Oregon, I reached my lifelong goal of being reportable in each of the Lower 48 states plus DC. 

As of 2011 the ABA reporting threshold for OH was 211, meaning the total state list was twice that total or 422.  I had 228 on my OH list at the time so I was safe at 17 over the threshold.  Or was I?  You see as new birds are added to a state list, the threshold increases as well.  As of December 2023 (the most recent update on the internet), the official OH state list had increased by a whopping 28 birds in just 12 years, bringing the total now to 450 (http://ohiobirds.org/resources/official-ohio-ornithological-society-bird-checklist/).  Though it’s not clear if that total includes hypothetical species that are typically excluded from these calculations.  That means the threshold has increased by 14 to 225.  And before this year’s trip I had dropped to being just 3 over the new threshold.  At least my new OH total of 235 is now 10 over that latest threshold.  Though if OH continues to add new birds at their recent pace that may not keep me above threshold for long. 

Kentucky Trip Nets 11 State Birds, Plus one in Indiana – August 20-23, 2024

My Kentucky list has been stuck at 204 since my last trip to the state in 2006.  So now that I’m living in the southeast I’ve been looking for an excuse to get back to KY to fill some gaps in my state list.  Then in late summer of 2023 I began to notice lots of good birds being reported at the Falls of the Ohio - a wetlands area in the Ohio River near Cincinnati.  At one point there were 8 species there that would have been new for my KY list.  I had my excuse to go birding in KY!   And although birding at the Falls could be my prime reason to return to KY, I could always try for other new state birds en route or nearby.  Plus while I’m in the area I could cross over into Ohio and bird the southwest part of that state as well.  Unfortunately, I didn’t get my plans together early enough to make the trip in 2023, but there was always next year.

As Summer 2024 progressed I started to plan my KY and OH trip in earnest.  First of all, I scheduled my trip for the third week of August which historically was the week with the greatest number of targets for me at the Falls of the Ohio (based on eBird bar charts).  Then I reached out to former KY birder Teresa Noel, whom I met this past year.  She gave me lots of advice for my targets, and also connected me with local KY birder Dave Svetich.  Dave was helpful as well, and in turn put me in touch with another local birder, Katey Buster, who gave me more tips.

With the help of all those local experts and lots of hours on eBird, I found 16 potential KY state birds in the region.  That included my nemesis bird for KY – House Wren.  (How could I have more than 200 species in KY and not have House Wren on my list?)  That was the good news.  The bad news was that, as the trip neared, only 2 realistic targets were being seen at the Falls of the Ohio – Peregrine Falcon and Neotropic Cormorant.  And they weren’t even being seen every day.  So even though birding at the Falls was the trigger for my trip, it looked like my potential targets there would be limited.  Plus, since most of my regional targets were local breeders, I worried that they may be difficult to find so late in the summer.  If I had known how slow it would be at the Falls I could have just made this year’s trip early in the summer for KY breeders.  And then come back another year in late summer to bird the Falls.  But when I was starting to plan the trip earlier in the summer I couldn’t have predicted how good (or not) birding at the Falls might be in late August. 

Things were looking so bleak the last couple days before the trip that I almost canceled.  But then I remembered hockey great Wayne Gretzky’s quote – “you miss 100% of the shots you don’t take.”  In a twisted bit of logic I applied that quote to my trip saying that I certainly won’t get any new KY birds if I don’t go at all.  So I decided to go, and at the very least learn about the birding hotspots so I could come back and be successful on a future trip. 

It was pretty much the same story in southwestern OH.  My eBird research revealed 7 reasonable targets, 4 of which were late breeders, while the others were either waders or shorebirds.  But in order to pursue several of them I’d have to drive all the way north almost to Columbus, which was farther than my original plans. 

Despite the timing of the trip for the breeders, and the lack of rarities at the Falls, I still hoped for perhaps 9 new KY state birds.  Plus 3 new birds in OH.  Though perhaps I was being too optimistic.

This blog post summarizes the KY portion of my August 2024 trip, plus a little bit of Indiana.  My next post summarizes the OH part of the trip.

Day 1 – August 20

My plan for the first day of the trip was to leave late-morning to begin a 5-hour drive to the Red River Gorge area of central KY to look for Swainson’s Warbler.  My departure was delayed a bit to pursue a Western Kingbird in my home county in NC.  Luckily that was a successful search and made the delay worthwhile.  (See my previous post for the Western Kingbird summary.) 

While driving along through southeastern KY I spotted a large Corvid right over the road in front of me.  My first thought was that it could be big enough for a Raven, which would be quite a rarity for KY in general, and especially this far west.  As I got closer, I could see the large beak and wedge-shaped tail – it was indeed a Raven (KY state bird #1).  Then I spotted a second Raven flying along with the first one.  Luckily there was no traffic on this rural road, and I was able to pull over to watch this pair continue to fly along before disappearing behind a tree line.  I opened an eBird checklist and found that I was in Owsley County.  And this was the first Raven eBird record for that county.  That wasn’t a bird I had on my radar screen at all.  What a great start to the trip!

My state bird map for Common Raven is inserted below.  The blue-shaded states are those where I’ve seen this species in its regular range.  The cross-hatched state (NJ) is the last state in its regular range where I still need it.  The purple-shaded states are those where I’ve seen this species as a rarity - KY is now the 4th state along with KS, DE, and RI.

My first planned birding stop of the day was at the Red River Gorge area for Swainson’s Warblers.  Although the most recent report in the area was in mid-July, I often hear singing Swainson’s singing into September back home in NC.  Plus I had heard a pair of birds just the week before back home responding to tape.  So I was hopeful I would be able to find them during my KY trip.  There were quite a number of sites in the area with Swainson’s reports in eBird earlier in the year, and I chose one key area, along Nada Tunnel Road, as my birding site for the evening.  When I got to the area I was greeted by these multi-story rock formations which were just spectacular.

But unfortunately, that was the only highlight.  Despite being in seemingly good Swainson’s habitat I couldn’t scare one up.  I made numerous stops covering several miles of the road, listening and playing some tape.  Several times I heard a series of sharp chip notes but they were always Hooded Warblers.  But I wasn’t too disappointed because I had planned stops in another part of Red River Gorge the next morning just in case I missed Swainson’s that evening.  Though I was still a bit concerned that it might be too late in the year for my target at least locally.

After dinner my last stop was a try for Whip-poor-wills at Koomer Ridge Campground.  Similar to the local Swainson’s story, the most recent local report for this species was in mid-July.  But there had been several reports of Whips at this campground this summer, so I was cautiously optimistic.  But I struck out yet again – despite stops at numerous spots around the campground, and playing some tape, there were no calling Whip-poor-wills.  Now I was really getting worried about the timing of my trip so late in the breeding season.  Hopefully tomorrow would be a better day.

Day 2 – August 21

I started the day at dawn back in Red River Gorge for yet another try for Swainson’s Warbler.  This time I birded the Rock Bridge Trail, starting my hike down the trail at dawn.  The first part of the trail was in nice mature deciduous woodlands but not quite Swainson’s habitat.  And once again I picked up several more calling Hooded Warblers along the way.  Then as I neared the junction with the Swift Camp Creek Trail I got into an area with steep slopes and a thick understory of rhododendron – perfect for Swainson’s.  Here’s a picture of the valley below me.

I turned onto the Swift Camp Creek Trail and continued my slow walk.  Just a couple hundred yards down the trail I heard a series of sharp chip notes that I instantly knew were coming from a Swainson’s and not the higher metallic notes of the common Hooded Warblers.  I even checked with Merlin and it agreed.  (KY state bird #2)  Maybe summer wasn’t quite over just yet after all.  Since I’ve moved to the southeast I’ve now picked-up Swainson’s Warbler in 4 states - NC, SC, TN, and now KY.  Still a few more to go though.

On my way back to the car I was serenaded by a Red-breasted Nuthatch, which turned out to be a rarity needing details in eBird.  This species is not normally a summering bird in that area.

Next I was on to the Haley Downs Road hotspot which is known in central KY for its grassland birds.  Within just a couple minutes of parking I walked towards a fallow grassy field and almost instantly had small groups of Bobolinks flying overhead (KY state bird #3).  That was easy! 

Now I focused on my 2 sparrow targets – Grasshopper and Henslow’s.  Grasshoppers were still singing now back home so I was hopeful on that one.  Henslow’s are normally reported at this hotspot most summers, but hadn’t been reported at Haley Downs this year so I wasn’t too optimistic about that one.  I listened and played tape at a number of grassy fields with no luck for either species.  Then I heard a soft call coming from a small patch of uncut taller grass that at first I didn’t recognize.  I focused my attention on the area where the call had come from and heard it again.  Was it the song of a Henslow’s?  I listened intently and heard it give 2 more of its insect-like songs – I indeed had a singing Henslow’s (KY state bird #4).  Maybe it was a pair having a late brood after a failed earlier nesting nearby.  But I had no luck with what should have been the more likely Grasshopper Sparrows.

While trying one more time for Grasshoppers I noticed a large pale bird perched in a distant tree.  A quick binocular view revealed that it was a Eurasian Collared-Dove.  It wasn’t new for my KY list, but it was a rarity for the area.  It stuck around for several days for Katey Buster and several other local birders to see.

And speaking of rarities, as I was leaving Haley Downs a Loggerhead Shrike flew over the road.  I didn’t realize it at the time but that was another rarity, with less than 20 county records, and luckily it too was re-found by another birder.  Though I would have traded both rarities for a Grasshopper Sparrow…

The next target as I continued my drive to the west toward Lexington was a Mute Swan reported from a private pond on Berea Rd in Fayette County.  The pond was a short distance off the road so access was a bit iffy, but once I figured out how to get a view of the pond the Mute Swan was quite obvious with binoculars (KY state bird #5).  The swan is circled in this cellphone picture without magnification.

The Pfeiffer Fish Hatchery northwest of Lexington was my next stop, where a Baird’s Sandpiper was found a few days earlier.  But since my drive took me through areas of grassy pastures I made several stops along the way hoping to run into Grasshopper Sparrows.  I was once again unsuccessful on all those stops.  But across the road from the field at one of those stops in Franklin County was a brushy area that looked good for Wrens.  I played a bit of House Wren calls and songs and almost instantly one responded, and then popped into the open (KY state bird #6).  Finally – House Wren in KY!  KY was the last state in the Lower 48 for me to see House Wren.  That is the 59th species that I’ve seen in all the Lower 48 states (plus DC).

Pfeiffer Fish Hatchery was full of Great Egrets and Great Blues, but the only shorebirds I could find were Killdeer.  And this long-staying Mute Swan was photogenic.

My next stop was another long shot – Peregrine Falcon in downtown Lexington.  The good news was that eBird reports gave the location of a nest box on the Central Bank building downtown.  The bad news was that there had been no sightings since June.  But I had some time, so why not give it a go.  I parked in a downtown parking lot with good views of the skyline.  I quickly found the nest box which was empty, and scanned the edges of the nearby buildings.  I only found a few Rock Pigeons which seemed to be totally at ease.  Oh well, it was worth the try.

After dinner I headed to Lexington Green Pond in the Lexington suburbs where 2 Mute Swans had been reported sporadically.  As I pulled up I saw the pair of Swans along with about 50 Mallards all being fed by shoppers.  Since the Swans are countable, they must be tame but not feral.  Interesting that Mute Swans around home in western NC that appear to be very wild are always considered to be escapees. 

The last target of the day was Common Nighthawk.  There were numerous recent Nighthawk reports throughout the central and western parts of the state as they were migrating through the region.  But there didn’t seem to be any particular spot where they might be seen reliably on any given evening.  So I decided to just find a large shopping center parking lot nearby that would provide me a full view of the sky.  And if I don’t see one passing by overhead maybe I’ll find one after dark eating the insects attracted to the parking lot lights.  I picked out a large parking lot for a grocery store a short distance from my Lexington hotel as a good candidate.  I parked in a quiet part of the lot about an hour before sunset and started my vigil.  After about 30 minutes of counting Crows, Starlings, and House Sparrows I spotted a candidate in the distance.  And with a binocular view I picked out not 1 but 2 Nighthawks flying by (KY state bird # 7).  A nice way to end the day.  I just need this species in 1 more state.

Day 3 – August 22

The first stop of the day was at the Talon Winery south of Lexington.  No, I wasn’t going there to attend a wine tasting event.  Instead, I was there to look for grassland species that regularly breed around the winery grounds.  Specifically, I was hoping to see Henslow’s Sparrows reported as recently as the previous afternoon, and to hope for Grasshopper Sparrows that bred there this year but hadn’t been seen for a couple weeks. 

When I arrived, I went right to the area of the uncut field where both sparrows were reported.  But I couldn’t find the field.  I rechecked with Katey Buster and I had the right spot.  It turns out the field had just been cut – literally in the last 18 hours since the eBird report the previous afternoon.  I could not find a single sparrow in the area, though there were at least 20 Meadowlarks walking through the now short vegetation, perhaps lamenting that they had lost their nests.  If only they had delayed cutting the field by a day.  Luckily, I had a Henslow’s the day before at my other stop, but Grasshopper Sparrow would have to go down as one I missed because my trip was so late in the summer.

Next I was off to Henderson County in western KY just across the river from Evansville, IN.  It was a long drive but I had 3 key targets there not easily found elsewhere in the state.  The first was a flock of Black-bellied Whistling-Ducks that were being seen for some time at the Industrial Park Pond hotspot.  Some reports made it look like you would just drive up to the pond and they’d be right in front of you.  Then again there were other reports where the BBWDs were not found at all.  I was one of the luckier birders, because the instant I pulled up to the pond I could see a flock of brown ducks on the far bank – with a quick binocular view I confirmed I had 7 BBWDs (KY statebird #8).  I was just giving myself a high five when I noticed 2 sleeping BBWDs practically right in front of me.  Here are digi-bin pictures of both the distant flock and the pair right next to my car.

My next target was Bell’s Vireo, which is a regular nester in the area.  There had been several reports in the area recently, but the one that sounded most promising was at the Diamond Island Boat Ramp hotspot where 2 had been reported less than a week earlier.  When I arrived at the boat ramp I found a large brushy area near the water that seemed like the right habitat.  I played some tape at several stops before I caught a glimpse of a candidate low in the vegetation.  Eventually it popped out and gave good looks – it was indeed a Bell’s Vireo (KY state bird #9).  Little did I now that listening to recordings of its song would prove to be helpful the next day in the OH portion of my trip.  I just need this species in 4 more states in its regular range.

My last stop in the county was at the Horseshoe Road Slough where a Baird’s Sandpiper had been spotted recently, along with a Buff-breasted the week before, and always with a nice mix of other shorebirds and waders.  It took me a while, but I finally found the slough tucked into a sea of soybean plants.  I found lots of waders but the only shorebirds I found were 1 Killdeer and 2 Spotted’s.  Little did I know that a Red-necked Phalarope was found at a nearby slough that same day.  If only I had checked my KY Needs Alert before leaving the area…

My original plans included a nighttime stop to try for Chuck-will’s-widows and Whip-poor-wills south of Louisville.  But given all the driving I did that day, the lack of recent goatsucker reports, and my lack of success with Whips earlier in the trip, I decided to pass on these nocturnal birds.

Day 4 – August 23

I started Day 4 of the trip at Turkey Run Park in the Louisville suburbs in hopes of finding a Prothonotary Warbler.  This was another late summer breeder which initially I wasn’t too optimistic about, but it had been reported several times recently from the park so maybe I’d be successful after all.  My first stop was near the entrance where 1 had been reported earlier in the week.  I found some good riparian habitat along Turkey Run, but a calling Screech Owl and a perched adult Bald Eagle were the only notable birds.  Next, I headed to Squire Boone Bottoms where there had not only been a recent report, but also reports of a likely nesting pair earlier in the summer.  A mile and a half loop trail took me down through the bottoms area which had some excellent riparian habitat along the river.  It looked like a great spot for Prothonotary’s!  I slowly walked along the river playing some tape hoping for a response.  The area was quite birdy, but I couldn’t find my target.  But then finally I heard a Prothonotary sing, undoubtedly in response to my tape (KY state bird #10).  Just 2 more states to go in this species’ regular range.

The next stop was in a small residential neighborhood in Louisville to look for Yellow-Crowned Night Herons.  There had been several reports of 1 or maybe 2 nests in this area in the spring and early summer but I figured surely those birds would fledge and move on before my late August trip.  So this species wasn’t one of my initial targets.  But then there were a couple reports in early August from the same spot.  And again, a nest with juveniles was reported.  It must be a second brood – I didn’t know that YCNH’s have multiple broods.  With a bit of help from my KY contacts I found out that the nest was in a tree in front of the house at 3542 Ramona Ave.  As I pulled onto Ramona Ave. I saw very large deciduous trees planted in the front yards of each house.  I got to 3542 and stepped out of the car.  With a quick scan I found a dense area of twigs and sticks that must have been the nest.  And with a closer binocular view I could pick out at least 3 juveniles at the nest (KY state bird #11).    

That was 2 for 2 for the morning so far.  But now it was on to the Falls of the Ohio where my opportunities were likely to be pretty limited.  In the previous couple weeks there had been just 2 possible targets being seen there – a Peregrine reported on maybe a third of the checklists, and a long-staying Neotropic Cormorant.  But the Cormorant had not been seen for 2 days so maybe it had moved on.  Like I said, it was looking pretty bleak.

When I arrived at the hotspot I was truly taken aback by the scenery and the enormity of the site.  Here’s a scenery shot of the lower falls and fossil beds, taken from the observation deck at the Falls of the Ohio Foundation on the Indiana bank of the Ohio River.

And here’s a shot of the upper falls with a distant railroad trestle which was apparently the Peregrine’s favorite perch.

One of the first birds I saw when I got there was the long-staying American White Pelican, which unfortunately was not a new state bird for me in KY.  The bird was in flight over the Falls, and since basically the entire river and the Falls are in KY, the Pelican was squarely in KY airspace.  But as the bird circled it slowly drifted northward, and eventually it slipped out of sight into Indiana – a bonus Indiana state bird for me!  That was unexpected.  As shown in my White Pelican state bird map I’ve now seen this species as a rarity in 10 Midwest and northeast states.

Now it was time to get to work on my KY targets.  The Neotropic Cormorant liked to perch with Double-crested’s on a distant concrete wall nearly a half mile away.  But thanks to a 50X scope I could see the cormorant flock quite well.  Despite lots of searching, unfortunately I couldn’t pick out the diminutive southern cousin among the 85 Double-crested’s.  Here’s a shot of a portion of the flock.

Next I focused on the railroad trestle for the Peregrine.  But again I came up empty.  At one point a train went across the trestle and I hoped it might flush the raptor but to no avail.

Back to the Falls I was able to find Little Blue Herons and a Snowy Egret, both somewhat unusual for the site, but not new for my KY list.  Ironically, I need both of those species for my IN list, but these waders were definitely inside KY, albeit within a quarter mile of the state line.  I also scoured the wetlands and fossil beds for rarer shorebirds but just came up with 13 Killdeer.  A pair of Caspian Terns and a Black-crowned Night Heron were nice as well.  After about 2 and a half hours of scanning (and hoping) I decided to give up on the Falls of the Ohio and the KY leg of my trip, and head into OH. 

Ironically the key trigger for my trip, a visit to the Falls of the Ohio, didn’t yield any new KY state birds.  But if it hadn’t been for that hotspot, I wouldn’t have made the trip to KY at all, and wouldn’t have added 11 new birds to my KY state list.  That’s still a nice tally compared to my expectation of adding 9 new birds.  That brings my new KY total to 215.  And now I have good locations for Grasshopper Sparrow, Chuck-will’s widow, and Whip-poor-will should I come back on a future summer trip.  Plus I can’t forget the 1 new bird in IN which brings that state list to 233. 

And now a bit of a postscript regarding the significance of my 215 total in KY –

Early in my birding career I set a goal to see at least half of the birds on the official state lists of each state in the Lower 48 and DC.  The genesis of this goal comes from the American Birding Association (ABA).  Back in the day, the ABA would publish your state and Canadian province totals but only if you had observed at least half of the total ever recorded in that state/province.  So my goal was to be able to report my totals in each of the Lower 48 states and DC.  The ABA last published birders’ totals in this way in 2011.  Later they went to a digital format where all your totals would be published without any threshold.  And of course, eBird has taken that approach as well.  But my goal remained – to be able to meet the ABA reportable threshold in each state.  And in 2023, with a birding trip to Oregon, I reached my lifelong goal of being reportable in each of the Lower 48 states plus DC. 

As of 2011 the ABA reporting threshold for KY was 194, meaning the total state list was twice that total or 388.  I had 204 on my KY list at the time so I was safe at 10 over the threshold.  Or was I?  You see as new birds are added to a state list, the threshold increases as well.  As of January 2023 (the most recent update on the internet), the official KY statelist had increased to 396 (www.birdky.org/kbrc.php).  That means the threshold has increased to 198.  My new KY total of 215 is 17 over that new threshold – that should hold me for a while.

Western Kingbird Delays a Multi-state Birding Trip, Henderson County, North Carolina, August 20, 2024

Mid-morning of August 20th this post came across the local Blue Ridge Birders text group –

“Possible Western Kingbird at Mills River Park, west side of loop trail along the river.”

This was posted by Cathy Ford who is a very good birder, so I was very optimistic about her ID.  And Mills River Park is just 20 minutes from home.  I not only know the park well, but I could picture exactly where the bird was discovered. 

Ordinarily that would all seem like great news when pursuing a new NC state bird.  The problem was that I was actually just about to head out the door to get a rental car at the Asheville airport and start a 6-day birding trip in Kentucky and Ohio.  I had a long drive ahead of me to do some planned birding in central KY that evening, so I didn’t want to delay my departure.  But new NC state birds (and Henderson County birds for that matter) don’t come along very often.  Just as I was about to arrive at the airport the ID was confirmed by others.  That put me over the edge, and I decided that my KY trip could wait at least a couple hours while I pursue the Kingbird that was practically in my back yard.  I had one last chance to change my mind when another post mentioned the Kingbird had flown off toward the southern end of the trail.  But I was now committed to trying to relocate the Kingbird.

Luckily it didn’t take long to get the rental car and drive away from this small airport.  And after a quick 15-minute ride I pulled into the parking lot for the Mills River Park.  A couple of the birders who had it initially were still there, and I got the scoop on where it preferred to perch and in the general direction it had flown.  I also heard that it was actually first discovered the day before, and in the same spot, but the birder was not sure of the ID.  So if it had been there for at least 2 days, surely it would return to its favorite spot again today.  Right?

I quickly walked to the area where the Kingbird preferred to perch but only found Goldfinches and Mourning Doves in its favorite trees.  Then I spotted a Kingbird fly by and head towards the parking lot where it landed on wires with 2 other Kingbirds.  The birds were too far away to ID, so I quickly walked back to the parking lot, only to find out that they were 3 Eastern Kingbirds.  And just when I was getting optimistic…

By then 4 other birders had arrived and we all decided to head back to the Kingbird’s apparent preferred perches in the northwest corner of the loop.  I decided to give it maybe an hour before I should get on the road for my trek west.  Luckily, I only had to wait about 30 minutes before one of the birders said he had the bird – it had flown in from the south and had landed in the northwest corner in this distant tree.

Here’s a miserable digi-binned shot of the bird in the distance.  Luckily with binoculars it was still easy to see its lemony yellow breast and white outer tail feathers on an otherwise dark tail. (I should have brought the scope from the car.)

Western Kingbird was #326 for my NC list, and #249 for me in my local Henderson County.

My state bird map for Western Kingbird is inserted below.  The blue-shaded states are those where I’ve seen this species in its regular range.  The cross-hatched states are those on the eastern edge of its regular range where I still need it.  And NC is now the 7th brown-shaded state where I’ve seen this species as a rarity along the East Coast.  Obviously they are prone to vagrancy.

Great Plains Trip to North Dakota, Saskatchewan, and a bit of Manitoba, May-June 2024 – Canada Summary, Part 2 of 2

This blog post summarizes the second half of the Canadian portion of our trip; my previous post summarized the first half.  See my earlier blog post for a summary of the ND part of the trip.  The eBird Trip Report for my ND stops can be found at -   ebird.org/tripreport/250883

May 31 – Duck Mountain Provincial Park, SK

My original itinerary for SK included 2 days of birding at Prince Albert National Park especially for boreal species.  However, Prince Albert is quite a bit north of all our other stops which would have added many hours of driving time.  Instead, Stan Shadick suggested going to Duck Mountain PP for our boreal targets.  In fact, since it’s one of his favorite birding spots in SK, I decided to make it a 2-day stop.  And thanks to Stan’s suggestions we had a great time there!

We rolled into the park about lunch time, and after paying the entrance fee, we grabbed a quick picnic lunch in the Birch Campground where we were serenaded by White-throated Sparrows and Ovenbirds.  We decided our first hike would be on the Damselfly Trail which passes through both woodlands and wetlands.  And it turned out to be an excellent choice!  We picked up 13 new province birds on this short trail, with landbirds including Yellow-bellied Sapsucker, Willow Flycatcher, Blue-headed and Red-eyed Vireos, Black-and-white and Nashville Warblers, and Rose-breasted Grosbeak.  When we reached the wetland we spotted Common Goldeneye and Common Merganser on the water, and heard a Common Loon calling from the lake.  Swamp Sparrows and a Northern Waterthrush were calling from the marsh.  And then we spotted a flyover Bald Eagle, which flew to a nest and was joined by its mate.

We even saw a Black Bear, thankfully at a distance.  That was quite the stop!

Next we were onto Spruce Campground where we heard the first of many Blackburnian Warblers and Blue Jays.  While listening to one of the Blackburnians I heard a Boreal Chickadee call nearby.  We eventually tracked it down and found a pair of birds nesting in the rotted out top of this street sign.

Our last stop in the park that day was to be at Pickerel Point but the winds were howling from the west across Madge Lake.  So we went to the lee side of the Pickerel Point peninsula to be out of the wind and spotted a pair of immature Trumpeter Swans in this protected cove. 

And for a nice ending to the day he had a calling Sharp-shinned Hawk just beyond the hotel parking lot undoubtedly looking for an evening meal of House Sparrows.

That was the 21st addition to my SK list for the day, now standing at 174.  Not bad for a half day of birding.  Could 200 be within reach?

June 1 – Duck Mountain Provincial Park, SK

Our plan for the 1st was to spend the entire day at Duck Mountain, especially focused on the road to the ski slope.  This 7-mile long road heads south from Madge Lake passing by numerous beaver ponds and going through excellent deciduous and spruce/fir habitat.  We started at the north end of the road just after sunrise through this spruce/fir woodland.

Instantly we were surrounded by bird song coming mostly from warblers.  We quickly picked out our first Magnolia and Black-throated Green Warblers of the trip.  These were joined by the likes of Nashvilles, Tennessees, and Blackburnians.  Later we birded excellent deciduous woodlands like these, hearing good numbers of Ovenbirds, Redstarts and Chestnut-sided.

And nearly every beaver pond had at least one singing Northern Waterthrush.  Plus we picked up 3 singing Mourning Warblers at these wetlands.  Not to mention 9 species of breeding waterfowl. 

We kept stopping so many times to count the singing warblers that we ended up covering the area a lot slower than expected.  Though we had all day.  By the time we reached the ski slope area we had 15 warbler species, including 11 Ovenbirds, 7 Northern Waterthrushes, 9 Nashvilles, 13 Redstarts, and 4 Canadas.  Another highlight was a singing Eastern Wood-Pewee near the western edge of its range. 

Another attraction along the road was the Calcareous Fen where relatively impermeable lime deposits have caused the formation of this rather infertile wetlands which is the home to numerous carnivorous plants.  We didn’t find many birds there except for a couple Nashvilles and Tennessees, but the wetlands was very interesting.

One of the other attractions to the ski slope road to a “total ticker” like me was that for about 3 miles this generally north-south road ran right along the province line separating Saskatchewan from Manitoba.  Along this stretch the east side of the road was in MB while the west side was in SK.  My MB list was tiny at 40, so there was lots of potential, though our focus remained on SK birds.  For the most part the MB birds we found were the same as those we were finding on the SK side.  However, there was one exception – we found a grassy wetlands in MB that had a pair of Sedge Wrens.  The marsh was squarely in MB so there was no way we could coax the Wrens across the road into SK (we never did have Sedge Wren in SK).  I added 14 MB species that day – not bad for very little effort.

The gate to the ski slope at the end of the road was closed, and since It was only midday, we decided to turn around and try a couple other trails closer to Madge Lake.  The first spot was the Fire Tower cross-country ski trail where Great Gray Owls have been spotted occasionally.  As we started on the hike we got a few of the “regular” warblers, but then noticed that we both had ticks on us.  This didn’t look good since we still had a long walk ahead of us.  So we turned around and by the time we got back to the car I had picked 10 ticks off me.  Yuck…

The next trail we wanted to try was the Pelly Point Trail near the southwestern part of Madge Lake.  Unfortunately, we never made it to the trailhead – the road to the trail was muddy and had a sign that said it was impassable when wet.  Next we tried the Woodland Nature Trail but it was quite slow, so we only hiked a short distance. 

That made 4 planned locations in a row that we either couldn’t get to, or weren’t worthwhile to hike.  We had run out of places to bird and it was still early afternoon.  At one point I thought about heading east into MB, but without having done any research on birding sites there, that would be a pretty inefficient use of our time.  On a lark I decided to try to call Stan Shadick to get his advice.  He was available for the call, and I told him of our key misses, like Connecticut Warbler, Canada Jay, Evening Grosbeak, Ruffed Grouse, Olive-sided Flycatcher, Golden-crowned Kinglet, Wood Duck, and Hooded Merganser to name a few.  It turns out that Stan was at Duck Mountain a couple days earlier, and had seen most of our remaining targets.  He gave us advice for all but the Connecticut Warbler which he had missed as well.  Most importantly, he suggested we spend more time on the road to the ski slope where we would likely eventually run into many of the targets. 

But first we followed-up on Stan’s advice with specific locations for a couple species.  The first was Golden-crowned Kinglets and Olive-sided Flycatcher on the road to San Benito.  We found the small grove of conifers he suggested for Kinglets but with no luck.  But we did attract a Brown Creeper here responding to Kinglet calls as a nice addition to the list.  We drove a bit farther to check out a couple wetlands but couldn’t relocate the Olive-sided.  Then we were onto the small town of Kamsack Beach where Stan had a flock of Evening Grosbeaks coming to feeders.  We slowly drove the streets of town not finding feeders or Grosbeaks.  But then we finally started to hear a couple Grosbeak call notes, and eventually found a flock of at least 6 birds coming to a small feeder.  Gorgeous birds!

After an early dinner we decided to make another run at the ski slope road yet that evening, looking specifically for a few of our remaining targets.  At the first beaver pond we found a Hooded Merganser and a couple Spotted Sandpipers – where were they earlier in the day?  And while scanning possible Olive-sided perches we picked out what was likely a migrant Kestrel.  Nice addition of 3 birds after dinner. 

That gave me 10 new birds, bringing my SK list to 184.  Not bad given that several of our preferred spots were inaccessible.  And don’t forget the 14 new species in MB. 

June 2 – AM - Duck Mountain Provincial Park, PM - Estevan, SK

The game plan for this day was to bird around Duck Mountain till about noon, then we would make the 4-5 hour drive to Estevan to be in place for the next day’s birds near the southeastern corner of the province.  And taking Stan’s advice we headed back to the ski lodge road, but this time with a bit of a different strategy – we would quickly pass through the conifers at the initial part of the road (despite all the warblers we had there the previous day), instead spending the early morning in deciduous woods listening and looking for Grouse.  Later we would focus on the ponds for Wood Duck and Olive-sided, and conifers near the southern end of the road where Stan had Canada Jays.   

Despite our best laid plans we didn’t find our targets, at least initially.  But we had several others as consolations.  First our early morning listening for Ruffed Grouse came up empty.  And we couldn’t find a Wood Duck or Olive-sided at the ponds, though we had 7 other species of breeding waterfowl.  We also had 4 Winter Wrens at the ponds, 1 singing at each of 4 different wetlands.  They must have just arrived overnight because we certainly didn’t have them the previous day.  And when we stopped at one of the best spruce/fir forests we dipped on Canada Jays but did have several Golden-crowned Kinglets and a pair of Boreal Chickadees – in both provinces.  And stops at the southern end had no Canada Jays, but we did find 3 calling Great Crested Flycatchers.  And speaking of Jays, although we had 18 Blue Jays (needing details in eBird), we couldn’t scare up a Canada Jay.

On the MB side of the road we added 7 new species, including a flyby Merlin that stayed well into MB.  It would have been nice if it had strayed into SK since I still need that one for SK. 

When we arrived at the ski hill at the south end of the road the gate was still closed.  So I decided to take a little walk to check out the area.  The ski hill was pretty small, and not much to look at really.

Though I did find a couple Eastern Bluebirds which were new for my list.  While walking back I passed by a nice wetlands with a calling drake Wood Duck.  And twice while looking for Olive-sided Flys I spotted birds singing from high exposed perches.  But they turned out to be a Northern Waterthrush and a Tennessee Warbler – couldn’t turn them into an Olive-sided or Connecticut despite my best efforts.  Though I did spot our only Ruby-throated Hummingbird also perched at the top of one of these dead snags.  And while looking at the Hummer a Ruffed Grouse called from nearby.  That was 4 new birds at the ski slope – that was quite a nice stop after all.

We finished with 96 species at Duck Mountain PP – 37 of them were new for my SK list.  And I ended the small MB portion of the trip adding 21 new birds, bringing my list to 61.  But the day wasn’t over yet…

We had 3 key targets for the afternoon.  The first was Pied-billed Grebe, which amazingly we hadn’t yet spotted, or at least recorded, despite seeing dozens (hundreds?) of prairie pothole ponds and other wetlands.  But luckily David spotted one in route to Estevan.  It actually was the first of several we would end up with.

Our next targets were Nelson’s Sparrows reported just the day before from a small grassy marsh just outside Estevan.  These birds are notoriously late migrants, so they may have just arrived.  And chances are they kept on migrating, because we couldn’t find them despite playing some tape.

The last targets were Merlins, which were reported numerous times from what appeared to be two separate private residences in town in Estevan.  Although I hoped the Merlins were nesting at these sites, it was more likely that they were just passing by these birders’ houses as they birded from their yards.  My long-shot strategy was to just drive up to the 2 houses and hope a Merlin would pass by.

We pulled up to the first house and not surprisingly there were no Merlins in sight.  But within just a couple minutes a car pulled up to the house.  I walked over to the folks who got out of the car, introduced myself, and asked about the Merlins.  (I don’t think I would have ever done that in the US, but this is Canada where everyone is much friendlier.)  It turns out they didn’t live there, and were just visiting.  But the driver said that he saw them often at his house nearby, and thought they were nesting near a retirement facility that was across the road.  He gave me his address and I thanked him for his very friendly advice.

A couple minutes later we arrived at the retirement facility and parked along the road to start our second Merlin vigil in suburban Estevan.  There were no Merlins, but there was a fair amount of Merlin food – House Sparrows, House Wrens, and Chipping Sparrows.  Plus several White-breasted Nuthatches which were new for my list.  After about 30 minutes of waiting I heard an odd raptor call and had a brief look at a Merlin flying into one of the trees lining the street.  It later flew to a planted spruce right above me and disappeared in the middle of the tree into a nest that was barely visible.  Then a second bird came in and perched cooperatively just a short distance away, providing the opportunity for this phonescoped picture.

What an amazing turn of events where such a friendly local resident just happened to know where the Merlins were likely to be nesting.  And he just happened to arrive while we were there.

That was my 10th new species for my list, bringing the total to 194.

June 3 – Southeastern SK, Late PM Drive to Minot

Our plan for the day was to bird in the southeastern corner of SK southeast of Estevan until mid-afternoon when we would head back into the US on our way to Minot.  We had numerous SK targets whose ranges just barely make it into this southeast part of the province.  Our first stop was just after dawn at the Roche Percee Campground hotspot.  We hadn’t even stopped the car when we heard the key target for this spot – Yellow-throated Vireo.  We finally caught up with Downy Woodpecker there too.  The park was quite birdy featuring many Yellow Warblers, House Wrens, and Least Flycatchers.  Though we listened unsuccessfully for Field Sparrows reported last year in the grasslands across the river.

We were next headed to the area west of the little town of Roche Percee, but before we even made it into town we spotted our first Wild Turkeys for SK – another species limited to this part of the province.  Once we got west of town we found nice patches of riparian woodlands, pastures and brush.

Our first addition was a singing Black-headed Grosbeak, another species that barely reaches SK.  And then in a distant pasture we spotted a Say’s Phoebe that stayed perched on a fence just long enough to allow us to confirm the ID with the scope.  Later a Cooper’s Hawk flew low over the field, which was a surprising miss for us earlier in the trip. 

One of our key targets known to be in this area was the Yellow-breasted Chat, and we seemingly were in great habitat for them.  But despite driving west several miles through this area we couldn’t scare one up.  We eventually ran out of habitat when the riparian vegetation was replaced by huge mounds of nearly sterile overburden from local coal mining operations - it looked like a moonscape!  We turned around to head back east, and revised our strategy to just focus our search on brushy areas rather than the riparian sites.  And at our second brushy stop we coerced a Chat to come in to meet us.  Other good birds for the area were Eastern Pewee (luckily singing) along with a brief view of a Lazuli Bunting.

We next headed back east of Roche Percee on Souris River Road past the campground and through heavily wooded riparian areas.  A colony of Bank Swallows was a nice find along this river bank.  I don’t get to see many Bank Swallow colonies these days.

One of our stops was the Taylorton Heritage Cemetery, where we hoped for Rock Wrens on the nearby rock formations.  Although the Wrens were a no-show, we did have several Mountain Bluebirds, including this one perched at the top of the cemetery sign in the distance.

We soon came to a grassland with nice native short-grass prairie on both sides.  Although our focus initially was on grassland birds, that soon changed when we came upon a long narrow wetland near the road.  The central and likely deeper part was dominated by cattails (towards the right side of this picture with the blue arrow).  But the drier ends were vegetated by short greener grasses shown in the left side of this photo near the black arrow. 

This looked like a good spot for the Nelson’s we missed the day before, and maybe even LeConte’s.  We got out to listen, and within seconds we could hear marsh sparrows calling, and perhaps we were even hearing 2 different songs.  We listened intently and finally could pick out the two buzzy trills of the Nelson’s Sparrow.  And then from a bit drier area we could discern the softer song of the LeConte’s Sparrow, which was somewhat reminiscent of Grasshopper Sparrow to my ear.  What a successful stop with 2 unexpected species!

We were trying to decide where to go next when a pair of birders drove up who turned out to be local to the area.  They had tips for several of my targets including Blackpoll Warbler at the campground, Black-crowned Night-herons just south of Estevan, and Purple Finches at the local Woodlawn Regional Park.  We decided to head back to chase after these targets rather than continuing east along the Souris River.  We rather quickly heard a singing Blackpoll in the Campground (of course it stopped singing by the time I turned on Merlin). 

Next we headed to Woodlawn Regional Park but our hopes for the Purple Finches were greatly diminished when we got to the entrance and saw how large the park actually was.  We didn’t have any specific locations for them, and as we drove in we tried to come up with a strategy to look for our targets without taking the entire afternoon.  We had only driven a couple hundred yards into the park when we heard a finch-like song right along the road.  We hopped out and it was indeed a Purple Finch singing from these pines.  We were in the park less than 5 minutes - talk about luck! 

Unfortunately, our luck ran out when we went after the Night-herons – we just couldn’t find them despite several stops in lakes south of Estevan and with another stop at the sewage treatment plant.  But we still got 2 out of our 3 targets the local birders suggested for us.

We ended the day with 12 new species, bringing my SK province list to 206.  #200 was the Cooper’s Hawk.

SK and MB Highlights

I had conservatively hoped for 100 new species for my SK list and I ended up with a whopping 158!  The eBird Trip Report for the SK stops can be found at – ebird.org/tripreport/249186 

And I can’t forget adding 21 birds in MB.  Maybe I’ll head there next summer to work on that province list in a more thoroughly.

Plus my SK total of 206 has some significance as well.  My life-long passion for state birding was centered on an objective to see at least half of the total species ever recorded in each state in the mainland.  I’ve recently met that goal for all 49 mainland states plus the District of Columbia.  (Hawaii is just not feasible given the number of species that have gone extinct there and the difficulty in accessing many of those that remain.)

Over the last 15 years or so I expanded my horizons to include the Canadian provinces in this quest, but I haven’t been able to exceed the threshold of half of the all-time totals in any province.  That is until SK.  The last time the American Birding Association published those thresholds the SK total list was at 412 – so that threshold at the time was 206.  With some research on the Nature Saskatchewan website(naturesask.ca) I found the existing total of confirmed species has dropped to 393, with half the total now at 196.5.  In any case, SK is my first province where my total is greater than half the total province list.

Overall ND, SK, and MB Trip Summary

The objectives of the 13-day trip were to add birds to my ND state list and SK and MB province lists.  I added 204 state and province "ticks" -

• North Dakota - 25 new ticks, 159 species total, state list now at 230
• Saskatchewan - 158 new ticks, 204 species total, province list at 206
• Manitoba - 21 new ticks, 35 species total, province list at 61

I also added 7 new species to my Canada list, bringing it to 385.  I’d like to get to 400 in Canada some day.

Our route enabled us to find 223 eastern, western, grassland, shorebird, and boreal specialties.  Here are the species by the numbers -

•   Ducks and Geese - 23 species
•   Shorebirds - 28 species
•   Raptors - 11 species
•   Woodpeckers - 9 species
•   Flycatchers - 11 species
•   Sparrows - 16 species
•   Warblers - 17 species

The eBird Trip Report for the entire trip can be found at -  ebird.org/tripreport/246436