Filling Gaps in Minnesota and North Dakota State Lists While Heading to and from Manitoba, May-June 2025

When it came time to start planning my big spring 2025 birding trip the destination was quite obvious – it had to be Manitoba.  That was my last state or province that I hadn’t birded extensively, with an existing province list of just 61.  Needless to say, there were lots of potential new province birds waiting for me in MB.  And if I flew into Grand Forks, ND, I could also fill a few gaps in my MN and ND lists before or after the MB portion of the trip. 

My good birding friends Bill and Anita Hooker went with me on my trip to FL back in January 2025, so I reached out to them to see if they might be interested in also coming along with me to MB and the northern US Great Plains.  They like to keep county and state lists, and Anita likes to photograph what we find, and a lot of this area would be new territory for them.  So they agreed to come along but decided to drive to ND from home in NC so they could bird along the way.  They would pick me up at the Grand Forks airport and we could travel together from there in their car.  The trip was coming together…

I spent several months planning the trip, including searching for the best birding hotspots in MB to maximize our species total, and looking for specific one-off targets near Grand Forks in MN and ND.  I came up with a 13-day itinerary where I could add at least 140 species in MB to break 200 for the province, add perhaps only 4 in ND, and hopefully 2 in MN (though 0 was a possible outcome – there aren’t too many realistic targets for me in that part of MN).

This blog post summarizes the MN and ND legs of the trip. The MB portion of the trip is summarized in the next 3 posts.

5/28 – Fly to ND, Birding in Northwestern MN

The plan for the day was to fly to Grand Forks, ND, arriving about noon.  Then we would head east for an afternoon of birding in northwestern MN to add some species to my state list, and for Bill’s county lists.  Unfortunately, the spring eBird reports from the area contained few potential targets for me.  Things were looking bleak.  But finally, just two days before the trip, there were several local reports of migrant waterfowl and shorebirds that I needed for my list.  Plus a number of sightings of Gray Partridge – another one I still need for MN.  Primarily based on the reports from 5/26 I came up with an itinerary to visit 5 spots not too far east of Grand Forks.

I arrived at Grand Forks right on time and Bill and Anita were waiting for me at baggage claim.  After some rearranging of the luggage, we headed east to our first stop at the Thief River Falls WTP.  Recent reports from there included several targets – Horned and Western Grebes, Willet, Golden Plover, Red-necked Phalaropes, and Partridges.  But the reports were now 2 days old, so I hoped the targets would still be around.  Once we figured out how to view the ponds, we found many dabbling ducks, a few divers, and some Eared Grebes.  And we only found a few shorebirds, though a couple breeding plumage Sanderlings were nice. 

I was considering heading out to the next stop, but I felt like I just hadn’t looked through the waterfowl sufficiently.  So I did another scan and sure enough picked out a sleeping Western Grebe that eventually woke up and gave us good views (MN state bird #236).  In my statebird map below, the light blue-shaded states are those where I’ve seen Western Grebe in its regular range.  The 3 cross-hatched states are those where I still need the Grebe in its normal range.  And the dark blue-shaded states are those where I’ve seen Western Grebe as a vagrant.

And with some additional searching of another pond we found a small flock of Wilson’s Phalaropes spinning on the surface.  We continued to scan the flock and Bill eventually picked out a dark-chested bird in the distance that we determined to be a lone Red-necked Phalarope (MN #237).  The range map in the Sibley app considers this Phalarope to be a rarity in MN.  So MN is now the 6th state where I’ve seen Red-necked Phalarope as a rarity.

Our next stop was the NW Minnesota Pollinator Garden where several target migrant passerines had been reported, along with more Partridges.  We found the spot to be quite birdy, including both Orioles, many Clay-colored Sparrows eating dandelion seeds, and a “Traill’s” Flycatcher.  But we found none of my targets.

Then we were off to the Agassiz Valley impoundment.  The highlight of this site was a very large active Bald Eagle nest, complete with two adults and one nestling.  We had more of the regular waterfowl, and a few shorebirds along with a surprising 18 Marbled Godwits, but once again none of my targets.

On our way to the next stop we covered an area where there had been a number of reports of Partridges.  But again we came up empty.  I recalled the advice I received from one wise birder years ago – “you never see a Gray Partridge when you’re looking for it.”

Our last stop of the afternoon was at the Warren Sewage Lagoons where Horned Grebe and more Partridges had been reported.  We found a nice flock of Wilson’s Phalaropes and Stilt Sandpipers, but once again no targets.

We ended the day with 81 species in MN – not bad for just an afternoon.  Plus I added 2 to my MN list bringing my state total to 237.

5/29 – Eastern ND, and Drive to MB

The game plan for the day was to start with a bit of birding in eastern ND, then make the 4+ hour drive to southwestern MB.  Our key ND birding spot for the morning was Sertoma Park and the adjacent coulee in downtown Grand Forks.  This site is well-known as a hotspot for spring migrants – a wooded oasis surrounded by the prairie.  We started birding there just after sunrise hoping for some migrants, but the chilly and overcast weather wasn’t very cooperative.  Not surprisingly we saw few birds in the first 15 minutes or so as we tried to figure out the best way to bird the site.  Then I noticed a large flycatcher perched on the top of a snag.  The lighting was miserable, but we could determine that it was an Olive-sided Flycatcher (ND state bird #231).  

It didn’t stay perched there for long, quickly dropping out of sight.  Though we saw this bird again several times elsewhere in the park.  Here’s a distant shot of the bird characteristically perched atop a dead snag.

With few passerines moving about, our focus shifted to Green Heron, which is quite a common nester in the park.  The good news is that there are lots of wetlands and rivers there where a Green Heron could forage.  The bad news is that that meant there were lots of places for them to hide.  We started looking around the wetlands in the park with no luck, and then started walking along the trail adjacent to the coulee.  After a short walk Bill spotted one of our targets perched on a low snag.  And it was soon joined by a second Heron (ND #232).  Their favorite perch is in the background of this shot.

As we continued down the trail we started picking up a few migrant passerines, mostly Redstarts and Swainson’s Thrushes.  At least there was now some activity.  We returned to the park and found a paved loop trail through some nice vegetation.  And then located a small dirt trail that took us into the thicket.  Soon we started picking up a few migrants like Philadelphia Vireo, Alder Flycatcher (several of which were singing), and Tennessee Warbler.  Then a female Magnolia Warbler popped into view (ND #233).  And a bit later a male Canada Warbler passed through the woods (ND #234), singing a couple of times.  I still need this species in a number of south-central states as a migrant.

Later we found a nice male Mourning Warbler – not new for my ND state list but always a beautiful bird to see.  And it was our 12th warbler species for the park.

By then we had birded all the trails in the park at least once, and decided to start heading northwest toward MB.  But first we made a pitstop at the Larimore Rest Area just west of Grand Forks.  A small island of trees at the rest area included a singing warbler that we eventually heard close enough to identify as Northern Parula (ND #235).  ND was the last state where I needed Parula in its regular range. 

We of course continued to bird as we headed west across the northern tier of ND counties.  Mostly we picked up field birds that could be identified at highway speeds.  But the highlight was at one point where Route 2 passed close to a lake near Leeds, ND.  As we checked out the lake a Caspian Tern conveniently flew right alongside the car (ND #236).  

We ended the ND portion of the day with 86 species including 13 warbler species.  And with 6 additions, my state list was at 236.

5/29-6/9 – 12 Days in MB

See my next 3 blog posts for the Canadian portion of the trip.

6/10 – “Surgical” Stops For MN and ND Targets

Our plan was to choose a border crossing that would take us from MB heading into northwest MN.  I had only 1 realistic target in MN – Nelson’s Sparrow.  Although there had been no reports of this species at all in 2025 in northwest MN, they were reported at one spot in the area last year – at the Karlstad CR-9 Marshes on June 10th – interestingly a year to the day before our 2025 visit.  My only concern was whether the marsh would be too dry for the sparrows this year given that many areas of MB just a short distance to the north were going through a severe drought.  But it would only be an additional 30 minutes of driving time, so I thought we’d give it a try. 

Soon after we crossed the border Anita spotted some large birds in the adjacent field.  They turned out to be a pair of Sandhill Cranes with a colt perhaps half the size of Mom and Dad.  A nice way to start our time back in MN.

We arrived at the Karlstad marshes at 9 AM and instantly were serenaded by multiple Sedge Wrens – that was a good sign.  And there were numerous winnowing Snipe overhead.  We could see standing water in the cattail-lined ditches along the road so we were hopeful that water levels could support our target Nelson’s.  We listened intently, hearing numerous Sedge Wrens and a few Swamp and Savannah Sparrows, plus a pair of Marbled Godwits.  Finally, I picked up a Nelson’s Sparrow singing in the distance.  We played some recordings and got a second one to answer as well (MN #238).

We got back in the car and started our 30-minute drive west toward ND.  Just a few miles before we reached the state line Anita spotted a large raptor overhead.  It was flying with its wings held in a dihedral – could it be a Swainson’s?  We pulled over and the dark trailing edge to pale wings quickly nailed it as a Swainson’s Hawk (MN #239).  I now just need this species in 2 more states in its regular range.

Initially Swainson’s had been a MN target based on several reports of this species in northwest MN in 2024.  But there had not been any reports in the region at all this year, so I had dropped it off my target list.  Not surprisingly it was listed as “Unreported” in eBird.

That was a most successful brief visit to MN – finding 2 species that had not been reported nearby at all in 2025.

After getting our fill of the Swainson’s Hawk, we continued on to ND, where our first target was Gray Partridge.  That would be a US lifer for Bill and Anita.  We had a lead from local birder Sandy Aubol on a site where she had seen them recently.  We scoured the roadside edges but came up empty.  Though we briefly got excited by a distant “bump” in the road which turned out to be just a Mallard.  Then we headed to an eBird hotspot, Prairie Chicken WMA, where Partridges were reported a week earlier.  But again to no avail.  A US sighting just wasn’t meant to be for us on this trip.  Though we did have Partridges several times in MB.

Our last stop of the day was at the Turtle River State Park where three of my targets had been reported recently – Trumpeter Swan, Scarlet Tanager, and Indigo Bunting.  I got excellent advice on locations for all 3 once again from Sandy Aubol and from fellow local birder Judy Johnson, so I was cautiously optimistic.  Especially for the Swans which were nesting in an oxbow lake right at the park entrance. 

We pulled into the park entrance and had excellent views of the lake next to us.  But there were no large white swimming birds in site.  Despite lots of many different angles and views of the lake we couldn’t find the Swans.  We would just have to try again on the way out.

Then we headed to the CCC parking lot where both birders reported our passerine targets.  We crossed a small footbridge at the west end of the lot and soon heard a distant singing  Scarlet Tanager (ND #237).  I just need this species in one more state in its regular range.

We doubled back to another trail and soon had 2 singing Indigo Buntings a bit surprisingly in this opening in the woods under a thick canopy (ND #238).

Many thanks to Sandy and Judy for their advice!

As we headed out of the park we of course needed to try for the Swans one more time.  But still no luck.  Wonder if they were tucked back into the cattails out of view on or near a nest.

We finished the US part of our trip with 113 species in ND, 8 of which were new for my state list – much better than the 4 I hoped for.  That brought my ND state list to 238.  Plus we observed 95 species in MN, including 4 additions to my state list, surpassing the 2 I expected.  My MN list now stands at 239.

(See my next 3 blog posts for a summary of the MB portion of the trip.)

First Summer Trip to Northeast Georgia, June 23, 2021

When I moved to western NC I put together a list of potential new statebirds that could be feasible in the northeast corner of GA – generally within a 2 ½ hour drive of home.  Although my GA list was already pretty good at 233, there were still 39 possible targets that were regular in that part of the state.  Lots of potential – now I just needed to make it a priority to get there.

My first two trips to northeast GA since moving south were in winter, but both were brief and as a result netted just one new statebird - Red-breasted Nuthatch - despite having many possible targets.  I kept watching my Needs Alerts in spring but never found hotspots that seemed to be reliable for many of my target migrants.  Though again I didn’t look too hard – there were too many good birds in western NC to look for.

As the 2021 summer/breeding season approached I did some research from previous years’ reports and found 10 potential targets to hope for.  Three seemed to be rather reliable albeit local – Swainson’s and Canada Warblers, and Willow Flycatcher.  Three others were regular though not too reliable – Broad-winged Hawk, Raven, and Cerulean Warbler.  And three more that were seen only occasionally but were still possible – Ruffed Grouse, Brown Creeper, and Red Crossbill.  Finally, there was Whip-poor-that was reported occasionally as a nocturnal target.  I had hoped to get to GA in late May or early June at the latest but my plans never came together.  So finally, when a cold front was predicted to pass through on June 22 to cool things down a bit, I decided that this would be my opportunity.  With some last-minute planning I decided to head there on the 23rd. 

The majority of the reports of my targets were coming from Brasstown Bald.  Canada Warbler seemed regular there though details were a bit sketchy as to which trail(s) to take to look for them.  Broad-winged Hawk and Raven were reported on some lists.  And one person was lucky enough to run into a couple Grouse.  Willow Flycatcher was reported several times at Dillard Reservoir which is its regular nesting location.  But no one had seen them there since early June.  And there were just a couple reports of Swainson’s Warbler at Hale Ridge Road, though this hotspot is very underbirded and I assumed they would be regular there.  After spending some time mapping out possible routes I decided to start the morning at Brasstown Bald, then work my way east first stopping at Dillard Reservoir, and then on to Hale Ridge Rd.  I know that meant not getting to the Swainson’s spot till later in the day, but they are strong singers and I was still hopeful to hear them there that time of day.  I hoped to find maybe 2 of my targets (most likely the Canada and Swainson’s Warblers).  And if I missed some of my targets because they weren’t singing this late in the year, the trip would still give me a good introduction to the area.

I left the house bright and early at 6 AM, which had me rolling into the Brasstown Bald parking lot at 8:45.  Temps were in the 50s, with a thick fog and cool wind.  I had hoped to get there even earlier, but the morning birds should still be singing in these conditions.  And I was just about the only car in the parking lot, meaning I might be the first to walk some of the trails enhancing my chances for happening on a Grouse.  I decided to head to Jack’s Knob Trail first since this appeared to be the best spot for Canadas – one was reported near the picnic tables and one in the first stretch of the trail.  I first headed to the picnic tables but could only find a couple Juncos.  Then I started slowly walking the trail but had almost no song at all.  Was I too late in the year?  Though I was striking out on the Canada, I still hoped I’d run into a Grouse.  So I continued to walk about a mile of the trail before I turned around.  Right away my thoughts went to what other trails I could walk to try for my targets.  But then as I neared the car I heard the familiar chattering song of the Canada Warbler.  It eventually came quite close to me giving some good views.  I wonder where this bird was when I first walked that stretch of the trail.

My statebird map for Canada Warbler is inserted below.  I’ve now seen this species in most of its regular states in the east and Midwest (the blue-shaded states) but still need it in a number of states in the central US where it is a regular migrant (the cross-hatched states).  Years ago I also found a Canada Warbler as a rarity in Wyoming (the tan state).

Now that I had my most likely new statebird from this site under my belt, it was time to start focusing on the rarer ones.  Recent eBird checklists from the area sometimes included sightings of Broad-winged Hawk and Raven, though no specific trails have been mentioned.  I found a trail map at a kiosk and decided to try Wagon Train Trail that headed into a wilderness area.  This rustic sign seemed fitting. 

I had barely walked a hundred yards down the trail when I heard familiar “jip jip” calls of a flyover Red Crossbill – that was most unexpected.  I always feel incredibly lucky when I find Crossbills in the Appalachians.  Although they are certainly possible in these high elevation areas, you can go many trips without finding one.  GA is now my 4th southeastern state with Red Crossbill as a rarity.

I continued down the trail and soon heard a Canada Warbler singing in the distance.  Then a bit farther I heard some chipping and spotted a female Canada carrying food.  Then a little later came upon a fledgling being fed by one of its parents.  And then another family group.  All in all I had 7 Canadas on this section of the trail.  I guess I should have come to this trail first.

I decided to turn around after about a mile’s walk, very happy with my results.  But it wasn’t over yet.  As I headed back toward the parking lot I heard the high-pitched “pee-teee” call of a Broad-winged Hawk passing overhead.  Nice to be able to shade-in GA in my statebird map – that leaves just 5 more states to go where Broad-wings are regular.

My last key target for the area was Common Raven, so when I got back to the parking lot I decided to eat my lunch standing in the parking lot allowing me to scan the skies and nearby ridges hoping to see one passing by.  But no luck.  I assumed this one would have to wait for a later trip, though I kept my eyes open as I drove down the mountain.  I then noticed this nice overlook and pulled over to grab this picture.

Not quite ready to throw in the towel I scanned the distant ridges and noticed a couple soaring raptors.  Then I spotted a distant all dark soaring bird.  It was pretty far away but I could pick out the Corvid shape, eliminating a vulture.  And it was too large for a crow, and was mostly soaring.  I had myself a distant Raven!  That leaves just NJ as the last eastern state where I still need this species in its regular range.

Wow – 4 new statebirds at my first stop - two more than I hoped for in the entire day.  And 2 more stops still to go.

The next stop was the Dillard Reservoir area for Willow Flycatcher, which has bred in this area for a few years.  Though I wasn’t too optimistic since they hadn’t been seen there for a few weeks.  Not to mention that it was now early afternoon on this summer day.  I checked out the spots where they had been seen earlier but came up empty.  At least I’m now familiar with this site for my next trip.

My last stop was along Hale Ridge Road.  Posts from this hotspot over the last several years have included significant numbers of several local breeding warblers, including numerous Swainson’s and an occasional Cerulean.  It was now mid-afternoon so I knew that bird song would be limited, but I was still hopeful that I’d run into Swainson’s as they will sing well into the summer.  It took me a little while, but eventually found the perfect habitat for Swainson’s - large areas of thick rhododendron thickets on hillsides.  I drove through at least 2 miles of this habitat making frequent stops but unfortunately couldn’t come up with my target.  And even though few birds were singing, I did get an Ovenbird, Worm-eating, 7 Hoodeds, 2 Parulas, and a Black-throated Green in this 2 mile stretch.  Plus another calling Broad-winged Hawk.  Pretty birdy after all.  Just not my targets.

Although I missed my last couple targets, I’m still very happy to have added 4 birds to my GA statelist – 2 more than I expected.  That brings my list up to 238.  Next year I’ll have to schedule a trip to the area earlier in the breeding season.  Though not too early since Willow Flycatcher is typically late to arrive on its breeding grounds.  And now that I have the lay of the land, I’ll start in the morning at Hale Ridge Road and head right to the rhododendron area, followed by a drive to Dillard Reservoir.  Can’t wait…

Wilson’s Warbler, Cottonwood Trail, Spartanburg, SC, May 8, 2021

Wilson’s Warbler was a target of mine for both my NC and SC state lists when I moved to western NC.  I was lucky enough to find this rare but regular migrant in western NC in May 2020, plus had a most unexpected Wilson’s at my feeding station for several visits in December 2020 – the first December records for this species in Henderson County, NC.

But my Wilson’s Warbler luck wasn’t nearly as good in SC.  I was unsuccessful chasing after one seen at the Parkway Retention Pond in Greenville in May 2020.  And wasn’t able to find any on my own despite numerous trips to the Upstate during warbler migration seasons.  And then came a report from my friend Michael Robertson that he had found a singing Wilson’s at the Cottonwood Trail site in Spartanburg on May 7, 2021.  I couldn’t chase after it that day, and had other birding plans with Gary Harbour for the following day.  But going after a statebird was more important, plus it would be a lifebird for Gary.  So it was easy enough to talk Gary into going with me to Cottonwood Trail the next morning to give it a try.  Though I’m always worried that a spring migrant will only be around for one day as it hurries on to its eventual breeding area.  (Michael had also found the Wilson’s I chased after the previous year at the Parkway Retention Pond – I hoped my luck would be better this time.)

Gary and I arrived bright and early on the 8th and went right to the area where Michael had seen it the previous day – a brushy area near an old defunct metal tower near the footbridge over the river.  We watched and listened for a while at this spot with no luck.  So we expanded our search area to cover a few nearby brushy areas but still came up empty.  I was starting to have that sinking feeling again – yet another unsuccessful search for a Spring migrant that hadn’t stuck around. 

But then again, the wetlands at the site was surrounded by low wet brushy habitat that would be ideal for a Wilson’s.  So we decided to head out the elevated boardwalk into the marsh to cover other possible sites.  That’s when we started to hear a Canada Warbler a short distance away – that’s a pretty uncommon bird as well but not our target.  I often find migrant Canadas in the same type of wet brushy habitat as Wilson’s so maybe we were on to something.  And then practically right next to the Canada we heard the distinct trilling song of the Wilson’s Warbler – the first trill was higher and the second was lower, faster and shorter in length.  The bird continued to sing off and on for an hour along the brushy edges of the marsh, though without giving us any views (despite being no more than 20 feet away at times).  And then we finally got a visual of the bird surprisingly singing higher in the mature deciduous trees overhead - all yellow below, black cap, no white in the tail, no barring, greenish-yellow above, and no wingbars.  Great to actually be able to see such a handsome bird!

Wilson’s Warbler was #286 for my SC state list.  In my statebird map below the blue shaded states are those where I’ve seen this species; the cross-hatched states are those where I’ve yet to see it.  Although Wilson’s Warbler is a wide-ranging species, it is decidedly less common in the east, which is certainly borne out in my statebird map with all the cross-hatched states in the east.

Five “Low Hanging Fruit” in South Carolina, September 2020

One of my objectives for fall migration in 2020 was to focus on filling some gaps in my SC list.  Even after a year living in the area, I still had a number of “low hanging fruit” to pursue – birds that were regular migrants or residents that I just hadn’t been lucky enough to run into yet.  And now that I had nearly exhausted expected new statebirds in western NC, I could devote more time in SC during the upcoming fall season.

My first fall trip to SC was on 9/6, which actually began with a stop in NC at Guion Farm in the DuPont State Forest to meet up with Bill and Anita Hooker.  Red Crossbills had been reliable there for at least a couple months.  And since the site is just a short distance from the SC line, after some fun birding with Bill and Anita, I could head 20 minutes south from there into SC.  The Crossbills turned out to be most cooperative, with our first heard bird within minutes of our arrival.  After an hour we had multiple birds in site overhead and perched in nearby pines, as well as calling overhead and in the treetops.  Excellent observations of a local rarity. 

Then it was on to SC!  One of the species I heard on each of my 3 trips to Guion Farm this year was the Red-breasted Nuthatch.  I still needed that one for SC, principally because there were virtually none around the region the previous winter.  But since they were regular at Guion Farm, surely they should be in similar habitat just a few miles away in SC, right?  The problem was finding accessible suitable high elevation habitat in SC.  First of all, the elevation dropped off quickly once you crossed into SC, so higher elevation habitat was limited.  In this part of the state there was just a 3-mile stretch of US 276 from the stateline to Ceasars Head State Park that was at elevation.  And even though there were a couple trails in the area, they were in deciduous woodlands not typically appealing to a Red-breasted Nuthatch.  So my strategy to look for the Nuthatch was to pull-off on the side of 276 wherever I could find conifers – assuming it was safe to do so.

The first possible roadside location was literally right at the stateline where YMCA Camp Rd. intersected with 276.  Less than 20 minutes after leaving Guion Farm I reached the SC border and pulled onto the shoulder of the YMCA road.  There were several pine trees to the west so I was hopeful.  And sure enough within just a minute I heard the “toot toot toot” of a Red-breasted Nuthatch.  But which state was it in?  I listened more closely and heard the bird call again, allowing me to pinpoint exactly which direction it was calling from.  Now I had to find out where the stateline was.  I opened my GoogleMaps app and figured out how the line passed through the area.  The bird was indeed calling from SC, but no more than perhaps 50 ft from the stateline, and just 6 miles from Guion Farm “as the nuthatch flies”.  Success!

In my statebird map below, the blue-shaded states are those where I’ve seen Red-breasted Nuthatch.  The 4 cross-hatched states are the last ones where I’ve yet to see it.  Although its regular throughout the continental US, it becomes rather rare in much in the southeast.

Another mile farther along the highway I made a stop at a spot labeled in GoogleMaps as “Greylogs Trail”.  This is a short gravel road and parking lot for a trail that was apparently never developed.  As luck would have it, I had a calling Red Nut here as well – needless to say I didn’t need to worry about where the stateline was to conclude that this one was also a SC bird.

Next stop was Ceasars Head State Park, and specifically the overlook there.  This is THE spot for Peregrine Falcon in the Upstate region of SC, as they are reliable at this location year-round.  But I had been here 3 prior times looking for a Peregrine without success.  Though in all fairness 2 of those times the mountain was fogged in.  Today the weather was great, so fog wouldn’t be an issue.  As I arrived at the parking lot I found that most of the lot was closed off, apparently to limit crowds on this Labor Day weekend during these days of Covid.  And there was just 1 open parking space – maybe my luck was looking up.  I parked in that last space and made my way over to the observation point to start my hawk watch. 

The hawk watch was pretty slow, with just a Red-shouldered and a Broad-winged Hawk passing by as likely migrants.  A young Red-tail and a couple Turkey Vultures circled below as presumably local birds.  After an hour I thought that maybe I should call it quits and try for the Peregrine another time.  But then I realized that conditions that day were ideal – not only was there great visibility, but also I had the observation point almost completely to myself.  And since I was free the rest of the afternoon, I decided to stay longer (I’m still trying to figure out how to take advantage of all my free time in retirement).  Another 30 minutes passed and I spotted the Red-tail again.  And just then a Peregrine passed by below me, starting to harass the Red-tail.  It would repeatedly dive bomb the bird, giving loud cackling calls the entire time.  Quite the show which lasted at least 5 minutes.  After 3 unsuccessful tries to see the Peregrine, I guess I was due for a cooperative bird.  Interestingly, all the raptors were below me at the overlook – a notable point for future visits.

Nice to get 2 new statebirds in the same day.  And SC was my 40th state for Peregrine.

 My next trip to SC came on 9/8 with a trip to Bunched Arrowhead Heritage Preserve in Travelers Rest with Gary Harbour.  This was my first trip to this spot – sure wish I had been there before.  This 178-acre site has excellent diverse habitats, including various ages of successional fields, upland deciduous woodlands, and swamplands.  Gary showed me around the site visiting each of the habitats, including seeing the namesake endangered Bunched Arrowhead (which is a plant and has nothing to do with a group of Native American artifacts).  We were especially hoping for a few early migrants, which unfortunately were few and far between.  But I was lucky enough to get several glimpses of a less-than-cooperative warbler that turned out to be a Blackburnian – the last “easy” warbler I still needed in SC.

And speaking of “easy” warblers, I now have Blackburnian throughout the east except for VA and DE, and for several states in the Great Plains along the western edge of its migration range.  I’ve also seen this species in CA as a rarity.

My last two SC low hanging fruit in September came while participating in the Greenville County Fall Migration Count on 9/19.  My assigned territory consisted of the same sites I covered in the Spring Migration Count.  I started both counts at dawn in the Greenville Watershed which is an amazing area of extensive upland deciduous woodlands.  On my trips there in spring and summer I’ve tallied very high numbers of woodland nesting species as I drove along the roads through the woods.  But given that I would be birding in deep woodlands rather than along wooded edges, I wasn’t sure how many migrants I might find.  My key target was Gray-cheeked Thrush which was being reported in the area at the time, principally as a pre-dawn migrant.  But since I wouldn’t be arriving till dawn, I may well be too late.  All things considered, I was hopeful but not terribly optimistic.

I arrived at the Greenville Watershed a few minutes before sunrise.  Although there were no longer birds still migrating overhead, there were already a number of call notes coming from the woods nearby.  One of the first birds I heard was a Swainson’s Thrush, and soon there were multiple Swainson’s giving their “pit” and “weep” calls increasing in pitch.  And then I heard the first thrush call note dropping in pitch.  I listened carefully and heard this call again – too short and not clear enough to be a Veery.  I had my first Gray-cheeked.  I guess I shouldn’t have been too worried since I heard 3 others calling from the understory on my next 2 stops.  Another example of a target bird that isn’t too unexpected at the right place and right time – the perfect example of “low hanging fruit”.  And although Gray-cheeked is a regular species in much of the eastern US, I haven’t been in that right place at the right time to see it as it migrated through quite a number of those states. 

As I approached dawn one of the first birds I actually saw was a cooperative Canada Warbler in brush along the roadside.  Weeks later I realized that I needed Canada for my SC statelist – an unexpected surprise that I hadn’t even targeted.  From my statebird map it looks like I need to make Canada Warbler a target in quite a number of states.  Though I did find one in WY years ago as just the 5th state record at the time. 

The 5 new low hanging fruit statebirds bring my SC list to 273.  Not bad for one month, even though they all were regular expected species. 

“But wait there’s more” as they say.  In September I also added 3 rarities for SC - check out my next blog post for a summary of these 3 less common species.