Hometown Birds And Other Life.

To say this post is a mixed bag would be to do an injustice to mixed bags.  This is more or less a representation of spring and what I've seen well, like the Baltimore Oriole (Icterus galbula) above.

I stopped at the Lake Springfield Beach House several times before the end of school, after shorebirds and warblers.  Instead, I got many insect-eating birds, like this Eastern Phoebe (Sayornis phoebe), but apparently it's been a not-as-good year for warblers in central and southern Illinois.

Still, I'll take what I can get.  For instance, I saw thousands of Tree Swallows (Tachycineta bicolor)  pass by on their way north, many resting on power lines.

The Chipping Sparrows (Spizella passerina) and I watched migration pass us by, both taking a respite to live here for the summer before going south in the fall.

Among the migrants was this Forster's Tern (Sterna forsteri) , still in winter plumage.

The Caspian Terns (Hydroprogne caspia) also arrived, and I wonder if this year they'll stay at the Beach House all summer or not.  They did last year, but I don't know about this year.

The Cliff Swallows (Petrochelidon pyrrhonota) arrived about two weeks early, and in great numbers for April. (Yes, I know this is getting published in late May.)

Cliff Swallows harvest mud off the beach, and then go and make nests under the bridge using that mud.  At times dozens can be seen getting mud off the beach, like an orange and blue feathered construction crew.

Meanwhile, other signs of spring began to show, including this baby Canada Goose (Branta canadensis) at Marine Point, dodging the waves.

In the trees above, Palm Warblers (Setophaga palmarum) watched, at least at the time.  They have since moved north, as one of the first warblers to go.

So too have the Yellow-rumped Warblers (Setophaga coronata).

Yet some remain.  The Eastern Kingbird (Tyrannus tyrannus), for instance, still darts at flies even now on Marine Point.  As long as there's lots of insects and lots of people to yell at, it's happy.

"All hail me, the Kingbird!"

A surprise migrant was this Yellow Warbler (Setophaga petechia), in among the rest.

Another surprise was a Bonaparte's Gull (Chroicocephalus philadelphia) with an injured wing sitting on the beach.  I'd imagine it was not long for this world, but I never went back to check.

Northern Waternsnakes (Nerodia sipedon) have emerged around the lake, but I haven't yet found any Graham's Crayfish Snakes... still, time to keep looking!

Also out and about are Common Garter Snakes (Thamnophis sirtalis), including this reddish one.

A friend of mine reported a Yellow-throated Warbler (Setophaga dominica) from a spot near Pawnee, so I found it, a lifer bird.  This is the nineteenth warbler species that I have seen in my life, and there's a lot more to go!  (I'm up to 24 now, I believe, having added three in the Ozarks and one more in IL.) 

Back on the home front, away from Pawnee, I found this Rose-breasted Grosbeak (Pheucticus ludovicianus) feeding at our home feeder.  A couple males stuck about for a day or so, and then these colorful, hungry birds moved on.

So did I, as I ran over to Nipper Wildlife Sanctuary.  I found an excellent Gray Catbird (Dumetella carolinensis) posed in a tree, and took several photos of it.

Blackbirds of all colors, (Red-winged Blackbird [Agelaius phoeniceus]and Eastern Meadowlark [Sturnella magna]) called at Nipper Wildlife Sanctuary, but I was after a Camassia plant in flower, so I mostly ignored them.

A Brown Thrasher (Toxostoma rufum) called from another nearby tree, as I fought off a swarm of buffalo gnats.  Then I found my target:

Several Camas (Camassia scilloides) plants bloomed throughout the hike, all surrounded by a protective cloud of Buffalo Gnats.  These are one of the few "spring bulbs" native to Illinois.

They were worth all the gnat bites I got, in my opinion!

Nearby, a couple of Common Yellowthroats (Geothlypis trichas) called to this female.  I hope they eat all the gnats, but I have my doubts.  Perhaps they should call in a Gnatcatcher or two.

Gnat-free, I wandered other places, spotting White-tailed Deer (Odocoileus virginianus).  Eventually, Mother's Day rolled around, and we were eating dinner in my grandparent's home.  This showed up:

I love Pileated Woodpeckers (Dryocopus pileatus). and this brings me to the end of what I've seen lately, the best find in the last month (or at least tied with the Yellow-throated Warbler.)  Get ready for a lot to do with the Ozarks!

Snipe Hunt! Also, Why Is Everything On Fire?

I decided to spend a few hours locally birding and perhaps trying to find the first frogs of the year.  While I heard a couple of frogs, the birds were far more interesting.  We need a few rains and a bit warmer weather to have much in the way of frogs, I feel.

My first productive stop was at "Theater Pond", the pond over by AMC Showplace 12 in Springfield, which is the single greatest spot in Sangamon County for Ring-billed Ducks (Aythya collaris).  I know it's supposed to be Ring-necked Ducks , according to the American Birding Association, but my name makes more sense.  They do have a ring on their bill, though also a difficult-to-see-in-fact-it's-so-difficult-to-see-I've-never-seen-it ring on their neck.  Anyway, there were a hundred and forty of those, which is a new site record for number of birds I've seen here.

Thrown into the mix were several Song Sparrows (Melospiza melodia) and somewhere deep in the brush out of sight, a Northern Mockingbird, mixing and remixing several birdcalls.  These are getting more common in this part of Illinois, I suspect, based off Ebird records.

In addition to Ring-necked Ducks, one of the most common species on this pond is the Muskrat (Ondatra zibethicus), and one decided to swim about as I walked along the bank.

After spotting a Gadwall (Anas strepera) and accidentally scaring about 90% of the Ring-billed Ducks, I left for my second stop, Centennial Park, "Home of the Sparrows".  It may not exactly be called by that nickname, but if you want to see a lot of sparrows, this park's quite reliable.

I found that the front part of the prairie preserve had been burned, but the local birds didn't seem to mind.  Killdeer and Robins were out and about in the bare dirt, and along brushy edges there were other species, trying to hide from all the people strolling about the park. It was still amazing how many birds were in the park, considering all the people and dogs there!

There were probably over a hundred Robins (Turdus migratorius), most of which were merely rooting about in the burned dirt, looking for food.   Robins are so common this time of year that it amazes me how much I was looking for them back in January.

I spotted a few sparrows moving in the brush, and realized they were Eurasian Tree Sparrows (Passer montanus), which I've never seen in Centennial Park before!  This one was trying to hide.  I don't blame it, either.  In one of the houses behind the park, a loud and raucous, alcohol-fueled party made the experience unpleasant.  I almost reported them for disturbing the peace, and in retrospect I should have, considering all the little kids playing in the park who didn't need to hear them.

There was a small, muddy pond here, where I went looking for early frogs.  Instead...

LIFER!   I found my very first Wilson's Snipe (Gallinago delicata), a species closely related to the Timberdoodle I found last March on this same date.    That long bill is very distinctive of the shorebirds, the family of birds the Wilson's Snipe belongs to and one of my personal favorites. It flew away and over the houses to a private retention pond, escaping my photographic clutches.

I contented myself with this Field Sparrow (Spizella pusilla), one of the sparrows hard to find outside of Centennial Park locally.  While not a rare bird, Field Sparrows aren't abundant in my area, but Centennial Park is a very reliable location to find them.

Emerging Rattlesnake Master (Eryngium yuccifolium) served as a reminder that spring is on its way.

Nearby, an American Tree Sparrow (Spizelloides arborea) completed the doublet of tree sparrows here, neither of which were in trees. Curiously, I've never seen either species in a tree.  They love bushes, which is where I've found all of them, but never in a genuine tree.

After finding this paradoxical bird, I moved on, to Nipper Wildlife Sanctuary.  As I drove past a pond just next door to Nipper, I spotted something on the shoreline.  Once parked, I walked back down the road, only to be nearly run down by deer:

I have no idea why these White-tailed Deer (Odocoileus virginianus) bolted.  Perhaps they were afraid of the nearby birds, literally named Killdeer?

After looking over the ridge where the Killdeer (Charadrius vociferus) was standing, I found {We will now pause this blog for a brief Monty Python skit.}

HOW NOT TO BE SEEN

"To demonstrate the value of not being seen, we have Mr. Wilson's Snipe, temporarily of Loami, Illinois.  Mr. Wilson's Snipe, would you stand up please?"

"Very good.  Mr Wilson's Snipe has learned the value of not being seen.  However, he has chose a very obvious piece of cover. [Explosion.]"  Monty Python reference aside, I wasn't sure what it was until I looked at it through my camera.  Hallelujah, it was a Wilson's Snipe!

I 'm glad to get halfway-decent photos of a lifer for once this year!  Considering I've been looking for this bird since at least last July,  I was thrilled to find TWO in the same day.  If you'd prefer, I also have a reverse view of the snipe, taken from across the pond. (I mean the literal pond, not England.)

At this point, I spotted a Dandelion (Taraxacum officinale) bloom in the grass.  It might not be the first flower of the year, but Dandelions are still quite nice when nothing else is around.

I then ventured into the lowlands along Lick Creek, running into hundreds of thorns along the way, including these Greenbriar vines (Smilax sp).  OUCH!

The lowlands occasionally have nice pools for frogs, but it's been too dry to find much.  I did turn up a few Swamp Sparrows (Melospiza georgiana):

Back upland, the sun was setting, and the Red-winged Blackbirds (Agelaius phoeniceus) were calling.  I found two more Wilson's Snipe in small nearby ponds, bringing my total up to four.  However, the real stars at this time were the blackbirds, calling loudly from every high place around:

This one did a thank-you bow after finishing its song.  Red-winged Blackbirds were one of the most common birds at all three locations I visited, yet for some reason I couldn't get a clear focus on one for a photo.  I didn't try that hard, either.  Like Robins and Song Sparrows, they were so common I didn't make an effort to photograph them, in effect making them invisible to you, my readers.

Nearby, the Morning Doves (Zenaida macroura) also called, going "Who WHOO who, who-who?"  Then something began calling "Who-who ah Who" in the background, with a similar pitch.  It was a Barred Owl's call!  It called a few more times, and then fell silent, deafened by the chorus of Red-winged Blackbirds and Mourning Doves, with a couple of hidden frogs chiming in.

I drove down the road a little ways, just to see what I could find.  I was rewarded with this Ring-necked Pheasant (Phasianus colchicus) in the sunset. I've never seen one so vibrant!  It almost looks like it's on fire, seeing how bright it is!

Speaking of things on fire, I counted no less than eleven fires on the drive back from Nipper!  Most of them looked intentional.  I did double check one of the larger blazes, and got a very weird look from the owner, who was standing behind a tree from my viewpoint.  What's more suspicious, a man going back to check on a fire, or a person setting fire to a field with horses at the far end of it?  It seemed wrong, but they had fire, so I didn't stop to argue.  (The field was large, and the horses were a hundred feet away across a creek.)

Anyway, that was a fine trip, and I had a successful snipe hunt at the end of it.  Hopefully, western Sangamon County doesn't burn down, because I can't wait to return soon, to find those frogs!

Ebird Checklists:

Theater Pond:
http://ebird.org/ebird/view/checklist/S34969093

Centennial Park:
http://ebird.org/ebird/view/checklist/S34966785

Nipper Wildlife Sanctuary:
http://ebird.org/ebird/view/checklist/S34969483