A lot of birds follow the water
Oklahoma Mesonet reported 0.01 inches of rain over the past seven-day period.
Payne County migration arrivals list for the first half of the month of September includes Northern Pintail, Eared Grebe, Sabine’s Gull, Sharp-shinned Hawk, Merlin, Yellow-bellied Flycatcher, Blue-headed and Philadelphia Vireos, Red-breasted Nuthatch, Ruby-crowned Kinglet, Swainson’s Thrush, Cedar Waxwing, Vesper, Savannah, Clay-colored, and Lincoln’s Sparrows, Bobolink, Ovenbird, Tennessee, Orange-crowned, Nashville, Bay-breasted, Yellow- rumped, and Chestnut-sided Warblers, and Virginia Rail. Departures for the first half of September should be Chuckwill’s- widow, Black-chinned Hummingbird, Common Gallinule, Upland Sandpiper, Willet, Least Tern, Ash-throated
DEB HIRT
and Acadian Flycatchers, Eastern Kingbird, Purple Martin, Cliff Swallow, Cassin’s Sparrow, Yellow-breasted Chat, Orchard Oriole, and Prothonotary, Yellow, and Kentucky Warblers.
The Payne County rare bird for the week was Eared Grebe.
Nationwide rare/vagrant birds for the same time frame were Newfoundland and Labrador’s Steller’s Sea-Eagle and Florida’s Gray Gull and Largebilled Tern.
Arizona posted Berylline Hummingbird, while California shared Slate-throated Redstart and White Wagtail.
Alaska thrilled us with Willow Warbler.
Kansas reported that Quivera and Cheyenne Bottoms have to share their water with area farmers for crops, so they wished us well with their share of the birds, which they will sadly miss in their area.
For that reason, Lake Heffner gave us a head’s-up with Short-billed Dowitcher with a beautiful buffy-breasted juvenile and a marginally early Wilson’s Snipe. Multiple Upland Sandpipers have been flyovers on South Jenkins Rd. in central Oklahoma for the past few weeks intermittently.
A Sora made an appearance at Bishop Creek, which was the only water around. A fairly uncommon fall transient to Oklahoma County was an adult Black-necked Stilt, but not much turnover post frontal boundary aside from a couple of Franklin’s Gulls at Lake Heffner almost a week ago.
However, Wednesday the 28th at the southeast corner of Lake Hefner mudflats beyond the inflow canal was a Northern Shoveler, pelicans, avocets, Lesser Yellowlegs, Snowy Egret, and Green Heron. These days with so little rain, we have to reach for what we can get by way of water – and shorebirds.
It will likely pick up to some degree since Kansas is losing valued water sources.
Boomer Lake counted Canada Goose, Mallard, Great Egret, Great Blue Heron, Turkey Vulture, Eastern Kingbird, Bell’s and Warbling Vireos, Fish and American Crows, Carolina Chickadee, Blue-gray Gnatcatcher, Bewick’s and Carolina Wrens, European Starling, Eastern Bluebird, House Sparrow, Red-winged Blackbird, Yellow Warbler, Northern Cardinal, Mourning Dove, Common Nighthawk, Chimney Swift, Black-crowned Night-Heron, Green-winged Teal, White-winged Dove, Long-billed Dowitcher, Least and Spotted Sandpipers, Scissor- tailed Flycatcher, Gray Catbird, American Robin, Pied-billed Grebe, Eurasian Collared-Dove, Killdeer, Black Tern, Double-crested Cormorant, Red-headed Woodpecker, Blue Jay, American Goldfinch, Common Grackle, American Coot, Mississippi Kite, Red-shouldered Hawk, Red-bellied and Downy Woodpeckers, Barn and Cliff Swallows, Northern Mockingbird, and House Finch.
Keep your eyes on the ground and your head in the clouds. Happy birding!
A Willow Warbler.
ANDREAS TREPTE, CC BY-SA 2.5
