Payne County sees dip in birds’ peak migration

Oklahoma Mesonet reported no rain for the past week.

Payne County rare birds for the same time period was only Swainson’s Thrush at both Sanborn Lake and the Botanic Garden at Oklahoma State University on Sept. 8.

September migration arrivals for the last half of the month include Lesser Scaup, Eared Grebe, Common Poorwill, Lesser Black-backed Gull, Prairie Falcon, House, Sedge, and Marsh Wrens, Swainson’s Thrush, Cedar Waxwing, American Pipit, Dark-eyed Junco, Vesper and Nelson’s Sparrows (NE and SE), Spotted and Eastern Towhees, Brewer’s Blackbird, Palm Warbler (NE and SE) and Rose-breasted Grosbeak.

September departures shall be Black-billed Cuckoo, Black-necked Stilt, Piping Plover, Marbled Godwit, Ruddy Turnstone, Red Knot, Buff-breasted Sandpiper, Short-billed Dowitcher, Least

DEB HIRT

Tern, Least Bittern, Tricolored Heron, White Ibis, Great Crested , Yellow-bellied, Alder, and Olive-sided Flycatchers, Eastern Wood-Pewee, Bell’s, Yellow-throated, and Warbling Vireos, Bank, Cliff, and Tree Swallows, Purple Martin, Swainson’s Thrush, Yellow-breasted Chat, Bobolink, Baltimore Oriole, Northern Waterthrush, Kentucky, Bay-breasted, Chestnut-sided, Yellow-throated, and Canada Warblers and Painted Bunting.

Nationwide rare/vagrant birds include ongoing Steller’s Sea-Eagle in Newfoundland, Townsend’s Warbler in Delaware, Gray Gull and Largebilled Tern in Florida, Texas’ Brown Jays and Mottled Owl, and California’s Slate-throated Redstart.

Estimated peak migration traffic in Payne County was 1,800 birds in flight on Sept. 10, 2024 at 0700 hours. With numbers that low, we are unable to provide wind speed, direction, and altitude for those interested in statistics. 1,700 birds crossed Payne County between Monday, Sept. 9 at 1950 hours and Tuesday, Sept. 10, 2024 at 0700 hours.

Expected nocturnal migrants include Scissor-tailed, Least, and Great Crested Flycatchers, Nashville Warbler, Gray Catbird, Indigo Bunting, Blue-winged Teal, Blue-gray Gnatcatcher, Common Nighthawk, Forster’s and Black Terns, Snowy Egret, Summer Tanager and Blue-headed Vireo.

To make things interesting on Friday, Sept. 6, a secondyear Common and an Arctic Tern, as well as a Sabine’s Gull and multiple Blackbacked Gulls (second and third cycle and two subadults) were observed at Lake Hefner.

There was also a nice southbound push of landbird migrants through central Oklahoma. Myriad Botanical Gardens yielded on Sat. Sept. 7 a Bell’s Vireo, five species of warblers with an Ovenbird as starring character, about a dozen Baltimore Orioles, and it was cooler as a bonus.

Boomer Lake and Lakeview and Husband Street counted Great Horned Owl, Red-bellied Woodpecker, Warbling Vireo, Blue Jay, Carolina Wren, European Starling, American Robin, Red-winged Blackbird, Common Grackle, Northern Cardinal, Canada Goose, Yellow-billed Cuckoo, Eastern Phoebe, American Crow, European Starling, Downy Woodpecker, Turkey Vulture, Carolina Chickadee, Mourning Dove, Killdeer, Tufted Titmouse and Great Blue Heron.

Lake Carl Blackwell added Canada Goose, Eurasian Collared- Dove, Mourning Dove, Ruby-throated Hummingbird, Spotted, least, and Semipalmated Sandpipers, Great Egret, Black Vulture, Osprey, Red-shouldered Hawk, Belted Kingfisher, Downy and Pileated Woodpeckers, Eastern Wood-Pewee, Least Flycatcher, Eastern Kingbird, Scissor- tailed Flycatcher, Whiteeyed Vireo, White-breasted Nuthatch, Blue-gray Gnatcatcher, Northern Mockingbird, Eastern Bluebird, House Sparrow, House Finch, American Goldfinch, Chipping Sparrow, Baltimore Oriole, Pine Warbler, Indigo Bunting and an unknown warbler.

Keep your eyes on the ground and your head in the clouds. Happy birding!

Deb Hirt is a wild bird rehabilitator and photographer living in Stillwater.

A Blue-headed Vireo.

ANDY REAGO & CHRISSY MCCLARREN, CC BY 2.0 , VIA WIKIMEDIA COMMONS