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Chances to seek out some arriving birds
Oklahoma Mesonet reported 0.12 inches of precipitation over the past seven-day timeframe.
February migration added arrivals for Blue-winged and Cinnamon Teals, Sandhill Crane, Turkey Vulture, Fish Crow, Purple Martin, and Sprague’s Pipit.
There are no departures in Payne County.
The lone Payne county rare bird is the rarer Yellow Palm Warbler reported at Lake Carl Blackwell.
Nationwide rare/vagrant birds for the week include Connecticut’s Common Gull, Rhode Island’s Tundra Bean-Goose, and Massachusetts’ Northern Lapwing.
New York also had a Northern Lapwing.
Texas counted Yellow-headed Caracara, Cattle Tyrant, Crimson-collared Grosbeak, and Brown Jay.
Wisconsin called White Wagtail.
Oregon shouted out White Wagtail, while California added Little Stint, Lesser Frigatebird, and Swallow- tailed Gull.
Three, possibly four American Woodcocks were at Lake Stanley Draper last Sunday, Feb. 9. Two birds flew past reporting party and entourage and they heard three or four different peents. A brief twittering started the show at 1834 hrs. which completed at 1846.
On the same date, two Red-throated Loons previously observed feeding together.
There could be roadrunners nesting in the large tract of undeveloped land in Soldier Creek Industrial Park, Midwest City for those that might want to investigate.
Utah officials estimated between 15,000 and 25,000 Eared Grebes since November 2024 died from bird flu across Great Salt Lake. Dead birds had been amassing through the vital habitat.
The majority found from
DEB HIRT
Salt Lake to Box Elder counties are suspected cases, though the Division of Wildlife Sources confirmed the event. This should not have a major impact on the Eared Grebe population that migrates through the area yearly, which amounts to nearly four million birds of all species.
Human risks are still low but the CDC reports 67 confirmed cases over the past year, including one death.
Boomer Lake counted Canada and Cackling Geese, Mallard, Canvasback, Ruddy Duck, Killdeer, Ring-billed, Lesser Black-backed, and American Herring Gulls, Piedbilled Grebe, Double-crested Cormorant, yellow-shafted Northern Flicker, European Starling, American Robin, House Finch, Song Sparrow, Mourning Dove, Blue Jay, American Crow, myrtle Yellow- rumped Warbler, Great Blue Heron, Northern Cardinal, Common Goldeneye, Bald Eagle, Northern Mockingbird, House Finch, Bufflehead, Carolina Wren, House Sparrow, American Goldfinch, and Harris’s Sparrow.
Lake Carl Blackwell added Northern Shoveler, Gadwall, Eurasian Collared-Dove, American Coot, Red-bellied, Downy, and Hairy Woodpeckers, red-shafted Northern Flicker, Carolina Chickadee, Tufted Titmouse, Ruby- and Golden-crowned Kinglets, White-breasted Nuthatch, Eastern Bluebird, slate-colored Dark-eyed Junco, Redwinged Blackbird, Yellow Palm and Pine Warblers, Eastern Screech Owl, Wild Turkey, Wilson’s Snipe, Bonaparte’s Gull, Belted Kingfisher, American Kestrel, Brown Creeper, European Starling, and American Pipit Lake Carl Blackwell Dam tagged Northern Pintail, Lesser Scaup, Common Merganser, Black Vulture, Red-shouldered Hawk, Red-bellied and Pileated Woodpeckers, Cedar Waxwing, Field, White-crowned, White-throated, Savannah, and Fox Sparrows, Spotted Towhee, Eastern and Western Meadowlarks, and Rusty Blackbird.
The Botanic Garden at Oklahoma State University added Red-headed Woodpecker, White-breasted Nuthatch, Winter Wren, Barred Owl, Cooper’s Hawk, and Eastern Phoebe.
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 Lesser Frigatebird.
ARIEFRAHMAN, CC BY-SA 4.0
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