Good Grebe! Bad Downy!

Two October 27 Emails:

I was at the Wastewater yesterday and came across this and another Eared Grebe.  They were in the southeast corner of the large east lagoon.

- Phil Willemstein

Never assume woodpeckers are on your siding just looking for bugs.  Our Downy Woodpecker knows it's warm in there.  Beyond the blue styrofoam insulation is the fluffy stuff.  That's where it's cozy.  This guy started the hole last year and I boarded it over as a temporary measure.  I have not gotten around to replacing the board.  The cover board fell off and the bugger resumed his project.

- Ken Sapkowski

Updated Spider Information from Mike

October 25 Email (regarding previous post):

I had looked at a site for a brown recluse and found a picture of one, but it wasn't a website from a university or such.  Somewhere at that site there was an ability for people to put in their own pictures which caused me to mis-identify this spider. After more research I have come to the conclusion that this is a "Carolina wolf spider" the largest spider in Michigan.  I should have put a saddle on it and tried to ride it!  - Mike VanderStelt

Mike's size-reference photo.

Spider and Owl Reports

Two October 24 Emails:

I think this might be a Brown Recluse spider.  Its legs are curled because it is dead. I sprayed it with some automotive brake cleaner, but I got a good picture of it. I didn't want to do it while it was alive because I didn't know how fast they could move, and I didn't want to "p--- it off" with my hand down there. 😲

- Mike VanderStelt

I don't blame you!  Thanks for the photo.  I don't know if it's a recluse or not.  Maybe someone will post a comment or send an email.  - Ric

- - -

Just a quick note and a photo to let you know that the Short-eared Owls are back at the Wastewater facility.

- Jerry Vis

Jerry, that's good to know.  Without Mike Moran anymore, we're not as informed as we used to be about Short-eared's out there.  - Ric

Bahama Mama Made it!

October 22 Email:

Bahama Mama has arrived back at Abaco.

- Carol Cooper

Upper Macatawa Field Trip Report

Pictures and details of our 43-species field trip to the Upper Macatawa Natural Area this morning are posted on our homepage.

Thursday Morning at Black Lake Park

 White-throated Sparrow

There was a lot of sparrow activity at Black Lake Park this morning.  I saw White-throated, White-crowned, Song and Swamp Sparrow.

- Charlie DeWitt

Yellow Rumps and Ruby Crowns Today

There were several Yellow-rumped Warblers and Ruby-crowned Kinglets accompanied by Black-capped Chickadees foraging the woods east of my house this morning.

Yellow-rumped Warbler

Yellow-rumped Warbler

Ruby-crowned Kinglet

- Ric

Finally Some Raptors Migrating!

Today was the third time this season that I'd hoped to see some hawks migrating; the first two times were disappointments.  This morning I watched for 90 minutes from the south wall of the Muskegon Channel east of the USS McLane.

I counted 39 migrating raptors (29 Sharp-shinned Hawks, 1 Cooper's Hawk, 8 Red-tailed Hawks, 1 American Kestrel), 47 migrating Turkey Vultures, plus 13 probably-migrating Canada Geese and ?? migrating Blue Jays (220 total, most probably migrating, but due to conditions only ~75 visible streaming southbound over the channel.

Turkey Vulture

Red-tailed Hawk

- Ric

Juncos Are Back in Town.

 Dark-eyed Junco

I saw 20 Dark-eyed Juncos at Ellis Road today.

- Charlie DeWitt

Monday Morning at Black Lake Park

 Yellow-rumped Warbler

 Northern Flickers

 Song Sparrow

Swamp Sparrow

I spent 2 1/2 hours at Black Lake Park and counted 22 species of birds. There were 14 Pied-billed Grebes on the lake.

- Charlie DeWitt

Pipits and Peregrines

Charlie's Wednesday post motivated me to head to the Wastewater this morning to get a "free" Year Bird.  I saw at least 25 American Pipits including this one on the wall of the aeration cells.  (Year Bird #181, not that anyone is counting.)

Among the other ten bird species at WW today were a singing Eastern Meadowlark east of the headquarters building (seemed pretty late in the season) and well over 1,000 Northern Shovelers in the northeast corner of the West Lagoon.

Later from the south side of the Muskegon Channel I saw "two" Peregrine Falcons fly from beyond the trees on the north side, low over the Channel, and then southbound out of sight.  That seems remarkable whether it was two migrating peregrines within the same hour or whether it was the same local bird seen twice since there are no documented peregrines nesting in Greater Muskegon this year as they used to at the Cobb plant smokestack.

- Ric

Friday at Jeff's Dune

I spent a little over two hours yesterday morning (Oct. 6) on Jeff's Dune (Muskegon State Park 1/4 mile north of the Muskegon Channel) witnessing virtually no raptor migration: just 5 Sharp-shinned Hawks.  (Last Saturday at the same location I saw only one migrating raptor, also a Sharpie.)

This adult Red-tailed Hawk moved around the property during the morning upsetting the crows wherever it went.   I also saw a Merlin perched on a snag north of the dune.

I counted 210 migrating Blue Jays among the 19 total species.  Others were the usual suspects.

This White-tailed Deer hurried into the jack pines below the dune after it and its buddy meandered out of the Snug Harbor woods.

At 8:40 I had to slow my car on Memorial Drive east of Scenic Drive to avoid hitting the "Wild" Turkeys in the road.  At 11:20 on my way home I had to do the same thing at the same location!

- Ric

Wednesday at The Wastewater

 American Pipit

 Greater Yellowlegs

 American Kestrel

 Red-tailed Hawk

Great Egret

I spent some time at the Muskegon County Wastewater this morning.  I counted 25 species of birds.

- Charlie DeWitt