Avocets, Loon and Long-tailed Ducks

Besides Travis's towhee (posted below) other good Thursday birds include a pair of Long-tailed Ducks in the Muskegon Channel and a Common Loon on the north side of Muskegon Lake south of the Ruddiman Drive - Buys Road intersection reported by David Holmberg and two American Avocets in the west lagoon at Muskegon Wastewater not far from the main dike reported by Ken Sapkowski.

Towhee in Grand Haven Today

April 30 Email:

Male Eastern Towhee

Had a nice visitor in Grand Haven this morning.

- Travis DeWys

Willet at Muskegon Wastewater

On about 9:05 Tuesday morning there was a Willet in rapid-filtration cell D8 at the Muskegon County Wastewater System.

- Charlie DeWitt

Tuesday Morning at Lane's Landing

I got to the second yellow gate at Lane's Landing at 5:10 Tuesday morning to listen for birds.  I was standing in the grass next to the truck so my feet didn't make noise on the gravel parking lot.  There was no wind; while I could hear the traffic on Maple Island Road, it wasn't a distraction.

At 5:12 I heard a Great Horned Owl calling.  It continued to call off and on until about 6:10.

At 5:18 an Eastern Screech Owl started calling.  It was doing the "monotonic trill".  It only called about six times.

At 5:25 some Canada Geese started calling.  A Pied-billed Grebe also called.

At 5:35 an American Bittern started calling.  It called off and on until about 6:15.

At 5:45 a Wilson's Snipe started making its "winnowing flight display" sound.

At 5:52 some Morning Doves started calling.

At 5:55 the Sandhill Cranes started.

At 5:59 I started hearing the Red-winged Blackbirds.  At this time the Eastern Screech Owl started calling again using the monotonic trill.

At 6:01 a Wood Duck called.

At 6:06 an American Crow called.

At 6:11 the Northern Cardinals started.

At 6:22 it was light enough to start looking for birds.  I birded until 8:41 and had 33 species.  One of the good ones was a Trumpeter Swan.

- Charlie DeWitt

Covid Bird #2 -- The Eastern Bluebird

Eastern Bluebirds inspect our backyard bird houses every spring.  One year they even nested!  This year they chose again to use our back neighbors' box.  We still see them all the time hawking bugs in our backyard.  On April 5 the male landed on our T.V. cable long enough for a portrait. 

We do sort of have bluebirds this year.  Another neighbor allows me to put boxes on his property across the road.  Usually these host Tree Swallows or House Wrens, but this year the "meadow box" has bluebirds.  Here's the female flying in nesting material earlier this month.

- Ric

( Covid birds are explained in the April 15 post below. )

Snug Harbor and Lost Lake Trail

I found plenty of birds, three new year species, and several people social-distancing this morning at Snug Harbor.  I took a few photos, mostly blurry.  The Lost Lake trail is passable in the hemlocks thanks to some new planking but will still muddy your shoes.

Notable among the 30 species were two pair of Blue-winged Teal, Sora, Sandhill Crane, Pileated Woodpecker, Ruby-crowned Kinglet, Winter Wren, Chipping Sparrow, White-throated Sparrow and Yellow-rumped Warbler.

Male Blue-winged Teal

Winter Wren (trust me)

- Ric

May Events Canceled Except Big Day Count

Due to the Covid Pandemic our May events other than Big Day Count are CANCELED !

We still plan to do some sort of bird species count on "Big Day", Saturday, May 16.  Obviously, it will NOT follow the usual routine.  Details when we know them will be posted on our homepage and in our May newsletter.  In the meantime, if you have ideas about how we might conduct that event, please let Ric know.

White Pelicans at Spring Lake

Thanks to Ken Sapkowski and Glenda Eikenberry for reporting and Charlie and Carol DeWitt for giving directions and photographing seven American White Pelicans this evening on the Grand River viewable from the village of Spring Lake.

Photo by Carol DeWitt

Photo and directions by Charlie DeWitt: "In this picture facing west on Leonard Road before it curves north into Spring Lake you can see a gazebo on the right (north) side and a street light on the river (south) side of the road.  Stand near the street light and look out on the river."  

Can We Identify This Osprey?

April 22 Email:

Hello Ric:

I hope that you are well.  I have noticed an Osprey by where I live in Croton that is banded.  I was wondering if there are any resources that could provide information about such a band.  I see that it has the letters "SV" written clearly on a blue band on its leg.  I am just curious about the history of the bird.  Thanks! 

Best,

- Kevin Feenstra

Kevin, I'm doing well.  Thanks for the picture and information.  In addition to the "SV" on the blue band, I think the numbers "138" are identifiable on the silver band.  Please let us know if that's incorrect.  Yes, there are sources to help identify this bird.  Begin at the USGS Bird Banding Lab website.  Meanwhile I'll contact a few people in this area who do bird banding and let you know what they think.  I'll also post their comments here if that's okay with them.  - Ric

Covid Bird #1 -- The House Finch

Covid photo March 21, 2020 *

Forty seasons ago the late Bob Moblo of our club had a House Finch eating regularly at his feeder.  Word got out on the old birding hotline.  Birders from around the state visited Bob and Mary Jo to see this rarity.  Now it's the most common species in my yard and maybe yours too.

Covid photo March 21, 2020 *

- Ric

* Covid photos explained in April 15 post below.

Birding Black Lake Park

I found thirty bird species this morning at Black Lake Park including Pied-billed Grebe, Sandhill Crane, Belted Kingfisher, American Kestrel flying north over the trees west of the meadow, and four sparrows (Chipping, Field, Fox and Song).  Got pictures of two common ones:

Song Sparrow

Male Brown-headed Cowbird

- Ric

Had to Get Out of the House

I spent an evening (or 2) at the Wastewater.

Eastern Meadowlark

Female Northern Harrier

Male Northern Harrier

Juvenile Northern Harrier

And five photos of the Short eared Owl:

Be safe everyone!

- Don Neumann

My Covid Backyard Birds

Covid-What?

A month ago when sheltering-in-place felt really odd, I replaced our traditional back yard tube feeder with a shallow box "camouflaged" behind pieces of tree branch. 

Some afternoons I'll sit with my camera in a chair on our back steps (25 feet from the feeder; 35 feet from the overhanging maple) photographing birds in the branches or on the box.  The inquisitive Northern Cardinal above dropped in yesterday.

While the quarantine continues, I'll occasionally post photos of these backyard birds.  It's not as good as watching wilder ones, but it beats watching T.V.

- Ric

Birding During the Corona Pandemic

This morning for the first time since the quarantine I finally birded someplace other than my neighborhood.  The Muskegon Lake Nature Preserve was full of birds, particularly Yellow-rumped Warblers.  Others of note among the 28 species were Wood Duck, Pied-billed Grebe, American Coot, Great Blue Heron, Great Egret, Tree Swallow and Brown Creeper.

Female Yellow-rumped Warbler

American Coot

- Ric

Mike Has Another Mouth to Feed

Emailing problems solved today, Mike VanderStelt was able to send this photo of Rambi * (on the right) and his new lady friend (on the left).  This week Rambi gradually coaxed the other dove to join him for the free seed on the deck next to Mike's feet. 

* The saga of Rambi began last year on this blog.  To start at the beginning, click "Older Posts" at the bottom of this page and the next two, then scroll down to "A Member of the Family" posted June 9, 2019.

Wood Ducks and More from Kevin

April 7 Email:

Hi Ric, I just thought I would pass along these Wood Duck images along some standing water adjacent to the Muskegon River near Newaygo.  These were taken in the last week.  Also a Song Sparrow and Belted Kingfisher.  Best,

- Kevin Feenstra

Great pics as always, Kevin.  Thanks!  Best to you too.  - Ric

Wilson's Snipe and Ruffed Grouse

Early Sunday morning I birded Muskegon State Game Area at Messenger Road.  I was at the yellow gate at 6:15 a.m.  At 6:30 I heard Wilson's Snipe calling.  When it got light enough to see, I started slowly walking to the west on the south side of the Maple River.  At 7:10 I heard my first Ruffed Grouse drumming.  After that there were two more drumming at different locations.

- Charlie DeWitt

Yellow-Headed Blackbird and Least Flycatcher

April 6 Email:

I spotted a female Yellow-headed Blackbird this morning at the McKee property at  the ponded water near the jack pines closest to the sand-docks off the end of Edgewater.  Additionally I saw my first Least Flycatcher of the year at the same location. 

- Fred Simmons

Short-eared Owl at the Usual Location

While I was socially distancing at the Wastewater Friday evening, I saw this Short-eared Owl on Swanson Rd. south of Apple Ave.

- Mike Boston