043023 SNP Edition, Life at Boomer Lake

https://www.stwnewspress.com/news/lifestyles/life-at-boomer-lake-tracking-birds-spring-migrations/article_370ee0d2-e48d-11ed-883a-0b4fbd7dca80.html 

031223. SNP Edition, Life At Boomer Lake

 https://www.stwnewspress.com/news/life-at-boomer-lake-it-s-birds-aplenty-in-payne-county/article_8d8c8fa0-be26-11ed-a86a-c30a41a7ccaf.html

042322 SNP Edition, Life At Boomer Lake

https://www.stwnewspress.com/news/lifestyles/life-at-boomer-lake-a-good-time-to-spot-rare-birds/article_f3b95ff6-c1b0-11ec-8d01-8f3cd365e36d.html 

111321 SNP Edition, Life At Boomer Lake

https://www.stwnewspress.com/news/lifestyles/life-at-boomer-lake-birds-can-move-at-will/article_42381c34-4282-11ec-a707-8b36d80a92ba.html 

101321 Summer and Fall 2021

 052521                                                        Green Heron Adult

060321                                              Green Heron Nestlings, Clutch 1

060521                                       Green Heron Nestlings Clutch 1, View 2

All we had was one clutch of young birds this year.  If there were more, it could not be seen due to the thickness and height of the shrubbery around Heron Cove.

080321                                                            Lark Sparrow

It was somewhat of a surprise to find a group of these sparrows, but it was a nice surprise.

091521                                                         Franklin's Gull

091621                                                  Mourning Dove

101021                                                     Green-winged Teal 

                                                             American Wigeon and others

                    

                                                                 Blue-Winged Teal

                                                                   Blue-winged Teal

101121                                                     American Avocets

These were the birds from the recent bad weather.  The ducks were early and a big surprise was the Cinnamon Teal, though all of them weren't really expected yet.  Birds are resilient and know what hazards bad weather can bring.  They were safe on the water.

101221                                                    Great Blue Heron

This heron was in the company of another, which is unusual as they are solitary birds unless they are breeding.  It is very possible that the other bird was offspring, which would make sense at this time of year.

Sorry for waiting so long to post, but now everything is current.

091821 SNP Edition, Life At Boomer Lake

https://www.stwnewspress.com/news/lifestyles/life-at-boomer-lake-keeping-eyes-peeled-for-migrating-birds/article_450a0726-1823-11ec-a663-efa96b40dc37.html 

042521 Boomer Lake's Spring Residents and Visitors

 032421                                                       Red Fox Squirrel

                                                                  American Coot, View 1

                                                                    American Coot, View 2

          041221                                                    Ruddy Duck

                                                                  Canada Goose, View 1

                                                                   Canada Goose, View 2

       042121                                                   Franklin's Gull   

                                                    Summer Tanager (western subspecies)

                                                           Eared Grebe, Breeding Plumage

                                                                White-throated Sparrow

110720 SNP Edition, Life at Boomer Lake

https://www.stwnewspress.com/news/life-at-boomer-lake-boomer-lake-hosting-some-unusual-visitors/article_163d47cc-209a-11eb-bc8f-e715f286c6cc.html 

103020 Post Three Day Rainstorm with Rarity

  103020                                                       Franklin's Gull  

                                                                         Downy Woodpecker

                                                          Red-necked Grebe (Very Rare) 

  

                                                                      Ditto, View 2

                                                              Immature Marsh Wren

Monday through Wednesday October 26-28, Stillwater, Oklahoma, home of Boomer Lake Park, received over four inches of rain.  On Thursday afternoon, writer ventured out to see what might be found, which was somewhat expected, except for the rare Red-breasted Mergansers and the Red-necked Grebe.

Oh, isn't Oklahoma landlocked, you say?  Yes, yes, it is.  When they migrate over terra firma, it is usually overnight but with several days worth of rain, lots of birds came down for our hospitality.  They usually overwinter in the north, but these birds know how to vacation in Hawai'i and Bermuda.  So they think ahead.  Migrants can appear on any body of water during migration, especially larger lakes, and they are actually very common birds.  This is the first one that has been recorded via eBird at Boomer Lake Park.

This uncommon waterbird breeds in the Boreal Forest and sticks to coastal regions except for small patches in the northern US.  It has a solid black cap, a heavy yellow billed angled downward, pale earpatch, and a dark crown and cheeks.  The eyes are surprisingly not red, and the bill in usually held downward.  Another notable characteristic is the thick neck and broad head.

These remarkable birds have an odd habit of consuming large quantities of its own feathers and will even feed them to their young.  Perhaps the feathers protect the stomach from indigestibles.

If the Great Lakes freeze over this year, we could have many more of these grebes wandering about the eastern part of the US.

Surprisingly, writer now has photographed all the grebes in this country.  It's a nice feeling.

We also had a wide assortment of ducks and other waterbirds over this time period.  Even though we've had even earlier visiting waterbirds this year, they still bring ooo's and aaahhhhh's during the pre-winter seasons.  It's also been nice seeing Bonaparte's Gulls much earlier than we generally do.

101820. SNP Edition, Life at Boomer Lake

https://www.stwnewspress.com/news/life-at-boomer-lake-many-special-birds-spotted-in-many-places/article_adbcf946-0f4f-11eb-89d0-6b7d1120dc7b.html 

101720 September-October Migrants at Boomer Lake, Stillwater, OK

092320                                                           Least Sandpiper 

092820                                                          Pied-billed Grebes

Migration began in September, and this was one of the earlier photos this fall.  This was the day that I found a total of 26 grebes, but I believe the highest count this year was 98 in April (spring migration) at the same location.  Between spring and fall, one grebe that was chosen for food was located on Shorebird Jetty.

101220                                                          Franklin's Gull

This was one of multiple Franklin's Gulls, which is a common migrant heading south.

101620                                                     Orange-crowned Warbler

We're in one of the higher migrant days, and this was one of several species that was located in this general area.

                                                                Yellow-rumped Warbler   

This lovely specimen was one of multiple yellow-rumps AKA butterbutts found in the same Bradford pear as the Orange-crowned Warbler, not far from where it was.

                                                        White-crowned Sparrow, View 1 

This was the only example of this species that I observed in the same area as the above warblers.  It also enjoyed being photographed, staying for several minutes.

                                                       White-crowned Sparrow, View 2

                                                                    Broad-winged Hawk

This hawk wasn't far from where the above birds were located, but far enough to attract attention if it tried to go after all of them.  They had plenty of observant eyes all about them.

                                               

                                                                      Great Blue Heron

This was the highlight on Shorebird Jetty.  This is a great blue that was hatched this year.  The gray feathers denotes a first fall bird.

092120 Migratory Gulls, Swallows, Waders, and Shorebirds to the Rescue in Fall

 090420                                                    Spotted Sandpiper

This is a non-breeding bird, common for this time of year.  Though the Spotted Sandpiper is known for its spots, not all birds will sport them now, especially those molting just before migration into winter plumage.

090920                                                          Blue-winged Teal

At first appearance, it appeared that these were simply Blue-winged Teal.  If one looks a little closer, te green speculum can be seen at the edge of the femoral tract.

 

                                                                        Cattle Egret

This loner was among a group of several protective Great Egrets on Shorebird Jetty on this rainy day when many waterbirds were out of the skies.

                                                                      Pectoral Sandpiper

This was a nice find among the many more common individuals.

091020                                                      Great Blue Heron

The "Silent Sentinel" at its best.

                                                                       Least Sandpiper

This may be the smallest sandpiper, but it is still beautiful in breeding plumage.

 

                                                                        Cliff Swallow

It is rare for these birds to be perched due to rudimentary feet, but it happens on occasion.

                                                                      Franklin's Gull

One could say "three on a match."  Note the red tip on the bill, one of the distinguishing characteristics for this species.

Some of these were before and after the Wyoming adventure, but it is always good to return to familiar grounds, especially in the midst of migration.

092020 SNP Edition, Life At Boomer Lake

https://www.stwnewspress.com/news/life-at-boomer-lake-many-birds-expected-to-come-at-their-leisure/article_fdaec234-f944-11ea-a764-8b1496e83dff.html

091220 SNP Edition, Life at Boomer Lake

https://www.stwnewspress.com/news/life-at-boomer-lake-the-changing-of-the-robust-renegades/article_4258b248-f3b2-11ea-9125-af0619e774dc.html 

052220 Post-Rain Comes, More Good Birds

052120                                              American Robin in Nest

A couple of Ruddy Ducks were seen upon distant water at Boomer Lake in the morning, late birds for the season.  We may have seen our last four Spotted Sandpipers.  My figure of 145 Cedar Waxwings was conservative, there were likely more.  There were chances for an impending storm later in the day, and if that occurs, we can expect good birds on the morrow.

052220                                                    Eastern Meadowlark

                                                                   Franklin's Gull

                                                                         Willet

                                                                 Neotropic Cormorant

                                                         Juvenile Hooded Merganser


052220

There was an early morning rain/thunderstorm with wind gusts between 26 and 44 mph between 0553-0753, and we received 0.83" of precipitation.   The strongest winds were west and south of Stillwater, which were even worse with straightline storms some of which prompted winds up to 81 mph and wreaked a lot of devastation in several locales.

However, much of Payne county experienced very good birding, as birds are generally down before a storm unless they are within the wrong cell at the wrong time.  With this time period and migration waning, we were still going to get a drop before the storm.  When the storm was over, most birders were out, writer included.

We noticed more Canada Geese than usual that were either on Boomer Lake or upon the property, along with some downed trees, limbs, and branches.  The downed tree that was noticed on the east side was a deciduous tree that came out of the ground at water's edge, due to extreme saturation.

The nests on Heron Cove seemed to be intact and everything was normal, save for the above notation.  Females usually spend the night on their nests and are relieved in the morning.

Meridian had a response early and there was a Whimbrel, female Hooded Merganser, Baird's, White-rumped and Spotted Sandpipers, and a Least Tern.

First unusual item noticed on Boomer Lake was a notable Least Tern and a Ruddy Duck, a late bird for the season.  Another birder was already at Shorebird Jetty to count several Franklin's Gulls, two Willow Flycatchers, and a Willet.  There were no Spotted Sandpipers located, yet only one Cedar Waxwing.

There was also an Eastern Meadowlark, Least Flycatchers, and Yellow Warblers.

Continuing on, Turkey Vultures were riding thermals, as were Mississippi Kites.  We also encountered a Yellow-billed Cuckoo, a couple of Great Crested Flycatchers, and a juvenile Hooded Merganser.  The merganser came close enough to permit a nice photograph, but the nearby Pied-billed Grebe noticed writer's location, whereas the young merganser did not.

Nothing else was noteworthy at Boomer Lake.   Throughout the morning, many other locations were checked throughout the county.