070923. SNP Edition, Life at Boomer Lake

https://www.stwnewspress.com/news/lifestyles/life-at-boomer-lake-young-birds-are-out-exploring/article_858eff42-1c25-11ee-a760-df893f545b08.html 

051622 Excessive Early May Rains, Migrant Travels, and Grand Father of Heron Cove

 050622                                                  Greater Yellowlegs

This was the day after the crazy four inches of rain that hit us.  The two shots were taken

at the Lowlands, which is off Husband Street near Lakeview Rd.  In attendance were a Spotted Sandpiper, Blue-winged Teal, two Mallards that paid me no mind, both Greater and Lesser Yellowlegs, and the star of the show, multiple Wilson's Phalaropes, that are not seen very often in these parts.

                    Wilson's Phalaropes Flanked by Lesser Yellowlegs (L) and Greater Yellowlegs (R)

By the way, did you know those gorgeous phalaropes are the females? 

051122                                                       Clay-colored Sparrow

                                                          Female Brown-headed Cowbird

We all call this birds a scourge due to their behavior (dumping eggs in other species' nests),

but it was how the evolved.  They probably made horrible parents, so now they leave it up to someone else.  There are other subspecies that raise their own...to some degree.   

                                                            Male Brown-headed Cowbird

051322                                                        Clay-colored Sparrow

They are usually gone by the 15th, but it is now the 16th.  Are we going to press our luck?  This is an appropriate spring shot, and the buzzy call will be remembered well until next spring.

051622                                                     Great-tailed Grackle

My old birding buddy always says, "get some action shots."  Okay, Susan, will this suffice? 

                                                                       Brown Thrasher

This fluffy beauty was quiet just sitting under second growth cover, minding its own business in the shade, but it was a nice shot, so here were are at the original flood plain.

                                                             Male Eastern Bluebird (Dad)  

The same day of this posting this sweet little male finally emerged with three strapping fledglings.  Unfortunately, writer was too far in the distance for a nice photo, but they were seen via poor photos and binoculars.  By the time that I slowly meandered over, the young were nowhere to be seen, but dad was perched (actual photo), so the three young were around SOMEWHERE.  We'll be trying to get shots of them, as well as the proud mother.     

052520 The Rain in Oklahoma Doesn't Always Fall On the Plain

052320                                              Female Baltimore Oriole
                                                         and Nest Under Branch (R)

052320  This Baltimore Oriole nest has been repaired every other year and used every other year.  It has been in that location since at least 2013.  I know this, as I looked up the photo from the same area.  Orioles are one of the best nest fabricators for strength and longevity.  Amazing, is it not?

052420                                                  Great-tailed Grackle

We still have the Ruddy Duck visiting with us.  It is already a late migrant.  I wonder if the species will be gone by June 1?

                                                          Ruddy Ducks, Late Migrants

                                                              Female Purple Martin
                                                            Gathering Nest Material


052520                                  

 
                                                                  Alder Flycatcher

                                                                 
                                                                  Neotropic Cormorant


052520  Another cloudy day and weather.com tells me that the rain is holding off until 1230.  Hopefully writer will not be rained upon like happened yesterday.  Fat chance, pretty much the same area, too.

  Approaching the top of the berm, one of the first things witnessed are two Green Herons heading south and a third bird out of view, but vocal.  Swallows are everywhere after insects, and seem to be catching them, too.  There are plenty of Canada Geese out again, just like yesterday, which tells me it will be raining again.  Great Blue Herons are winging their way across the lake and are also actively in pursuit of fish for breakfast.  It is also another active fishing day for the general populace.

A Northern Flicker is heard, and eventually seen in another twenty minutes atop a telephone pole.  Two Warbling Vireos are sounding off, American Robins are seeking food beside a pair of Brown Thrashers, who no doubt have young.  The European Starling population is growing on a daily basis, more young than adults.  Purple Martins have been active for the past couple of days, capturing their own insects with plenty more left to go around.  A pair of Eastern Kingbirds are savoring theirs, as well, but we're missing the Ruddy Ducks out on the water.  Are they finally gone?

A Blue Jay is calling in the distance, and as always, our nomadic Cedar Waxwings are seeking those sweet mulberries.  This is the first year that we've had so many trees and bushes, and if they were as common as the Bradford pear, we'd be doing well.  I think the pear has a disease going around, as the leaves seem to be browning up.

Orchard and Baltimore Orioles are a-plenty.  It's actually amusing, as there was a time when the Orchard Oriole would not leave Boomer Creek.  Now there are more of them than the Baltimore Oriole.  They are being fruitful and prospering in more way than one.  Western Kingbirds are doing the same, and I still look for the Couch's to turn up.  It will eventually transpire.  We have more Mallard ducklings, and more Canada Geese than I thought we'd have with the addlers having been here over a month ago.

Two Spotted Sandpipers are on Shorebird Jetty, and the martin population is still working on nests and nest repair.  Looks like it is time for another clutch's eggs.  It is getting harder to spot Yellow Warblers, who could well be on their way northbound.  The Great Crested Flycatcher was back out and it appears that they have young, which I thought was possible since I saw mom with a brood patch several days earlier.

Bell's Vireo was silent across from Kicker, but there was a Yellow-billed Cuckoo in the same area, AND the highlight of the day was a fairly decent shot of an Alder "free beer!" Flycatcher.  I've been trying to get a photo of one for years without it being questionable.  Yes!  The rain can come at any time, because that photo made it all worthwhile.  And it started slowly.

The final agenda was a Neotropic Cormorant, another nice way to end the birding, even though this is the year where it is most common at the snag between Goose Island and the northeast jetty

Migrant and Nesting Birds of the Southern Great Plains

                                                                       Green Heron

                                                                   American Robin

                                                                    Lincoln's Sparrow

                                                                 Great-tailed Grackle

                                                             Yellow-headed Blackbird

                                                                   Lincoln's Sparrow

                                                               Harris's Sparrow

                                                                 Western Kingbird

                                                                Mallards in Flight



04-15 through 04-19-2019

Migration is and has been very good this year due to plenty of natural resources for all animals.  The bottom photo of the Mallards included some very unusual activity with these migrant birds, who wheeled around the sky over a dozen times before they settled in a private spot just north of Heron Cove.  While the males exercised their breeding behavior and aggressive nature due to raging hormones, the female kept away from the pack.

This was one of the early Western Kingbirds, who normally grace a telephone pole across from Kicker.  There is what appears to be at least one pair in this vicinity.  As we recall last year, most of this species settled in my own residential area permitting me wonderful viewing of the young birds as they made their way around the local skies.

The youthful Harris's Sparrow is receiving its basic adult plumage.  The senior adults have more black upon their heads than the subadults.

Several Lincoln's Sparrows have been located around the area, usually around riparian and quiet areas.

Two male Yellow-headed Blackbirds were a real treat, usually remaining upon the ground seeking insects.  The two later took to the trees to survey the area and call while they preyed upon the delicacies on the cottonwoods.  They will gather in reeds and around cattails in more suitable habitat unless they are around dairies to take advantage of the insects that cattle stir up for them.

Many individuals consider the Great-tailed Grackle a pest, but they also travel in icteric packs, so it is best not to judge all "black birds" as one.  Many times the Brewer's and Rusty Blackbird will be mixed in, so scan those flocks.

The American Robin is usually in the area during the spring raising young.  Not all of them are created equally, especially those that are nesting for the first time.  An experienced robin will build a weak nest that might fall apart while it is being observed.

Green Heron came to Heron Cove, but as we recall, last year they vacated the area six weeks early.  Perhaps the best way to handle this is to nest early before the oppressive heat arrives like it did last year when young perished in the nest.  Hopefully, the colony will not leave the area.

Life In the Breeding Season Lane at Boomer Lake

                                                                 Brown Thrasher

                                                                          Ditto

                                                 Male Great-tailed Grackle and Fledgling

                                                         Great-tailed Grackle Fledgling

                                                                   Green Heron Adult

                                                                      Eastern Phoebe

                                                               

                                                                   American Robin

                                                                     Barn Swallow

                                                               Red-winged Blackbird


First Half June 2018

There has been a great deal of activity this year, not that there was appreciably less last year, BUT there were less birds.  Every year, though, some species tend to outweigh others, and this year is no different.

Some species arrived a little earlier, set up at nesting sites, but didn't begin nesting until the usual time.  Other species began nesting right away and lost clutches due to a spring cold snap, but the important thing is that they tried again.

With our earth heating up as it is, it is going to be trial and error, especially when it comes to birds that has a relationship with water, namely shores and beaches, as their food supply is drifting northeast where it is cooler.

This is a small sample of breeding birds and fledglings, as well as nesting birds that are doing their jobs as best they can in a somewhat trying time were they must make adjustments for extra heat and food sources.

All the birds shown are generalist species, not specialists, who will have a more difficult time.  Will they survive as time marches on?  We'll see, and if they do--like the Greater and Lesser Prairie Chickens and other prairie specialties, they will have to make adjustments, which they are not used to doing.

Like you, I certainly hope that they can.

Latter Half of May 2018 Is Time to Reflect and Count Our Large Bounty of Birds

                                                             Scissor-tailed Flycatcher

                                                                Adult Green Heron

                                                                 Mallard Ducklings

                                                               Male Orchard Oriole

                                                               Mallard Ducklings

                                                             Neotropic Cormorant

                                                 Two Out of Three Neotropic Cormorants

                                                                 American Bison

                                                              Great-tailed Grackle

                                                                 Canada Gosling


Last Half of May 2018


We were officially past migration, but as you know, there are always going to be exceptions to the
rule.  There are always going to be exceptions and no rules anymore, because with future heat
waves, we'll be see a lot more unusual birds.  Winters will be colder and things are going to be changing more and faster than we dreamed possible.

Our Green Herons returned to colonize their Heron Cove and quite frankly, I don't believe that I know any of them.  We appear to have a completely new crop, but since they are all breeding age, it could well be the hormones talking, so it would stand to reason that they would be ignoring me.

They were left alone since they arrived in the breeding area a little earlier than usual and they appeared to be anxious, so there was no reason to provide the opportunity to force them to move on, so I stayed as far away as possible.  There is no question that we now have a nest, which I believe is occupied.  There could even be a second nest, but I only saw twigs going to another spot.

The American Bison was not at Boomer Lake, so don't get your hopes up.  This beauty came to us
courtesy of the Wichita Mountains National Wildlife Refuge, and I know that this its the closest that I have ever come to a male bison.  He took it all in stride, so I got my shot and returned to the confines of the car.

There are a couple of cute shots of Canada Geese and Mallard ducklings, Neotropic Cormorants, and an unusual shot of our state bird, the Scissor-tailed Flycatcher.

The shot of the Orchard Oriole is more attuned to their wintering grounds in the tropics, as this is a common posture there.

Naturally, it was important to include at least one shot of the colorful Great-tailed Grackle.

Just because I didn't grace this segment with a lot of birds doesn't mean that they weren't here.  They certainly are and were, but I was looking for a little more unusual variety this time around.

There Is Plenty of Light on Boomer Lakefront

                                                               Yellow-billed Cuckoo

                                                                   Green Heron Pair

                                                                       Green Heron

                                                               Female Orchard Oriole

                                                                   Canada Gosling

                                                                     Least Flycatcher

                                                                Female Orchard Oriole

                                                                        Ditto

                                                                  Great-tailed Grackle                                                              
                                                   
       

                                                          Female Red-winged Blackbird

                                                                    Great Blue Heron

                                                             Prothonotary Warbler

                                                           Scissor-tailed Flycatchers

                                                                Green Heron on Nest

                                                                 Male Orchard Oriole

                                                                    Least Flycatcher

                                                                     Great Blue Heron


05-22 through 05-26-17

This was an impressive workweek, as far as I am concerned.  The trumpet vine bush on Boomer
Lake's east side is nearly in full bloom, which invited the Orchard Orioles that nest nearby to partake.
They have nested in the area for years, most likely because this bush exists there, as well as the fact that their site is in the willows by the water, which really attracts a number of good birds to its habitat.

Another wonderful piece of habitat is Heron Cove and the surrounding area, which has native trees, mulberries, and plenty of wetland habitat, which attracts my beautiful Heron colony.  Right now, there are two pairs of Green Herons there, which perturbs my Great Blue Heron.  He just doesn't have the freedom to come and go as he pleases, but he really does accommodate his Green Heron cousins quite well.

Our usual suspects also enjoy the area, which includes the grackles, blackbirds, warblers, flycatchers, warblers, and when in the area, the catbirds.

Boomer Creek also has dense habitat for those birds that prefer those kinds of areas, like the breeding birds, the shy Yellow-billed Cuckoo, this year's first Least Bittern, and a good group of migratories when they come through.

There are still a few more photos in the camera, which I will save until a later date.  These include a few that are a bit on the unusual side, but I'm sure that you'll be pleased.

Until then, enjoy your own private birding areas, and as always, let me know what you are observing.