Welcome back, sparrows!

The park is now bustling, bristling with the sounds of spring. Each day brings a fresh helping of birds. Waterfowl touching down in the ponds and rivers to forage and rest. Kinglets and the earliest warblers flittering feverishly about the brush. And, most notably today, sparrows by the dozen kicking up leaves and whirling around roadsides. It has been a great week to be out birding, and it only goes up from here (at least for the next several weeks)!

It's not just the park. The backyard feeders are also seeing some familiar faces!

A great little, long weekend.

It's been a couple of low-key days since my cold but rewarding morning at the prairie-chicken blind. Project FeederWatch occupied several hours of the traditional weekend--Saturday being windy and sunny while Sunday turned out windy and snowy. I was rewarded with one of the best showings of the season, with the grackles, robins and doves appearing at the birdfeeders alongside the reliable wintering species.

Some of my favorite observation moments included the inverting nuthatch above and the juncos going after the low-hanging suet feeder in a corner of the yard.

The last species added to the PFW list was an exciting return: a pileated which came to explore a neighbor's tree.

Today, excitement lingering from the fun of the weekend's birding plus the wild matches of the Genesis 8 Melee event, I headed down to the park for another windy walk, hoping to turn up some sparrows and migratory waterfowl. Success!

Greater Prairie-Chickens!

As my date with the prairie-chicken blind approached, I watched the forecasted temperature drop, and drop, and drop. And in response, my packlist grew longer and longer. The weather could be worse, though.

4:30am: phone alarm goes off. I whip up a travel mug of cappuccino and hit the road. The weather is in line with the most recent predictions. Cold. A snow flurry turns into a decent snow shower as I head towards Rothsay, and in short stretches the windshield is almost whited out. Visibility continues to be an issue as I arrive at the parking place for the blind and head out on foot. I'm now very glad I scouted out the area the previous weekend so I can confidently walk straight while the glow of my flashlight is mostly exhausted by the falling, blowing snow; the reflective posts meant to guide birders to the blind were completely concealed. I arrived at the blind, began setting up, and realized I had left my cappuccino in the car.

By 5:49, I'm fully set up in the blind, and the wait isn't long. At 6:11, still dark, I see a chunky, winged silhouette descend into the mix of snow and grass about forty feet away. Then a few more. Then begins the haunting and hilarious sounds of the greater prairie-chicken courtship displays. The morning is already a success.

The wind howls on. The sun creeps over the horizon, casting its awesome "golden hour" effect for a sliver of a moment before ducking back into cloud cover. All the while, the prairie chickens dance, boom, strut, spar, sit and rest. It's incredible to watch and listen to.

I don't know if I've ever been so cold for so long--something I'm grateful to claim. I've been out in far worse temperatures, but the < 20F and the incessant midwestern winds had me doing my best chickadee impression in the blind. At 7:58, the prairie-chickens whirled away, leaving but two behind. As excited as I was by the birding action, I was excited to get out of the cold. But a short while later, the prairie chickens returned to the blind area. I certainly couldn't complain about a lack of the bird I was out to see!

At 8:41, the prairie chickens fled once more, and this time none remained. Hastily, I closed up the blind, flung my backpack and camera bags over my shoulders, and made my way to the warmer confines of my car.

It's approaching 11:30 as I wrap up this post, and I'm already looking forward to watching birds for Project FeederWatch tomorrow. I will definitely book another morning at the prairie-chicken blind in the coming years, and I will definitely make it for a later date in April or May.

Looking Forward

It's been a long week, due in part to some very "long week" weather. Rain, snow and strong winds have been rolling through the Upper Midwest the past several days, and the forecast for the week to come isn't looking much better (obviously a minor issue in the grand scheme). Today was a bit of an oasis, as the sun popped out of hiding to deliver a really pleasant afternoon.

A nice, short walk through the park turned up a fun little selection of birds such as one of my most favorite species--the brown creeper (posted just above). The ice has finally melted from the ponds, and the first wood ducks are beginning to appear.

Later in the day, I made the quick drive to the Rothsay area to scout for next weekend when I'm hoping to see my first ever Greater Prairie-Chickens! Today the fields were filled with a large happening of red-winged blackbirds, and I spotted a few first-of-year waterfowl in the small ponds. Also, this kestrel posted up to munch upon its freshly found lunch.

Early April FeederWatching

After a couple relatively busy weeks, I decided to give myself a quiet Project FeederWatch weekend. Saturday was a comfy day, and while the sun shone bright and warm, I snuck out to lie in the backyard and snap a few photos of this cottontail enjoying its little nook.

The robins have arrived in full force and at full volume. Good thing I wasn't sleeping well regardless of their pre-dawn chirps.

Saturday's most exciting observation: my second sighting of a female purple finch among the house finches at the sunflower lantern.

And on Sunday it snowed. Thankfully, the ground had warmed just enough to melt the large, poofy flakes on impact. In funner news, two northern flickers popped by the yard, and, at last, they're back . . .