Big Midwest Weekend - Part 1

Was I supposed to be birdwatching or storm chasing (or storm-chased)? Easy to forget as I made my drive through South Dakota on Thursday afternoon. Perhaps twenty miles south of Watertown, I-29 was swallowed by a startlingly dark mass of cloud and dirt, forcing Interstate travelers such as myself onto shoulders and underneath overpasses. Strong winds and heavy rains buffeted the car a good while before letting up to drivable conditions. The next ten minutes revealed the carnage with semis and their trailers tipped into the shoulders and ditches.

I paused for gas in Sioux Falls and, figuring I wouldn't make it to Sioux City before sunset as planned, decided to do a bit of birding at Sherman Park.

The park was a mess of garbage bins and debris flung about by the storm. Ambulances and other emergency vehicles were active. Several traffic lights were out. I had twenty minutes at the park before dark clouds began rolling back over town, and the rain resumed. With the weather updates warning of half-dollar hail, I ducked my car into the nearest sturdy cover I could find--the drive-thru at the nearby Walgreens-- and waited out the worst of the day's second storm before hopping back on interstate, hoping I was done with the worst of the weekend's weather. All the way to Onawa, Iowa, I was treated to an incredible show of nature--huge streaks of lightning cutting across the sky and dancing to the horizon on either side of me.

The next morning, gray but calm skies stretched over the DeSoto National Wildlife Refuge. The refuge was packed with orchard orioles, dickcissels and swallows, and although I didn't see anything to add to the life list, it was a good start to a busy day of birding.

After DeSoto, it was time for Missouri. It was also time for a few lifers to pop up. The Brickyard Hill Conversation Area was a nice little woodland area nestled onto its namesake not far from Interstate, and not long after jumping out of the car I added the beautiful Kentucky warbler, the energetic tufted titmouse and the stunning white-eyed vireo to the life list! There were also lots of cool butterflies and moths fluttering about the lower vegetation.

Mound City was my next destination. The day was getting hotter and hotter--not something I will complain about considering the day prior (not to mention the winter too recent in mind). I made a quick pause at the Mound City marsh, but the heat and glaring sun were quite intense, and the water was looking rather desolate but for a few Canadas so I headed to my hotel to unwind.

As the sun began to set, I set off around town. For an interstate town, Mound City was rustic. It was awesome seeing so many purple martin houses around.

It was a great day for birdwatching--a great start to the weekend. And Big Day was still to come.

A small first before a big day

Big day is so, so near.

And while I've been greatly looking forward to that, there was something to celebrate at this week's start. Songbird migration is obviously well under way, with the warbler action really starting to heat up around the state. On Sunday morning, upon returning from the tree disposal site, I sliced up a mandarin orange and left the slices on my otherwise empty platform feeder. I was yet to have any orioles at my feeders (granted, they've only been up for a few migrations), but I didn't have long to wait as, while watching the Miami GP, I went to get a drink, looked out the window, and saw:

Two male orchard orioles (mature on left, immature on right)! Success! The orioles stuck around the rest of the day--taking some orange slices to enjoy in the hedges--and another (or the same?) immature male was at the feeder this afternoon.

One of a couple Swainson's thrush spotted hopping about the backyard.

A gorgeous week

May is off to a great start with warmer air, bluer skies, and more birds passing through town. It was an economic week of birding to kick the month off.

My first stop for the week was the Kidder Recreation Area.

A few days later I was welcomed to the park by this fox squirrel.

Had a quiet afternoon at the archery range, but I did get a peek at a Pileated Woodpecker and a much closer look at a Groundhog!

Another beautiful morning at the park preceded a stormy evening. It's always amazing how green the grass can be after the long, white winter.

It's (the dreaded) season of flycatcher identification. My last outing of the week was the city's tree disposal site. I was happy to see my first chimney swift and gray catbird of the year.

Now it's all about preparing for Big Day.

Let it be MAY!

 It's May. Yes.

It was a cool and rainy/snowy April for North Dakota. But I managed to get out and bird around town on the month's nicer days.

April's end also marks the end of the Project FeederWatch season.

May 2022 opened with a cloudy, windy and mercifully dry afternoon. I headed down to the park seeking out hermit thrush and came away with a lot more! Can't wait to get out and turn up some warblers as they pass through.

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!