I'll not top John Bissell for timing or birding skill. I stopped at Gray's Lake about an hour later than he a few days ago, and didn't see the eagles that day, nor did I see the mergansers he reported. Sigh.
Today, 4:15 to 4:35 pm: Hooded merganser: 2 males, 2 females Common goldeneye: 12-15 males, 5-8 females Bald eagle: 1 adult, flying low over the open water Mallards: many Gulls: very few; more than even chance that they were ring-bills, but they were in flight at a distance American crow: numerous; this is part of their winter roost area Canada goose: a few On Wednesday at about the same time there were 2 redheads, along with goldeneyes and mallards and geese. Seasonable temperatures (after a stretch of early April weather) are keeping the open water confined to shores and over the deepest parts of the lake. There are still large numbers of pine siskins coming to the home feeder. During the Great Backyard Bird Count I was able to count (wording is everything here) 10 at once. Early in February there were up to 24 at a time. On the day after the GBBC there were 16. (The old birders' quip about "count the feet and divide by two" comes to mind, except that it could be "count the siskins you think are there and multiply by three.") Lee Searles Des Moines --- Please contribute your sightings to our list; it is only as good as members make it! --- Birding channel recommendation for FRS/GMRS radio use: Primary selection; channel 5/0 , alternate selection; channel 6/0 --- This mailing list is sponsored by the Iowa Ornithologists' Union. Membership available on-line at http://www.iowabirds.org/iou/membership.asp. ----- You are currently subscribed to ia-bird as: [email protected]
