I echo what others have said - what a great weekend! The drive to southwest Iowa was gruesome in the extreme winds on Friday, but those south winds also brought in a lot of new migrants. The gimp was primarily confined to car birding and still came up with 122 species for the weekend. Many thanks to the entire Dyche family for hosting us.
On the way home this afternoon I made a quick stop at Kellerton where Mike and Vicky Stephens had the same idea. We all struck out on finding any chickens, but had nice looks at Upland Sandpipers, heard Henslow's Sparrows, and had our first Bobolink of the year. Mike and Vicky also found a Grasshopper Sparrow. As I pulled up the computer, I noticed a confrontation of sorts on my feeders. A Rose-breasted Grosbeak was on the seed feeder and a Brown Thrasher sat on the birdbath. These two features are about a foot from each other. Both birds faced off with each other with beaks open. For a while there I really wasn't sure that feathers weren't going to be flying soon. The standoff lasted about a minute before the thrasher gave it up. Grosbeaks are the only birds that have drawn blood when I've banded them, so I'm thinking the thrasher made a wise choice. Enjoy spring! Ann Johnson Norwalk, IA --- 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]
