Hello Birders, Bill Huser, Daniel Leger (from Lincoln, NE), and I found some 100+ White-winged Crossbills at Graceland Cemetery in Sioux City, IA today. Of those, I managed to get a flight shot with 83 birds in it! The big flock showed up at 10:00am, with only a couple of individuals giving us fleeting views before then. It was really hard to believe there were so many birds-the trees were alive with activity. I managed to get some nice photos as a flock of 20 birds landed just 10 feet away from me! Here is the link to the photos of this years invasion:
http://www.flickr.com/photos/backpackingbirdwatcher/sets/72157629511661443 Later on, we headed over to Dakota City, NE and found another 25 crossbills at that cemetery. Spring is definitely here-1000s of geese are flying over now and many Bald Eagles are in the mix as well. Among the hoards of geese, I have managed to pick out a fair number of Rosss and Cackling. Mourning Doves are beginning to show up in more places now, Lapland Longspurs are on the move, and I saw a Killdeer in Bronson this afternoon as well. Good Birding, Tucker J. Lutter Bronson, IA (712)-948-3696 --- 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/PayDues.aspx. ----- You are currently subscribed to ia-bird as: [email protected]
