I concentrated on shorebirds today after my warbler outing yesterday. No new arrivals from what has already been reported. I checked Swan Lake (Hawkeye Wildlife Area, Johnson County) and Otter Creek Marsh (Tama County). Below is what I found, and species were present at both locations unless otherwise noted.
Also, I was at Otter Creek from 1:30 - 2:30 p.m. and did not see the Swallow-tailed Kite during that time. --Semipalmated Plover --Killdeer --Greater Yellowlegs (OCM) --Lesser Yellowlegs --Semipalmated Sandpiper --Western Sandpiper (Swan Lake, HWA -- reported Sat. evening by Jim Forde, still present Sunday) --Least Sandpiper --Baird's Sandpiper (OCM) --Pectoral Sandpiper --Stilt Sandpiper --Short-billed Dowitcher Shorebird conditions: At Hawkeye Wildlife Area, Swan Lake has shorebirds around the perimeter. Also at Hawkeye Wildlife Area, I checked Matson Pond which is almost completely dry now. It did have Leasts, Semip Sandpipers, Killdeer and Lesser Yellowlegs but nothing else and I would not expect it to last more than a couple more days without some heavy rain to refill it. At Otter Creek Marsh, the pond near the red barn is drying quickly also but still has shorebird habitat. It has shrunk enough that the carp have died and are spread all around the pond edges. Diana Pesek Cedar Rapids, Iowa --- 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]
