The Iowa City Bird Club held an outing to the Hawkeye Wildlife Area this morning. One of our esteemed members visited Sand Point last night and didn’t find much, so we did not visit there today. The “big” water at Half Moon Lake west of Greencastle Ave was by far the best location. The water is extremely low there and extensive mudflats are present. However there weren’t a great number or variety even at that. Killdeer, Pectoral and Least Sandpipers dominated. A number of Baird’s Sandpipers were present. Also seen were Semipalmated Sandpipers and Plovers, a Spotted Sandpiper, a Short-billed Dowitcher, Great Blue Herons and a Great Egret.
There is also some habitat at the Gun Club ponds along Greencastle Ave south of the intersection with the Swan Lake Rd. Killdeer and Lesser Yellowlegs dominated there, but there was also a Greater Yellowlegs, a Solitary Sandpiper, and a few Least Sandpipers. The most excitement came from an immature Peregrine who sat for viewing after scaring off all the shorebirds. It later stooped upon the birds at the Gun Club Ponds only yards from where the group stood. It didn’t come away with anything though. Chris Caster Coralville --- 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]
