Today I led an Iowa City Bird Club field trip to Shimek State Forest in Lee and Van Buren counties. We found most of the area's specialties, although we had to be content with just hearing some of them. We were impressed by the number of cuckoos, probably 15 or more total. Migration appears to be mostly over, and 1 Mourning Warbler and 2 Swainson's Thrushes were the only non-residents we found. I believe every other member of our group had at least one life bird, and some had ten or more, so it was a great day!
Croton Unit, Shimek SF Yellow-billed Cuckoo 8 Black-billed Cuckoo 2 Acadian Flycatcher 2 White-eyed Vireo 2 Blue-gray Gnatcatcher on nest Blue-winged Warbler 2 Northern Parula 2 Yellow-throated Warbler 1 Cerulean Warbler 1 Worm-eating Warbler 1 (ravine on right side of trail, about 50 yards from parking lot) Louisiana Waterthrush 1 Kentucky Warbler 3 Yellow-breasted Chat 3 Summer Tanager 2 Donnellson Unit, Shimek SF Red-shouldered Hawk 1 Yellow-throated Warbler 1 Kentucky Warbler 1 Hooded Warbler 3 (one male singing along both sides of the road south of the picnic area, two males singing N and NW of Martin Pond, including one male singing the same atypical song as last year) Farmington Unit, Shimek SF Eastern Wood-Pewee on nest Acadian Flycatcher 1 Yellow-throated Warbler 1 Pine Warbler 3 (two males and one female along Coal Mine Hollow Drive, after the road makes a sharp bend to the left) Eurasian Collared-Dove 1 (across the street from Casey's in Donnellson) Blue Grosbeak 1 (male singing on wire along 295th Street, just east of Belfast Avenue) Chris Edwards Solon, IA [email protected] --- 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]. Unsubscribe at http://iowabirds.org/Reporting/Listserv.aspx.
