October 2016

When Out Looking

Sometime bird reports are on the verge of Ripley’s Believe it or Not.  In October a Magnificent Frigatebird was spotted on Lake Yahola near Tulsa, Northern Saw-whet Owls were captured in Cherokee County and in November in Blaine County just looking up at a flock of Sandhill Crane flying overhead a Whooping Crane was identified.  One never knows what one can find unless one is out looking.

On the 1st C H Hemphill saw an Eastern Screech-Owl in northern Stillwater; Roy McGraw spotted an Osprey at Lake Elmer in Kingfisher County; Joe Buck detected Least Flycatcher at Hafer Park in Edmond; T K discovered a Sora Rail at William Morgan Park in Norman; and Joe Grzybowski had a Philadelphia Vireo at Lake Thunderbird State Park.  On the 2nd Mike Yough came across a Northern Parula at Couch Park in Payne County.  On the 3rd T K located the Common Tern at Lake Thunderbird Alameda Bridges. 

On the 6th at Lake Hefner Prairie Dog Point Cameron Carver identified a Sabine’s Gull, and John Hurd found a White-faced Ibis.  On the 7th Jiff Tibbits discovered Chimney Swift and Red-breasted Nuthatch in Logan County near West Simmons Road.  On the 8th Mike Yough got a Blue-headed Vireo at Sanborn Lake and Deb Hirt noticed a Red-eyed Vireo at Boomer Lake Park.  On the 10th Jerri Sheets recognized Scissor-tailed Flycatcher, Field Sparrow and Song Sparrow in Newcastle in McClain County.

On the 11th Kianna Mitchell saw a flock of Brewer’s Blackbirds at OSU Botanical Garden.  On the 12th Roy McGraw located the Common Tern at Lake Hefner Prairie Dog Point.  On the 13th Scott Loss recorded a Black-throated Green Warbler at Whittenberg Park in Stillwater and William Diffin tallied a Black-bellied Plover at Lake Hefner Prairie Dog Point.  On the 14th John Tharp turned up Baird’s Sandpiper and Semipalmated Sandpiper at Lake Thunderbird in different locations.  On the 17th Chrissy Barton spotted a Black-crowned Night-Heron at Boomer Lake Park.

On the 18th Larry May located a Black-necked Stilt at Lake Hefner Prairie Dog Point; at the Meridian Technology Center Pond Corey Riding discovered a Sora Rail and on the 20th a Greater Scaup. On the 19th Deanne McKinney birded Pauls Valley Lake in Garvin County and located Black Vulture, Osprey, Ruby-crowned Kinglet, and Nashville Warbler.  Roy McGraw spotted a Red-headed Woodpecker at Bell Cow Lake in Lincoln County; Scott Loss had a Pine Siskin in Whittenberg Park; Chrissy Barton saw a Scissor-tailed Flycatcher at Boomer Lake Park; Lindell Dillon encountered a Bonaparte’s Gull at Lake Hefner; and Michael Novak recognized a Field Sparrow at Lake Overholser. 

On the 21st Dave Woodson counted a Red-shouldered Hawk along Morgan Road in Canadian County.  On the 22nd Corey Riding added a Swamp Sparrow at the Teal Ridge Wetland in Stillwater while an immature Little Gull was discovered by Nathan Kuhnert and William Diffin at Lake Overholser NE mud flats. This immature bird was documented by several birders over the next few days.  On the 23rd in Logan County Brian Stufflebeam found an Osprey at Guthrie Lake and American Goldfinch at Mineral Wells Park while Jimmy Woodard located American White Pelican and Black Vulture at the Dolese Sand Pit and at Liberty Lake a Merlin and Bald Eagle.  On the 24th Chad Ellis saw Wild Turkey along Hwy 3 in Kingfisher County; and in Logan County along Canyon Road Zachary Hemans spotted a Northern Harrier.

On the 25th Joe Grzybowski discovered a Pine Warbler in Norman; T K recognized a Black-throated Green Warbler at Lake Thunderbird Alameda Bridges; and Steve Davis saw an American Goldfinch at Martin Park Nature Center.  On the 26th Zach Poland birded Lake Overholser and identified Common Loon, Canvasback, and Forster’s Tern; Rachel Wrenn located a Hermit Thrush at John H. Saxon Park; and Chad Ellis had a Scissor-tailed Flycatcher along West Hefner Road. 

On the 27th in Canadian County Joe Grzybowski noticed a Northern Harrier along Azalea Road, and at Lake El Reno Roy McGraw detected an American White Pelican and White-crowned Sparrow while in Cleveland County Caleb Frome discovered an American Pipit at Lake Stanley Draper.  On the 28th Jason Shaw reported Sandhill Crane and Northern Harrier at the USAO Habitat Area in Chickasha in Grady County, and at Lake Overholser an adult Little Gull was discovered by Caleb Frome, Zach Poland and Chad Ellis.  On the 29th Jeremy Ross saw a White-throated Sparrow at the George M. Sutton Wilderness Park; Caleb Frome verified a Brown Creeper, Gray Catbird and Orange-crowned Warbler along South Jenkins; and Daniel Martin found a Forster’s Tern at Lake Hefner’s Stars and Stripes Park.

On the 30th in Lincoln County at Meeker Lake Dala Grissom spotted Hooded Merganser, Pied-billed Grebe, Franklin’s Gull, White-breasted Nuthatch and Dark-eyed Junco while Jimmy Woodard detected Yellow-bellied Sapsucker, Hairy Woodpecker, House Wren, Golden-crowned Kinglet, and along I-44 near Chandler Richard Hasegawa identified a Short-eared Owl. Elsewhere in other counties at Little River State Park Daniel Martin had a Pileated Woodpecker; at the Myriad Botanical Gardens in downtown Oklahoma City Nathan Kuhnert located an American Woodcock, Brown Creeper and Grasshopper Sparrow while in Edmond Joe Buck recognized a Red-breasted Nuthatch. 

In the Central Oklahoma area during October 164 species were reported with 1 first of the year report bringing the year’s total to 281.  I appreciate those who help provide the history of central Oklahoma birds and can be contacted by e-mail at emkok@earthlink.net .  Esther M. Key, Editor.