Recorders Report – October 2017
Flyover Surprises
During migration sometimes the best discoveries are those that briefly flyover as they move from summer to winter locations. But some flyovers find their paths blocked by unseen obstacles. All the same birding involves looking and listening from ground level to sky high and the question is: Will these flyovers stop somewhere nearby for a while?
On October the 28th Deanne McKinney observed Wood Duck at Paul’s Valley Lake in Garvin County. On the 30th Caleb McKinney found Blue-headed Vireo at Ninnekah in Grady County. On the 1st Laura Madden watched Yellow-rumped Warbler and Dark-eyed Junco at Blanchard in McClain County; and Caleb McKinney counted Nashville Warbler, Sharp-shinned Hawk, Mourning Warbler, and Common Yellowthroat near Ninnekah. On the 2nd Caleb Frome reported Osprey, White-eyed Vireo, and Northern Rough-winged Swallow at Purcell Lake in McClain County; and Deanne McKinney spotted Wilson’s Snipe near Rose Lake in Canadian County. On the 3rd John Bates had Marsh Wren at Jim’s Sparrow Rest in south OKC; and Bill Diffin witnessed a Summer Tanager at Mitch Park in Edmond.
On the 5th Zach Poland documented Black-and-white Warbler, Mourning Warbler and Wilson’s Warbler at the Myriad Botanical Garden in downtown Oklahoma City. On the 6th Karl Mechem viewed Chimney Swift and Common Yellowthroat at Rose Lake; and John Tharp detected Dickcissel and Black-throated Green Warbler at Lake Thunderbird North Sentinel. On the 7th Caleb McKinney turned up Brown Thrasher in Grady County; Emily Hjalmarson found Great Egret, Osprey, and Common Yellowthroat in Pottawatomie County; Bill Diffin verified American Redstart at the Myriad Botanical Gardens; and Scott Loss spotted Upland Sandpiper and Common Nighthawk at Whittenberg Park in Stillwater.
On the 8th in Logan County Bridger Arrington saw Cattle Egret near South Mulhall, in Kingfisher County Zach Poland turned up Swainson’s Hawk and Greater Roadrunner; in Garvin County Caleb McKinney added Orange-crowned Warbler. Meanwhile, Emily Hjalmarson got Common Yellowthroat at William Morgan Park in Norman; Charles Lyon identified Eared Grebe and Peregrine Falcon at Lake Hefner; and Joe Grzybowski heard Fish Crow at UCO. On the 9th in Garvin County Swainson’s Hawk was spotted between Maysville and Lindsay, in McClain County at Purcell Lake Spotted Sandpiper was recorded; at Wiley Post Memorial Lake Lincoln and Clay-colored Sparrows were seen and Larry Mays discovered a Pine Siskin at his home. On the 10th in Stillwater Scott Loss detected Broad-winged Hawk at Whittenberg Park, and Deb Hirt recognized American Avocet at Boomer Lake Park. On the 11th Corban Hemphill documented Clay-colored Sparrow in Stillwater. On the 13th Augustus Warne noticed House Wren, White-breasted Nuthatch and White-crowned Sparrow at Bell Cow Lake in Lincoln County.
On the 14th Nathan Kuhnert encountered a window kill Cassin’s Sparrow at the Myriad Botanical Garden, and Dakota Byus tallied Wood Duck and Blue-winged Teal at Bell Cow Lake. On the 15th Cameron Carver verified Common Nighthawk near Wynnewood in Garvin County, and on the 16th he reported a Turkey Vulture and Pileated Woodpecker along I-40 in Seminole County. On the 18th there were eight participants in the Big Sit in Jimmy Woodward and Nadine Varner’s yard and they found a total of 41 species including Hairy Woodpecker, Eastern Towhee, Pine Siskin, and after everybody left Wild Turkey. On the 20th Zachary Hemans counted Northern Harrier and White-crowned Sparrow at his home in Logan County; and John Tharp observed Red-breasted Nuthatch in Norman. On the 21st Lesser Black-backed Gull was seen at Lake Thunderbird Calypso Cove.
On the 22nd Joe Grzybowski recognized Swamp Sparrow along South Jenkins; Ben Sandstrom counted a Yellow-bellied Sapsucker and Blue-headed Vireo in Yukon City Park; Brian Stufflebeam found Black-throated Green Warbler at Martin Park Nature Center; Esther Key saw a Northern Harrier and Savannah Sparrow at Foster in Garvin County; at Washington in McClain County Wilson’s Snipe, American Pipit, Cedar Waxwing and Vesper Sparrow were seen. On the 26th John Hurd watched American Avocet at Stinchcomb WMA west; and Scott Loss tallied American Wigeon, Lincoln’s Sparrow and Orange-crowned Warbler at Sanborn Lake. On the 27th Sylvias Serpentine got Fox Sparrow at Couch Park. On the 28th Caleb McKinney noticed a Bald Eagle and Sharp-shinned Hawk north of Ninnekah; Zach Poland discovered a Hermit Thrush at his home in Logan County; and Thomas Jones located Redhead Ducks at Meridian Technology Center Pond.
On the 28th as they were flying over Stillwater heading south Scott Loss heard and identified Red Crossbill at Whittenberg Park and a bit later Corey Riding observed them at Babcock Park. On the 29th Jason Shaw added a Cackling Goose at Shannon Springs Park in Grady County; Zach Poland recorded Greater Yellowlegs at his home in Logan County; Thomas Jones had Belted Kingfisher and Song Sparrow at Purcell Lake; Nathan Kuhnert identified Red-breasted Nuthatch and Ovenbird at Myriad Botanical Gardens; and Cody Barnes viewed Northern Harrier at Teal Ridge Wetland. On the 31st Larry Mays witnessed Harris’s Sparrow at his home in Newcastle; and Caleb Frome encountered Ruby-crowned Kinglet, Fox Sparrow, Spotted Towhee and Brewer’s Blackbird at Stinchcomb WMA west. Now the Christmas Bird Counts are approaching. Which one will you participate in: at home as a backyard reporter or in the field?
In Central Oklahoma only Seminole county remains under 100 species seen this year while three counties are reporting over 235 species seen for the year. What a difference it makes when many people bird and report for a county. During October of 2017 in the Central Oklahoma area 161 species were reported with 2 new species which increased the year’s total to 268. I appreciate those who help provide the history of central Oklahoma birds by making reports at http://ebird.org and can also be contacted by e-mail at emkok@earthlink.net . Esther M. Key, Editor.