Recorders Report
by Esther Key
During February winter was in full swing with several events of ice and snow. Quite a number of people participated in the Great Backyard Bird Count. Even so did all central Oklahoma counties have reports?
On the 3rd Chase Moxley came across Virginia Rail at Lake Hefner Prairie Dog Point. On the 4th Steve Welborn viewed Great Blue Heron at Maud Wetlands in Seminole County. On the 6th Ben Sandstrom located Hooded Merganser and Brewer’s Blackbird at Bell Cow Lake. On the 8th Bill Carrell identified Neotropic Cormorant at Lake Hefner. On the 9th Logan Dickinson saw Wild Turkey near Tuttle and Aaron Mechem recognized Bald Eagle at Lake Hefner. On the 10th Dennis Cooke reported Ferruginous Hawk near El Reno. On the 11th Jimmy Woodward heard American Woodcock near his yard in Midwest City. On the 13th Bill Diffin found Brewer’s Blackbird at Fort Reno; and Calvin Rees detected Long-tailed Duck and Common Goldeneye at Lake Hefner Prairie Dog Point.
Great Backyard Bird Count
On the 15th at Shawnee in Pottawatomie County Kay Watson added Downey Woodpecker, White-breasted Nuthatch and White-crown Sparrow. At Ninnekah in Grady County Connie Taylor did four counts at her Outdoor Classroom and encountered House Finch, Harris’s Sparrow, and Swainson’s Hawk. In McClain County near Blanchard Laura Madden identified Cedar Waxwing and Field Sparrow, while near Newcastle Larry Mays observed Tufted Titmouse, Red-breasted Nuthatch and Pine Siskin. In Logan County at South Muhall, Bridger Arrington recognized American Goldfinch and Red-bellied Woodpecker; at Kairworks Garden D&D Norris spotted White-throated Sparrow and Yellow-rumped Warbler; and at Cottonwood Creek Christie Stoops viewed Double-crested Cormorant, Ruby-crowned Kinglet and Brown Creeper. In Canadian County at Lake Overholser Roy McGraw counted Horned Grebe, Red-breasted Merganser and Redhead Duck. In Oklahoma County at Lake Hefner Matt Jung got Lesser Black-backed Gull and Bald Eagle.
On the 16th in Pottawatomie County during a four hour count on Bangus Road near Tecumseh Kevin Kastler recorded Wood Duck, Eastern Screech-Owl, and Red-breasted Nuthatch. At Ninnekah in Grady County Caleb McKinney turned up Loggerhead Shrike and Yellow-rumped Warbler. In Lincoln County at the Grey Snow Eagle House Drew Sinnes added Turkey Vulture and Red-shouldered Hawk and in Chandler Jonathan Navarro got Cedar Waxwing. At Guthrie in Logan County Van Cordray identified Northern Flicker and Bewick’s Wren; Melinda West noticed Red-breasted Nuthatch and Fox Sparrow; Van Cordray detected Downy Woodpecker; and in a more rural area Zach Poland confirmed Ring-necked Duck, Gadwall, and Great Horned Owl. At Edmond in Oklahoma County Brad Rose photographed Lark Sparrow. In Canadian County in Surrey Hills Wyndi Bradley found Red-breasted Nuthatch; and in Piedmont Summer Thiele observed Yellow-bellied Sapsucker. In Oklahoma County at Mitch Park in Edmond Melinda Droege came across Field Sparrow and Spotted Towhee. At the Oklahoma City Zoo Rebecca Snyder spotted Northern Shoveler, Canvasback, and Black-crowned Night-Heron; and Sharon Henthorn reported Greater Roadrunner and Ruddy Duck.
On the 17th in Grady County at Tuttle LaDonna Evans saw White-breasted Nuthatch and Pine Siskin. In Lincoln County at Stroud Mark Sykora had Mourning Dove and Carolina Wren. At the Kingfisher Library Tracie Verkler discovered House Finch and Common Grackle. In Cleveland County on a ranch in the southern area Robert Karges counted Ferruginous Hawk; and at Lake Thunderbird C. Sledge encountered Pileated Woodpecker and Golden-crowned Kinglet. In Payne County at Stillwater Scott Loss recognized American Woodcock. In Oklahoma County at Lake Hefner Bill Diffin documented Yellow-billed Loon and Caleb Frome – CC located Black Scoter and Horned Grebe.
On the 18th in Pottawatomie County at Shawnee RE Carlberg counted Purple Finch and Harris’s Sparrow and along Old Hwy 18 Hope McGaha found Song Sparrow and Brewer’s Blackbird. In Grady County at Pocasset Terri Moorman’s class observed House Finch, Purple Finch and Lincoln’s Sparrow. In McClain County at Purcell Lake Zach DuFran noticed Yellow-bellied Sapsucker and Pied-billed Grebe. In Payne County in Stillwater Angela Herron heard Eastern Screech-Owl; Tim O’Connell came across a Rusty Blackbird while walking his dog; at Boomer Lake Park Deb Hirt had Pied-billed Grebe and Herring Gull; and at Lake Carl Blackwell Shane Sherwood spotted American Wigeon and Canvasback. In Oklahoma County at Bluff Creek Trails north of Lake Hefner Roy McGraw reported Belted Kingfisher and Ruby-crowned Kinglet, and in Edmond Chad Scott added Ferruginous Hawk. At the end of the GBBC ten out of twelve central Oklahoma counties participated.
On the 19th near Marshall Shane Sherwood got Northern Pintail and Great Blue Heron; in Norman Rachel Wrenn confirmed Song Sparrow and Eastern Bluebird; and in Edmond Hal Yocum discovered Brown Creeper and Pine Siskin. On the 22nd in Norman John Tharp documented American Woodcock; and at Ten Mile Flat Laurie Ireland located Wilson’s Snipe and Canvasback. On the 23rd at Arcadia Lake Brian Marra reported Wood Duck, Barred Owl, and Eastern Towhee; and in Kingfisher County at Hennessey Jennifer Knutson saw Savannah Sparrow, Northern Harrier and Barred Owl and at Lake Elmer Zach Poland encountered Wilson’s Snipe, Bald Eagle and Fox Sparrow.
On the 24th in Garvin County along I-35 Abbie Valine detected Black Vulture and Red-tailed Hawk; and in Lincoln County at Bell Cow Lake Roy McGraw confirmed Pileated Woodpecker and Northern Flicker. On the 25th George Ross recorded Blue-winged Teal at Lake Hefner; and Deanne McKinney identified Eastern Screech-Owl in Oklahoma City. On the 26th in Seminole County Steve Davis noticed Loggerhead Shrike and Swamp Sparrow at Wewoka Lake and Red-headed Woodpecker at Sportsman Lake; and in Logan County at Liberty Lake Zachary Hemans documented Blue-winged Teal and Belted Kingfisher. On the 28th in Norman Jennifer Waters spotted Orange-crowned Warbler; and at Boomer Lake Park Caleb McKinney found Lesser Black-backed Gull and Northern Flicker. Will March weather get warmer? When will spring migration start and where?
During February of 2019 in the Central Oklahoma area 138 species were reported with 5 new species bringing the total for the year to 148. I appreciate those who help provide the history of central Oklahoma birds. Information is accessed at: ebird. 2019 eBird: An online database of bird distribution and abundance [web application]. eBird Cornell Lab of Ornithology, Ithaca, New York. Available: http://www.ebird.org/subnational1/US-OK/region. (Accessed: February 28, 2019). And occasionally from Facebook and the OKBIRDS List. I can be contacted by e-mail at emkok@earthlink.net. Esther M. Key, Editor.
Feb Jan
Garvin 020 019
Seminole 036 000
Grady 058 046
McClain 064 051
Lincoln 068 057
Pottawatomie 071 054
Kingfisher 079 073
Logan 089 078
Canadian 110 089
Cleveland 115 111
Payne 119 103
Oklahoma 137 125
Number of bird species reported in 2019 according to eBird. Current year, region. www.ebird.org