Recorders Report
Some are arriving: Some are leaving
by Esther Key
Birds previously reported during the year are Inca Dove and Short-eared Owl by Emily Hjalmarson in Norman. On August 31st Ben Sandstrom recognized Canada Warbler at the Yukon City Park. On the 1st in Canadian County Bill Diffin reported Black-and-white Warbler and Yellow Warbler in Yukon City Park and at Rose Lake Common Yellowthroat; while Brian Marra verified Laughing Gull at John Marshall School Pond in Oklahoma City. On the 2nd Brian Marra discovered Canada Warbler at Stinchcomb Wildlife Refuge; Jerry Taylor counted White-breasted Nuthatch in his yard in Oklahoma City; and Katrina Hucks noticed White-faced Ibis at John Marshall School Pond.
On the 3rd Roy McGraw counted White-faced Ibis at Mineral Wells Park at Guthrie in Logan County; and Joe Grzybowski found Peregrine Falcon at Goldsby Sod Farm and Swainson’s Hawk along Ladd Road in McClain County. Meanwhile, Canada Warblers were identified by John Tharp along South Jenkins in Norman and Zach Poland at Stinchcomb Wildlife Refuge in OKC. On the 4th Rugger Collier located a Yellow-crowned Night-Heron at OU; Jimmy Woodard spotted Purple Martin at Joe B Barnes Park in Midwest City; and Bill Diffin noticed Louisiana Waterthrush at Stinchcomb Wildlife Refuge. On the 5th Jason Shaw viewed a Mourning Warbler at Austin Hall in Grady County; and Ryan P. O’Donnell recorded Green-winged Teal and Orchard Oriole at Prairie Dog Point.
On the 6th Emily Hjalmarson came across Northern Waterthrush and Mourning Warbler in William Morgan Park in Norman. On the 7th Corey Riding detected Great Horned Owl on Devin Lea Street in Stillwater. On the 8th Brian Marra encountered in Seminole County at the Maud Wetlands Snowy Egret, Little Blue Heron, Cattle Egret; at Lake Konawa Bell’s Vireo and Bewick’s Wren and in Pottawattamie County at Tecumseh Lake Green Heron; at Shawnee Reservoir—Lower Section Wild Turkey, and at Little River Wetland Bald Eagle. Meanwhile, Emily Hjalmarson got Caspian Tern at Lake Thunderbird in Cleveland County; Chad Ellis observed a Western Sandpiper at John Marshall School Pond in Oklahoma City; and Chase Moxley saw Loggerhead Shrike at Lake Hefner Prairie Dog Point.
On the 9th Roy McGraw discovered Summer Tanager and White-breasted Nuthatch at Wes Watkins Lake in Pottawattamie County; Zach Poland located Olive-sided Flycatcher, House Wren, Upland Sandpiper, and Wilson’s Warbler at his home in Logan County; John Tharp determined a Common Tern and Black Tern at Lake Thunderbird; Joe Grzybowski observed American Redstart in Norman; and Steve Davis recognized Least Tern at John Marshall School Pond. On the 10th Joe Grzybowski saw Northern Parula in Norman; and Daniel Martin viewed Common Nighthawk at the Metro Service Station in Oklahoma City.
On the 11th Ian Hearn had Mississippi Kite at Lake El Reno; and Bill Diffin counted Caspian Tern and Black Tern at John Marshall School Pond. On the 10th Cody Barnes documented Magnificent Frigatebird at Lake Carl Blackwell in Payne County where Scott Loss also saw one in June; and Dustin Lynch had a Common Nighthawk at his home in Grady County. On the 13th Jimmy Woodard saw American Goldfinch and Eastern Meadowlark at Lake Stanley Draper. On the 14th Deb Hirt confirmed Yellow-billed Cuckoo at Boomer Lake Park.
On the 15th in Canadian County Bill Radke detected Olive-sided Flycatcher at Rose Lake; Elizabeth & Tim Pratt had Black-crowned Night Heron and Osprey at Lake El Reno; Bill Diffin reported Eared Grebe and Olive-sided Flycatcher at Rose Lake. Elsewhere, Joe Grzybowski watched Caspian Tern and Forster’s Tern at Lake Thunderbird; Kathy McAnally spotted Great Crested Flycatcher and Little Blue Heron at Lake Carl Blackwell; Brian Marra tallied Tree Swallow at Arcadia Lake; and William Radke had Eared Grebe at Lake Overholser. On the 16th Deanne McKinney found Greater Roadrunner, House Finch, and American Goldfinch at Mt. Olivet Cemetery in Garvin County. On the 18th Scott Loss got Pine Warbler, Summer Tanager, and Yellow-headed Blackbird at Lake Carl Blackwell. On the 22nd at the Goldsby Sod Farm Joe Grzybowski encountered a Pectoral Sandpiper, Yellow-headed Blackbird; and Zach DuFran identified White-faced Ibis, and Least Sandpiper.
On the 23rd Dala Grissom tallied a Cattle Egret and Osprey in Shawnee; Esther Key added White-faced Ibis at Maysville and Loggerhead Shrike at Foster in Garvin County; Christie Stoops saw a Ruby-throated Hummingbird at Cottonwood Creek in Logan County; Deanne McKinney documented a Northern Harrier at Rose Lake; and Bill Diffin identified Orange-crowned Warbler, Kentucky Warbler, and Common Yellowthroat at Myriad Botanical Garden in downtown OKC. Around Norman John Tharp verified a Chestnut-sided Warbler, Yellow Warbler, and Yellow-throated Warbler along South Jenkins; Emily Hjalmarson confirmed Wilson’s Warbler at Griffin Community Park; and Joe Grzybowski discovered Blue-headed Vireo and Orange-crowned Warbler in his neighborhood.
On the 24th Rachel Wrenn reported House Wren, White-eyed Vireo, Ruby-crowned Kinglet and Nashville Warbler in Norman. On the 25th Jason Shaw found a Barred Owl at the USAO Habitat Area in Grady County; and Michael Kane has Warbling Vireo at Stinchcomb Wildlife Refuge. On the 26th Caleb Frome-CC had Pied-billed Grebe at the George M. Sutton Wilderness in Norman; John Tharp viewed Broad-winged and Swainson’s Hawk along South Jenkins; and Lindell Dillon encountered Black Vulture at Lake Thunderbird. Scott Loss reported Wilson’s Warbler at Sanborn Lake in Payne County; Caleb McKinney noticed Chimney Swift at Shannon Springs Park in Grady County. Ben Sandstrom recognized at the Yukon City Park Blue-headed Vireo; and at Stinchcomb Wildlife Refuge House Wren, Nashville Warbler, and Gray Catbird; and John Hurd had Marsh Wren at Dolese Youth Park in OKC.
During September of 2018 in the Central Oklahoma area 162 species were reported with 3+2 new species bringing the total for the year to 277. I appreciate those who help provide the history of central Oklahoma birds by making reports at http://ebird.org (an online database of bird distribution and abundance from Cornell Lab of Ornithology, Ithaca, New York.) Data for this report was accessed in eBird on August 30th, 2018 and at various times on Facebook and the OKBIRDS List. I can also be contacted by e-mail at emkok@earthlink.net. Esther M. Key, Editor.
Sept Sum May April Mar Feb Jan
Kingfisher 037 037 032 032 032 032 000
Garvin 090 087 079 061 052 045 039
Pottawatomie 091 089 081 072 033 032 000
Seminole 095 090 090 042 024 014 000
Lincoln 107 106 080 071 062 058 043
McClain 116 112 105 082 056 048 035
Grady 144 143 141 125 094 069 060
Logan 170 166 165 139 098 087 080
Canadian 200 197 194 167 109 085 074
Payne 236 235 233 215 138 121 115
Cleveland 237 219 221 191 138 117 110
Oklahoma 241 239 233 211 143 125 118
Number of bird species reported in 2018 according to eBird www.ebird.org