― Mary Oliver
American pussy willow Salix discolor
Though clear skies dominated the day, Sunday began on the chilly side with gusty winds from the east blowing down the length of the creek corridor. Dressing in layers, still. Alas, none of my usual birding compadres would be joining me for the cold hike. A few non-birding regulars were there, though. Comically, they see a birder sighting (especially me) as a harbinger of spring. As you know, I don't spend as much time birding the creek corridor during winter, but it definitely is the place to be late March through May.
Red-tailed Hawk Buteo jamaicensis
I entered the corridor from the gravel trail behind Middleton Veterinary Hospital, where a small drainage pond was created a few years ago. There was a pair of Canada Geese, Mallards, and a couple of Wood Ducks paddling around. Carefully watching the ground was a Red-tailed Hawk. It flew from tree to tree, keeping a sharp eye for anything that might make a good breakfast.
Unconcerned about the hawk, a few Song Sparrows were counter-singing in the understory. The one pictured below had a pretty muddy beak from poking around for food. We haven't had much precipitation lately, so he probably got his bill all messy from the mud along the pond's shoreline.
Song Sparrow Melospiza melodia
As predicted, I found an Eastern Phoebe. It gave only a single fee-da-bee song, the rest of its vocalizations consisted of chirps similar to that of a Swamp Sparrow's contact call. I also found a pair of Fox Sparrows, but that was much later on in my walk when I was over by the Conservancy Condos. I didn't find a single Common Redpoll at the feeders. Though some birders are still reporting them in Dane County, I haven't seen (or heard) one for a couple of weeks.
Eastern Phoebe Sayornis phoebe
I think the majority of redpolls have moved out of Dane County, but we still have plenty of Pine Siskins. This particular bird was singing away just a few feet above my head. No matter how I tried to change the angle between me and the siskin, there was always an obstructing branch.
Pine Siskin Spinus pinus
Near the far west end of the creek corridor one can see obvious signs that a beaver has been very hard at work ― but is it work or destruction? My friends Dave and Val noticed this, too, but no one, to my knowledge, has yet observed the animal responsible for the all wood chips. And where is its dam?
Late morning I stopped at Stricker's Pond before heading home. I picked up a FOY (first of year) Pied-billed Grebe, but way cooler than that were a bunch of Red-breasted Mergansers. There were eight, in fact. They spent most of their time courtship displaying in the center of the pond, so they were a bit too far away for my digiscoping rig's reach. However, a few of them eventually came in a little closer, giving me a opportunity to share their remarkable beauty with you.
Red-breasted Merganser Mergus serrator
March is nearly over and April is just right around the corner. Soon there will be Yellow-rumped Warblers, Pine Warblers, Hermit Thrushes, Brown Thrashers, and Eastern Towhees to observe and photograph. And spring ephemeral wildflowers ... and then tiger beetles! It remains to be seen if Mark Johnson and I will go on an excursion to get our two remaining Wisconsin tiger beetle species. But before all of that, I'm hoping for a cool day in early May to bring warblers into low digiscoping range.
Pheasant Branch, Dane, Wisconsin, US
Mar 25, 2018 7:30 AM - 9:15 AM
39 species
Canada Goose
Wood Duck
Mallard
Turkey Vulture
Cooper's Hawk
Bald Eagle
Red-tailed Hawk
Sandhill Crane
Killdeer
Ring-billed Gull
Mourning Dove
Red-bellied Woodpecker
Downy Woodpecker
Hairy Woodpecker
Pileated Woodpecker
American Kestrel
Eastern Phoebe
Blue Jay
American Crow
Black-capped Chickadee
Tufted Titmouse
White-breasted Nuthatch
Brown Creeper
Carolina Wren
Eastern Bluebird
American Robin
European Starling
American Tree Sparrow
Fox Sparrow
Dark-eyed Junco
White-throated Sparrow
Song Sparrow
Northern Cardinal
Red-winged Blackbird
Common Grackle
House Finch
Pine Siskin
American Goldfinch
House Sparrow
Stricker's Pond, Dane, Wisconsin, US
Mar 25, 2018 11:00 AM - 11:20 AM
21 species
Canada Goose
Wood Duck
Mallard
Bufflehead
Red-breasted Merganser
Pied-billed Grebe
Turkey Vulture
Red-tailed Hawk
Killdeer
Mourning Dove
Downy Woodpecker
American Crow
Black-capped Chickadee
White-breasted Nuthatch
American Robin
Dark-eyed Junco
Song Sparrow
Northern Cardinal
Red-winged Blackbird
Common Grackle
American Goldfinch
All images © 2018 Mike McDowell