One would expect that after a day and night of blowing snow and sleet, that the birds would be hunkered down and hard to find. That was not the case and we picked a few new ones as well. As a matter of fact the Sandhill Cranes (well, some of them) were out in the fields and others were soaring around in large numbers most of the day. Seems like they do not all go north at the same time, but in groups at different times. Sort of like being on the freeway all at the same time would not be a good idea, so they stretch it out. (food availability, etc)
A bird we saw in a bush by a small pond was the Northern Shrike which was a surprise to see. They are the bird that often impales its' prey on a barbed wire fence.
It was a four hawk day (Red Tail, Sharp Shinned, Kestrel and later in the day a Northern Harrier)), We also did better on the sparrows like the Savannah, Vesper, and Grasshopper Sparrow. At the Crane Trust visitor center we got our first Goldfinch and a White Crowned Sparrow. They have some feeders out back with a good window to observe the birds. On one pond we did observe two Horned Grebes which was new on this trip. All in all we observed 43 bird spedies today, which was the most of any day. Our total separate species is now 67 on this trip.
The snow still was drifted in spots and made a few roads and bridges places to proceed with extra care.
After traversing what we felt was enough of the roads, we stopped at two lakes near the freeway (ponds made from soil taken when the freeway were built) as they had good bird selection a few days ago. They were again good places to view. Lots of ducks again today and although we did not add any new birds we did see two semi palmated sandpipers on the shore of one of the small lakes.
We did have a light dinner at "Whiskey Creek" Restaurant before we went to see the Prairie Chickens. Ruth had ribs (rather dry) and I had a chicken done over a bed of spinach dip, with a SW salsa mixture on top with a baked potato. No dessert!
We ended the day by heading out to view, one more time, the Greater Prairie Chicken as they do their dance at sunset as well as sunrise. We were fortunate to arrive at the same place as before and they were there. We took more pictures but certainly being able to view these rare birds was all we needed. It is a gift. While we were there a Harrier was harrassing the birds but they were able to fly away for awhile until he finally left.
All in all it was a great week and we accomplished what we set out to do, namely see the masses of cranes and view the Greater Prairie Chicken in their natural habitat by ourselves. Platte River is a necessary stop for the Cranes each year. (People pay good money to visit a guided blind to see the Prairie Chicken).
Full moon tonight preceding that eclipse. It was rising as we finished with the
Prairie Chicken viewing.
So we head back tomorrow and with a stop over in Coralville IA. I may add a few notes of that day. Thanks for reading and drop a line so I can hear from you .(It will come automatically if you write a note here on the blog) . Happy birding…Jim and Ruth
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