Yesterday morning’s cold temperatures and lingering fog was a test of our winter birding skills or startling evidence of our birding addiction. We started at Cooper Creek Reservoir late morning expecting the sun to show up, but it never did. Jeanette is shown counting Canada Geese coming in to Cooper Creek Reservoir. Her sharp eyes also picked out four busy Wilson’s Snipes feeding along the muddy edge of the cattails, that I not only had over looked, but had great difficulty locating even as she explained where they were.
After an hour at Cooper Creek we went over to Plat I Reservoir where Jeanette’s sharp eyes again located a prize, two Pectoral Sandpipers, not only a new county listing for me, but a new addition to my Life List. They are brief migrants here in route from their breeding grounds in the arctic tundra to winter homes in South America. Winter birding has its challenges of dealing with cold and moisture, but also presents good opportunities to spot unusual migrating species.
Any sightings of the Pelican @ Plat I?
ReplyDeleteYes Patty he was there, kind of sleeping, not sure if he was ok or not. Will be checking again, soon I hope.
ReplyDeleteGreat perspective on the unique opportunities of birding in the Fall! Thanks for your posts.
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