Birdin' in IN

Indiana Swallow-tailed Kite

Last Sunday (August 22) I drove up to Michigan City, Indiana to look for the Swallow-tailed Kite that had been reported there, and had been there for almost a week. After the three-hour drive I pulled up to the area where it had been seen. There were several birders already there who had it in view, and I had SWALLOW-TAILED KITE (Indiana state bird number 223, year bird number 204) in the bag within 30 seconds of arriving.

Black-crowned Night-Heron

A report of a juvenile Black-crowned Night-Heron on Lingle Road on the Morgan-Owen county line provided my birding plans today, since I have never seen one in Indiana before. After some fruitless searching I managed to see it at a small pond about a half mile from where it was reported. It sat for a few minutes in a willow tree, then flew off toward the southwest. BLACK-CROWNED NIGHT-HERON is Indiana state bird number 222, year bird number 203.

A Summer Snowy Owl

Last Sunday (August 1) I drove up north of Lafayette, Indiana to look for a Snowy Owl that has been present for a couple of weeks or so. It has made itself at home in the vicinity of a Dairy Queen beside the busy Interstate, and is usually easy to find as it sits on the Dairy Queen sign or even the highway signs. However, when I got there, I was told that the owl flew off to the south at about 8:30 that morning and had not been seen since. I drove many of the back roads for several miles around the area hoping to see the bird out in the soybean fields, but no luck. As is typical of birds, it showed up again that evening at about 8:30.

I tried it again this morning, and as soon as I got to the Dairy Queen, I saw it across the road sittng on a large gravel pile. SNOWY OWL is Indiana state bird number 221, year bird number 202.

Although Snowy Owls are casual on the Great Lakes in the winter, some years showing up in good numbers, it is very unusual for one to be here in the summer. This may in fact be the only summertime sighting of a Snowy Owl in the Lower 48 States.

Sandpipers and More

This morning I drove to the north of Lafayette, Indiana to try to see a Snowy Owl that has been present for the last couple of weeks. Wouldn't you know that it apparently flew away early this morning about three hours before I got there. Very unusual for a Snowy Owl to be in the Lower 48 States during the summer.

On the way I stopped at a wetland in Lebanon, Indiana where I got two new state birds: STILT SANDPIPER (Indiana state bird number 218, year bird number 200) and BAIRD'S SANDPIPER (Indiana state bird number 219, year bird number 201).

On the way back from dipping on the owl, I stopped at a botanical garden in Lafayette where I got BLACK-CAPPED CHICKADEE (Indiana state bird number 220) at a feeder. Black-capped Chickadee was not a year bird, as I saw one in Illinois earlier this spring. Black-capped Chickadee is one of the commonest birds in the eastern United States; however, it took me more than a year to find one in Indiana, since I live in the southern part of the state, which is outside of its range, and this was the first opportunity I had to look for one in northern Indiana since I moved here a little over a year ago.

An Armchair Tick

Birding listservers are buzzing since it became known that Cackling Goose has been split from Canada Goose according to the 45th Supplement to the AOU Checklist published in the July 2004 issue of The Auk.

Despite similar plumage, Cackling Goose is noticeably smaller that a Canada Goose--not much larger than a Mallard. It now consists of several subspecies, including "Richardson's" Cackling Goose and "Aleutian" Cackling Goose, among others.

Because I have seen what was then the Richardson's form of Canada Goose in Colorado and Illinois, I can now add CACKLING GOOSE to my life list, ABA area list, Colorado state list, and Illinois state list.

Three New State Birds

This morning I drove over to Chinook Mine in Vigo County to try to spot Common Moorhens, Sedge Wrens, and American Bitterns that had been reported there. I struck out on the bittern, but quickly found COMMON MOORHEN (Indiana state bird number 215, year bird number 197) in the form of an adult and fluffy chick which were difficult to see as they stayed mainly in the cattails. After leaving the moorhens, I slowly drove the dirt roads on the mine property and heard, and then saw, a SEDGE WREN (Indiana state bird number 216, year bird number 198) in the tall grass at the side of the road.

From there, I drove down to Goose Pond in Greene County and found a pair of BLACK-NECKED STILT (Indiana state bird number 217, year bird number 199). The small body of water at which they may be nesting is not visible from the road, and I wouldn't have seen them, except that they were harrassing a Great Blue Heron which was flying by.

Gibson Power Plant

Had the day off today on account of the 4th of July holiday, so I decided to check out the Gibson Power Plant for Least Terns. Gibson Power Plant is in southwest Indiana along the Wabash River, about a two hour's drive from where I live. This is the only place in the state of Indiana where Least Terns nest, and marks the northernmost limit of their range in the Ohio/Wabash river valleys.

Within a few minutes after arriving at the power plant, I saw a tern flying above a high berm behind which is located one of the cooling lakes at the plant. It went out of sight below the level of the berm before I could rule out Forster's Tern. The cooling lake is where the terns breed, and is off limits behind a tall fence, so I had to wait along the side of the road before I could see it again. The next time it flew up, I was able to get it in my binoculars and confirm that it was a LEAST TERN (Indiana state bird number 213, year bird number 195). In all, I saw about five individuals, many of which were carrying small fish in their bills, presumably for young at the nesting area.

Feeling lucky for having found the tern so quickly, I checked out some of the small, brush-lined ponds near the plant to see if anything interesting was around. I got lucky again when I found a juvenile YELLOW-CROWNED NIGHT-HERON (Indiana state bird number 214, year bird number 196).

Not a bad morning's birding.

Eastern Screech-Owl

This evening I went to the home of a local birder who has had Eastern Screech-Owls nesting in his yard for the last three years. This year the pair of owls has fledged four young, and they make an appearance in his back yard almost every night. He has been feeding them mice, and frequently the owls will take them from his hand or from the ground within a few feet.

Tonight all six owls showed up and we got good close looks in the dusk. They were in the branches just a few feet over our heads. We tried to feed them mice, but tonight they did not take any. Nevertheless, it was exciting seeing so many owls so close. EASTERN SCREECH-OWL was Indiana state bird number 212, year bird number 194.

Universal Mines

This morning I went on a birding trip to Universal Mines in Vermillion County sponsored by the Sassafras Audubon Society. Universal Mines was once a strip mine which has since been restored to a grassland habitat, and is one of the better places in southwest Indiana to find grassland birds.

Although we tallied up a large trip list, highlights included RING-NECKED PHEASANT (Indiana state bird number 209, year bird number 190), UPLAND SANDPIPER (Indiana state bird number 210, year bird number 191), a flyby LEAST BITTERN (Indiana state bird number 211, year bird number 192), and Blue Grosbeak (year bird number 193).

Not a bad morning's birding.

Lark Sparrow

Drove down to Lawrence County this morning to look for Lark Sparrows that were reported from there yesterday. Almost as soon as I arrived I saw a LARK SPARROW (Indiana state bird number 208, year bird number 189) in a small tree by the side of the road. After a few minutes I had seen three or four individuals flying around and landing in a corn field.

Chuck-will's-widow

After about a two-week period with no new birds, and very little birding, I went to the end of Friendship Road in Bloomington to try to see Chuck-will's-widows that have been reported from there recently. When I arrived, there were about 12 birders waiting for the nightly show. Chucks are very rare in Monroe County, so they are a draw for local birders. Just at dusk we heard one calling west of the road, and then another on the east side. A CHUCK-WILL'S-WIDOW (Indiana state bird number 207, year bird number 188) flew over the road and landed in a tree. It was a quick glimpse, and not a very satisfying look. However, it was magical hearing them call in the dusk. I also heard distant Whip-poor-wills and Barred Owls.

Backyard Birds

I finally spotted the Willow Flycatcher (year bird number 186) I've been hearing in the bushes behind my house for the last week. And all of a sudden the Grasshopper Sparrows have arrived--I'm hearing them almost constantly in the grassy field where they were absent until yesterday. After some effort, I got a good look at a Grasshopper Sparrow (year bird number 187) calling from the top of a small tree.

Lincoln State Park

This morning I drove two hours south to Lincoln State Park. This is the only place in Indiana that I'm aware of where Mississippi Kites are reliable. The park represents the northernmost limit of their range in this part of the country. Why they don't extend farther north, where the habitat is exactly the same, I don't know. The kites have been breeding in the park yearly since the early 1990s.

While hiking on a trail through the woods to reach a pond where the kites have been seen, I found GREAT CRESTED FLYCATCHER (Indiana state bird number 205, year bird number 182) and Summer Tanager (year bird number 183).

No luck at the pond, but when I got back to my car in the parking lot, a MISSISSIPPI KITE (Indiana state bird number 206, year bird number 184) was "kiting" for insects overhead. I was able to watch it for about five minutes as it caught insects on the wing with its talons and eat them in mid-air. After the kite flew out of sight, I drove over to another pond where kites have been seen, and saw another Mississippi Kite attacking a Broad-winged Hawk (year bird number 185). In all, I saw four or five kites, although I may have seen individual birds more than once.

My streak for finding new Indiana state birds continues.

Bell's Vireo

While fishing along a willow-lined creek, I saw a Bell's Vireo (year bird number 181). It was carrying a small green caterpillar in its bill and was obviously agitated by my presence. After a short time, a second bird showed up, this one also carrying a caterpillar and upset with me being there. This indicated that they had a nest in the willows, so I moved on to leave them in peace and try my luck elsewhere.

Lake Lemon Herons, and More

Went to Lake Lemon this morning and saw Little Blue Heron (year bird number 178), Snowy Egret (year bird number 179), and WILSON'S WARBLER (Indiana state bird number 204, year bird number 180). The streak for new state birds continues.

My warbler count is now up to 21 species for the year.