January 23 Field Trip Report

Wearing masks and social-distancing, eight of us birded three locations this morning.  Our group found some good birds, but three of the more remarkable species were not seen by everyone.

Long before the trip began, Charlie heard an Eastern Screech Owl near the east end of the Muskegon Channel.  Later in the same area we found eight other species including Long-tailed Duck, Red-breasted and Common Merganser, and Herring and Ring-billed Gull (some with their undersides beautifully lighted by the morning sunrise).

Sunrise by Carol Cooper

At the south breakwall of Pere Marquette Park we missed some White-winged Scoters reported soon after we left.  We did see eight species including Greater Scaup, Redhead, Long-tailed Duck and Bald Eagle.

After driving to Lake Harbor Park, we walked the trail along the Mona Lake Channel out to Lake Michigan.

Mona Lake Channel birders by Carol Cooper

Along the way we found 11 bird species including Pileated Woodpecker and our best view of Long-tailed Ducks.

Long-tailed Ducks by Charlie DeWitt

Carol saw an American Robin on the way to Black Lake Park, our final destination.  Our group found eight species there, none out of the ordinary, and dozens of ice fishermen on the lake.  A nice morning outing despite the cold weather and Covid precautions!

Meetings Canceled / Field Trips Continued

The most optimistic forecast predicts late April as the time by which most ordinary Michigan citizens will have received their Covid vaccinations.  Until then, indoor congregations would of course be unnecessarily dangerous if not illegal.  So instead of continuing to announce month-by-month the status of our meetings/programs, we're canceling them now through April.  Grand Rapids Audubon and Holland Audubon have already announced similar plans.

Whether we hold the outdoor potluck picnic meeting on May 20 is still undecided.  In a few months if we decide to have it, we will contact Michigan State Parks to reserve the Snug Harbor pavilion again.

Meanwhile we will continue our monthly field trips on the dates of our original schedule, but with social-distancing, masks if appropriate, and without car-pooling once the trips begin.   How we conduct the May 15 Big Day Count is still anybody's guess.

Christmas Bird Count Updates

Although there were no official meetings of people (or lunches at the Cherokee or Grandma's Griddle Restaurants), we still obtained some decent bird numbers on the Muskegon County Wastewater CBC December 16 and the City of Muskegon CBC December 19.  Numbers for the City CBC were compiled for the official North American records and keep our club's participation in Christmas Bird Counts unbroken since we first began a long time ago.

Five people submitted numbers to Brian Johnson for the Dec. 16 Wastewater count.  Pleasant weather helped produce respectable numbers and good quality.  Rough-legged Hawks were seen by all; Wild Turkeys by nobody!  Excellent species included Rusty Blackbird and Short-eared Owl.  Totals were 57 species and 10,197 individuals.

Eight people submitted numbers from 14 locations within 7.5 miles of downtown Muskegon on Dec. 19.  Two species had not been recorded on previous Muskegon CBC's for at least 25 years: White-crowned Sparrow (at the Causeway Marsh) and Wood Duck (along Rood Road in Norton Shores).  A total of 3,059 individual birds were reported among the 49 total species.  

October 17 Field Trip Report

Nine of us met at Snug Harbor Saturday morning to bird that area and the trail out to Lost Lake.

Birders at Sunrise by Carol Cooper

Looking at LBJ's by Carol Cooper

There were many Little Brown Jobs along the way, some eventually identified as sparrows (Song, Swamp, White-crowned-, White-throated-) or thrushes (mostly Hermits, one Swainson's).

 

Swamp Sparrow by Charlie DeWitt

Hermit Thrush by Charlie DeWitt

An adult Bald Eagle flew around the harbor early and this third-year bird perched and flew around Lost Lake later:

Bald Eagle by Charlie DeWitt

A female Rose-breasted Grosbeak watched us as we returned on the Lost Lake Trail.

Rose-breasted Grosbeak by Charlie DeWitt

Other species included Golden-crowned and Ruby-crowned Kinglets; Downy, Hairy, Red-bellied and Pileated Woodpeckers; Belted Kingfisher; Winter Wren; Red-shouldered and Red-tailed Hawk, Eastern Bluebird; and Wood Duck.

Meetings, Programs, Field Trips, and CBC's

Unfortunately Covid conditions will prevent our conducting indoor meetings and programs for the indefinite future.  The November meeting is canceled.

We will hold our November 21 field trip following social-distancing guidelines.  Further details will be posted on this page.

The National Audubon Society will announce by November 15 whether Christmas Bird Counts will be canceled this year or conducted following proper Covid safety procedures.  That message will be posted on this page.

September 19 Field Trip Report

Eight of us enjoyed this cold sunny morning at two locations.  We began with temperatures in the 30's at the northside of the Grand Haven Channel.  During our 90 minutes we identified only 10 species, but a few of those made the morning special.

After seeing what was probably the Redknot, a Common Tern (photo above), and a smaller shorebird further out the wall, we walked in that direction.  Just after we realized that the smaller bird was a Buff-breasted Sandpiper, ...

... it was chased off the wall by a Merlin!  For almost a minute the falcon chased the sandpiper northwest over Lake Michigan, zigging and zagging and almost catching it before giving up the chase.

Walking back we enjoyed good views of this Black-bellied Plover.

Then someone noticed that the Buff Breasted Sandpiper had returned to the wall west of us.  It was a Lifer species for some on this trip!  Beth walked all the way back to the bird, lay down on her side, and snapped the bird up close and personal.

Afterward we headed over to the Ottawa Sands County Park.  

There we encountered the Ottawa County field trip group and found (by my count) 33 bird species.  Notable among these were several Wood Duck and a Green Heron hiding in marshy cover, Ruby-throated Hummingbird, Sharp-shinned Hawk (2 migrating), Bald Eagle (1 immature), 7 Red-tailed Hawks (4 adults flying around the eagle nest hill all morning, 3 others apparently migrating), Peregrine Falcon, Eastern Towhee, Palm Warbler, and Black-throated Green Warbler (1 male and 1 first fall female).

When we quit at noon the temperature had climbed well into the 50's.  It was beautiful, but it still didn't feel like summer even though it was.

- Ric

September Meeting Canceled / Field Trip On

 

September 17 Meeting  CANCELED  due to Covid-19.

September 19 Field Trip

Social-distancing, meet from 8:00-8:15 a.m. on the north side of the Grand Haven Channel (Northshore Drive west from Ferrysburg to Lake Michigan, then south to the parking lot beside the channel).  After birding there for awhile, we'll return north and east to Ottawa Sands County Park (south side of Northshore Drive about 1/2 mile east of Lake Michigan; parking available on both sides of the road).  We will bird the fields, woods and marshy shoreline of the small lake until about noon. 

August 15 Un-Trip Report

photo by Carol Cooper

Eleven people drove around the Muskegon County Wastewater properties this morning communicating with walkie-talkies and occasionally getting out of their cars to see a nice variety of late-summer birds.

Notable sightings included Blue- and Green-winged Teal; Ruby-throated Hummingbird; Sandhill Crane; Greater and Lesser Yellowlegs; Baird's, Pectoral and Solitary Sandpipers; Northern Harrier; Cooper's Hawk; Tree, Bank, Barn and Cliff Swallows; Common Raven, Chipping, Field, Savannah and Song Sparrows; Bobolink and Yellow Warbler.

Although not an "official field trip" due to Covid conditions, the group still found 54 "unofficial" bird species.

Ottawa County Book Now Available

Aug. 10 Update (see July 30 post below).

Birds of Ottawa County: An Annotated Checklist  ($14.95) is now for sale at The Bookman in Grand Haven, Reader's World Bookstore in Holland, or by visiting the Ottawa County Parks main office located in the County Fillmore Government Complex, 12220 Fillmore St., in West Olive on Monday or Thursday from 10 am to 2 pm.  The book can also be ordered by phone from the Ottawa County Parks office at 616-738-4810 with an additional shipping fee.   

- Chip Francke

Regarding Programs and Field Trips

Good News/Bad News regarding 2020-2021 Programs:

We've filled the first four dates of our schedule, September through January (see details in the Sidebar).  However, we have no programs lined up for February, March and April nor any prospects at this time for presenters on those dates.  If you have ideas regarding possible programs for those dates, please contact me as soon as possible.  Thanks!

Field Trips for the upcoming season are now posted in the Sidebar.  Hopefully most of these can be conducted as in the past, but that will be dependent on pandemic conditions.

As a field trip date, consider August 15 CANCELED.  

However, some of us will still be on the Muskegon County Wastewater properties that morning from 8:30 until noon.  For car-to-car communication, we will have Walkie-Talkies tuned to Channel 11, Subchannel 0.  If others are present when we get out of our cars, we'll wear masks and maintain a safe social distance.  That will be a bit cumbersome, but no bird sighting is worth anyone's contracting Covid-19.

- Ric