May Events

Due to the Covid Pandemic our May events are CANCELED.

March and April Events

Our March and April events were all canceled due to the Corona Virus.

February 22 Field Trip Report

Ten of us birded two locations this morning finding 31 species along our way.

From the west end of Muskegon Lake, then along the Muskegon Channel to the south breakwall we counted 18 species including Greater Scaup, White-winged Scoter, Long-tailed Duck, Red-breasted Merganser, Horned Grebe, Great Black-backed Gull and Horned Lark.

From the Wood Road bridge and around Black Lake Park we found 15 species including American Coot, Red-shouldered Hawk, three woodpeckers (Red-bellied, Downy and Pileated), Eastern Bluebird and Song Sparrow.

The sun shone all morning and warmed us a little by mid-morning.

Sunrise over Muskegon Lake by Carol Cooper

Checking Muskegon Channel by Charlie DeWitt

Checking Muskegon Channel by Carol Cooper

The south trail at Black Lake Park by Charlie DeWitt

Dead shrew at Black Lake Park by Carol Cooper

No January Field Trip

The northside field trip scheduled for January 18 was canceled due to bad weather.

** UPDATED CHRISTMAS BIRD COUNTS **

We conducted two Christmas Bird Counts in December, one centered around Greater Muskegon (Dec. 14) and one including the Muskegon County Wastewater properties (Dec. 18). 

UPDATE (1/7/20):  On the City of Muskegon CBC Dec. 14 our totals from the three groups (17 locations) were 52 bird species and 2,979 individual birds.  

The most numerous species were waterbirds: Common Merganser (689), Redhead (270), Lesser Scaup (245) and Common Goldeneye (236).

Species with individual numbers over 100 were the 125 Canada Geese, 135 Mute Swans, 192 Mallards, 125 Red-breasted Mergansers, 103 Ring-billed Gulls, 107 "Sea Gulls" (Herring or Ring-billed) and 162 Rock Pigeons. 

Eight species were recorded only once: American Wigeon, Red-throated Loon, Great Blue Heron, Northern Harrier, Cooper's Hawk, Red-shouldered Hawk, Merlin and American Kestrel.

Thanks to the 19 people who participated!

November 23 Field Trip Report

Sunrise by Carol Cooper

Sixteen people found fifteen bird species Saturday morning at Hemlock Crossing Park.

We began walking around the meadow in front of the nature center, then strolling some trails south and north of the Pigeon River before warming ourselves at the bird feeder viewing room. 

Thanks to Carol Cooper and Charlie DeWitt for sending photos of the trip.  If anyone can explain how the ice formed the patterns in Carol's photo below, we'd like to know -- there's nothing in those designs but ice.

The Meadow Pond by Carol Cooper

Ice Patterns by Carol Cooper

Southside Trail by Charlie DeWitt

One of many beaver-felled trees by Carol Cooper

Studying stuffed toy animals in the feeder room by Carol Cooper

Second Annual Bird Club Forum December 7

     Curtis Dykstra has scheduled another Bird Club Forum for this year. It will take place the morning of Saturday, December 7, 2019, at the Hemlock Crossing Park, 8115 West Olive Road, West Olive, MI. 49460 (the same location as last year's forum).

     Grand Rapids Audubon, Owashtanang Islands (Grand Haven) Audubon, Holland Audubon and the Muskegon County Nature Club (Muskegon's chapter of the Michigan Audubon Society) will present information about their clubs to any members of the public attending. Last year's audience at the first forum included about 80 people. 

October 19 Field Trip Report

Saturday morning Oct. 19 Liz Notman led eight of us out and back the trail on the western portion of the Upper Macatawa Natural Area.  (Our planned walk on the eastern portion was nixed due to high water.)  It was a beautiful cool morning with the clouds showing a pattern that has a name we couldn't recall.

We found 37 bird species along our way, thickest in the woods to the east, including Killdeer, Great Blue Heron, Great Egret (3), Cooper's Hawk, Bald Eagle, Belted Kingfisher, Golden-crowned and Ruby-crowned Kinglets, Eastern Bluebird, Cedar Waxwing, White-crowned and White-throated Sparrows and Yellow-rumped Warbler.

Carol Cooper, who took these pictures, identified several wildflowers along the way including the teasel, chicory and New England aster below (plus the woolly bear caterpillar).

Photos by Carol Cooper

Swainson's Hawk on September Field Trip!

Eight and a half of us birded two Ottawa County locations this morning.  

At the Grand Haven north pier we found eleven bird species including Palm Warbler, Sanderling and Semipalmated Plover.

At Ottawa Sands County Park we found 33 34 species including a Red-tailed Hawk, five American Kestrels that may have been migrating, Sandhill Crane, Great Egret, Belted Kingfisher, Pileated Woodpecker, Eastern Phoebe, several Eastern Bluebirds, Swainson's Thrush, and six Warbler species (Nashville, Magnolia, Bay-breasted, Palm, Black-throated Green and American Redstart) and a Swainson's Hawk!

September 29 Update: Yes, the first hawk below is a Swainson's Hawk, not a Red-tailed Hawk as previously thought.  We noticed both hawks flying near each other over the lake at the park.  They separated with the Swainson's flying over the Grand River and continuing south while the redtail soared higher and drifted northward.  Since the day after our field trip I've been away from home without access to my computer and unable to correct the error until now.  Thanks to Chip Francke, Phil Chu, Adam Byre, Ken Sapkowski and others for making the correct identification!  Thanks to Charlie DeWitt for taking such a beautiful picture!

All photos by Charlie DeWitt

August 17 Field Trip Report

Seven people birded the Wastewater properties Saturday morning August 17.  They found 51 species including Osprey and Piping Plover!