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Bob Yukich continued his tradition of leading lead our April walk at Colonel Sam Smith Park again this year. A good overnight movement of early migrants supplied us with lots of newly arrived birds to look at.
As we approached the lake, we found an early Dunlin on the first beach. Waterfowl were a bit scarce, but there were still lots of Red-necked Grebes and Long-tailed Ducks, with a few Common Loons on the water and flying overhead.
We found a Black-crowned Night Heron in the conifers near the Power House, and had a look at the Cooper’s Hawk nest just north of the Power House. The presence of the hawks minimized the number of other birds seen nearby. (Cooper’s Hawks prey on small birds & mammals.)
On the east side of the park (away from the hawks) we found Yellow-rumped, Pine, Palm, and Black & White Warblers along with Blue-headed Vireos and Least Flycatchers.
The walk went into overtime, and by the end we tallied 65 different species. That’s pretty impressive for a couple of hours in a city park, and among our highest totals ever!
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