A number of recent fledglings were encountered last week, including this perky young Merlin, 1 of 3 Merlins observed. A recently fledged Bald Eagle provided a dramatic surprise and a number of impressive close photos. See more in the feature article at the end of this issue. A family group of Gray Partridges foraged ever-closer, including these 2 recently fledged young partridges. Among a few daily observations of migrating warblers, a Northern Waterthrush was the first summer sighting of this species. Several groups of Turkey Vultures were observed during the past week, including 3 soaring low near The Birding Wire office. While photographing 4 perched Turkey Vultures on the edge of Hecla, South Dakota, 3 Wild Turkeys emerged from cover beneath the vultures.

Merlins made a surprising appearance in the area last week, with the first perched 13 miles south of my office last Tuesday evening. Merlin number 2 surprised me 10 miles northwest after I checked on the Burrowing Owl site – still no sign of the owls – but the mini-falcon made up for that in a big way. I drove by the spot just 15 minutes before, but on my return, there she was, a young tan-colored Merlin that permitted me to park near its perch and photograph at will. Like the Prairie Falcon a couple weeks before, the Merlin did little more than turn its head, but that was enough to excite the heck outta me as I composed portrait photos in the 8pm sunlight.

This young Merlin resembled an adult female of the Prairie subspecies and I imagine it is a Prairie, supported by its light tan coloration. At that point I was on high alert for Merlins again, so checked the next Mourning Dove for its tail length from a distance, but 2 miles south of the young Merlin was an adult female Prairie Merlin! This bird was more distant, but it was certainly an exciting find, and the time of day brought a thought to mind: Considering that all 3 of the small falcons I’ve seen have been within a half-hour of sunset, are they resting on a “night perch” after making a movement south or hunting in the area?

Another thought that came to mind is that each of the 3 Merlins were females, and I usually expect a migration of Merlins a month or 5 weeks later – but in retrospect, those Merlins tend to be males of the northern Taiga subspecies. Is there a subspecies or sex-linked migration going on? You can bet that I’ll be on the lookout for more Merlins before sunset during the rest of the week (I usually end my birding drives a bit before the 8pm hour these days). Other migrants I observed included a group of 13 Common Nighthawks, and a mixed flock of Bobolinks, Orchard Orioles, and Western Meadowlarks feeding in a newly mowed hayfield.

SoDak Drive

After finishing last week’s issue, there was still plenty of prime birding time to take a drive to Hecla Marsh, a bit more than an hour east-southeast, just across the border in South Dakota. The Hecla area actually received more rain than my area last week, possibly nearing 8 inches, so shorebird habitat was mostly nonexistent. Hence, the congregation of American Avocets was absent, and a lone Black-necked Stilt was the only sandpiper to be seen. But wading birds made up for that in the form of an abundance of White-faced Ibis and Great Egrets with a few Snowy Egrets and even a couple Cattle Egrets and Great Blue Herons.

A big flock of American Coots outnumbered flocks of ducks, but there was a big concentration of Blue-winged Teal and Mallards with a few molting Wood Ducks on hand. A few pairs of Western Grebes were feeding large feathered young, but a pair of Eared Grebes was on the hunt to find small foods for a recently hatched downy. To access the Border Marshes I drove down a very rural road that I worried would be muddy or even a bit under water with the previous week’s super-rainfall. Ahead, I could see young pheasants materializing from tall grass on both sides of the road, breaking into the open in ever-growing numbers, probably birds from at least 4 broods, and with females included their numbers grew to nearly 30 before they moved into a recently cut hayfield to search for insects.

A couple hundred yards father along, a memorable “interaction” took place when I stopped to photograph an adult Bald Eagle perched on the edge of the Border Marshes. That’s when I noticed a small feather drop from the eagle that danced to earth that windless evening. The feather landed on a low leave closest to the road, where I picked it up and called "hoka hey" to thank the white-headed eagle – pretty kool!

Almost forgot, another special observation began as I was leaving Hecla Marsh, a distant sighting of a gliding Turkey Vulture lured me closer, where I saw 4 vultures perched in a bare tree and sighted 7 more Turkey Vultures soaring in my direction. I enjoyed following the gliding flights of some of the vultures through my camera lens, and when I looked at the ground below the perched vultures, I realized 3 Wild Turkeys walked out of the tree grove into the open field – turkeys and Turkey Vultures! The trio of turkeys was in the shadows, but a mile to the south I encountered 6 male Wild Turkeys and managed a few photos as they foraged near the road with the sun highlighting their iridescent plumage.

The following day I enjoyed outdoor activities with my nephews and nieces in Fargo, and also checked the area near their yard for kestrels and partridges. I observed 3 American Kestrels, including an adult male and a young female. As I was parked where I could see the female, hoping to have her return to a spot where she just grabbed a big insect, I was surprised to see a female Gray Partridge emerge from tall grass and take a few steps into a mowed area very close to my position. That’s when more and more partridges emerged, including 7 recent fledglings and 2 adult males. As I waited, the group foraged in my direction, keeping a low profile, but providing some photos as they entered the open area just before they walked across the road in front of my car to feed in the field to the west.

With such good luck finding Merlins during my abbreviated Thursday birding drive, I decided to see if I could find more, along with other raptors during a Friday drive along my Raptor Route. Swainson’s Hawks and Red-tails were almost abundant along the route, and while approaching the halfway point, I was a bit startled by a sudden flash of huge black wings as a young eagle took flight from a deep road ditch beside the road. It turned out to be a recently fledged Bald Eagle that elevated into view on labored wingbeats. Luckily, the big raptor crossed the road low above my car and into the sunlight side to land on a line-up of big hay bales next to the road, providing an excellent opportunity to photograph the exceptionally large female. (I share more photos and the background story in the Bird Photography feature at the end of this issue.)

The eagle interactions made this birding drive exceptional, and although I didn’t find other Merlins or Prairie Falcons, the hawks kept things interesting as did a concentration of 86 Killdeer, a species that is flocking and likely migrating these days. I retraced the Raptor Route the next evening (Saturday), but was quite disappointed not to find yet another exciting raptor, and even the hawks were down in numbers by at least half, as were Killdeers. But there was a huge flock of at least 75 Cattle Egrets gathered among a small herd of angus cows, and gulls were prevalent along the way – both Franklin’s Gulls and Ring-billed Gulls. I also encountered 3 Turkey Vultures on a southerly migration flight, and closer to home I found an early Sharp-shinned Hawk, a species that isn’t common in the Great Plains. At home, 3 more Turkey Vultures were gliding low south of my yard; perhaps they would roost in Melody’s Grove as sometimes happens.

Warblers & Hummingbirds & Robins – Thursday I was excited to see a young Yellow Warbler in the ash tree and sumacs on each side of my feeding station, and a Northern Flicker was searching for ants on the ground. There was another Yellow Warbler active in the sumacs Friday, and a couple Chipping Sparrows foraged on the ground adjacent to the feeding station, along with the first American Robin I’ve seen in a few weeks. But suddenly a brown-gray warbler-sized bird with a yellow brow stripe was tipping its tail as it perched in the ash tree – immediately I realized it was a Northern Waterthrush! This was the first summer waterthrush I’ve seen, and the first I’ve seen perched 10 feet high in a tree that I can remember. It did some light preening as I grabbed my camera and took a couple documentary photos through the bay windows before it flew toward the ground behind sumacs.

BirdCast showed considerable night migrations last week, including a good migration Thursday night. With an early morning sprinkle, perhaps these birds were making a migration stopover. Later, another Yellow Warbler materialized, probably an adult female, along with an adult Chipping Sparrow. That’s when I decided it was time to check on Melody’s Grove to see if there were other migrants on hand, but there were only shadows among the trees. Saturday afternoon 2 Yellow Warblers passed by my bay windows, 1 a recent fledgling, the other an adult. There were no American Robins around Saturday, but many were present Sunday after a 4am rainstorm; obviously indicating overnight migrations. Monday afternoon an active Least Flycatcher was hunting among the sumacs, the first since spring migration.

The molting male Ruby-throated Hummingbird was the dominant bird at the nectar feeder for the first half of the week, with 3 females making occasional visits. But when I returned from birding Friday evening, a new male was “dancing” with the molting male, flying in tandem in a territorial way, with both males perching at the feeder at the same time, then resuming the aerial dance. Saturday and thereafter, only the new male was regular at the hummingbird feeder with occasional females visiting. Tuesday, as I was putting the finishing touches on this issue of The Birding Wire, I witnessed a young Yellow Warbler following the movements of a hummingbird as it perched in the ash tree adjacent to my feeding station, and the “chase” took place at least 3 times.

At this point in the year, with some birds migrating, new fledglings wandering, and the potential for surprise sightings high, be sure to keep your binoculars in hand or within reach. You don’t want to miss the chance to identify a new bird, or verify a rarely seen species in your area. Enjoy these ever-changing days when the next exciting bird is just a heartbeat away – maybe – you never know. Enjoy your week!

Article and Photos by Paul Konrad

Share your bird sightings and photographs at editorstbw2@gmail.com