Would you identify this white egret as a Great Egret, a Snowy Egret, or a Cattle Egret. Ding-ding-ding, if you identified it as a young Cattle Egret, you are correct. Unlike adults, juvenile Cattle Egrets have a black beak and legs.
As I positioned myself to photograph a young Bald Eagle perched in a skeleton tree, a second recent fledgling flew toward the dead tree and circled twice before landing, providing a chance to photograph it in a number of soaring positions.
With 2 young Bald Eagles perched in the tree and another summer fledgling standing on the shore of a large shallow marsh filled with hundreds of ducks, gulls, and dowitchers north of the Border Marshes, it wasn’t surprising to find a pair of adults on the southern side of the area – the South Dakota side.
Switching from an eagle in flight to a hovering hummingbird, a breakthrough interest in photographing the female hummingbirds at my nectar feeder created some immediate photo successes.
If you are interested in information about how you can take hummingbird photos, you can refer to the Backyard Birding article and the Bird Photography feature in this issue (the first and last articles).
During a drive north to Bismarck along the east side of the Missouri River, a young Turkey Vulture circled a number of times that provided a chance to take photographs that showed its black head skin.
A different backside view of a young Red-tailed Hawk landing provides a simple reminder that it is International Hawk Migration Week through Sunday. How many hawks have you seen this week?
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Hummingbirds and Bald Eagles made Friday a special day, not just to see them, but to photograph them too. During a break in my editorial planning session, I stepped outside with my camera to photograph hummingbirds at and near my nectar feeder – until mosquitos chased me back inside. Later I enjoyed surveying an especially broad birding circle that included some favorite local birding hotspots like Charo Marsh, but also some bigger birding sites to the southeast like the Border Marshes, Hecla Marsh, and Sand Lake National Wildlife Refuge.
It was a special field trip that provided an excellent overview of birds on hand from the Coteau hills and wetlands to the James River regional marshes north and south of the border that “divides” the Dakotas. As I traversed local areas on the way, a Red-headed Woodpecker was a highlight as was a flock of about 50 Redhead ducks. As I breached the hill above the James River I could see a small flock of White-faced Ibis flying south, which was my next turn after crossing the waterway. A couple miles south I could see a large raptor perched in a leafless skeleton tree on the edge of a large shallow marsh. As I began getting into position to photograph the young Bald Eagle, I noted another summer fledgling eagle flying in the direction of the dead tree. Now things were getting exciting.
The big eagle circled twice before landing, providing me with ample opportunities to photograph it in a number of soaring positions as I timed my photos when the eagle banked into the afternoon sunlight. With 2 young Bald Eagles perched in the skeleton tree and another young eagle standing on the shore of the adjacent large shallow marsh filled with hundreds of ducks, gulls, and dowitchers a couple miles north of the Border Marshes, I checked the flocks with binoculars to get a better idea of the birds present. The Marshes held more gulls and ducks in molt, a scattering of wading birds, and a couple flocks of shorebirds – mostly Long-billed Dowitchers. As I was exiting the south side of the Border Marshes, the South Dakota side, it wasn’t surprising to find a pair of adult Bald Eagles perched on the edge of a mature cottonwood grove.
Hecla Marsh was filled with Double-crested Cormorants and American Coots with a scattering of Western Grebes, some with large food-begging young. Most of the ducks were Mallards and Blue-winged Teal with a few Gadwalls, Northern Pintails, and Wood Ducks on hand. Among the shorebirds, there were some dowitchers with a few yellowlegs mixed among them, but seeing a tight flock of about 70 American Avocets in basic plumage was the best shorebird treat. Wading birds were scattered throughout the marsh, including Great Egrets, Snowy Egrets, Great Blue Herons, and White-faced Ibis – all nesting birds there. Next I headed for Sand Lake Refuge, which held some ducks, Giant Canada Geese, White Pelicans, and Western Grebes, but the James River was especially high, which I think contributed to fewer than expected birds and lower diversity among the species present.
A mostly uneventful drive to Bismarck took me west to the Missouri River, then north along the east river road where a young Turkey Vulture that lacked the pink coloration of the head skin that adults possess provided good views. The summer fledgling was abiding enough to circle my position a few times, permitting me to document its black facial skin. I observed 2 other single Turkey Vultures along the drive to the river, and witnessed what appeared to be a widespread migration flight of gulls that flew south in widely spaced flights fueled by a pretty strong north wind across the open plains. Along the way I also saw 2 Accipiter hawks – a Cooper’s Hawk and a Sharp-shinned Hawk, but the velocity of the wind was an obvious deterrent to other raptors perching in the open.
Hawk Action
After gloomy weather over the weekend, the sky cleared Monday afternoon to provide sunshine for another birding drive along my Raptor Route that allowed me to get back in touch with the hawks in the area west and northwest of my office. I was pleasantly surprised by the number I encountered, especially the Swainson’s Hawks that were absent during my extensive drive to the southeast 2 days earlier when I counted 20 Red-tailed Hawks and 4 Northern Harriers. Along the Raptor Route, Swainson’s Hawks numbered 17 as did Red-tailed Hawks (17), with 3 Northern Harriers and a Cooper’s Hawk for a total of 38 hawks along the Raptor Route during International Hawk Migration Week. Out of the ordinary birds encountered included 3 Buffleheads – either an adult-sized brood, a brood with an adult female, or 3 molting adults (I usually don’t see the first Buffleheads until mid-October. In the same area, about 7 miles to the west of home, there was a flock of about 40 Cattle Egrets, which prompted me to spend a little time photographing these locally uncommon birds in flight.
As the period of peak hawk migration approached to the east, I tentatively planned to return to Hawk Ridge on the north shore of Lake Superior at Duluth, Minnesota after publishing this issue of The Birding Wire. Unfortunately, the forecast indicated my select days – Wednesday-Thursday – would be overcast with rainy weather and a south wind, which spoiled my travel plan. Hawk Ridge is a special place for birders during mid-September when thousands of migrating Broad-winged Hawks and Sharp-shinned Hawks are counted during peak migration days. I was due for a return visit to Hawk Ridge, having visited 3 years ago during an epic day of raptor migration, which you can read about in the previous article: Birding Notes. That day – September 13th, 2022 – a total of 8,066 birds of prey were counted as they migrated south along Hawk Ridge, along with 4,528 Blue Jays and a wealth of other non-raptors!
After some spotty weeks of hummingbird action in my yard, I counted a season high of 3 female Ruby-throated Hummingbirds Friday evening, although I had 2 hummingbirds making visits the other days, which was greatly appreciated, and they provided inspiration for a couple photo sessions outside my house. In fact, I provide detailed information for other birders interested in taking some hummingbird photos in both the Backyard Birding article and the Bird Photography feature in this issue (the first and last articles). Two short mosquito-dominated photo sessions provided some special hummingbird photos that are surely among the best I’ve ever taken, and I may have a couple more to share next week. In the meantime, next Monday is the first official day of fall (September 22), so I hope you enjoy some special birds to start the new fall season with some pleasant time birding in the great outdoors.
Article and Photos by Paul Konrad
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