Among a group of 27 Tundra Swans that stopped at a nearby wetland, this stately swan was surrounded by more than 100 ducks, mostly Canvasbacks, and a like number of geese, mostly White-fronts. Canvasbacks were the most abundant ducks in the area Saturday, with this drake riding the top of a low ripple of surf. Riding some bigger waves, a Canvasback took a big splash head-on during Saturday’s rough water photo session. A pair of Common Mergansers climbed aboard one of the remaining ice shelves Friday, showing their surprisingly large bodies.

Even before eagle numbers dwindled down to zero by last Friday, 27 Tundra Swans caught my attention in a shallow wetland 7 miles south of my office. I have an admitted attraction to the great white swans, but these swans were actually bright white drops in the waterfowl bucket, surrounded by very active flocks of White-fronted Geese, many flocks of displaying Canvasbacks, usually a female with a half-dozen or more males in each group, not to be outdone by a couple groups of displaying Ring-necked Ducks and an abundance of Redheads, along with Mallards, a few American Wigeons, Northern Pintails, Gadwalls, and a male Bufflehead.

Although most wetlands and lakes were still topped by ice at the beginning of the last week, warm weather Wednesday and Thursday made short work of the ice sheet on most wetlands. In fact, only one was still ice-covered by Friday – the eagle lake. Saturday between the 60 degree temperature and 35mph wind, almost all other ice was gone, and new birds suddenly appeared overnight! Flocks of Lesser Scaup and American Coots, a few Ruddy Ducks, and the first 3 Double-crested Cormorants were all first spring sightings, and there were a few more Northern Shovelers and 2 pairs of Green-winged Teal on hand.

I especially enjoyed time spent near displaying groups of Canvasbacks last week. Realistically, Cans were the most abundant ducks in the area, and like Tundra Swans they are favorites that I can’t get enough of, especially if there is a chance of getting a little closer to them. Saturday, the surf was up on area wetlands as a result of the intense winds, but the 3 flocks of Canvasbacks that I spent time with weren’t much affected by the choppy water. I spent more than an hour with one flock that numbered almost 30 of the biggest ducks in North America.

I kept my distance at first, moved a little closer when it seemed possible, and the Canvasbacks worked their way closer to me too – it is always fulfilling when birds realize you aren’t a threat and accept you as part of the landscape. Although the ducks weren’t doing much in the way of courting and displaying, there were a few interactions between males – some little skirmishes – and I tried to get some photos of individuals as they broke through occasional waves. Most of the time the Cans were feeding, diving below the surface and apparently digging in the substrate judging from the mud on their bills. It was especially nice to be out of the wind in my mobile blind, photographing in the sunshine, and spending time in the company of so many Canvasbacks just 2 miles south of home.

Later, during a quick afternoon photo check to a marsh just 4 miles south, I saw 3 new species – a pair of Blue-winged Teal, a Franklin’s Gull, and a Northern Flicker. The strong southeast wind appeared to be bringing more and more birds into the local zone. I checked BirdCast for information about overnight migration and saw that there had been a strong migration from Texas north across the central states, to and through North Dakota (it was exciting to view that particular BirdCast radar!). BirdCast’s Migration Dashboard also verified that there was a 2-night spike in migration numbers Thursday and Friday nights.

A short April showers drive Sunday afternoon was pretty uneventful, with the Tundra Swans still in position and the ducks and coots mostly holding position too. The new species sighted was a pair of Greater Yellowlegs, and there was also a notable pair of Hooded Mergansers at one marsh.

Yard Migrants and Visitors

Upon my return home Saturday, there was a first female robin in my yard, and a new male Hairy Woodpecker grabbed a bite at my platform feeder. About an hour later, I was very surprised to have a male Northern Flicker appear on the trunk of the elm tree adjacent to my feeding station. I took a close look through binoculars, just as I did with the Hairy Woodpecker, and then it flew out of sight – Nice!

Prior to the weekend, the migration also brought more birds into my yard – an influx of male American Robins and male Common Grackles was most obvious. I also have a new Red-breasted Nuthatch visiting my feeders, along with a trio of Pine Siskins and the usual House Finches, but I haven’t seen the female Purple Finch for a while. Speaking of which, while there were as many as 8 Dark-eyed Juncos at a time around the feeding station Friday, there were none Saturday! Where’d they go? (ha)

Bald Eagle Wrap-Up

As for the concentration of Bald Eagles, I knew that “all good things would pass,” especially when you are talking about migrating birds; but I feel I need to sum up my eagle counts on and near Carlson Lake in a simple date by date accounting. On Saturday March 23 I counted 166 Bald Eagles; 57 on stormy Monday March 25, 62 on Wednesday March 27, 121 Thursday March 28, 96 Friday March 29, 78 Saturday March 30, and 103 on Sunday March 31. On April 1st I counted 86 eagles, 56 on Tuesday April 2, 9 on Thursday April 4, and 0 on Friday April 5th and thereafter.

It was obvious that the eagles moved quite fluidly while in the area, so to get an impression of how much they changed over time on a given day, I did 2 eagle surveys on Good Friday (March 29). During my 10:30am survey I counted 72 Bald Eagles, but at 4:00pm I counted 96, which wasn’t a surprise considering how some eagles were constantly flying into and out of the area, usually just 1 or 2 at a time. That Friday more eagles were present during late afternoon, but other days my impression was that fewer eagles were in the area later in the afternoon. Some days counts were lower due to extremely windy conditions, but every day the eagle survey was a highlight and since it was the first time such a spring concentration of Bald Eagles assembled here, it will be interesting to see if it was a one-time event or if it becomes an annual assemblage.

Cross-Country to Bismarck

A definite highlight on my way to the capitol city, my hometown, was the chance to witness a Ferruginous Hawk diving at and chasing an adult Bald Eagle. This transpired as I entered a favorite expanse of prairie bluffs west of the Missouri River. Ferruginous Hawks are not common along the river valley, so just seeing one of these impressive raptors was interesting beyond its intense interaction with the larger eagle that was quite adept at making aerial escape maneuvers. Along the way I observed 4 other Bald Eagles, 10 Red-tailed Hawks, 1 Northern Harrier, and 1 American Kestrel, along with a flock of 12 American Crows. A variety of ducks were widely scattered where open water was available, and I was surprised by the size of 1 of 3 huge flocks of Snow Geese, the largest of which was spread across a 4-mile swath of harvested corn fields.

I also observed 2 incubating Great Horned Owls, 1 of which was on a nest used successfully last year. It’s very rare for a pair of Great Horned Owls to use the same nest site during consecutive years in this region, partly because after 1 nesting season a stick nest is usually all but destroyed by the big owls.

By the time I am finishing this issue, most of the geese have left the area, except the Giant Canada Geese that are beginning to establish nesting territories, and Lesser Scaup have replaced Canvasbacks as the most abundant ducks in the area, even though they only first appeared Saturday. The first Chipping Sparrow of spring appeared below my feeding station today, and increment by increment it’s a time of change as early spring turns to mid-spring and new species will arrive and increase in numbers while others continue north. I hope your week has been eventful on a birding level, and hope you enjoy new species as the days pass into mid-April – Happy Birding!

Article and photos by Paul Konrad

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