We had an inauspicious weather report and only five people braved the elements but those that came enjoyed the walk. We ended up a little bit wet with a light shower towards the end. Brush Hogging, underlying sand and fire keep this area an open prairie community that has its own unique assemblage of birds, other fauna and flora. Gordon led us as tallied up 32 species, highlights included singing field sparrows, a Towhee calling, many Cedar Waxwings and of course the iconic Prairie Warbler. As we prepared to leave, a mother turkey and 7 young were observed in the entrance field. In addition to birds, we enjoyed sampling blueberries, serviceberries and blackberries which were all in abundance. If you would like to see some photos or review some of the identifications we made on the trip check out my Google photo album from today. I hope to see you all at Thorncrag August 7th for our next walk.
| Species | Number |
|---|---|
| Wild Turkey | 8 |
| Mourning Dove | 6 |
| Spotted Sandpiper | 2 |
| Herring Gull | 6 |
| Double-crested Cormorant | 2 |
| Great Blue Heron | 3 |
| Osprey | 4 |
| Downy Woodpecker | 1 |
| Hairy Woodpecker | 1 |
| Alder Flycatcher | 1 |
| Red-eyed Vireo | 3 |
| American Crow | 33 |
| Black-capped Chickadee | 7 |
| Tufted Titmouse | 2 |
| White-breasted Nuthatch | 1 |
| House Wren | 2 |
| Gray Catbird | 8 |
| Eastern Bluebird | 2 |
| Hermit Thrush | 1 |
| American Robin | 4 |
| Cedar Waxwing | 27 |
| American Goldfinch | 24 |
| Chipping Sparrow | 7 |
| Field Sparrow | 5 |
| Song Sparrow | 9 |
| Eastern Towhee | 2 |
| Common Yellowthroat | 2 |
| Yellow Warbler | 1 |
| Pine Warbler | 1 |
| Prairie Warbler | 1 |
| Northern Cardinal | 2 |
| Indigo Bunting | 3 |