Bloomington-Birds-L for November 18-24, 2001

Messages are displayed in the order they were received.  Subject  From  Date   Time   LK. Lemon-11/17   Jim Hengeveld    Sun, 18 Nov 2001   10:55am   last night   Jess and Maureen    Sun, 18 Nov 2001   11:29am   Sullivan Co. Grasslands   Lee Sterrenburg    Mon, 19 Nov 2001   10:08am   Orleans Springs - Snow Geese   Ron Mccullick    Mon, 19 Nov 2001   1:10pm   Indiana Audubon Society Feeder Count   Ross Brittain    Mon, 19 Nov 2001   8:01pm   Sandhill Cranes at Lk Lemon   Lee Sterrenburg    Mon, 19 Nov 2001   8:23pm   Orleans Springs (Reservoir)   Ron Mccullick    Tue, 20 Nov 2001   10:11am   Monroe County Sandhill Cranes   michael clarke    Tue, 20 Nov 2001   12:54pm   Re: Sandhill Cranes at Lk Lemon   John Woodcock    Tue, 20 Nov 2001   1:44pm      idbeery    Tue, 20 Nov 2001   5:05pm   Sandhill Cranes   Ross Brittain    Tue, 20 Nov 2001   6:25pm   Sandhill Cranes   Gary Langell    Wed, 21 Nov 2001   9:13am   More L. Lemon Sandhill Cranes   Zeller, Tom S   Wed, 21 Nov 2001   11:23am   Re: More L. Lemon Sandhill Cranes   dwinslow    Thu, 22 Nov 2001   10:22am   11/22 Paynetown/Pine Grove/Stillwater   michael clarke    Thu, 22 Nov 2001   11:51am   Bald Eagle   Yuichiro Masuda    Thu, 22 Nov 2001   6:28pm

To use email addresses replace '(AT)' with '@'. This is done to confuse the spam 'bots.

[ << | >> | ^^ ]

Subject: LK. Lemon-11/17
From: Jim Hengeveld <jhengeve(AT)INDIANA.EDU>
Date: 18 Nov 2001 10:55am

At the east end of Lk. Lemon yesterday (11/17), some of the birds
that we saw included:

   -1(m) Red-br. Merganser
   -1(f) Bufflehead
   -14 Ruddy Ducks
   -5 Killdeer
   -3 Dunlin
   -4 C. Snipe
   -3-4 Hermit Thrushes--doing their nocturnal flight call in the fog at dawn
   -7 Am. Pipits (flyovers)
   -high count of 52 Pine Siskins at our feeders

The 6 Sandhill Cranes that Tom Zeller reported are still out on the
flats (as of 11 am, Sunday).

....Jim & Susan
--
____________________
Dr. James Hengeveld             jhengeve(AT)indiana.edu
Department of Biology           812-855-5353
1001 East 3rd Street
Indiana University
Bloomington, IN 47405


[ << | >> | ^^ ]

Subject: last night
From: Jess and Maureen <jagmo(AT)BLUEMARBLE.NET>
Date: 18 Nov 2001 11:29am

This is a multi-part message in MIME format.

----INCLUDING text/plain MIME SECTION----

Maureen and I got up at 4 AM this morning to watch the Leonid meteor =
showers.  Between 4:15 and 6:45 we counted 1002 meteors.  Farily clear =
skies but with some very light haze that probably obscured many of the =
smaller ones.

We also heard two Great Horned Owls calling frequently to each other and =
at the very end of the count, a Screech Owl.

Jess and Maureen
Newark, Greene County

----DELETED text/html MIME SECTION----


[ << | >> | ^^ ]

Subject: Sullivan Co. Grasslands
From: Lee Sterrenburg <sterren(AT)INDIANA.EDU>
Date: 19 Nov 2001 10:08am

On Saturday (Nov. 17, 2001) Stephanie Thomas and I birded the Hawthorn
Mine and the Dugger Unit of Greene Sullivan State Forest in Sullivan Co.
On the way back to Bloomington we also made a brief stop at Goose Pond on
highway 59 in Greene Co.  The first three hours and forty-five minutes
featured heavy fog.  The highlights included (2) Short-eared Owls and (6)
Rough-legged Hawks.

6:55 AM - 2:30 PM.  Unseasonable temp up to 77 F in the afternoon; light
SW wind; heavy fog early, afterwards very hazy.

The complete results (land bird totals were generally low):

Hawthorn Mine, Sullivan Co. side:

Great Blue Heron (5)
Canada Goose (90)
Mallard (78)
Green-winged Teal (1)
N. Pintail (1)
Ruddy Duck (1)
Ring-necked Duck (42)
Killdeer (9)
Common Snipe (5)
Turkey Vulture (2)
Northern Harrier (9 - 3 ad M; 2 ad F; 5 imm)
Red-tailed Hawk (10)
Rough-legged Hawk (4 - a dark morph ad M; a light morph ad F; a light
morph ad M; and a light morph imm)
American Kestrel (6)
N. Bobwhite (2)
Wild Turkey (1)
Morning Dove (4)
SHORT-EARED OWL (2 - early AM, in the south end)
Great Horned Owl (4)
Eastern Screech-Owl (1)
Belted Kingfisher (2)
Northern Flicker (5)
Downy Woodpecker (2)
Horned Lark (26)
Blue Jay (2)
American Crow (38)
Eastern Bluebird (1)
Hermit Thrush (1 - night flight notes in the early AM fog)
European Starling (8)
N. Cardinal (5)
Song Sparrow (7)
Dark-eyed Junco (5)
Fox Sparrow (1)
Swamp Sparrow (13)
Eastern Meadowlark (19)
Red-winged Blackbird (1)
Common Grackle (2)

Dugger Unit of Greene-Sullivan State Forest:

Pied-billed Grebe (10)
Canada Goose (80)
Mallard (117)
Gadwall (10)
Green-winged Teal (1)
American Wigeon (8)
N. Pintail (2)
Ruddy Duck (1)
Ring-necked Duck (2)
Hooded Merganser (28)
American Coot (~ 350)
Killdeer (23)
Northern Harrier (5 - one ad M; one ad F; three imm)
Red-tailed Hawk (9)
Rough-legged Hawk (2 - both light morph imm)
American Kestrel (2)
Rock Dove (8)
Morning Dove (5)
European Starling (8)
American Crow (6)
N. Mockingbird (1)
Dark-eyed Junco (1)
Swamp Sparrow (1)

A note on sparrows.  I spent 45 minutes walking around in the wintering Le
Conte's Sparrow habitat on the road that slants NW between CR 450 E and
350 E.  I found one Swamp Sparrow and one Dark-eyed Junco in the swale
with willows (now partly bushhogged by the DNR).  Out in the grass I found
no sparrows of any species.

Goose Pond, Greene Co.:

Northern Harrier (2)

--Lee Sterrenburg
Bloomington


[ << | >> | ^^ ]

Subject: Orleans Springs - Snow Geese
From: Ron Mccullick <Ron.Mccullick(AT)DANA.COM>
Date: 19 Nov 2001 1:10pm

Stopped by Orleans Springs area at lunch today. Conditions were windy from
the westsouthwest and rain, so I birded through my car window.

4 Snow Geese - 1 Blue Phase
200+ Canada Geese
24 Mallard Ducks
1 Pied-billed Grebe
6 Coot
1 Cooper's Hawk
4 Red-tailed Hawks
3 American Kestrel
15 Mourning Doves
8 Rock Doves
5 House Sparrows
1 Swamp Sparrow
30 Starlings

   Another 40 or so ducks that I can not confidently call without a
   spotting scope, most were probably Mallards and Ringnecks.

Ron McCullick
DANA -  Mitchell IN
ron.mccullick(AT)dana.com
(812)849-7223


[ << | >> | ^^ ]

Subject: Indiana Audubon Society Feeder Count
From: Ross Brittain <Wbubton(AT)CS.COM>
Date: 19 Nov 2001 8:01pm

Hello All,
Just a reminder that tomorrow (11/20) is the first official day of the
Indiana Audubon Society's Bird Feeder Count for this winter. If you still
need a tally sheet you can pick one up at Wild Birds Unlimited at the corner
of 15th and College.

Thanks,
Ross Brittain


[ << | >> | ^^ ]

Subject: Sandhill Cranes at Lk Lemon
From: Lee Sterrenburg <sterren(AT)INDIANA.EDU>
Date: 19 Nov 2001 8:23pm

This evening (November 19, 2001) I went to Riddle Point at Lake Lemon,
Monroe Co., to do a LL lakewatch in the cold north front.  The highlight
was a spectacular Sandhill Crane flight.  I arrived at 4:40 PM and the
first cranes showed up at 5:05 PM.  Sandhills passed over continuously
until 6:02 PM.   My count for that almost one-hour period was (6316)
Sandhills!  All the birds came in from the north, and all but about 32
initially came in west of Riddle Point or west of the dam.  Well over 2000
turned east and flew over my head, checking out the east end of the lake
or going up in thermals over the south shore.  Many of the cranes were low
and the calls of juveniles could frequently be heard.  At 6:15 PM I drove
to the east end and checked out the mudflats from the Hengevelds'deck.  By
then it was too dark to count birds on the ground.  It sounded like a good
congregation of Sandhills was preparing to spend the night on the flats
near Little Africa.

Also, on the lake from Riddle Point:

Common Loon (91)
Canada Goose (32)
Mallard (10)
Ring-billed Gull (89)

--Lee Sterrenburg
Bloomington


[ << | >> | ^^ ]

Subject: Orleans Springs (Reservoir)
From: Ron Mccullick <Ron.Mccullick(AT)DANA.COM>
Date: 20 Nov 2001 10:11am

Stopped by and watched the sun set  last night at Orleans Springs.

4 Snow Geese
17 Sandhill Cranes - Not the thousands seen at Lake Lemon, but I'll take
it.  They circled for ~15 min.  flying very low (20 - 25 feet?) right over
my car that I was using for a blind.  2 actually landed in the field just
west of the lake ( I think they were the juveniles in the group).  Then
they all flew off to the east just as it got too dark too see. This is the
second group I have seen circle, then leave this year. I have seen them
overnight here in the past, but I think the water might be deeper this year
making the site less attractive to the Cranes?
1 Great Blue Heron
200+ Canada Geese
4 Pintails
80 Mallards
1 Redhead - my first this fall
15 Ringnecks
2 Black Ducks
5 Lesser Scaup
3 Swamp Sparrows
Large Owl outline - seen just after dark working a field east of lake. Too
dark to tell species.
2 Crows
Several Killdeer - heard only
1 Blue Jay
2 Cardinals

Ron McCullick
DANA -  Mitchell IN
ron.mccullick(AT)dana.com
(812)849-7223


[ << | >> | ^^ ]

Subject: Monroe County Sandhill Cranes
From: michael clarke <miclarke(AT)BLOOMINGTON.IN.US>
Date: 20 Nov 2001 12:54pm

This morning I birded Paynetown, Cutright and Stillwater.  A pretty
quiet morning overall with a few bits of excitement.  As I was traveling
from Paynetown to Cutright I noticed a large flock of birds
in V formation crossing the east end of Lake Monroe.  I proceeded
to the end of the Cutright area (near the houseboat marina) and
observed about 1000 Sandhill Cranes moving in 10-12 flocks across
the east end of the lake.  Later at Stillwater a flock of 96 cranes flew
nearly overhead near the south gate.  I also heard several cranes
on the ground in the Stillwater/Northfork complex, but couldn't find
them after some searching.

Other birds seen included:

Paynetown:
Bonaparte's Gull-3
Common Loon-7
Ring-billed Gull-5
Song Sparrow-1
Killdeer-1
Eastern Bluebird-3
juncos and woodpeckers-everywhere

Cutright:
Common Loon-2
HERMIT THRUSH-1 (presumably the same bird reported by Don Whitehead
about a week ago--this is a life bird for me!)
Belted Kingfisher-1
Ring-billed Gull-1
Turkey Vulture-1
again, cardinals, juncos and woodpeckers everywhere

Stillwater:
American Wigeon-~40
Gadwall-~50
Mallard-~20
Wood Duck-4
Ring-necked Duck-~150
American Coot-~30
Great Blue Heron-1
Golden Crowned Kinglet-1
Eastern Bluebird-5
Red-tailed Hawk-3
Song Sparrow-2

Couldn't find any Fox Sparrows at the corner of Gross and Friendship
roads this morning.


[ << | >> | ^^ ]

Subject: Re: Sandhill Cranes at Lk Lemon
From: John Woodcock <woodcock(AT)INDIANA.EDU>
Date: 20 Nov 2001 1:44pm

When I read Lee Sterrenburg's posting about Sandhills at Lake Lemon early this
morning, I thought it might be worth a look, so Peggy and I dashed out to
Little Africa, arriving  a little after 8am. We could hear a few birds calling
from the parking lot.   From the platform we could see 500-600 birds, mainly
in the shallow water in front of the flats, and could hear that there were
lots more behind the grass to the right.  I'd guess there were 1000 birds.  It
was a beautiful morning, clear and in the 20s, with a light westish wind.  We
watched from 8:15 to 8:45, while the birds mainly stood still in the early
rays of the morning sun, with only the occasional wing flap.  We got cold and
went back to the car to warm up for a few minutes, thinking that when the
birds got loud we could dash back to the platform.  (Someone we had met on the
platform, when we asked what time the birds might fly, pronounced "ten
o'clock" with some authority.)

Well, it wasn't meant to be.  At 9:00, we were just getting out of the car to
take another look when the birds started flying over us, most of them quite
low, in flights of 10 to 50+ birds, one after another.  It was spectacular,
not only the closeness and the numbers and the noise, but also the flashes of
gold as the bright low sun caught their wings on the downsweep.  We never
thought of moving, as hundreds of birds kept flying directly over the parking
lot, some flights then turning, circling around us, intersecting other
flights, etc.  Things finally slowed down and we set off for the platform,
from which we saw that probably more than half of the birds we had seen
earlier had left.  We watched the rest feeding and calling for a few minutes,
when they too began taking off.  They were heading more to the east than the
first flights, so we slowly took the easterly path back to the parking lot,
looking for open spots while watching this second round of flights, which went
on for about fifteen minutes.  Many of the birds flew directly over the path,
and again there was some circling around the Little Africa area.  It was hard
at some moments not to think that the show was for our benefit.

This was a lifetime experience for us backyard birders (and so close to
home!), and I hope that many others on the list will have a chance to see
something like it in the days ahead.

John Woodcock


[ << | >> | ^^ ]

Subject: 
From: idbeery <idbeery(AT)BLOOMINGTON.IN.US>
Date: 20 Nov 2001 5:05pm

This is a multi-part message in MIME format.

----INCLUDING text/plain MIME SECTION----

Hello everyone,  I'm sure lots of you saw and heard the masses of =
sandhill cranes migrating today.  It was so wonderful to see wave after =
wave of them heading south.  I can only guess at the numbers 1,000 or =
more?  Ingrid

----DELETED text/html MIME SECTION----


[ << | >> | ^^ ]

Subject: Sandhill Cranes
From: Ross Brittain <Wbubton(AT)CS.COM>
Date: 20 Nov 2001 6:25pm

Hello All,
Well, it wasn't a flight of thousands but I had another 250+ go over  Wild
Birds Unlimited today (15th & College). Still pretty cool to be at work and
take a "break" to watch cranes migrate.

At the feeders at home this morning we had:
33 - Pine Siskins (a new high for our home)

Happy Birding,
Ross Brittain


[ << | >> | ^^ ]

Subject: Sandhill Cranes
From: Gary Langell <glangell(AT)dnr.state.in.us>
Date: 21 Nov 2001 9:13am

This is a multi-part message in MIME format.
----INCLUDING text/plain MIME SECTION----

I was at the parking lot at the south end of Friendship Road at 1:30
yesterday.  As soon as I got out of my car, I could hear sandhills.
After watching wave after wave fly directly overhead, I decided to lay
down on the stone and save my neck muscles!   I stayed there for an hour
and 15 minutes.  There was not a moment when I didn't see sandhills in
the air.  Some flocks were small (3-10 birds) others quite large (120
+).  Every time I thought the flights were finished, I only had to look
to the north through my binoculars to be re-assured that more waves were
on the way.  After leaving that area, I went to Stillwater.  I stayed
there until 3:30.  Again, I heard sandhills flying overhead the entire
time.  This time, most were observed to the east of Stillwater, heading
toward North Fork.  When I first arrived at Friendship Road,  I started
counting them, but it soon became a burden rather than a pleasing
experience, so I quit and just watched.  I know I saw several thousand
sandhills in that 2-hour period.

----DELETED text/x-vcard MIME SECTION----


[ << | >> | ^^ ]

Subject: More L. Lemon Sandhill Cranes
From: "Zeller, Tom S" <zeller(AT)INDIANA.EDU>
Date: 21 Nov 2001 11:23am

This morning around 8:30 Mary Kay and I went to Little Africa to see if
there were cranes, and oh my yes, there were.  Over a thousand.  We watched
and listened as waves of honking came and went.  One group of about 30 birds
went into the air noisily, circling, and we thought, "here they go."  But
no, the rest of the flock wasn't ready and eventually the early birds gave
up and landed again.  Half an hour later three agitators tried to stir
things up, but again failed.

Finally around 10:00 and large group of about 75 cranes went up and then it
started.  Groups of 3, 10,30 would rise up.  All the groups swirling around
and bleating and whistling as they gained altitude.  At one point most of
the birds were in the air and within sight, spread over perhaps a mile of
air space.  Spectacular.

Also, Monday night at 6:40 I heard a large group of cranes still flying
south.  Presumably coming in late to Monroe.  I was surprised to hear them
flying well after dark.

Tom Zeller


[ << | >> | ^^ ]

Subject: Re: More L. Lemon Sandhill Cranes
From: dwinslow <dwinslow(AT)INDIANA.EDU>
Date: 22 Nov 2001 10:22am

I saw these cranes pass over Dubois Ridge starting around 10:30.

Donald

On Wed, 21 Nov 2001, Zeller, Tom S wrote:

> This morning around 8:30 Mary Kay and I went to Little Africa to see if
> there were cranes, and oh my yes, there were.  Over a thousand.  We watched
> and listened as waves of honking came and went.  One group of about 30 birds
> went into the air noisily, circling, and we thought, "here they go."  But
> no, the rest of the flock wasn't ready and eventually the early birds gave
> up and landed again.  Half an hour later three agitators tried to stir
> things up, but again failed.
>
> Finally around 10:00 and large group of about 75 cranes went up and then it
> started.  Groups of 3, 10,30 would rise up.  All the groups swirling around
> and bleating and whistling as they gained altitude.  At one point most of
> the birds were in the air and within sight, spread over perhaps a mile of
> air space.  Spectacular.
>
>
> Also, Monday night at 6:40 I heard a large group of cranes still flying
> south.  Presumably coming in late to Monroe.  I was surprised to hear them
> flying well after dark.
>
> Tom Zeller
>
>


[ << | >> | ^^ ]

Subject: 11/22 Paynetown/Pine Grove/Stillwater
From: michael clarke <miclarke(AT)BLOOMINGTON.IN.US>
Date: 22 Nov 2001 11:51am

Thought I would get out for a little Thanksgiving Day birding.
Beautiful morning.
The better birds included:
Paynetown:
Common Loon- 35 (as many as i've seen at once this fall)
Purple Finch-20 (several small flocks were active in the campground
area.  As i become more familiar with this species, i'm finding that
it's the females that are easiest to distinguish from House Finch; their
breast streaking is more pronounced and they have a distinctive whitish
patch above the eye and, of course, the head shape is different.)

Song Sparrow-1
Eastern Bluebird-10
Ring-billed Gull-5
Great Blue Heron-1
Belted Kingfisher-1

Pine Grove:
Red-winged Blackbird-20
Rusty Blackbird-2
Canada Goose-25
Great Blue Heron-1
Hooded Merganser-1 (my first of the fall)
Ring-billed Gull-20 (possibly a Bonaparte's amongst them)
Belted Kingfisher

Stillwater:
Large numbers of-
American Wigeon
Ring-necked Duck
Mallard
Gadwall

Pied-billed Grebe-1
Swamp Sparrow-2
Song Sparrow-1
Eastern Bluebird-5

Happy Thanksgiving all!


[ << | >> | ^^ ]

Subject: Bald Eagle
From: Yuichiro Masuda <yu(AT)MASUDA-NET.COM>
Date: 22 Nov 2001 6:28pm

Hi B-Birders!
Seeing a bald eagle has been my dream since I started my birding life this
summer. I frequently visit Monroe Lake and Lake Lemon but I have never seen
it. I realize, however, bald eagles are reported almost every day in this
mail-list. Could some one tell me a detail of the place where bald eagles
are seen?

Thanks,
Yuichiro Masuda