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[From Nature Notes (the journal of the Webster Groves Nature Study Society), Vol. 80, No. 4, Apr., 2008] FEBRUARY 2008 BIRD REPORTBy: Jim Ziebol and Yvonne HomeyerIntroduction: The two best birds in February were a Gyrfalcon, first seen on 2/12, and the Siberian race of Mew Gull, present at Carlyle Lake on 2/23 & 2/24. The Gyrfalcon is a first for the St. Louis area and the gull subspecies is either the first or second. Sightings: (Some late January sightings are included). On 2/24, Jeannie Moe and Kraig Paradise observed about 1,000 White Pelicans at Lincoln Shields, and 40 Bald Eagles and a Peregrine Falcon in the Riverlands area. Twenty Black-crowned Night Herons have been roosting in the same tree in Granite City and were first seen there on 2/14 (FH). A Great Egret was seen in the Hwy. 111 side of HL on 2/27 (J Cowan). The bird was re-found by the Thursday Group on 2/28 (JChain). Connie Alwood reported 250 Pelicans and 250 White-fronted Geese at Riverlands on 2/24. Eight Killdeer were seen at CC on 2/10 (DR) and on 2/18, two were seen near HL on 2/18 (FH). Woodcocks were first reported by Mike Brady on 2/28, with 2 present at CSP, and on 2/29, he had a personal high of 11 on the Chubb Trail. Seven Black Ducks and 240 White-fronted Geese were found at Riverlands on 2/3 (MT). On 2/13, David Rogles estimated 75 Ruddy Ducks and 125 Canvasbacks on Riverlands. On 2/10, Frank Holmes counted 500 Canvasbacks, 100 Common Mergansers, and 50 Ring-necked Ducks at HL. About 750 Common Mergansers – a high number – were present at HL on 2/25 (FH). On 2/16, 3 White-winged Scoters were seen at Riverlands (CA) and on 2/23, one was seen at Baldwin Lake (JE). A first-winter Glaucous Gull, seen at Riverlands on 2/29, was a year bird for many in the Thursday Group. In early February, Lesser Black-backed sightings included a second-winter at HL (BRudden), a third-winter at HL (JZ), and an adult which was last seen at HL on 2/17. Mike Thelen saw a Lesser Black-backed at Riverlands on 2/16. A trip to Baldwin Lake on 2/16 produced 14 ducks species, a Red-necked Grebe, and a Loggerhead Shrike at Peabody Coal (PL). On 2/23, 5 Loggerhead Shrikes and a Short-eared Owl were reported at Peabody Coal (CA, JE). An Osprey seen over Hwy. 70 east of Hwy. 203 on 2/15 was an early arrival (JZ). Mark Seiffert observed a Prairie Falcon north of CL on 1/30. On 2/7, Sherry McCowan spotted a Peregrine Falcon in downtown St. Louis. A Merlin was seen in Carondelet Park on 1/31 (BRudden). Edna Alexander and Carol Brown observed Cooper’s Hawk, Merlin, and a Gyrfalcon at HL on 2/16. The Gyrfalcon was first seen on 2/12; it was observed in flight at close range and filmed while sitting on ice, at a distance, while eating a duck (JZ). By 1/29, both Sherry McCowan and Jackie Chain had observed the female Great Horned Owl at its nest in TGP, presumably sitting on eggs. On 2/28, Shawn Clubb found Barred Owl, Great Horned Owl, and a Field Sparrow at LCCL. Eleven Bluebirds appeared at HL on 2/7 (FH). A Northern Shrike was seen at Confluence State Park on 2/24 (DRogles) and on 2/25 (CA). An Orange-crowned Warbler, not of the eastern race, was seen at FP on 2/22 (SM). On 2/10, 75 American Tree Sparrows, 30 White-throated, and 12 Song Sparrows were observed at HL on the Hwy. 203 side (FH, JZ). On 2/17, several Fox Sparrows, Red-breasted Nuthatch, and a Yellow-bellied Sapsucker were observed in BCA (SC). On 2/3, 100+ Horned Larks, 3 Lapland Longspurs and 20 Savannah Sparrows were seen near HL (FH, JZ). Also on 2/3, 12 Western Meadowlarks and 4 Lapland Longspurs were found at CB (DRogles, TB). Mike Thelen reported Rusty Blackbird and 40 Great-tailed Grackles at Church & Seeburger on 2/11. On 2/28, as many as 15,000 gulls, including only a few Herring Gulls, 700+ Common Mergansers, 50 Red-breasted Mergansers, and 5 Hooded Mergansers were present at HL (SM, JZ). A typical day at Margy Terpstra’s yard in Kirkwood on 2/21 included 2 Robins, 4 Juncos, 4 Goldfinch, 9+ House Finch, 2 Red-breasted Nuthatches, 2 Tufted Titmice, 1 White-breasted Nuthatch, 8 Cardinals, 12 Pine Siskins, 2 Chickadees, 5 Bluejays, 2 Downy Woodpeckers, 6 Starlings, 2 White-throated Sparrows, 2 Red-bellied Woodpeckers, American Crow, 2 Northern Flickers, 2 Carolina Wrens, and a Yellow-bellied Sapsucker. Back Yard Birds: Linda Virga saw Tufted Titmice, Brown Creeper, both species of Nuthatch, White-crowned Sparrows, and Eurasian Tree Sparrows in her yard in February. Anne McCormack had a flyover of 8 Ring-billed Gulls at her Kirkwood home on 2/2. On 2/24, Frank Holmes observed a leucistic Eurasian Collared Dove near his home. Other leucistic birds were: a Mallard at HL and a Canada Goose at Eagle Park (FH). Barred Owls were present at Margy Terpstra’s home on 2/16, and Clarence Zacher heard one at his home on 2/20. In early February, a Brown Thrasher was seen in Connie Alwood’s Ferguson yard, along with 2 Red-breasted Nuthatches. Jane Walker has had a pair of Red-breasted Nuthatches at her home all winter. The Spotted Towhee was still being seen in Jane Allen’s yard in February. A Clay-colored Sparrow and 2 Pine Siskins were seen in Wally George’s yard in Cedar Hill on 2/29. Contributors: Connie Alwood, Mike Brady, Jackie Chain, Shawn Clubb, Joe Eades, Wally George, Frank Holmes, Yvonne Homeyer, Dan Kassebaum, Pat Lueders, Sherry McCowan, Jeannie Moe, Kraig Paradise, David Rogles, Bill Rudden, Mark Seiffert, Margy Terpstra, Mike Thelen, Linda Virga, Clarence Zacher, Jim Ziebol. Abbreviations: BCA, Busch Conservation Area; CC, Clarence Cannon NWR; CL, Carlyle Lake; CSP, Castlewood State Park; CB, Columbia Bottoms; FP, Forest Park; HL, Horseshoe Lake; LP, Lafayette Park; LCCL, Little Creve Coeur Lake; MTC, Marais Temps Clair; RMBS, Riverlands Migratory Bird Sanctuary; SNR, Shaw Nature Reserve; TGP, Tower Grove Park. |