Early Tuesday evening this was the birding scene...
I woke the next morning to this...
SNOW! April 4th and we are dealing with snow in southern Wisconsin.
However for contrast, here was the scene in the backyard this morning. The snow was largely gone, but the frigid weather and the shittest birds in the world (Wild Turkeys) remained.
In the wee hours of this morning, during one of my many periods of wakefulness, my handy phone told me it was 18° F! Eek! Yeah that's more like "degrees FUCK!!!" not Fahrenheit. That was enough to tip my decision to sleep in.
Despite the sense of being under the spell of Snow Miser, the birds continue to trickle into the state albeit trickle is key word. Where are all the Bonaparte's Gulls?!? I associate Easter with a large influx of Boni's. Yet Easter has passed and thus far Bonaparte's Gulls seem in short supply. This particular bird has been spending time at Stricker's Pond this past week and is probably one of the most photographed gulls in the area right now. Scruffy looking little bugger. My hands went numb and I failed to get a sharp image despite my relative close proximity to the bird.
This past Thursday was our best weather day with temperatures climbing into the 40s. Woohoo! I was fortunate to have the day off and took advantage of Nature's reprieve from arctic blasts. I walked over six miles between my neighborhood, Owen Conservation Park, the Confluence Ponds, North Fork Marsh and the Pheasant Branch Creek Corridor trail. I continued to add FOY species to my birding patch list...
...as well as relish in admiring recurrent but nonetheless stunning birds decked out in their finest plumages.
Friday's strong winds blew in a few Franklin's Gulls that continued in various locations today. I finally saw this FOY species at Ashton K pond during my second attempt at birding this small ephemeral pond. I saw reports later in the day of two Franklin's having been present today. I suspect I simply missed them in the tightly packed flock of Ring-billed gulls. To my good fortune, one was standing outside the flock upon my return, making it more easily discernible. Moments later it moved into the interior, effectively disappearing again. An el crappo doc shot was obtained which I will spare from display on this blog.
My good fortune continued into the afternoon when I hit PATCH GOLD, so golden little can be uttered about this nugget. Patch gold and a golden high sure to make for the sweetest of dreams this eve. Here's lookin' at you kid (x3). It doesn't get any better!
I woke the next morning to this...
SNOW! April 4th and we are dealing with snow in southern Wisconsin.
However for contrast, here was the scene in the backyard this morning. The snow was largely gone, but the frigid weather and the shittest birds in the world (Wild Turkeys) remained.
In the wee hours of this morning, during one of my many periods of wakefulness, my handy phone told me it was 18° F! Eek! Yeah that's more like "degrees FUCK!!!" not Fahrenheit. That was enough to tip my decision to sleep in.
Despite the sense of being under the spell of Snow Miser, the birds continue to trickle into the state albeit trickle is key word. Where are all the Bonaparte's Gulls?!? I associate Easter with a large influx of Boni's. Yet Easter has passed and thus far Bonaparte's Gulls seem in short supply. This particular bird has been spending time at Stricker's Pond this past week and is probably one of the most photographed gulls in the area right now. Scruffy looking little bugger. My hands went numb and I failed to get a sharp image despite my relative close proximity to the bird.
This past Thursday was our best weather day with temperatures climbing into the 40s. Woohoo! I was fortunate to have the day off and took advantage of Nature's reprieve from arctic blasts. I walked over six miles between my neighborhood, Owen Conservation Park, the Confluence Ponds, North Fork Marsh and the Pheasant Branch Creek Corridor trail. I continued to add FOY species to my birding patch list...
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| Winter Wren, Owen Conservation Park, not cooperating for photos A new patch addition this week |
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| Fox Sparrow, Owen Conservation Park, Madison, Dane Co, WI |
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| Sandhill Crane in the snow, Stricker's Pond, Middleton, WI |
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| Sandhill Crane exercising what might be a faulty nesting strategy if we get the rain that is forecast |
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| Great Blue Heron, Stricker's Pond, Middleton WI |
Friday's strong winds blew in a few Franklin's Gulls that continued in various locations today. I finally saw this FOY species at Ashton K pond during my second attempt at birding this small ephemeral pond. I saw reports later in the day of two Franklin's having been present today. I suspect I simply missed them in the tightly packed flock of Ring-billed gulls. To my good fortune, one was standing outside the flock upon my return, making it more easily discernible. Moments later it moved into the interior, effectively disappearing again. An el crappo doc shot was obtained which I will spare from display on this blog.
My good fortune continued into the afternoon when I hit PATCH GOLD, so golden little can be uttered about this nugget. Patch gold and a golden high sure to make for the sweetest of dreams this eve. Here's lookin' at you kid (x3). It doesn't get any better!
