bluebird march 2014 - conservation leadership · pdf filerandy korotev, 800 oakbrook lane, st....

March 2014March 2014 Volume 81, No. 1Volume 81, No. 1

The Audubon Society of MissouriThe Audubon Society of Missouri Missouri’s Ornithological Society Since 1901Missouri’s Ornithological Society Since 1901

T H E T H E B L U E B I RB L U E B I R DD

T h e v o i c e o f A S M s i n c e 1 9 3 4T h e v o i c e o f A S M s i n c e 1 9 3 4

Officers June Newman*+, President (2014) 209 Santa Fe Street; Carrollton, MO 64633; (660) 542-0873 [email protected]

Shari Harden*+, Vice-President (2014) 513 NE Grant Drive; Blue Springs, MO 64014; (816) 229-3979 [email protected]

Scott Laurent*+, Secretary (2014) 610 W. 46th Street, #103; Kansas City, MO 64112; (816) 916-5014 [email protected]

Pat Lueders*+, Treasurer (2014) 1147 Hawken Pl., St. Louis, MO 63119; (314) 222-1711 [email protected]

Honorary Directors Richard A. Anderson, St. Louis** Nathan Fay, Ozark** Leo Galloway, St. Joseph** Jim Jackson, Marthasville Lisle Jeffrey, Columbia** Floyd Lawhon, St. Joseph** Patrick Mahnkey, Forsyth** Rebecca Matthews, Springfield Sydney Wade, Jefferson City** Dave Witten, Columbia** John Wylie, Jefferson City**

Jim Jackson, 2012 Recipient of the Rudolf Bennitt Award

Dr. David Easterla, 2006 Recipient of the Rudolf Bennitt Award

Paul E. Bauer, 2004 Recipient of the Rudolf Bennitt Award

+ Board Position * Executive Committee Member **Deceased

Regional Directors

Jeff Cantrell+ (2014) Neosho (471) 476-3311

Mark Haas+ (2016) Jackson (573) 204-0626

Susan Hazelwood+ (2015) Columbia, (573) 819-9252

Brent Galliart+ (2015) St. Joseph (816) 232-6038

Terry McNeely+ (2016) Jameson, MO (660) 828-4215

Ruth Simmons+ (2014) Kansas City, MO (816) 678-1217

Larry Olpin+ (2016) Warrensburg (660) 747-5228

Louise Wilkinson+ (2014) Rolla (573) 364-9552

Phil Wire+ (2016) Bowling Green (314) 960-0370

Chairs

Bill Clark, Historian 3906 Grace Ellen Dr. Columbia, MO 65202 (573) 474-4510

Jerry Wade, Membership 1221 Bradshaw Avenue Columbia, MO 65203 (573) 445-6697 [email protected]

THE AUDUBON SOCIETY OF MISSOURI

Page i THE BLUEBIRD

THE BLUEBIRD

Page ii THE BLUEBIRD

The Bluebird Editor: Bill Eddleman*+, 1831 Ricardo Drive, Cape Girardeau, MO 63701, (573) 335-1507, [email protected]

Christmas Bird Count Compiler: Randy Korotev, 800 Oakbrook Lane, St. Louis, MO 63132, (314) 993-0055, [email protected]

Communication Services: Patrick Harrison Webmaster, http://mobirds.org, Susan Hazelwood and David Scheu, Co-owners Listserve, [email protected],edu

ASM Scholarship Committee: Sue Gustafson, Chair, 429 Belleview Ave., Webster Groves MO 63119 (314) 968-8128, [email protected]

MO Bird Records Committee: Brad Jacobs+—Chair, 11300 Vemers Ford Road, Columbia, MO 65201, (573) 874-3904, [email protected] Bill Rowe—Secretary, 9033 Big Bend Road, St. Louis, MO 63119, (314) 962-0544, [email protected]

Seasonal Survey Editors: Spring: Josh Uffman, 707 Ashton Way Circle, Eureka, MO 63025 (636) 587-6016; [email protected] Summer: Kristi Mayo, 1807 Clear Creek Dr., Kearney, MO 64060 (816) 289–7828, [email protected] Fall: Peter Kondrashov, Biology Department, A. T. Still University of Health Sciences, Kirksville College of Osteopathic Medicine, 800 W. Jeff erson St., Kirksville, MO 63501 Mo. State Univ., [email protected] Winter: Joe Eades, 517 Willow Lane, Kirkwood, MO, 63122, (314) 835- 0353, [email protected] * Executive Committee Member + Board Position

Deadlines for submission of material for publication in The Bluebird Manuscripts for The Bluebird—to the editor by:

Feb. 1 for March issue; May 1 for June issue; Jul. 15 for Sept. issue; Nov. 1 for Dec. issue

Deadlines for submissions to the Seasonal Survey Compilers Winter (Dec. 1-Feb. 28)—to Joe Eades by Mar. 10

Spring (Mar. 1-May 31)—to Kristi Mayo by June 10 Summer (June 1-July. 31)—to Josh Uffman by Aug 10 Fall (Aug. 1-Nov. 30)—to Peter Kondrashov by Dec. 10

TABLE OF CONTENTS

Page iii THE BLUEBIRD

1 President’s Corner—June Newman 2 Missouri Educator Earns ABA Recognition (Andrew Kinslow) Photographs by Kelsey Rumley 5 ASM Plans Current River State Park Bird Survey 6 Volunteer Opportunities 7 An Appreciation of Bald Eagles—Michael Winger 10 Birding on the Alaskan Frontier—Bill Reeves (Photographs by Bill Reeves and Nolan Lameka) 23 Top Ten Species for 2012 – Missouri Bird Records Committee 24 Twenty-sixth Annual Report of the Missouri Bird Records Committee –William C. Rowe 36 We Welcome our New ASM Members!—Jerry Wade 37 Fall 2013 Seasonal Report—Peter Kondrashov and Ryan Douglas 44 A Birder’s Guide to Missouri Public Lands – Edge Wade 49 Book Review: How to be a Better Birder—Bill Eddleman

Front Cover—Bald Eagle over the icy Mississippi River at Lock and Dam 24 near Winfield, Lincoln County. Photographed by Michael Winger.

THE BLUEBIRD is published quarterly by The Audubon Society of Missouri. The submission of articles, photographs, and artwork is welcomed and encouraged. The views and opinions ex-pressed in this journal are those of each contributing writer and do not necessarily represent the views and opinions of The Audubon Society of Missouri or its officers, Board of Directors, or edi-tors. Send address corrections to ASM, 2101 W. Broadway, PMB 122, Columbia, MO 65203-1261.

March 2014 Volume 81, No. 1

PRESIDENT’S CORNER—JUNE NEWMAN

Page 1 THE BLUEBIRD

Dear Fellow Birders,

What joy when a topic for a writing deadline falls from the sky! Word that Andrew Kinslow, a lifetime member of ASM, had been named the 2014 recipient of the American Birding Association’s Chandler Robbins award was timely and it was a pleasure to learn how the award came about, and how very deserving Andrew is of the recognition.

When Andrew generously responded to my request of him for some background informa-tion, I was impressed by a consistent attitude of humility and gratitude to others for his suc-cess. His expressions of appreciation for the

members of Greater Ozarks Audubon Society impress me specifically, and remind me of the opportunities we have as members of the bird-focused community of people to welcome newcomers into our smaller groups, of the exponential effect that occurs when a young person, influenced by our pas-sion for birds and their environment, goes on to influence the values and life work of many more young people.

I like that Andrew, distinctly a scientist, thinks it's significant that he was first a birder, and can say comfortably that holding a bird in hand is magi-cal.

Lisa Berger shared a comment once made by a staff member from the Com-munity Foundation of the Ozarks: If Andrew is part of this project, we're behind it 100%. Lisa further observes:

Andrew Kinslow glows with humility, integrity, quiet force, and compassion. His entire life is wholly committed to helping others and providing youth hands-on, outdoor experiences. He does this not for self-affirmation, recognition, awards, or a resume. Andrew is truly a selfless mentor, providing a platform where youthful minds may open to the magic of the natural world.

She seems to summarize the assessment of everyone who knows Andrew. I'm honored to have the opportunity to write about him and his award. June Newman, President

MISSOURI EDUCATOR EARNS ABA RECOGNITION

Page 2 THE BLUEBIRD

Andrew Kinslow can point to the moment that decided his future as a teacher. At Whitefish Point Bird Observatory in the Upper Penin-sula of Michigan one of his job duties as a young biologist involved banding demonstrations for the public. As a self-described introvert with no prior teaching experience, he dreaded that part of the job. His first assignment in that role had him facing 15 birdwatchers early one morning. His attention was drawn to a little girl whose body language suggested that she was as uncomfortable as he was with the experience. He knelt in front of her with a Cedar Waxwing which had been banded that morning, and asked if she would like to hold it. Her demeanor softened and her face lit up as she held the bird briefly and carefully released it. Facilitating a connection of a child to a bird and the natural world changed Andrew as it changed the child. That he would continue to share his passion and connect kids to science and research as a teacher was fixed. That passion and evidence of his exceptional work as an educator led to his being chosen as the 2014 recipient of the American Birding Association's Chandler Robbins award. The award, recognizing “outstanding efforts in birder education, bird conservation or in the management or preservation of habitats on which birds and birding depends,” is named for the renowned ornithologist and author of the Birds of North America: A Guide to Field Identification, popularly known as the Golden Guide. Andrew's earliest memory specifically of birds is of looking through a Golden Guide with his parents, both teachers, on a snow day, home from school, watching birds in the yard. To receive an award bearing Chandler's name is especially meaningful to him. His interest in birds turned to a passion in college when he met Jeff Cantrell who is now an MDC employee and ASM board member. He and Jeff birded together as often as possible, and Jeff introduced him to the Greater Ozarks Audubon Society where he says, “I really developed as a birder.” Andrew describes himself as so shy he could hardly speak, being accustomed to finding peace alone in the out-doors. But Jeff, Betty Dyer, Becky Matthews, Dorothy Thurman, Kay and Betty Johnson, Jan Horton, Lisa Berger, Charley Burwick, Greg Swick and others in GOAS welcomed him and he writes that “It was on the trail, sharing life birds, where I found peace, this time not alone, but with others of a shared vision.”

THE BLUEBIRD

During college Andrew interned with the Missouri Forest Ecosystem Project with Dr. John Faaborg of Missouri University. During the MOFEP experience he realized he had acute hearing especially use-ful for birding and the first part of field season gave him an opportu-nity to hone bird song identification skills. The second half of the project provided training in bird banding and intensified his passion for birds. “There is something simply magical about holding a bird in hand.” He spent the next two and half years working in bird re-search jobs in seven different states, one of which included his piv-otal experience at Whitefish Point Bird Observatory.

Andrew has taught for 16 years at Logan-Rogersville High School and lives on an Ozark farm with his wife Dawn and two rescue pups, Raven and Phoebe. The research station for his high school field class is located on his farm.

“I was a birder before I was a bander and that context is significant,” Andrew explains. It is important to him that banding be in the con-text of a bird's ecology: behavior, migration, feeding habits, etc. Banding interrupts the life of a bird. Therefore, to Andrew, ethics demands that each moment count, that we owe to the birds we inter-rupt valid collection of data and safe release. That sense of ethics makes banding best justified and most complete when it happens in an educational setting. It takes science out of a “cookbook” lab activ-ity and has the power to hook kids on science and birds for the rest of their lives.

The Logan-Rogersville School District said yes to his request in 1999 to start a summer research program, thinking, he believes, that no high school kid would get up at 4:30 a.m. to go chase birds in the woods during summer vacation. But 10 kids did! And the program continues to grow each year. An adult Louisiana Waterthrush banded the first summer was recaptured every year for the next nine years.

Five years ago, GOAS approached Andrew about doing a banding demo with GLADE, Green Leadership Academy for Diverse Ecosys-tems. It has been a successful part of the GLADE program and he credits it with teaching him the power of working in a team with like-minded individuals focused on Environmental Education “at its finest.” He is proud to be one spoke in the GLADE wheel, a part of the work Dr. Janice Greene does there.

Both banding programs, the one with GLADE and the one with Logan-Rogersville field classes, are in partnership with the Institute for Bird Populations in Point Reyes, California, and part of the larg-

THE BLUEBIRD

er Monitoring Avian Productivity and Survivorship (MAPS) re-search program. Data also is submitted to the Federal Bird Banding Laboratory in Laurel, Maryland to contribute to the greater body of ornithological knowledge. Chandler Robbins still has an office at the banding lab. That connection prompts Andrew to say, “I think that it is so wonderful how interwoven his journey has been with mine, even though we have never met.”

“As a shy introverted child I found peace in nature. It was there that I found my passion for birds. Birds in turn brought me into a larger flock of people who shared the same vision and passion, and I made peace with my introversion. There are still times when I just want to escape into the woods and streams of the Ozarks and listen to a Kentucky Warbler or Louisiana Waterthrush. What gives me the most satisfaction now is sharing that with my students.”

Andrew's connection to GOAS and to GLADE made Greg Swick aware of the qualities which make him a candidate for ABC's Chan-dler Robbins award. Greg’s nomination letter reproduced below de-tails Andrew’s significant contributions to bird education. How for-tunate we Missourians are to have Andrew Kinslow among us! If you have an opportunity to congratulate him on the award, be sure to add a “thank you” for his contributions.

Andrew Kinslow holds a Prothonotary Warbler.

THE BLUEBIRD

Some of the students in Andrew’s class view a bird.

Photos by Kelsey Rumley.

ASM will be conducting a bird survey at Current River State Park on May 30 – June 1, 2014. Those who wish to participate will have lodging and meals at the former Alton Club, a corporate retreat con-structed in ca. 1937-1945 for the Alton Box Board Co., now part of Missouri's newest state park. Watch the mobirds-l email list and mobirds.org for details as they become available. If you do not use the internet and wish to be con-tacted non-digitally about this event, contact June Newman by phone or mail: 209 Santa Fe St.; Carrollton, MO 64633; 660-542-0873 (home); 660-329-2693 (cell).

ASM PLANS CURRENT RIVER STATE PARK BIRD SURVEY

THE BLUEBIRD

Two recent posts to the ASM email list have announced exciting pro-jects and invite your participation. Please help if you can.

In March of 2014, the International Rusty Blackbird Working Group, in partnership with the U.S. Fish and Wildlife Service, the Vermont Center for Ecostudies, eBird, and many other state, fed-eral, and local partners, will launch a Rusty Blackbird Spring Migration Blitz that challenges birders to scour the landscape for Rusty Blackbirds during this species’ northward migration. Thirty-eight states, 9 provinces, and 3 territories will participate in this international effort to find Rusty Blackbirds. It’s easy to partici-pate—bird as you normally do during your state’s target dates and submit your data to eBird using the “Rusty Blackbird Spring Migra-tion Blitz” observation type. If you are interested in learning more about Rusty Blackbirds and the Migration Blitz, check out the web-site (http://rustyblackbird.org/outreach/migration-blitz/). And stay tuned—the Missouri coordinator will be distributing more informa-tion as opening day approaches! Also, follow the effort on Facebook for the most up-to-date information about the Blitz: https://www.facebook.com/rustyblackbirdspringblitz Contact: Jason D. Luscier; Assistant Professor of Biology; Truman State Uni-versity; Kirksville, MO 63501

The peent of an American Woodcock is a sure sign that spring is coming, although they appear very early. Although it is still blustery and cold across much of the region we are closing in on the time that American Woodcock will be heading north along their spring migra-tion routes. In the ‘early bird gets the worm’ mentality, woodcock migrate earlier than most other species, leaving their southern win-tering grounds sometimes before February to arrive on northern breeding grounds—often when there is still snow on the ground. De-spite the specie’s allure, there is still very little known about the ecology of American Woodcock along the spring migration routes. Any information on spring migration habitat is critical for better management of woodcock. With your help and the help of other vol-unteers, a cooperative research project hopes to collect abundance and general habitat data across Arkansas, Missouri, Illinois and Iowa during the spring migration. We need your help to make this effort a success! How you can help: 1.) Venture out this spring and watch and listen to woodcock perform their conspicuous courtship dances, record your observations on the provided data sheet (email the researcher to request more information and data sheets) and send the data sheet to [email protected]

Volunteer Opportunities

THE BLUEBIRD

2.) Spread the word and help find more volunteers to widen the sur-vey range and fill in missing areas.

Contact: Cari Elizabeth Sebright; Graduate Assistant; Arkan-sas Cooperative Fish and Wildlife Research Unit; SCEN 601; 1 University of Arkansas; Fayetteville, AR 72701-1201; Phone: 479-575-4427.

Let me begin by affirming, “Brrrr!!!” Eagle watching and photogra-phy is a cold affair. But, it is also most rewarding.

This year, Missouri was host to the second largest gathering of bald eagles in the world next to Alaska. What a show! I learned that the name “bald eagle” comes from the olde English “balde” which means white.

I visited the beautiful birds on both sides of the Mississippi—in Illi-nois and in Missouri. The best views by far were in Missouri. I ven-tured up to Winfield and was able to see a few and mostly from quite a distance.

As I went further north over a rather treacherous early morning drive on route 79 the viewing changed dramatically. The river was mostly frozen around Lock and Dam 25 near Winfield so the birds were either on the other side or further north.

However, a stop at Erin’s Coffee Shoppe was a delight. Good break-fast, nice people and it was warm! After about an hour enjoying the breakfast and conversation, I began my northern exposure. I arrived at Lock and Dam 24 in Clarksville around 8 a.m. and the eagles were feasting. Between the lock and dam and the center of Clarks-ville by the water, I spotted almost 100 eagles.

The water was partially frozen providing a great dinner table for the eagles to sit and grab their meals. A few were a bit aggressive, but no one was hurt and the eating seemed to be perfectly satisfying to all the feathered fish connoisseurs.

I guess this will have to be an annual affair. I will have visited the area three times this year, so my photography itch will have been quantifiably scratched. Here are a few of my favorites.

An Appreciation of Bald Eagles Michael Winger, Rolla, Mo.

THE BLUEBIRD

THE BLUEBIRD

All photographs by Michael Winger.

THE BLUEBIRD

“Getting too old and decrepit. . . too far away . . . too many logistics . . too much travel time . . . too cold, too rugged . . . too expensive.” These were some of the excuses I kept giving myself for not taking a bird expedition to Alaska. The excuses roiled and re-circulated for a couple of years before I finally capitulated. Brushing aside those sundry excuses, I plunged into Alaskan internet websites and emerged with a three-week bird trip which included trips to re-nowned hotspots Gambell and Nome. Among the half-dozen tour groups available, I was hooked by the one aptly named “Wilderness” Birding Adventures. Its ownership and bird guides are resident Alaskans, and our lead guide, Aaron Lang, is one of Alaska’s pre-mier birders.

It has been several months now since my return from Alaska. I find myself reminiscing often about the natural splendor of the Alaskan frontier and the pure, unadulterated excitement of birding there. I am thus compelled to admonish fellow birders: if you have the time, the means and the barest inclination to go to Alaska, by all means do it now, before you get too old, too decrepit, time gets away from you, or, well, you get the drift.

WBA Lead Guide Aaron Lang; and fellow birder/photographer Nolan Lameka in the background, scanning for the Bristle-thighed Curlew

Birding on the Alaskan Frontier Bill Reeves

Photographs by Bill Reeves and Nolan Lameka

THE BLUEBIRD

PART I: Gambell

After taking a few days to explore Anchorage and the Kenai Penin-sula, our group headed to the island of St. Lawrence. It is located in the Bering Sea, just below the Arctic Circle. There are two Native Alaskan villages on the island. Only the village of Gambell is readily accessible to birders. In late May the island is still hemmed in by vast expanses of sea ice. Birders are greeted by morning tempera-tures of 15-25 degrees Fahrenheit, often accompanied by wind gusts which plunge the wind chill into unknown parameters. Fog is an unpredictable and unwelcome visitor, toying off and on with flight schedules and birders’ emotions alike. The rain there is often a wind-blown sideways drizzle, enough to thoroughly challenge the water-proof capabilities of every scope, camera and pair of binoculars. The wind and drizzle permeate the most weatherproof and carefully lay-ered clothing, while soggy tundra and boneyard potholes lie in wait for naïve and unassuming birders (more on that later).

There are no trees at Gambell. There are, however, scattered waste piles of discarded appliances, crates, barrels, boxes, plastic and de-bris. Over the years, the village landfill has morphed into a giant octopus of sorts, with elongated strings of trash and debris branch-ing out into the nearby ancient boneyards, where Yu’pik Eskimo peoples traditionally laid to rest the natural offal of their seaborne prey. In order to get to some parts of the gravel beach where birders go to scan for seabirds, it is sometimes necessary to weave one’s way through this modern-day midden.

Gambell landscape—The landfill, gravel beach and distant ice floes. The

rarest bird this spring? A 1st state record House Sparrow!

THE BLUEBIRD

Wilderness Birding Adventures “Headquarters” at Gambell. Note two basic essentials: (1). strips of Ringed Seal meat drying out on a wire (above the

right-hand window); and (2). satellite dish.

I’m not done yet. There is another insidious monster lurking liter-ally beneath our feet. You see, the village Gambell is situated on an immense, bottomless gravel bar. With each footstep sinking inexora-bly into the shifting layers of pea-sized gravel, walking has a way of taxing every muscle from hip to toes. Add twenty pounds of clothing and equipment, tack on non-stop birding for fourteen hours a day, and you have a complete recipe for, for . . . well, for complete, utter, rapturous birding ecstasy. Yeah, how can you beat this for first-rate, once-in-a-lifetime, top-of-the-world birding? As most birders well know, the more rugged the experience, the more combative the ele-ments, the more challenging it is to wreak out a few precious sec-onds of intense focus upon one’s quarry, the more gratifying it is when you finally lock in on a rare and elusive vagrant. At Gambell, there are many opportunities to experience this natural “high,” time and time again.

Our week of birding at Gambell was outstanding. During my first couple of days there, the weather was surprisingly sedate. True, the low morning temps were around 15-20 degrees, but afternoons brought sunshine and a light breeze. The birds most commonly

THE BLUEBIRD

found around the village were Snow Buntings and Lapland Long-purs. White Wagtails flitted back and forth between the junk-piles and snowmobiles. Long-tailed and Pomarine Jaegers patrolled the beaches and short-grass marshes for unsuspecting shorebirds. A Rough-legged Hawk and several Short-eared Owls joined in the hunt, some working in tandem, others solo. Just outside of the vil-lage is a prominent hilltop rising about 100 feet above sea-level. The rocks and boulders strewn across the hillside provide some degree of safety for nesting alcids, including Crested, Parakeet and Least Auklets, along with a few Dovekies.

Crested Auk- lets courting on an outcropping at

the Gambell alcid colony.

THE BLUEBIRD

The gravel beach at the northwest end of the island served as our rallying point for morning and evening sea watches. Loons, ducks, gulls and alcids by the hundreds of thousands raced back and forth along this beachfront, sometimes dropping into the few scattered areas of open ocean to rest and feed. In the few days we were there, we found Yellow-billed, Arctic and Red-throated Loons. Among the gulls were Black-legged Kittiwakes, “Vega” (Herring), and Glaucous Gulls, and a lone Ivory Gull. An occasional Northern Fulmar would dart out from behind the ice floes, gliding low over the water on stiffly-bowed wings. A single Sabine’s Gull in breeding plumage left the beachfront and dropped in on us at the whale boneyard, picking his way through scattered bones and debris. Beyond the wall of ice hugging the beach, rafts of Long-tailed Ducks, Harlequin Ducks and scoters would spontaneously coagulate on the water, then disappear and re-form just as quickly somewhere else. Thick-billed Murres, guillemots (of both species) and auklets passed by in swarming clouds of varying size and shape.

Bird-ing necessities at the Gambell sea watch – scope, four layers of clothing,

Neos overshoes and a good seat pad.

The combination of soggy tundra and shallow marsh habitat was especially attractive to both migrant and breeding shorebirds. To my great pleasure, most of the shorebirds were in readily identifiable adult breeding plumage, and most birds were quite willing to vocal-ize for us as well. The predominant breeders were Western Sandpi-pers, Dunlin and Wilson’s Snipe. Noteworthy visitors included a Wandering Tattler, Red-necked Stint, a pair of Bar-tailed Godwits

THE BLUEBIRD

Adult Common Ringed Plover in full breeding plumage; though blurred, note the conspicuous white supercilium.

In general, passerines are few and far between at Gambell. During inclement weather (which is most of the time), Alaskan vagrants veer off-course from the northwestern tip of Siberia, where the near-est landfall happens to be at Gambell. Our guides assured us that if the direction and timing were right, strong Asiatic winds could our friend and rainy drizzle our close ally. I was able to test this hy-pothesis during our third day at Gambell. Our morning sea watch was shrouded in dense fog, impenetrable by binoculars or scope. We therefore abandoned the beach for the boneyards. Fog gradually dis-sipated into a steady drizzle, while intermittent wind gusts con-spired to make birding by optics nearly impossible. Nonetheless, during the brief periods of respite when wind and rain died down, stray migrants would appear suddenly out of nowhere. First, Aaron flushed a Brambling from the sparse grassy boatyard, where the bird dove underneath the protective canopy of a half-butchered Bow-head Whale carcass. The bird posed beautifully for us between bones and dangling blubber. Next, a Rustic Bunting zigzagged out of the wind and dropped to the ground for a few anxious minutes, before rising back up and frenetically zigzagging elsewhere. A pair of ex-hausted Rock Sandpipers also found refuge in the boneyard, allow-ing me to see a species normally limited to the Pribilof Islands. While gloating over these unexpected finds, a Bluethroat zipped

THE BLUEBIRD

past our group and disappeared into the boneyard. Uncanny eyes found the bird hunkering down out of the wind. Unfortunately, those uncanny eyes were not mine, and I was only able to get a glimpse of the rear half of the bird, leaving me quite dissatisfied and hungering for more.

The “near” boneyard, and one of the many whale jawbones.

The “more” came within a matter of minutes, when a small, uni-formly brownish bird dropped into one of the man-made pits dotting the boneyard. These pits consist of hand-dug holes, as much as ten feet wide and five feet deep. Many of the holes are filled in with wa-ter, the surface of which is encrusted with a dangerously thin layer of ice. In these holes the local Yu’piks regularly dig for buried whale-bone and walrus ivory. The bone and ivory remnants are carved into figurines and sold to visiting birders. How ironic. This irony was fur-ther impressed upon me when one day a young Yu’pik lad, perhaps seven or eight years old, slipped through the teams of birders mean-dering through the boneyards, picked off an unidentified plover-type bird with his pellet gun, and proudly ran home to cook it for lunch. I wondered if his big brother was there to memorialize the bird by carving an ivory plover for us. . . . I could only hope the bird wasn’t a Code 4 Lesser Sand-plover.

Back to the hunt for the little brown bird. The boneyard holes have become so pervasive that the scene reminds me of an old Labyrinth game I played as a kid – a wooden box with moveable platform top

THE BLUEBIRD

and a metal ball the player had to maneuver around barriers and numbered holes. If the ball was allowed to fall into a hole prior to the endpoint, the ball would roll back to the beginning and the player had to start over. The Gambell boneyards (there are two of them) make for an excellent game of Labyrinth. Our game was on when some mysterious guiding hand dropped the bird into our bone-yard. Birders instinctively lined up on opposing sides of the bone-yard, scanning the pitted playing field for any sign of tell-tale move-ment. I was one of the few birders able to fixate on the bird briefly in my binoculars, as it flew directly away from me. One of the guides hypothesized that the bird might be an Old World warbler species, such as an Arctic or Dusky Warbler. This, of course, triggered a wholesale invasion of the playing field by birders from all directions. Having actually glimpsed the bird, I decided to close in on our target as quickly as possible before I lost track of it in one of the holes. At first I tiptoed across the narrow ridges between and around the holes, but I found this to be distracting and time-consuming, espe-cially when I encountered one seriously large hole directly between me and the bird.

Back when I was but a mere high-schooler, I had an unusual capac-ity to jump. In basketball terms, I had a vertical leap of forty inches. I could broad-jump ten feet in a single bound (no kidding). Still nim-ble at the age of 59, I roughly calculated the diameter of my hole as about eight feet, well within the range of an over-the-hill jumper. The six-foot depth of the hole did not deter me, nor did the fact that it was filled with black murky water. I summoned all of my imagi-nary athletic prowess and lurched toward the other side of the hole. Sadly, my calculations were more than a few inches short, and I dropped straight down into the ice-cold, stagnant morass. My feet started churning before I ever hit the water. Somehow I was able keep from sinking more than knee-deep into the pit, while scaling the near-vertical sides of the hole in a flurry of arms and legs. Need-less to say, the “game” was now lost, as the probable once-in-a-lifetime Old World warbler was, according to other observers, long gone. With begrudging resignation I trudged back to headquarters to empty out waterlogged boots and get into some dry, warm socks. Score: Labyrinth – 1; Reeves – 0. Alas, the Gambell trip lasted only five days, after which birders were shuffled into new groups, one of which I joined on the flight to Nome.

THE BLUEBIRD

PART II: Nome

Once I left the Yu’pik village for Nome, I wondered how I was going to top the experience of chasing Asian vagrants in Gambell’s spec-tacular Bering Sea setting. Nome is located on the southern coast of the Seward Peninsula, in northwest Alaska. On our arrival, our small birding group moved into a bed and breakfast - a rustic two-story residence filled with unique works of artistry and local arti-facts. Breakfast was usually a quick meal of muffins, fruit, cereal, coffee and juice, and lunch was a grab-bag of sandwiches and munchies eaten while birding on the road. Our birding vehicle was an eight-passenger van, which allowed each of us to claim our own window while scanning the vast terrain outside for birds.

During our first day in Nome we stayed close to town, with stop-and-go birding along the gravel roads leading into surrounding foothills. The habitat consisted mostly of tundra grasses and willows, many of the small budding trees still hesitant to greet the coming spring. On closer inspection I noticed a surprising array of short-stemmed wild-flowers scattered throughout the tundra. White-capped mountains served as a picture-perfect backdrop, rising 4,000 feet above sea level just outside of town.

At one of our first vantage points we set up spotting scopes, and I was able to home in on a Northern Wheatear perched atop a rocky outcropping. A nearby Arctic Fox wove his way through the rocks, heading in the direction of the Wheatear, perhaps hoping to flush a rabbit or ptarmigan. Speaking of ptarmigans, two of these impres-sive species, the Willow and Rock Ptarmigans, were relatively easy to find, and put on quite a show for us. The small lakes outside of Nome were still half-frozen, but yielded early-arriving geese, loons and diving ducks. Several Eastern Yellow Wagtails flitted back and forth across the road in front of our vehicle. Interestingly, we did not see any bears. I surmised that they were still hibernating. Maybe their absence explains why it was fairly easy for us to find both Moose and Musk Ox, many with young calves by their side.

On another day we spent most of our time driving along the coast and peering between the many ice floes to find Arctic Loons, Harle-quin Ducks, Surf and White-winged Scoters, and both Arctic and Aleutian Terns. Inland coastal marshes yielded hundreds of Tundra Swans, some Cackling Geese, Brants, several breeding pairs of Com-mon Eiders, King Eiders, and a lone Emperor Goose. A few shore-birds also probed the mudflats and marshes, including Red-necked Phalaropes, Dunlin, Dowitchers and Ruddy and Black Turnstones feeding side-by-side.

THE BLUEBIRD

Pair of Rock Ptarmigans in flight.

One of our roadside Willow Ptarmigan sentinals.

THE BLUEBIRD

One of the highlights of the Nome trip was our foray onto the hilltop tundra to look for the Bristle-thighed Curlew. This species winters primarily across the Pacific Ocean, in southeast Asia. A few breed-ing pairs make the trans-oceanic trip each year to the Nome foot-hills. To see the birds, one must carefully trek up a steep incline along a narrow footpath winding through a maze of tangled bushes, rocks and humps of tundra grass. The hike is, no doubt, a sprained ankle just waiting to nail an unsuspecting birder. Luckily, our guide Aaron well knew the territory, and steered us successfully to the targeted hilltop. We were greeted there by a male Curlew taking flight above us, then gliding downhill toward a far-distant ravine, whistling a repetitive “chu-WIT” along the way. Oblivious to the Curlew’s display were nearby Pacific Golden-Plovers, Lapland Long-spurs, Savannah Sparrows and Long-tailed Jaegers, each home-steading its own slice of the tundra.

A cooperative Bristle-thighed Curlew on its breeding grounds near Nome.

Amid all the sights and distractions in this uniquely beautiful place, I reminded myself to stay vigilant for yet another bird I had set my sights on many months ago, even before I boarded a plane to Alaska --- the Bluethroat. This bird eluded me in the Gambell boneyard, and I now demanded a clean look at one. The Bluethroat is a mem-ber of the Old World thrush family, and thus is most closely related to our bluebirds and robins. The bird is really a Siberian species

THE BLUEBIRD

which has extended its breeding range across the Bering Strait to northern Alaska. It is a regular breeder around Nome, but it is hard to find elsewhere. Its Siberian origins made it of particular interest to me, as I wanted to see a bird as foreign and exotic as the Alaskan elements would allow me.

During the last day or two of my trip to Nome, we loaded up the van for a half-day ride through tundra and willow scrub. I wasn’t the only birder craving to see a Bluethroat. Even companion birders who had seen the bird before were anxiously awaiting our first good look at one. As fate would have it, our first opportunity came when we pulled into a small parking area to visit a long-awaited outhouse. While bodies spilled out of the van, someone noticed a small sparrow-sized bird rising from the waist-high underbrush and spiraling gracefully up into the blue sky, belting out a melodious tune throughout the length of its spiral, then falling gracefully back down and disappearing quickly into the bushes. Once, twice, three times this bird teased us with his performance. Once, twice, three times I lost him in my binoculars and uttered a few words of displeasure over his successful hide-and-seek antics. Aaron confirmed that the focal point of our attention was, in fact a male Bluethroat attempt-ing to court the object of his affections. Our guide knew better than to squander this opportunity. We waited patiently for some time un-til lo and behold, our little buddy popped up out of the bushes and perched atop an open limb. Presumably inspired by the gasps of ap-proval emanating from our group of motley birders, the now-cooperative Bluethroat proceeded to throw back his little head and pour out a mish-mash of melodic phrases for his captive audience. As our guy posed so regally for us, I admired one exceptional feature of this bird that isn’t depicted well in our published field guides – its throat. The Bluethroat is named after its beautifully irridescent az-ure blue throat. In proper sunlight it is a truly awesome sight, not unlike the breathtaking iridescent throats found in our warm-weather hummingbirds.

There are, of course, too many other narratives to tell to do justice to the remainder of my trip to Nome. The trip included an hour drive north of Nome, where we drove up and then climbed the last few hundred feet to the top of a talus-strewn mountaintop. There we looked for Wheatears and found a pair of courting Red Knots on their breeding grounds. On the return trip to Nome, we found Gray-cheeked Thrushes and Orange-crowned Warblers nearly every-where, with a surprise Blackpoll intervening every so often. The ubiquitous Willow Ptarmigans often stood as sentinels on the road-

THE BLUEBIRD

way, or atop the spikes of barren underbrush, barking out their pe-culiar guttural mating calls. A pair of Golden Eagles claimed one cliff as their home; a pair of Peregrine Falcons claimed another; and a Gyrfalcon stared intently at us while on its nest beneath a high-way bridge. The beauty of the birds was eclipsed only by the incredi-ble scenic beauty that surrounds Nome – snow-capped mountains, white-water rivers gushing into the sea, and the indescribable twi-light skies at 2:00 in the morning.

CONCLUSION:

Hopefully, for some of you, the story doesn’t end here. Should you have the chance to get to Alaska, I highly recommend getting up to Gambell and Nome, if at all possible. It is the trip of a lifetime for this Midwestern birder from Missouri.

Finally, a male Bluethroat decides to strike a pose.

THE BLUEBIRD

1) WESTERN WOOD-PEWEE (Contopus sordidulus): One, 9 June to at least 3 July, Lake Lotawana, Jackson Co. Found and audio-recorded by Chris Hobbs, with Nicole Hobbs; also documented by Mark Robbins and Sandra Elbert. Definitive State Record of a spe-cies never previously recorded in Missouri.

2) HOARY REDPOLL (Acanthis hornemanni): This species was previously considered Provisional but is now fully accepted, thanks to two records in 2012: (1) One, 22 December, Columbia, Boone Co. Bill Mees (documentation), Jeff Mees (photographs), Jan Mees, Alice Robinson. This is the Definitive State Record. (2) One, 27 December, Ferguson, St. Louis Co. Connie Alwood (documentation with photo-graphs).

3) LESSER GOLDFINCH (Spinus psaltria): Male, 18 January to 20 February, Humansville, Polk Co. Calvin Borntrager (documentation), Lester and Ervin Borntrager, Bill Baughman (photographs). Accidental transient and winter visitor; fourth state record.

4) LARK BUNTING (Calamospiza melanocorys): Apparent first-spring male, 1 April, Taberville Prairie, St. Clair Co. Craig Hensley (documentation), Jenna Rhoades (photographs). Casual transient and winter visitor; fourteenth record (except for nesting records from northwest Missouri in the 1960’s).

5) BROWN PELICAN (Pelicanus occidentalis): Adult, 29 May and thereafter, Binder Lake, Cole Co. Ryan Douglas, Nicholas March, Kathleen Anderson, and Chris Barrigar (documentation with photo-graphs); found by Richard George. Casual transient and summer visitor; eleventh state record. This Brown Pelican set a record for residency in Missouri: it was observed from 29 May on through the summer and fall, to 19 December.

6) AMERICAN AVOCET (Recurvirostra americana): First winter record, 27 December 2012 to 21 January 2013, Winfield Slough, Lin-coln Co. Found by Scott Schuette; documented with photographs by David Marjamaa.

7) BLACK-BELLIED PLOVER (Pluvialis squatarola): First win-ter record, 22 December, Winfield Slough, Lincoln Co. Andrew Reago (documentation with photographs), Chrissy McClarren.

TOP TEN SPECIES FOR 2012 Missouri Bird Records Committee

THE BLUEBIRD

8) WOOD STORK (Mycteria americana): Four immature birds, 10-24 July, Swan Lake NWR, Chariton Co. Steve Kinder (documentation with photographs); also documented by Kathleen Anderson, Ryan Douglas. Casual; seventh record since the 1930’s.

9) SAY’S PHOEBE (Sayornis saya): Casual transient and winter visitor; tenth and eleventh state records. (1) One, 1 January, Swan Lake NWR, Chariton Co. Steve Kinder (documentation), Larry Lade. (2) One, 17-27 March, Capital View Access, Callaway Co. Found and documented by Bill Clark; also documented by Edge Wade, Kathleen Anderson, Walter Wehtje, Ryan Douglas (with photographs).

10) SWALLOW-TAILED KITE (Elanoides forficatus): One, 28 July, Clarence Cannon NWR, Pike Co. Joe Eades (documentation), David Becher, Bill Duncan. Casual transient and summer visitor; eleventh modern record.

SPECIAL MENTION: Also noteworthy, though not exactly a spe-cies, was the hybrid Red-naped x Yellow-bellied Sapsucker found in Tower Grove Park, St. Louis, 22-23 March 2012, by Bill Rudden, who passed away unexpectedly this summer. This represented only the latest of many unusual finds by Bill in his career as an inquisi-tive and thorough observer of birds.

This report summarizes records evaluated by the Committee between 16 December 2012 and 15 December 2013. It is divided into two sections, Ac-cepted and Not Accepted, with birds listed in phylogenetic order under each of these two categories. Taxonomy and nomenclature follow the American Ornithologists’ Union’s Checklist of North American Birds, Seventh Edition (1998), and subsequent supplements. The latest AOU list is available on line at http://checklist.aou.org. For Accepted records, comments are added to indicate the record’s significance. For Not Accepted records, observers’ names are omitted, and a brief explanation is provided as to why the record was not accepted.

On-line documentation and review of records is now the norm. Most docu-mentations are posted by the observer to a secure web site, where the secre-tary prepares them for review; to get started, go to www.mobirds.org and click on Documentation Form under “Bird Records.” Photographs in .jpg format, with a size limit of one MB, can be uploaded to accompany documen-tations. Observers are strongly urged to use the online system, but if this proves unworkable for some reason, documentation can be mailed or

TWENTY-SIXTH ANNUAL REPORT OF THE MIS-SOUI BIRD RECORDS COMMITTEE

William C. Rowe, Secretary

THE BLUEBIRD

emailed to the secretary. All records from the point of changeover (December 2007) have been electronically archived. In addition, all photo-graphs will be archived in Mylar envelopes and deposited in the Commit-tee’s files, which are currently housed in the Division of Ornithology, Uni-versity of Kansas Natural History Museum, Lawrence, Kansas (KUNHM). The Committee once again thanks Patrick Harrison for his continuing work in refining this system, Ann Johnson for her partnership with Patrick in this effort, and Joshua Uffman for his continuing work in assembling data on the occurrence of Missouri birds at www.showme-birds.com.

Of the 89 records that were finalized during this period, 74 were accepted and 15 were not accepted, for an acceptance rate of 83%. Members partici-pating in these decisions were Joe Eades, Brad Jacobs (Chair), Kristi Mayo, Paul McKenzie, Mark Robbins, Bill Rowe (Secretary), and Josh Uffman. Five records (Whooping Crane 2013-66, Sharp-tailed Sandpiper 2013-50, Red Crossbill 2013-32, and Hoary Redpoll 2012-72 and 2013-16) were sent to outside reviewers; see those accounts for details.

One new species, Golden-cheeked Warbler, was added to the Missouri list with a Definitive Record; another, Hoary Redpoll, was moved from Provi-sional status to full acceptance with a Definitive Record; and a third, Sharp-tailed Sandpiper, was added to the list with Provisional status. Thus Mis-souri’s total as of December 2013 consisted of 420 fully accepted species; these include four formerly occurring species that have been extirpated from the state and four extinct species. There are an additional 11 Provisional species on the list. The Annotated Checklist of Missouri Birds, with its lat-est updates to reflect changes in Missouri status as well as changes made by the AOU, can be viewed at www.mobirds.org.

The Committee reviews records of species that are considered “casual” (5-15 records) or “accidental” (1-4 records) statewide. It also reviews records of species that are casual or accidental for the season when reported (example: Yellow-throated Warbler in winter); records of species that are casual or accidental in the part of Missouri where reported (example: Purple Galli-nule outside southeastern Missouri); and other records of unusual interest, including first nesting records. The Review List, also maintained at www.mobirds.org, lists all species that require review due to their year-round casual or accidental status in all or part of the state, plus a few for which the Committee still wishes to receive documentation despite their status as only “rare” (e.g., California Gull). The Review List does not cover out-of-season status; for information on seasonal occurrence, consult the Annotated Checklist.

The Committee extends thanks to the many birders throughout Missouri who submitted their observations, and to the Audubon Society of Missouri for its continued support and funding of the Committee’s efforts. Observers who would like a status report on their current submissions can email the Secretary at [email protected]. The next report will appear in the March 2015 issue of The Bluebird.

THE BLUEBIRD

RMBS = Riverlands Migratory Bird Sanctuary, St. Charles Co. SCNWR = Squaw Creek National Wildlife Refuge, Holt Co. MNWR = Mingo National Wildlife Refuge, Bollinger/Stoddard/ Wayne Cos. OSCA = Otter Slough Conservation Area, Stoddard Co. CBC = Christmas Bird Count CA = Conservation Area SP = State Park NWR = National Wildlife Refuge

RECORDS ACCEPTED

CINNAMON TEAL (Anas cyanoptera), 2013-51: Adult male, 7 August 2013, Clarence Cannon NWR, Pike Co. Charlene Malone. Casual in fall; seventh record.

NORTHERN PINTAIL (Anas acuta), 2013-68: Ten birds, 16 June 2013, OSCA. Greg Samuel (documentation with photographs), Laura Samuel. Casual summer visitor in most of Missouri.

GARGANEY (Anas querquedula), 2013-28: Male, 19-21 April 2013, Sum-ner, Chariton Co. Allen Smith (documentation with photographs), Paul McKenzie (documentation), Larry Beason, Steve Kinder, Terry McNeely, Brad Jacobs. Accidental transient. First located by Amara Weiss, this is only the second Missouri record of this Old-World vagrant.

GREATER SCAUP (Aythya marila), 2012-71: Nine birds, 22-26 December 2012, Smithville Lake, Clay Co. Kristi Mayo (documentation with photo-graphs), Matt Gearheart, Mike Beck, Brett Budach. CBC record. Due to confusion with Lesser Scaup, documentation is requested on all but a few specific CBC’s where Greater Scaup is of regular occurrence.

SURF SCOTER (Melanitta perspicillata), 2013-43: Female, 23 May 2013, Fellows Lake, Greene Co. Greg Swick (documentation), Charles Burwick (photographs). Latest spring record by four days.

BARROW’S GOLDENEYE (Bucephala islandica), 2012-63: Adult male, 12 December 2011, near Ectonville, Clay Co. Taken by hunter Clint Anderson. The MBRC was informed of this record by David Easterla, and data along with photographs of the specimen were provided by Craig Putnam of the MDC. Casual transient and winter visitor; eleventh modern record.

RED-THROATED LOON (Gavia stellata), 2013-10: One, 23-26 January 2013, Table Rock State Park, Taney Co. Paul McKenzie (documentation), Brad Jacobs. Accidental in winter; third record.

PACIFIC LOON (Gavia pacifica), 2013-9: Two, 23-26 January 2013, Table Rock State Park, Taney Co. Paul McKenzie (documentation), Greg Samuel (documentation with photographs), Brad Jacobs, Greg Swick, Charles Bur-wick. Accidental in winter; fourth record.

THE BLUEBIRD

EARED GREBE (Podiceps nigricollis), 2012-77: One, 22 December 2012, Smithville Lake, Clay Co. Kristi Mayo (documentation), m.ob. Eared Grebe is an uncommon transient in western Missouri but casual in winter state-wide; this is the fifteenth record. CBC record. This individual was probably the same one reported on Smithville Lake 11-16 December 2012.

WESTERN GREBE (Aechmophorus occidentalis), 2013-11: One, 26 Janu-ary 2013, Table Rock State Park, Taney Co. Josh Uffman (documentation with photographs), Allen Smith (photographs), Matt Malin, Jim & Charlene Malone, Mark Paradise. Casual in winter; ninth record.

WESTERN GREBE, 2013-12: One, 16-17 February 2013, RMBS. Jim Malone and Josh Uffman (documentation with photographs), m.ob. Casual in winter; tenth record.

NEOTROPIC CORMORANT (Phalacrocorax brasilianus), 2013-64: Adult, 15-18 November 2013, Lake Springfield, Greene Co. Greg Samuel and Greg Swick (documentation with photographs), Charles Burwick, Jill Hayes, m.ob. Latest fall record by seven weeks.

LITTLE BLUE HERON (Egretta caerulea), 2013-65: Two immatures, 13 October 2013, Schell-Osage CA, Vernon Co. Greg Samuel (documentation), m.ob. Late fall record.

CATTLE EGRET (Bubulcus ibis), 2012-67: One, 13 December 2012, County Road 723, Dunklin Co. Timothy Jones (documentation with photo-graphs). Latest fall record.

BLACK-CROWNED NIGHT-HERON (Nycticorax nycticorax), 2013-15: 1-6 birds on various dates, 28 November 2012 to 9 March 2013, County Road 722, Dunklin Co. Timothy Jones (documentation with photographs). Casual winter visitor; eleventh record.

YELLOW-CROWNED NIGHT-HERON (Nyctanassa violacea), 2013-20: Adult, 10 March 2013, Springfield, Greene Co. Charles Burwick (documentation with photographs). Earliest spring record.

WHITE IBIS (Eudocimus albus), 2013-42: Adult, 20 May 2013, Winfield, Lincoln Co. Al Smith (documentation with photographs). At the time of ob-servation, this species was listed as casual in the northern half of Missouri; its status has since been changed to rare in southern and central Missouri, and casual only in the northern third of the state. Thus documentation will no longer be needed at the latitude of St. Louis or just to the north, as in Lincoln and Pike Counties (and similarly across the state).

DARK IBIS, sp. (Plegadis, sp.), 2013-70: One, 5 December 2013, near Cla-rence Cannon NWR, Pike Co. Derick Driemeyer. Latest fall record of a Ple-gadis ibis in Missouri; there are also two winter records.

SWALLOW-TAILED KITE (Elanoides forficatus), 2013-29: One, 21 April 2013, Weldon Spring CA, St. Charles Co. Christine Kirmaier. Casual tran-sient and summer visitor; twelfth modern record.

THE BLUEBIRD

SWALLOW-TAILED KITE, 2013-54: One, 14 August 2013, Routes O and 72, Phelps Co. Larry Houf (documentation), Garry Houf. Casual transient and summer visitor; thirteenth modern record.

PURPLE GALLINULE (Porphyrio martinicus), 2013-48: Adult, 14 April 2013, Springfield, Greene Co. Mark Lohmeyer (documentation with photo-graphs). Casual transient away from southeastern Missouri.

YELLOW RAIL (Coturnicops noveboracensis), 2013-13: One, 22 August 2012, Swan Lake NWR, Chariton Co. Auriel Fournier. Earliest fall migra-tion record. This bird was flushed twice and also observed on the ground at close range by a researcher familiar with Yellow Rail as well as Sora and Virginia Rail.

YELLOW RAIL, 2013-14: Eight birds, 27 September 2012, Swan Lake NWR, Chariton Co. Justin Lehman (observer), Auriel Fournier (documentation). Highest one-day count of this species recorded during fall migration in Missouri. These birds were seen during nighttime rail surveys and were identified in flight by small size and white secondary patches; multiple birds were seen on various occasions, with this being the highest count.

BLACK-BELLIED PLOVER (Pluvialis squatarola), 2012-74: One, 22 De-cember 2012, Winfield Lock & Dam, Lincoln Co. Andrew Reago (documentation with photographs), Chrissy McClarren. First winter record. This bird’s plumage was largely in breeding aspect.

BLACK-NECKED STILT (Himantopus mexicanus), 2013-21: Four birds, 12 March 2013, County Road 723, Dunklin Co. Timothy Jones (documentation with photograph). Earliest spring record by 11 days.

AMERICAN AVOCET (Recurvirostra americana), 2013-17: One, 27 De-cember 2012 to 21 January 2013, Winfield Lock & Dam, Lincoln Co. David Marjamaa (documentation with photographs), Mary Anne Marjamaa. First winter record. On 18 February 2013, well beyond the final date of observa-tion at Winfield, Brad Jacobs observed an American Avocet at RMBS, about 25 miles southeast of the Winfield Dam. Presumably this was the same indi-vidual.

LESSER YELLOWLEGS (Tringa flavipes), 2012-69: 19 birds, 16 Decem-ber 2012, County Road 723, Dunklin Co. Timothy Jones (documentation with photograph). First documented winter record. In just the past three years, this observer has recorded this and other shorebird species in ex-treme southern Missouri through the winter, when previously unknown.

HUDSONIAN GODWIT (Limosa haemastica), 2013-7: Three, 14 Septem-ber 2012, RMBS. Allen Smith (documentation with photographs). Casual transient in fall; fourteenth record.

HUDSONIAN GODWIT, 2013-8: One, 5 November 2012, Swan Lake NWR, Chariton Co. Steve Kinder (documentation with photographs). Casual transient in fall; fifteenth and latest record for that season.

THE BLUEBIRD

SHARP-TAILED SANDPIPER (Calidris acuminata), 2013-50: Adult, 3 and 5 August 2013, Columbia Bottom CA, St. Louis Co. David Becher, Ken Hollinga, and Pat Lueders (documentation), Connie Alwood, John Solodar. The documentation of this Asian vagrant was reviewed by Kevin Karlson, Paul Lehman, and Dennis Paulson, all of whom concurred that, collectively, the descriptions fit an adult Sharp-tailed Sandpiper; moreover, the date fits well with the occurrence pattern of adults in the lower 48 states. In the ab-sence of photographs, however, the Committee found that the record did not meet the requirement of at least two independently acceptable documenta-tions from independent observers for full acceptance, as stated in its bylaws. Hence Sharp-tailed Sandpiper has been accepted to the Missouri state list as a Provisional species. This is not to be interpreted as merely “possible” occurrence; the Committee has voted to accept the record, but with not quite the level of evidence required to make it a Definitive state record.

DUNLIN (Calidris alpina), 2012-66: An estimated 7000 birds, 13 May 2012, County Road 723, Dunklin Co. Timothy Jones (documentation with photographs). This astounding aggregation of Dunlin was found in shal-lowly flooded or muddy fields.

BUFF-BREASTED SANDPIPER (Calidris subruficollis), 2013-45: Adult, 2 June 2013, sod fields near Old Monroe, Lincoln Co. David Becher. This is the latest spring record, following observation of six birds on 17 May and one on 21 May at this location by Jim and Charlene Malone (photographs). Further inquiry has revealed that these are among a mere handful of re-cords for eastern Missouri; hence the status of Buff-breasted Sandpiper has been changed to casual in spring in that half of the state, and documenta-tion of all occurrences is requested.

LAUGHING GULL (Leucophaeus atricilla), 2013-31: First-cycle bird, 15 September 2012, Thousand Hills SP, Adair Co. Peter Kondrashov (documentation with photographs). Casual transient away from the Missis-sippi River corridor.

LAUGHING GULL, 2013-46: Immature, 16 June 2013, Smithville Lake, Clay Co. Nick Varvel (documentation with photographs), Doug Willis (photographs). Accidental summer visitor away from the Mississippi River corridor.

LAUGHING GULL, 2013-69: One, 5 November 2013, Maryville Sewage Lagoons, Nodaway Co. David Easterla. Casual transient away from the Mis-sissippi River corridor.

WHITE-WINGED DOVE (Zenaida asiatica), 2013-4: One, 9 January 2013, Cape Woods CA, Cape Girardeau, Cape Girardeau Co. Mark Haas. Acciden-tal winter visitor; second record for that season, aside from birds that have sometimes been in year-round residence at East Prairie.

INCA DOVE (Columbina inca), 2013-57: One, 26 September 2013, Joplin, Newton Co. Chris Pistole. Casual transient and winter visitor; sixth state record.

THE BLUEBIRD

YELLOW-BILLED CUCKOO (Coccyzus americanus), 2013-33: One, 16 April 2013, near Warbler Woods CA, Dunklin Co. Timothy Jones (documentation with photographs). Earliest spring arrival date.

NORTHERN SAW-WHET OWL (Aegolius acadicus), 2012-64: Adult fe-male, 16 January 2012, Homestead Springs Farm Research Station, Web-ster Co. Documented by Andrew Kinslow; mist-netted and banded by Dana Ripper and Ethan Duke; photographed by Bo Brown. Age and sex estab-lished by measurements and plumage characteristics. Considered a casual winter resident in southern Missouri, but may be more frequent there than the few observations indicate.

NORTHERN SAW-WHET OWL, 2012-65: Adult female, 21 December 2012, Drury-Mincy CA, Taney Co. Documented by Andrew Kinslow; mist-netted and banded by Kinslow and Janice Greene; photographed by Greene. See comments on 2012-64.

LEAST FLYCATCHER (Empidonax minimus), 2013-61: One, 19 October 2013, Big Spring, Carter Co. Mark Robbins. Latest documented fall record.

SAY’S PHOEBE (Sayornis saya), 2013-1: One bird, 1-9 January 2013, Els-berry, Lincoln Co. Josh Uffman (documentation with photographs), Mark Paradise. Casual transient and accidental winter visitor; twelfth state re-cord and fourth in winter.

SAY’S PHOEBE, 2013-56: One, 14 September 2013, McGee Family CA, Clinton Co. Chris Barrigar (documentation with photographs). Casual tran-sient; thirteenth state record.

VERMILION FLYCATCHER (Pyrocephalus rubinus), 2013-36: Adult male, 2 May 2013, Crews residence in Pleasant Hill, Cass Co. Teresa Crews (documentation with photographs), Charles Crews. Casual transient; ninth state record.

SCISSOR-TAILED FLYCATCHER (Tyrannus forficatus), 2013-53: Nest-ing pair, 15 June 2013, rural Gentry Co. Terry McNeely (documentation with photographs). One of the northernmost nesting records for Missouri.

NORTHERN SHRIKE (Lanius excubitor), 2013-73: Adult, 14 December 2013, near Leslie, Franklin Co. Jack Foreman (documentation with photo-graphs), Shirley Foreman. This species is now considered only rare in much of Missouri but still accidental in the Ozark region.

WARBLING VIREO (Vireo gilvus), 2013-62: One, 20 October 2013, Big Spring, Carter Co. Mark Robbins. Latest documented fall record; there is also a single winter record.

FISH CROW (Corvus ossifragus), 2013-49: Nesting pair, 8-17 May 2013, Roaring River SP, Barry Co. Jeff Cantrell (documentation with photo-graphs), Becky Wylie, Andrew Kinslow. While other Fish Crow nests may have been found in Missouri, this is the first documented record.

THE BLUEBIRD

MOUNTAIN BLUEBIRD (Sialia currucoides), 2012-68: Female, 15 De-cember 2012, 1.5 miles east of Highway K, Daviess Co. Mark McNeely (documentation with photograph), Elizabeth McNeely. Casual transient and winter visitor; fourteenth state record.

GRAY-CHEEKED THRUSH (Catharus minimus), 2012-62: One, 11 June 2007, Big Oak Tree SP, Mississippi Co. Walter Wehtje. Latest spring-migration record for this species.

AMERICAN PIPIT (Anthus rubescens), 2012-75: One, 22 December 2012, Smithville Lake, Clay Co. Kristi Mayo. Casual in winter in northern and central Missouri. Heard only; call well described by an observer very famil-iar with it, in a location where it is regular. CBC record.

AMERICAN PIPIT, 2013-2: 10 birds, 1 January 2013, slough adjacent to Winfield Lock & Dam, Lincoln Co. Josh Uffman (documentation), Mark Paradise. Casual in winter in northern and central Missouri.

NASHVILLE WARBLER (Oreothlypis ruficapilla), 2013-71: One, 5 De-cember 2013, Reeds Spring, Stone Co. Jane Fitzgerald. Latest fall record; there is also a single winter record.

CONNECTICUT WARBLER (Oporornis agilis), 2013-67: Immature, 29 September 2013, Lake of the Ozarks SP, Camden Co. Brad Jacobs (documentation), Terry McNeely. Rare spring transient and much rarer in fall, with few documented records for the latter season.

BLACKPOLL WARBLER (Setophaga striata), 2013-59: One bird, 4 Octo-ber 2013, Terpstra residence, Kirkwood, St. Louis Co. Margy Terpstra (documentation with photographs). Common in spring but accidental in fall, when the migration path of the species swings sharply eastward. This is only the third documented fall record for Missouri, and the second with pho-tographs.

PINE WARBLER (Setophaga pinus), 2013-18: Adult male, 17-28 February 2013, Weber residence, St. Louis City. Dawn Weber (documentation with photographs). This record among others led the Committee to reassess the species’ status as a rare (no longer casual) winter visitor and resident in southern and central Missouri; thus future documentation in those areas will not be necessary. This bird was visiting a residential feeder.

YELLOW-RUMPED WARBLER (Setophaga coronata), 2013-44: Male, 28 May 2013, Perry County Community Lake, Perry Co. Mark Haas. Latest spring-migration record except for one on 8 June.

YELLOW-THROATED WARBLER (Setophaga dominica), 2012-76: One, 22 December 2012, Houck Park, Puxico, Stoddard Co. Bill Eddleman (documentation), Matt Malin. CBC record, and first winter record for the state. Located in shortleaf pines, a typical habitat for this species.

PRAIRIE WARBLER (Setophaga discolor), 2013-39: Male, 11 May 2013, near Thousand Hills SP, Adair Co. Peter Kondrashov (documentation with

THE BLUEBIRD

photographs). Casual summer resident and transient in northeastern Mis-souri.

PRAIRIE WARBLER, 2013-30: Male, 6-16 June 2012, Thousand Hills SP, Adair Co. Peter Kondrashov (documentation with photographs). Casual summer resident in northeastern Missouri.

GOLDEN-CHEEKED WARBLER (Setophaga chrysoparia), 2013-27: Adult male, 19-22 April 2013, Creve Coeur, St. Louis Co. Found and docu-mented by Josh Uffman (photographs); also documented by David Becher, Pamela Bachman, and Paul McKenzie. Definitive State Record. The breed-ing range of this Federally-endangered species lies entirely within Texas, and this is apparently only the fourth documented United States record outside of that state (others are from California, Florida, and New Mexico). The bird remained at one site on private property and was observed off and on for four days, often located by its song.

VESPER SPARROW (Pooecetes gramineus), 2013-3: One, 3 January 2013, B.K. Leach CA, Lincoln Co. Mike Treffert (documentation), Chrissy McClar-ren, Joe Carter. Casual winter visitor in northern Missouri.

ROSE-BREASTED GROSBEAK (Pheucticus ludovicianus), 2013-25: Adult male, 9 April 2013, vicinity of Stringtown, Butler Co. Luann Holst (documentation with photographs). Earliest spring arrival date.

BLACK-HEADED GROSBEAK (Pheucticus melanocephalus), 2013-40: Female, 12 May 2013, Kinslow residence, Webster Co. Andrew Kinslow (documentation with photographs), Gene Kinslow, Naomi Kinslow, Dawn Huber. Rare transient; female still on Review List due to identification diffi-culties. Photographs showed the buffy-orange breast, the very limited streaking in the center of the breast, and the bicolored bill, with dark man-dible and pale maxilla.

LAZULI BUNTING (Passerina amoena), 2013-37: Male, 2-4 May 2013, two miles southwest of Macon, Macon Co. Nicholas March (documentation with photographs), Gale March, Kim March, Brad Jacobs. Casual transient out-side of northwestern Missouri. This individual had only partially molted into alternate plumage and retained much brown color on its head and back.

INDIGO BUNTING (Passerina cyanea), 2013-5: One, 12 January 2013, Springfield, Greene Co. Jill Hays (documentation with photograph). Casual winter visitor in southern Missouri.

BREWER’S BLACKBIRD (Euphagus cyanocephalus), 2012-70: Flock of 54, 20 December 2012, Ten Mile Pond CA, Mississippi Co. Bill Eddleman (documentation with photographs), Allen Gathman, Josh Hager. CBC re-cord. Due to frequent confusion with other blackbirds, documentation is requested on all CBCs except those in the Osage Plains, where Brewer’s is of most regular occurrence.

THE BLUEBIRD

BREWER’S BLACKBIRD, 2012-73: Flock of 19, 22 December 2012, High-way J, Stoddard Co. Steve Dilks (documentation with photographs), Nina and Gary Chastain. CBC record. See comments on 2012-70, above.

RED CROSSBILL (Loxia curvirostra), 2013-32: One, 2 December 2012, Rocky Forks Lake CA, Boone Co. Ryan Douglas (documentation with audio recording), Nicholas March, Jenna March, Saadia Bihmidine. In recent years it has been recognized that there are a number of different popula-tions of Red Crossbill whose flight calls are characteristic and can be identi-fied by analysis of a spectrogram produced from an audio recording. It may be that some of these populations are reproductively isolated and thus should be considered separate species. At this point the best course is to record the calls when possible, determine the type, and archive the informa-tion for future reference. So far nearly all Red Crossbills occurring in Mis-souri, when vocally analyzed, have been of Types 2 and 3. During the cross-bill invasion year of 2012-13, however, this individual was recorded and its calls analyzed by Matt Young of Cornell University, who determined that it was a Type 5, a type known to have occurred very few times in the eastern U.S.

COMMON REDPOLL (Acanthis flammea), 2013-34: Adult female, 21 April to 8 May 2013, Palmer residence near Ashland, Boone Co. Bill Palmer (documentation with photographs), Kay Palmer. Latest spring departure date by nearly a month.

HOARY REDPOLL (Acanthis hornemanni), 2012-72: One bird, 22 Decem-ber 2012, Mees residence, Columbia, Boone Co. Bill Mees and Alice Robin-son (documentation), Jeff Mees (photographs), Jan Mees. This species was previously considered Provisional on the basis of reports from Kansas City (1976) and St. Louis (1978), both of which the Committee now regards as unsubstantiated. This record, however, is a Definitive State Record, and the species is now confirmed for Missouri as an accidental winter visitor. The documentation and photographs were circulated to five outside reviewers—Louis Bevier, Edward Brinkley, Paul Buckley, Adam Byrne, and Peter Pyle—all of whom endorsed this bird as a definite (four reviewers) or prob-able (one reviewer) Hoary Redpoll of the subspecies exilipes, the one most frequently occurring in the U.S. south of Canada. The winter of 2012-13 saw a remarkable irruption of Common Redpolls, reaching the interior in large numbers, and among these were some Hoaries—very few compared to the Commons (as always) but many more than usual, and farther south, with occurrences in, e.g., Illinois, Iowa, and Colorado. While redpoll taxonomy is still unsettled, most current authorities (and the AOU) do consider Common and Hoary Redpolls to be separate species. An excellent article on North American redpoll taxa is Bevier, Brinkley, Buckley, and Byrne (2011); see Literature Cited.

HOARY REDPOLL, 2013-16: One, 27 December 2012, Alwood residence, Ferguson, St. Louis Co. Connie Alwood (documentation with photographs). This report too was circulated to four reviewers (Bevier, Buckley, Brinkley, and Byrne), whose comments overall supported the identification of this

THE BLUEBIRD

bird as another exilipes Hoary Redpoll. The amount of flank streaking indi-cated that it was probably a first-winter bird. See discussion under 2012-72, above.

LESSER GOLDFINCH (Spinus psaltria), 2013-6: Green-backed male, 28 December 2012 to 26 January 2013, Nixa, Christian Co. Greg Samuel and Greg Swick (documentation with photographs), Matt Duzan. This is the fifth state record, moving the species from accidental to casual as a tran-sient and winter visitor. All records have been at residential feeders.

EURASIAN TREE SPARROW (Passer montanus), 2013-63: One, 13 No-vember 2013, Blind Pony CA, Saline Co. Edge Wade (documentation), Bill Clark, Laurie Shawver. Casual outside its normal range from St. Louis north to southeastern Iowa along the Mississippi River.

RECORDS NOT ACCEPTED

“Not accepted” does not necessarily mean that the identification should be assumed to be incorrect. In some cases the Committee may indeed believe that the bird was misidentified, but in other cases, while it seems possible or even probable that the identification was correct, the information pro-vided is insufficient to rule out other species completely. The Committee may be unable to accept even a likely record if the description is too sketchy or vague, or if it fails to mention critical field marks that would distinguish that species from all others. Our belief is that a report should go into the permanent scientific record only if it is free of reasonable doubt. This is the standard approach of bird record committees everywhere. BROWN PELICAN (Pelecanus occidentalis), 2013-22: 45 birds, 16 March 2013, Tingler Prairie CA, Howell Co. All modern Missouri records of this casual species have been of single birds. This report of two flocks, of 36 and 9 birds, was not supported by the description. A photograph would be needed for such an unprecedented record.

SWALLOW-TAILED KITE, 2013-38: One, 6 May 2013, over replanted mine property, Vernon Co. The description provided too little detail, with no mention of the tail.

FERRUGINOUS HAWK (Buteo regalis), 2013-35: Immature, 30 April 2013, near Oregon, Holt Co. Though the observer did have experience with Ferruginous Hawk, and some of the details suggested that species, the de-scription was too incomplete for acceptance of such a rare bird, and at a re-cord-late date. For example, there was no mention of characters such as tail pattern, lack of a patagial bar, feathered tarsi, or extent of gape.

WHOOPING CRANE (Grus americana), 2013-66: 30 birds, 18 November 2013, Webster Co. This report was accompanied by blurry photographs that could not be interpreted as Whooping Cranes, although the verbal descrip-tion was plausible. The documentation was sent for review to Brian Johns of the Whooping Crane Migration Association, who commented that in 28 years of monitoring, he “never had a confirmed report of 30 Whoopers in

THE BLUEBIRD

migration together.” For such an extraordinary event— especially in Mis-souri, which is off the species’ main migration route—more definitive evi-dence would be needed.

SHARP-TAILED SANDPIPER, 2013-55: Juvenile, 2 August 2013, Colum-bia Bottom CA, St. Louis Co. The written descriptions suggested a juvenile of this species. Using eBird data, however, the Committee researched the occurrence of juvenile Sharp-tailed Sandpipers in North America and found only a single documented record anywhere in the lower 48 states earlier than September, and that was 30 August. In general, the window of occur-rence for juveniles is from mid-September to November; even in the Pribilof Islands, relatively close to the Siberian breeding range, juveniles do not nor-mally occur until mid-August (Scott Schuette, Director, St. Paul Island Tours, pers. comm.). Thus this record would be extraordinarily early, conti-nent-wide, and would therefore require diagnostic photographs.

GREEN VIOLETEAR (Colibri thalassinus), 2013-52: One, 12 August, Kansas City, Jackson Co. The observation was made without binoculars, and the brief description failed to eliminate other large hummingbird spe-cies. Green Violetear has occurred once in Missouri, but because it is an accidental vagrant from Mexico, any record must include copious details, and photographs if at all possible.

EASTERN KINGBIRD (Tyrannus tyrannus), 2013-19: One, 9 March 2013, Phelps Co. While this may have been an Eastern Kingbird, the date was so remarkably early (almost three weeks earlier than the previous record) that a photograph would be almost a necessity.

NORTHERN SHRIKE, 2013-72: One, 16 October 2013, near Pickering, Nodaway Co. The documentation did not include any details that would clearly distinguish Northern from Loggerhead Shrike.

BLACK-BILLED MAGPIE (Pica hudsonia), 2013-60: One, 14 October 2013, St. Louis City. The description of this bird did not make it clear that it was in fact a magpie; and if it was, its origin would be an issue, as some out-of-range magpies are escapees from captivity.

SWAINSON’S WARBLER (Limnothlypis swainsonii), 2013-58: One, 27 September 2013, Johnson’s Shut-Ins SP, Reynolds Co. The observation lasted only a few seconds, and the description did not unequivocally elimi-nate other species. Given the very late date (about ten days later than the previous record for Missouri) and the location (north of known breeding ar-eas), the Committee felt that a more extended study and more details would have been needed for acceptance.

LARK BUNTING (Calamospiza melanocorys), 2013-23: Winter-plumaged male, 8 January 2013, Highway 279, Stoddard Co. The details noted were consistent with a Lark Bunting, but the Committee was unable to accept this as a definite record owing to the very brief and partial glimpse obtained (only a few seconds, and only in flight).

WHITE-THROATED SPARROW (Zonotrichia albicollis), 2013-47: One, 20 June 2013, Perry County Community Lake, Perry Co. Heard singing

THE BLUEBIRD

twice. The description of the song was unclear; it apparently had fewer notes than a typical White-throated Sparrow song. More important, it is often difficult for the committee to accept a record of any rare or out-of-season bird that is documented solely by a voice description, given (among other things) the possibility of similar vocalizations, or imitation, by other species. Visual confirmation or audio recording are usually needed.

DARK-EYED (“PINK-SIDED”) JUNCO (Junco hyemalis mearnsi), 2013-26: One, 26 March 2013, Peculiar, Cass Co. The photograph supplied with this report suggested a female Oregon-type or intergrade rather than a true “Pink-sided” Junco, of which there is as yet no accepted record for Missouri, although they have probably occurred.

BREWER’S BLACKBIRD, 2013-41: 10 birds, 19 May 2013, 3M wetlands, Boone Co. More details, and preferably photographs, would be needed for acceptance of this extraordinarily late report, three weeks beyond the latest accepted record of the species.

LESSER GOLDFINCH, 2013-24: One, 6 April 2013, Peculiar, Cass Co. In the absence of a photograph, the Committee was unable to accept this re-cord of a very rare western vagrant species.

Literature Cited

Bevier, L., E. Brinkley, P. Buckley, and A. Byrne. 2011. Photo Essay: Red-polls from Nunavut and Greenland visit Ontario. North American Birds 65:206-215. Can be accessed at http://www.aba.org/nab/v65n2redpolls.pdf.

Remember, new members are our future. If a new member lives near you, say, “Howdy and welcome to ASM.” In addition, recruit another new member. Welcome to these 11 new ASM members in the 1st quarter of 2014.

Kendall Annetti Columbia MO Jeanne Gearin St. Louis MO Mike Hohn Poplar Bluff MO Luann Holst Poplar Bluff MO Janet & Andrew Hoyne Richmond Heights MO Darryl Mitchell Bates City MO Betty Richey Jefferson City MO Linda Sanders Eldon MO Georgia Sneed Columbia MO Harley Winfrey Wheatland MO

WE WELCOME OUR NEW ASM MEMBERS!! Jerry Wade

THE BLUEBIRD

Seasonably cool and pleasant temperatures were the rule for much of the summer. However, a major weather pattern change during the third week of August resulted in a late summer heat wave for Missouri; during the last 10 days of the month, the high tempera-tures climbed well into the 90s. Overall, the statewide average tem-perature for the month was 75.1°F, or just over 1°F below normal. Incredible precipitation disparities impacted Missouri during Au-gust, ranging from historic flooding to severe drought. Regardless of these disparities, the statewide average precipitation total for the month was slightly above normal. Summer-like temperatures pre-vailed for much of September and the statewide average tempera-ture was 70.6°F, or 2.3°F above the average. There were only a handful of days cooler than normal, and no freezing temperatures were reported across the state. Rainfall was below normal across all of Missouri during September and averaged slightly less than 3 inches. October started mild, with high temperatures on most days in the 70s and 80s, but a strong cold front barreled through the state 14-15 October, and below normal temperatures dominated for the rest of the month. The rainfall was variable across Missouri, averag-ing mostly above normal over western and southern sections, and near-to-below normal for the rest of the state. Preliminary precipita-tion data indicate an average statewide total around 3.5 inches, which is near normal. Despite heavy precipitation at the end of the month, moderate to severe drought was still impacting the northern half of Missouri. Cooler than normal temperatures dominated Mis-souri during November and continued the trend of below normal temperatures for the year. Preliminary data indicate an average No-vember temperature of 41.5°F, or 2.7°F below the long-term average, and the coolest November since 2000. The precipitation was less than normal with a statewide average of 2.6 inches, or about 0.3 inch below the long-term average. Northwest and east-central sec-tions of the state received the least amount of precipitation. Moder-ate drought was still impacting parts of northern and east-central Missouri toward the end of November.

The most notable sighting of this year was of an Asian vagrant, a Sharp-tailed Sandpiper at C.B.C.A. 3-5 Aug, which was accepted by the Missouri Bird Records Committee onto the Missouri state list

FALL 2013 SEASONAL REPORT Peter Kondrashov, Ph.D. [email protected] Ryan Douglas, Ph.D. [email protected]

THE BLUEBIRD

with Provisional status. Other notable sightings included the 13th modern record of Swallow-tailed Kite and 6th state record of Inca Dove.

Note: Records marked with an asterisk (*) require documentation, but no documentation has yet been received by the Missouri Bird Records Committee (MBRC). Observers involved with such sight-ings are encouraged to submit documentation. The MBRC has re-ceived documentation of those records marked with a dagger (†), and those marked (acc.) have been accepted.

WATERFOWL THROUGH GREBES

The steady yearly increase in migrating Trumpeter Swans was obvious this year as numbers almost doubled compared to last year. The first 2 were at Riverlands 24 Oct (David Marjamaa), where they peaked at 420 on 30 Nov (WR, PL); also significant, 300 were at Squaw Creek 28 Nov (SK, LL). Tundra Swans were recorded in small numbers from the same two loca-tions with a peak count of 7 at Riverlands 28 Nov (CM, JM). The season’s high count of 5000 Gadwalls was at M.S.L. 6 Nov (DE). American Black Ducks were only reported from Riverlands, with a high count of 7 on 28 Nov (CM, JM). A single Northern Pintail at C.B.C.A. 5 Aug was a bit early (CM). Two Blue-winged Teal at Riverlands 2 Nov were the last re-corded in the state this season (CM, JM). Cinnamon Teal is casual in the fall, so a male at Clarence Cannon 7 Aug was notable (CM, acc.). A major push in waterfowl movement resulted in several high counts at M.S.L., in-cluding an impressive 10,000+ Northern Shovelers 5-6 Nov, 90 Red-heads 5 Nov, 10,000 Ring-necked Ducks 5 Nov, 45 Greater Scaup 6 Nov, and 6500 Lesser Scaup 6 Nov (DE). Greater Scaup peaked at this location 10 Nov with 61 present (DE). All three scoter species made a good showing across the state. A female-plumaged Surf Scoter was at Fountain Grove C.A., Livingston 13 Oct (SK, m.ob.), 2 were at Riverlands the same date (Susan Nixon, Allen Smith), and an adult male was at Smithville 1-5 Nov (ph. DW, m.ob.). Single White-winged Scoters were at P.C.C.L. 14 Nov (MH) and 28 Nov+ at Mozingo Lake C.A., Nodaway along with a Black Scoter (DW, m.ob.), singles were also seen 1-2 Nov at M.S.L. (DE) and Smithville 5 Nov (DW); 2 were at Swan Lake 11 Nov (SK, LL). A high count of 280 Bufflehead was at Smithville 22 Nov (DW). Hooded Mergansers peaked at the end of Nov with 150 at Macon City Lake, Macon 26 Nov (SK). Ruddy Ducks numbered 650 at M.S.L. (DE). A Greater Prairie-Chicken was at Wah-Ton-Kah Prairie C.A., St. Clair 3 Nov (ph. PK, Dale De Wan) and 2 were at Dunn Ranch, Harrison 10 & 13 Nov (SK, PK). A Red-throated Loon was found by Pat Lueders 26 Oct at Riverlands (ph. Chris-tian Hagenlocher). Pacific Loons were present at Smithville 18 Oct–21 Nov with a very high count of 6 on 11 Nov (ph. DW). The first Common Loon showed up at Smithville 1 Sep (Kristi Mayo) and peaked at 110 on 11 Nov (DW). A high count of 125 Pied-billed Grebes was at Swan Lake 21 Oct (SK). A large concentration of Horned Grebes was at Longview Lake,

THE BLUEBIRD

with 57 present 9 Nov (Sherry Leonardo). A Red-necked Grebe was found by Tom Rausch at Riverlands 25 Oct and stayed until 16 Nov (CM, JM, WR); another 1-2 were at Smithville 17-22 Nov (ph. DW). A Western Grebe was at Smithville 13-22 Nov (DW, PK).

CORMORANTS THROUGH CRANES

Two Neotropic Cormorants were at Smithville 22 Aug (ph. DW), with at least one present through 23 Sep (DW, CB). Although rare, these were more expected than one at Springfield Lake, Green 15-18 Nov (GS, CB, acc.), which represents the new latest fall record by almost a month. The highest count of 1256 American White Pelicans at Clarence Cannon 6 Aug (CM) was slightly up from last year. American Bitterns were reported sparingly throughout the season with the first 25 Aug at E.B.C.A. (AK), and the last 2 in Dunklin 31 Oct–4 Nov (TJ). Highest numbers of Great Egrets were ob-served along the Mississippi River with 800 at C.B.C.A. 3 Aug (WR), and 1192 at Clarence Cannon 6 Aug (CM, JM). There were at least four Nov observations of this species with a high count of 3 at Squaw Creek 15 Nov (Sherry Leonardo) and the last photographed at a private residence in Kirksville, Adair 28 Nov (fide PK). Snowy Egret numbers reached 150 at C.B.C.A. by 12 Aug, which is, “a very large concentration for this area, but not the highest, which was 220 in 2008” (WR). There were three mid-Oct observations of this species, all of single birds: 12 Oct at Riverlands (WR, CM, ph. JM), 13 Oct at Schell-Osage (Emily Samuel), and 14 Oct in Bu-chanan (SK, LL). C.B.C.A. hosted 120 Little Blue Herons 5 Aug (CM, JM), while 2 at Schell-Osage 13 Oct were late (GS, acc.). A Tricolored Heron spent a week at C.B.C.A. 2-8 Aug (David Rogles, Tom Bormann, ph. Chris-tian Hagenlocher). An all-time high of 280 Black-crowned Night-Herons came to a night roost at C.B.C.A. 10 Aug (Bill Duncan) and a very late imm. was in Dunklin 27 Nov (ph. TJ). A White-faced Ibis, which is rare in e. MO, was at Riverlands 29 Sep (CM, ph. JM), while two individuals at Swan Lake 21 Oct were record-late (*SK). An unidentified Plegadis sp. (dark ibis) at Squaw Creek 24 Nov was late (Michael Andersen). The earliest Osprey arrived 15 Aug at P.C.C.L. (MH) and the last was at Springfield Lake, Greene 18 Nov (AK). A Swallow-tailed Kite in rural Phelps 14 Aug (Larry Houf, acc.) was only the 12th record for the state. A Northern Goshawk was well described in Kansas City 18 Oct (details - Matt Gearheart), which is the first fall record for Missouri reported to eBird since 2004. A Golden Eagle was at E.B.C.A. 30 Nov (John Besser). Four Yellow Rails were re-ported to eBird 4-20 Oct, one from each of these locations: Paint Brush Prai-rie C.A., Pettis; BK Leach C.A., Lincoln; Duck Creek C.A., Bollinger; (Auriel Fournier) and Squaw Creek (Josh Smith). A family group of 2 adults with 6 young Common Gallinules was at Squaw Creek 8 Aug indicating success-ful breeding (MR). A pair of imm. birds at Bennett Spring S.P., Laclede 27 Sep (Sandy Elbert) is the first s.-cen. Missouri record in eBird.

SHOREBIRDS THROUGH TERNS

Among several Black-necked Stilt reports from e. Missouri, the highest numbers (up to 9) were at Riverlands 1-3 Sep (CM, JM, WR); notable were

THE BLUEBIRD

two reports from n.-cen. and ne. Missouri, 2 at Pershing S.P., Linn 24 Aug (SK) and a single at Atlanta CA, Macon 12 Sep (ph. PK). Among numerous American Avocet reports the highest count and earliest record was of 23 at Smithville 13 Oct (DW) and the last was of 15 at Swan Lake (SK). Six Greater Yellowlegs at Riverlands (CM) and 3 at Smithville (DW) 6 Nov were the last. Three Willets 13 Oct at Schell-Osage (GS) represent the sec-ond-latest state record. A high and late count of 12 Lesser Yellowlegs was recorded in Dunklin 27 Nov (TJ). Three Marbled Godwits at Smithville 1 Sep were notable (ph. Kristi Mayo). An Upland Sandpiper in Dunklin 30 Sep was late (ph. TJ). The highlight of the shorebird migration was an adult Sharp-tailed Sandpiper, observed by Connie Alwood, David Becher, and Pat Lueders 3 Aug, and again by John Solodar and Ken Hollinga 5 Aug, at C.B.C.A. It was documented by Becher, Lueders, and Hollinga and accepted by the MBRC onto the Missouri state list with Provisional status as the first state record. As William Rowe noted, “Adults of this Asian vagrant are very rare in the lower 48 states, but when they occur, it is usually in July or Aug like this individual, and unlike juveniles of the same species, which are not known to occur this early." Pectoral Sandpipers peaked at 600 at River-lands 24 Aug (WR) with a late one present at this location 16 Nov (CM, ph. JM). Two Dunlins at Riverlands 9 Nov were the last to be reported this fall (PL). A lone Long-billed Dowitcher stayed 5-22 Nov at South Farm R-1 Lake, Boone (ph. Greg Leonard, m.ob.). A staggering 708 Wilson’s Snipe were in Dunklin 27 Nov, with 320 still present 29 Nov; both represent the highest counts for the state (ph. TJ). A Red-necked Phalarope 2 Sep at Lake Contrary, Buchanan (Susan Nixon) was the first fall record for w. Mis-souri ever reported to eBird. Sabine’s Gull is now annual at Smithville, with one present 28 Sep, 2 on 30 Sep, and one 13 Oct (ph. DW). The season’s high for Bonaparte’s Gull was 120 at Riverlands 12-23 Nov (CM, JM, WR, PL). Laughing Gull is a casual migrant away from the Mississippi River, so three reports from the western half of the state were noteworthy. All of them involved single birds; 1 Sep at Smithville (*DW) and Four Rivers C.A., Vernon (ph. *DW) and one at M.S.L. 5 Nov (DE, acc.). A very high count of 15,000 Franklin’s Gulls was reported from Smithville 13 Oct; a rather late bird was at Creve Coeur Lake and County Park, St. Louis 28 Nov (Melissa and Rowan Gibson). The number of Ring-billed Gulls at Riverlands reached 10,000 by 30 Nov (WR). The only two Thayer’s Gulls were at Riverlands 26 Nov (CM). The first Lesser Black-backed Gull of the sea-son was at Long Branch S.P., Macon 26 Oct (ph. PK), and single birds were reported most of Nov primarily from Riverlands, except 31 Oct at M.S.L. (DE) and 3-5 Nov at Smithville (DW). The recent change of casual to rare status of this species in the state away from Mississippi River is well sup-ported by the regular occurrence of this species in w. and ne. Missouri. Smithville hosted 500 Black Terns 1 Sep (DW). A high count of 23 Com-mon Terns was reported from this location 5 Oct (Jacob Cooper, CH, MR).

DOVES THROUGH SHRIKES

A high count of 67 Eurasian Collared-Doves 23 Oct in Dunklin (TJ) re-flects the fact that this non-native species is well established in the state. Another recent invader, a White-winged Dove, was in Webb City, Jasper

THE BLUEBIRD

30 Aug (Liz Mangile, Mavis Benner). A high number of migrating Yellow-billed Cuckoos was at S.F.R., with 27 on 22 Aug and 28 on 2 Sep (TJ). An individual at Maple Leaf Lake C.A., Lafayette 15 Oct was the last reported (Larry Olpin, Thomas Gaines, Jr.). A female Burrowing Owl, hit by a ve-hicle, was found by Keith Todd 19 Oct sw. of Peculiar, Cass; the specimen was preserved and deposited at University of Kansas (MR). Short-eared Owls appeared in the state in early Nov with a high of 10 in Dunklin 22 Nov (TJ). A total of 13 Northern Saw-whet Owls were banded 23 Oct–18 Nov at Missouri River Bird Observatory, Saline (Dana Ripper), which is down from last year, and 15 were banded 15 Oct+ at World Bird Sanctuary, St. Louis (PL). The highest count of migrating Common Nighthawks was at Smithville with 200 on 22 Aug (DW). An impressive count of 2200 Chim-ney Swifts was at a roost in Greene 13 Sep (m.ob). A late Ruby-throated Hummingbird was in Webster, St. Louis 22 Nov (Lanny Chambers fide PL). An apparent male Selasphorus sp. hummingbird was photographed in St. Louis 22 Nov (fide Bryan Prather). A Yellow-bellied Sapsucker in St. Louis 13 Sep tied last year’s earliest fall record (*Lane Richter). An Olive-sided Flycatcher at Prairie S.P., Barton 1 Oct was on the late side (Larry Herbert). An Eastern Wood-Pewee at Trail of Tears S.P., Cape Girardeau 13 Oct was late (MH), and one at S.F.R. 25 Oct tied the second-latest fall record (TJ). A Yellow-bellied Flycatcher was late at S.F.R. 9 Oct (ph. TJ). When discussing fall migration of Acadian Flycatcher R&E indicate that, “Very little information exists on the fall movement,” so two late Sep records of single birds from se. Missouri were important additions to our knowledge-base: a vocalizing one 24 Sep at M.W.P. (details - MH) and 30 Sep at S.F.R., which became the new latest fall record (ph. TJ). Least Flycatchers ar-rived early with one in Dunklin 7 Aug, tying the second-earliest fall record. The species also departed record late with one at S.F.R. 6 Oct (ph. TJ), and another at Big Spring 19 Oct, representing a new latest fall record (MR, acc.). A Say's Phoebe 14 Sep at McGee Family C.A., Clinton represents the 13th state record (ph. Chris Barrigar, acc.), and only the second fall record since 2004. Eastern Kingbirds lingered into Oct in w. part of the state with 2 s. of Montrose, Henry 5 Oct (MR, CH, Jacob Cooper) and one in Cass 7 Oct (Ginny Culver). A suggested hybrid Western x Eastern Kingbird was reported from Holt 27 Aug (SK, LL). Highest count of 40 Scissor-tailed Flycatchers was in Joplin, Jasper 17 Sep (Larry Herbert). A very early Northern Shrike was in Cass 26 Oct (third-earliest date on record) and stayed until 2 Nov (ph. Ginny Culvert). The last three days of the sea-son produced three more records: 2 at Bilby Ranch Lake C.A., Nodaway 28 Nov (DW); one at Dunn Ranch, Harrison 28 Nov (DW); and another at Whetstone Creek C.A., Callaway 29 Nov+ (m.ob.).

VIREOS THROUGH SNOW BUNTINGS

A White-eyed Vireo at S.F.R. 23 Oct represents the new latest fall record (TJ). A more northerly record of the Yellow-throated Vireo at Martha Lafite Thompson Nature Sanctuary, Clay 16 Oct represents the second-latest fall date (details - Keith Brink). The Bootheel produced the only Nov report of a Blue-headed Vireo this season on 2 Nov in Dunklin (TJ) and two very late Warbling Vireos 7-8 Oct at S.F.R. (ph. TJ), while one at Big

THE BLUEBIRD

Spring 20 Oct was record-late by almost three weeks (MR, acc.). A Phila-delphia Vireo at S.F.R. 19 Oct provided the second-latest fall record (TJ). The last Red-eyed Vireo was at S.F.R. 11 Oct (TJ). The swallow spectacle in Livingston involved ca. 100,000 Tree Swallows 27 Aug (SK). Over 2,000 Bank Swallows were at C.B.C.A. 10 Aug (WR). This was not a flight year for the Red-Breasted Nuthatch and only two reports were received, each involving 2 birds, both from e. Missouri in Nov. The highest counts of 27 Sedge and 34 Marsh Wrens were at Squaw Creek 8 Aug (MR). Another high count of 30 Marsh Wrens was almost two months later 8 Oct in Livingston (SK). Since, “There is virtually no information on when the ma-jority of individuals [of Bewick’s Wren] leave the state in the fall,” (R&E) an individual 7 Oct in Morgan (Lee Roy) further confirms that birds pre-sumably leave, “by early October” (R&E). A Blue-gray Gnatcatcher 24 Oct at S.F.R. was the second-latest on record (TJ) as was a Swainson’s Thrush 22 Oct at Bollinger Mill S.H.S., Cape Girardeau (details - MH). Most Gray Catbirds leave the state by the end of Oct, so individual birds at Burroughs Audubon Nature Center and Bird Sanctuary, Jackson 24 Nov (M.W. Stoakes) and in Russellville, Cole 26 Nov (Chris Barrigar) were note-worthy. Fifteen Sprague’s Pipits were on the burned prairie at Prairie S.P., Barton 3 Nov (PK, Dale De Wan). Smith’s Longspurs were reported from nw. and sw. Missouri with 11 at Pennsylvania Prairie, Dade 8 Nov (CB, GS) and 8 at Pawnee Prairie C.A., Harrison 11 Nov (SK). Snow Bun-tings showed up in the state at the very end of the season, 28 Nov, at Bilby Ranch Lake C.A., Nodaway (DW) and 29 Nov+ at Long Branch S.P., Macon (m.ob.).

WARBLERS

A string of reports from the Bootheel provided new data on the latest occur-rences of 13 species of warblers and gave us a better idea of their s. Missouri migration timeframes. A Worm-eating Warbler 1 Oct at S.F.R. was sec-ond-latest on record (ph. TJ). Two reports of Blue-winged Warbler from the same location 4 & 6 Oct became the two latest fall records (ph. TJ). Four Golden-winged Warblers 4 Oct was a high count, and the third-latest date, while 3 on 6 Oct were second-latest on record (TJ). Prothonotary Warblers are rarely encountered after mid-Sep, so one 21 Sep at S.F.R. was notable (TJ). A Tennessee Warbler at Apple Creek C.A., Cape Girardeau 18 Oct (MH) was late, as this species is only accidentally seen after mid-Oct (R&E). A high number (71) of Orange-crowned Warblers was banded at Missouri Western State University campus, Buchanan this fall, and a Mourning Warbler netted at this site 19 Aug was the second-earliest on record (Jack Hilsabeck). An adult male Hooded Warbler at Thousand Hills S.P., Adair 23 Aug (ph. Rachael Casey) was the northernmost fall re-port for this species in eBird since 2007. An American Redstart at S.F.R. 18 Oct beat the previous latest fall occurrence by 5 days (ph. TJ). Two Northern Parulas 10 Oct at S.F.R. represented the third-latest fall record (TJ), and so did a Magnolia Warbler in Dunklin 27 Oct (TJ). Two Black-burnian Warblers showed up in the state 9 Oct (three days after the pre-vious latest fall record), one in St. Louis (Garrett Sheets) and one at S.F.R. (TJ). An incredible 8 Chestnut-sided Warblers at S.F.R. (ph. TJ) was a

THE BLUEBIRD

location 19 Oct became the second latest for the fall (TJ). Blackpoll War-bler is accidental in the fall, so one 3 Oct in Kirkwood, St. Louis was the highlight of warbler migration (ph. Margy Terpstra, acc.). There were three Black-throated Blue Warbler reports, two from e. Missouri and one from Smithville 13 Sep (DW). A Yellow-throated Warbler 18 Oct at S.F.R. was five days past the previous latest fall record (ph. TJ). Two Black-throated Green Warblers 28 Oct and one Canada Warbler 19 Oct at S.F.R. were second-latest on record (ph. TJ). A Yellow-breasted Chat 16 Oct at S.F.R. has surpassed the previous latest fall record by four days (ph. TJ).

SPARROWS THROUGH EURASIAN TREE SPARROW

Several high counts of sparrows were recorded in c. and n.-cen. Missouri in the second half of Oct. Peak counts of Savannah Sparrows were at E.B.C.A. 22 Oct with 650 (Tom Johnson), and at Pershing S.P., Linn 28 Oct with 220 (SK). Seven Grasshopper Sparrows in rural Vernon 13 Oct was a high count for such a late date (CB, m.ob.). Ample numbers of Nelson’s and Le Conte’s Sparrow reports were received, unlike last year when ob-servers noted scarcity of the latter species. Song and Swamp Sparrows peaked at the end of Oct with 60 Song Sparrows at M.W.P. 29 Oct (MH) and 170 Swamp Sparrows 22 Oct at E.B.C.A. (Tom Johnson). A high count of 90 White-throated Sparrows was at M.W.P. 30 Oct (MH). A White-crowned Sparrow at Riverlands 22 Sep was the new earliest fall arrival by three days (WR). Three Summer Tanagers were at S.F.R. 16 Oct, which is a late high count and one was still around 17 Oct (TJ). A Scar-let Tanager at the same location 7 Oct was late (TJ). October reports of Rose-breasted Grosbeaks typically involve, “… maximum of 1-2 birds/day” (R&E), so 23 at S.F.R. 2 Oct (TJ) were very unusual, while 42 at the same location 11 Oct (TJ) were astonishing, with 4 still present 22 Oct (ph. TJ). A first-winter male Black-headed Grosbeak was carefully described from M.W.P. 24 Sep (MH). A Blue Grosbeak at M.W.P. 3 Oct was late, as were 2 at S.F.R. 4 Oct (ph. TJ). A late high-count of 150 Indigo Buntings came from S.F.R. 19 Oct (TJ). The Bobolink high count this fall was 195 was at Pershing S.P., Linn 3 Sep (SK). The earliest Rusty Blackbird re-port was of 10 at Montrose C.A., Henry 5 Oct (CH, MR) and the peak count was 110 at Fellow's Lake, Greene 24 Nov (GS). Bill Rowe reported the larg-est Brewer’s Blackbird flock (200) he has ever seen in the St. Louis area 27 Oct in Lincoln. Up to 250 Great-tailed Grackles were in Rogersville, Greene 4-24 Oct (AK). A female Red Crossbill that spent the summer at a private residence in Webster was last seen 1 Aug (GS). Earlier voice re-cordings showed that the bird was a type II. This was the only finch excite-ment of the season. No other rare finches were reported. A lost Eurasian Tree Sparrow was quite a ways from St. Louis area at Blind Pony Lake C.A., Saline 13 Nov (Edge Wade, acc.). Observers

Charley Burwick (CB), David Easterla (DE), Mark Haas (MH), Chris Hobbs (CH), Timothy Jones (TJ), Steve Kinder (SK), Andrew Kinslow (AK), Peter Kondrashov (PK), Larry Lade (LL), Pat Lueders (PL), Charlene Malone

THE BLUEBIRD

(CM), Jim Malone (JM), Mark Robbins (MR), William Rowe (WR), Greg Samuel (GS), Doug Willis (DW).

Abbreviations

C.A. Conservation Area imm. Immature m.ob. Multiple observers ph. Photographed N.W.R. National Wildlife Refuge R&E Mark B. Robbins and David A. Easterla, Birds of Missouri, Their Distribution and Abundance, Uni- versity of Missouri Press, 1992. S.P. State Park Location Abbreviations (counties are in italics)

Big Spring Big Spring, Ozark National Scenic Riverways, Carter C.B.C.A. Columbia Bottom C.A., St. Louis Clarence Cannon Clarence Cannon N.W.R., Pike E.B.C.A. Eagle Bluffs C.A., Boone M.W.P. Maintz Wildlife Preserve, Cape Girardeau M.S.L. Maryville Sewage Lagoons, Nodaway P.C.C.L. Perry County Community Lake, Perry Riverlands Riverlands Migratory Bird Sanctuary, St. Charles Smithville Smithville Lake, Clay/Clinton Squaw Creek Squaw Creek N.W.R., Holt Swan Lake Swan Lake N.W.R., Chariton Schell-Osage Schell-Osage C.A., Vernon S.F.R. St. Francis River Levee Rd., Dunklin

BRADFORD FARM

591 acres Boone Co. DeLorme 38, B-1; GPS: 38.894624,-92.203596; Owned by University of Missouri.

Directions: From the intersection of US 63 and Rt. AC (a.k.a. Grindstone Parkway to the west and New Haven Rd. to the east) go east 3.8 miles to Ben Williams Rd. and turn south to reach the west gate (no sign), or con-tinue on New Haven Rd. an additional 1.1 miles to Rangeline Rd. and turn south for 1.2 miles to the main entrance on the east/west road that bisects Bradford Farm.

From the US 63 and Broadway exit, go east on Broadway (becomes Rt. W) to a right (south) turn onto Rangeline Rd. and continue to the signed main entrance on the right.

A BIRDERS’ GUIDE TO MISSOURI PUBLIC LANDS Edge Wade

THE BLUEBIRD

Note: The west gate may be closed after 5 p.m. on weekdays and all day on weekends, but the property is open and can be accessed via the east (main) entrance.

Officially known as the Bradford Research and Extension Center (BREC), this agricultural research farm was established via a warranty deed for 524 acres granted in 1959. The forty acres in the southwest corner were previ-ously granted to the state as part of the “deal-sweetener” in 1839 to entice the legislature to place the state university in Boone County. These acres were sold to Mary Robnett in 1912. She, as Mary Robnett Bradford, was one of the two grantors in 1959. These 40 acres have been especially appreciated by birders who’ve seen them as a favored area for several species, among them, Short-eared Owls and even a Northern Shrike (see below). In 1985, 71 acres were across Rangeline Rd. to the east were added and set up with plots and alleys in 1988 for research use.

Note that the “main road” referred to below is the gravel road running east/west (with a jog in the area of the building complex) between the main en-trance on Rangeline Rd. and the west gate on Ben Williams Rd. Birders are welcome to use all roads and two-tracks, and to walk the grounds, with care not to damage or disrupt research activities.

When to Visit/Species to Expect: Bradford Farm is especially good for fall, winter and early spring birding. The 162 species checklist shows a good range possible. In most winters it is a reliable site for Short-eared Owl, usu-ally spotted flying low, ‘like a floppy wet dish rag,’ around dusk in the west half of the area, sometimes even appearing to drive the competing harriers from the field.

Mixed goose flocks may graze; 15 species of duck have been found on the ponds. The shorebird list includes 18 species. Among them are Baird’s, Up-land and Buff-breasted Sandpiper, American Golden Plover and Marbled Godwit. Green Heron is possible in fall and early spring, especially at the west lake.

Horned Larks are resident. Recent management practices have favored Northern Bobwhite. Turkeys have wandered through. Listen carefully to the meadowlarks; Western are likely to appear between November and April.

Lapland Longspurs are regular in winter. Smith’s Longspurs have been seen often, usually in the small patches of three awn (Aristida) grass near the south end of the two-track that goes off the main road just before the intersection with the road north to the brush pile. Most sightings have been in March, but there are also November, February and early April reports.

Raptors include resident kestrels, occasional Merlin and one Peregrine re-port. Northern Harriers are often seen in winter. This is a good place to seek Rough-legged Hawk. Cooper’s, Sharp-shinned, Red-shouldered hawks, Bald Eagle and Osprey have been seen.

THE BLUEBIRD

Great-tailed Grackle, Rusty and Brewer’s Blackbird have gathered here, and once a Yellow-headed Blackbird joined the Red-winged flock. A fine spread of sparrows can be served up, most often in or near the brush pile near at the north end of the gravel road running north (about .4 mile) of the main road. Harris’s should be looked for anytime White-crowned are pre-sent. Sedge Wren and Le Conte’s Sparrow are regular in autumn, most of-ten found south of the main road. Henslow’s have occurred.

Bradford is a place of surprises. Among the “one or two times” or “one bird reported by many observers” are a Snow Bunting one November, Sprague’s Pipit in October and November, Pine Siskins in October, Winter Wren, Bell’s Vireo, and a January 2014 Northern Shrike. An out of range Eurasian Tree Sparrow joined the resident House Sparrow flock in the equipment parking area for a late March-early April stint.

Features of interest to birders: The “brush pile” changes form and composi-tion as it has been used to dispose of items as varied as pumpkins, hay bales and mattresses before the occasional fire and rebuilding. Check the nearby fencerow and trees for additional species. The three ponds are often referred to by birders as “the west lake” (the biggest one, near the west gate, along the main road); “the east or northeast lake” (north of the farmhouse, east of the building complex), and “the northwest pond” (near the northwest corner, accessible by a two-track going west along the fence line from the brush pile. There is a small sewage lagoon between the house and northeast lake some-times favored by snipe.

Vemer’s Ford Rd. along the south boundary can offer good views, especially of the southwest forty acres, and of the area east of Rangeline Rd. Brushy areas, such as the shallow draw in the southwest and the small area east of the brush pile should be checked carefully.

Toilets: None

Camping: None

Hazards/Limitations: As noted above, this is an agricultural research site. Birders and other public users are welcome, but must not interfere with or harm research projects. Some of these may be flagged and obvious; other experiments underway may not be so apparent. Be very careful where you walk and drive. The two-tracks are not maintained as regular roads. They may be very slick and/or very, very muddy. If in doubt as to the condition, walk or forego them.

Bradford Farm was once part of Two-Mile Prairie. Though now plotted and plowed, it retains many prairie aspects. Among these is an unobstructed blast zone for arctic-like winds, placing it among the potentially most bone-chilling Missouri winter birding venues. Dress very warmly.

Nearby Birding Sites: Little Dixie Lake CA; University R-1 Lake (a pond) on Roosevelt Rd. and surrounding University research farms that are known as South Farm [this area is about 3 miles west of Bradford Farm]; Philips Lake; Rock Bridge Memorial State Park.

THE BLUEBIRD

VAN METER STATE PARK

1,104.63 acres Saline Co. DeLorme 29, F-7; GPS: 39.257723,-93.262294; DNR owned; contact (660) 886-7537 during office hours; http://www.mostateparks.com/park/van-meter-state-park

Directions: From Marshall, at the intersection of US 65 and MO 41 (Santa Fe Trail) go east for about .6 miles to the left to stay on MO 41 north (N. Miami Ave.), go 7.1 miles to a park sign, and a left (west) onto MO 122 for 1.8 miles to the park.

From US 24, east of Carrollton and west of Brunswick, take MO 41 south past Miami to a right (east) onto MO 122 into the park. A detached section, site of the Missouri Indian Village, is on the east side of CR 427, off MO 122, north of the main entrance to the park.

Van Meter is known as an important archaeological site of the Missouri Indians, and for Missouri’s American Indian Cultural Center housed in the park visitor center.

The park, in Saline County northwest of Marshall, is an island-like collage of bird-friendly habitats amid a vast “sea” of agricultural landscape. It has long been a favorite of birders, especially in spring migration. The 173-bird species checklist is a fair representation of the birdlife to be found here, and reflects bottomland and upland land features and associated habitats.

The bottomland portion of the park is often affected by major floods along the Missouri River. Mature trees in the upland part have suffered major damage in the early 21st Century in wind and ice storms. The natural suc-cession following these events has created a changing mosaic for birds to exploit and birders to explore.

When to Visit/Species to Expect: The picnic area is a favorite haunt of Red-headed Woodpeckers, and the whole park is good habitat for the full suite of Missouri woodpeckers.

The small marsh traversed by the boardwalk attracts an interesting array. The many Killdeer have been joined by Greater and Lesser Yellowlegs, Wil-son’s Snipe, Sora, at least one King Rail, American and Least Bittern. It pays to be alert on the boardwalk!

Wood Thrush is a regular in the brushy area at the base of the hill toward the end of the paved loop through the picnic area. Swainson’s, Gray-cheeked and Hermit Thrush are found in migration in good numbers.

Spring and fall migration bring lots of Ruby-crowned Kinglets, and a good chance of finding Brown Creepers in colder months. Thirty species of war-blers have been found, some as summer residents, many as migrants. Six vireo species appear on the checklist, with Philadelphia found in May and September.

THE BLUEBIRD

Olive-sided Flycatchers have been seen in May and September; Yellow-bellied Flycatchers come through in August and September. Black-billed Cuckoos have been found in May.

Just about anything may be seen at Van Meter. Sandhill Cranes have even visited. Be sure to check out the feeders at the visitor center for finches and maybe a Red-breasted Nuthatch or Pine Siskin in winter, and make the effort to get to as many of the habitat niches as possible.

Features of interest to birders: Bird (and birder) attracting features include the 300-acre Oumessourit Natural Area with a wetland boardwalk accessed by a trail from near the west-most picnic shelter. A nesting Bald Eagle may often be seen from the trail to the boardwalk. The natural area includes the marsh, fens, bottomland and upland forest.

The large picnic area and nearby campground in the floodplain are great for strolling/birding. The Native American features of the "Old Fort" and mounds on the upland, and the grounds around them are fine, open area birding sites with a savanna feel.

Lake Wooldridge (18 acres) and the Loess Hills Trail around it add a differ-ent dimension to birding options. Note that the paved road up the hill may be closed in winter, so call ahead if you are planning a trip in that season to determine access options.

A network of hiking trails provides access to this broad spectrum of habi-tats. Three trails lead from the parking area at the top of the hill. Lakeview and Loess Hills Trail lead to and around the lake; the short Missouri River Overlook Trail does just that and can be good for birds, too.

The Earthworks Trail is designed for access to and education about the ar-chaeological features, but also allows access to forest and open land birding. The downhill end is reached from the area of the picnic shelters along the paved road. It is fairly steep along some portions.

The trail to the family cemetery is an easy walk and can produce several birds in a short stretch.

Toilets: A modern restroom is in the picnic area, near the campground; and in the visitor center when it is open.

Camping: Basic and electric sites are open year-round. The shower house is closed between October 31 and April 15.

Hazards/Limitations: The road to the upper portions of the park may be closed (gate locked) in winter. Inquire about access before you go.

Nearby Birding Sites: Grand Pass CA, Blind Pony CA, Miami Access, Swan Lake NWR, Marshall Habilitation Lake.

THE BLUEBIRD

How to be a Better Birder By Derek Lovitch. 2012. Princeton Uni-versity Press, Princeton, New Jersey. Paperbound, 208pp, 53 color illustra-tions & 10 maps. $19.95. Additional details and ordering information at: http://press.princeton.edu/titles/9671.html

The birder’s bookshelf is crowded with all sorts of books these days. One almost needs a guidebook to guides! However, this book has its own niche. Don’t expect all sorts of identification hints, although there are some in the first chapter, “Advanced Field Identification.”

These are presented as examples rather than exhaustive coverage.

The author’s stated purpose for this book is “to give some helpful hints, spur additional study, and simply provide some information that we can apply to our own birding in pursuit of becoming better birders, whatever that means to you.” I think the book succeeds well on all accounts. First of all, despite his insistence that all levels of birders can learn (with which I agree), I do think that the book is really of greatest benefit to intermediate-level birders. By that, I mean those who know the basic identification of local birds and have a fair degree of field experience. I will also point out, though, that I learned a great deal as well, so experienced birders may also find the book of great benefit.

Lovitch emphasizes in the first chapter that he is going to use a “whole bird and more” approach to improving birder skills. Through-out the book, he gives copious examples to illustrate his points. He also emphasizes repeatedly that there is not substitute for practice and a high degree of field experience. As others have emphasized in the past, we should go beyond the basics with even common birds, and learn all we can about plumages, shapes, and behavior. A great strength of the book appears in this and all subsequent chapters—an abundance of suggestions for further reading, web sites, and ad-ditional guides that go into more detail.

BOOK REVIEW Bill Eddleman

THE BLUEBIRD

The book has additional chapters on habitat, geography, weather, birding at night, birding with a purpose, and vagrants. The habitat chapter is reminiscent in some ways of an old book I remember read-ing some years ago, The Habitat Guide to Birding by Thomas P. McElroy Jr. Most of us have at least some feel for many (if not most) birds being specific to habitats. Lovitch proposes that to REALLY get the most out of birding, we might need to focus on learning plants and how specific species and groups of species are used by birds. Learning a bit about plants and plant communities can cer-tainly save a lot of effort in finding those “goal” birds. In fact, as he points out, if Red Crossbills are eventually split into 8-9 species, learning those coniferous trees may be essential!

Ever wonder why certain sites are known as real hot spots for mi-grants? The chapter on “Birding with Geography” explains that, as well as going beyond the range maps most of us consult in our field guides. I think most of us do consider local geography when birding, but some of the tips included here may inform us on other areas to check beyond the well-known sites.

The chapter, “Birding and Weather,” provides a nice summary of how weather affects migration, and nicely explains how and why groundings, fall-outs (great for birders, bad for birds), and over-shoots occur. A brief summary of what happens with tropical storms and birds is included, and the effects of long-term weather patterns are briefly discussed as well. Examples are included that discuss Cave Swallows in the East and the “Siberian Express.”

A relatively new facet of birding is covered in the chapter on “Birding at Night.” I don’t think I’ve read a more succinct summary of how radar can be used to inform birders, and Lovitch includes suggestions on when and how to take advantage to see more birds. “Birding with a Purpose” includes information on how birders can contribute to various data collection efforts, including Christmas Bird Counts, Breeding Bird Surveys, atlasing, and eBird. Hey, if you’re going to have fun birding, may as well do it in a way that can benefit the birds and knowledge about the birds (including our own CACHE and SPARKS efforts). A chapter on vagrants summarizes identification challenges, documentation, and how to increase your chances of finding them. Everything is then assembled into a grand example of a New Jersey case study—weather, identification, night birding, geography, and habitat.

In short, I found this to be an interesting read, and a refreshing change from the usual “identification and field marks” book. I can recommend this for anyone wishing to improve their birding!

Awards Committee: The ASM Executive Committee Conservation Area Checklist Project (CACHE) State Parks & Historic Sites Project (SPARKS) Patrick Harrison, Web Development; Database Administrator Mike Thelen, Editor Executive Committee: June Newman, Shari Harden, Scott Laurent, Pat Lueders, and Bill Eddleman Missouri Bird Conservation Initiative: Susan Hazelwood Conservation Partnership Coordinator: Edge Wade. Grassland Bird Coordinator: Mike Doyen

Missouri Bird Records Committee: Brad Jacobs, Chair Bill Rowe, Secretary Brad Jacobs, Paul McKenzie, Mark Robbins, Kristi Mayo, Josh Uffman, Joe Eades, and Bill Rowe ———————————————————————————————————-

ADDRESS CHANGES

If you move to a new address or you register a temporary address with the post office, PLEASE let ASM know. The U.S. Postal Service does not forward bulk mail. It returns it to the sender with the for-warding address label on it. When a BLUEBIRD is returned, we end up paying double – the return postage and the postage to remail it to the new address. For an address change, just send me an email with your new address or mail me a note. If it is a temporary address, do the same thing but also let me know the date of your return and whether you want THE BLUEBIRD sent to your temporary address or held and sent after you return home. The simple act of letting me know saves ASM money and work. Thank you!

Jerry Wade; ASM Membership Chair; 2101 W/ Broadway, PMB 122; Columbia, MO 65203-1261; 573-268-3713; [email protected]

THE BLUEBIRD

THE BLUEBIRD

JOIN

The Audubon Society of Missouri Membership Brings You

The Bluebird—quarterly journal of the ASM

Birding Fellowship

Spring and Fall Birding Weekends

Organized Input into Conservation Issues

Birding Education

Go to www.mobirds.org and pay using Paypal, or by mail:

Application for ASM Membership Name: _____________________________________________________________

Address: ___________________________________________________________

City / State / Zip: ____________________________________________________

Phone, Home: ______________________ Work: ________________________

Email Address: ______________________________________________________

Please CIRCLE the information you do NOT want included in The ASM Membership Directory.

~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~

**Indicate whether this is a NEW membership or a RENEWAL**

_____ New _____ Renewal

**Please check the Membership Category that applies**

_____ Individual—$20.00 _____ Contributing—$50.00

_____ Family—$25.00 _____ Benefactor—$150.00

_____ Student—$15.00 _____ Life—$250.00

Send checks (payable to Audubon Society of Missouri) to:

The Audubon Society of Missouri,

2101 W. Broadway, PMB 122, Columbia, MO 65203-1261

bluebird march 2014 - conservation leadership · pdf filerandy korotev, 800 oakbrook lane, st....

Documents