Crosswinds Sparrows - 09 Oct 2010

I drove out to Crosswinds Marsh in western Wayne Co. this morning.  It was my first trip there this year.  Surprising... 

I walked the horse trail that parallels Haggerty Rd. with the hopes of finding / digiscoping some sparrows.  I was not disappointed.  A pair of adult Bald Eagles were roosting in the open across one of the many ponds, and I managed a few long-distant digiscoped images from one of the boardwalks.  An immature Bald Eagle would fly overhead a bit later.

Ruby-crowned Kinglets were almost as plentiful as the American Robins that littered the trail ahead of me.  Unfortunately, the sun hadn't risen high enough to illuminate the shade where the kinglets were foraging, so I had to rely on a fast shutter and momentarily-still birds to get any exposures.

Just under the power lines / towers the sparrows were moving in waves.  A silky dogwood bush seemed to be a nice stopping point for dozens of White-crowned Sparrows that were singing and displaying.  Both adult and juvenile birds were all over. 

Among them were almost as many Song Sparrows that tended to keep to the goldenrod and asters that carpeted the fields under the towers.  Dark-eyed Juncos were visible, as were a few lingering Field Sparrows.  I was too slow with the scope and camera to capture a Field Sparrow that had perched atop the dogwoods nearby, and also too slow for a pair of Lincoln Sparrows that made a brief appearance.

White-throated Sparrows were seen, as were several Swamp Sparrows. But these birds tended to keep to the shade and thicker portions of the vegetation that lined the horse trail.  As I tried to photograph them I became aware of the numerous Milkweed pods freshly-opened.  A pair of Boxelder Beetles were laying claim to this one.

On the way back to the car several large flocks of Rusty Blackbirds were roosting in the trees.  At least two dozen birds were mixed in with several more dozen Red-winged Blackbirds and Brown Cowbirds.

Trees were just starting to turn yellow, but bits of autumn color were present in just enough abundance to make the morning walk an enjoyable one.

Crosswinds Marsh, Wayne, Michigan, US
Oct 9, 2010 8:00 AM - 10:00 AM
Protocol: Traveling
2.0 mile(s)
11 species

Bald Eagle (Haliaeetus leucocephalus)  2
Ruby-crowned Kinglet (Corthylio calendula)  2
American Robin (Turdus migratorius)  2
Field Sparrow (Spizella pusilla)  2
White-crowned Sparrow (Zonotrichia leucophrys)  12
White-throated Sparrow (Zonotrichia albicollis)  2
Song Sparrow (Melospiza melodia)  12
Lincoln's Sparrow (Melospiza lincolnii)  2
Red-winged Blackbird (Agelaius phoeniceus)  24
Brown-headed Cowbird (Molothrus ater)  12
Rusty Blackbird (Euphagus carolinus)  24

View this checklist online at https://ebird.org/checklist/S42374504

This report was generated automatically by eBird v3 (https://ebird.org/home)