Some Pointers From My Trip to the DRIWR - 20 Aug 2022

After replacing yet another tube in my front bike tire I had planned to go to Pt. Mouillee SGA to look for shorebirds. Unfortunately, the tire was flat. Again. So, I decided to make trips to the Detroit River International Wildlife Refuge and Lake Erie Metropark. Rain is in the forecast for the weekend but so far the skies are relatively clear, but its HUMID and soupy even at 70F.

I arrived at the refuge and walked the short loop trail behind the Visitor's Center. A pair of chattering Baltimore Orioles were making themselves unseen in the brush at the trail head. Out on the Detroit River a Belted Kingfisher was flying over the calm river surface while this Great Blue Heron basked in the morning rays of the Sun.

The woods were quiet except for a lone Eastern Wood-Pewee that sang from high in the canopy. As I walked the boardwalk toward the tip of the peninsula next to Monguagon Delta a Carolina Wren sat on a bare snag and sang its distinctive "Three-four-three-four-three" notes. Another Carolina Wren reponded from somewhere behind me. Up in the dead tree a lone Osprey cried as it dried its wings after (an apparent) missed feeding opportunity.

As I watched it through binoculars the Belted Kingfisher shot by the tip of the peninsula low to the water and headed across the delta. I managed to get the Sony 600/4 lens on it and capture a series of photos as it sprinted across the water and softly landed in the tree on the far shore.

Farther inside the delta a lone Great Egret basked in the Sun. 

Several pairs of female/immature Mallard shot by but couldn't avoid the camera shutter.

As I waited for the kingfisher to give me an encore fly-by I spotted two large White-tailed Deer along the far shore. Both were 8+ point bucks in full velvet! Impressive. Munching away at the subsurface vegetation they gradually made their way to shore before disappearing.

I continued walking the trail along the edge of the delta looking for birds. This doe appeared in the trail and paused long enough for a portrait. It had walked through spider webs so it appeared to be sporting thin spectacles around its eyes.

Nearby a lone Eastern Phoebe was preening along the banks of the delta.

I did not see any early migrant warblers, and only a single Black-capped Chickadee disrupted the silence of the woods. A single Cottontail Rabbit munched away along the trail ahead of me, so I grabbed a quick pic before quietly walking past it.

As I was leaving a male Indigo Bunting appeared briefly at the tops of the dogwoods lining the trails. It flew off and joined three Baltimore Orioles farther back in the brush.

Detroit River IWR--Refuge Gateway (Humbug Marsh), Wayne, Michigan, US
Aug 20, 2022 8:00 AM - 8:40 AM
Protocol: Traveling
0.5 mile(s)
Checklist Comments:     Humid, soupy, 70F
11 species

Mallard (Anas platyrhynchos)  2
Great Egret (Ardea alba)  1
Great Blue Heron (Ardea herodias)  1
Osprey (Pandion haliaetus)  1
Belted Kingfisher (Megaceryle alcyon)  1
Eastern Wood-Pewee (Contopus virens)  1
Eastern Phoebe (Sayornis phoebe)  1
Black-capped Chickadee (Poecile atricapillus)  1
Carolina Wren (Thryothorus ludovicianus)  2
Baltimore Oriole (Icterus galbula)  3
Indigo Bunting (Passerina cyanea)  1

View this checklist online at https://ebird.org/checklist/S159197686

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

Lake Erie Metropark's Nature Center trails were quiet and uneventful. I saw one Red-eyed Vireo and heard another scolding me from the underbrush, but that was it. Todd and Karen Palgut were the only highlight and I chatted with them for a few minutes before driving south toward Pt. Mouillee SGA.

Lake Erie Metropark, Wayne, Michigan, US
Aug 20, 2022 9:30 AM - 10:30 AM
Protocol: Traveling
1.0 mile(s)
1 species

Red-eyed Vireo (Vireo olivaceus)  1

View this checklist online at https://ebird.org/checklist/S159197806

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

Roberts Road was quiet, so I turned and drove down Rheaume Rd. where I found a juvenile Red-tailed Hawk (with full crop) soaring over the quarry. Pretty bird!

Only 10 days until first day of the 2022 Detroit River Hawk Watch. Can't wait!

Stoneco/Rockwood Quarry, Monroe, Michigan, US
Aug 20, 2022 10:30 AM - 10:50 AM
Protocol: Traveling
1.0 mile(s)
1 species

Red-tailed Hawk (Buteo jamaicensis)  1

View this checklist online at https://ebird.org/checklist/S159197962

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