Goose Pond FWA Field Trip
November 12, 2022
Nine birders joined field trip leaders Logan and Kristina Lakins for an afternoon of birding at Goose Pond FWA. The skies were overcast with the temperature hovering around the freezing mark. Our targets for the day were cranes, waterfowl and shorebirds with the possibility of seeing early arriving Short-eared Owls. We weren’t disappointed.
The group got good looks at two Whooping Cranes in the distance that were calling loudly. We later got much closer looks at the two sitting in a ploughed corn field and saw them fly off. We also had a flyover of 18 noisy Sandhill Cranes.
Waterfowl highlights were Northern Pintail, American Wigeon, Gadwall and Northern Shoveler. A flock of approximately 50 Snow Geese with two Greater White-fronted Geese flew overhead. In one of the flooded fields, we watched six adult and three juvenile Tundra Swans feeding.
Shorebirds were plentiful and we saw good numbers of Dunlin and Long-billed Dowitchers, a single Black-bellied Plover, several Wilson’s Snipe, and a couple of Greater Yellowlegs. Bonus birds included Northern Harriers, Rough-legged Hawks, Rusty Blackbirds and American Pipits. Just after dusk, co-field trip leader Kristina spotted a Short-eared Owl flying over the field. Our total for the afternoon was 40 species. Thanks to Logan and Kristina for a great outing.