Lye Creek Burn – October 14th, 2023
A small but eager group of birders joined Laurie Voss, the field trip leader, looking for Fall warblers at the “Burn”. We did not have to go far. Twenty yards from where the cars were parked a bird was moving in a small bush. It popped out long enough to be identified as a LeConte’s Sparrow, a very unexpected sighting. The bird hike was off to a great start. We quickly came upon a bevy of sparrow species including great looks at Lincoln’s, Savannah, Swamp, White-throated, and White-crowned. A Northern Harrier was seen flying over the field and multiple Ruby-crowned Kinglets were in the bushes and trees along the trail. A single Sharp-shinned Hawk flew by prompting the sparrows to seek cover.
We then drove a short distance to a nearby farmer’s field that had some standing water. It had not rained for several days and we hoped this area would hold some birds. Unbelievably, we spotted a second LeConte’s Sparrow affording us good, long looks as it flitted between bushes. Also present were more Savannah and Swamp Sparrows. For the morning we saw 21 species of birds. Thanks goes to Laurie for leading such a productive bird hike.