FreeLists / birdky / [birdky] "Crane Creek" Birding -- March 1, 2003

["Brainard Palmer-Ball, Jr." <brainard@xxxxxxxxxxxxxx>]

We can say what we want to about the nasty February weather we have
experienced, but it certainly has deposited alot of Sandhill Cranes in KY!
I would imagine that it is entirely possible that as many Sandhill Cranes
are currently "on the ground" in KY as in any other spring.  One of my
major goals in going out yesterday was to try to find some  on the ground
and I was not disappointed -- in fact, I got to see them three different
times.  One flock of about 140 was in the large confield and strip of
running water at about mile 127.5 on the West KY Pkwy in Hardin Co.  These
were the closest and offered great views of feeding, preening and pair
interactions.   I met up with Mary Walter and Roly Lloyd in southern Ohio
County, where flocks there were all over, trading north and south, east and
west. They must have a staging/roosting area somewhere in the Green River
bottoms.  We were rarely 10 minutes between hearing calls or seeing flocks
all morning.

Other birds in and around the Peabody WMA yesterday included 15 spp of
waterfowl including 3 Snow Geese, 3 Greater White-fronted Geese, about 40
Northern Pintails and 20 or so Wood Ducks; 6-8 Short-eared Owls, one
Rough-legged Hawk, 1 male Merlin (all at Sinclair); and at least a couple
of Le Conte's Sparrows.  At dusk, we were surrounded by a "cloud" of
performing American Woodcocks.

bpb, Louisville
brainard.palmer-ball@xxxxxxxxxxxxxxxx
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