FreeLists / birdky / [birdky] March 10 KOS / Beckham Bird Club fieldtrip

["Ben Yandell" <by@xxxxxxxxxxxxx>]

Nine birders put in a full day covering some of the Ohio and Muhlenberg
County strip mines.

Notable species:  eared grebe, osprey, rough-legged hawk, Virginia rail,
great horned owl, short-eared owl, tree swallow, red-breasted nuthatch,
marsh wren, and pine warbler.

We started our morning at a marsh (just after turning east off 431 at
Drakesboro, near the small bridge on the side road on the right off 176).
Two Virginia rails and a marsh wren made the stop worthwhile.  At the lower
Ash Basin near the Paradise steam plant, most of the birds on the water were
grebes:  eared, horned, and pied-billed.  Lesser scaup and ring-necked ducks
joined them, and tree swallows were easy to spot in the area.

The S1/S2 hill in Sinclair overlooked a recently burned area that provided a
raptor exhibition, with 15-20 northern harriers coursing over the blackened
ground, along with red-tailed hawks of various descriptions, a soaring
red-shouldered hawk, and two rough-legged hawks.  The S3 loop gave a
different angle on some of the same birds and added a quick glimpse of a
short-eared owl.  

Heading toward the Ohio County part of the trip, we saw an osprey on the
nest on one of the towers near the Live Well area of Sinclair.  A stop by a
marsh along the Rockport-Paradise Road added another Virginia rail, and a
stand of pines along Cool Springs Road had at least 2 red-breasted
nuthatches and 4 pine warblers.  Near Island Lake, a fuzzy white and
surprisingly endearing great horned owl nestling stared at us over the edge
of its nest.

On the way home, three of us stopped by Cecilia briefly and saw 100+
sandhill cranes, which gave a total species count of 75 for the day.

Thanks to all the participants for an enjoyable and productive day.

Ben Yandell
Louisville