FreeLists / birdky / [birdky] Longspurs in Fayette Co.

[joe.pulliam@xxxxxxxxxxxxxxxxxx]

Today, Doreen and I birded the UK research farm at Spindletop for a couple of 
hours before dusk. After searching Central KY without luck for longspurs all 
winter, we hit the jackpot and saw several flocks of Lapland longspurs totaling 
about 50 birds. Even better, several of the males were molting into breeding 
colors. Not bad for a new life bird for me. I presume they've been there before 
and we've just missed them. One thing different today is there were no kestrels 
- maybe that (and hormones) made the longspurs a little bit braver. Also 
present were many horned larks, meadowlarks, a few snipe, savannah and song 
sparrow, red-winged blackbirds, a red-tailed hawk, mallard, bufflehead, 
American wigeon, ring-necked duck, redheads, mute swan and Canada geese (no 
Cackling). There was also a very tame blue morph snow goose mixed with domestic 
geese and a few Canada geese at the Energy Center pond next door.

Last weekend, we saw a couple of Vesper sparrows at Spindletop. As Ian has 
pointed out in previous postings, this is a very nice place to bird, almost 
like a midwest prairie in Kentucky.

Joe
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