FreeLists / tn-bird / [TN-Bird] Western Kingbirds - three nests and 9 birds in east AR

[OLCOOT1@xxxxxxx]

June 18, 2005
Mississippi Co. AR
 
One of the faster ways to get from the Ensley pits to Reelfoot is to go up  
I-55 on the Arkansas side of the river to I-155. In doing so, I always check a  
few places for possible Western Kingbirds at locations that I've found over  
the past few years that seem like good candidates. This Saturday it paid off 
big  time.
 
West of Blytheville, off of highway 18, are a group of steel processing  
plants and that area has always looked good for kingbirds to me. Saturday, I  
went 
to the area and found 3 Western Kingbird nests and 9 individual birds at 6  
locations, all within a 5 mile circle. I photographed the 3 nests and will  
post a photo site giving exact locations. 
 
The easiest nest to find would be the one located on the Bunge grain  loading 
facility at the end of Highway 18. The birds built on the tower out in  the 
river. The nest is up high on the south side of the structure and hard to  see 
(better viewed from the north side). The male was photographed actually  
sleeping on one of the cables near the nest. I don't think I can recall seeing  
a 
passerine sleeping in such an exposed place. If the nest was just a  few yards 
father west it would have been in TN as the state line runs close  to the AR 
side at this location.
 
The first nest I found was at, what else, a power substation. After finding  
the male, it took over 45 minutes of scanning the structures before I found 
the  female on the nest at a switch relay. If the relay switch throws we will 
have  fried scrambled eggs and a flat female. The third nest was located  next 
to a small substation on a telephone pole. Three other single birds  were 
found. One bird, I think, was possibly associated with a nest as the bird  
stayed 
in one area but I never saw any evidence of a nest. The other two birds  were 
seen on the fence at the base of the levee. One bird fed down the fence and  
out of sight to the south and about a mile north I found a second bird feeding  
to the north.
 
 
Good  Birding!!!

Jeff R. Wilson
OL'COOT / TLBA
Bartlett,  TN