[obol] Ankeny "False Spring" Day
- From: John Thomas <johnpam@xxxxxxxxxxx>
- To: OBOL OnLine <obol@xxxxxxxxxxxxx>
- Date: Sun, 15 Feb 2015 18:40:57 -0800
Went to Ankeny NWR very late afternoon today. Warm, 63 F. Indian Plum native
plant starting to bloom down on Rail Trail and many other signs of a very fast
spring uptick.
We had a lot of birds we enjoyed after mostly stay home many months (but
admittedly a halfway good "backyard" out here). Had not been to Ankeny since
late summer with no water at Eagle Marsh. This stop at Eagle Marsh seemed
sparse for waterfowl. And very high water; a fair number of Ruddy Ducks (winter
plumage) and Northern Shovelers. American Coot of course.. A few geese, The
diving ducks and spinning ducks were well worth watching...
Cacklers and Bald Eagles took main stage on our little tour- especially on the
east side. The constant calls and movements just stopped me in my tracks at
times; the sounds of the geese going overhead . A Peregrine Falcon at Pintail
was a nice surprise and we watched (along with two photographers ) as it
dive-bombed some geese on the west dike. Seemed to fail at grabbing a goose but
rousted a group and after resting for a few minutes on high ground, it went
west. Several hawks around: mostly Red-tailed and Northern Harrier. Bald Eagles
off to north following geese flocks.
We jumped over to Rail Trail where young couples holding hands were clomping
down the trail. Not exactly "birding," but close. For highlights, we saw
several Brown Creepers and an Audubon's Warbler. Pointed out the Brown Creepers
to a pair of grandparents following a grandchild. They seemed to like seeing
this new bird for them. We pointed out that Brown Creepers go up and Nuthatches
go down. And, yup, the creepers were going up.
Nothing "rare" today. But a good day -thanks to FDR and the National Wildlife
Refuges !
Good Birding,
John Thomas
Silverton-Mt Angel Area
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