[TN-Bird] Reelfoot Area - Red-necked Grebe PLUS - LONG
- From: OLCOOT1@xxxxxxx
- To: tn-bird@xxxxxxxxxxxxx
- Date: Mon, 15 Nov 2010 13:25:42 EST
Nov. 13-14, 2010
Lauderdale Waterfowl Refuge
Lauderdale Co.
Reelfoot Lake Area, Lake and Obion Co. TN
A dizzily day found the Lauderdale Refuge with only a small area flooded,
so ducks were at a premium, only 8 species present. A Harrier hen kept the
shorebirds stirred up off the mud flats with 30+ Least Sandpipers, 96
Wilson's Snipe, 3 Greater Yellowlegs, 6 Dunlin, 3 L-b Dowitchers noted. A pair
of
adult Bald Eagles sat in the tree line watching 4 Red-tails and a Cooper's
Hawk making occasional forays. Large numbers of Common and Fish Crows were
conversing in the drizzle and Pipits and Horned Larks were trading around
the flats.
If you want to see Reelfoot Lake like you have never seen it before, go now
as the lake has not been this low since 1953. You can go across some areas
of the lake by jumping from 200 year old stump to 200 year old stump and
if you are nimble might not get wet.
Searching through the stumps and coots I came across a 1st year RED-NECKED
GREBE, a nice find at Reelfoot. The gull roost has moved to an new area in
the lake and because of construction and private residences, I could not
get close enough to see anything of significance coming to roost. I only had
2 Horned Grebes, found along with a good number but widely scattered
Pied-bills. Large numbers of DC Cormorants and a couple of thousand White
Pelicans lounged all across the lake. The first evening, I saw only a single
Herring Gull, a few hundred Ring-bills and about the same number of
Bonaparte's.
At dusk, I decided to search out Short-eared Owls for the CBC and the first
pass on Van Works Road revealed the ditch banks had been clean up and no
owls. West of Jolly's Landing, I had 3 birds yapping and fluttering around,
none off Tiptonville Landing Road but I finally flushed one at the bend of
Van Works Road in a small stand of uncut grass.
The lake was fogged in early on Sunday morning and the two day duck hunt
was in full swing so I went to the MS RV. At Tiptonville Landing, the few
hundred Bonaparte's and Ring-billed Gulls held a surprise bird in their
midst. A medium sized (slightly larger than the Ring-billed) white gull flushed
when a Bald Eagle came by. This bird had white upper and lower wings with no
dark or black tips or darker coverts, it had a very different wind beat
with slightly wider wings and the Bonaparte's Gulls actually seemed to harass
it as it flew south. I only saw it from the side and it was at a distance
but It had to be most likely a second year ICELAND or pale Kumlien's type
Gull. I rushed south to view the south end of the Tiptonville Bar and on
farther down to Island 13 but no luck in re-finding the bird. I was able to
see the bird but not under any better circumstances later, coming to the
roost on Reelfoot at dusk. I never saw the tail but the upper mantle seemed to
show some slightly grayer feathering other than the almost white of the
wings and body. Maybe it will stay around for a better look at details.
A super display of speed was put on by a 2nd year Bald Eagle, that tired of
waiting its turn at a fish being dominated by an adult. A Lesser Scaup
flying down river, stayed to close and the young eagle took off in hot
pursuit. The duck was pumping as hard as it could and the Eagle was keeping up
with ease but could not gain enough to catch the lucky duck and finally broke
off the chase. I've seen a Bald take a Canada Goose in a full speed chase,
you just don't expect that much speed from such a large bird but they have
to have the speed to stay aloft. Quite a few ducks fly at 60-70 miles an
hour and Bald Eagles have been clocked at 60+ in level flight and 100 in a
dive....What a SHOW.
At Island 13, there were 200+ Least Sandpipers, 8 Dunlin and the ever
present Killdeer, 4 Pied-billed Grebes, 2 male Hooded Mergs, 4 Bonaparte's, 9
Ring-billed but no white gull. A small ramshackle hut, built on a pontoon
boat, housed 6 college students?(3 girls and 3 boys), traveling from
Minnesota, floated down the Mighty Mississippi. An adventure story that will
be told
to great grandchildren years from now.
Later on Sunday, I was joined by Nancy Moore and after much scanning, we
were fortunate enough to find the immature Red-neck Grebe using the same area
on the east end of the lake just out from the TWRA area that is across
from the "PIT" Bar-B-Q. The LONE WHITE GOOSE AXIOM holds again, a lone white
goose out among the stumps turned out to be a ROSS'S! We also found a single
White-fronted Goose in among the drifts of White Pelicans. Earlier in
morning fog on the Mississippi River, flights of Snow and White-fronted Geese
could be heard heading south. A dark morph Red-tailed Hawk was enjoyed and
photographed while it circled overhead.
The gull roost, late Sunday, viewed from a slightly closer point, yielded
a single FRANKLIN'S GULL and still no satisfactory looks at the all white
winged gull as it settle into the mass of mixed gulls. Only 4 Herring Gulls
were seen coming in at dusk.
Jeff R. Wilson / TLBA
6300 Memphis-Arlington Road
Bartlett, TN 38135
http://www.pbase.com/ol_coot/
What is this feathered thing that lifts my heart to the heavens?
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