[wisb] Thrush, Towhee and Oriole

From: Daryl Tessen <bhaunts@xxxxxxxxxxxxx>
To: wisbirdn@xxxxxxxxxxxxx
Date: Sun, 15 Jan 2012 13:17:54 -0600
I covered the Hatley/Wausau/Marathon area this morning.  At Hatley I  
tried for the female Varied Thrush.  Arriving around 8:00 I had a  
half hour wait before it showed up.  I saw it briefly a few minutes  
before behind the house (on the east side).  It then appeared below  
the feeders by the garage, feeding for 5+ minutes.  When it flew off  
it moved to the cedars behind the home, not along side the road.   
There was considerable activity at their feeders besides the thrush,  
that included a White-throated Sparrow, redpolls, siskins,  
goldfinches, etc. (about 20 species!)
Next was the Wausau spot on Nuthatch Rd for the male Spotted Towhee.   
Almost immediately I found the cardinal/junco flock working in the  
bushes around the homes.  I did not see the towhee initially, so I  
cruised around to the Crane Dr feeders but they only had squirrels!   
Returning to the Nuthatch Dr site, almost immediately the male  
Spotted Towhee appeared in a bush by the neighbor's shed with juncos  
and cardinals,  plus one Blue Jay.  It shortly dropped down on the  
ground below/behind the bush where I could no longer see it.  Waiting  
time for it was less than 10 minutes (sorry Tom!).

Last was Marathon City for the Baltimore Oriole.  As I pulled up to  
the backyard feeders, it was very obvious feeding in one of the  
feeders and chasing other birds away.  It fed for several minutes,  
then flew to some shrubs.  About 10 minutes later it was back at the  
feeder, after which it went to their heated bird bath for a quick  
drink before going back to the shrubs.

On the way home I tried for the E. Bluebirds that I had found on the  
Fremont CBC, but no luck.  Stopping in Fremont to check one of the  
berry trees I was surprised to find a flock of 200+ Cedar Waxwings  
vigorously feeding on the crabapple berries.  And among them was one  
Bohemian Waxwing!  A nice surprise to end a fun morning.

Daryl Tessen
Appleton, WI





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[wisb] Thrush, Towhee and Oriole

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