[wisb] Jackson County Nightjar "slam"

  • From: "Peter A. Fissel" <pfissel@xxxxxxxxxxxxxxxx>
  • To: Wisconsin Birding Network <wisbirdn@xxxxxxxxxxxxx>
  • Date: Thu, 02 Jun 2011 10:23:48 -0500

A group of us from the Madison area went on an all-day excursion 
yesterday.  Our first stop was the Mazomanie Wildlife Area along County 
Y in far western Dane Co., where we had great looks at what was likely 
at least two Bell's Vireos.  We also had a possible YB Chat giving a few 
raspy notes a ways off, but it was difficult to be certain with the wind.

We also cruised Buena Vista (Portage County,) where howling winds kicked 
up huge clouds of dust from bare ag fields and made birding challenging, 
to say the very least.  We did manage to see three Whooping Cranes in a 
farm pond, but smaller birds were hard to come by.  Had multiple 
Brewer's Blackbirds, Eastern Meadowlarks, Savannah and Clay-colored 
Sparrows, but most other calls or songs were lost in the wind, and the 
birds were staying low.

We spent the rest of the afternoon and early evening birding the Black 
River St. Forest in Jackson Co.  Very few migrants around - most of what 
we heard or saw were nesting species, including Red-eyed, Blue-headed 
and Yellow-throated Vireos, Blue-winged, Nashville, Blackburnian and 
Yellow Warblers, plus Common Yellowthroats, Hermit Thrushes and Veeries. 
   Near sunset, we were hiking a trail along Battle Point Flowage when 
two Common Loons flew by, calling - nice!  At Oxbow Pond, we also saw 
two Great Blue Herons flying around with their necks extended, 
apparently calling to each other - strange sight and sounds.  Common 
Nighthawks were flying over, calling and "booming", which I'd never 
heard before.

Around 8:35 p.m., we headed over to Bartos/Staffon Rd. just west of the 
prison.   At 8:50, the Chuck-will's-widow began calling from very near 
the prison on the north side of the road.  He called continuously for 
two or three minutes.  Just as I was telling Jim Schwarz that if the 
bird stopped calling, we should stay alert and see if we could spot it 
flying, the bird stopped calling.  We waited for a minute or so, and it 
started up again, very close to us on the south side of the road.  I 
can't figure out how we didn't see it relocate, since it was still 
fairly light out.  We walked down closer to where it was calling.  It 
kept it up for several more minutes, then stopped.  We heard a very 
distinct, loud series of sharp noises that I can only presume were 
wing-claps (I think four times,) then a low series of almost "throbbing" 
sounds that reminded me of nothing so much as when I've heard recordings 
of blood flow or heartbeat from an ultrasound. (Birds of North America 
Online describes the wingclap as "rare"; they also mention a "growling" 
noise, that could describe what we were hearing, and which appears to 
have a territorial function.)  After the bird once more relocated to the 
north side of the road, we heard the same wingclap/throbbing series 
again, then it moved farther back in, closer to the prison and resumed 
calling.  We left around 9:20 with it still calling, and went west to 
the intersection with Cemetery Rd., where a couple of Whip-poor-wills 
were calling (another was very close to the road as we went south on 
Cemetery towards Hwy 54.)

Really a pretty amazing end to what had been a somewhat disappointing 
day of birding (due to the high winds.)  Our "tick count" among the five 
  of us was well into double-digits (I only found one on my sock when I 
got home - I highly recommend nylon pants...)  And the biting flies are 
also quite active.  You have been warned...

Peter Fissel
Madison, WI

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  • » [wisb] Jackson County Nightjar "slam" - Peter A. Fissel