My Big Month - Day 19

Day 19 of my "Big Month" was actually an out of state field trip that I'd planned some time ago. The Audubon Chapter of Minneapolis does a couple of trips each spring to Tiffany Bottoms State Natural Area in Durand, Wisconsin. You ride out on what was a defunct railroad track that was purchased by a private operation called the Chippewa Valley Motor Car Association. They restored a large portion of the 14 mile track and now operate rides using small, open air rail cars. It is a really neat attraction and one of the only ways you can access this nearly 14,000 acres of wild and mostly unexplored wilderness area. I'm not sure exactly how or when it became known as a hot spot for birding, but I was super excited to see what it was all about. I'm not even sure if I could list all the species we saw in the 4 hours of the trip. There were lots of expert birders and everyone's experience was different, but I'll do my best from my own memory of what I saw personally. Right off the bat at one of the very first stops, I spotted what at first looked like a really dark American Redstart. Only it was a bit too large. I wasn't quite ready for photos so quickly and by the time I snapped this the bird had turned upside down. Just minutes later the guide from Audubon said there might be an Orchard Oriole in the area -which I then realized was what I saw! One of the other big birds the group was hoping to spot was a Blue-winged Warbler. And when I say "big" I don't mean in size, but rather in uniqueness. Like most Warblers it is small and hard to locate in the tree tops. But our guide knew their song and was able to locate a few of them for us. Then getting a photo was a whole other story. After listening and watching for a long time this is the best picture I managed -mind you they're 4.75" from head to tail and a long ways away It was a lot of fun though hearing and catching periodic glimpses of this colorful little Warbler that I'd never seen before! Despite all the abundance of birds I saw on this trip, I wasn't getting many good photographs. For me personally, to get really good bird photos is either pure dumb luck (just being in the right place at the right time by accident) or spending an extraordinary amount of time stalking one bird in particular. Since I was much more interested in seeing as many things as I could, it didn't make sense to be out stalking individual birds -not that I could have anyways because the area is just so darn big. Plus you can only wander off for so long before the train heads off again. That being said, there was one bird that was close and sat still long enough for everyone to photograph. This Common Nighthawk was perched on a branch about 20 feet up and never moved the entire time. I've only seen them flying before and never perched so this was yet another treat for me. Apparently they are known for this behavior during the day, roosting motionless on a tree branch, fence post or the ground but they can be very difficult to see because of their great camouflage. To me they appear to have the original "mossy oak" patterning that is used so prevalently now in camouflage hunting gear.

Total species seen today: Trumpeter Swan, Canada Goose, Baltimore Oriole, Orchard Oriole, Indigo Bunting, Rose-breasted Grosbeak, American Redstart, Yellow Warbler, Blue-winged Warbler, Tennessee Warbler, Common Yellowthroat, Red-eyed Vireo, Brown-headed Cowbird, Red-winged Blackbird, Common Grackle, American Goldfinch, Mallard, Common Nighthawk, Least Flycatcher, Olive-sided Flycatcher, Yellow-bellied Sapsucker, Red-bellied Woodpecker, Hairy Woodpecker, Bald Eagle, Eastern Towhee, Eastern Phoebe, Bank Swallow, Barn Swallow, Turkey Vulture, Song Sparrow, Mourning Dove, White-breasted Nuthatch, Black-capped Chickadee, American Robin and Gray Catbird.

Conditions: 82 degrees, partly sunny and very humid!