Unexpected Migration Joys
Published: November 08, 2020
Tags: Migration, dunlin, great blue heron, pine siskin, surf scoter, black scoter, white-winged scoter, greater yellowlegs, black-bellied plover, snow bunting, northern harrier, horned lark, wilson's snipe, brant, common loon, little gull, american bittern, eastern meadowlark, common raven
My favorite patch had gotten a bit busier than usual lately, so I decided to venture out a little further and find myself another quiet spot on the lake. Watching birds move across the lake in the morning is one of my favorite birding joys and to me, it's one of the more beautifully orchestrated pieces of fall migration. From Snow Buntings and American Pipits, to huge flocks of jays and robins, to geese and ducks - the entire scene is a marvelous opportunity to appreciate God's handiwork written into the very fiber of His incredible creatures.
Without further ado, here are a few of the birds I've seen from the end of October until now - some were expected but a few were unexpected joys...
A Dunlin stops at a little pool of water in the middle of a sandbar. Look at that bill!
A Great Blue Heron in morning light
Pine Siskins were moving through! How fun!
All three scoters were within this amazing flock!
This was very unexpected - on a foggy morning, a group of 14 Greater Yellowlegs flew by me very close to shore!
Another fun surprise was this Black-bellied Plover was who calling his plaintive call as he trailed behind the yellowlegs.
I can't believe I actually got a photo of the Snow Bunting that went cruising by!
A beautiful male Northern Harrier was hunting a field after my morning lake watch
More Dunlin stopped in - not sure what they found to eat...
In a dirt field on my way home from a lake watch one morning, I found pipits and Horned Larks, yellowlegs, Dunlin, a Black-bellied Plover, and Green-winged Teal. The Horned Larks were the migratory Northern subspecies - a nice find for me!
In the same field as the pipits and Horned Larks, I saw this Wilson's Snipe - another fun sighting
This small flock of 5 Brant was probably the most unexpected joy. They surprised me as they plopped down right in front of the sandbar I was searching!
The Brant didn't stay for long - only about 30 seconds. Here's a closer look at one as it flew off.
Much more expected, I've been seeing good numbers of Common Loons these days.
This Little Gull was a very unexpected surprise!
I was shocked to see an American Bittern still hanging around. He'd better get a move on!
I've seen Eastern Meadowlarks late in the year before, but this guy still took me by surprise as he flew across a field.
A Common Raven was no surprise but I couldn't resist taking his photo when he flew by so closely!