Jan 1, 2020: Wolf's December 2019 Wildlife Report

Rough-legged Hawks breed in the arctic and show up in our area beginning with late October and depart by early April.  However, the Winter months are usually the best time to see one of these hawks.  Note the small bill.  Many times you'll see one "hovering" over the landscape, like an American Kestrel.  From above, look for the white "rump" and from underneath, note the black patches at the wrist.  On their wintering grounds, they will eat mostly small mammals.  The "rough-legged" in their name refers to the feathered legs. (Wolf. Oesterreich, 12/2/19)

A total of 54 avian species (+ 1 sp.) was recorded this month, ranking this month as the 4^th highest December (tied with December 2011) among 23 years of records.  This total is 12 species less than last month and 2 more than December 2018.  December 2016, with 67 species remains as the highest December, while December 2003, with only 27 species, as the lowest.

Listed below, following the species’ names, are the date(s) of sighting(s), plus the occasional miscellaneous information regarding numbers, gender (♂=male, ♀=female), age (im=immature, ju=juvenile, abp=adult breeding plumage, ad=adult, anb=adult non-breeding), color phase (b=blue, w=white), and location (BY=back yard, FY=front yard).  The order follows the 60^th Supplement (2019) to the American Ornithologists’ Union Check-list of North American Birds and the 19^th Supplement to the 7^th Edition (1998).

Few or no records were tallied on the 1^st (returning from Texas), 15^th (participated in the Saylorville Christmas Bird Count [CBC]), 19^th (participated in the Carroll County CBC), and 28^th (participated in the Boone CBC).

AVIAN

     SNOW GOOSE (runt immature, white form): 4-5, 8, 11-14, 16-17, 23

     GREATER WHITE-FRONTED GOOSE: 12 (1), 22 (1)

     CACKLING GOOSE: 2 (10+), 3 (25+), 4-6, 8, 10 (8+), 11 (7+), 12 (24+), 13 (24+), 14,

          17 (4+), 18, 21 (4+), 24 (10+), 25-27, 29 (10+), 30-31

     CANADA GOOSE: 1-18, 20-31

     TRUMPETER SWAN: 2 (7), 3 (51), 4 (31), 5 (8), 6-7 (7), 8-9 (4), 10 (96), 11 (78), 12 (84),

          13 (72), 14 (76), 15 (29), 16 (64), 17 (94), 18 (127), 20 (117), 21 (109), 22 (97),

          23 (109), 24 (118), 25 (116), 26 (123), 27 (108), 29 (101), 30 (104), 31 (95)

     TUNDRA SWAN: 3 (3 ad + 1 im), 5 (1 ad + 1 im), 10-11 (2 im), 18 (2 im), 26 (1 ad)

     NORTHERN SHOVELER: 2 (4♀), 3 (5♀)

     GADWALL: 2 (6), 3 (2♂), 5 (2♂), 7 (5♂), 8 (6♂), 9 (3♂), 10 (1♂)

     MALLARD: 2-14, 16-18, 20-27, 29-31

     AMERICAN BLACK DUCK: 10 (1), 12-13 (1)

     NORTHERN PINTAIL: 30 (2♂ + 1♀)

     GREEN-WINGED TEAL: 3 (1♂), 10 (1♂), 12 (2♂)

     LESSER SCAUP: 2-3 (1♂), 4 (6), 5-6 (2♂), 7 (3♂), 8 (1♂), 10 (3♂), 11 (1♂), 12-14 (2♂),

          16-18 (2♂), 20-27 (2♂), 29-31 (2♂)

     COMMON GOLDENEYE: 6 (1♂), 8 (1 ♀/im), 10 (1 ♀/im), 11 (2♂ + 10♀/im), 12 (27),

          13 (9), 14 (15), 22 (1♀/im), 23 (1♂), 26 (2♂)

     HOODED MERGANSER: 8 (1♀)

     COMMON MERGANSER: 5 (1♂), 8 (1♂), 10 (28), 11-14 (1♂), 26 (12)

     RUDDY DUCK: 2 (3), 3 (1♀)

     RING-NECKED PHEASANT: 2 (1♂), 4 (2), 10 (2), 16 (1), 24 (1♂)

     MOURNING DOVE: 2 (1 BY), 7 (1 BY), 8 (1), 11 (7 + 1 BY), 13 (1 BY), 18 (1), 30 (4)

     AMERICAN COOT: 3 (3), 4-5 (1), 7 (1), 11-14 (1), 16 (1), 18 (1)

     RING-BILLED GULL: 9 (1)

     SHARP-SHINNED HAWK: 25-26 (1 im BY)

     COOPER’S HAWK: 5 (1 ad), 9 (1 ad), 10 (1 ad BY), 12 (1 + 1 im BY), 25 (1 ad BY)

     Accipiter sp.: 4 (1 BY)

     BALD EAGLE: 2 (1 ad + 2 im), 3 (2 ad), 5-6 (2 ad), 8 (1 im), 9 (2 ad), 10 (2 ad + 1 im),

          11 (1 ad), 12 (1 im), 13-14 (1 ad), 16 (1 ad), 18 (1 ad), 22 (1 im), 24 (1 im),

          26 (2 ad + 1 im), 29 (3 ad + 1 im), 30-31 (2 ad + 1 im)

     RED-TAILED HAWK: 2 (2), 3 (1), 6 (1), 7 (1 dark form), 10-12 (1), 13 (2), 14 (1), 18 (2),

          21 (2), 23-24 (2), 26 (2), 27 (1), 29 (1), 30 (1 ad + 1 im)

     ROUGH-LEGGED HAWK: 2 (1)

     GREAT HORNED OWL: 2 (1 BY), 5 (1 BY), 16 (2 BY), 24 (2 BY), 25 (1 BY)

     BELTED KINGFISHER: 5 (1), 9 (1)

     RED-BELLIED WOODPECKER: 2-4 (1), 5 (2), 7 (1), 8 (2), 9 (1), 10 (2), 11-14 (1),

          16-17 (1), 23 (1), 24 (2)

     DOWNY WOODPECKER: 2-6, 8-18, 20-27, 29, 31

     HAIRY WOODPECKER: 2 (1), 11-12 (2), 16-17 (1), 23-24 (1), 26-27 (1)

     NORTHERN FLICKER (Yellow-shafted): 2 (1), 4 (1), 16 (1)

     MERLIN: 21 (1♀ prairie race)

     NORTHERN SHRIKE: 2-3 (1), 6-7 (1), 9-13 (1), 16-18 (1), 20 (1), 22-26 (1), 29-31 (1)

     BLUE JAY: 2-11, 13-14, 16-18, 20-21, 23-25, 31

     AMERICAN CROW: 2-14, 17-18, 20-27, 29-31

     BLACK-CAPPED CHICKADEE: 1-18, 20-27, 29-31

     WHITE-BREASTED NUTHATCH: 3 (1), 4 (3), 6 (1), 7 (2), 9-10 (2), 11-13 (1), 16 (1),

          17 (2), 21 (2), 22-23 (1), 24 (3), 25 (1), 27 (1), 29 (1)

     BROWN CREEPER: 13 (1)

     EASTERN BLUEBIRD: 17 (3), 18 (5), 24 (3)

     AMERICAN ROBIN: 4 (1), 18 (1), 20 (1), 31 (2)

     EUROPEAN STARLING: 2-8, 10-14, 20-25, 27, 30-31

     CEDAR WAXWING: 31 (1)

     HOUSE SPARROW: 2-18, 20-27, 29-31

     EURASIAN TREE SPARROW: 5-8 (1 BY), 12 (1 BY), 21 (1 BY), 31 (1 BY)

     HOUSE FINCH: 2-18, 20-27, 29-31

     AMERICAN GOLDFINCH: 2-3, 5 (8+), 7 (1), 8 (3), 9-10 (1), 11 (10+), 12 (1 by), 13 (3),

          17 (2), 18 (3), 20 (1), 21 (2), 23 (1), 26-27 (2)

     AMERICAN TREE SPARROW: 2-18, 20-22, 24 (3), 25-27 (1), 29-30 (2), 31 (1)

     DARK-EYED JUNCO (Slate-colored): 2-14, 16-18, 20-27, 29-31

     HARRIS’S SPARROW: 3 (1)

     SONG SPARROW: 2 (1), 5 (1), 7 (3), 10 (1), 12-13 (1), 31 (1)

     SWAMP SPARROW: 8 (1), 30 (1)

     RED-WINGED BLACKBIRD: 4 (1), 5 (15)

     NORTHERN CARDINAL: 2-18, 20-27, 29-31

MAMMALIAN

     EASTERN COTTONTAIL: 3, 13, 17-18, 20, 22, 26

     EASTERN FOX SQUIRREL: 2-14, 16-18, 20-27, 29-31

     COMMON MUSKRAT: 4-5 (1), 30 (2)

     WHITE-TAILED DEER: 2 (2♂ + 4 + (5 + 1♂ BY)), 3 (4), 4 (5 + 6 BY), 5 (3), 7 (5),

          8 (5 + 3 BY), 9 (3 + 3 BY), 10 (1 6-pt, 1 10-pt + 18), 11 (1 6-pt + 1♂ + 3 BY),

          12 (3 BY), 16 (2), 17 (1♂ + 1 BY), 21 (2 BY), 23 (11), 24 (5 + 3 BY), 25 (8),

          26 (5 + 8 BY), 29 (4 BY), 31 (3 BY)

Wolf. Oesterreich