Sunday, February 12, 2017

Feb 5, 2017: Wolf's January 2017 Wildlife Report


Bald Eagles are regular visitors throughout the year.  However, we seem to see more in the Winter months.  This immature circled over the main lakes. (Wolf. Oesterreich, 1/10/17)

A total of 48 avian species was recorded this month, ranking this month as the highest January among 20 years of records.  This total is 19 species less than last month and 8 more than January 2016.


Based on citations in the 3rd Edition of “The Birds of Story County, Iowa,” by Stephen J. Dinsmore and Hank Zaletel (2001), plus my personal updates to the records, the American Coot on the 22nd may set a new extreme late Fall record (former record set on 16 Jan 2007 at AHHP). The records for the American Black Duck and Common Merganser may be the 5th and (approximately) 12th Winter records, respectively, for Story County.  The Eurasian Tree Sparrow sightings are the first January records for the County.  In this publication, there are no “Winter” categories for many of the waterfowl, so it is hard to determine if these sightings represent extreme late “Fall” or extreme early “Spring” records.  Perhaps this should be changed in the next edition.  The availability of open water and food could be a local result of climate change.  In the table below, I have listed the 10 waterfowl species and their late and early dates for which I have January sightings.  [Hallett’s Quarry = what Ada Hayden was before its creation]

SPECIES                  Extreme Late Fall                      Extreme Early Spring                          
Wood Duck              18 Dec 1999 (on Ames CBC)        16-17 Feb 2013 (at AHHP)
                               18 Dec 2012 (at AHHP)

Gadwall                    31 Dec 2006 (at AHHP)                1 Feb 2012 (at AHHP)

American Wigeon    30 Dec 1988 (at Hickory Grove P.)   19 Feb 1983 (in Story County)
                      [I also have records from 2-30 Jan 2012 at AHHP]

Green-winged Teal  4 Dec 2006 (at AHHP)                     2 Feb 2006 (at AHHP)

Redhead                  6 Jan 2005 (at AHHP)                   16 Feb 2005 (at AHHP)

Greater Scaup         6-8 Jan 2003 (at Hallett’s Quarry)    7-9 Mar 2013 (at AHHP)

Lesser Scaup          12 Jan 2002 (at Hallett’s Quarry)     17 Feb 2013 (at AHHP)
            [I also have records from 20 Jan 2002 at Hallett’s Quarry & 26 Jan 2012 at AHHP]

Bufflehead               2 Jan 2012 (at AHHP)                    1 Mar 1981 (at Hickory Grove Park)

Common Goldeneye  28 Dec 1998 (at Hallett’s Quarry)   4-5 Feb 2013 (at AHHP)

Hooded Merganser  30 Dec 2015 (at AHHP)                   18 Feb 2013 (at AHHP)

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 57th Supplement (2016) to the American Ornithologists’ Union Check-list of North American Birds and the 16th Supplement to the 7th Edition (1998).

AVIAN
     GREATER WHITE-FRONTED GOOSE: 4 (1), 6 (1), 13 (1)
     ROSS’S GOOSE: 6-9 (1 w im), 12-13 (1 w im), 17-18 (1 w im), 21 (1 w im)
     CACKLING GOOSE: 1-2, 3 (1), 4-13, 16-18, 19-20 (1), 21 (9+), 22 (10+), 23 (16+),
          24 (2), 25 (10+), 26-31
     CANADA GOOSE: 1-13, 16-31
     TRUMPETER SWAN: 1 (48), 2 (50), 4 (48), 5 (5), 6 (53), 7-8 (57), 9 (50+), 10 (64), 11 (2),
          12-13 (75), 16, 17 (56), 18 (5), 19 (27), 20 (28), 21 (67), 22 (3 ju), 23 (9), 25 (67), 26 (55),
           27 (79), 28 (81), 29 (84, my new high total for the Park)
     WOOD DUCK: 4 (1♂ + 1♀), 6 (2♂ + 1♀), 7 (1♂ + 1♀), 8 (2♂ + 1♀), 13 (2♂ + 1♀), 21 (1♂)
     GADWALL: 7 (4), 18 (1♂)
     AMERICAN WIGEON: 4 (2♀), 5 (1♀), 28 (1♀)
     AMERICAN BLACK DUCK: 4 (1♂)
     American Black Duck X Mallard: 25-26 (1♀)
     MALLARD: 1-13, 16-31
     GREEN-WINGED TEAL: 22 (1♂), 26-27 (1♂)
     REDHEAD: 1-13 (1♀), 17-21 (1♀), 22 (8♂ + 3♀), 23-25 (1♂ + 1♀), 26-31 (1♀)
     GREATER SCAUP: 1-13 (1♂), 17-31 (1♂)
     LESSER SCAUP: 7-13 (1♂), 17-21 (1♂), 22-26 (2♂ + 3♀), 27 (1♂ + 3♀), 28 (2♂ + 2♀),
                                    29-31 (2♂ + 3♀)
     BUFFLEHEAD: 1-13 (1♂), 17-31 (1♂)
     COMMON GOLDENEYE: 17-18 (1♀)
     HOODED MERGANSER: 12 (1♀), 19 (1♀)
     COMMON MERGANSER: 12 (1♂)
     RING-NECKED PHEASANT: 7 (1), 10, 17 (4), 23, 28, 31
     MOURNING DOVE: 5 (3 BY + 2), 6 (1), 7 (4 BY), 11 (1 BY), 16 (1 BY), 18 (1 BY),
          26 (2 BY), 28-29 (1 BY)
     AMERICAN COOT: 1-13 (1), 17-22 (1)
     BALD EAGLE: 2 (2 ad), 3 (6 ad + 2 im), 4 (1 ad + 1 im), 5 (1 ad), 6-7 (1 ad + 1 im),
          8 (1 ad), 9 (1 im), 10-11 (1 ad + 1 im), 12 (1 im), 21 (1 ad + 1 im), 24 (1 ad + 1 im),
          29 (1 ad + 2 im), 30 (1 ad + 1 im), 31 (1 ad)
     COOPER’S HAWK: 2 (1 im BY), 8 (1 ad BY), 12 (1 ad), 13 (1 ad BY), 30 (1)
     RED-TAILED HAWK: 1 (1), 4 (1), 5 (4), 6 (2), 7 (2 + 1 dark ju), 8 (1), 9 (2), 10-13 (1), 17 (2),
          19 (1), 23-24 (2), 26 (2), 27-28 (1), 30-31 (1)
     BELTED KINGFISHER: 6 (1), 21 (1)
     RED-BELLIED WOODPECKER: 1, 3, 7 (1 BY), 8 (1), 13 (1 BY), 18 (1 BY), 21, 24, 29
     DOWNY WOODPECKER: 1-4, 6-11, 13, 17, 19, 21-22, 25-26, 28-30
     HAIRY WOODPECKER: 1, 7 (1 BY), 28-29 (1)
     NORTHERN FLICKER (Yellow-shafted): 7 (2)
     AMERICAN KESTREL: 4 (1♂), 10 (1♂), 23 (1♂), 28 (1♂)
     BLUE JAY: 1-3, 7-8, 13, 24, 28-29
     AMERICAN CROW: 1-5, 7-11, 13, 16-17, 19-21, 24-31
     BLACK-CAPPED CHICKADEE: 1-13, 16-31
     WHITE-BREASTED NUTHATCH: 1, 4, 18-19, 21, 29
     EASTERN BLUEBIRD: 2 (2♂), 3 (1♀), 17 (4)
     AMERICAN ROBIN: 1 (1), 24 (1), 28 (9+), 29 (20+), 31 (25+)
     EUROPEAN STARLING: 5, 7, 16, 28-30
     CEDAR WAXWING: 28 (10 BY), 29 (46+)
     HOUSE SPARROW: 1-13, 16-31
     EURASIAN TREE SPARROW: 27-29 (1♂ BY)
     HOUSE FINCH: 1-13, 16-19, 21, 23-31
     AMERICAN GOLDFINCH: 2 (1), 7 (7), 8 (1 BY), 17 (1), 24 (3), 28
     AMERICAN TREE SPARROW: 1-11, 13, 18 (2), 19 (15+), 20-21, 23-24, 26-30
     SONG SPARROW: 2 (1), 26 (1)
     SWAMP SPARROW: 1 (1)
     WHITE-THROATED SPARROW: 8 (1 BY), 11 (1 BY), 26 (1 BY), 28 (1 BY)
     DARK-EYED JUNCO (Slate-colored): 1-13, 16-31
     NORTHERN CARDINAL: 1-9, 11, 13, 16-31

Unless indicated otherwise, the White-tailed Deer were antlerless. 

MAMMALIAN
     RED FOX: 2 (1)
     WHITE-TAILED DEER: 1 (4), 2 (8 + 2♂), 4 (8), 6 (17 + 4♂), 7 (5), 8 (5 + 5♂), 9 (9),
          10 (19 + 2♂), 12 (4♂), 17 (13), 18 (3 + 3♂), 19 (9 + 3♂), 20 (6), 23 (6 + 2♂),
          24 (2 + 2♂), 25 (4), 26 (2 BY), 28 (2)
     FOX SQUIRREL: 1-11, 13, 16-18, 20-25, 28-30
     MEADOW VOLE: 4 (1)
     MUSKRAT: 26 (1)
     EASTERN COTTONTAIL: 1-2, 4, 7-8, 16-17, 19-20, 26-29

Wolf. Oesterreich

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