Dec 1, 2018: Wolf's November 2018 Wildlife Report

Small numbers of Ruddy Ducks pass through our area in Fall.  The males (left) have lost their bright breeding plumages, but their white cheeks still stand out.  The female (or immature) is on the right. (Wolf. Oesterreich, 11/7/18)

A total of 66 avian species (plus 2 sp.) was recorded this month, ranking this month as the 5^th highest November among 21 years of records.  November 1999 with only 40 species remains as the lowest November, while Novembers 2010 and 2014 with 77 species remain as the highest.  This total is 42 species less than last month and 1 more than November 2017.

Based on citations in the 3^rd Edition of “The Birds of Story County, Iowa,” by Stephen J. Dinsmore and Hank Zaletel (2001), plus my personal updates to the records, the male Nashville Warbler on the 9th may represent a new extreme late Fall record (former record set on 4 November 1984 at Ames) for Story County.

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 59^th Supplement (2018) to the American Ornithologists’ Union Check-list of North American Birds and the 18^th Supplement to the 7^th Edition (1998).

AVIAN

     SNOW GOOSE: 11 (1 w)

     ROSS’S GOOSE: 17-18 (1 w), 20-30 (1 w)

     CACKLING GOOSE: 11 (3), 12 (10+), 16 (3), 17 (6), 18 (13), 19 (18), 20-21 (12+),

          22 (7+), 23 (3), 24 (10+), 25 (6+), 26 (5+), 27 (6+), 28 (18+), 29 (22+), 30 (9+)

     CANADA GOOSE: 1-2, 4, 8-12, 13 (2), 14 (16+), 15 (13), 16-30

     TRUMPETER SWAN: 10 (16 ad), 14 (4 ad), 16 (2 ad), 20 (13 ad), 27-28 (2 ad),

          29 (2 ad + 4 im)

     WOOD DUCK: 1 (6), 2 (3), 4 (31+), 7 (2), 8 (1), 9 (2), 10 (28+), 11 (16+), 12 (2), 13 (7),

          14 (1), 15 (2)

     NORTHERN SHOVELER: 2 (1♂), 7-8 (9), 9 (30+), 10 (15), 11 (16), 12 (13), 13 (8), 14 (6),

          15-16 (4),  17 (3♀), 18 (10), 19 (6), 29 (3♀), 21 (4), 22 (7), 23 (3♀), 26 (3♀)

     GADWALL: 1 (4+), 2, 7 (2), 8 (1♂), 9 (19+), 10 (7+), 11 (5), 12 (13), 13 (6), 14 (1♂),

          15 (2), 16 (11),  17 (2♀), 18 (11), 19 (12), 20 (15), 21 (7), 22 (12), 23 (13), 24 (2),

          27 (1♂ + 3♀), 28 (6), 29-30 (4)

     AMERICAN WIGEON: 1-2 (2), 4 (2), 9-10 (1), 11-12 (2), 16 (1)

     MALLARD: 1-2, 4, 7-30

     AMERICAN BLACK DUCK: 10 (1♀)

     NORTHERN PINTAIL: 29 (1♂)

     GREEN-WINGED TEAL: 1 (2), 2 (8), 7 (5), 9 (7), 10 (12), 11 (11), 12 (10), 13 (6),

          14-15 (4), 16 (3), 17 (5), 21 (2♂), 28 (2♂), 30 (2♂)

     CANVASBACK: 8 (1), 10 (2♂), 11-12 (1♂), 14-15 (1♂), 21 (1♂), 27 (1♂)

     REDHEAD: 7 (1♀), 8 (2)

     RING-NECKED DUCK: 1 (1♂), 2 (1♂ + 5♀), 4 (1♂), 8 (6), 9 (7), 10 (4♂), 11 (8), 12 (5),

          13 (2), 14 (1), 16 (2), 17 (3), 19 (2), 21 (3), 22 (2♂ + 2♀), 23 (2), 25-26 (1♂),

          28-29 (3♂ + 1♀), 30 (3♂)

     LESSER SCAUP: 1 (1♀), 8 (24), 9 (23), 10 (2), 13 (2), 17 (1), 19 (2), 21 (2), 22-27 (1♂)

     BUFFLEHEAD: 1-2 (2♀), 4 (2♀), 8 (2♂ + 8♀), 9 (138+), 10 (2♂ + 9♀), 11 (4♂ + 4♀),

          12 (1♀),  13-14 (1♂), 15 (4♂), 17-18 (2♂), 20 (1♂), 21-23 (1♂ + 1♀), 27-28 (1♀),

          30 (1♀)

     COMMON GOLDENEYE: 12 (1♀), 18 (3♀), 19 (2♂ + 4♀), 20-21 (1♂), 26-27 (1), 28 (5),

          29 (1), 30 (2)

     HOODED MERGANSER: 8 (11♂ + 19♀), 10 (1♂ + 3♀), 12 (2♂ + 2♀), 16 (1♂),

          18 (1♂ + 2♀), 19 (1♂),  21 (3♀), 22 (1♀), 27 (1♀), 28 (2♀), 29-30 (1♀)

     COMMON MERGANSER: 10 (13), 19 (2♂ + 1♀), 21 (1♂ + 1♀), 22 (2♂ + 6♀), 26 (3♀),

          27 (1♂ + 1♀), 28 (1♀), 30 (2♂ + 1♀)

     RED-BREASTED MERGANSER: 10 (3♀)

     RUDDY DUCK: 7 (1♀), 9 (10), 10 (3), 22 (3)

     RING-NECKED PHEASANT: 1 (1), 9 (2), 13 (2), 16 (1), 18 (1), 19 (3), 21 (5)

     PIED-BILLED GREBE: 1 (10), 2 (14), 4 (15), 7 (7), 8 (19), 9 (9), 10 (4), 11 (2), 12 (1),

          14 (2), 15 (1), 17-18 (1), 19 (2)

     HORNED GREBE: 9-10 (1)

     MOURNING DOVE: 16 (1), 18 (1), 21 (1)

     AMERICAN COOT: 1-2, 4, 8 (2), 9 (11), 10 (1), 11 (10), 12 (4), 13 (7), 14 (5), 15 (4),

          16 (5), 17 (4),  18 (5), 19 (4), 20 (3), 21-22 (4), 23-30(3)

     KILLDEER: 11 (2), 17 (1)

     RING-BILLED GULL: 9 (70+), 10 (3), 11 (~50), 12 (3)

     COMMON LOON: 8 (1 anb)

     DOUBLE-CRESTED CORMORANT: 8 (1))

     GREAT BLUE HERON: 1-2 (2), 4 (2), 7 (2), 8-10 (1), 11 (3), 12 (1), 13 (3), 14-16 (1),

          17-21 (2), 22 (3), 23 (1), 24 (2), 25-30 (1)

     BLACK-CROWNED NIGHT-HERON: 15 (1 im), 18 (1 im), 22-24 (1 im)

     NORTHERN HARRIER: 24 (1♀/im), 27 (1 ♀/im)

     SHARP-SHINNED HAWK: 18 (1)

     COOPER’S HAWK: 5 (1 ad BY), 8 (1 im), 10 (1 ad), 11 (1♀ ad), 14 (1 ad), 17 (1 ad BY),

          22 (1 im BY)

     Accipiter sp.: 4 (1), 16 (1)

     BALD EAGLE: 1 (1 ad + 1 im), 9 (1ad + 1 im), 10 (2 im), 11 (1 ad), 12 (1 im),

          17 (1 ad + 1 im),  18 (2 ad), 23 (1 ad + 1 im), 24 (1 ad), 26 (2 im), 30 (2)

     RED-TAILED HAWK: 4 (1), 9-11 (1), 16-17 (1), 19-22 (1), 24-26 (1), 30 (1)

     BARRED OWL: 21 (1), 23 (1), 25 (1)

     BELTED KINGFISHER: 22 (1)

     RED-BELLIED WOODPECKER: 2 (5), 3 (1), 8 (3), 10 (1), 11 (2), 12 (1), 16-18 (1),

          20-21 (1), 22 (4), 23-24 (1), 30 (2)

     DOWNY WOODPECKER: 1-2, 4, 7-11, 13-18, 20-30

     HAIRY WOODPECKER: 11 (1), 16 (1), 18 (1), 24 (1), 29 (1)

     MERLIN: 10 (1)

     BLUE JAY: 4, 8, 10-13, 16-18, 20-24, 29-30

     AMERICAN CROW: 1-2, 4, 7-14, 16-19, 22-30

     BLACK-CAPPED CHICKADEE: 3-4, 7-8, 11-12, 14, 16-25, 30

     WHITE-BREASTED NUTHATCH: 4 (1), 7 (2), 8 (1), 10 (2), 11 (4), 14 (2), 16 (3), 17 (2),

          18 (3),  20-21 (1), 22 (3), 23 (1), 24 (3), 25 (1), 27 (1), 30 (1)

     HERMIT THRUSH: 9 (1), 19 (1)

     AMERICAN ROBIN: 1-5, 8, 10, 15 (1), 18 (1), 22 (2), 30 (2)

     EUROPEAN STARLING: 1-4, 10-14, 15 (2), 16-18, 22, 24-25, 29-30

     CEDAR WAXWING: 1 (5)

     HOUSE SPARROW: 2, 4, 7-8, 10-28, 30

     HOUSE FINCH: 1-2, 7-8, 10-14, 16-28, 30

     AMERICAN GOLDFINCH: 1 (1), 4 (2), 11 (2), 12 (3), 14 (1), 16 (3), 17-19 (1), 22 (6),

          23 (10),  24 (2), 25 (3), 26 (1), 30 (10)

     AMERICAN TREE SPARROW: 1 (6+), 2 (18+), 4 (9+), 7 (16+), 8 (23+), 9-30

     FOX SPARROW: 8 (1), 11 (1 BY), 22 (1 BY), 23 (1)

     SONG SPARROW: 1-2, 4, 7-11, 12 (1), 13 (3), 14 (4), 15 (5+), 16 (1), 17 (2), 18 (8),

          20 (1), 22 (6), 23 (3), 24 (2), 25 (1), 26 (4), 27 (1), 28 (2), 29 (4), 30 (1)

     SWAMP SPARROW: 2 (1), 7 (1), 8 (3+), 9 (3), 11-12 (1), 13 (3), 14 (2), 15 (7), 16 (4),

          17 (1), 18 (2),  21 (1), 22 (3), 24 (2), 25 (1), 26 (4), 29 (2)

     WHITE-THROATED SPARROW: 19 (1 BY), 22 (2 BY), 26 (1 BY)

     HARRIS’S SPARROW: 1 (2), 2 (1), 4 (1), 7-8 (2), 9 (3), 10 (1), 11 (3), 12 (1), 14 (1), 18 (1)

     DARK-EYED JUNCO (Slate-colored): 1 (5), 2 (3), 4 (8), 7 (2), 8 (6+), 10 (25+), 11, 12 (10),

          13-30

     RED-WINGED BLACKBIRD: 1 (16+), 2 (14+), 3, 4 (2), 7 (20+), 18 (2), 19 (20), 24 (1♂)

     Blackbirds sp: 9

     NASHVILLE WARBLER: 9 (1♂)

     NORTHERN CARDINAL: 1-2, 4, 7-11, 13-30

Unless indicated otherwise, the White-tailed Deer were antlerless.  The yearlings were just about the same size as the adults.

MAMMALIAN

     EASTERN COTTONTAIL: 1, 7-8, 10-12, 16-18, 21-27, 29-30

     EASTERN FOX SQUIRREL: 2, 4, 8, 10-14, 16-30

     THIRTEEN-LINED GROUND SQUIRREL: 11 (1)

     COMMON MUSKRAT: 16-17 (1)

     WHITE-TAILED DEER: 2 (4), 4 (2 BY), 7 (2 BY + 6), 9 (4), 10 (5 + 1♂), 11 (3),

          14 (2 + 1 6-point ♂), 15-16 (5), 17 (4), 18 (2), 19 (8), 20 (5 BY + 1♂),

          24 (6 + 1♂ + 5 BY), 26 (16 + 1♂), 27 (7 + 1♂ BY), 28 (11 + 1 8-pt ♂), 29 (12 + 2♂),

          30 (1)

REPTILIAN

     WESTERN PAINTED TURTLE: 1 (2)

AMPHIBIAN

     NORTHERN LEOPARD FROG: 4 (20+), 16 (1), 24 (1)

     AMERICAN BULLFROG: 4 (1), 11 (2)

LEPIDOPTERA

     WOOLLY BEAR (ISABELLA TIGER MOTH): 1 (5), 2 (4), 4 (3), 7 (2), 8 (1), 11 (15),

          13-14 (1),  15 (6), 16 (4), 24 (2)

     BRUCE SPANWORM MOTH: 18 (1)

Wolf. Oesterreich