This morning Deep Fork Audubon visited Shawnee Twin Lakes. We didn’t see very many ducks, but we did find this kingfisher nest! We also watched an adult Bald Eagle fly over between the two lakes. Here’s our list for the morning:
2 Canada Geese
about 10 Mallards
a flock of diving ducks (maybe Ring-necked Ducks–moved across the lake when the eagle flew over)
4 Pied-billed Grebes
1 Double-crested Cormorant
1 Great Blue Heron
4 Killdeer
1 Northern Harrier
1 adult Bald Eagle
2 Cooper’s Hawks
1 Mourning Dove
2 Belted Kingfishers
1 Northern Flicker
3 Red-bellied Woodpeckers
1 male Downy Woodpecker
2 Eastern Phoebes (both singing males)
several Blue Jays
at least 2 American Crows
2 Tufted Titmice (both singing males)
2 Carolina Chickadees
1 singing male Carolina Wren
3 Eastern Bluebirds
5 Northern Mockingbirds
1 American Pipit (flew over the beach at Lake Road)
many Cedar Waxwings
1 Yellow-rumped Warbler (across the road from the new lake)
2 Song Sparrows
2 Savannah Sparrows
about 30 meadowlarks (I believe there were both Eastern & Western in this flock)
several Red-winged Blackbirds
2 Dark-eyed Juncos
2 Northern Cardinals
1 American Goldfinch
several House Sparrows
Last night Karen and Forest and I stopped by the lakes briefly. Karen saw the kingfisher fly into her nest! After sunset we heard a Great Horned Owl hoot from the far side of the new lake. Forest slept through it all.