Signs of Life in Estabrook Park

Spring reminds us that it’s not over yet…

Our recent string of pretty days continued in Estabrook Park this morning, but someone must have panicked about the warmth and flipped on the giant AC unit parked just a mile to our east, because we’ve had quite the cooldown compared to earlier in the week. The good news is that the sun is over 90% of its way to the Tropic of Cancer right now, and the clear skies let it keep things from getting too cool around here.

Anyway, the sun was just coming over the horizon when I spotted one of the green herons that I have a hope might be regulars at the pond for the summer.

The next pretty sight came at the far northwest corner of the park, as I checked on the cliff swallows nesting under the Port Washington Road bridge, and I managed to capture this one in flight.

On my way back downstream, I heard a Cooper’s hawk calling from up on the bluff, so I hustled up there just in time to see one fly off, probably a parent, and this youngster, who looked a little more dignified than the last time we saw it.

I’ve shown you a few times the beautiful iridescence that male grackle feathers can produce, and here’s a slightly subdued example. I thought perhaps that it was a female, but my sources believe that I was mistaken. Oh well. Next time.

At least there’s no mistaking that this one is a recent fledgling, which the bird above was noisily protecting.

Farther downstream, my wish for a better look at the wood duck hen and her ducklings came true sooner than I expected.

Finally, with the cool breeze out of the east we were enjoying this morning, I didn’t expect to see much insect life, although I sure did look for it. Happily, conditions were so much more to their liking yesterday, that I captured this image of our first American lady butterfly within a hundred yards of the swallowtail I already showed you.

Lastly, I plan on meeting up with the Milwaukee Birders for their “Birds and Brews” at 5:30 this afternoon in Estabrook Park at the Beer Garden, so come on out and join us if you’ve got the time.

A guy could get used to this weather…

Our recent string of beautiful mornings continued today with another exemplar edition, and the wildlife did its best to keep up.

Before we get to this morning, however, let me show you this amazing little cutie that was kind enough to get my attention right as I hopped on the Oak Leaf trail to ride my bike to campus yesterday afternoon. Its call sounded like a warbler, but not one I recognized, so I whipped out my often-trusty Merlin App to see if it knew who it was, and its best guess was “cerulean warbler”. Heavens to Murgatroyd! I sure ain’t heard one of those before, let alone ever seen one.

Thus, I channeled my best little bird nerd and ran back across Wilson Dr to grab my binoculars and camera, all while holding my breath in hopes that the little stinker wouldn’t move on without me. Happily, the caterpillars in that tree must have been especially tasty because once I returned, it kept right on calling for the nearly 10 minutes I frantically searched the tree for a glimpse of it.

Then, once I did finally lay eyes on it, I got quite the little show for another full 10 minutes, although it did keep to the higher branches. I ended up with 150 pictures, and this is the best of the lot, if you can believe it. Give a warm Estabrook welcome to our first ever Cerulean Warbler (Setophaga cerulea). We’re near the north edge of their breeding range, but ebird considered my sighting “rare” for reasons I don’t know. Perhaps it just never expected me to find one. Ha!

Okay, back to this morning. I’ve been hearing great crested flycatchers since we got back from Africa, but today was the first time one let me sneak a picture.

There must be some insect emerging from the river right now that is big enough for ring-billed gulls to see, catch, and be worth the effort, because for the past few days there have been dozens of such gulls gliding over the water and occasionally dipping to snatch something out of it. I tried to capture one in the act, of course, but this was the best I could do today.

Long-time readers may recall that I reported cliff swallows nesting under the southern eave of the Holiday Inn across the river, and I kept checking for them this year, but I haven’t seen any, until now. It turns out that they’ve opted to build their nests under the Port Washington Road bridge this time, and you can just see the face of one peeping out of the nest in this picture. Perhaps they became jealous of the pigeons and barn swallows that nested there in the past and decided to horn in on their act.

Another bird that has been singing since my return is the red-eyed vireo, and this one must have heard about the flycatcher picture above and didn’t want to be left out.

As I made my way back downstream, the surprises weren’t done with me yet, because here are our first ducklings of the year, along with their mom, a wood duck hen. What a fabulous sight, and I sure hope we get to see more of them.

Finally, as I made my way across the southern soccer fields, I did see another monarch, but it kept right on flying, as its comrades had done yesterday, and we’ll just have to settle for a picture of this gorgeous black swallowtail instead.

I can’t wait to see what tomorrow brings!

It’s really starting to feel and look like summer…

The summer-like weather continued this morning in Estabrook Park, and I didn’t have to wear even a windbreaker for the first time this year. Woo Hoo!

I had barely stepped into the park when I saw my first treat, this hungry coyote sampling what the Memorial Day revelers had left behind. “Mmm, mmm, good!”

When I checked on the blue jay nest, I was thrilled to see both birds there. Even better, the one on the left was leaning in to feed a chick. “Congratulations to the proud parents!”

I stopped by again on my way home, when there was a lot more light, but by then it was naptime.

My next fun sight was this young Cooper’s hawk on the lawn.

It appeared to be still discovering the world, and here it is sampling some dandelion seeds.

And here it is spread out on the grass, perhaps to soak up a little sun. “Have fun, Kiddo!”

Finally, I saw two monarch butterflies today, but neither would stop for pictures, my first dragonfly of the year, and a couple of carpenter bees filling up on nectar from creeping Charlie blossoms. Here’s one of the bees.

The forecast for tomorrow morning looks nearly as nice as today, so maybe I’ll catch a butterfly taking a break.

The weather finally got the memo that summer has begun…

The cloudy skies that we’ve been enjoying every morning in Estabrook Park lately, finally gave us a break today, and I got to see the sun as soon as it came over the horizon for a change. It appears that I wasn’t the only one to have been missing it either, because this green heron on the pond seemed for all the world to be just as enthralled by it as I was.

We had a good showing for the wildlife walk, both at 7am and again at 8am, and each group got good looks at the red-headed woodpecker that has been hanging around lately. Here it is being a little coy, and …

here it is just about posing for a portrait. I sure hope it can get comfortable with the attention it’s attracting and stick around for the summer.

Finally, just about when the two groups of walkers merged, we learned that the sandpipers and killdeer on the river had a special guest today, our first lesser yellowlegs of the year. “Hello, Sweetie! Where’ve you been all spring?”

That’s all I have for today, and I could dig back into the pile of pictures from Africa, but they can wait for another day, and I’m gonna get back to a family event instead.

The weekend weather gets even classicer.

When I left the house this morning, the forecast was calling for less than a 50% chance of rain, but I sure got more than 50% soaked. Given that this was on track to be our driest May ever, I guess that I should say “we needed the rain”, but couldn’t we have needed it before sunrise?

Anyway, before the rain came, I was thrilled to spot this wild turkey strutting across the southern soccer fields.

Much more common, but no less thrilling, was this green heron on the pond. The heron was able to up its game, however, by reeling in this fish while I watched.

Then the rain started, and just in time for my ride up to Kletzsch Park to meet the Milwaukee Birders. Luckily, they announced a rain delay, so I had time to scoot over to a nearby gas station to savor a cup of coffee and dry out a bit. Happily, the rain did soon quit, there was a nice turn out for the walk, and one of the most exciting finds was this blue-grey gnatcatcher sitting in its nest.

Barely fifty yards from the gnatcatcher, Kletzsch Park delivered again with this adorable screech owl.

That’s it for the pictures today, and I’m surprised I even have that many, given the weather. On the plus side, it does leave me a little room to continue chipping away at the pile of recent trip pictures I still have, so here are a few more from the Korsman Bird Sanctuary.

This first pretty face belongs to a spur-winged goose (Plectropterus gambensis), and I read that “they are among the largest true African waterfowl (besides the wading Goliath heron) and are, on average, the world’s largest “goose”.” As for the bald face, I read further that it acts as a mating display, a maturity marker, an excess heat radiator, and something easier to clean than feathers for a bird that regularly digs into mud for tubers.

As luck would have it, this next bird, a heron with reddish and blueish parts, is just such a Goliath heron (Ardea goliath), “the world’s largest living heron.” They are, on average, twice as heavy as the great blue herons we often see in Estabrook Park.

Finally, here’s an African darter (Anhinga rufa) and close cousin to the Anhinga we most recently saw in Florida.

Welp, I’d better wrap this up so I can get out and enjoy some of the nice weather that has finally arrived, but before I go, let me point out that I will be at the beer garden parking lot tomorrow morning at 7am and again at 8am for our weekly wildlife walk. With an easing of the wind out of the north, it felt this morning as though warblers have started to continue their trip north, but they certainly haven’t all left yet, so this might be your last best chance to see them. Also, the winds are supposed to be pretty light, the temps pretty mild, and the skies clear, so the odds are that you won’t get soaked.

A classic start to this holiday weekend…

Our recent cool snap in Estabrook Park continued this morning with temps right around 50° under a thick cloud cover, but at least the winds are starting to ease up.

My first treat of the morning came at the falls, where it appears a pair of northern rough-winged swallows may be nesting. I’ve seen them there for the past couple of days, and this morning one was perched on the railing and let me have a real nice look.

Farther upstream, an osprey was back and on a smaller perch than I would have guessed they were capable of.

Back at the boardwalk just below the falls, the white eyering on this warbler caught me off guard, but all my experts assure me that it is simply a northern yellow warbler.

This Canada warbler looks just as I expected and was in the same bush.

With the low light I had this morning, that’s all I was able to pull off, so let’s take a look at some pictures from earlier this week. On Thursday, when osprey, goslings, and killdeer took center stage, I also saw my first solitary sandpiper of the year, and here it is tossing back the tiniest of bugs it just caught.

On Friday, when the herons and more goslings had my attention, I also saw my first yellow-bellied flycatcher of the year.

Finally, I’ve been seeing this kingbird, yet another first of the year, beside the southern soccer fields all week, and here it is on Thursday putting some of the garlic mustard growing there to good use.

Despite the clouds letting some sun leak through this afternoon, I see they are forecast to thicken up again by sunrise tomorrow, and they might even drop some precipitation. On the other hand, the air is supposed to be almost still, so conditions will probably be a mixed bag once again, and there’s no telling what I might see, but I’ll be sure to keep you in the loop.

Glad to see it cranked to 11 again!

Once again, it was cool and dark in Estabrook Park this morning, but it didn’t feel as bad as the forecast led me to expect, and perhaps the weather even helped me see some of the wildlife I saw. The warblers continue to be thick as thieves, especially along the river, but there were plenty of other pretty sights, as well.

For example, here’s another rose-breasted grosbeak for the year, letting me sneak a slightly better picture than back in April. “Atta boy!”

I haven’t seen a great blue heron since I’ve been back in the park, so I was very glad to finally encounter one today.

As if one heron weren’t enough, this grumpy looking green heron came along just in time to help me out after I flubbed getting a picture of the first one I saw. “Thanks, Sweetie, and you’ve got a little spiderweb schmutz on your face.”

Somehow word must have gotten out that I was worried about a poor crop of goslings this year, because I came across three separate families on the stretch of river between the islands and the Port Washington Road bridge. One had five goslings, a second at eight, and this one went all the way to eleven! Outstanding!

After my goose encounter, I got a hot tip that a red-headed woodpecker, whom we don’t get to see very often, was recently spotted in the vicinity of the beer garden, so I hustled back down there, and sure enough, here it is. Man, oh man, do I hope a pair will take up residence in the park someday, but in the meantime, I’ll take what I can get and like it!

Finally, as I neared the south end, I heard the amazing song of a wood thrush again, which I had heard when I first arrived, and I thought I’d take another stab at getting eyes on it. Well, the little stinker was keeping itself well hidden, but as I scanned the trees overhead for thrush-sized birds, look who I found instead. Yup, you guessed it, our first scarlet tanager of the year. Hot diggity dog!

Lastly, since I have a little room left, here’s the latest look, from yesterday, of that buck we’ve seen starting to grow his antlers. I’d say they’ve more than doubled in size, wouldn’t you?

Despite the sun peeking through now, the forecast calls for cloudy skies again tomorrow morning, but the air should be a little warmer, and the breeze should be a little lighter, so at least I’ll be a little more comfortable as I try taking pictures in the dark. Ha!

Not the show I expected today…

Despite the chill and the breeze, or perhaps because of it, the wildlife viewing in Estabrook Park this morning was amazing. The clear skies we had for a couple of hours were an added bonus.

Things got off to a stupendous start when I spotted this beauty just as I looked down the trail toward the river at the far south end. It appeared to be in a bit of a hurry to get out of sight, so I’m extra thankful that it glanced back for a second to let me have a nice look. I haven’t seen a coyote since there was snow on the ground.

With the breeze out of the northeast, most of the little birdies were in the trees and bushes beside the river and below the bluff, but the sun took its sweet time climbing high enough to reach down to the river path. Thus, the next sight that was big and slow enough for me to capture on film was this pair of goslings grazing beside the river under the watchful eyes of Mom and Dad. I suspect that the rainy April we’ve had has really goofed things up for the geese, because we’d have goslings coming out of the woodwork by now in a normal year, so I’m thrilled to see even these two.

Just after I passed the falls, I caught sight through the trees of a large bird flying downstream over the river, so I hustled back to an opening, and this was my reward, our first osprey of the year. Awesome!

Even better, by the time I reached the islands, two more osprey had arrived, and they put on quite an airshow. One seemed to stay perched and just cried, while the other two circled and fished, but chicks aren’t even supposed to have hatched yet, so it sure wasn’t a fledgling pleading for its parents to feed it. Thus, what the three were doing together there today remains a mystery.

I had barely managed to capture a picture of an osprey in flight, when four killdeer arrived and started to circle the upstream island. They eventually landed, and I have a picture of three of them standing around together, but this one came out the best.

There was plenty more on the river to show you, but I don’t want this to get too long, so let’s move inland just a smidge to check out this acrobatic cedar waxwing pecking at something on that branch right over the boardwalk below the beer garden,

Finally, I found my first nesting blue jay a little farther downstream. As I’ve mentioned before, given their reputation at backyard bird feeders, they are remarkably shy in Estabrook Park, so it is no wonder that it has taken me six years to stumble upon this sight. “Good luck sweetie!”

It appears that we’re in for another morning of this cool and breezy weather, and without the sun next time, but if the wildlife responds again as they did this morning, I’ll allow it!

Ahhhh. That’s what I like to see…

The breeze was lighter and the clouds thinner in Estabrook Park this morning than the forecast had led me to fear, so nice images were a lot easier to find than yesterday.

Warblers get most of the press, for a variety of reasons, but they are far from the only pretty birds in the migration wave washing over us now, and here’s the first indigo bunting I’ve photographed this season. They seem to prefer being by the river, and I found this one at the edge of the clearing beside the islands, which has been a reliable place to find them.

I saw and even photographed a Blackburnian warbler yesterday, but I sure am glad now that I held off on using that dim and grainy picture so that I can show you this one today without repeating myself.

I’ve seen cottontails, gray squirrels, and red squirrels since I’ve gotten back, and this red squirrel munching on tree buds has made the nicest picture so far.

I glimpsed a couple magnolia warblers yesterday, but didn’t even get them on film, so it was great to capture this adult female today.

I spotted a Lincoln’s sparrow last month, but this shy little cutie at the crest of the bluff is the first one I’ve been able to show you this year.

Here’s one of the warblers that doesn’t have “warbler” in its name, a northern parula. Both “John James Audubon and Alexander Wilson called it a “blue yellow-backed warbler,”” but “Carl Linnaeus originally classified the bird as a type of titmouse (genus Parus),” so the American Ornithologists’ Union supposedly went with “parula” “to honor its history and distinctive appearance,” even after that misclassification was corrected.

Finally, the chimney swifts are also back, and here’s one of a couple dozen hunting insects over the Milwaukee River

The forecast for tomorrow calls for even cooler air and a bit more of a breeze but even more sun than today’s forecast did, so who knows, it might still be a nice morning.

What a difference a couple weeks can make…

The influx of migrating warblers, which was merely a trickle in Estabrook Park by the end of April, is now a flood. The bushes and trees were just crawling with them in spots, and I counted 18 species. I sure hope I get a nice sunny day to take pictures of them before they move on, but today was not that day. The breeze was stiff and the clouds were thick, but at least the rain never materialized.

Sunrise is nice and early now, so even with the cloud cover I was able to get into the park just after 5:30am, and the action was already well underway. I could hear warblers singing even before I crossed the Oak Leaf Trail. The only trick was laying eyes on them, and the breeze helped a bit by pushing the available bugs closer to the ground.

Here’s a gorgeous male bay-breasted warbler searching for insects to gobble up, right at eye level.

And here’s a male chestnut sided multitasking right beside the paved path along the crest of the bluff. Even though he was flitting about as much as any other warbler I saw this morning, that barely added some pauses to his song.

I hear that the pond was quite active during the wildlife walk yesterday, but it was a chance to take a breather this morning and see some bigger and slower birds. The pair of geese are still there, along with a pair of mallards and at least one green heron, but the big surprise was finding this lone female blue-winged teal. I don’t know how long she’s been there, but she has certainly gotten the hang of life on the pond. As I picked up some left-over fishing tackle on the west lawn, she came right over with the pair of mallards and started to preen. I have not seen that level of comfort with people from a teal before.

Other warblers along the bluff this morning include yellows, black-throated greens, magnolias, Blackburnians, redstarts, and common yellowthroats, to name a few, but the best looks I managed to get today were of this blackpoll, …

and this, ever reliable, palm warbler.

Since I have room for one more picture, here’s a stunning Black-collared Barbet (Lybius torquatus) from the Korsman Bird Sanctuary, who was no more interested in sitting for a picture than the Crested Barbet had been the morning before. Maybe that’s why they’re called “bar bets”. Almost no one ever sees one, so it’s likely that someone at a bar would take the bet that you haven’t seen one either because such an unusual looking bird can’t possibly be real. It’d be like stealing free drinks from a baby.

I see that the wind should die down a bit by tomorrow, but the clouds are scheduled to stick around, so it won’t be the morning I’m dreaming about, but maybe it will be just good enough. Time will tell.