Warbler Walk Report - Lake Park, Milwaukee 8/28/10

Warbler Walk Report - Lake Park, Milwaukee 8/28/10

At 8:30 AM about 20 birders gathered on the wooden Rustic Bridge over
Locust Ravine eager for the challenge of confusing fall warblers.
Jym Mooney took the advanced birders on a stroll overlooking Locust,
Ravine Road, and Waterfall Ravines; while I (Paul Hunter) strided
along with beginning birders across the Indian Mound, past the Lawn
Bowling greens, to Wolcott Statue, down through Waterfall Ravine and
along the lake shore to hedge just south of the Linwood Water
Treatment Plant.

Including Jym's birding for an hour or so before 8:30 we tallied a
total of 50 species, though most birders saw only 30 - 40 species
themselves. The warblers seemed concentrated in three places: Locust
Ravine between the wooden and steel bridges, Waterfall Ravine near
its outlet near Lincoln Memorial Drive, and Milwaukee's Miniature
Magic Hedge just south of the water treatment plant. Jym's group
specialized in Redstarts, while mine saw several Palm and Myrtle
Warblers. Cathy Dermody saw the Golden-winged Warbler when she split
off from my group near Waterfall Ravine.

The weather may have been the most pleasant of any Warbler Walk with
clear skies, a very light wind, seasonably warm temperatures, but
fairly dry air and very few biting insects.

--- Paul Hunter
Whitefish Bay, Milwaukee County, Wisconsin
http://home.roadrunner.com/~phunter1/lakeparkbirds.html
---------
Warbler Walks at Lake Park, - Saturdays, 8:30 to 10:00 AM
Fall 2010: Aug 21, Aug 28, Sept 4, Sept 11, Sept 18, Sept 25
Meet at the Warming House on the north end of the park.
=====================================================

Location: Lake Park
Observation date: 8/28/10
Number of species: 50

Mallard - Anas platyrhynchos 8
Double-crested Cormorant - Phalacrocorax auritus 20
Semipalmated Plover - Charadrius semipalmatus 2
Spotted Sandpiper - Actitis macularius 1
Ring-billed Gull - Larus delawarensis 15
Herring Gull - Larus argentatus 4
Caspian Tern - Hydroprogne caspia 1
Chimney Swift - Chaetura pelagica 20
Ruby-throated Hummingbird - Archilochus colubris 1
Downy Woodpecker - Picoides pubescens 4
Northern Flicker - Colaptes auratus 1
Eastern Wood-Pewee - Contopus virens 2
Least Flycatcher - Empidonax minimus 1
Eastern Phoebe - Sayornis phoebe 1
Great Crested Flycatcher - Myiarchus crinitus 2
Blue-headed Vireo - Vireo solitarius 1
Philadelphia Vireo - Vireo philadelphicus 1
Red-eyed Vireo - Vireo olivaceus 5
Blue Jay - Cyanocitta cristata 1
American Crow - Corvus brachyrhynchos 3
Barn Swallow - Hirundo rustica 6
Black-capped Chickadee - Poecile atricapillus 10
White-breasted Nuthatch - Sitta carolinensis 6
House Wren - Troglodytes aedon 1
Blue-gray Gnatcatcher - Polioptila caerulea 6
Eastern Bluebird - Sialia sialis 2
Swainson's Thrush - Catharus ustulatus 2
American Robin - Turdus migratorius 20
Gray Catbird - Dumetella carolinensis 1
Cedar Waxwing - Bombycilla cedrorum 12
Golden-winged Warbler - Vermivora chrysoptera 1
Tennessee Warbler - Vermivora peregrina 3
Nashville Warbler - Vermivora ruficapilla 1
Magnolia Warbler - Dendroica magnolia 5
Cape May Warbler - Dendroica tigrina 1
Yellow-rumped Warbler (Myrtle) - Dendroica coronata coronata 5
Black-throated Green Warbler - Dendroica virens 1
Pine Warbler - Dendroica pinus 2
Palm Warbler - Dendroica palmarum 3
Bay-breasted Warbler - Dendroica castanea 1
Blackpoll Warbler - Dendroica striata 2
Black-and-white Warbler - Mniotilta varia 4
American Redstart - Setophaga ruticilla 14
Ovenbird - Seiurus aurocapilla 1
Wilson's Warbler - Wilsonia pusilla 2
Canada Warbler - Wilsonia canadensis 1
Chipping Sparrow - Spizella passerina 6
Northern Cardinal - Cardinalis cardinalis 9
American Goldfinch - Spinus tristis 8
House Sparrow - Passer domesticus 2

This report was generated automatically by eBird v2(http://ebird.org)

Lake Park Sightings 8/25

Lake Park birders,

See the messages from
http://www.birdingonthe.net/mailinglists/WISC.html
Wis Bird Net that I am forwarding below.

--- Paul Hunter
Whitefish Bay, Milwaukee County, Wisconsin
http://home.roadrunner.com/~phunter1/lakeparkbirds.html
---------
Warbler Walks at Lake Park, - Saturdays, 8:30 to 10:00 AM
Fall 2010: Aug 21, Aug 28, Sept 4, Sept 11, Sept 18, Sept 25
Meet at the Warming House on the north end of the park.
=====================================================

Date: Wed, 25 Aug 2010 14:09:40 -0500
Subject: [wisb] Lake Park Milwaukee this morning and North Point last night
From: Brian Hansen <rawshooter@gmail.com>

I really wish I would have got my rear end out of bed a little earlier this
morning. I didn't get to the park until about 8:30 and there was a really
nice push happening. It slowed down a lot after an hour or so but I
managed 11 Warbler species - Blackburnian, Black and White, Cape May,
Chestnut-sided, Nashville, Bay-breasted, Mourning, Northern Waterthrush,
American Redstart, Magnolia and a Black-throated Green. I also had a couple
of those tough to id ones. The Bay-breasted had very obvious rust colored
flanks in the sunlight so it was pretty easy. Other birds of note were
Philadelphia and Red-eyed Vireos - both singing profusely. There were also
many young Chipping Sparrows that kept me busy thinking they were Warblers
from a distance and the usual residents.
I checked north point last night and the Ruddy Turnstone was still there
along with a fairly large group of semi-palms, a few Spotted Sandpipers and
2 Sanderlings. While trying to blend in with the rocks on the edge of the
algae mat and before I was completely over come by the stink, I had a
Semi-palm feeding within 5 feet of me. Easily the closest I've ever come to
a shorebird.

Brian Hansen
Milwaukee - east side

------------------------------

Date: Wed, 25 Aug 2010 13:26:35 -0700 (PDT)
From: "B.G. Sloan" <bgsloan2@yahoo.com>
Subject: [wisb] =?utf-8?B?
TWlsd2F1a2VlIGxha2Vmcm9udCwgOC8yNSDigJMgU3dhbXAgU3Bhc

I woke up early this morning inspired by the passage of last night's
cold front. I left my apartment at 5:30AM, while visions of migrants
danced in my head. I hit Bradford Beach, the algae mats north of
Bradford Beach, and Lake Park. Let's just say the morning's birding
did not meet up with my expectations. I did have three new Milwaukee
walking BIGBY species, but other than that the birding was
surprisingly quiet. A couple of Lake Michigan birders on the Indiana
birding list also have talked about how the front didn't really bring
in anything new today.

A few highlights:

* In a posting earlier today, Brian Hansen reported seeing 4 or 5
shorebird species last night at the algae mats north of Bradford
Beach. I had high hopes that the cold front had brought some
additional BIGBY shorebird species for me. I hung out in this area
for quite awhile this morning and only saw a half dozen Spotted
Sandpipers and one Semipalmated Plover. It's almost like most of the
shorebirds left this spot with the front last night, and no new birds
came in with the front.

* I had a Swamp Sparrow as BIGBY species #87. At the far north end of
Bradford Beach there is a small kind of wet area with native plants.
I stop by this spot every day looking for sparrows, but haven't seen
anything. Today some movement in a couple of plants made me think
there might be a bird down low. After watching for a couple of
minutes, a Swamp Sparrow popped up and sat at the top of a plant for
several seconds before it flew off.

* Up in Lake Park I saw a Philadelphia Vireo in an open area in one
of the ravines. There may have been two. BIGBY species #88.

* In the same area as the Philadelphia Vireo I saw a hummingbird that
seemed to have a personal vendetta going against a Blue-gray
Gnatcatcher. When I first saw them the hummer was pursuing the
gnatcatcher. The gnatcatcher flew into some thick leafy cover. The
hummer perched on a bare branch. When the gnatcatcher emerged from
the cover, the hummer attacked the gnatcatcher again. This happened a
couple more times. Made me wonder what got the hummer so riled up?

* Speaking of hummingbirds, I saw several over a five minute period
while watching the jewelweed in the ravine north of the lighthouse.

* As I was leaving Lake Park I checked out the ravine south of the
lighthouse and got a brief glimpse of what I'm pretty sure was a
Yellow-throated Vireo. BIGBY species #89.

* Finally, I had a real treat as I hit the lakefront before sunrise.
I heard a coyote howl plaintively twice. I'm used to hearing coyotes
in other places, but it was a different experience hearing one in a
city. Gave me goose bumps.

Well, I'm getting another early start tomorrow morning. Maybe some
more migrants will show up.

Bernie Sloan
Milwaukee

8/21 Warbler Walk at Lake Park in Milwaukee

Report of Warbler Walk on 8/21/10 at Lake Park in Milwaukee
by Paul Hunter

Six birders enjoyed pleasant, dry, sunny conditions and even saw a
few warblers on this first of six Warbler Walks for the autumn of 2010.

For the more intense birders, the small mixed flock of sandpipers on
the northernmost part of Bradford Beach was the highlight. Just
prior to that we ran into a small flurry of activity and the eastern
end of Waterfall Ravine, high in the trees at the base of the bluff.
The Great Crested Flycatcher sat in the open in good light for quite
a while, but a scruffy dull Indigo Bunting and a couple warblers
flitted high among the leaves. The other warblers were scattered
with a couple on the footbridge over Ravine Road and a couple in the
hedge row just south of the Linwood water treatment plant.

A small flock of Eastern Bluebirds fluttered down from the scattered
trees to the lawn south on the rugby field and east of Lincoln
Memorial Drive. A few flocks of Cedar Waxwings whistled in the
treetops as they ate berries and sallied out for flying insects.
Hundreds of Chimney Swifts swirled high above the bluffs during the
whole walk.

We started at the Warming House near the tennis courts at 8:30 AM and
returned there at about 10:30 AM.

-------------------

Location: Lake Park
Observation date: 8/21/10
Number of species: 38

Canada Goose 14
Mallard 15
Double-crested Cormorant 8
Spotted Sandpiper 4
Ruddy Turnstone 2 1 in summer plumage, 1 in winter plumage
Sanderling 4
Semipalmated Sandpiper 6
Least Sandpiper 1
Baird's Sandpiper 1
Ring-billed Gull 10
Herring Gull 8
Caspian Tern 2
Chimney Swift 300
Downy Woodpecker 2
Hairy Woodpecker 1
Empidonax sp. 1
Great Crested Flycatcher 1
Red-eyed Vireo 4
American Crow 3
Barn Swallow 2
Black-capped Chickadee 6
White-breasted Nuthatch 4
Blue-gray Gnatcatcher 2
Eastern Bluebird 7
American Robin 20
Gray Catbird 3
Cedar Waxwing 60
Yellow Warbler 2
Magnolia Warbler 1
Yellow-rumped Warbler (Myrtle) 4
Bay-breasted Warbler 1
Chipping Sparrow 4
Song Sparrow 1
Northern Cardinal 5
Indigo Bunting 2
Brown-headed Cowbird 15
Baltimore Oriole 1
House Finch 6
American Goldfinch 8