On the Morning of Saturday, May 20, six birders gathered for our annual bird walk at Wild River State Park. The morning dawned cool and the first birders to descend the hill into the St. Croix River were greeted by the sight of fog in the valley. As the time arrived for us to set out on our walk, the fog had dissipated into clear blue skies. Signs of the recent spring floodwaters could still be seen in many places, so we traded our usual path through a meadow that is often wet in a normal year for a walk along the road and into the woods along the Amik’s Pond Trail and then back to the boat landing. We encountered a lot of warbler activity in the woods at the same place the mosquitoes were hanging out. Unfortunately, many of the warblers were foraging high up in backlit branches, but we were able to catch glimpses of seven warbler species or hear their calls. We were delighted that two Golden-winged Warblers were among those that we were able to both see and hear.
A total of 38 species were found during the walk: Canada Goose, Trumpeter Swan, Mallard, Ruffed Grouse, Mourning Dove, Sandhill Crane, Great Blue Heron, Turkey Vulture, Red-bellied Woodpecker, Pileated Woodpecker, Olive-sided Flycatcher, Eastern Phoebe, Blue Jay, Black-capped Chickadee, Tree Swallow, Blue-gray Gnatcatcher, Gray Catbird, Eastern Bluebird, Wood Thrush, American Robin, American Goldfinch, Chipping Sparrow, Song Sparrow, Swamp Sparrow, Baltimore Oriole, Red-winged Blackbird, Brown-headed Cowbird, Common Grackle, Ovenbird, Golden-winged Warbler, Blue-winged Warbler, Black-and-white Warbler, Tennessee Warbler, Common Yellowthroat, Yellow Warbler, Chestnut-sided Warbler, Rose-breasted Grosbeak, and Indigo Bunting.
Unable to let the morning of birding end quite yet, Darcy, Joe, and Michelle checked on the bridge over Spring Creek and followed the trail along the riverfront to just beyond the mouth of Dry Creek and back. This hike added another nine species to the morning’s list of birds of which a pair of Yellow-throated Vireo were a highlight and included Bald Eagle, Broad-winged Hawk, Downy Woodpecker, Least Flycatcher, Northern Rough-winged Swallow, Field Sparrow, Savannah Sparrow, and Orchard Oriole.
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