Goose Lake Prairie in Grundy County Saturday 6-3-23

[Al Stokie]

Hello Bird People,

Time to see what birds are at Goose Lake Prairie so today Bob Erickson
& I visited that place after a terrible drive there due to lane
blockage from construction on I-55. Here's our bird list:

Goose Lake Prairie (6:15-9:15 a.m.)

P.B. Grebe (H-1)
D.C. Cormorant (7 fly-bys)
Great Blue Heron (2)
AMERICAN BITTERN (1, 1st a distant fly-by & then a much closer fly-by) (FOY)
Canada Goose (2)
Wood Duck (1)
Mallard (2)
SANDHILL CRANE (H-4)
Killdeer (1)
WILD TURKEY (1, a pair)
Ring Necked Pheasant (4 seen & heard more)
Mourning Dove (6)
BLACK BILLED CUCKOO (1)
Flicker (1)
Eastern Pewee (1)
Willow Flycatcher (~10)
Great Crested Flycatcher (H-1)
Eastern Kingbird (4)
Tree (4) & Barn (6) Swallows
House Wren (H-4)
Marsh Wren (1)
Robin (5)
Catbird (1)
Brown Thrasher (1)
Starling (4)
Warbling Vireo (H-2)
BELL'S VIREO (3) (FOY)
Yellow Warbler (2)
Common Yellowthroat (~20) (The most common bird of the day)
YELLOW BREASTED CHAT (3)
Cardinal (H-1)
Dickcissel (7-8)
Eastern Towhee (H-1)
Field Sparrow (4)
HENSLOW'S SPARROW (4)
Song Sparrow (4)
Red Wings (10), Grackles (2) & Cowbirds (5)
Eastern Meadowlark (4)
Goldfinch (6)
House Sparrow (2)

That's 43 species at Goose Lake & I added Pigeons & Great Egret on the
way home for a day total of 45 species. Bird-Of-The-Day will be the
American Bittern & Runners-Up will be the Black Billed Cuckoo, the
Wild Turkeys, the Chats & the Bell's Vireos.
By 9:15 a.m. it had become very hot & humid so we called it a day
although a short one.

Al Stokie
In Grundy County today