Muirhead Springs Sunday 9-14-25

[Al Stokie]

Hello Bird People,

Thought I'd see what ducks & shorebirds were at Muirhead today. I had
5 species of ducks & also 5 species of shorebirds. The East Pond has
more mudflats but fewer shorebirds with more of them seeming to like
the mud edges of the main pond? I did not find the Ring Necked Duck
that I saw last week & I did not see the early Horned Grebe that has
been around for a few days.
Here's what I did see:

Main Pond

P.B. Grebe (20--22) (With a few very small young ones)
D.C. Cormorant (1)
Great Blue Heron (4)
Great Egret (3)
Canada Goose (4)
Mallard (12-15)
Green Winged Teal (~40)
Blue Winged Teal (~15)
Shoveler (5)
Pintail (2)
NORTHERN HARRIER (1, hunting)
Killdeer (7)
Greater (1) & Lesser (3) Yellowlegs
Pectoral Sandpiper (2)
STILT SANDPIPER (1)
Barn (3) & Tree (4) Swallows

East Pond

P.B. Grebe (3)
Great Egret (1)
Mallard (1-F)
Killdeer (9)
Pectoral Sandpiper (2)
Tree Swallow (2)

Misc Landbirds

Mourning Dove (5), Kestrel (1), Blue Jay (H-1), Common Yellowthroat (2),
Savannah Sparrow (8), Goldfinch (2) & House Sparrow (6)

So 26 species at Muirhead plus roadside Pigeons for a day's total of 27.
Bird-Of-The-Day will be the hunting Harrier & Runner-Up will be the
Stilt Sandpiper.
I should mention that I have never seen as many dogs on the trail as I
did today including 3 monster Great Danes who in spite of their size
have always been friendly. I think the dog total was 10 for the day.

Al Stokie
In Kane County today