On Fri, I drove back down to Lancaster for the Rosy Finch. No go. That bird is unofficially gone.
Actually, as of today, I'd say it's officially gone. Anyway, it was still a good day. I managed to bag 6 species of Finch for the day. My single greatest number of Finch species in one day! I had a grand total of 7 species for the week though.
I also managed to add a bird to Jeff's now growing yard list:
This Red-tailed Hawk flew directly over my head. I also saw a Bald Eagle fly directly over the house. Other birds at the feeders were: Titmice, Chickadees, Cardinals, Common Redpolls, Am Goldfinches, Pine Siskins, House Finches and Purple Finches.
A stop at Pine Grove Rd on the way home added White-winged Crossbill to my list for the day.
Today, after orchestra and my lesson this morning, I stopped at Arena Boat landing on my way home for a N Saw-whet Owl that had been reported there.
After failing to even find the location (much less the bird) I drove down to the small creek that runs alongside the road and picked up a few wintering birds including this very cold looking Killdeer:
This is the earliest in the year I have ever seen this bird and certainly the first time I have seen one in Jan. Especially in snow like this.
I also saw Am Robins, 1 Belted Kingfisher, 1 Song Sparrow, 2 Canada Geese and a bunch of Mallards. Otherwise there wasn't much around to see.
I have to double check this but I think that the only passerine in Southern Wisconsin at this time of year that I haven't seen yet is Red-breasted Nuthatch. Any other passerine would either require a trip up north, or would be a rather rare bird at this time of year.
In other words, I'm missing only two raptors for Jan and a whole slew of Ducks and waterfowl.
Interestingly enough, there's so much water frozen around here that I haven't seen a single gull of any species! Not one. Ah well, that'll change as soon as the ice melts.
Happy Birding!
