• 2018 Lake Scott State Park in Kansas September 4 and 5

    We had a fair bit of rain in Kansas as we started our trip on September 4. Fortunately, most of the rain was at night and we were able to get out and bird most of every day.  For photography, though...well, bear with me...the light was ..bad!

    Red-tailed Hawks we had aplenty, both young and old.

    There is a herd of partial albino bison at the park. Remember the legendary 
    White Buffalo...these are said to be his or her descendants.

    Here's a family of Baltimore Orioles - just one juvenile

    Male on the left, female on the right

    I grew up in Kansas fairly oblivious to the wonders of birds. But I do remember Blue Jays. They were hard to ignore, and are still just as noisy and full of interesting antics.

    These Brown Thrashers came up for a spot of sun.

    I always love finding Great Crested Flycatchers.

    This is a scruffy Downy Woodpecker - you can tell it's not a Hairy by the short bill. Scruffy is the primary descriptor for a lot of birds in September. Many birds are molting  or trying to achieve basic adult plumage, or are "worn" from nesting or otherwise in disarray, not really needing to impress any potential partners at this time of year.

    Eastern Kingbird - not all had migrated out of Kansas.

    Great Blue Herons were not hard to find.

    But Green Herons...oh yeah...now that's a find we always appreciate. This one flew across the front of the car where we were parked investigating the lake inlet. 

    This Northern Flicker looks like a hybrid (part Red-shafted and part Yellow-shafted)

    Olive-sided Flycatcher...darn hard to get any detail on this high tree dweller with completely gray sky behind.

    A flock of six immature Pied-billed Grebes was accompanied by a single Coot.

    This is a young robin with a Cedar Waxwing for size comparison.

    Here's an image with a little color in it to finish this chapter.

    We love Lake Scott State Park - it's a beautiful place with lovely old trees, has great camping spots and cabins, and is special for birders.

    We recommend it!

    Next...Meade State Park, just 150 miles or so straight south.

     

  • Comments on this post (1 comment)

    • Michael Bowen says...

      Very nice pics, Carol!

      September 16, 2018

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