An early spring warbler search yields sparrows

It was a pretty good day of birding, all told. Brother Phil and I started before sunrise on April 11 with a drive to the Marais des Cygne Wildlife Area about 50 miles south of Kansas City on the Kansas side of the state line.

A Bonaparte’s Gull found its way to a lake near Montrose, Colorado, and added a new species to our Big Year list. Photo courtesy of Terry Ryan.

We’d learned from the experts that several warbler species migrate through this part of the world in early to mid-April. Although we did pick up 50 new birds, including 12 that were new to our Big Year list, we saw only a few Yellow-rumped Warblers. Apparently, the others didn’t attend the lecture.

Yellow-rumped Warblers hang out in this area all year. Seeing one is about as exciting as spotting a House Sparrow, except the warblers are prettier and springier because of their yellow-rumptedness.

Speaking of sparrows (Yes, I know House Sparrows aren’t Sparrows. They’re finches. Just bear with me.), we did add three – Lark, Harris’ and Vesper – all new to the list. We also counted a Scissor-tailed Flycatcher, Eastern Wood Pewee, Franklin’s Gull, Red-headed Woodpecker, Barn Swallow, Blue-gray Gnatcatcher, Brown-headed Cowbird, Brown Thrasher and Tree Swallow.

Meanwhile at a lake near Montrose, Colorado, brother Terry was watching Western and Bonaparte’s Gulls and Mute Swans. So the total of new species for the weekend was 15. Kind of exciting for birders who are used to living with disappointment.

We’re not giving up on the warblers, of course. In early May, we’ll head for the James A. Reed Memorial Wildlife Area a few miles east of Kansas City. We’ll rise in the dark, pack up our binoculars, scopes and field guides, fill large travel mugs with coffee (leading to frantic searches for scarce toilets later) and sally forth on our quest for the Holy Quail. Ticks and mosquitoes be damned.