Harbor Island, Grand Haven

Cal Pomarius led the first field trip of the 97/98 season. We enjoyed a nice variety of shorebirds and migrating warblers along with several other birds.

Upon entering the Wastewater Area, a couple of Bluebirds were observed sitting on posts by the road. A Red-headed Woodpecker and a Northern Flicker were both foraging for bugs high up in a tree. Cedar Waxwings and a Scarlet Tanager were also seen in this area. Several Tree Swallows were observed dining on the numerous bugs which seem to enjoy the wastewater environment.

Up on the dikes, several Pipits, Savannah Sparrows and Horned Larks were seen. An unused aeration pond produced several shorebirds. A Red Knot, Pectoral and Baird’s Sandpipers, Lesser Yellowlegs, Semipalmated Plovers, and Killdeer were observed by a couple of small puddles left by the recent rains. A Black-bellied Plover and a Spotted Sandpiper were also seen near the shore of one of the larger ponds.

Several species of waterfowl were observed while driving around the dikes. Blue-winged Teal, Northern Shovelers, Ruddy Ducks and Black Ducks were seen along with a few Eared Grebes and Pied-billed Grebes. Other birds at the Wastewater were several Red-tailed Hawks, a Kestrel, numerous Turkey Vultures and Gulls.

Next we proceeded to the State Game Area. Here we came across a wave of migrating warblers. We observed Black-throated Green, Bay-breasted, Black-and-white, Magnolia, Blackpoll, and Palm Warblers, and also American Redstarts and Common Yellowthroats. Also seen were Yellow-throated and Red-eyed Vireos, a Downy Woodpecker, a White-throated Sparrow and a Rose-breasted Grosbeak.

Farther back in the State Game Area, in a marsh area, both a Great Blue Heron and a Black-crowned Night Heron were observed flying across the marsh. Also seen in this area was a Double-crested Cormorant and a Catbird.

As for non-feathered sightings of the day, a Red Fox was observed at the Wastewater Area running through the field. At the State Game Area, a garter snake which had just eaten (it had a rather enlarged mid-section) was seen crawling through the grass. A few Painted turtles were also seen in the marsh.

Leader: Cal Pomarius

On October 4th, five tough birders piled into my old Jeep and headed off to the Muskegon Wastewater in the rain. While driving up there, well over a hundred Double-crested Cormorants flew over the highway. When we arrived at the Wastewater Area, lightning was still visible in the northern sky, but we still managed to see a nice variety of birds from the car and could occasionally get out and view between rain showers.

Several hundred Mallards were seen in a shallow pond along with a few Black Ducks, a Northern Pintail, Widgeon and Blue-winged Teal. There were also Greater and Lesser Yellowlegs present. Up in the trees by the road a Robin and an Eastern Phoebe were seen. In a drainage ditch, a Great Blue Heron was visible.

While traveling the dikes, several birds were sighted in the road or in the low bushes. These included Pipits, Savannah Sparrows, Yellow-rumped Warblers and Palm Warblers. In the woods across from the road, a Red-bellied Woodpecker was searching for dinner in a dead tree and a Flicker also flew into the woods. In the ponds, Northern Shovelers, Gadwalls, Coots, a few Eared Grebes, Scaup, Redheads and Several Ruddy Ducks were seen. A Baird’s Sandpiper was walking around the edge. There were several Tree Swallows flying over the ponds again, catching bugs.

After cruising the dikes, we traveled to the other side of Apple Ave to check out another pond. Heading back to the pond, a Northern Harrier was spotted flying over a field. A Copper’s Hawk was also seen back in this area. The bushes along the road produced White-crowned Sparrows, a Cardinal, Lincoln’s Sparrows, Chickadees, and a Downy Woodpecker. There were also Horned Larks sitting in the road. The pond itself, had a few Killdeer and some Pied-billed Grebes. While heading out of this area, a Belted Kingfisher flew out of a drainage ditch by the road.

Heading back to Grand Haven, the weather improved so we made a stop at Harbor Island. A trip down to the boat launch added a Bonaparte’s Gull to the list. Then we followed the bike trail down to the river. Several birds were seen in the bushes by the trail. Both Hermit and Wood Thrushes were seen along with Juncos, a Ruby-crowned Kinglet, Goldfinch, Scarlet Tanager, White-throated Sparrow, Red-eyed Vireo, a Catbird and a Cedar Waxwing. A Brown Creeper was crawling up the side of a tree and a Yellow-bellied Sapsucker was seen high up in a Willow tree. As we were walking back to the Jeep, several Broad-winged Hawks flew over. We also saw a chipmunk with cheeks so full of berries, they looked like they would burst.

Number of species seen: 64