Mar 2007:
31
Mar: A pair of Red-breasted Mergansers on a retention pond
on Oakwood Blvd. was an unusual find, with only nine previous records and none
in the last six years.. An American Coot was also in the pond.
30
Mar: Fox Sparrows are still around in good numbers,
with the concentration being in the Hickory Meadow. At least 12 were
there this morning. The first Field Sparrows of the season were
also present. A Chipping Sparrow in west Dearborn was a day
earlier than our previous early spring date.
29
Mar: The first Barn Swallow was seen today on the
concrete channel of the Rouge, a new early date.
28
Mar: Two Bufflehead and a female Common Merganser
were on the lake this morning.
26
Mar: At least seven Fox Sparrows in the Hickory Meadow
today.
22
Mar: The first Tree Swallow of spring was seen today, a
new early date by two days. Two pair of Ring-necked Ducks were on Fairlane
Lake today, along with two pair of Wood Ducks, the first of the season,
as well as the first Pied-billed Grebe. Migrant Golden-crowned
Kinglets have also arrived, seen this morning in a rowdy flock. Quite a
few individual migrant Turkey Vultures were moving, and there was one
loose flock of fourteen.
13
Mar: Two Eastern Phoebes were along the lakeside trail on
campus today, a new early date. An American Woodcock was displaying in east Dearborn.
12
Mar: The first Killdeer arrived.
11 Mar: A migrant Fox Sparrow appeared in east
Dearborn today.
10 Mar: A Sandhill Crane flew over east Dearborn.
8
Mar: Our first Turkey Vulture was seen today, with
many others reported for the region. More grackles and Red-winged
Blackbirds also arrived.
3 Mar: One report of a Common Grackle is our only
spring arrival so far.
Feb 2007:
20
Feb: Results from the 2006-2007 Winter
Bird Population Survey have been posted.
17
Feb: The Swamp Sparrow that has been wintering in the
swamp is still present.
7
Feb: The
Wayne County Breeding Bird Atlas web pages have been updated. Scroll down
the left menu for a link to the 2006 summary.
Jan 2007:
27
Jan: Two Golden-crowned Kinglets are still on campus,
and two Fox Sparrows have remained at an east Dearborn feeder since
fall.
25
Jan: A large flock of about 50 Snow Buntings were
reported on the Ford Test Track today.
16
Jan: Yesterday, we had a report of an adult Bald Eagle
flying over the Oakwood Hospital area. Today, a female Yellow-bellied
Sapsucker was found in the pines along Fairlane Drive on campus, tending
fresh sap wells.
12
Jan: Two or three Winter Wrens are still in the swamp,
where they were found on the Christmas Count on 1 Jan, as well as a Golden-crowned
Kinglet.
7
Jan: A Red-headed Woodpecker in west Dearborn is the
first winter record since before 1985; in general, this is a pretty rare
species here.
3
Jan: The results of the Dearborn portion of the Detroit River
Christmas Bird Count have been posted. We tied the low number of species
at 41, with nothing much notable found. A very warm
December translated into open water all over the region, dispersing waterfowl
and resulting in low counts for these species. Lack of snow cover and warm
temperatures also provided increased food supplies for insectivorous birds,
which were generally widespread and have been more difficult to find flocked
up than in previous seasons. A generally wet fall and heavy rain the day
previous to the count made sunflower fields saturated and difficult for birds
to forage on ground. One field was not planted (Southfield and Rotunda) and
another had no sunflower heads (Rotunda and Schaefer). The 204% increase in
starlings over the previous high (and a 500% increase from the previous
10-year average) are from starlings found in the two oldest sunflower fields.
A similar situation is found with House Sparrows, with this year’s new high
a 328% increase from the previous 10-year average.
With the sunshine today, a
number of species were singing, including Winter Wren, House Finch,
White-throated Sparrow, American Robin (still over 100 on or near campus),
and Northern Cardinal.
