With rain threatening, four intrepid birders joined us at Reifel for a morning outing. Three Sandhill Cranes greeted us right by the entrance office along with several Anna’s Hummingbirds flitting about the feeders.

Sandhill Cranes

Stopping by the house pond we observed Gadwalls, Green-winged Teal, Northern Shovelers, Ring-necked Ducks and of course Mallards. Moving along, an expected Black-crowned Night Heron was snoozing in its usual hang out while many House Sparrows hopped around the path and feeders. Passing Fuller Slough, we headed down the East Dyke trail and were greeted by many sparrows: Spotted Towhees, Dark-eyed Juncos, and Golden-crowned, Fox, and Song Sparrows, And of course Black-capped Chickadees looking for a handout. Many Chickadees. On the fields across from the slough we could see 10 Killdeer and with a little more searching, we found 2 Pectoral Sandpipers among them. Flying around the fields and also feeding there were Cackling and Snow Geese, with a few Canada Geese mixed in.

Looking North from the North Dyke

As we walked the North Dyke looking out onto the big marsh there, we found several Northern Harriers, as well as a Rough-legged and a Red-tailed Hawk. Red-winged Blackbirds and a Common Raven kept us company as we moved along. Continuing past the tower out to the West Dyke we were greeted by more Harriers and several Bald Eagles. From the dyke, we came across a couple of Marsh Wrens, Great Blue Herons and a Pied-billed Grebe, along with the expected ducks and 2 unexpected Barn Swallows.

For a day that the forecast promised 100% chance of showers, we only experienced a couple of very short, very light sprinkles. We ended the morning with 45 species on our list. You can see our list for the walk here https://ebird.org/checklist/S280399737