THANK YOU TO MICHEL GAUTHIER FOR SENDING IN THIS REPORT OF THE BIRDS SEEN
Feature photo of Gallinule by Michel Gauthier
On Wednesday, Aug 23, 2017, the Mississippi Valley Field Naturalists (MVFN) held a birding open house at the Almonte Lagoon Observation Tower. This was the first of four similar open houses to be held on Wednesday afternoons from 3:00 to 5:00 pm. Biologist Ken Alison was the expert birder on hand to answer questions. Thirty-one species of birds were identified during the event.
MVFN maintains an observation tower overlooking the Almonte Lagoons, and a trail into the tower and invites you to walk in and view the multitude of birds between 3:00 and 5:00 pm on three additional dates: Aug 30, Sept 6, and Sept 13. A field naturalist with a spotting scope will be at the tower to talk about the birds and to provide the opportunity to learn the identity of the different species. Visitors to the tower are encouraged to bring binoculars.
Full details and directions here.
In order to pique your interest, here is a list of the bird species that were seen on August 23rd:
Canada Goose
Wood Duck
Mallard
Blue-winged Teal
Hooded Merganser
Pied-billed Grebe
Great Blue Heron
Turkey Vulture
Sharp-shinned Hawk
Common Gallinule
Rock Pigeon
Mourning Dove
Chimney Swift
Ruby-throated Hummingbird
Belted Kingfisher
Eastern Phoebe
Warbling Vireo
Red-eyed Vireo
Blue Jay
American Crow
Tree Swallow
Cliff Swallow
Barn Swallow
Cedar Waxwing
Common Yellowthroat
Yellow-rumped Warbler
Song Sparrow
Bobolink
Red-winged Blackbird
Common Grackle
American Goldfinch
